Call to arms! A new GUI for Linux

[Patrick]

Aaron: 
Good luck with what you intend, but, as a new Linux user, I have doubts about 
your direction. I don't see any problem with mimicking the mainstream 
operating systems. They've been successful simply because they have met user 
needs for many years now.
To my mind the benefit that Linux distributions such as SuSe 9.1 or Redhat's 
equivalent is that they offer more stability, predictability and screen 
clarity than their mainstream equivalents.
I've been using SuSe seriously for a couple of weeks now and, since Day One, I 
have felt much more secure and at home when working with the system than I 
ever did with the Msoft equivalents, and I had been using Windows since 
Windows 1.0.
I respectfully suggest that the improvement to Linux distributions that are 
most likely to pull users across from Windows is in documentation. A user, 
whether GUI- or command line-based, not only needs to be satisfied with what 
he or she is doing, but also needs to know why he or she is doing it and how 
the system is doing it.
I am not a geek, and am too old (seventies) to become one. But I can 
appreciate that Linux in general concept is the superior system.
But I have beaten my head against the wall overcoming simple problems, such as 
setting up a wireless card, or trying to get the right file associations for 
Suse's Konqueror browser, after having accidentally accepted a dialogue 
option to make a global chance. Showing a whole raft of file suffices in 
order to make or edit a particular file association doesn't mean thing to me.
My bookstore research has shown me a whole shelf-full of books on Redhat,  but 
the literature on SuSe is pretty sparse. And that has been my main stumbling 
block.
If I hadn't been able to call on the help of a too-willing techie son, I would 
have been sunk.
Patrick Bloomfield.







On Saturday 16 October 2004 16:55, Aaron Vegh wrote:
> Good day!
> Many people have talked about the next generation of graphical user
> interfaces. Mac OS X was supposed to represent a radical departure
> from the desktop metaphor; instead, the underlying technology became
> its distinguishing feature. Microsoft's Longhorn is supposed to be
> "next generation" -- instead, it's looking like 'more of the same.'
>
> Meanwhile, the Linux platform is clamouring for the tantalizing goal
> of "ease of use", that key to final acceptance on the desktop. We're
> not there yet, and many doubt that the current solutions -- Gnome and
> KDE -- have what it takes to get us there.
>
> Indeed, the trouble with Gnome and KDE -- impressive as they are -- is
> that they too closely mimic the mainstream operating systems. Without
> a compelling advantage, what is the incentive to switch?
>
> This problem has troubled me for some time, but now I'd like to do
> what I haven't seen anyone else do: propose a solution.
>
> I have begun a project called Dark Sun Linux. It's goal is to create a
> new GUI for the Linux desktop. It walks away from the "desktop"
> metaphor of files and folders and trashcans, of icons strewn on the
> desktop, of windows piled on top of windows.
>
> Instead, Dark Sun proposes to abstract the computing experience and
> cut its ties with the limiting metaphor; instead it'll be a system of
> drawers and trays, where files are kept by their applications, where
> the user knows exactly where everything is because it's _right there_,
> and where the keyboard is king.
>
> There's really only one problem: it doesn't exist yet. Worse, I'm not
> a developer, so I can't make it happen alone. I'm just a publisher
> trained in information architecture, and the most I can code is PHP.
> But I can manage a software project. I have the vision, and I've got
> the ideas. I need help!
>
> Initially, I'm looking for a "lead developer" and "graphic designer"
> -- two folks who will help shape the technical and visual aspects of
> the environment. To the first will go the responsibility for
> determining the technical specifications of the environment --
> languages, what distro it'll be based on, and how to break the project
> down into sub-projects. To the second, the responsibility for building
> the look 'n' feel -- icons, desktop backgrounds, window dressings and
> other widgets.
>
> Once the specifications are drawn, we can open it up to the open
> sourcing developers and other helpers out there, and get this thing
> done!
>
> Project Dark Sun is now set up as a project on Sourceforge, and I'd
> love it if you could check out the site at:
>
> http://darksunlinux.sourceforge.net
>
> You'll also find a much more detailed description of what I'm
> envisioning, complete with mockup screenshots.
>
> I am telling this list about the project first, in the hopes of
> securing a local team. Depending on response, I'll write a column for
> OSNews.com and let Slashdot know. I think there'll be a lot of
> interest!
>
> Cheers!
> Aaron.
> --
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