Submitted by GNOME Shell is the new core user interface for GNOME 3. GNOME Shell 2.29.0 brings a lot of new features and improvements, the most noticeable being a new message tray showing notifications sliding into the bottom of the screen, a status area for past notifications, the ability to set your presence to the user status menu, switching the overview between a grid and linear view of workspaces.
As I read through the list of changes, it struck me how many of the reservations I had about gnome-shell 2.28 were fixed. this could really turn out nice.
Well, it’s still very much an in-development project, so only to be expected that early deficiencies will be resolved. I’ll have to give this latest snapshot a try…
The more I see these Gnome3 and KDE4 stuff more I think I won’t be able to come back to Linux after buying an iMac with Snow Leopard…
Because there’s obviously no such thing as XFCE or Enlightenment or LXDE or a buttload of other assorted window managers to choose from in Linux. Troll more.
I’m serious, i’m not trolling, I would love to come back to Linux, but all these technological nonsense in the Linux world is getting me sick.. They are changing for the sake of change, not for improving human satisfaction while using the software..
Why the hell no one on the community ever uses User centered design methods? They are really easy to apply, even if you are not a designer..
Damn it, even a few user research and prototyping wouldn’t hurt no one…
i’ve been using gnome-shell since 2.28 and have been updating from git every day. the difference between 6 months ago is amazing.
BUT
i’ve only realised in the past couple of weeks that gnome-shell isn’t very revolutionary, more evolutionary.
the overlay is just a start menu that lets you manage windows as well. it’s a cool idea and i feel very comfortable but it’s really just a start menu in on column and a window arranger in the other.
I think that it’s a much cleaner way to handle everything but it’s still only spade v1.9.
May I ask you how do you feel the new interface?
The work flow improves comparing it with GNOME 2.28?
I’m not sure what they’re thinking, but perhaps, they’re just trying to use unused space.
The block of recent items should be collapsible or put into a menu, rather than taking up permanent space. I would hope that there would be a lot of customisation available.
Also, the notification system would be better as simple bubbles, appearing and disappearing as to options settings, rather than a large use of space.
If they’re going for a control panel or portal look, they’ll get there. However, I think it’s going to take quite a while. Still, I can’t wait to try it.
Personally I think the most interesting feature is possibility to do UI components with JS:
http://git.gnome.org/browse/gnome-shell/tree/js/ui
I have tried gnome-shell couple of times and I must say that I really liked it.
Interesting – probably. But they’re not really looking for external contributors – they simply use the language themselves to implement the vision they had for the Gnome Shell. Which is perfectly fine, but don’t expect an extensive plugin API. Actually the gnomes are more looking at companies when it comes to input for their development, not individual volunteers (you can read that on Stormy’s blog for example).
That’s more the way of the other camp (or should I say Kamp?) where a javascript jam session contest is going on: http://dot.kde.org/2010/02/12/plasma-javascript-jam-session-contest
KDE is able to do that since 4.1. But I think CSS+JS+HTML to expand Native application is a good thing. Firefox can do that since years, and look how it turned. It is great!
I tried the last version of GNOME-Shell, and I thought it was a very cool idea. The only problems were that:
* Text in some places was HUGE (i.e. like 500pt or something like that!)
* There was no way to move the panel to the bottom of the screen (which makes it pointless to use Chrome, the tabs are the only reason I use it over Firefox)
* It was kind of slow
* It was lacking polish
Now, with this release, all these issues are still there (although it feels a bit more polished), but it is even slower! It is completely unusable (i915 GPU, in case it matters).
I have a feeling that it is their large reliance on JavaScript, instead of using something like Vala or Genie that would be faster and still relatively easy to develop.
It’s quite unusable on my laptop as well (using nvidia blob, even).
The slowness has nothing to do with Javascript, it’s all about what gets accelerated and how well. The hard work is handled by Clutter.
Gnome will now join KDE in the lost in advance quest to push desktop display technologies forward to just to be as fast as it was before. A noble quest…