On Sun, Feb 28, 2016 at 02:32:45AM +0000, hellekin wrote:
> On 02/27/2016 03:28 AM, Simon Wise wrote:
> >
> > something as minimal as possible, like above, seems a very good option.
>
> I dream of a core Devuan that is modular so that the Desktop Environment
> is a *blend* that you layer on top of core. That way, you can have a
> choice of DEs that users can prepare for their own pleasure.

For people like my dad who simply need to reach their
applications, something like icewm is enough. They don't
have the interest or aptitude to master a complex desktop
environment with twitchy GUIs in the style of Apple's recent
offerings.

> The question of the default DE comes next: Devuan should be shipped with
> a default DE. So far we've been focusing on XFCE, for reasons unknown
> to me (normally I use a tiled WM without DE).

I, too, have found grace (or at least sufficient
convenience) in tiled WMs :)

I agree that if Xfce floats enough boats, and can be
integrated okay, why not?

Alternatively, having a minimal window manager as default,
possibly with a menu choice to upgrade to a fancier DE, seems
like a way to convey that the various DEs are *user
interfaces* rather than representing the OS itself.

That goes with another radical idea: having people login at
the console and type 'startx'. That way, when later there is
some problem, you can ask the person to type some commands
in the console, and they know at least to type something at
a prompt and conclude with the Enter key. They can also
understand that X is a layer on top of the base OS.

These concepts seems quite alien to many users. I think that
even this minimal exposure to the command line could
stimulate curiosity about what the terminal can be used to
accomplish. At the minimum, people will know it is
there.

Maybe I am missing something about the motivations behind
and the benefits of a graphical login screen, but it seems
like the main value is allowing people to run their computer
without ever seeing the command prompt. I think it would be
of more value for people to encounter the command prompt,
even if briefly.


> I can imagine that Jessie 1.0 Beta will ship with XFCE by default.
> I hope Jessie 1.0 will ship with a choice for WM/DE, each implemented as
> a blend. That way the community can maintain a collection of *properly
> configured and integrated desktops* for those who want to use that, and
> leave the rest of us free to build on the foundation, not just decorate
> of a pre-chewed environment.

It would be great cooperation to have one group to hack on
the DE stuff, while leaving the Devuan core developers free
to concentrate on lower-level concerns.

Regards,

Joel

> ==
> hk
>

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Joel Roth