Linux does my head in

[lwr]

I'm a very indecisive person. Choice confuses me. With Windows XP I was ok. I could choose an ugly blue theme, or a slightly less ugly silver theme. With Ubuntu, not only can I easily download hundreds of themes, and configure each one exactly (I could even create my own if I could be bothered), but there's all the other choices. There are just so many applications to do everything, how am I supposed to decide? I've just been configuring Beryl, and I can't make up my mind. Do I want my windows to zoom out when I close them, or go wavy? So much choice! Curse this software freedom.:)

[Anonii]

Windows XP is soooooo much better.

[Cyraxzz]

I choose what i like. In Windows i have to choose something i don't like.

[user1397]

Windows XP is soooooo much better.you really like sarcasm, dont you?:p

[IYY]

I'm a very indecisive person. Choice confuses me. With Windows XP I was ok. I could choose an ugly blue theme, or a slightly less ugly silver theme. With Ubuntu, not only can I easily download hundreds of themes, and configure each one exactly (I could even create my own if I could be bothered), but there's all the other choices. There are just so many applications to do everything, how am I supposed to decide? I've just been configuring Beryl, and I can't make up my mind. Do I want my windows to zoom out when I close them, or go wavy? So much choice! Curse this software freedom.

I agree with you. Too much choice is confusing. But I'll add another comment: too much choice is not confusing anymore with excellent defaults. This is why I dislike KDE. It has configuration tools for every little aspect of the desktop. Every colour, font, icon can be individually changed. The GUI can be customized in any way you like. However, the default is quite ugly.

Gnome, on the other hand, has much less customization features, but looks and feels nicely by default.

The problem with Beryl is that it's still new technology. We now have a lot more power, but still haven't figured out what to do with it. It's similar to what Linux itself was in the early days. As time goes on, Beryl will function in a comfortable way by default, and you wouldn't even need to customize it.

When it comes to different applications to do the same thing... It's up for the distro to pick the default apps for various actions and Ubuntu does this quite well. This is what the official repos are for. The extra choice is still out there, in source or universe/multiverse form, but you don't have to go there if you don't want to.

[meng]

Speaking of ugly KDE defaults, what's with that broken glass error sound? Oh boy do I hate that sound, it's just a smidge behind scratching on the blackboard.

[shining]

Speaking of ugly KDE defaults, what's with that broken glass error sound? Oh boy do I hate that sound, it's just a smidge behind scratching on the blackboard.

Hey, me too :) But anyway, the first thing I do when I start a fresh kde is to disable the sound server (arts), which also disable all system sounds. Anyway, this is configurable in control center.

I also think kde is nicely configurable but doesn't have very good defaults.

[meng]

Oh yes it's easy enough to change that system sound to an alternative one too, but I'm just chiming in agreement about bad defaults.

[ComplexNumber]

Hey, me too :) But anyway, the first thing I do when I start a fresh kde is to disable the sound server (arts), which also disable all system sounds. Anyway, this is configurable in control center.

I also think kde is nicely configurable but doesn't have very good defaults.
kde will do itself a world of good if it gets rid of the following silly defaults:
-single click
-bouncing cursor
-the default icons. anything but crystal.
-the default theme. should be qtcurve.
-system sounds as mentioned above. that crashing pane of glass scares the &^@# out of me because its the sound that one normally hears first. i'm not easily scared, so i can imagine what sort of impression it will leave on a newbie.

[Compucore]

The scary thing about linuc or ubuntu linux is the freedon of what you want linux to be for you as an individual. I love choosing what I want my three or four machines that I have linux running on. my slower machines I may have it one way. on my faster machines I have something else. Its like wow never seen that done in windows before. In widonws it was one thing or nothing at all.

Compucore

[Sef]

I'm a very indecisive person. Choice confuses me.

Yes choice is confusing. Do I choose the popular, easily malware infested one or the one without the malware? Also should I pay $200 for the os and get the free malware, download a pirated version of it, which don't get updates that gets me more free malware, or just download the one that is free and legal and lacking malware to download. ](*,) Does anyone have some aspirin? It's such a hard choice. :confused:

[darkhatter]

I like the single click, and I find the gnome default just as ugly as the kde default, but I'm really like the new icons for kde 4 (wish they would release a preview)

[meng]

Single-click takes about 5 seconds to set up in GNOME.

[darkhatter]

I smell a flame-war so I'm just going to step down

[meng]

Not my intention, I'll keep quiet too.

[nbound]

heh i love the configurability of linux... i can tweak my system how i like it... its great

[pelle.k]

kde will do itself a world of good if it gets rid of the following silly defaults:
-single click
-bouncing cursor
-the default icons. anything but crystal.
-the default theme. should be qtcurve.
-system sounds as mentioned above. that crashing pane of glass scares the &^@# out of me because its the sound that one normally hears first. i'm not easily scared, so i can imagine what sort of impression it will leave on a newbie.
I wouldn't be using gnome if I couldn't single click stuff. It was a bit awkvard at first, but now, i'll never go back. I navigate quite a lot, and it cut my "clicks" in half. Some love for my pointy finger... :)
The bouncing cursor is not my favourite either.
I like Crystal icon set though. But it wouldn't hurt to improve it, as well as the system sounds, at every new release.

[darkhatter]

I believe the broken glass is gone now, but I hated that sound, it made me think twice before I clicked

[fredbird67]

I was just reading this and couldn't help but chuckle, because my wife hates system sounds. Anytime I get on the computer (I'm running Ubuntu, heh heh!), she makes me turn my speakers all the way down to zero and put on my headphones. And IMHO, it's a shame, because I've got a nice subwoofer on here, too.

[walsh416]

is there any way to turn the start up noise for Ubuntu down or off, I usually work at night and don't want to wake up my kids.

[popch]

is there any way to turn the start up noise for Ubuntu down or off, I usually work at night and don't want to wake up my kids.

There is. Look for System>Settings>Audio or such. I don't know the exact wording as my system is noiseless in another language than English.

[corney91]

There is. Look for System>Settings>Audio or such. I don't know the exact wording as my system is noiseless in another language than English.

System>Preferences>Sound is the exact words.

Is it sad I knew that by heart? :p

[walsh416]

Thank you very much, now my wife won't be at my throat at 11:00 at night.

[steveneddy]

Beryl isn't supported anymore.

Please use Compiz-Fusion.

What's with all the noobee's using Beryl all of a sudden?

Don't they know that compiz is part of the OS now?

[corney91]

Beryl isn't supported anymore.

Please use Compiz-Fusion.

What's with all the noobee's using Beryl all of a sudden?

Don't they know that compiz is part of the OS now?
Have you checked the OP date? ;)

[steveneddy]

Have you checked the OP date? ;)

Doh!

](*,) I'm ](*,) so ](*,) stoopid!

[LaRoza]

Lets not have any necromancers on the forum.

Thread Closed, as the OP must have made up their mind by now...