What will Unity 8 do to my beautiful desktop setup?

[Zorgoth]

I'm unlikely to switch before 16.04, but I was wondering if anyone knows how configurable Unity 8's window manager etc will be? I am sure that I will miss the glory of ccsm... The loss of wobbly windows would sadden me if that comes to pass, although in truth I haven't used it in years except to remember old times. The loss of Window Rules, forced window placement, and easily configurable shortcuts, screen edges, and buttons for everything would be really obnoxious for my productivity. I have a terminator instance embedded into my desktop background (which is fun) and use a widget layer.

[grahammechanical]

Switch from what? From 12.04 to 16.04? You would have to upgrade through 14.04 to get the 16.04. Or do a fresh install of 16.04.

When upgrading it is, in my opinion, always best to revert to the default desktop set up and use the open source video driver to avoid a broken desktop after the upgrade has finished. Just so you know.

During a Q and A discussion on the recent Ubuntu Online Summit, Mark Shuttleworth said that Unity 8 will be a login session in 16.04. So, it appears that the aim to get Unity 8 default for 16.04 has been revised.

Unity 8 is Unity 7 re-written to run on Mir and it is MIr that will replace X, Plymouth, LightDM and Compiz. We have, at the moment, community developed utilities for modifying Compiz settings and other system settings. These utilities will not work with Mir but there is nothing stopping anyone from writing a utility that will manipulate what Mir is capable of.

The introduction in Ubuntu of Mir and Unity 8 brings with it opportunities for community developers to add value to Ubuntu in the same way that community developers have added value with Compiz Configuration Settings Manager, Ubuntu Tweak Tool, Unity Tweak Tool and other software.

Let us not forget that Ubuntu is as much a community developed distribution as it is a Canonical distribution. For myself, I put getting all the usual Ubuntu applications running on Mir high on the list of priorities and fancy effects low on the list.

And, having run Ubuntu Desktop Next I am convinced that Mir is capable of fancy effects.

Regards.