XFCE release 4.12 brings refinement and improvements

by
in linux on (#47JH)
After 2 years and 10 months, XFCE 4.12 has been released, and its changelog is an impressive list of refinements, improvements, and new features.

For starters, they've streamlined the code, removing a whole host of options the developers decided were no longer the best way to accomplish common tasks. The minimize/maximize buttons are gone now, and all apps run full-screen all the time. You can access a subset of options via keystroke combinations (sadly, these haven't been documented yet but they should be obvious).

Oh wait, just kidding. Must have been thinking about some other desktop environment there. Seriously, have a look at the user-friendly improvements the XFCE team has worked into this release.

Check out the link for a multiple-page change log of significant features, including improvements to alt-tab dialogues, panel features, usage with multiple monitors, a move to GTK3, and more. XFCE remains independent of Linux-specific system features, and instead designed a front-end/back-end approach that allows it to work equally well on Linux, the BSDs, and beyond. As a BSD-user, I'm immensely proud. Finally, note throughout the press release the number of times they mention listening to their users and implementing the features that users said they wanted. More than one other major project could benefit from a similar approach to working with its community.

[Edit 2015-03-02 22:25 There was a very important "just kidding" sentence between paragraphs 2 and 3 that was important, because paragraph 2 is a joke. I've re-added it; otherwise I would expect to be flamed alive by angry XFCEers wondering why i'm such an idiot].

Re: Crying (Score: 2, Interesting)

by zafiro17@pipedot.org on 2015-03-04 12:23 (#48YJ)

Glad I had a chance to edit the summary and make sure everyone recognizes the intro was a tongue-in-cheek slam at some other DE. Seriously, the new XFCE looks great, and I love the idea you can configure Alt-Tab to do things other than the traditional way - I like the vertical list of full title apps (there was another DE that did it this way but I can't remember which anymore). At this point in the evolution of desktop environments, we don't need radical changes in metaphor, just refinements in usability and convenience. That seems to be exactly what the XFCE team is doing.

Check out the language in their press release, too. It's clear they're making a huge effort to listen to their users and find out where the pain points are: it's a radical concept in software development (listening to the users and applying fixes as relevant). I wish others did it too.

Looks like a good looking desktop experience. I'm looking forward to checking it out - might even encourage me to give LXDE a rest for a while (until LXQT comes out, anyway). At this point, I'd say XFCE is leading the race in traditional desktop environment usability, and it's not clear to me what "extra" you get by installing something like a full-on Gnome3 or Unity install. For all that extra storage and all the additional memory required, it's not clear to me what you gain by way of usability or convenience. This is what was forgotten like a year ago. More is not better, dorkwad developers!
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