[Usability] Configuration Applications

[Estradin Solaris <estradin gmail com>]

Hi,

I guess this has been already discussed, but i would like to know the
reasons for it. As a user, I find it quite easy to configure any system
settings in Mac OS X, because all
of the system settings are in the same place: System Preferences. GNOME
seems to try to do this, but IMHO, it fails. Firstly, because some very
important settings are not in the Configuration menu or are duplicated.
I'm talking about Network settings, for example. Also, the
configuration menu is a menu, so in order to choose the configuration
application you want to use you have to keep it open, and it is not too
pleasant to scan through a menu with so many items... especially when
some of the names are not descriptive enough. Also, some of this
applications are too specific. Why would you want to have a different
app for setting the background, the system font, the window border, the
widget style and the screensaver? Wouldn't they fit in rather well in a
'Desktop Appearance' app? Also, mouse, keyboard and screen resolution
could be grouped in 'X11 Configuration' or 'Display Configuration'. I
think the current, sort of atomic approach is a bit confusing. Wouldn't
a control panel similar to the old Windows 9x or Mac OS 9 work better?
I'm not talking about a bloated do-it-all confusing meta-app, à la KDE
Control Center, but more like a specific directory (or virtual
directory) where special configuration applets should be located.

I don't know if I have made myself clear, but please understand that
i'm not saying 'let's do it this way' but 'why isn't it done this way'.

Rafael de Jaime