Better desktop?

[Kyrre Ness Sjobak]

tir, 28.03.2006 kl. 17.30 skrev Rahul Sundaram:
> Hi
> 
> Someone forwarded me this. Looks interesting.
> 
> http://chabada.sk/better-desktop/
> 
> 
> Rahul

Just a few questions about the article:

1. How is "Notes" in Jpeg images stored? EXIF - so that i can open an
image 10-15 years from now and still read the note no problem? Or some
program-specific format?

2.Progress of downloads etc. Something has annoyed me a long time about
gnome and downloading - why doesn't it tell me how quick its downloading
(ie. kb/s)? Its fine that it tells me "how much time remaining" - but i
want to know the speed - even if it is a (triangle) Advanced...

Pause/resume in Firefox/gnome would also be just great.

Should i just file a couple of RFE's?

3. Way out, i know it, but yes - usb memstick auth/homedir could be
usefull, esp. in low-infrastructure settings. Think about it, a primary
scool or something like that. You hand out USB keys to the pupils, which
are preformatted with a "homedir" and a password (hell, it could even be
encrypted!).

Then its just:
	a) Find a free machine. (that is configured to accept usb-auth
		with proper parameters)
	b) Plug in usb keystick
	c) Gdm recognizes it. Ask the user to enter password (if that is
		wanted/required - sometimes you migth possibly want to
		skip the password alltogether)
	d)Log in. Do what you want. Log out. Pull memstick out. Leave.

Of cource, there should be some mechanism to be able to have GDM only
accept memsticks that are signed by the rigth authority etc. And make a
nice gui to format and create a lot of those, intended for know-nothing
sysadmins.

This could probably be usefull for OLPC as well. Maybe the little laptop
migth even be able to function as such a memory unit, allowing it to be
plugged into a "bigger" computer (possibly just an ordinary stationary
machine with a CRT monitor etc. and some special software?)

--- Kyrre