This is a double edged sword. I have been reviewing several projects I started that are now rendered very messy due to Gnome Changes and GTK4 removals and LibAdwaita integrated entanglement.
Gnome removed a LOT.
So many things that developers used to be able to do and create functionality or controls or even aesthetic is now gone.
Gnomes answer: "You no longer need to do that. With Gnome LibAdwaita, we do that for you automatically."
If I wanted that, I would have stayed on Microsoft Windows.
Another member posted a thread not long ago in which I spotted this line:
Note that either way patching LibAdwaita or adding CSS atop it, especially as a distribution, is a big no no and I get the hint Mint doesn't want to do this unless they have to either.
A "big no?" It's a big No, is it? In FOSS?! In Free Open Source... It is a "big no" to patch or add onto the .css? Really? Is this where we are in FOSS, now, claiming AntiFOSS stances on that which is covered by Gnu General License?
This is the result. This is what happens.
The warnings have been vocalized for a decade.
While the ZorinGroup must adapt and suffer to the removals Gnome enforces; Zorin chose this by throwing their full support behind Gnome.
Yes, I feel Plasma on X11 is definitely the better alternative to Gnome, as are OS's with no systemd, disabled pulse audio and no pipewire screwing up the system. Thank goodness for Audacious! And just to be clear it appears to be a breach of the GNU GPL (GNU General Public Licence or Copy Left). The whole ethos should be about you having the ability to do what you want with your computer, not to be reliant on an OS out of a vending machine! EFF is what should get our support, not FOSS.
Thats why system76 created their own desktop environment. They got pretty sick of gnome removing stuff. I wonder how long it will take before gnome gets replaced by cosmic . I bet a year or 2.
What Cosmic can do is provide a viable alternative to Gnome D.E.
Replace it? I am not sure if Gnome can lose its footing. But it could stand to lose some ground given its push for Microsoft-like Dominance.
The very reason for Cosmics development may also enlighten and educate casual GnuLinux users that may otherwise be unaware of the discord and why it is so important to maintaining a vibrant development community and FOSS.
Want to know what is funny?
KDE was first. It utilized Qt, which was proprietary at the time. Gnome was founded about a year later in protest of this, with the goal of ensuring FOSS and only open source libraries are used. How far Gnome has come from that time, slowly deviating from that.
Google initially had a benign origin as well with a motto of "Don't be evil."
Looking at things historically, it seems as though many things begun with good intentions slowly get twisted and warped.
Many companies start out well and high quality with affordable and fairly priced products. Over time, they bloat.
Shrinking quality and inflating prices. Lowering employee wages and increasing executive wages.
How much time will pass - that Cosmic might turn sour?
We must remain vigilant. Unafraid to speak out when we see wrong being done. Resist fitting in and do what is right. When a Core begins to show signs of rot - Do not hesitate.
What I find interesting in Cosmic is the Background. You have this Company System76 whou builts and sells PC's. And they have her own OS - Pop OS. And thererfor they now develop her Desktop Environment. This more practical Approach could be interesting for the Usage. I mean, that differs it from KDE or Gnome in my Point of View.
There I'm excited to see how it is with Budgie in Comparison. I mean Budgie is a direct Alternative, too. Theoretically Cinnamon, too. But I would take aside.
I would like PCLinuxOS as my daily driver, but I have had some crashes with it needing a reinstall. So Q4OS is my main drive. I've had CPU errors happening with PCLinuxOS (Seems to be always Core 5 on my AMD Ryzen 7.
Recently I found out that one of the lead developers from System76 is refusing to work on the Linux kernel. Which is very interesting since System76 is a hardware manufacturer... and it stands to reason that they would want their machines to be fully compatible.
In short: Developers working on existing Linux kernel functionality (in C), want to continue working on their code. Rust developers want them to either port the existing code to Rust, or spend time helping others to port it to Rust.
Now, this defiant attitude can serve a good purpose; this is why we even have a new desktop environment coming up. However, there's a fine line between this and childish entitlement.
This is where I would take @Aravisian's advice about remaining vigilant. Let's not forget that System76 is a for-profit company, and there are no guarantees that they won't decide to turn Cosmic into their own walled garden. I for one, find their attitude to publicly refuse to contribute with kernel developers — as a hardware manufacturer of Linux desktop, no less! — extremely disappointing.
Which means that defiance is also self-serving. When something is self-serving, it means any argument made in favor of that thing is suspect and should be subject to scrutiny.
Personally, I agree that rust can offer improvements in some things.
But part of GnuLinux that makes it special is the lack of use of Force.
Yeah, it's once again bad manners. It reminds me of the recent KeePassXC incident. I did agree with the argument of removing non-essential functionality from the main package and have that available as a separate add-on. But breaking the existing user experience does not justify taking matters into their own hands.
The same is true here: yes, Rust has plenty of pros over C, but it's unreasonable to expect others to drop what they are doing just because you know better™.
The argument of pros over the current includes arguments made for the force of
snap
flatpak
wayland
systemd
And after the fact, the cons began appearing in plentiful supply.
Interestingly, after the adoption of systemd by Debian, one of the high ups at Debian who pushed heavily for its adoption and argued that it was the better way straight up later admitted that he had no idea at the time if it was any better or not; but he was good friends with one of the SystemD developers.
"Of such trifles, history is made."
That reads like textbook ens***ification to me. (Self censoring to ensure this doesn't come across as a censor bypass, but the term is increasingly commonly used without.) First, make it good for the customers, so they come and you become established. Then, make it good for the businesses you deal with (ad companies, vendors, etc.), at consumers' expense, so the money flows. Finally, make it good for yourself, so the money flows TO YOU when people are too deeply invested or otherwise locked in. Honestly not sure how money moves around the GNOME ecosystem, but I'd be surprised if it were entirely ideological stubbornness.
Well a few years back, Microsoft has an annual giveaway to other projects, and their employees voted for Gnome so M$ gave them $10 K.
Because of the now restrictive elements of the Gnome DE that has screwed 17.2, I will have to hypocritically move my support to Q4OS. Why hypocritically? Because it uses systemd. However, the number of Windows themes it offers with its rendition of Plasma 5.27 outstrips other Plasma based distros, not to mention its Trinity Desktop edition which is available in both 64-bit and 32-bit. A better alternative to xfce IMHO.
Wait, SO gnome DE is going to the worst?
I have no problems with gnome, but if someone doesn't like something with gnome, can't they fork it and modify it? Or am I mistaken?
. I bet a year or 2.