Xfdesktop 4.10.3 Released While Xfce 4.12 Remains M.I.A.

[stqn]

What do you like about Xfce that's better than MATE? I haven't used the Whisker menu much; how is it better?

Whisker is not part of Xfce.

[bmaupin]

I switched 3 family members from Windows to Ubuntu after they were tired of frequently getting viruses/spyware (and I was tired of fixing it). Their computers are older and Unity was a bit slow for them so they've since switched to Xfce (Xubuntu) and have been happy since.

I switched to Xubuntu myself after being tired of running into Unity bugs after 4 years of development. I like it because it's fast and stable, and I love Xubuntu's choice to use Whisker Menu by default. I think if new versions of Xfce came out every 6 months I'd run into the same bugs I encounter in Unity et al, so for me the slow release cycle is a plus.

So +4 for people who have switched to Xfce.

[bmaupin]

I'm glad GNOME 3 classic mode works great for some of you. Some of you like Cinnamon, and some MATE. Seriously, I truly am glad you enjoy these! I tried them all, but after getting frustrated with various things, big and small, I switched to Xfce and felt very relieved. Than you Xfce, for existing and not breaking every 6 months.

My sentiments exactly...

[Awesomeness]

"Lying." I love how everyone here keeps things in perspective.

You claim that non-Xfce desktops break every six months. Yes, that needed to be put into perspective.

GNOME 3 constantly has themes and plugins that stop working in newer versions.

Early Gnome Shell versions did not have a stable extension API. That changed long ago. If 3rd parties developed extensions nonetheless, despite the explicit warning, still developed extensions, it was their responsibility. Gnome 3 itself does not break every six months.

Cinnamon is under heavy development, so it's changing a lot.

Actually no, it's neither under heavy development, nor does it change a lot.

[borsook]

Have you taken a look at the git activity? The majority of commits are translation updates, even for core components like xfwm4. And it isn't as if core Xfce functionality is fine--the last time I used it it was unusable with more than one monitor. I couldn't even set the primary display! "Stagnant development" can't be far off the mark. When was 4.12 planned for again?

4.12 (so now 4.11) components solve this, they are ready, you do not have to wait for 4.12 to be released to use them. Even Xubuntu uses them by default.

[borsook]

Whisker is not part of Xfce.

So what? It is a menu for XFCE. The ability to use it is one of XFCE's strengths. Another example - I prefer XFCE over LXDE because there is a DockbarX plugin for XFCE. Not done by XFCE team, but still it adds to the potential functionality of the desktop.

[Steve DL]

@Michael Larabel, it's amazing that you get to decide Xfce is "losing users" and the release plan "MIA" without presenting any data whatsoever and without consulting with a single Xfce developer.

I'm running UX surveys for Xfce, and the actual, real data I get indicates 24% of our respondants have been using Xfce for under a year. I'll publish the data later as the survey has only been running for 24 hours.

This is despite "stagnant development" that show so many Xfce packages redesigned (http://blog.alteroot.org/articles/20...ce-part-2.html)... Xfce doesn't throw away half of its UI and apps twice a year simply because most of it works and does what it was designed for. We certainly have issues to solve wrt. our development process but breaking half of our apps every six months to show off our cool new feature is not in the minds of anyone I've talked to. We take the time to be happy with what we do and that's what our users like us for.

Like every piece of software, it needs to be improved and it needs to be kept up-to-date with architectural changes, and like every piece of software that has a large, fantastic and supporting user base it'll keep existing for quite a while.

[Hamish Wilson]

Micheal should really do another article based on those blog posts.

[gilboa]

@Michael Larabel, it's amazing that you get to decide Xfce is "losing users" and the release plan "MIA" without presenting any data whatsoever and without consulting with a single Xfce developer.

I'm running UX surveys for Xfce, and the actual, real data I get indicates 24% of our respondants have been using Xfce for under a year. I'll publish the data later as the survey has only been running for 24 hours.

This is despite "stagnant development" that show so many Xfce packages redesigned (http://blog.alteroot.org/articles/20...ce-part-2.html)... Xfce doesn't throw away half of its UI and apps twice a year simply because most of it works and does what it was designed for. We certainly have issues to solve wrt. our development process but breaking half of our apps every six months to show off our cool new feature is not in the minds of anyone I've talked to. We take the time to be happy with what we do and that's what our users like us for.

Like every piece of software, it needs to be improved and it needs to be kept up-to-date with architectural changes, and like every piece of software that has a large, fantastic and supporting user base it'll keep existing for quite a while.

Steve,

I believe you're making a terrible mistake by trashing other DE's in defense of yours.
Neither KDE nor GNOME breaks "half of our apps every six months to show off our cool new feature" * - and whether you meant it to imply that DEs do so or not as it will certainly sound like a (completely false) accusation to any sound reader.

XFCE is a sane choice (I personally use it on a number of low-end machines) and will hopefully manage to remain relevant in the future.

- Gilboa
* Approximate time between major releases:
KDE: 1->2: 2 years, 2->3: 2 years, 3->4: 6 (!) years, 4->5: 6 (!) years.
GNOME: 1->2: 5 years, 2->3: 9 (!!!) years.

[stqn]

GNOME: 1->2: 5 years, 2->3: 9 (!!!) years.

You?re forgetting the part where each release of Gtk3 breaks all third-party themes, plus the forced client-side decoration thing even on non-Gnome3 DEs.