I could see this being the case for new users, because they wouldn't know any better. I'm glad some people like it, and hope it speeds adoption of desktop Linux.

However, as a person who was already productive with Gnome2, I found Gnome3 irritating. They took away a lot of options for window placement and menu arrangement.... and _I'm_ supposed to flush _my_ time down the toilet because someone decided this was a "better way". Thankfully, we're in Linux-land, so I'm not strictly beholden to their whims like the poor bastards that use windows and mac. I think MATE is the way forward, which is sad for me in some ways. Gnome3 should have been the one to take a the new name, because it was such a departure from the previous version. It's like going to your favorite dive-bar for your daily Ike-Turner, and discovering that they only serve mojitos from now on.

Yeah.... this has been the bane of my linux existence. Shiny new things. I'd try them, they'd work amazingly... and then, on Monday morning, when I have a meeting/presentation in 30 minutes, it would fail in some way and I'd be trapped at the terminal for the next 2 hours. I wish it were different, but I've only got time for flexible, reliable applications, especially when it comes to desktop environments. After hearing this, fans of crapple will usually say "Well then OSX was made for you!"... then I reply "Oh really? Please show me how to remove these bloated garbage apps like Finder and iTunes."

That said, I do appreciate the tip. I looked into it and realized that MATE is actually a fork of the classic Gnome2 codebase. It wasn't very apparent at first, it would have been nice if the name suggested that. Thanks!

The transition from Gnome2 to Gnome3 was an awful one for me. I bet there was a meeting somewhere that went like this...

Designer 1: Gnome2 is way too simple! Look at this Windows 8 - they totally outdid the rest of the world!

Designer 2: Yes, and look at this OSX - girls love it!

Dev: Totally! Let's re-do all the menus/toolbars, and then we'll make it the new default on (insert list of gnome3 distros here). Everyone will love it from day one, and nobody will experience any loss of productivity! It will be a great resume builder for us as well.

All: Yay!

...Yes, I'm bitter. Yes, I've moved all my machines to XFCE (MATE looks useful, but less mature/stable ATM). If I wanted a confusing UI with limited customization, I would just use OSX. The fact that anyone willingly uses Gnome3 bewilders me. IMHO, they should have done this: continue to keep Gnome2 as "Gnome", fork the code, and call Gnome3 something different (KDE8-X or something).

If Ubuntu touch is anything like the desktop version of Ubuntu, then I can expect:

* Daily update nags

* Several hours of reconfiguring software after each update

* Changes to the user interface that you didn't ask for

* Loss of previous functionality after each update

Ubuntu was my first Linux, and it was great for a time, but they just play too fast-and-loose with new software. They've unapologetically wasted many hours of my time on many fronts - I still have nightmares from when they switched me to unity without my consent. Seriously, if I wanted OSX, I would just go and buy a mac. I fear for these poor phone users in advance!

Thanks for the link! I didn't realize this till now - the summary claims "Driving within three hours of smoking pot is associated with a near doubling of the risk of fatal crashes", but that claim isn't stated in any of the links provided.... so it's just a number that our dear friend "hugh pickens" made up.

When headlines are written with unsubstantiated claims and misinterpreted research, this sets us back - this tactic is what fuelled the effort to make cannabis illegal in the first place.

I'd say going without these tools and procedures *will* make for an epic nightmare. Since any self-respecting software engineer can work from anyplace, you'll basically always be "on call". Therefore, it's pretty likely that one day, another engineer will hack together something sloppy for a fix on one thing, and that will break another thing, and you will need to take a break from your vacation. Since you've already been in a good spot, you can see how bad it *can* be. At any interview I'm on, I make a point to ask about their version control systems, ticketing systems, deployment environments, testing methodologies, etc. A lot of startups don't place much emphasis on these. I usually pass on these jobs. I'd rather have my free-time than make a boatload of $$. Looking at the big picture, I don't blame the developers for these oversights. I believe it should be the job of management to set company-wide standards for these things, and enforce the use of them. Personally, management may be amicable/generous, but in the end it's not a nice thing to do to any developer, whether the oversight is intentional or not. My advice would be to educate yourself on the specific advantages of these tools/procedures, discuss them with your fellow developers to get buy-in, then assemble a small group and educate management on them. When speaking to developers, emphasize quality of life, and with management, emphasize quality and stability.

funny and true. In many other countries, you wouldn't even see this case go to trial - the head of the recording industry would have called the president, had the kid executed by the police, and the state-run media wouldn't be allowed to cover it.