New Software Center (!)

[PuddingKnife]

It appears the devs over at Canonical are slowly but surely getting the Ubuntu Software Center up to par as 11.10 Oneiric comes down the pipeline. Here's a screenshot of the latest:

http://cdn.omgubuntu.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Selection_005-500x417.jpg

What do you guys think? Full story at OMG! below..



http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2011/08/ubuntu-software-centre-lands-oneiric/

[jerenept]

Hopefully it's faster.

[Tristam Green]

That color scheme looks familiar.

http://ompldr.org/vOXB0eQ/windows-311-hotdog-stand-scheme.png

Looks like more of that time-travel reverse-engineering madness.

[Copper Bezel]

Mixed feelings on this. Software Center is a clunky, overworked GUI that tries to replace a few of the features of Synaptic and GDebi. That said, that looks much better than the current version in design terms.

Edit: And a comment on the story does confirm that it's faster.

[GSF1200S]

Mixed feelings on this. Software Center is a clunky, overworked GUI that tries to replace a few of the features of Synaptic and GDebi. That said, that looks much better than the current version in design terms.

Edit: And a comment on the story does confirm that it's faster.

I miss Gdebi- I dislike having to either install a deb with dpkg or with the Ubuntu Software Center. I have not extensively looked for Gdebi or a replacement though, so this may not actually be an issue.

I am always cautious when a corporation starts inciting change in a product; I see the free, free, free labels in that screenshot and I can just imagine in 5 years when its 1.99, 5.99, 0.99.. This may never happen and that might not be their intent, but I see Unity and the new Software Center as a step towards (doing what Apple does) centering a product around ways to make money. Yes, im aware there are other options and Im not afraid to use them, yet I cant help but wonder. This capitalist global model of commerce permeates everything it seems.. I understand Canonical has to make money to carry on business, but I fear they also originally intended to do so completely under the premise of making money from support contracts. Aware that Ubuntu has a hard road ahead trying to compete with Red Hat and Novell, and aware that Shuttleworth is no dummy, I figure he will find a way if there is one; I fear that may be through incorporating sales into Ubuntu (I, of course, could be wrong).

It is interesting to note what seems to me a conflicting set of directions in Ubuntu; while it ostensibly carries a more "friendly" and "easy" desktop providing a more inviting experience to new users (in theory), it also seems to be paving the way for commercial interests to advertise in the product- Mac does this, and Shuttleworth does take Apple into heavy consideration it seems..

Aesthetically, the new Software Center looks better..

[madjr]

awesome!

[KiwiNZ]

The layout is OK but those colours? no, they are horrible.

[Thewhistlingwind]

I fear that may be through incorporating sales into Ubuntu (I, of course, could be wrong).

It is interesting to note what seems to me a conflicting set of directions in Ubuntu; while it ostensibly carries a more "friendly" and "easy" desktop providing a more inviting experience to new users (in theory), it also seems to be paving the way for commercial interests to advertise in the product- Mac does this, and Shuttleworth does take Apple into heavy consideration it seems..


Are you somehow trying to sell me the idea that more commercial support could be anything but good for Ubuntu? As long as they don't try and charge for FOSS, I don't see a problem.

I mean, if we get more software, and some of it can only exist with a monetary incentive, thats fine by me.

[lucazade]

I'd like to know only if it works well and does the job.
Don't care about the mere graphical aspect.

[madjr]

That color scheme looks familiar.

http://ompldr.org/vOXB0eQ/windows-311-hotdog-stand-scheme.png

Looks like more of that time-travel reverse-engineering madness.

the big orange banner you see on the pic is just a big orange banner for ubuntu 1

[madjr]

The layout is OK but those colours? no, they are horrible.

which colors and where exactly?

look at the other pics for more detail.

[Copper Bezel]

Are you somehow trying to sell me the idea that more commercial support could be anything but good for Ubuntu? As long as they don't try and charge for FOSS, I don't see a problem.
Well, the worry is that commercial interests could influence choices about how people are expected to interact with the device - you know, a system that pushes services on you, or where competing services are conveniently broken.

It's not about charging for FOSS, which isn't even a bad thing in itself. It's about the bad business practices that FOSS is generally free of and commercial software generally isn't.


I miss Gdebi- I dislike having to either install a deb with dpkg or with the Ubuntu Software Center. I have not extensively looked for Gdebi or a replacement though, so this may not actually be an issue.
GDebi can be installed from the repos and set as the default .deb handler through Nautilus. I did this within five minutes of upgrading to 11.04. = )


Don't care about the mere graphical aspect.
I do. I like my OS presentable.

[KiwiNZ]

which colors and where exactly?

look at the other pics for more detail.

I have, I don't like my Apps etc designed in Crayola's.

[Markmental]

i like it. looks more sophisticated.Like a Mac App store.

[Markmental]

That color scheme looks familiar.

http://ompldr.org/vOXB0eQ/windows-311-hotdog-stand-scheme.png

Looks like more of that time-travel reverse-engineering madness.
Is that ******* 3.1!!!!!!!!!

[Copper Bezel]

I don't understand the complaints on the color scheme. It's Ambiance, and there are orange tabs and a slight lavender tinge to the background. The big orange banner at the top in the main image is an ad.

[GSF1200S]

Are you somehow trying to sell me the idea that more commercial support could be anything but good for Ubuntu? As long as they don't try and charge for FOSS, I don't see a problem.

I mean, if we get more software, and some of it can only exist with a monetary incentive, thats fine by me.

I would argue, respectfully, that Linux will gain additional software through user contribution and through greater legions of users; software companies will produce software where the market share is. I worry that if Linux tries to compete in a marketing sense, especially against Microsoft or Apple, it will lose to put it mildly. Linux competes on its function and ideology; for profit software is something I have no issue with even when it co-exists with an Ubuntu product- I merely worry when it goes too far, and corporatism becomes the primary development effort instead of the products function. Does this make sense? Perhaps I wasnt clear enough..

You may be right; I clearly stated I may be wrong. Replete throughout history, institutions have risen through greed (conquest of land or markets) and have fallen by greed (overextending; losing sight of principle or original policies); this is what I think about when I see this screenshot. Think of the rise and fall of a corporation as a mountain- the peak can be seen as their moment of most influence/power. I wonder where Ubuntu is on that peak- perhaps as you say, it is still on the uphill and Ubuntu will become even more popular, or perhaps corporatism will result in a perversion of the product into a for-profit shell of the original version. I also know this: many linux users have a hatred of for-profit models (not all, and im not one of them considering our global model of commerce), and if the advertising becomes odious, many of Ubuntu's users will flock to other options that Linux provides..

Im not anti-Ubuntu, anti-Linux, or anti-realism in any way- there is a line Canonical can walk where they can do good by bringing a marketing element to Ubuntu.. But, they could also go too far, and THAT is what I worry about..

[GSF1200S]

Well, the worry is that commercial interests could influence choices about how people are expected to interact with the device - you know, a system that pushes services on you, or where competing services are conveniently broken.

It's not about charging for FOSS, which isn't even a bad thing in itself. It's about the bad business practices that FOSS is generally free of and commercial software generally isn't.


GDebi can be installed from the repos and set as the default .deb handler through Nautilus. I did this within five minutes of upgrading to 11.04. = )


I do. I like my OS presentable.

Oh man, thats the first thing im doing when I boot back to Xubu- can it be done with Thunar, or if I install Nautilus, can I make the change then remove Nautilus and have it stick?

Great news though :D

**EDIT** That was a really dumb question- just filename associations.. For some reason I was thinking it was a setting in Nautilus itself. I feel really dumb having asked that..

[lucazade]

Originally Posted by lucazade
Don't care about the mere graphical aspect.



I do. I like my OS presentable.

presentable to whom?
do you want to show how sparkling is your pc to anyone? :)

[jerenept]

Man, too much orange.

[Famicube64]

Is that ******* 3.1!!!!!!!!!

No, it's Windows 3.1.

[Thewhistlingwind]

Im not anti-Ubuntu, anti-Linux, or anti-realism in any way- there is a line Canonical can walk where they can do good by bringing a marketing element to Ubuntu.. But, they could also go too far, and THAT is what I worry about..

You know how Linux works. When users feel one side of the boat tipping they run over to the other one. And when that side starts tipping, they run back over to the other one.

[Tristam Green]

Man, too much orange.

http://media.komonews.com/images/100511_john_boehner.jpg


Nah man, that's JUST right.


http://www.independent.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00261/GeorgeHamilton_261389t.jpg


I quite agree!

http://media.nj.com/entertainment_impact_celebrities/photo/shorejpg-a14c0a054689f7f0_large.jpg


AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW YEAH

[Spice Weasel]

No, it's Windows 3.1.

Best OS desktop shell ever.

[akand074]

Brilliant. I hope they have a finished product ready for 11.10 release. Ubuntu software centre has needed a face lift from the very start.

[Copper Bezel]

Indeed. It was uglier than the Add/Remove app it was supposedly a facelift for when it launched.

I'm nearly dying of the awesome from that post, Tristam.


presentable to whom?
do you want to show how sparkling is your pc to anyone? :)
It does sparkle, dammit - it's an Eee S101. There are rhinestones in the hinges. I didn't put them there; they're OEM rhinestones. It's a sparkly PC. Other parts glimmer and even glitter. There are little shiny flecks baked into the trackpad. The trackpad rocker is chromed, and since it's useless on a Synaptics trackpad, I have to assume that it's entirely decorative.

But yes, I'm an unbearable "ask me about my PC" person, which is about 20% of why I use Linux in the first place, and I want my Linux to be 20% cooler than everyone else's. Stability and speed trump looks, but looks are important, too, especially for Ubuntu and its Bug #1.

[GSF1200S]

You know how Linux works. When users feel one side of the boat tipping they run over to the other one. And when that side starts tipping, they run back over to the other one.
Im not quite sure I follow your analogy, but if im reading it correctly, wouldnt that essentially say that if Ubuntu's marketing becomes odious, users will run to other Linux distros?

That result would bother me for I very fondly remember Ubuntu as my first distro, and it would bother me because as it has stood for the last few releases, Ubuntu is a great entrance into the Linux world. It can even adapt to more advanced Linux users.. Im not sure how Unity fits into this as I see it a digression, but then others like it so whos to say..

[Thewhistlingwind]

Im not quite sure I follow your analogy, but if im reading it correctly, wouldnt that essentially say that if Ubuntu's marketing becomes odious, users will run to other Linux distros?



Thats the gist of it.

[lucazade]

It does sparkle, dammit - it's an Eee S101. There are rhinestones in the hinges. I didn't put them there. It's a sparkly PC. Other parts glimmer and even glitter. There are little shiny flecks baked into the trackpad. The trackpad rocker is chromed, and since it's useless on a Synaptics trackpad, I have to assume that it's entirely decorative.

But yes, I'm an unbearable "ask me about my PC" person, which is about 20% of why I use Linux in the first place, and I want my Linux to be 20% cooler than everyone else's. Stability and speed trump looks, but looks are important, too, especially for Ubuntu and its Bug #1.

Unfortunately, you're right, it could help to fix bug #1
but this happens because, usually, people judge how things work from their external appereance.
I prefer to use and see if it works well, if it is nice or not doesn't matter (and this is applicable by extension to other aspects of life, not only related to computing).

[Copper Bezel]

Unfortunately, you're right, it could help to fix bug #1
but this happens because, usually, people judge how things work from their external appereance.
I prefer to use and see if it works well, if it is nice or not doesn't matter (and this is applicable by extension to other aspects of life, not only related to computing).
And I am, in all aspects of life, a superficial flake. But looking is a kind of working and certainly a kind of saying. Looking a certain way is making an argument for being a certain kind of thing, and it's presenting a certain kind of interaction. I think that thoughtful self-presentation and an attentiveness to the kind of mood you set is an important quality that applies to other aspects of life, too.

[KiwiNZ]

Unfortunately, you're right, it could help to fix bug #1
but this happens because, usually, people judge how things work from their external appereance.
I prefer to use and see if it works well, if it is nice or not doesn't matter (and this is applicable by extension to other aspects of life, not only related to computing).

We need to get our own house in order and forget this silly "bug #1" nonsense.

[oldos2er]

Is it any better at error handling?

[PuddingKnife]

Remember folks, its unfinished, and it may not even come by default with Oneiric. I think it looks fine right now, but it could look better. The current SC has a horrendously outdated appearance, and continuity of design are something that Windows and OSX are head and shoulders above Ubuntu right now.

Unless we view design inconsistency as a feature, there is still a lot of work to be done.

[GSF1200S]

Remember folks, its unfinished, and it may not even come by default with Oneiric. I think it looks fine right now, but it could look better. The current SC has a horrendously outdated appearance, and continuity of design are something that Windows and OSX are head and shoulders above Ubuntu right now.

Unless we view design inconsistency as a feature, there is still a lot of work to be done.

Of course- Windows and OSX define by force what is "up-to-date" looking, and continuous in design. Ubuntu will never win in that game so long as it has a less-than-1% market share.

[BeRoot ReBoot]

Nope, still using aptitude. SC has given me nothing but trouble in 10.04, 10.10 and 11.04. It's as bad as the Update Mangler, but it doesn't even have the decency to tell you what went wrong in most cases.

[Bandit]

Its looking good. :)

[PuddingKnife]

Of course- Windows and OSX define by force what is "up-to-date" looking, and continuous in design. Ubuntu will never win in that game so long as it has a less-than-1% market share.

I disagree. Its not about emulating the design of other OSes, its about continuity of design. The look of Unitys' launcher, the top panel, Ubuntu One, and the new Software Center don't really match up --I think its about time they did, and hopefully we'll see a lot more design continuity come 12.04.

The ball is rolling in the right direction, but if Canonical wants to compete with the big boys, and I think they do, then they need to start pulling the look of Ubuntu together while maintaining stability (at least in LTS editions, everything in between should just be labeled 'beta', IMO)

Ubuntus market share should have no bearing on Canonicals ability to create a unifying look to the OS.

[wojox]

Looks sleek. They really do need to tone down that Ubuntu One banner. :P

[Tibuda]

I miss Gdebi- I dislike having to either install a deb with dpkg or with the Ubuntu Software Center. I have not extensively looked for Gdebi or a replacement though, so this may not actually be an issue.

gdebi is still available at the repositories (apt://gdebi)

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

Does the New Software Center allow for the selection to use mirror sites or torrents for downloading applications? Torrents are so much faster for me, and less prone to errors than mirrors.

That is probably a dumb question. I doubt that Canonical/Ubuntu would be willing to dedicate servers to seed torrents for applications offered in the Software Center. I know there are people and organizations offering torrents for Ubuntu releases; however, I am not aware of them offering torrents for the applications found in the Software center. Maybe I am wrong, and they do offer torrents of the applications.

[Tibuda]

Does the New Software Center allow for the selection to use mirror sites or torrents for downloading applications? Torrents are so much faster for me, and less prone to errors than mirrors.

That is probably a dumb question. I doubt that Canonical/Ubuntu would be willing to dedicate servers to seed torrents for applications offered in the Software Center. I know there are people and organizations offering torrents for Ubuntu releases; however, I am not aware of them offering torrents for the applications found in the Software center. Maybe I am wrong, and they do offer torrents of the applications.

There was a project named apt-p2p for peer2peer download of apt packages, but I don't how it is going.

[BrokenKingpin]

I like the Software Center layout, but I find it very, very bloated. Most of the time I find it easier to install from the command line.

Also, there has been a number of times where the software center does not display the package I am looking for. Does the software center not display some lib packages, etc?

[uRock]

OMG, I knee jerked! I liked it the way it was, but will wait to judge it when I can run the app and click things to see what I really think.

[ctrlmd]

the design look nice but its Too Orange 4 me