Re: elementary OS

[Liam Proven]

On 10 February 2014 16:55, Thom Cherryhomes <thom.cherryhomes@gmail.com> wrote:
> Why don't you actually roll up your sleeves, and try to build it?

You can keep your patronising, smug and superior "there is no argument
here". Yes, there *is* argument here. If I want to buy a house, or a
car, or a hi-fi, I am perfectly within my rights to criticise the
design of existing houses, cars or hifis; I do not need to be able to
build one myself to point out the flaws in existing units.

I am a technical writer and journalist, with a sideline in
consultancy. I test and evaluate computer systems, especially
software, and write about my discoveries for others to read.

I have tried to install and built GNUstep environments more times than
I can remember now. I have built them out of Ubuntu packages from the
Ubuntu  repositories. GS ignores this, but that is how people try out
Linux desktops in the real world. The result is appalling, barely
works and crashes every few minutes. It works like an alpha version
assembled by a couple of amateurs or students in their spare time in a
few months, not the end result of decades of work.

I came here to talk about this. I was told I was doing it all wrong
and that those packages were out of date.

So, I tried again using Philippe Roussel's packages.

I had to throw away my test build and start over 4 times before I got
it working, using Saucy, Raring, Quantal and finally Precise.

It works a little better, but core functionality is still missing.

And now, in the usual condescending fashion of developers everywhere,
you tell us that if we don't like it to fix it ourselves.

Well, no, that is not how it works. I am not a programmer; I have not
programmed since the 1980s and do not wish to relearn now.

What I am, though, is someone who evaluates and judges and compares
OSes, desktops and Linux packages for a living.

When I say GNUstep is badly lacking, a useful response is not "well go
fix it then", it is, "oh dear, tell us more, what needs fixing?"


-- 
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