goplexian

I appreciate your points, thanks for taking the time to reply.

I'd be more than happy to hear more about the stories behind Epiphany and Empathy that you hinted about if you have some more time!

>Why stop at the browser or IM client though? Technically, Gnome itself only exists because of that same mindset (not being satisfied with KDE's initial license).

The trouble with "why stop there" arguments though is that they can make any reasonable suggestion seem absurd.

There was a valid reason to create Gnome, but is there a valid reason for Epiphany?

>I would never presume that people who are predominantly volunteering their time and efforts to work on Gnome have a responsibility to rely on non-Gnome applications for fundamental desktop functionality

The creators of Gnome have no responsibility to their users, but as users we have the privilege of providing them with feedback.

If 99.999% of Gnome users are providing the development team with the feedback that they will not use Epiphany no matter how much more polished it becomes then what should Gnome do?

The way I say it there are three options.

1. Do nothing, continue to develop and polish an application which no one will ever use.

2. Retire Epiphany and then have no "official" Gnome web browser.

3. Retire Epiphany and chose one of the major browsers which most of their user base are already happily using, and then try to make the experience of that browser on their desktop as good as possible.

Maybe I am narrow minded, but are there really any other options?

Thanks very much.

That's a great idea, I'm going to edit the article and add those links!

Because I hate crappy viral games that make tones of money, I should shut up and make a crappy viral game in hopes of making tones of money?

No thanks.

If you had just said "Shut up and make your own game" I could respect that sentiment even though it is quite rude and basically shuts me down from having an opinion which (strangely) I thought was one of my rights.

But suggesting that I start making viral games for Facebook after I go through the trouble of writing an article explaining that I hate those types of games is just stupid.

"substance and style, richly textured and thickly layered, with real character development and breathtaking artwork"

...in the context of indie games. Context is important.

Maybe take a look at Braid or Machinarium.

True enough, I guess it is clear which tribal affinity I possess by that article, but at the same time I do not make that choice without reason.

While both flagship products may be closed source I dont think it is very fair to compare the two company's on that basis alone.

"I never thought I'd see the day when a Linux distribution would be serving Microsoft search results by default, even though it is through the thinly veiled disguise of Yahoo."

Clearly you didn't read the article.

I agree, but the trouble is how to gain unification without becoming a mono-culture.

I'm worried what might happen if this continues for another 5 years http://www.google.com/trends?q=Fedora+Desktop,+Ubuntu+Deskto...

I'm sorry, I guess I wasn't very clear.

What do you think the Linux Desktop landscape will look like in 5 years if Ubuntu continues to rise at the same pace or even nearly the same pace that it is now?

>package management through apt and aptitude

I thought that this would be my biggest hurdle, but it turned out to be a non-issue as yum has exceeded my expectations, so far at least.

Well I'm sorry to see you brush off my opinion piece without actually addressing even a single point.

Just for clarification though: My point isn't that Ubuntu is related to Windows, my point is that it seems Ubuntu is specifically targeting ex-Windows users as prospective clients, and that this fact could explain some of its recent behavior.

And no, I dont think it matters which desktop I'm running, but I do think it matters that the Linux desktop community stay a deverse field, and if the trends we are seeing continue for a few more years that may no longer be the case.

Not adding anything to the discussion, but I would like to voice my agreement in addition to my up-vote.

Thanks, yes. Fixed.

My bet is also that the simpler one was done by the professional.