Linked by Thom Holwerda on Sun 3rd Jun 2012 22:04 UTC
So, I've been using the Windows 8 Release Preview since it came out, almost exclusively (except for work, since I'm obviously not going to rely on unfinished and untested software for that). I already knew I could get into Metro on my 11.6" ZenBook, but on my 24" desktop, things aren't looking as rosy. Here's an illustrated guide of the most pressing issues I run into, and five suggestions to address them. Instead of just complaining, let's get constructive.
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RE[5]: Comment by gmlongo
by Thom_Holwerda on Sun 3rd Jun 2012 22:39
in reply to "RE[4]: Comment by gmlongo"
Member since:2005-06-29
Because, even with other splits, many of them would still have "wasted space" because the website was explicitly coded as such.
This is decidedly untrue. Most websites would lose ALL their whitespace when presented in, say, a 50/50 split.
It's a moot point you're making, though - it's still Metro's fault for not being designed for the real web, but instead, for some non-existing fairytale web.
RE[6]: Comment by gmlongo
by gmlongo on Sun 3rd Jun 2012 22:45
in reply to "RE[5]: Comment by gmlongo"
Member since:2005-07-07
I said "many of them" would still have wasted whitespace. 70/30 would certainly, and even 60/40 would have some. So my point stands.
Secondly, Metro wasn't designed with the sole purpose of having a browser, and only a browser, in the left pane. And your comments about having fixed width websites being due to readability is not exactly true; there are many apps whose sole purpose is for presenting readable information that can and do take advantage of that width.
Member since:2005-07-06
Most websites would lose ALL their whitespace when presented in, say, a 50/50 split.
It's a moot point you're making, though - it's still Metro's fault for not being designed for the real web, but instead, for some non-existing fairytale web.
It's a moot point you're making, though - it's still Metro's fault for not being designed for the real web, but instead, for some non-existing fairytale web.
But while http://www.osnews.com/img/26032/Screenshot%20(1).png might in itself seem wasteful, it also makes things more readable, as you say - if you just want to display one webpage (what people generally seem to do, no 50/50 splits or such), there's no other sensible way to do it... it would be like that in any UI.
(the screenshots that follow, where you want to do something additional, are a separate issue)
OSNews has 2 columns - so yeah, like most web pages it doesn't feel right when stretched to entirety of large monitor.
Large-format paper publications with width and text size proportions of that screenshot would probably have ~4 columns, and for good reason ...fix OSNews, to fill that space in such scenario ;P (yes, easier said than done - an unfortunate combination of widescreens becoming the standard plus the "legacy" of HTML & how we always did pages, I guess; any automatic determination of column numbers based on text and display size would also break a bit the concept of scrolling...)
The crazy thing is - 10% of all Windows users is still close to 100 million people.
Last I heard, it was something like ~1.2 billion PCs and ~2 billion users - so more like close to 200 million people, even.
PS. Why don't I have that "top rated comments" field?
Edited 2012-06-03 22:58 UTC
RE[6]: Comment by gmlongo
by computrius on Mon 4th Jun 2012 13:14
in reply to "RE[5]: Comment by gmlongo"
Member since:2006-03-26
Open osnews in windows 7 and maximize the browser on the same resolution monitor. Do you not get the same thing? I hate metro with a passion but this is not a metro issue. As long as the browser can resize to take the full width it has always been up to the site designer to take advantage of that width.
It just seems weird to try to make the "IT SHOULD JUST KNOW!" Argument and then try to apply it only to metro.
Edited 2012-06-04 13:16 UTC
News
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/20/13 21:50 UTC
PocketNow interviews Marc Dillon, and there's an interesting note about why Jolla is keeping the display properties under wraps: "We're leaving some of those details out because we do understand that there are a lot of really big players in the market and they tend to take certain components in the market and dominate them. We created the ability to actually be able to run Sailfish on multiple hardware displays and be able to swap components, so this is part of the demand and supply planning phase. We are committed to this industrial design which is a 4.5-inch display, an 8 megapixel camera on the back and a front-facing camera at the front, and the exact specs of the display we'll provide when we're close to delivery." Something you rarely hear anything about.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/19/13 23:15 UTC
"This is my NeXTstation Turbo Color booting the Mac System 7.1 Operating System using a hardware add-on called 'Daydream'. The Daydream has a Mac ROM and a few custom ICs in it and hooked up to the NeXTs DSP port. Turns your NeXT into a full fledged 68k powered Mac." So cool.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/19/13 23:11 UTC, submitted by Drumhellar
"The NetBSD Project is pleased to announce NetBSD 6.1, the first feature update of the NetBSD 6 release branch. It represents a selected subset of fixes deemed important for security or stability reasons, as well as new features and enhancements. Please note that all fixes in the prior security/bugfix updates (NetBSD 6.0.1 and 6.0.2) are also in 6.1."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/18/13 21:06 UTC
"At the end of a week in which Electronic Arts confirmed it wasn't developing a thing for the Wii U, one of the software engineers in EA Sports' Canada studio, in a series of since-deleted tweets, disparaged the console as 'crap' and suggested Nintendo should give up on hardware altogether. 'The Wii U is crap. Less powerful than an Xbox 360. Poor online/store. Weird tablet', tweeted Bob Summerwill, listed as a senior software engineer at EA Canada, in a reply to a tweet posting a link about EA's no-Wii U news. 'Nintendo are walking dead at this point'." The Wii U is turning into the 21st century's Virtual Boy.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/18/13 7:37 UTC
"In NixOS, the entire operating system - the kernel, applications, system packages, configuration files, and so on - is built by the Nix package manager from a description in a purely functional build language. The fact that it's purely functional essentially means that building a new configuration cannot overwrite previous configurations. Most of the other features follow from this." Interesting approach. A Linux distribution, sure, but with some very refreshing ideas about system configuration.
Linked by fran on 05/18/13 1:38 UTC
Appfour added, among other features, C/C++ support to its new version of AIDE. From Android-IDE, "Now you can write parts of your app or your whole app in C/C++ on your device. AIDE supports the Standard Android NDK toolchain (GCC 4.6 + Bionic, STL, ...). No changes are necessary if you want to build an app developed on a PC with Eclipse. C/C++ development is fully integrated: Build errors appear in the error list and files can easily be navigated to with Go to file. The editor supports C/C++ syntax highlighting."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/17/13 23:35 UTC, submitted by kragil
Ars nails it: "The answer is that Google did announce what amounts to a fairly substantial Android update yesterday. They simply did it without adding to the update fragmentation problems that continue to plague the platform. By focusing on these changes and not the apparently-waiting-in-the-wings update to the core software, Google is showing us one of the ways in which it's trying to fix the update problem."
Linked by MOS6510 on 05/17/13 22:22 UTC
"It is good for programmers to understand what goes on inside a processor. The CPU is at the heart of our career. What goes on inside the CPU? How long does it take for one instruction to run? What does it mean when a new CPU has a 12-stage pipeline, or 18-stage pipeline, or even a 'deep' 31-stage pipeline? Programs generally treat the CPU as a black box. Instructions go into the box in order, instructions come out of the box in order, and some processing magic happens inside. As a programmer, it is useful to learn what happens inside the box. This is especially true if you will be working on tasks like program optimization. If you don't know what is going on inside the CPU, how can you optimize for it? This article is about what goes on inside the x86 processor's deep pipeline."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/17/13 22:15 UTC, submitted by Tom
"It was the only moment I heard regret slip into Otellini's voice during the several hours of conversations I had with him. 'The lesson I took away from that was, while we like to speak with data around here, so many times in my career I've ended up making decisions with my gut, and I should have followed my gut,' he said. 'My gut told me to say yes.'" The world would've been a much different place - Apple would have been less dependant on Samsung for its chips, which probably would've meant less money for Samsung to develop its Galaxy business.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/16/13 21:41 UTC
Glass is getting some love at Google I/O as well. New applications have been released - Facebook, Twitter, Evernote, Elle, Tumblr, and CNN. Perhaps more interesting: the newly announced Google Glass Developer Kit will allow offline applications and direct hardware access - great for hacking and expanding Glass' potential. This kit will really allow hackers to put Glass through its paces.More News »
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Member since:
2005-07-07
That is only because you have a browser in the left pane. That could be any application, many of which make excellent use of the full width.
Yes, I agree, that 80/20 is limiting and additional customizable splits would be beneficial, but that does not change the fact that your graphics with the "wasted space" comments are incorrectly attributing that to Metro. Because, even with other splits, many of them would still have "wasted space" because the website was explicitly coded as such.
In any case, their usage data obviously indicates that most people focus on their main task to the exclusion of other windows. And that aligns with the real world usage patterns I have seen as well.