Re: Random thought...

["Dan \"Effugas\" Kaminsky" <effugas best com>]

-----Original Message-----
From: Tom Vogt <tom@lemuria.org>
To: gnome-gui-list@gnome.org <gnome-gui-list@gnome.org>
Date: Friday, August 14, 1998 2:49 PM
Subject: Re: Random thought...


>Dan Effugas Kaminsky <effugas@best.com> wrote:
>[...]
>> so you're arguing that we should keep quit in the file menu in order to
>> be consistent with _other gui's_?
>>
>> i won't insult your intelligence by telling you what's wrong with that
>> argument.
>[...]
>
>lots of stuff snipped.
>
>ok, I - and I guess most people around - see that it's all a matter of
>interpretation. to me, this is quite different from what you make out of
it.


Huh?  I'm not sure of your position here.  I doubt it's as extreme as sun's,
tho.

>
>> BUT.
>>
>> GNOME needs an identity, a starting point, a well designed base of
>> operations from which extender wm's can operate and users can
>> pick-and-choose their level of extension.  You know, one of the smartest
>> parts of Windows themes are the fact that you don't have to retheme
>> everything--want to retheme just sounds, or just colors, or everything
but
>> mouse pointers?  You can do that.  Like Bowie loves to say--open, but
>> controlled ;-)
>
>so how about this proposal: gnome should ship with installable
>configurations for all compliant window managers. it's the job of the wm
>people to provide these settings. if possible, the settings should include
>variables, because upon install gnome should test for those wms and if it
>finds the user uses one of them, should ask him if he wants to update his
wm
>configuration.
>this "update" should aim to keep as much of the user's settings as
possible,
>via said variables.
>
>or in other words: lots of users should be able to switch to gnome but keep
>the interface they're used to. gnome should be an enhancement, not a
>replace.


No, no, no.

GNOME needs a *STANDARD WM*.  I assume this is going to be E.  There needs
to be a starting point from which other WMs can grow.  I *want* other WMs to
support GNOME, but they need to do it in a manner that extends, not
replaces.  Docks, wharfs, panels, these are the fruits of redundancy.  I
don't want to see "only works with Gnomemaker" or "only supported by
AfterGnome".  This is just more of the same from X.  We need a standard, in
fact, it's a null issue--whatever ships with Redhat 6 *will* be standard.
Or do you propose we do what happened to me on my first day of using
unix--"What shell would you like to use?  csh or bash?"  Me:  "What are
they?"