https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/show_bug.cgi?id=115160
Bug ID: 115160
Summary: Improve the download/install experience, default OS is
not working correctly, and other issues.
Product: LibreOffice
Version: unspecified
Hardware: All
OS: All
Status: UNCONFIRMED
Severity: normal
Priority: medium
Component: LibreOffice
Assignee: [email protected]
Reporter: [email protected]
Created attachment 139277
--> https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/attachment.cgi?id=139277&action=edit
screenshot
Preamble: When a new visitor arrives to download LO from
https://www.libreoffice.org/download/download/ I think the big question on
their mind concerns how to quickly get the right download. While the LO
download page has gotten better over time, considering how much of a first
impression it makes I think it's still lacking. Yes, it's functional.
Consider this: If a new user gets messed up on this page (as I did when I was
first starting out with LO) it leaves a bad taste in their mouth about the
whole LO thing. [Remember, at this point in time, a person knows nothing about
LO, except what they see at this page.]
There are two important questions to quickly and accurately (i.e. without any
assumptions) get answers to from the newbie:
1) What OS or platform are you using?
2) What LO version do you desire?
SPECIFIC DOWNLOAD PAGE ISSUES AND ==> SUGGESTIONS
A) I think having a default OS is misleading. (Currently it's RPM.)
Did the this page look at my OS (my HTTP browser information) and somehow
determine that that RPM was what was required for me?
That would be my first guess, as that's how many web pages work today. But no,
I have Debian, and it came up with RPM! So that's misleading and problematic
if the button is clicked.
(When I was new at this I had no idea what RPM was. I only knew that I had
Debian, I had too many things to learn that day, and quickly needed a download
that would work with my system. So I clicked the download button only to end
up in much more frustration.)
==> If you can't correctly determine the OS needed, then don't start out with
any default. Force the user to select OS, like this:
Select from the following supported architectures and operating systems:
Apple:
Mac OS X x86_64 (10.8 or newer required)
Linux:
For Intel and AMD 64 bit wide CPUs and operating systems:
Linux x64 (deb) - for Debian derived installers (apt, synaptic, etc.)
Linux x64 (rpm) - for Red Hat derived installers (rpm)
For Intel and AMD 32 bit wide CPUs and operating systems:
Linux x86 (deb) - for Debian derived installers (apt, synaptic, etc.)
Linux x86 (rpm) - for Red Hat derived installers (rpm)
Windows:
Windows x86_64 - use with 64 bit OS and Vista or newer
Windows - other (i.e. 32 bit and older windows)
Notice that I revised this list so that it consistently has the newer 64 before
the older 32. Also it's alphabetical. (If we support all of these, then we
should not be giving deferential preference to any of these here. In other
words, I prefer Linux, but I'm not going to try and push that on a user who has
a different OS.)
Get rid of the line that says, "Selected: ...". Replace it with selectors and
buttons that say what you download when you press them.
==> So at the very top of the page put a clearly marked LO version selector and
an OS selector.
(The "change?" link is unclear. Change what? At a minimum say "change
selected OS", but please read on...)
!! ALSO, it is not clear as it is now, that the downloads listed further down
this page are also modified by the (below) selected version.
The whole page is upside down, with the selectors at the bottom but being used
at the top.
Put the selectors at the top, and then use the below. If you went to a car
parts site and they showed you a muffler to buy, would that make any sense. No
first you want to select the car you drive.
==> Make each clickable download thingy on this page look the same. In other
words when you see a green button you know that it's something to download.
(It's ok to have the main download bigger, but all downloads should look like
buttons, because they are actions rather than links. As it is, it looks like
they might be links to where you might download those other things.)
==> In this OS selector, provide some tool tips for new users who might be
confused by the x32 vs x64, and Deb vs RPM versions. For Windows say what the
plain version of Windows is for. In other words: HELP the visitor make these
selections. Assume they are new to all of this! (If we are to grow the LO
user base, we must start with new users who know virtually nothing about any of
this.)
B) Furthermore I haven't been given the choice of version (at the top). I may
have arrived a this page from a variety of links and I know nothing about
versions, so I need to be provided with a list of available versions with some
info about each so I can make an appropriate version selection.
==> Make any download buttons say what OS and version is being downloaded, i.e.
change "DOWNLOAD VERSION 6.0.0" TO "DOWNLOAD V6.0.0 for Linux x64 (deb)"
C) Once downloaded then what? For Linux the
https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/install-howto/linux/ page is unhelpful.
==> For Linux downloads provide one additional download: A bash script that
can be used to automatically unpack and install the downloads. Somebody must
have something like this already written, and rather than all of us re-invent
the wheel, just help us with an installer script, i.e. rather than having to do
all of the cd, sudo dpkg -iR DEBS, wash, rinse repeat for each of our downloads
ourselves.
------------------------------
If you made it all the way thru this, thank you. These things have been on my
mind for a few years, and I get reminded every time I try to upgrade of how
much of a pain it is, and how it could be easier.
--
You are receiving this mail because:
You are the assignee for the bug._______________________________________________
Libreoffice-bugs mailing list
[email protected]
https://lists.freedesktop.org/mailman/listinfo/libreoffice-bugs
