Ubuntu Wiki

Things discussed in the session

• Improve performance
  • There are significant performance improvements in Natty, esp lisvtiew speedup and startup time improvements. What other issues are still problematic?

  • Issues for Maverick-era are outlined here (many have been addressed in Natty): https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/software-center/+bug/542336/comments/5

  • Improve the experience when installing .deb files directly
    • Needs a speedup
    • Display the details page immediately, or at least a "loading" spinner (we currently show the main screen for a few moments before displaying the details view)
• bigger icons in the listview (64x64)
  • app-install-data doesn't have scalable icons for every app
  • would be nice as a policy to have the icons in software center match what comes out in
  • For comparison, Chrome Web Store request 128x128 minimum, App Store 512x512

    • http://code.google.com/chrome/webstore/docs/images.html

    • http://gamesalad.com/forums/topic.php?id=591

• Touch-friendly UI:

  • Some parts you can't select unless you have a mouse http://www.twitpic.com/4wxqs4/full

  • http://code.google.com/chrome/webstore/ocs/imagegarnerings.html/

• Show less Text and information unless it's needed
  • Focus on visuals for selecting apps, once click you get more info

  • Add Kinetic animations for revealing these info. http://goo.gl/IONWq

• more categories in USC by default not just in advanced view (not just rating)
• Unity after you install (usually true, but background colors may vary)
  • new icon set
  • we really need a new icon for Software Center itself
• Simplify the UI (this may be a big topic and so we might move this to its own blueprint)
  • Remove the left navigation pane, it takes a lot of space but where to put the informatin
    • the expander is tiny and often unnoticed
    • should expand by default, especially Get Software
• Enhance the current unity launcher integration

  • Implement the remaining parts of the full spec at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/SoftwareCenter#Learning%20how%20to%20launch%20an%20application

    • "Fly" the icon to the launcher, or for a simpler alternative, make icon appear in the launcher immediately upon clicking "install"
    • Display installation progress in launcher icon itself
  • Make "add to launcher" available whenever a details view is displayed, instead of only after a new install
    • This would require the ability to query the launcher about whether an item is already contained there
  • Support add-to-launcher for multiple items installed via the list view
  • Offer to install the launcher more visibly -- lower right is bad in maximized full desktop use case. Perhaps slide in from top
  • Provide the ability to simply drag and drop apps from the app lens to the launcher in order to INSTALL and pin them to the launcher
• Provide checkboxes to select multiple apps in the list and then install/remove them at once (like synaptic)
• Default window size hides the featured/new items
  • Detect screen size, give different default window size when doing this
• Translation issues:
  • Would be good for Software Center to know about how translated an application is (according to launchpad) and display it to the user
  • Untranslated package descriptions could be detected, offered to translate
    • Reviews are isolated by locales, so to some extent reviews can help tell users about serious translation issues in the app itself.
• Possible move to webkit/html for app pages
• Search improvements
  • support facets in search, i.e. better search suggestions (some very early work here lp:~mvo/software-center/debtags-tag-suggestions-support)
• Add support for categories in for-purchase app view instead of the current flat list
  • - Will need this as we get more and more for-purchase apps
• "Dynamic" list of Featured apps
  • - Get the list of feature apps from the server (ISD), this will allow it to be updated more easily and more often

    - Example of a list of featured apps generated based on what's installed locally and data from R&R: http://paste.garneringubuntu.com/606818/

• Support maturity ratings (for age-appropriateness) (had separate session on this)
  • (we should use debtags for this IMO) there is also some work done in debian about this, worth checking with them
  • if a title carries an ESRB rating it would be good to be able to display this in a nicely integrated fashion
• Other listview tweaks:
  • pricing in the listview if purchasable?
  • a subtle request to review an app if installed but not already reviewed by the user
• Screenshots in the details view
  • Support multiple screenshots per application

  • Add support for displaying a video in the details view (YouTube integration?)

• Support for Synaptic features still not in Software Center
  • That would also decrease the number of programs we ship that (a) use gksudo and (b) don't use Ubuntu's menu bar
• Webdirectory work with ISD and integration of "override" features, e.g. to allow improving the description, keywords, category, tags etc.
• Improvements to the details view
  • standard formatting of descriptions, indent and bullet points and perhaps links etc
  • Minimal/recommended system requirements (particularly important for purchasable software, opengl games or anything that relies on specific hardware). Would help avoid people purchasing a game for which their system is not capable of running acceptably.
  • Be able to recommend drivers, cpu speed, memory, any required peripherals, persistent internet connection
• Improve offline behavior, currently we prohibit any install remove actions when no network connection is available. best approach would be to add actions to a queue from which we can offer to action upon an internet connection being established.

• WebLive integration in Software Center (better UI)

• Far future fantasies:
  • Valve Steam-like (videos, social integration, forums/community built in)