Linux is struggling on the desktop because it only has a small number of "great" apps, according to the Gnome co-creator. Miguel de Icaza, co-creator of the Gnome desktop, told tech journalist Tim Anderson at the recent Windows 8 Build conference "When you count how many great desktop apps there are on Linux, you can probably name 10," de Icaza said, according to a post on Anderson's IT Writing blog. "You work really hard, you can probably name 20. We've managed to p*** off developers every step of the way, breaking APIs all the time."
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
Member since:2008-10-30
Member since:2006-01-04
With all the functionality Konqeror and Nautilus provide I sure as hell count them as great desktop apps. Great apps are apps that you can use all day and that do everything you need. To me that is the only sane definition. Finder and Explorer don't compare IMO.
Edited 2011-09-30 05:56 UTC
Member since:2006-02-01
Member since:2011-09-30
I'll try also.
I.My great CLI apps
1.SSH, SCP
2.ranger
3.nano
4.rtorrent
5.ncmpcpp
II.My great GUI apps
1.kate - most advance Linux TE. On windows I use UltraEdit, but trey are different - some feature missed in UE and other missed in kate.
2.Okular - it's not only PDF viewer, I should use a couple windows apps to get that productivity.
3.Amarok, Clementine
4.VLC
5.KJots - great app for note taking, never find something similar for windows.
6.IDE - eclipse, QTCreator, SQLDeveloper, JDeveloper, eric - daily I use at least 2 of them (work or hobby) and they are powerfull and has all feature of modern IDE(atleast all I need)
7.KRunner - it's great. On windows I use Launchy, which is also Linux app.
8.Blender, GIMP, Scribus, digiKam - I never used this for complex work, but this doesn't do them less great.
9.Calibre - I've Kindle, Nook and smartphone with epub reader. They love calibre and calibre love them.
10.k3b
I use real multyuser and virtual desktop capabilities
of Linux.
What I need and found only for windows:
1.XMLSpy - really mature xml editor. I don't like XMLSpy with wine or java based editix enough
2.Toad for Oracle
3.PLSQLDeveloper
What I want in the future:
1.Dolphin - It's good but I need a few missing options.
2.UML, ER Diagram mature application - Umbrello is good, but not great.
Daily I use less than 15 different apps on Linux or Windows. Monthly no more than 30 different.
Member since:2006-06-12
Umbrello 3 will be OK. But I can't tell how much time it will take us to get there. Expect keyboard friendly usage, docked tools (like MySQL workbench bottom part), documentation parsing, dictionary based documentation auto generation and retro generation. New, modern, canvas, reworked dialogs and much more.
Member since:2009-08-18
Member since:2011-09-30
Why? Because linux community can write portability code. If you could say that app was produce 3 months earlier for windows they I could understand your point. You can't say it's run on windows so it's not linux app. If some application from Linux native is compiled for windows it's needed. When windows app is introduce for linux it's also because it's needed and wanted from many, many linux users.
VirtalBox use .VirtualBox directory in User home dir, so probably it's only linux app, isn't it?
Edited 2011-09-30 10:58 UTC
Member since:2006-01-04
Member since:2010-02-08
Your list can be divided into four (nonexclusive) groups:
1) Multiplatform applications like thunderbird
2) Basic utilities that have as capable counterparts for Windows: for example gparted
3) Cheap knockoffs used only because they don't cost anything or because there is nothing better for linux: LibreOffice is good example here
Member since:2006-01-04
1) Multiplatform applications like thunderbird
2) Basic utilities that have as capable counterparts for Windows: for example gparted
3) Cheap knockoffs used only because they don't cost anything or because there is nothing better for linux: LibreOffice is good example here
1) So?
2) Which as capable counterpart to gparted is *free*?
3) I think MSOffice is bloated unintuitive expensive crap and actually like LibreOffice.
4) ???
??? You said four groups ??? Where is number four? Counting is hard I guess.
Member since:2011-09-30
1) Multiplatform applications like thunderbird
2) Basic utilities that have as capable counterparts for Windows: for example gparted
3) Cheap knockoffs used only because they don't cost anything or because there is nothing better for linux: LibreOffice is good example here
1) I can't name more than 10 great windows apps, which aren't multyplatform.
2) You're kidding. GParted support more file systems than Windows. Do you know btrfs, I make tests with Oracle 11g and btrfs.
3) Yeah, I know people talk how power is MSOffice. I don't need something like that. I almost don't use Libre/Open Office, Calligra Office suit, MSOffice or other.
Member since:2010-02-08
1) So they can hardly be called "linux" applications. The bottom line is that on Windows you can have every good application from linux (or more capable substitute), but not the other way around.
2) Why should it be free?
3) Good for you. At least until you want to send your document to anybody else.
4) Fourth category was basically reworded second, so I removed it.
At an event earlier today, Microsoft unveiled the next Xbox - the third model, but confusingly named Xbox One. The big focus was TV, integrated Kinect, and all the other stuff we all expected to be forced down our throats. I think it took them 25 minutes to actually come to what should be the core of the story: gaming. Nothing groundbreaking in the gaming department, except for how Microsoft intends to handle the used games market and borrowing games from friends: pay up, buddy!
The day has finally come! Jolla has finally announced the launch device for its Sailfish operating system - and by god this is a looker. It's decidedly different from other phones out there, but it has good specifications and carries a relatively reasonably price tag - EUR 399, and it's up for pre-order today, shipping in the fourth quarter of this year.
Why does Google get so much credit in the technology industry? Why, despite the company's many obvious failings, do many geeks and enthusiasts still hold a somewhat positive view on the all-knowing technology giant? A specific talk at Google I/O this week provides the answer.
OSNews is a sponsor of this year's O'Reilly OSCON in Portland, Oregon, USA. A lucky OSNews reader will win a free three-day pass, including two tutorials days. To win the pass, post a comment on this story saying something about Open Source Software or OSCON. We'll pick a winner at random next week. If you don't have an OSNews account, you may email us your entry. Part of the conference is the 9th annual Open Source Awards, and today the 16th is the deadline for nominations. If you'd like to nominate an outstanding open source contributor, do it here. Read on for more information about OSCON. Update: The 20% discount code for OSNews readers is "OSN."
"Windows is indeed slower than other operating systems in many scenarios, and the gap is worsening." That's one way to start an insider explanation of why Windows' performance isn't up to snuff. Written by someone who actually contributes code to the Windows NT kernel, the comment on Hacker News, later deleted but reposted with permission on Marc Bevand's blog, paints a very dreary picture of the state of Windows development. The root issue? Think of how Linux is developed, and you'll know the answer.
This is one of those news items that's fun to write, fun to read, fun to comment on, and where no one will be able to say anything unkind. It's all just one big ball of awesome fluffiness. TuneTracker, the BeOS radio automation software, has just released something very special: TuneTracker System 5, the first version designed entirely and specifically for Haiku. In fact, it actually includes Haiku in the software package. Better yet, TuneTracker also unveiled several system-in-a-box products - which have Haiku and TuneTracker pre-installed.
Exactly twenty years ago, a document was published that played a huge role in establishing the web as we know it today. Twenty years later, and this simple and straightforward document is proof of an irrefutable fact: while closed technologies can change markets, open technologies can change the world.Oh multitasking. That staple of computing that got thrown out the window with many modern smartphones. We got some rudimentary thing in its place - but even as multitasking on phone and tablets improves, its user-visible side remains cumbersome. Windows 8 has a neat implementation, and now it's time Android follows in it footsteps.They're here! Whether that excites you or not remains to be seen, but the Galaxy S4, which will most likely become the best selling Android smartphone of the year by a huge margin, has been reviewed by all the major sites, and there's lots of interesting conclusions in there - although I think most of you will get the gist.Nokia has posted its quarterly results for the first quarter of 2013, and just like the quarters that came before, there's not a whole lot of good news in there. The rise in Lumia sales still can't even dream of making up for the sales drop in Symbian phones, and when broken down in versions, the sales figures for Windows Phone 8 Lumias in particular are very disappointing. In North America, Nokia is getting slaughtered.
Member since:
2006-01-04
1. Firefox
2. Thunderbird
3. LibreOffice
4. Chrome/Chromium
5. Blender
6. Transmission
7. Nautilus
8. Okular
9. Calibre
10. VLC
11. MPlayer
12. Amarok
13. Banshee
14. Konqeror
15. OpenShot
16. Audacity
17. Grip
18. Hydrogen
19. Muse
20. Rosegarden
21. Gimp
22. Inkscape
23. KToon
24. Krita
25. Hugin
26. Scribus
27. Synfig
28. Avidemux
29. Recordmydesktop
30. Conky
31. Filezilla
32. GParted
33. K3B
34. Pidgin
35. VNC
36. Eclipse
37. Gobby
38. Quanta
39. GnomeDo
40. Homebank
41. QtCreator
42. Gnumeric
This is a geek discussion so I will stop at 42 and I haven't even named editors and terminals etc ;-)
Just because all the Windows and Mac people don't care about Linux and don't know apps that don't have big marketing budgets does not mean that there aren't great apps on Linux.
Sure Linux is lacking in the Games and Video editing department, but tools for working with text/code and sound are top.