__/ [ B Gruff ] on Tuesday 25 July 2006 00:35 \__
> On Monday 24 July 2006 19:51 Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>
>>
>> I work in a physical environment where it's rare for people
>> to glance over my monitors. I suppose XGL, much like the
>> existing eye candy in KDE, is somewhat of a 'magic show'
>> (see a magician trying to impress him/herself with the same
>> old tricks), even a repertoire that you can use when a guest
>> comes over. Beyond this, you soon discover that anything
>> that does not help becomes a distraction. It can take an
>> hour, or a day, or a week to bore. I can still argue that my
>> wallpaper serves an actual purpose. It reminds me which
>> virtual desktop I'm on.
>
> I'm sure you are right, Roy.
> However, I have discovered one excellent use for it.
> Home-users of Windows are simply not aware of the concept of multiple
> desktops. If you move from one to the other, they don't really see the
> significance. However, if you "flip the cube round", and particularly if
> you have some of the apps "wrapped around the corners", it's a real
> eye-opener for them - a bit like showing somebody a picture rather than
> describing in words:-)
> The transparency bits are just the icing on the cake of course, but again,
> a
> quick demo doesn't go amiss. You can tag on "...and the next Microsoft OS
> will have something similar, I believe - if you go for the more expensive
> version, and wait maybe a year..... and maybe get a new computer...."
> (Sure - I've learned to damn-with-faint-praise!)
> Like you, I find it something that one is better off without while
> working:-)
About 2 years ago a colleague told me that Vista would have
virtual desktops*. I believe that another colleague told me
about this less than a year ago, but it seems to have never
become a reality (I'd say that Vista is on feature freeze,
not feature-complete as completeness has a positive
connotation that is related to reliability, security, and
integrity).
As for the part about rotating cubes and its impact on
educating users, you told me exactly that in the past. And
it was worth repeating. I saw some baffled faces (and
skepticism even) when bouncing between workspaces in the
presence of colleagues. They just dislike anything they
don't know (or more importantly -- unable to /understand/).
Like that crazy computer where focus follows mouse and menus
keep appearing out of nowhere (that one I was last slagged
off for 2 days ago)...
Best wishes,
Roy
*or maybe just the 3-D space. At the time, I believe that
the whole of Vista (Longhorn) was intended to incorporate
3-D (see Metisse project for FVWM), not just 'flip view'.
Speaking of which, 'flip view' is not pragmatic and makes
switching less helpful as windows obscure one another.
--
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