Ubuntu 14.04 convergence plans

[grahammechanical]

Ubuntu On Air has a Jono Bacon video called Ubuntu 14.04 Convergence Plans. I am watching it now.

http://ubuntuonair.com/

UPDATE:

One thing I picked out was that 14.04 will have a login option to run Mir + Unity 8. Here is a better breakdown on what was said.

http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2013/11/u...4-04-lts-cycle

Regards.

[ventrical]

Work on improving ‘side-stage’, the Windows 8-like feature for running two applications on screen side-by-side, will also get underway. To make use of this, many of Ubuntu’s core apps will be adapted to become “convergent” – better able to make use of larger screens and tablet workflows.

Iv'e been testing Win 8 across various form factors , ie; desktops, and it does not blacklist older legacy graphics cards. The 'side-stage' effect works well (as I commented somewhere before) and definitely has faster bootup times so I am just curious as to how Canonical are going to dig themselves out of this hole.

I'm not advocating Windows 8, I'm just pointing out a factual advantage that currently exists with that OS and brings up a follow up question .. Why now ?

Regards..

[grahammechanical]

As I understand it attention is now switching to optimising Ubuntu on tablets and this feature is better suited to wider screen sizes. So, it is time to make this feature work. It seems to me that Ubuntu will have one significant advantage over Microsoft. That is a converged code base used on all form factors. The advantage being in needing fewer developers to maintain and develop the code. This is very important to a small company like Canonical. I am not saying that Canonical can compete with Microsoft but that Microsoft will not find it easy to give users the same user interface experience across these devices. And that is the challenge that Ubuntu has taken up.

I think that the idea of a mobile device emulator as part of the SDK is most interesting. Another challenge I think. It might make testing on the desktop more interesting?

Regards.

[ventrical]

As I understand it attention is now switching to optimising Ubuntu on tablets and this feature is better suited to wider screen sizes. So, it is time to make this feature work. It seems to me that Ubuntu will have one significant advantage over Microsoft. That is a converged code base used on all form factors. The advantage being in needing fewer developers to maintain and develop the code. This is very important to a small company like Canonical. I am not saying that Canonical can compete with Microsoft ...

I am sorry to say but I agree 100%. Not only can Canonical not compete with new Windows 8, it buries them! I just did an install of Win8 on a desktop Tower which has onboard ATi Radeon x400. Not even Ubuntu Unity 2D will operate on that video form factor.

It might make testing on the desktop more interesting?

Regards.

With all due respect, I disagree. When you see what Windows 8 'side stage' can do on legacy graphics adapter cards (that are now all obsoleted by Ubuntu Unity/Mir) you'll see that, as far as Ubuntu Desktop is concerned, .. it will be a tough job.

Regards

[grahammechanical]

@ventrical

No offence taken. When I made that comment I was actually thinking about having an emulator on the desktop that emulates mobile devices and lets us test the mobile apps as if we were actually running one of those devices. I had moved away from the subject of Windows 8.

I guess I will just have to knuckle down and install that developer preview version of Windows 8 that I picked up. I will have to use the 32 bit version as my machine does not meet the recommended 2 GB RAM for the 64 bit version. I now have a second hard disk so I no longer worry about Windows taking over the whole drive. I could, of course, let Windows 8 install to the whole disk and then test the Ubuntu install alongside option.

Regards.

[ventrical]

@ventrical

No offence taken. When I made that comment I was actually thinking about having an emulator on the desktop that emulates mobile devices and lets us test the mobile apps as if we were actually running one of those devices. I had moved away from the subject of Windows 8.

That's exactly what I am talking about and exactly what I have been expecting (since raring) and we had some ?? inklings or reasonable faxsimilies thereof with Ubuntu Calendar and Calculator etc.


I am still hoping that as trusty develops with Mir that we will get exactly what you have mentioned ..a mobile emulator on our desktops. That emulator was once already part of the Unity Desktop. It was called Unity 2D (currently available in Precise) and somebody(s) decided to brick it. And to this day they still have not been able to get Unity 3D to smooth scroll the apps like Unity 2D did which was the closest thing to a mobile emulator for Ubuntu that I have seen. But guaranteed ubuntu touch smooth scrolls on tablets.


Regards..

[cariboo]

All this talk of Windows 8 is moving this thread off topic. We are here to discuss the development of Trusty, not compare it to that other operating system.

[ventrical]

All this talk of Windows 8 is moving this thread off topic. We are here to discuss the development of Trusty, not compare it to that other operating system.

I took the reference from one of the links graham provided:

Work on improving ‘side-stage’, the Windows 8-like  feature for  running two applications on screen side-by-side, will also  get  underway. To make use of this, many of Ubuntu’s core apps will be   adapted to become “convergent” – better able to make use of larger   screens and tablet workflows.

which was provided by Canonical's Jono Bacon and I think the discussion is very topical as these "Windows 8-like feature" - "get underway", otherwise we cannot fairly discuss critical comments during the cycle - so- to have a fair understanding of what Jono is refering to when he makes his "Windows 8-like features" I think it important that others have a general idea of what those features are but, if you would rather have end_users google these features on thier own then I will be more that happy to accomodate your notion that it is not topical and cease and desist from discussing it further. However, if we do not bring in current and new trends from other OSes that are currently under development then we become insular and stagnant and it robs from the effervescence of the discussion process.

Regards..

[cariboo]

I agree Jono did reference a Windows like feature, but you are getting a little of topic with your discussion of viewing 3D content in Windows, especially when there hasn't been any mention of that type of function from the graphics driver creators.

Jono's comment was about running two applications side by side on the same tablet screen, which isn't possible with either Android or IOS, I personally haven't seen any Windows tablets here (in Williams Lake) that have that function, but with a very little bit of searching, I found a how-to here. It looks like it isn't a part of the default install, as you have to download an addon, and have to have a high resolution monitor. I'd say more power to the developers, if they can get this feature to work on a default tablet installation.

I have nothing against discussion specific functions, but wide ranging comments that aren't about the thread topic, just don't belong in threads in this sub-forum.

[ventrical]

I agree Jono did reference a Windows like feature, but you are getting a little of topic with your discussion of viewing 3D content in Windows, especially when there hasn't been any mention of that type of function from the graphics driver creators.
.

My apologies .. I was just having a little fun


Best Regards..