On Wed, 2008-07-23 at 14:19 -0400, MHR wrote:
What is it about software developers that they have to make decisions like this for us users instead of opening up the code such that the options are under our control?
I'm not a developer, but I don't think that is an accurate assessment of most OSS developers. Sometimes, features that seem simple to users are complex from a programming standpoint. Sometimes the existing infrastructure makes a feature difficult on one project, while easy on another project with a different infrastructure. Other times, the developers don't anticipate everything the users might find useful. Responsive developers in this situation try to implement the request, once the idea is brought to their attention. Yet other times, the request does not fit into the overall philosophy of the project. For instance, a program may be designed to be lightweight and simple, but the request would contribute to making the software into bloatware. One of the things I didn't like with ximian evolution on Red Hat 7.x was that it was way too bloated. The current version is much more elegant and efficient. -- Art Alexion Resources for Human Development, Inc. 215-951-0300 x3075 4700 Wissahickon Ave. art rhd org Philadelphia, PA 19144 www.rhd.org
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