On Wed, 27 Nov 2019 at 12:15, Andreas Fink <[email protected]> wrote:
> > On the other hand I would _LOVE_ to see a OS X like desktop with AppKit and I > would spend time working on it. Given the other desktops under Linux have not > much success because of the way they do certain things, I think there is a > big need. Something like what ElementaryOS does but with GNUStep and running > on the major distributions (Debian/Ubuntu/Fedora/Redhat/Centos) could change > the world. This is a long shot. But we have to ask ourselfs what is our > strategy for the future. Absolutely, this. Given the goals of the ElementaryOS desktop and team, it is a crying shame they didn't use GNUstep to build it. I am sure they would have got to a rich, usable product much quicker. I suspect they just did not know GNUstep existed. That awareness is key, and it is why I think having at least one mainstream distro having a full GNUstep desktop available is vitally important. I know that the GNUstep developer community don't see what they're doing as a desktop environment, but that is accidentally what they have built, and that is the № 1 best way of getting visibility and awareness. > a) a EASY to use entry. Run on any version of Ubuntu, Debian, CentOS, Redhat > etc with just a simple setup. ./configure;make;make install should handle > all the magic to get up and running from a tar.gz. Or much better a apt-get > install gnustep. This. With the big caveat that DIY compilation is too hard for modern Linux users. Ready-to-run binaries is the *only* way. Some people seem to delight in themes to make it look just like Apple macOS. That is a dangerous path. Remember what happened to PearOS: bought out, shut down and archives deleted. Elementary only escaped because it's not a very good copy! Keep it looking like NeXTstep -- it's _still_ a strong look, a known brand. Maybe modern themes. Make it respond to the same keystrokes as macOS: none of this "alt-C" to copy nonsense. Either it's the Windows way -- Ctrl-C, and conflict with Unix tradition, as KDE/GNOME/XFCE etc. do -- or the Mac way: Super-C. But GNUstep *must* conform to the existing norms, and it must exist as an easy-to-install binary metapackage. Ideally, IMHO, 2 metapackages: 1 for the desktop environment, 1 for the dev tools. -- Liam Proven - Profile: https://about.me/liamproven Email: [email protected] - Google Mail/Hangouts/Plus: [email protected] Twitter/Facebook/Flickr: lproven - Skype/LinkedIn: liamproven UK: +44 7939-087884 - ČR (+ WhatsApp/Telegram/Signal): +420 702 829 053
