Contributor Gaz Davidson - Ubuntu brainstorm

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The Ubuntu community has contributed 21986 ideas, 135057 comments, 2615221 votes

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Contributor Gaz Davidson

Nautilus to display more info while asking for copying existing file

Written by aufather the 9 Nov 08 at 04:07. Related project: Nautilus. Implemented

When I copy a newer version of a file, nautilus asks whether to skip or replace this file. But it does not provide any info other than the file name. It would be nice if it would at least provide the file sizes too. More info maybe accessible from a drop down button. Like modified time, owner, permissions etc. But these can be hidden and be accessible from a drop down button (like the button which shows progress of individual files during software installation). This will help the user to compare both the files and make an informed decision there itself. Instead of canceling the operation and then comparing both the files and then redoing the same operation.

260
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529
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202
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338
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229
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103
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95
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42
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Selected solution (#8): Previews of the files

Written by philip the 5 May 09 at 22:52.

The dialog should contain pre-computed views of the files, so you don't have to wait for (say) the spreadsheet program to load and open the files. The views should be about 100x100 pixels large and should show a cropped, scrollable view of each file. When the user resizes the dialog,, the preview areas should show more or less of the files. Or, a larger preview can show as a tool tip when the mouse hovers over the small preview.

45
votes

Selected solution (#9): nautulis: copy old file to trash before overwrite

Written by bgfeldm the 12 May 09 at 13:01.

add an option to move old file to the trash before overwrite.
nautulis:
move file to trash before overwrite, if file is a text or document file below a preconfigured size such as 1 MB.

This way overwritten files can be retrieved at a dept of one.
Or you could make the trash bin a temporary source repository for overwritten/deleted files, only storing the diff of the text files, so you limit space taken up by the trash bin and have multiple restore points for files. The repository will be clear every time the user clears the repository or after a defined amount of days.

56
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139
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25
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Selected solution (#12): Push transfers requiring user feedback to the end of the queue

Written by Redge the 8 Jun 09 at 00:07.

When doing file operations and Nautilus encounters conflicts or errors that require the user's feedback to resolve, Nautilus should first try to complete the rest of the queue and push the files needing feedback to the end. That way, if the user is AFK as much of the operation as possible will be done by the time he/she gets back.

-3
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37
votes

Selected solution (#14): Check files below a certain size

Written by korin43 the 18 Jun 09 at 20:58.

Decide on a on file size where it's faster to just check if it's an identical file than ask the user if they want to replace/skip. If the files with the same name are identical, we just skip them instead of presenting the replace/skip dialogue (since both options would have the same result).

Note: This would be a complete byte-for-byte comparison, not just a comparison of timestamps and name.

Here's the order that the system would check:
- Is there a file with the same name?
- Is it below the maximum size set to check? (we don't want to auto-check if it would be faster to ask the user. ex: 10 Gb file)
- Compare size
- Compare the two files (byte-for-byte), fail as soon as you find anything different (if the first byte of the new file is different, fail immediately instead of checking the whole file)

Note 2: Timestamps will not be compared. If the new file is identical with a different timestamp, the new timestamp should be applied.

21
votes

Selected solution (#15): Add "auto" option to replce/skip pop-up

Written by vegetarianshrimp the 19 Jun 09 at 19:03.

This gives the user the option to replace/skip if they already know whether the file is identical or not, or don't want to risk replacing an important file. But if they don't know if the files are identical, then they can press the auto button.

It would look something like this:

|Auto| |Auto all| |Replace| |Replace all| |Skip| |Skip all|

25
votes

Selected solution (#16): Show context for the differences

Written by Prime Mover the 2 Aug 09 at 21:50.

The dialog should attempt to show the differences between the files if they are in a recognizable format. For example, if the files are images, show both images, along with file size and date. This will allow the user to easily make a decision about whether to replace the file. The destination filename could also be an editable field to allow the user to change the name and have the copy continue under the new name. If the file were an audio file then it could display bitrate, sample rate, length, etc.

Here's an example dialog box from Directory Opus on Windows which demonstrates this:

836
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164
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62
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Selected solution (#19): Avoid overwriting the same file.

Written by pubsbin the 8 Aug 09 at 01:12.

There are some easy tests for checking if two files (in two different folders) are the same file. From the easy ones (metainformation, size, name), checking some positions (sampling) and, finally, comparing them entirely.

If Nautilus uses those easy equality checks, it could avoid copying equal files. Even if you compare the whole file, a read is faster than a write.

151
votes

Selected solution (#20): "No to ALL"

Written by don1500 the 12 Aug 09 at 20:20.

Most of the time I have this problem I run into it when moving music files. There is a "Yes to ALL" but no "No to All". All I want are the files that are on the source but not on the target. "Overwrite if Newer" is close and a good suggestion, but sometimes I don't want to overwrite the old file. Sometimes you want to overwrite the older version, and with "Yes to All" you still have that option. Maybe adding both "Overwrite if newer" AND "No to ALL" is the answer. I think this would be the easiest to implement. This is also the K.I.S.S. answer.

83
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14
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8
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Selected solution (#23): Advanced File Operations (AFO :D)

Written by Chronos the 29 Aug 09 at 14:46.

Create a more advanced "thread" based queuing system for file operations. Its possible to make it simple, no need to make it complex. Read below:

Seriously, in Total commander i used a lot the function to not just copy files at once and send the process in the background, but to push F2, and create a list of the operations where(!) the list is a queue. So the processes are not running at the same time to slow things down. We can even make this better. Imagine you have 4 drives. A B C and D. You want to copy 3x6 folders/files from A to B and vice versa. It takes long, so you start to copy/move/whatsoever to work on C and D (like before from C to D and vice versa). To make all these operations (4direction) run at the same time slows the computer slow down(no wonder why).

We could create two thread with two queues in this case.

In summary, A and B would process their queue, processing files the fast as possible, and separately C and D would do their things as well.

We could make it automatic maybe, that if we are making file operations to or from one partition/hardware, at default it would create a queue, what (with a push of a button) would appear from the already used window(dont know the name). This queue would make sure that only one operation is active at a time, making hardware sweat less, and operations faster.

[...]

Maybe i'll do a mockup if i have time.

This is just an idea, we can modify it.

Cheers,
David

32
votes

Selected solution (#24): Pile up a list of action needed files.(Use with Solution #1)

Written by yaknowwat the 16 Aug 09 at 09:07.

The list would list all the files that need conformation and let u handle them with check boxes. ( A Select All/None combo button and an Invert Selection button are a must for such a list. Then double clicking a listed directory should select all in the directory.)
Then by for example pressing Overwrite or a Do Nothing button the action would affect all selected files. After which you can continue such steps until the List is gone or the user exits.
I'd imagine this would be simple to do without over complicating things.
Also the number of dialogues could easily be reduced with this strategy.
This increases efficiency because a user could handle all the conformation files at once in their own way even as their still copying normal files.

6
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5
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Selected solution (#26): Add intelligent preview/comparison box to the Nautilus file replacement dialogue

Written by cajhne the 14 Sep 10 at 21:05.

Disclaimer: I worked this up before finding that my problem was a dupe of this thread, so don't yell at me for "duplicating" some ideas here. I've +1 promoted the ones that I came to the same or similar conclusions about. There's different stuff in here, so please read the whole thing! :)

It would be handy to show other relevant information based on the file type in a small preview/comparison area on the side of the replace notification dialogue. It would also be nice to have an in-dialogue "rename" function, where you could change the name of the file being copied rather than just the standard replace/don't replace option. Leave the defaults the way they are, but offer a drop-down of other solutions, as well as a preview box for the file. Text files could show the first few lines of the file (if permissions allow), the photo can show thumbnails, music can have the same (nifty) mouse-over preview in the file browser, etc.

The "intelligent" bit changes the options for replacement/renaming/etc based on the kind of file, and the kind of preview shown. Some handy alternate options might be "append" for videos/music/text files, which combines/concatenates two files into one, or "version" which simply appends an ordering number to the end of the filename (my_cat.jpg -> mycat_b.jpg)

I have worked up a visual on what I think this might look like if there's enough interest. :)

http://whitecatgraphics.com/ubuntu/nautilus_replace_comparison_dialogue.jpg

[...]

This example shows the standard file replace dialogue with my additions. The files under scrutiny are an old and new version of the same image. The desaturated, darker one is meant to represent an unedited photo, and the saturated one an edited version, which highlights the advantage/importance of being able to see samples of each to make the judgement.

Things to note in this sample:
1.The "replace all" option now has a drop-down menu below it, in which you can specify in what manner you want to "replace all".
2.The arrow between the two thumbnails indicates which is source and which is the destination (since some people in the world read from right to left. :))
3.The thumbnails act like thumbnails in the regular browser. Right-clicking on them could bring up options like "preview", "open with", "info", or "show in folder".
4.Selecting "Keep" under either sample will automatically set the other to "Erase", for ease of use. The "Save As..." option could bring up a box for the new file name, or alternatively, a standard "save as" dialogue as seen in GIMP, Open Office, etc, when you choose "Save As".
5.The green check-mark and the red "X" icon indicate which is being kept, and which is not. These change when "Keep" or "Erase" is selected.
6.After selection is complete, the user would then click the "Replace" button to perform the action, and continue the file copy/move operations.

I'm not married to any of the above components. If anyone thinks of a different/better way to do it, please post it in the comments section, and I'll revise this solution based on the suggestions. :)

I'm not proposing changing any of the defaults, just adding a box for more information, and a few more options to streamline the current replacement procedure.

It would be handy to show other relevant information based on the file type in a small preview/comparison area on the side of the replace notification dialogue. It would also be nice to have an in-dialogue "rename" function, where you could change the name of the file being copied rather than just the standard replace/don't replace option. Leave the defaults the way they are, but offer a drop-down of other solutions, as well as a preview box for the file. Text files could show the first few lines of the file (if permissions allow), the photo can show thumbnails, music can have the same (nifty) mouse-over preview in the file browser, etc.

The "intelligent" bit changes the options for replacement/renaming/etc based on the kind of file, and the kind of preview shown. Some handy alternate options might be "append" for videos/music/text files, which combines/concatenates two files into one, or "version" which simply appends an ordering number to the end of the filename (my_cat.jpg -> mycat_b.jpg)

I have worked up a visual on what I think this might look like if there's enough interest. :)

http://whitecatgraphics.com/ubuntu/nautilus_replace_comparison_dialogue.jpg

Things to note in this sample: 
1.The "replace all" option now has a drop-down menu below it, in which you can specify in what manner you want to "replace all". 
2.The arrow between the two thumbnails indicates which is source and which is the destination (since some people in the world read from right to left. :)) 
3.The thumbnails act like thumbnails in the regular browser. Right-clicking on them could bring up options like "preview", "open with", "info", or "show in folder". 
4.Selecting "Keep" under either sample will automatically set the other to "Erase", for ease of use. The "Save As..." option could bring up a box for the new file name, or alternatively, a standard "save as" dialogue as seen in GIMP, Open Office, etc, when you choose "Save As". 
5.The green check-mark and the red "X" icon indicate which is being kept, and which is not. These change when "Keep" or "Erase" is selected. 
6.After selection is complete, the user would then click the "Replace" button to perform the action, and continue the file copy/move operations.

I'm not married to any of the above components. If anyone thinks of a different/better way to do it, please post it in the comments section, and I'll revise this solution based on the suggestions. :)

I'm not proposing changing any of the defaults, just adding a box for more information, and a few more options to streamline the current replacement procedure.

6
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5
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Selected solution (#28): Additions to File Operations

Written by JohnLM the 15 Jan 09 at 21:46.

I thought it could scan for involved devices and queue by (configurable) default, if that device is in use (i.e. having copy or move operation already). And have a "Do now!" kind of button on file operation window for override.

Naturally it should never en-queue same partition's move operations, cause they are super fast by nature!

btw As far as I know the Nautilus' File Operations thingie is not really finished and is under development now!

9
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Selected solution (#29): Conflict dialog: say how many more conflicts there are

Written by philip the 18 Mar 11 at 20:07.

When you try to copy or move a bunch of files, and files with those names already exist in the destination folder, you get a dialog asking you if you want to replace the existing file or skip copying this file. You can also check a check box for repeating this operation on all other conflicting files.

It would be helpful to know how many more conflicting files there are. This can alert the user that he has done something wrong if he did not expect that many conflicts. It can also guide his decision to check the conflicts manually or click on the "perform this for all files" check box.

Getting more sophisticated, the dialog could even list the conflicting files when the user clicks on a drop down list.

12
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-1
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Selected solution (#31): Require the user to enter a sub menu.

Written by Darwin Survivor the 5 Mar 11 at 09:13.

Simply having gksu pop up every time a user tries to do something they aren't allowed to (edit a system file) is a quick way to a non-working system.

I propose we put gksu-enabled commands in a sub-menu (like how new-file lists a few file types). This will prevent users from simply converting to "enter your password until it works" people.

66
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20
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Selected solution (#33): Control the number of simultaneous op-s on a drive

Written by andrew.p the 19 Mar 09 at 21:28.

This is not a complete solution, but an addition to #2/#1.
I often miss an option to limit the number of simultaneous file operations on a drive (simultaneous file operations are not as quick as one-by-one sometimes).
Speaking about sol#1, it would be logical to have an option to queue file operation instead of performing immediately (name menu item "Queue Paste" & give it keyboard shortcut like Ctrl+Alt+V/Ctrl+Q/Super+V). Also it is a workaround for controlling the number of simultaneous file operations.

-4
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7
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Selected solution (#35): Click & drag priority management

Written by Ian Burnet the 11 Apr 09 at 03:11.

Being able to set the priority of ops would be really useful, but we also don't want to add too much to the interface.

I think the most user-friendly solution would be to:
1) Run only one op at a time automatically
2) Have a continue / pause button to force start, pause, and resume
3) Have the ops listed by priority (i.e. which was started first; which are running)
4) Be able to click and drag the progress bars up/down to switch the priorities

15
votes

See the 13 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 22 May 12 at 05:18) >>

Creating launchers is annoying for new users

Written by gobberpooper the 3 Aug 09 at 08:30. Related project: Live CD installer. New

Everybody here probably knows how annoying/confusing it was making launchers their first time. It's difficult at first to find out how to make a launcher, and then how to link it. Right from a fresh installation, there should be a few essential icons on the Desktop, such as Computer, Trash, Terminal, and Firefox.

18
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18
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11
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1
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See the 1 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 22 May 12 at 02:17) >>

Move the min, max, close buttons back to the right in 10.04

Written by readmanr the 6 Mar 10 at 21:00. Related project: Gnome. Won't implement

In Ubuntu Lucid 10.04 Alpha3 we have a new default theme, however the Minimise, Maximise and Close buttons have been moved from the top right, to the top left.
(see the image at the bottom)

This was a poor choice for the following reasons...

- If clicking at the top menu (File , View, Help etc) the close buttons are VERY Close, accidents can happen.
- There used to be a tiny dot in the top left, which had in its menu, Min, Max, Move, Always on Top, and Close (So why move the Min, Max, Close buttons to the left?
- Migrating Windows and Mac users will be used to having them at the right, which is a huge usability jump)

Changes like this should be an optional choice, while it is possible to manually edit the theme, it should not be the default for an LTS release.

Ubuntu 10.04 Alpha3

src: http://blog.daviey.com/blogroll/anything-but-the-buttons.html

1192
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Solution #8: make the default alignment theme-dependent

Written by marvo the 10 Mar 10 at 10:28.

There are some themes that look better when the buttons are placed on the left side (like Ambiance, Radiance and Gorilla) and there are some themes that look better with the buttons being on the right side (like Glider, Human, Clearlooks or SphereCrystal).

So i propose to set the default alignment depending on the chosen theme and make it easily switchable.

The current way to change the alignment of the buttons back to the right by typing
gconftool-2 --type string --set /apps/metacity/general/button_layout "menu:minimize,maximize,close"
is a bit tedious.

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Solution #14: Keep default left Minimize, Maximise/Resize & Close Buttons

Written by MoebusNet the 15 Mar 10 at 01:04.

Rationale: In VirtualBox without Guest Additions, the right-hand side of the desktop and the lower part of the desktop are not visible until you scroll. Having the above-mentioned buttons on the top-left side of the window by default makes them accessible when (not if) Guest Additions do not work/are unavailable or when scrolling for whatever reason does not work. This is especially true for development versions.

I _am_ in favor of choice, so this should be fairly easy for a user to change (preferably by GUI) to right, left or both.

Just my opinion.

-44
votes

Solution #16: Leave the buttons on the right until 10.10

Written by neblogas the 16 Mar 10 at 15:58.

Because Mark said that in 10.10 the windows will have something new in the right side, but now, there is no need to change the buttons, and this is LTS release! in 10.10 when you will finish the new mysteriuos window features on the right then you can put the buttons on the left. As I said, there is no need now to change. Its an LTS release and the people and companies won't change until the next LTS, so there won't be for them new mysteriuos windows features on the right!

246
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Solution #18: Top Horizontial Bar moved the the Left or Right as Vertical Bar

Written by ichido the 17 Mar 10 at 17:53.

Move the Top Bar to the Right Side-Vertical Bar and the Bottom Bar would be on the Left Side Vertical.
This would allow for more Vertical Space.
The user would be able to Swap the Left Bar with the Right Bar and also the Size/Thickness of the Bars.
Applications could maintain the Top Bar or a Side or a Bottom bar for their Window.

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35
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Solution #27: For longer term, how about a window manager merge?

Written by LukeM33P the 25 Mar 10 at 01:13.

Compiz managers and decorators are already effective at options. Placing the Metacity and Kwin options in Emerald Decorator manager, which would be preinstalled, along with CCSM (or a custom replacement) would be the solution, with CCSM/replacement simplified to look like (in functionality and basic organization) the KDE settings manager, but using default schemes and such, of course.

For KDE users, alongside the CCSM/replacement, the interface would be integrated into the System Settings, just like the traditional settings.

The reason I propose this is because options, while not easy to find and configure (and why I propose the reorg) are very powerful. Setting up Metacity and KWin to show up as options and adding the appropriate settings, if necessary, seems to make sense (to me) as a long-term solution. The operating system needs to seem as encompassing as KDE or even more so, and combining these options so that the system is even more universal would be a step towards this.

An addition to the application of managing the system title bar like the KDE or GNOME dashboards would be similarly useful, and may be all of this potential solution that should be used. Default should stay in line with last-gen human theme, even if the colors and buttons look different.

51
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-93
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Solution #29: Have the buttons on both sides AND hide them.

Written by MisterLinOx the 26 Mar 10 at 21:52.

Have the min, max, close buttons on both sides of the title bar, but hide them. The only time they should show is on mouseover of the bar, but depending on which side you mouseover decides which side the buttons show.

For example, cursor closer to the left side? Mouse over the top-left and the buttons will appear. Vice-versa for the right side.

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Solution #38: Allow the option to be changed in installation slideshow and in minimal install

Written by Jon Monreal the 17 Apr 10 at 23:49.

Please note that this is not an idea for the imminent release of 10.04, but would be better included in the next update ISO.

Experienced users already know how to change the buttons back to the original location, so server installations shouldn't be so much of a problem.

For absolute beginner users, the first slide in the installation slideshow could be one explaining the benefits of having the buttons on the left side and asking the user to choose what they could like to do.

In the minimal install, it would also be easy to add a simple option (most users using the minimal install are probably fairly experienced).

This would solve the real issue here: beginners possibly not using Ubuntu at all because it changes something.

-6
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-4
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Solution #40: To the right by default, but an option to move them to the left.

Written by turbolad the 5 Jul 10 at 15:42.

As per title. Buttons to the right by default, with an option to move to the left.

Don't forget to keep the little circle, which when clicked on, has options such as "Always On Top", "Move to Workspace Right" etc. These options should never be removed and I think the 3 buttons should be on the right by default, as most newbies are familiar with that setup.

-11
votes

Solution #41: Put min, max, close buttons in a completely new position

Written by baretobareto the 3 Aug 10 at 20:31.

Fisrt of all, sorry for my English.

Why we really needs buttons to the right? Well theres no real difference between having your buttons on the left or on the right, its just a matter of have the enough time to get used to one position or another.
But what about if we have these button in a complete new position.
What about having min, max, close buttons on the right BUT in the lower side of the windows instead of the upper side.

If you think about it, when you open a document or a web-page, you need to scroll down to really knows if that document is what you are looking for. When a document is too long, you need to use the scroll down arrow. So your mouse-arrow will be closer to the lower right of the window instead of the upper side of the window.
If you want to look to a minimize window that you think it would be not useful anymore, you need to un-minimize this window. If the buttons are in the lower right of the window it will be needed much less movement of your hand to close it after un-minimize because the close button will be closer to the task bar.

[...]

As you see there are some reason to have buttons in the lower side of the window BUT I know there are others to have this buttons on others positions.

So, why not to put this buttons in a completely new position.
This could be a ubuntu-only-feature just like the recycle bin in the task bar is a ubuntu-only-feature.

See the 118 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 29 Mar 12 at 20:59) >>

Have a transparent view of your local network

Written by tommed the 6 Feb 09 at 16:50. Related project: Gnome. New

My proposal hopes to address one specific area. It was inspired by a video I saw of ZeroConf http://is.gd/iDwI

The problem is that the only way of connecting to Network Devices currently from the Ubuntu UI is if you know the name/ip for the target machine and which service you want to use (cifs/samba/hfs etc..). Unless you use the CLI, you can't browse machines easily.

69
votes

Solution #1: A GUI for Avahi

Written by tommed the 6 Feb 09 at 16:50.

Web Site: http://gnb.tommed.co.uk/

What I propose a number of changes:

1. To add a _device-info._tcp (or extend the existing _workstation._tcp?) service entry into the /etc/avahi/ with TXT records which could possibly include: role, owner, os, and hostname. (NOTE: Avahi is enabled by default in Ubuntu 8.10)

This allows the machine to be identified the same way an Apple machine is.

2. A new Avahi GUI browser built right into the "Places" menu in Gnome (and in a similar place in KDE) which hooks into the avahi-browse utility, so we can instantly see machine, and eithernet peripheral (my NAS drive advertises itself via zeroconf) on the local network.

3. Turning on options like remote desktop or SSH from the Settings panels, should give you the option to broadcast this service, so it will be advertised in the same way.

The GUI tool could run x number of threads which all run seperate avahi-browse instances so results can be stacked into a single UI?

[...]

I have a working copy of a tool for GNOME and Mac:
http://gnb.tommed.co.uk

There is also the possibility of using a Graphviz viewer to view topology diagrams of your network (for an example of this, see my github project, linked above)

Any constructive suggestions or comments are most welcome!

See the 1 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 10 Feb 12 at 16:30) >>

A way to open windows which were accidentally closed

Written by Gaz Davidson the 19 Feb 10 at 13:21. Related project: Nautilus. Not an idea

Firefox and Chrome both have a wonderful feature where you can open a recently closed tab by pressing CTRL+Shift+T, I sometimes find myself pressing it in other applications after closing a window. It would be nice if it was supported outside the browser.

418
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Solution #4: Extend session support of application

Written by Lachu the 21 Feb 10 at 12:27.

Extend way how application supports sessions. There should exist signals, like HIBERNATE(save session) to file, RESTORE SESSION from file, etc.

Window Managers could use this feature to achieve idea goal, but not all application could been integrated. The behavior is: give application order to save session in $HOME/.sessions-tmp/$CURRENT_DATE/pid/WINDOWID(or whole session if user wanna to close application instead of window).

To restore window, WM's will give only the same location with signal RESTORE.

-57
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Solution #5: 'Recently Closed' tray

Written by Afroman10496 the 21 Feb 10 at 23:52.

Put a recently closed tray next to the workspace applet that holds the last three (changeable by the user) windows that you closed in the state they were in when you closed it, showing when it was closed and a screenshot of it when you closed it. Clicking on it should open a menu showing options to open, close, minimize, maximize, move, or move it to another workspace.
http://yfrog.com/juscreenshotckp

55
votes

Solution #6: Allow applications to register that they can be resumed.

Written by Darwin Survivor the 23 Feb 10 at 00:02.

When an application closes, it would have the ability to "register" with the window manager that it is now closing and can be resumed by executing .

The window manager is now in complete control over whether or not to offer the session to the user.

This would allow:
-any app to be written to allow session resuming
-the app can de-register itself if the user resumes or creates a new session
-the app actually closes (no sleeping or anything)
-the user could chose how many "closes" to remember (wm disregards anything older)
-backwards compatible (would not affect apps that don't implement it)
-apps that already have a resume command don't need to change their switches (they tell the wm what to call)
-apps could create numerous sessions by registering with different commands (ex: app --resume )

2
votes

4
votes

See the 19 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 26 Dec 11 at 18:31) >>

Ubuntu torrents should have web seeds

Written by Otus the 9 Aug 09 at 15:42. Related project: Transmission. New

Rarer Ubuntu torrents - especially development releases and other *buntu torrents - have few or no seeds. Therefore one has to use the direct download instead to download them.

This could easily be solved with web seeds. The web seeds extensions (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BitTorrent_(protocol)#Web_seeding) to BitTorrent allow the client to download from a web server, when there are no peers. This is supported in many clients, including Transmission.

421
votes

20
votes

See the 2 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 13 Dec 11 at 07:10) >>

pdf icon in the default icon theme

Written by chs42 the 15 Jan 10 at 18:02. Global category: Look and Feel. Implemented

In the default icon theme Human (and all other icon themes installed by default), there is only one icon for type "Text Document" - be it odt, doc or pdf.
(You only see that if you disable file previews, otherwise the content of the pdf file is shown - but there actually are people who do turn file previews off, because they find it distracting)

pdf files should have a different icon than odt or doc files, because they are completely different and are not meant to be edited. odt and doc files having the same icon is ok

205
votes

See the 4 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 1 Dec 11 at 06:16) >>

Mistakenly disabling touchpad renders Ubuntu unusable for newbies

Written by alexandros.java the 16 Jul 09 at 11:43. Related project: Gnome. Won't implement

If you uncheck "Enable Touchpad" in System>Preferences>Mouse>Touchpad and you don't know how to navigate with the keyboard so that you re-enable it, Ubuntu becomes impossible to use, with the exception of the full-screen terminal.

-92
votes

Solution #1: Prevent touchpad disabling from Mouse dialog if no other pointing device exists

Written by alexandros.java the 16 Jul 09 at 11:43.

My suggestion is to prevent the user from disabling the touchpad in System>Preferences>Mouse>Touchpad if no other pointing device exists. Also, we can add an exception where disabling is overridden if the user disconnects every other pointing devices except for the touchpad.
Please note that this solution does not block the implementation of a keyboard shortcut for fast disabling/enabling of the touchpad in case you want to type something.

278
votes

137
votes

-56
votes

Solution #4: Always have an onscreen pointer, controllable by the keyboard

Written by ricster the 22 Jul 09 at 14:35.

There should *always* be a pointer onscren, even if the device physically has no PS2 ports and the trackpad is smashed to bits. The pointer would always - even when a pointing device is plugged in - be controllable from the keyboard via a the arrow keys, Return and Space by holding down CTRL+SHIFT plus pressing one of those keys. A different key combo can be used but it should take absolute precedence over any app that might want to also use that key combo (if an app needs so many key combos that it needs to bind CTRL+SHIFT+Space to something it's probably doing something wrong).

41
votes

23
votes

-8
votes

-4
votes

5
votes

See the 13 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 22 Nov 11 at 21:59) >>

Nautilus doesn't offer a way to resolve symbolic links

Written by Gaz Davidson the 13 Feb 10 at 01:10. Related project: Nautilus. New

Symlinks are not managed well in Nautilus.
There is no way to find the original file or directory through the GUI.
When copying a relative symlink and pasting it to a new location, it retains its relative path causing a broken link.

31
votes

52
votes

16
votes

7
votes

See the 2 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 23 Oct 11 at 16:05) >>

The update manager is plain and old

Written by Afroman10496 the 6 Aug 09 at 20:15. Related project: Update manager. Not an idea

In the update manager, all you see is a menu with a scrollbar, with programs, a program number, and a very brief description. BORING.

353
votes

Solution #1: Make it better looking and more orginized

Written by Afroman10496 the 6 Aug 09 at 20:15.

Totally change the interface of it to show more info, telling average users simple but important info and enhancing it with features like:

- Show the importance of the update, with colored circles or boxes showing how important it is

- Group them into tabs (according to their sub-menu in the Gnome Menu's hierarchy), like [Overview][Accessories][Games][Graphics] and so on.

- Tell the users the new features of the upgrade

- Tell the users if the update will require any restarts of anything in advance.

266
votes

38
votes

Solution #3: Group related updates together

Written by chrismounce the 12 Aug 09 at 23:27.

Most users don't need to know the names of all the packages that are being upgraded. It might make things look less scary if, say, all the security-related updates were lumped together into one item in the Update Manager. And not just group those updates together -- I mean *completely hide* the names of all the security-related upgrades, so the user only sees *one* security-related item in the list.

Power users should still be able to get a list of what each update contains. But regular users shouldn't be overwhelmed with 50 different package names, when all they need to know is that there's 37 MB of system upgrades, 2 MB of security patches, and a new version of Firefox.

-33
votes

-49
votes

-12
votes

Solution #6: Only group packages with same changes text

Written by oliver-joos the 27 Aug 09 at 23:38.

(Similar but not equal to #3!)

The Update Manager lists updatable packages. Below the list you can unfold a text field that describes what changed in the currently selected package.

I propose to group together all packages that have the very same text of changes! Each package should still be un/checkable for updating individually. But only a whole group should be selectable. Further the context menu in the list could also show "Check Group" and "Uncheck Group".

In contrast to #3 no info is hidden! I even miss the total number of updatable packages that Gutsy or Feisty once had shown.

-11
votes

-6
votes

Solution #8: No more code-rot please!

Written by LnxDeeGee the 31 Aug 09 at 01:17.

I agree that the existing system is quite poor.
I should not see so much mess in the app list. Searching for a specific app to install also should never return Beta or Source unless I've chosen to see those.

I'm 100% against AppCenter!
One of the most irritating things about Linux is all of the abandoned/orphaned/code-rot apps. How many different apps like this do we need and must we have installed?
Please do not release a different app to manage this, the source exists for the other apps, just take the best one and update it to a new version that has the required features.
There should never be multiple/duplicate/abandoned apps for the base OS... EVER!

See the 7 comments or propose a solution (latest comment the 5 Oct 11 at 17:38) >>

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