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Own Mark Shuttleworth was in charge of clarifying at the Ubuntu Developers Summit (UDS) in Budapest that the next version of Ubuntu will not bring great changes and, instead, will be an evolution version of the new features introduced in Natty. Among other applications that will receive improvements is the Software Center. Find out how and why. |
The Ubuntu Software Center is one of those applications that I hardly ever used. Mainly because he didn't see any advantage over the old and never well-considered Synaptic. Also, the CSU took so long to open. Now I no longer use Ubuntu but I could see that the CSU has improved significantly, and it seems that they want to continue improving it.
Since its appearance in Ubuntu 9.04 version "Jaunty Jackalope" this piece of the operating system has been mutating and evolving adding functionalities and improvements to help, above all, new users. Categories, subcategories, explanations, screenshots, and even a featured or new software section were included. CSU boot time was also significantly reduced, and its ease of use made it an ideal tool for installing programs that would not otherwise be known.
The evolution of this important part of Ubuntu is not over and the developers want to give it a more social and dynamic touch, similar to that offered by the Steam from Valve. The goal is to create a community with opinions, videos, comments, reviews, etc. and introduce improvements in the search for new programs and make the interface more friendly for multi-touch devices.
Actually, it is a logical and necessary move. If we think about it for a minute, we realize that one of the greatest advantages of free software is its community. This does not end in the world of programmers, but also includes users. At the moment, users can only help others in the forums, collaborate on document translation and a lot of other things, but they could not do something fundamental: comment, vote and share about the applications they use.
For more information, I recommend you read the Ubuntu Developers Summit (UDS) notes made in Budapest.
I think that one of the weakest points is the impossibility of installing several programs at the same time as it could be done in synaptics.
It is true. Had not thought of that.
Very good contribution!
Cheers! Paul.
It's something that gets on my nerves ... not being able to delay the installation after selecting several programs to install. On somewhat old computers it is impossible to find another program to install while installing another. If a postponed installation could be done it would be perfect
Interesting…
Actually in Synaptic either, because of the crash. What Synaptic or the terminal does is download and install respecting dependencies if they must be satisfied. Otherwise install one after the other. There are no concurrent installations as in Windows, for example.
Now, in the Ubuntu Software Center, you cannot delay the installation, but if while it is installed you can continue browsing between the apps, mark another and set up the installation queue, when you finish one, install the other. Similar to Synaptic.
I understand that it is due to the fact that conceptually it is a Software Center and not a mere Package Manager. This changes the functionality a lot.
Sure, it would be great to have a checkbox to "Install last" or something like that.
Great article, Pablo and very well explained! Without a doubt one of the Ubuntu points that seduces me the most.
Thanks, Martin! When I have a spare second I write a post on your blog. 🙂
Cheers! Paul.
Yes ... the truth is that it does not seem to me that it ends up affecting its use too much and it would be a very good thing for users.
A hug! Paul.
That's true…