Contributor yanick.rochon - Ubuntu brainstorm

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The Ubuntu community has contributed 22823 ideas, 138726 comments, 2639112 votes

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Contributor yanick.rochon

Prevent applications from stealing focus

Written by smenjas the 29 Feb 08 at 01:34. Global category: Usability. Implemented

I'm constantly frustrated by applications stealing my focus. There should be some way for me to ensure that when I begin typing somewhere, an overzealous application will never pop up in front of what I'm working on.

1950
votes

67
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-32
votes

Selected solution (#3): Pressing Ctrl + launching app makes new window appear below currently active one

Written by runesvend the 29 Mar 09 at 17:40.

I'm imagining that pressing and holding a button (Control, Alt, or some other key of choice) while clicking on a program launcher icon in the panel, would make the window of the newly launched program appear _behind_ the currently active window. That way, I can quickly and easily press Alt+Tab to get to the newly opened application window when I wish to.

46
votes

Selected solution (#4): Polite Program Launch

Written by MathUHenry the 9 Jul 09 at 18:09.

When a program is launched, it is granted the "active window" status. I would like programs to not be able to grant themselves the "active window" status. When another program is selected, the loading program is moved to the background and should be forced to stay there (until the user selects it). When I press ctrl alt d, I want it to minimize until I select it.

In short, don't let programs bring themselves to the front (even update manager). If a program MUST notify me of something, then I think the new notification system is the coolest/most-convenient-ever way to do it.

-5
votes

Selected solution (#5): user controled windows

Written by pererik87 the 6 Jan 10 at 09:44.

The "preload window" should set the order position and workspace, then the program should not be able to steal focus or change workspace any more after started. If a program does not have a preload screen and uses long time to start it should be given a container or something.

In other words: programs should be locked to the order and workspace they get when someone start them unless user changer the order.

Gimp is an example of a program that takes long time to start and then steals your focus, even if you change workspace and select unlimited of other windows.

11
votes

Selected solution (#6): Pop Under, Warning periods

Written by orblivion the 16 Sep 09 at 22:22.

1) More things should pop under. This could of course be annoying if you're trying to run a program and have to switch windows every time.

2) Warning periods. If things pop over, I need to have a warning. Maybe in Compiz, windows could fade in for a certain period of time (.5 to 1 seconds, user configured) without yet having focus. In Metacity, they could disable input controls for the same period. This interrupts what I'm doing, but at least I notice before I inadvertently do anything.

For notifications or dialogs, I think #1 would be just fine. I'll get to the window when I have a chance. #2 would be good for programs I deliberately open, or dialogs that really need my attention.

26
votes

0
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109
votes

Selected solution (#10): Improved Focus-Stealing Prevention

Written by lapgoat the 13 Oct 10 at 12:09.

The window manager should watch mouse movement and keyboard usage. If there has been a keystroke in the last second or the mouse pointer has moved more than a few pixels in the last half second, assume that the user may continue typing or click. Place the new popup at the lowest Z-level to minimize risk of accidentally clicking and retain keyboard focus on the current window.

If an application is in need of input but has been denied it, flash the task switcher or add an icon to the notification area to get the user's attention. If the application urgently needs attention, send a notification to via the selected preferred method (libnotify or such).

If there hasn't been any input in the above timeframes, the new window can be granted the ability to pop up at the top Z-level, but it should be denied keyboard focus until the user interacts with it.

If the user has requested an application window to open, the expected behavior is that the new window will come to the top and be given focus. Some heuristics should be developed to maximize the probability that this expected behavior occurs, otherwise the window manager becomes difficult to use.

-40
votes

Selected solution (#11): simple time based

Written by der_hede the 15 Oct 10 at 12:14.

There are many reasons why focus stealing is annoying. One is you have to find your old window if you do not want to use the new window directly.

The other is the group of simple popup windows asking you short questions or inform you about something.

While the first one is no problem, you still can switch to your desired window, the second one is very bad if you are writing a letter or something else.

Imagine the popup "Are you shure you want to do something [no][yes]" pops up while you are writing something and the default value you are accepting with [space] (an often pressed key in writings) is not the one you intentionally wanted to press...

For the later one there's a KISS solution: No one can react to any new windows in a certain time period. Lets say 1-2 Seconds. So there's simply no chance there is any usable input to such windows inside a 1-2 Seconds time frame from the creation of the window.

So one solution would be to simply ignore all new input to new windows for 1-2 Seconds.

This could be as simple as a default option for "Popup" Style Windows in GTK/Qt/etc.

23
votes

Selected solution (#12): Don't allow to steal focus

Written by Lachu the 16 Oct 10 at 13:54.

Instead of allowing to steal focus, only suggest user to switch onto new window or window asking for focus. Solution is already implemented in KDE SC - the task item will higlights, but we needs some think more visible.

I suggest to show transparent preview of window asking for focus in top-right corner of screen. Desktop environment will display this preview only, when keyboard/mouse are inactive for long period of time. Also, it will be displayed for few second after asking for focus.

10
votes

Selected solution (#13): Show on top, but don't give it focus

Written by Aielyn the 19 Oct 10 at 06:46.

It seems the problem is that you want to not lose the *focus* on the current window, but you also want to be able to quickly see and react to new windows that pop up.

Why not essentially push new windows to the top of the stack as far as display is concern, but keep the focus on the original window? Then, perhaps a time-based element could allow the system to automatically switch to the new window if no input is occurring within the set time. Another alternative would be to have it pushed to the top of the display stack, but after a set number of seconds, it would minimise (showing the minimise effect) and put a highlight on the tab for the new window.

This would be an option, of course, and the time-based element would be an option as well.

-1
votes

Selected solution (#14): z-level- and focus-policy module

Written by shadowentity the 28 Sep 11 at 09:31.

a plug-in interface to use a module that makes decisions about the z-level, focus and maybe even the workspace and/or window-size and/or orientation of the window that is about coming up.

a configurable default module should exist and be used by default to apply simple rulesets such as "never", "always", "only raise'", etc. and offer an option to eval a script function or something.

it would keep simple things simple and make complex things possible.

0
votes

See the 53 comments or propose a solution >>

Need a CD/DVD burner that has no bugs and just works

Written by miwaypet the 3 May 09 at 03:22. Related project: K3b. Not an idea

Brasero is too buggy. Has a track record of not working well with different CD/DVD burners. Throws too many errors. Rejects good disks.

K3b is too heavy. Would mean porting all the big KDE libs. Not feasible.

I am submitting my idea as a remedy for the above situation.

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1220
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-123
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-101
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Solution #7: K3b and Brasero together as one.

Written by cracken226 the 14 May 09 at 16:40.

Install both versions of these burning programs into main distro for user compatibility with Gnome and Kde base file, while Gnome stays as default environment. So Kde base files would be an advantage, as these files are in advanced repositories, or Kubuntu distro installation media in case you do not have a Ubuntu Gnome based dvd installation media.

Please, vote. Thank You for making Ubuntu better.

118
votes

Solution #8: Perform some competitor analysis

Written by srippon the 18 May 09 at 09:15.

Competitor analysis ( http://deyalexander.com.au/resources/uxd/competitive-analysis.html ) could be performed to help improve the user experience (UX) of Brasero.

Competitor analysis would show what the other popular CD/DVD burning applications available are, what features they offer, how these features are offered, etc.

Another form of competitor analysis is to incorporate usability testing ( http://www.usability.gov/refine/learnusa.html | http://deyalexander.com.au/resources/uxd/usability-testing.html ). In doing this you get real users to perform real CD/DVD burning tasks using competitors software. This shows what works well and what doesn't work so well in their software. These findings can be incorporated into new designs for Brasero.

174
votes

Solution #9: Perform some usability testing on Brasero

Written by srippon the 18 May 09 at 09:22.

Usability testing ( http://www.usability.gov/refine/learnusa.html | http://deyalexander.com.au/resources/uxd/usability-testing.html ) could be performed to help improve the user experience (UX) of Brasero.

Through usability testing you observe real users performing real CD/DVD burning tasks using Brasero. Usability testing helps highlight what users are finding easy and what parts of the design they are struggling with.

5
votes

-13
votes

Solution #11: Write in vala an awesome brasero replacement

Written by francois the 5 Oct 09 at 13:03.

Brasero is a good program only when it does not crash and has indeed a good interface, but there are too many bugs and we're losing hope for those to be fixed one day.
Vala is an awesome language that allows to write programs quickly (such as mono) but without the inconvenients of mono (lack of performance and .NET)
An awesome brasero-killer application could be written in vala, a CD/DVD burner that fits the description of the idea.

See the 6 comments or propose a solution >>

Gmail Integration in Evolution

Written by Shady3D the 10 Oct 09 at 19:45. Related project: Evolution Mail and Calendar. New

setting-up Gmail in Evolution every time is a hell for non geeks. calendar, address-book, and notes are a completely different thing.

926
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96
votes

230
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145
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36
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Solution #8: Create new online account management application

Written by optevo the 1 Nov 09 at 22:48.

Introduction:
An online account management application (OAMA) should be created. This application would have a simple interface and will store authentication information for various online accounts (google, hotmail, etc). In addition to basic account information, it could also store common preference associated with such accounts eg.
- IMAP vs POP
- which email account is the default
- whether to use a given account for any/all of email, chat, calendar
- whether to set the account up in the browser (eg. create bookmarks and save user/password information for the relevant site)

Whenever a Communications Application (ComApp) such as a email (eg Evolution, Thunderbird), chat (eg Empathy, Pidgin), calendar (eg Evolution, Sunbird), etc is launched for the first time it should either
1. Take existing settings that were set within the OAMA and auto-configure itself accordingly
2. If the OAMA has never been launched, the ComApp should invoke it first

ADVANTAGES:
- Once the OAMA has been run, any ComApp should be able to be launched with zero initial configuration and be usable
- Single point of configuration for all ComApps

[...]

- Easier configuration of all ComApps
- Easier to change between different ComApps

Additional suggestions:
If a preference that is managed by OAMA is changed within the ComApp, the preferences in the OAMA should be updated. In other words, there should be a 2 way sync between the OAMA and all ComApps

It might be worth considering having the OAMA run as part of the Ubuntu install process.

13
votes

4
votes

See the 19 comments or propose a solution >>

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
votes

139
votes

25
votes

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
votes

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
votes

164
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62
votes

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
votes

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
votes

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
votes

5
votes

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
votes

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
votes

-1
votes

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
votes

20
votes

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
votes

7
votes

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 >>

Update Manager is not optimized for low speed Internet.

Written by ravibuz the 16 Jul 09 at 12:23. Global category: Internet & Networking. In development

Update Manager Is not optimized for people with slow internet connection..For me it nearly takes 2 days to update a version of ubuntu from update manager.

654
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392
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273
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142
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Selected solution (#5): Let the Update Manager "feel" the use of the net

Written by Rodrigo the 18 Jul 09 at 08:14.

I remember a few years back a daemon for the SETI project that "felt" the use of the processor, and when it was idle it would make its calculations.
Something similar with the internet would be nice. So it would be downloading, but when you want to see a new web or send an email the net will be free in very little time. Maybe through a "pause" as Solution #1 said.

-34
votes

274
votes

Selected solution (#8): Use better compression as much as possible.

Written by yaknowwat the 21 Jul 09 at 05:55.

LZMA has been updated with LZMA2 included in the newer beta's of 7z which is making it into Karmic.

It seems with the new LZMA2 compression using 2 threads and Solid compression it gives better compression than even RAR's upcoming WINRAR64 with comparable speeds.(LZMA2 with 4 or more threads is about 50% faster and 2 or less threads is about 20% slower, though 2 threads has better compression.)
[ Note: This is for compressing LZMA2Solid could easily be far faster at decompressing ]

I know it won't be as big a difference as moving to delta's but it will cause about a 30% reduction compared to the current tar.gz compression used now which is actually very large when you consider some people have to download 200 MB in gunzip compressed updates with LZMA2 it would be around 150 MB. Huge difference if your connection is slow.

Downside is compression is slower with lzma ,but its designed to have decompression speeds like gunzip fortunately.

-53
votes

Selected solution (#9): Create a update package file

Written by fernandoc1 the 30 Jul 09 at 15:06.

With an update package file, people can download the most recent updates in a single file and install it.
This solution could help people with slow internet connection, because they can get the file in a Lan House or with a friend that has already downloaded the updates and keep it with him for future use.
It could work like a "service pack" for example, and become available in the ubuntu official site.
I think that with it, there will be even an economy of Ubuntu mirrors bandwidth, because in many places, people put many machines in a same network to update directly from the mirrors and it is not reasonable, because the same download will be done many times.
With the update as a single file package, any download manager can resume a partial download of the file.

-57
votes

Selected solution (#10): Blend to background

Written by put4558350 the 30 Jul 09 at 15:52.

By doing this. The update process will look blend to background. User can just using the computer when download of update file is in progress.

- hidden interface as much as possible.
- put QOS (quality of service) over it. so it dosn't take bandwidth too much when user using internet.
- update as much package as it downloaded when user shutdown or startup so no file is in used.

Optional

- sort important update on top of download list. so important update package get update first.
- reusme last package. so long package can finish.
- popup when download compleate or error.

111
votes

81
votes

Selected solution (#12): Support continuation of terminated download

Written by fukanchik the 3 Aug 09 at 08:33.

I use low bandwidth gprs connection. During updates i very often see that in the middle of downloading a package the process terminates and starts over from zero (!) again downloading what has already been downloaded! And over and over and over. During this process it consumes times more traffic than entire update. It looks like bug.

If update manager will support continuation of terminated download process (like wget or sometimes firefox does) it will be very helpful.

Upd: delta updates alone will not fix the problem. Such update can itself be of large size.

20
votes

-23
votes

Selected solution (#14): Add a "help a buddy" feature to Synaptic

Written by mdhunn the 4 Aug 09 at 19:49.

Actually this would be two features. Add the ability to export a list of the installed packages and their versions installed on one machine along with any apps desired onto a thumb drive. And of course the corresponding feature to download and update the drive.

Basically just an update to the download / add packages feature that's all ready there. After all an update done in Synaptic is just as valid as one done in Update Manager or by using apt on the command line. Having both a laptop and a desktop, I might even get some use out of that when my home connection goes down.

-46
votes

33
votes

Selected solution (#16): Generate a download script.

Written by Darwin Survivor the 9 Aug 09 at 22:13.

The package manager is capable of generating a download script, so why not the update manager?

The user could then take that download script to a friend's house, a library or their school and download the files to USB, CD, etc. Then simply insert the media in their computer and BOOM, updated!

It may also be an idea to make the script and OS agnostic as possible (many libraries only have windows) or allow the user to select what OS they will be using to do the download (windows can do ftp via CLI, so it should be possible).

833
votes

Selected solution (#17): Show download rate and add pause option

Written by sirish.gauni the 1 Nov 09 at 18:00.

You could just add a pause option to the software center and also show the download rates. Further more if the software center can be made such a way that when the network/internet goes off the download doesn't stop completely and starts from where it left of when the internet is back.

This idea can also be applied to Update manager.

237
votes

Selected solution (#18): Allow multiple Downloads

Written by Sebin Benjamin the 5 Nov 09 at 16:47.

Allow multiple downloads to take place using all of the bandwidth Or limit usage. Sometimes some files/servers have very low speed. So simultaneous downloads would be helpful

Anyway why would anyone waste time for each file to get downloaded, whereas you could let it download 2 or 3 files depending on the bandwidth and finish the updates faster.

66
votes

See the 17 comments or propose a solution >>

Focus an attention of user on shutdown confirmation dialog

Written by Haku the 1 Apr 09 at 12:08. Related project: Gnome. Implemented

In Jaunty Jackalope 9.04 beta is added shutdown/restart/logout confirmation dialog. This dialog is important at the moment. Focus an attention of user on it.

773
votes

260
votes

-65
votes

-13
votes

See the 19 comments or propose a solution >>

Don't make gnome games dependent on each other

No information about this blueprint
Information is updated every 5 minutes.
Please wait till the next update.

Written by timwylie the 11 Mar 08 at 01:57. Global category: Gaming. New

The default gnome games for solitaire, minesweeper, etc are really the best out there, but I hate that if I remove one game through "Add/Remove Programs" it removes all of them! Why?

This will not only confuse, but also really annoy most users. A reason should at least be given. I know there are easy ways around this, but most average users are going to want to use the easy package manager... I mean, that's what it's there for right?

756
votes

552
votes

173
votes

See the 9 comments or propose a solution >>

It's hard to figure out what some effects do in Compiz

Written by baldurpet the 13 Apr 09 at 16:28. Related project: Compiz. New

I think it's fun to mess around with Compiz and it even has a couple of handy features that actually help you. Only problem is that I have to enable and try out almost every effect because I can't infer what they do from their name/description (not with easy anyway).

725
votes

Solution #1: Include pictures and a better introdunction

Written by baldurpet the 13 Apr 09 at 16:28.

I propose including pictures of how each effect looks like along with a better introduction.

Pretty much everything you can find here, the Compiz wiki has an incredibly good introduction and explanation for each plugin (I for example had no idea what the JPEG plugin did, the only thing it says in the CCSM is "JPEG image format plugin" which doesn't help at all) and really representative and informative images.

This would be one step towards making Compiz keep it simple (stupid).

(it might also be a good idea to include a big detailed drawing of how the effect looks like instead of a screenshot)

263
votes

Solution #2: Show pictures next to plugins/let user browse by pictures

Written by baldurpet the 13 Apr 09 at 16:40.

This is a continuation of solution #1. Most of the time I'm looking for some effect but I have no idea what it's called.

I suggest:
1. Showing thumbnails of screenshots next to the effect so the user can see exactly what it does. I realize that there are already icons supposed to represent the effects but they just don't do the job (example: the icon for animation, i.e. having the window go up in flames or beam up, is an oil lamp.. seriously?)
2. Give users the possibility to search just by screenshots; i.e. not searching through thumbnails but rather big images where you can clearly see what's going on.

113
votes

255
votes

144
votes

Solution #5: Effect themes

Written by waster the 19 Apr 09 at 23:07.

Okay - you're all tweakers, but most people do not want pico-granularity of every pixel's movement and transparency.

With or without integration with gnome themes, compiz could provide a nice set of themes containing co-ordinated effects and decor. By all means have another app to do tweaking, but I nearly filled my pants when I first saw the detailed config app.

51
votes

Solution #6: ccsm is a geek tool, ubuntu isn't a geek OS

Written by choad the 21 Apr 09 at 00:56.

ccsm is a total geek tool. i love it, because i am a geek.
taking a more user friendly approach would involve making some decisions about defaults, putting things currently accessed through ccsm in to logical places (window opacity in preferences > windows for example, next to the similar "select windows on mouse hover" option) and removing redundant things like having both a cube and a desktop wall.

37
votes

5
votes

Solution #8: Clarification and declutter

Written by adamknox the 15 Sep 09 at 04:12.

Add actual descriptions of what each effect does. Reorganize the different effects. I imagine that a larger percentage of people will want to change transparencies, shadows, alt+tab functionality, than creating flames around a cursor, wobbly windows, a compiz splash, or a huge flashy benchmarking utility.

Incorporate themes from Solution #5:
User Created Content
Presentation (clean, with an attention grabbing cursor)
Gloss

1
votes

Solution #9: Apply solutions #5 and #2 to invalidate #6

Written by mikko.rantalainen the 7 Oct 10 at 11:17.

Improve CCSM to not be a geek tool only. Make it a tool to create, modify and apply themes. Basically, make a compiz theme a saved CCSM configuration. One could think that using simple-ccsm would be the answer but I don't see any reason why real CCSM couldn't be improved enough to make simple-ccsm needless.

Optional features:
- ability to send your own theme to central server
- ability to search central server for themes

For example, see how Firefox add-ons work - they are basically geek features (web browser customization?) but made usable to casual user.

See the 5 comments or propose a solution >>

Less screensavers

Written by programad the 11 Mar 08 at 15:24. Global category: Look and Feel. Implemented

Actually, we have 5 wallpapers, 9 themes and 80+ SCREENSAVERS!!!

WHAT THE HELL!

Who need that amount of screensavers?

I think we should vote five to the default installation, and the other ones comes with a optional package?

Isn't gnome "keep it simple"?

For me just a "dim screen" is enough for default.

681
votes

36
votes

-7
votes

Selected solution (#3): do not remove any screen saver but improve them

Written by slsolaris the 18 Mar 09 at 03:52.

for example GLText should be editable, give as the option to set speed, improved graphics, etc... but do not remove them because a lot of them are awesome.
in the other hand some of them are ugly and u should remove:
Lavalite, sonar, spheremonics, circuit, deco, engine, FlipScreen3D, Floating Toasters (what the hell is that, LOL), GFlux, GLKnots...
please do it canonical, Linux for human Beings, computer needs to be personal.

-208
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178
votes

406
votes

712
votes

Selected solution (#7): place in a "screensavers-extra" package

Written by lee.jarratt the 28 Apr 09 at 20:34.

A good idea is to remove many of these screensavers (some are quite poor) and place them in a "screensavers-extra" package so users who do want to use a not-so-popular screensaver can just install the package.

An advantage for this is that it will cut down the size of the disk image by around 8Mb. That 8Mb for Screensavers could be used towards something more useful.

81
votes

Selected solution (#8): Offer Download & Install easy interface

Written by pumukyjunior the 6 May 09 at 14:34.

I think it could be interesting to mantain the most popular screenSavers by default, and let the user to search, explore, and to try another screensavers.

Maybe, these ones could be stored in a repository, and shown to users by a user-friendly interface.

I think something simililar is done in KDE 4.0 when you want to install a new Grub image.

Finally, I would keep the black screensaver by default, in order to try to safe Energy.

-208
votes

Selected solution (#9): Offer "Screensavers" option in Ubuntu installation.

Written by rmconard the 7 May 09 at 15:16.

During the install process the user should come to a section about the "look and feel" of Ubuntu. From this spot in the installation the user should be given the option of installing which screensavers he/she wants. You should have 3 options:

1) Install All Screensavers
2) Install No Screensavers
3) Install Some Screensavers (choose which ones)

This way, the ones the user doesn't choose don't even get put on the HD.

See the 42 comments or propose a solution >>

Prevent from copying files larger than 4GB on fat32 fs as the copy starts

Written by radioxid the 22 Apr 10 at 22:08. Related project: Nautilus. New

FAT filesystems do not allow storing files of a size greater than 2GB and 4GB. This is known. Well.
Though you may sometimes forget that your external hard drive is formated in FAT16 or FAT32...

And when the time comes to copy/paste some BIG file onto this drive (and when I say BIG I mean REALLY big,... HUGE), well, it's ok, the copy starts, the file is being copied hu hu... and UNTIL SOMETHING REALLY NASTY AND OBVIOUS HAPPENS, nothing. You wait. Around 4 minutes in USB2. RAWHIDE.

Please warn us next time just when we the process is started. Unless a whole lot of Ubuntu users are SM addicted to FAT..?

697
votes

93
votes

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votes

321
votes

134
votes

Solution #5: Warn the user of the limitation and offer to split file in an archive

Written by gumshore the 28 Apr 10 at 23:23.

If the OS told the user that there is a limitation, thats fine, but chances are, the user still wants to copy the file. If we could display a dialog that offered to use file-roller or gzip or whatever to make an uncompressed archive of the file, and split it up, a user on a M$ computer could un-archive it with either WinR@R or 7-zip.

68
votes

Solution #6: Solution #6 Find a more generic solution for related problems

Written by robheus the 29 Apr 10 at 06:46.

The problem does not just show up when copying, since also when dowloading a file to a FAT file system, this could happen. Also, somewhat unrelated, on file systems which DO facilitate large files, the writing or copying of a file onto such a filesystem might break, because of a device (external USB harddisk) might be too slow.
Also a warning against that (having to wait an hour for a copy which still fails feels miserable) should be issued.

The solution would require two parts:
1. The tools that do such kind of copying (including file download) should warn against the breaking of the copy due to characteristics of the device and/or filesystem, and direct the user to utilize in that case another, better equipped tool.

2. Create a utility that can both split a file in (user definable, but with a good default value that depends on the filesystem in question) chunks/parts, and later join them together when doing the reverse transaction (for example: split with the option -j to join, and the option -s to split). As a command line option, offer also compression of the file to be written. Have the tool also resumable, so that it can resume a broken partial write, and/or have it check for the actual amount of the file written, and delay as necessary the copying if the device to write on is too slow to keep up.

3. Implement this also in other copy tools, like download managers, FTP, etc.

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votes

-3
votes

-1
votes

See the 14 comments or propose a solution >>

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