GNU bug report logs - #25296
fully functional desktop installation

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From: Mathieu Lirzin <mthl <at> gnu.org>
To: ludo <at> gnu.org (Ludovic Courtès)
Cc: Quiliro <quiliro <at> riseup.net>, 25296 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: bug#25296: fully functional desktop installation
Date: Mon, 15 Jan 2018 14:26:58 +0100

Hello,

ludo <at> gnu.org (Ludovic Courtès) writes:

> Mathieu Lirzin <mthl <at> gnu.org> skribis:
>
>> ludo <at> gnu.org (Ludovic Courtès) writes:
>>
>>> Quiliro <quiliro <at> riseup.net> skribis:
>>>
>>>> It would be nice to create a desktop.scm file that contains all
>>>> necessary packages to have a fully functional desktop installation for
>>>> the end user. It is for that user that only uses the machine to write
>>>> and read emails, create and read text documents and spreadsheets too. I
>>>> know the current desktop.scm contain some of those features and that
>>>> after that
>>>> guix package --install pidgin libreoffice icecat clawsmail
>>>> (and so) can provide the necessary packages. But I would like to make
>>>> an installation that is just as trisquel is. It is not necessary to
>>>> have the same configuration or the same packages. But it would be
>>>> useful to have it as easy to just use as is Trisquel.
>>>
>>> The desktop example contains all of GNOME, when choosing GNOME, which
>>> provides an email client, Web browser, and lots of other things.
>>>
>>> Additional packages like those you mention could be added to the
>>> ‘packages’ field, in which case they will be installed globally, like
>>> the rest of GNOME.
>>>
>>> I wouldn’t recommend adding those 4 packages you mention by default
>>> though, because it’s really a matter of choice (and it’s redundant with
>>> what GNOME provides, I think.)
>>
>> I think your remark applies to pidgin and clawsmail but not to
>> Libreoffice and Icecat (Firefox) which are commonly installed OOTB by
>> mainstream distros (Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora) along with the GNOME
>> desktop.
>
> I’m not sure what we could do, though.  Should the desktop example
> include a comment like “Uncomment the following lines to add LibreOffice
> & co.”?

IMHO Guix should mimic what Debian is doing in this particular case.
Meaning having desktop packages that contain a “full” desktop with
default applications for common usages.

This would consist in adding ‘libreoffice’ and replacing ‘epiphany’ with
‘icecat’ in the ‘gnome’ package.  Additionally a ‘gnome-core’ package
(or ‘gnome-minimal’ which seems to be the name convention chosen by
Guix) could be created with the minimal set of packages required to have
a working GNOME desktop, for OCD people that don't like having unused
packages installed.

> This is something that the ncurses interface should make more
> discoverable.

That could be a solution.  However even if the current target audience
of Guix(SD) are tinkerer who may like options, I don't think this
approach scales well to a broader audience.

Thanks.

-- 
Mathieu Lirzin
GPG: F2A3 8D7E EB2B 6640 5761  070D 0ADE E100 9460 4D37

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