Re: Integrate VMware and Gnome - continued

[Regis Duchesne <hpreg vmware com>]

Ted,

> To the author of the original post.  Don't do this.  Do it the way Gnome
> allows you to, and add it to the global menu that Gnome reads when it
> loads the panel.
Don't lock yourself in a closed system.

Think free. If there is a need for something, why not implementing it, 
as long as you are free to use it or not.

>  If a user wants to add this icons and stuff to their
> desktop, they can run that and it will do the right thing.
But they need to know that the app exist to do that.

> Going and
> adding this to all the users sessions or other related affairs is going
> to annoy a lot of users.
In the last proposal, users can choose if they want apps to be
advertised or not, and by which way (email, popup...)

> These are MULTIUSER systems, if a user wants
> it, they will ask their sys admin/help desk where to get it
It doesn't work like this in the real world: the sysadmin install
things, and then nobody knows it. Sometimes the sysadmin sends an
email. But some people are annoyed by email.

As long as the final user can choose if he wants new apps to be
advertised (or old apps, it would be cool to know when an app has been 
_removed_ from the system), I think things are OK.

> or maybe
> just look on their menus and get it.
There are already way too much things in menus, and they are deeply
nested. Do you think users browse their menus each time they open a
session to keep track of what has been added to/removed from the system?

> We do not have to treat users like
> idiots just because Windows does.
We are not treating them like idiot, we are proposing (not imposing)
them to ease their life, by doing things for them _if they have given
their agreement_.

> There's such a thing as too friendly,
> and this is crossing that boundary.
No. I disagree. I like Linux because you have nice GUIs for simple
users, but knowledgeable users can depply configure things. My
proposal goes in this direction: currently we have the menu editor and 
desktop for knowledgeable users. I propose a system so that apps can
help the user to add menu entries and desktop icons, if they
want. What is wrong with that?

You are not required to code it, don't worry :) If it can ease
people's life, and can be entirely deactivated, and you want to
deactivate it, then don't use it, it is your choice, and I respect
it. But please don't try to say "this is bad for everybody" simply
because you do not like it.

> Another reason why this idea
> doesn't sound like it's been thought through too well: What happens if
> not everyone can run VMware?  You set this up and all your users will be
> prompted to add this stuff, some might even assume from this, that they
> can run it.  They run your little program, get the pretty icons and
> stuff, and then, when they try to run it, nothing.  Why?  Because behind
> the GUI they're getting a Permission denied.I
> But they don't see this,
> so they complain to the sys admin.
It happens only if you app doesn't test for bad cases. VMware tells
the user when there is a "permission denied", so I'm not worried about 
that. It is not a good argument. The fact that an app beahves badly
has nothing to do with how we can help the user to start the
app.

> Drop the Windows idea that everyone
> can run anything that gets installed.  Drop that idea that users can't
> think for themselves.
Come on. I know users think. But they can not know everything (who
can?) so what's wrong with making their life easier?

Best regards,
--
Regis "HPReg" Duchesne - Member of Technical Staff - VMWare, Inc.
        www              http://www.VMware.com/
       (O o)             I use Linux (1135 KB/s over 10Mb/s ethernet)
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