Re: Gnome 2 infinity and beyond [was Re: Tango and 2.16]

[Jamie McCracken <jamiemcc blueyonder co uk>]

Andrew Sobala wrote:
> Alan Horkan wrote:
> > I put serious thought into the fact that Gnome 3.0 would be useful way to
> > highlight all the progress that has been made.  A major version number
> > change is also of some marketing value.
> >   
>
> Look at the desktop. It's got incredibly amazing since the times of 
> GNOME 2.2, but it's still very much a GNOME two series desktop.
>
> There are ideas for what people want from a GNOME 3.0 desktop, and these 
> Topaz-related include:
>
> * Indexing support across the whole desktop. Probably provided by 
> beagle. Beagle can query document metadata too.
> [ some of this is starting to appear: deskbar, nautilus ]

Tracker already provides this too (and is integrated in nautilus search 
and deskbar) and is also way more efficient (tracker's miniscle 6MB RAM 
usage means it can run on any machine than can run Gnome and as its 
written in C it gives you faster and more efficient indexing).

We definitely do want search working on 128mb and 256mb machines and 
tracker delivers here admirably. (one thing we must not do is cause the 
desktop to require more than 256mb of RAM as it will cause some end 
users to leave, ruin the 10x10 goal as most third world users have low 
amounts of RAM and destroy the competitive advantage vs Vista's 512 MB 
requirement.)


> * Documents and people as first class objects, rather than applications, 
> files and windows. [see also: beagle, galago. ] [this idea seems to be 
> one with the most buy in ]

Tracker will do this in the next release (coming any day now). Tracker 
is the only framework that can deliver first class objects as it is a 
combination database/indexer (beagle is just an indexer) and is going to 
be trialled for the common music database in rhythmbox (music files are 
first class objects in tracker).

I have offered to integrate Tracker's metadata DB with Beagle so that 
Beagle can also deliver first class objects too and avoid a "turf war". 
I hope they take up my offer!

> So let's get coding.


am doing so! :)

--
Mr Jamie McCracken
http://jamiemcc.livejournal.com/