Guilty pleasures of KDE

THE SIMPLE PLEASURES OF THE PRESENT

One can easily overlook the complex things and be completely stunned with the simple.

I was scouting for “best” SuperKaramba applets while working on the KDE 3.5.x screenshots and I was stunned by the simplicity and genius of a-foto – a SuperKaramba applet. It is designed for only one thing – show miniatures of your favorite photos on your desktop. The genius of the applet was in it method of use – you drop the items you want displayed on top of the applet, and in its exquisite picture frames.

THE PROBLEMS

I also realized how much little gems like a-foto need our help to make them diamonds. Looking at the many things Open Source world have produced, I see two things that consistently make good software languish and sink bellow the surface of visibility:

1. Obscurity.

This is the deadliest disease in Open Source. No matter how good your software is, if people don't know about it, it does not exist. It is a “If tree falls and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” kind of a thing, but with a twist. There are so many big trees falling around, we miss the small trees behind the noise. It seems, there is only one way to promote small, but genius projects – organize “fallen tree” support groups and really, really yell about it. :) Hence, this 1st column on the theme of “The gems of KDE.”

2. One-sidedness of author's skills.

This is not a deadly affliction, but a very annoying one, like herpes. It puts a sealing at how popular your software can become.

In the case of a-foto, one-sidedness was manifested through natural limits of how well a beginner-Python-eer, graphics-designer-type can do a “mainstream” applet. As was said, visually and conceptually the applet was stunning, but mechanically it was a stretch. It had some ineffective redraw issues and mildly suffered from ESL-ism (English as a Second Language). The author did it's best in the area of his expertise, scratched his itch and more. Yet, he would be would be clobbered by demanding users would he try to push the applet further. Hence – it languished in the depths of kde-look.

There in lies the problem – if platform does not offer a safety net for its gems – it's platform's loss. Foundation is only as good, as the things you build and use on top of it. KDE has promoted its steel frame through and through, but forgot to mention that we also have excellent decorative, quality-of-life elements in our present building. Structural solidity is often a given now-days. Finishing touches, and their availability today counts a lot and conveys the “readiness” of the platform. Luxuries – is what seals the deal. In the end, any platform is there to be used, not continuously rebuilt. I want to see and hear about whatever the luxury, glamor and posh-ness of KDE there is today.

WHAT CAN BE DONE

No matter how highly people think about Open Source, in the core, it IS a meritocracy – a democracy in which some voices have disproportionately high weights. The more you contribute, the less inquisitive eyes are pointed towards your opinion. It's not that everyone suddenly starts to trust your opinion. It's rather - “Ehhh, I'm ganna let it slide and not complain. He does good on average.” The key to pushing your own agenda is to do a lot of what public wants and likes, and the masses will forgive you little personal pet projects you push through the public forum. If you do promoting out of real goodness of the heart, the masses may even listen.

Advertising 3rd party projects is a bit controversial. It involves taking sides – ugh! But, replacing respected opinion-ism with respectful silence is death for everything you stand for. I stand for quality of life, even while traveling to a better place. They say “cold fusion is always 5 years away,” so was the “true communist society.” The truth is, constantly living in transitional state and thinking about better future is bad for mental health.

In Soviet Union, people would always be told about better, stable, more advanced, heaven-like places (Black sea coast, Moscow) and rely on these rare “complete” pleasures for relief from drag of leaving on the “road” to better future for the larger remaining part of the year.

I want to hear about “semi-officially recognized,” better, stable, complete, more advanced, heaven-like places that are available on KDE today. If no one sees real examples of KDE luxury accessible today, there may be a real turnover issue with the volunteer work-force that builds the road to KDE's better future. (Minister of “Information about present day goodness” anyone? :) )

1. I would like those whose voice is loud to scan regularly and systematically the area of your interest and subjectively pick a project needing attention and plugging it, broker for devs to help with parts you consider missing, all in the name of preserving the few mandatory luxuries of KDE's “today” living.

2. I would like people to be critical and take sides. It is harsh, but greatly helps the newly-arrived and the currently dis-illusioned. You tell them straight what is the best item in the box. I am talking about “Kaffeine is much friendlier and feature-full than Kmplayer,” “Kontact is good looking but brings very little to the table in terms of Outlook-like integration between components” and “For a generic user DigiKam is the most complete solution.” Harsh and subjective, but user can rely on it.

EXAMPLE

I used my 15 minutes at the pulpit to plug the best “generic” reality of lushness of KDE in the KDE 3.5.x screenshot series. I rubbed the established norms against the grain a bit, by deviating from “default” look and application set. The result – a much more complete, useful promotional message. I am glad I got away with the little changes to the decor, and pet projects (basket, a-foto, miloCalendar), and taking of sides (Kaffeine, Twinkle). In the end, if more “user” types will raise their opinion, the overall message maybe not as controversial or diverse as originally thought.

So, how can we tell a better tale of "today's" KDE?