Summary of accepted Fedora 20 Changes - week 30

[Oron Peled]

On Sunday 28 July 2013 08:01:25 Matthew Garrett wrote:
> On Sun, Jul 28, 2013 at 09:56:16AM +0300, Oron Peled wrote:
> > 1. By the same logic we can ship just a browser, why bother building
> >    LibreOffice if many use just google-docs?
> Because not everyone uses Google Docs, and so any solution needs to
> account for those who don't as well.

And I thought those few "power-users" would install it by themselves ;-)

Or, to make the example more to your taste -- if, as many claimed here,
most people use Gmail can't we forgo installing MUA's by default?
Hmmm.... new feature for F21?

> > 2. People can still use gmail and other online services like twitter
> >    via desktop applications (in my case kmail and choqok respectively).
> But most don't, and therefore an error reporting scheme that depends on
> users running a local mail client is inappropriate.

You don't suggest any alternative, so let me suggest an easy one
(which btw I use on all my desktops for the last 20 years):
 * Something important is sent to local MTA.
 * User get mail notification on their desktop.
 * User click on the notification.
 * MUA opens.
 * User reads mail.

All of this is plain configuration on any MUA/desktop-system.
Just make these *DEFAULTS* and the "problem" is solved:
 * Alias root to installing user in /etc/aliases
 * Configure installed MUA's to include local spool mailbox by default.
 * Configure your desktop to notify about new mails.

> > Last side note: helping non-expert people get used to quality local
> > applications which have convenient defaults, is part of the push
> > for "Freedom" -- if both your data and your applications are locked
> > in vertical clouds, you aren't left with too much freedom.
> 
> There are benefits in running local applications, especially when it
> comes to freedom. However, we are unable to force our users to run local
> applications.

Don't force them -- expose the better value proposition:
 * Read mail accounts from different providers via single interface.
 * Get mail notifications, regardless of mail origin.
 * Subscribe to different IM systems via single IM application

Correct default configuration of MTA+MUA is great way to hook people into
these benefits -- especially those "newbies" (veterans already know this
and configure this for themselves).


-- 
Oron Peled                                 Voice: +972-4-8228492
oron at actcom.co.il                  http://users.actcom.co.il/~oron
Life is a sexually transmitted, 100% lethal disease.