I think there's a fair bit of pent-up frustration on this list... people
describe their problems, they don't get a response from the core
developers. People make suggestions, create mockups, they don't get a
response from the core developers. I don't think I can really address
that frustration.... it's pretty much a consequence of the limitations
of our available time and attention, and of where we are in the
development cycle. But I wanted to point out a few things, that maybe
will help people understand the situation.
* We're really busy working on finishing up for GNOME 3.0; while we
read more than we respond to, we just don't have time to respond
to every mail that people post here. Especially when the mails
are long and detailed and would require a long detailed response.
* We're really busy working on finishing up for GNOME 3.0; this means
that we *can't* consider major revisions at this point. Yes, maybe
the current design isn't the perfect design in all ways, but half
finishing some other design won't be any better. GNOME 3.0 is not
the final be-all-and-end-all of user interfaces. Just as the GNOME
2.0 UI drastically changed between 2.0.0 and the current 2.30.0,
the 3.0 UI will change as well.
* You aren't a representative user. (How do I know
this? Because you are reading a mailing list on gnome.org; which
puts your interest in technology and motivation well beyond most
users.) Our goal is that GNOME 3.0 is better than GNOME 2.0
for *all* users, including you, but you need to be aware that
changes have to take into account that larger set of users.
Design changes also have to take into account how all the pieces
fit together, including some pieces that aren't even there yet.
* It's much faster to make a mockup than to code it. It's much faster
to code a mockup than to take that code and maintain it.
Right now, mocking up alternate ways that the shell could be designed
is not a useful activity. We can't just change everything around, and
then change it again when some other mockup comes out that is cool.
If you want to get involved in shell design, *start small*. Find
ways that a confined change can make things better. File your
improvements in Bugzilla, or even better, jump on IRC and talk to us
about them. (Wednesday afternoons, 18:00-21:00 UTC, say, are a
particularly good time to find designers.)
Once there's a working relationship, once you know how the shell
works and we know that you have good ideas, then you can proceed to
suggest larger changes. (Again, these few months aren't a good
time for us to make large scale changes.)
* This list is not:
- Where we do design (that's mostly on IRC)
- Where we take bug reports (bugzilla)
- Where we discuss changes to the code (bugzilla, again)
It's probably best to think of this list as a user forum - as a place
for people testing out the shell to talk to each other, complain,
rave, etc.
- Owen
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