Claus Beerta

Gnome 3 - Back to the Roots

So I’ve recently started using Linux on my Desktop full time again. All because of Gnome 3.

I’ve abandoned Linux on my Desktop at home a few years back, and started using OS X full time. I got a PPC Mac Mini, then an Intel Mac Mini and finally a MacBook. I was fairly happy with it: Fancy UI with a nice CLI to it to fiddle around on.

Good Bye Apple #

A couple of months back though i started to grow tired of Apple and it’s behavior in general. The Company has grown from Cool Underdog to a Mega Company, and that definitely shows. IMO they’re becoming the Microsoft of the 90’s, using their market dominance in some areas to pressure little companies out of business.

The past few months also felt like Apple’s primary focus are their iSomething Devices, and they don’t care about OS X much anymore.

With all the recent updates to iTunes, which I’ve grown to absolutely hate as an application, their App Store for OS X and their apparent intentions to turn the Desktop into a Touch UI, I’m not very big on the whole gestures notion. I finally decided to give up on it all together.

(No, you can’t have my stuff, I’ve already sold all of it)

Windows 7 as intermediary #

For some time i was using Windows 7 exclusively on my desktop at home and notebook. Windows 7 is a good OS, but as a Unix person it is severely lacking in a number of areas.

Microsoft is also severely lacking in the innovation department. They need to get their act together and get some good updates out again. Their image is crap these days, and if they don’t turn around, i wouldn’t be to surprised if they didn’t matter in a couple of years anymore. Even their primary enterprise market is slowly shifting away from them.

It’d be a shame if we’d end up with a new dominant player (Apple or Google for example) merely replacing Microsoft. We need to keep the competition, to keep these Mega Companies in check.

Hello Gnome #

Fortunately for me Gnome 3 arrived. I started using it at work (Fedora 15 Betas) and when it got released i put Archlinux on my Desktop and haven’t looked back yet.

I still occasionally boot Windows on my Notebook to edit Photos in Lightroom, but that’s allright. I’ve tried Bibble but i am to used to Lightroom to make the switch.

In essence i have made a complete turnaround: From Linux to Mac OS X to Windows and now back to Linux.

Let’s see how long it’ll last this time.

Some good to know things on Gnome 3 #

  • Gnome 3 Cheatsheet: link
  • Gnome Shell extensions: link
  • Gnome Tweak Tool for some advanced Settings: link

Enable Focus follows Mouse in Gnome Shell:

gconftool-2 -s /apps/metacity/general/focus_mode sloppy --type string

Changing a user theme with the extension installed (Older versions of the Tweak Tool didn’t really work for me):

gsettings get org.gnome.shell.extensions.user-theme name # Get current
gsettings set org.gnome.shell.extensions.user-theme name Zukitwo # Set one
gsettings reset org.gnome.shell.extensions.user-theme name # Reset to default