default desktop layout To: xfce at xfce.org

[Erik Harrison]

On Mon, Oct 13, 2008 at 5:52 PM, Muayyad AlSadi <alsadi at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Noticed?  How?  Have you done a survey of new Xfce users?
>
> from the people in this ML who have just said so
>
>> "Degrades"?  Let's not get overly dramatic now.
>> Initially when I've switched to XFCE several years ago the main
>> reason for me was namely this - CDE look and functionality.
>
> are you suggesting the XFCE default layout should be kept as is to fit
> the needs of CDE converts and sun geeks who already now how to play
> with panels
>
> but I'm here to defend people who asks questions like "where can I
> change the desktop"
> the default layout should target those poeple

Okay, I've ignored this thread because it's the kind of thing that
goes on forever and gets nowhere. But let me quash this.

The standard should _not_ be to cater to the needs of people who want
to configure their desktop but can't figure out how. It should be
configured for maximum usability, maximum discover ability, and when
all else fails, it should do no harm. Consider the people who like the
default layout, but can't figure out how to change it - they'll never
write in.

As for people not being able to get the layout they want without
asking the ML, that's a series of issues with the panel's UI itself.
That's tricky, the panel is one hell of a bugaboo, and I've invested
hours of my time in improving it's UI, and Nick and Jasper have
invested even moreso.

I tend to like a CDE-esque layout as the default. The smallness of a
centered lower panel grows naturally out of Xfce's get out of your way
philosophy. It is very discoverable to the Mac crowd (what you argue
for is discoverable to a windows crowd) and when paired with a top
panel with a taskbar makes sense to a former Gnomer (even if things
are a little backwards). Now, I have no evidence to support that
layout - it's just instinct. But at least I'm not claiming empirical
evidence where there is none.


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-- 
Erik
"It's true, Alice Cooper is a hippie, but he's the bad kind of hippie.
He's the kind of hippie that breaks into people's offices, beats them
up, and shoots them in the head. Why? To steal their antique chairs."