Current desktop detection / app access - take 2.

[George]

On Thu, May 27, 2004 at 02:33:07PM +0100, Michael Meeks wrote:
> 	So - yes, it is a powerful way of pragmatically generating working
> software that runs and integrates well with lots of systems without
> putting lots of effort into standardisation.

And what about documentation?  What about tooltips?  There are likely many
times when a tooltip / dialog / docs of an application mention the underlying
desktop and that will be completely wrong if run in a different desktop.
There is no 'spec' or 'standard' that we can make short of making both GNOME
and KDE feel and behave exactly the same and have the same featureset.  A
well designed application that integrates well should integrate in this way
as well.

That and all that Michael said.  Pragmatism gets us far further then
idealism.  I remember some things "that will be solved soon" back in '97 and
are still not solved, that's 7 years.  So I don't expect everything to be
fixed this decade if ever.  Having a pragmatic solution in the meantime makes
free software more viable.  As a user of some software I don't give a flying
dung if it uses some wanky 'spec' or if it does lots of hacks.  I care if it
works.  Realistically I doubt even all the specs already written will be
fully adopted for quite a number of years.  A perfect solution is always
nice, but always kind of several years off.

George

-- 
George <jirka at 5z.com>
   Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich.
                       -- Napoleon