Linux To-To
If you ask yourself: what should Linux bring to the desktop so that you can really work and live with it throughout? Based on our experience with the desktop and Linux, we have created a list that addresses these points.
Distributions
Imagine you go into a candy store and have a choice of 30 kinds of almost identical strawberries, 25 kinds of almost identical lemons, 23 kinds of almost identical bananas, and so on. What do you choose?
Having choices isn’t a bad thing in itself, sure, but you have to stop believing that you need a separate distribution for each special case. Windows doesn’t need it, MacOS certainly doesn’t.
The statement should be: a few large systems with strong KDE and GNOME as an example, so that they are good enough for everyone. Behind that, you can of course further develop the many small distros for everyone who doesn’t want to do without them.
From our point of view, the principle should be something like Android, where you have a basic system that offers everything you need, and you can then put your own designs or surfaces on top of it. This has the advantage that at first you always work for the general public, first specifically for your own distro.
GNOME To-Do
Since GNOME is the basis of many distributions, some things that have stood out over time are listed here and supplemented or ticked off.
Desktop first! Touch second…
GNOME 3 has had a somewhat peculiar direction from the start. The basic concept of operation has prevailed so far, but the focus seems strangely to be on touchscreens. Why? Nobody knows. Do many use this? Not really, although the few who use it are quite enthusiastic.
Therefore: What works for websites should also work for a desktop. At the moment you notice that the normal desktop often seems too big, but the view fits on laptops. But: First make the desktop tidy, then invest time in other devices. After all, this is where the main user group is located.
Click, move and click
Is it possible that the developers of GNOME primarily use the keyboard to navigate through the system?
If you use the mouse, you click yourself into an idiot.
When shutting down – 4 clicks. When opening apps – 2 clicks each time and swipe across the monitor twice. Minimizing windows – right-click, move the mouse around to find the button and then click again.
Sorry, but beginner-friendly and mouse-oriented are a bit different.
Free the dock!
Why does Ubuntu have to provide its own extensions when it comes to the dock? Because GNOME doesn’t provide anything here.
That’s why having “Dash to Dock” built into the system would be a wonderful thing. Left, right, bottom, always show and also automatically hide. Or in other words: what others have been doing for a long time because it makes sense. Because GNOME is already enough mouse movement and clicking, let’s shorten it a bit.
Tray-Icons and background apps
It is not certain whether GNOME developers themselves use GNOME. Because if you use background programs, you have to search for them first. And then only with limited functionality. And autostart? Not so simple either. Even if you only use Nextcloud, it is a battle that should finally be solved. And if possible not in the half-and-half way that it is currently.
That’s why: background programs are needed for work and belong in the GNOME basic package!
Minimize button
Windows does it. MacOS does it. Most do it. GNOME? Lets you work with the right mouse button. Hmm.
It’s okay if you don’t have a maximize button because of other functions, but unfortunately minimizing is also an important thing if you want to work properly. And I’m not talking about plugins.
Windows programs
Isn’t it annoying that you need a Windows program every now and then? Isn’t it annoying that you can’t switch some people to Linux because of an old program that is necessary for work? Yes?
Then WINE support in GNOME should be so much better that you can at least open most programs in these cases. Because let’s be realistic: we live in a Windows world.
Accent colors!
Other distributions and also Ubuntu already provide it – but this function has to be in the basis.
Should be here with GNOME 47.
Defaults
Do you know “click to mimimize”? Is it annoying if the monitor goes dark after 5 minutes? Isn’t it weird when a fresh install with GNOME doesn’t create any folders in the app launcher and just throws all the apps in a jumbled heap?
If we look at Linux systems and macOS, then we are on two sides. On the one hand, you want to give Linux users as much freedom as possible, Apple is less interested in that and they specify everything as far as possible. So kindly learn what we present to you.
Again, one can argue what the right way would be, but it should be clear that if you want to reach the mainstream, then you have to state things cleanly and in detail and, if you really want to, offer people an “opt-out”. Be more brave!
Packet formats
A fight that holds us all back. Package formats are relatively new with AppImage, Flatpak and Snap and should actually make our lives easier. What happened: Most rely on Flatpak, Canonical and Ubuntu are still trying to push through Snap. What the result is: Distributions and app formats differ from each other, not every store supports all formats, manufacturers and developers often only offer one format for their own apps. It should be clear by now: others have to die for someone to really come to life. Flatpak should also have won by now.
NAS-Folder
Folders that are on the network are still treated like USB sticks, for example. You always have to reconnect these folders after a restart so that you can continue working on a file. This has to get better! Because this is a no-go, especially in companies.
Multimonitor and HDMI
If you work with Linux on the desktop for a while and are used to a second monitor, you often come up against annoying limits. Most of the time, extending, mirroring, and switching between monitors works fine, but then you have to go to sleep, reboot, or unplug and plug in the cable. Or the monitor goes into standby.
Then it seems as if the system has completely forgotten what was going on before. Monitor split? Make new or switch. Audio over HDMI? Often in the settings to change again and again. Unfortunately, this is not a comfortable way of working.
UEFI, file system and encryption
What is the use of a secure system with lots of security updates if you can simply remove the SSD or hard drive and read the data? This needs to be improved – with encryption. Also for external data storage devices. And by the way: nobody wants to have to enter the password every time they start up.
In addition, we finally need a standard file system that supports all modern features. With encryption, snapshots, compression, file system check, copy-on-write, etc.
Last but not least, the boot process for systems should finally work properly. UEFI is nothing new, but UEFI and Secure Boot need to be deactivated every now and then so that systems can be installed at all. Is that good? Not really…
Standards
Do you know what has often brought systems so far? Standards. Why? Because everyone can stick to them and knows what to expect. That makes everything faster and more effective. Forking is sometimes necessary, but most of the time it seems to be a waste of time. And if the big distributions agreed on what to use and how to solve things, you would have overarching standards that would make life easier for everyone. Unfortunately, that’s the way it is. Get off your high horse if you want to do Linux a favor.