[Usability]1 of 3: Thank You

[JP Schnapper-Casteras <jp_sc yahoo com>]

Dear KDE and GNOME Usability Lists,

     Both the GNOME and KDE Usability projects deserve to be commended
for all they have done and continue to due to further the usability of
free desktops and applications.  (/me stands up and applauds :-)

Usability is one of the main factors that continues to hold Linux back.
 Just recently, when the New York Times did and article on Linux in
governments ("An Alternative to Microsoft Gains Support in High
Places"), it was noted that "[f]or the most part, the battle [between
Linux and Microsoft] does not involve the kind of software that runs on
the typical user's desk."  In other words, Linux has been successful in
the realm of servers, but is not as much of a threat when it comes to
desktops.  On a personal level, I see this truth reflected whenever I
talk with my (non-techie) friends about Linux -- most of have them have
already heard or read of Linux, but they are skeptical or sometimes
downright scared about their ability to use it.

The volunteers of the GNOME and KDE Usability project have been working
to fix this, and for that I am personally grateful to all of you.

In the next couple of e-mails, I have some suggestions about things the
KDE and GNOME Usability projects could do that I think would make them
even more efficient in their work with developers and with each other. 
I arrived at these suggestions by sitting down and annotating the
current respective guidelines / documents, reading the mailing lists,
and considering past experiences with both groups.  I am willing to
help with all of my suggestions and have started working or taking
notes on how to enact many of them.

Comments and questions are both very welcome.

Best,

--JP Schnapper-Casteras

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