unity-design team mailing list archive

[Jo-Erlend Schinstad <joerlend.schinstad@xxxxxxxxx>]

Den 04. sep. 2011 17:57, skrev zekopeko:
> I would really like it if people would stop using "freedom of choice"
> as a club to bash any design decision that has to be made. It is a
> balancing act instead. Too little choice and you get GNOME 3.0, too
> much choice and you get the mess that is KDE.
>
> Forcing users to make a choice for which they have insufficient
> information and/or expertise is a complete design cop-out.

What exactly are you talking about? I don't understand.
> This whole PPA situation should be fixed by allowing STABLE FEATURE
> updates of GUI applications in stable Ubuntu releases that are
> reviewed by Ubuntu developers and volunteers. Basically make a Mac App
> Store. Those applications should also be packaged by the developers
> themselves. Statically link them if you need newer libraries for your
> app.
> This would also fix the LTS releases because they wouldn't get
> obsolete so quickly.
>
> Upgrading my entire system so that I can get newer
> applications/features is ridiculous, as is adding 3rd party PPAs that
> might upgrade packages I have no interest in upgrading and in the
> process possibly breaking my entire system.
>
None of that is a real issue in Ubuntu and never has been. A PPA is a
folder on a website with signed content that your system subscribes to
and asks you to download. Or you can ask it to download it
automatically. In reality, it is quite similar to using an RSS feed to
grab the latest podcast. Just like any podcast, you can download the
file and play it without using the automated downloads. The same goes
for PPAs. You can download the deb and install it. You don't _have_ to
add the PPA.

Why are you against that? I really don't understand. You're saying that
the "podcasts" should be built into the operatig system and that
third-parties should not be allowed to distribute software themselves?
Google, for instance, would have to seek permission from Canonical
before they could release a new version of Chrome?

I don't understand why you would want this scenario. Companies should
obviously be allowed to distribute their own software. If anything, I
think PPAs should be used much more often and they should provide
features to allow paying for support of free software.

Jo-Erlend Schinstad