"Every second, every minute

It keeps changing to something different

Enlightenment, don't know what it is"

Van Morrison, Enlightenment, 1990

Yes, it does keep changing! An active couple of weeks on the forums highlighted a few issues and new developments in OzOS and in the e17 code base. Here's my take:

1. The new update_e17 script.

As reported in my last post, the script now checks both the e17 svn revision number and the OzOS alert board before proceeding to update. This is great when it works! But when the e-devs are really busy there can be several svn updates a day and we don't always catch the broken ones to change the alert. It would also help a lot if the penguin in the sailor suit didn't keep stuffing up the alert thread! ()

Broken packages don't usually cause major problems and you can try again in an hour or so to see if they have been fixed. On the odd occasion when an update does cause breakage, you can either wait and run "sudo update_e17.sh" from a console later or restore a recent backup with "sudo update_e17.sh -replace" (again, from a console or a terminal in another WM).

2. Rui has added "execwatch" to the enlightenment packages built for OzOS.

This is a particularly great tool for obsessive updaters (like me). It can be added to a shelf or desktop and configured to give you alerts when a new e17 revision is available. Check out Rui's forum post HERE for instructions on installation and configuration of execwatch. Just remember - YOU DON'T HAVE TO UPDATE!

3. Themes

I seem to be spending most of my spare time working on themes lately. Most users will be acutely aware of the issues that the new Settings Panel and System dialog have caused with older themes. Rasterman and Toma (two of the more active e-devs and themers) have updated several themes (including Cerium and Grunge) to work with the new features and many people have worked out how to use the "Advanced" theme selector dialog to implement a work-around for others (usually by making b_and_w the "Base" theme and over-riding it for other components).

Remember too that the new System dialog also requires the "System Controls" module to be loaded.

Meanwhile, the OzOS "architects" have been having a debate about where OzOS should be heading with its default theme (currently "Rusted Emerald"). We'll certainly be updating "Rusted Emerald" but whether or not we change the default to something more "minimalist" is up for grabs. The problem with devs having these types of discussions is they are the people who probably care least about what a distro looks like out-of-the-box!

Which ever way we go, we'll have a new theme called Oz_Magpies available very soon. I've taken Toma's Challenge and created a theme that gives users a high level of control. (See preliminary screenshots here)

A word of warning on the "Illume" theme - if you are working on a desktop or laptop, avoid having anything to do with the module of the same name. This is an e17 engine for Mobile Internet Devices and phones and, while it is incredibly interesting and tempting, it is also a direct route to major breakage and tears before bedtime. Believe me, I've been there! (I must say that I am still very tempted to get a FOSS phone and try e17 on it! Non-contract Androids are becoming available in Australia now, so I may get (myself) one for Christmas! Or would that just be one more thing to break?)

4. Profiles

I've really only recently discovered the power of having different Profiles under e17 (from the Settings Panel > Settings>Profiles).This is a great way to mess with your set-up while being able to recover your "normal" desktop quickly if things go tragically wrong. It is a good idea to "clone" your existing desktop profile (or make a backup) before you do this

5. Fonts

As a result of a question asked on the forums, Bro. Tiag posted this How-To on e17 font settings.

Remember, anyone can make a How-To. So if you see something in a forum thread that you think needs to be saved for future reference, please have a go!

6. CafeLinux News

Apart from OzOS and the forums, CafeLinux hosts a number of other FOSS projects. We recently changed one them - OptickleArt - to make it exclusively available to CafeLinux members. It is a free gallery for member art, photos, screenshots etc.

[EDIT - The place to request an Optickle Art account is at The Cafelinx.org Forum thread here].

6. And finally,

We have had a bit of important, late-breaking news - OzOS has finally made it onto Distrowatch!. It has been a long time coming and we suspect that this alone is responsible for the overload on the cafelinux servers over the past two days. Swings and Roundabouts, I guess.

If I don't post again before January, I hope you have a very pleasant Christmas and a great New Year. 2009 will be The Year of the OzOS Desktop! (possibly)

Aubrey