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Ubuntu To Debut On Tv?

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At the ongoing CES 2012, Canonical made a surprise appearance (well it was announced earlier of course, but the announcement was a surprise!) about a new "Ubuntu Concept Design". Until the keynote address took place everyone was under the assumption that it wouldbe some sort of new UI that would put Ubuntu ahead of the competition. But sadly, it turned out to be a design for a new Smart TV! The announcement was about an Ubuntu-powered Smart TV, which will feature the much-dreaded Unity interface. Some websites have even claimed that the whole point of the Unity interface being included forcibly was to allow the users to get used to it, so that whenthe TVs come out, they won't be surprised!

 

Canonical claims that the Unity interface has been accepted well, but the truth is out there for us all to see. Distrowatch lists Ubuntu at number 2 now, and that has happened only because Unity is the default desktop environment for Ubuntu now. So why would Canonical want to use the same interface on their Smart TV? And another thing is whether releasing a Smart TV at such a time is a wise decision or not! Wouldn't it be better if the company focused on bringing back Ubuntu's shriking glory first and then worry about televisions?

 

In this regard I've heard an argument that since the Smart TV market is still small, Canonical wants to get in there early and get a large share before other major players come in. Of course, those other two players are Apple and Microsoft, who would definitely want to get in their own OS onto Smart TVs (Apple TV is already on the way!) So what do you think about Ubuntu TV? Wouldn't it be better without the Unity interface?

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seems like a not so cool implementation but there's a future for smart TV... it's interesting to note that Ubuntu has interests in not just computer technology but others... i wonder if they have plans for the mobile market, ubuntu mobile?

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I am not a fan of unity and new gnome 3.4. I want the menu bar with applications,places and systems back. I can only get that with either mint or Mate desktop. I can see that they're pushing this tablet based interface on users and increasing the amount of time it gets to search for apps and other stuff. I know that google is coming in tv market along with apple and other brands. So on that front i would rather see ubuntu survive than apple or google. But usability wise i hate unity or gnome's new interface. I hope it was customizable with the menu bar options at top which is not as of now. I can't predict about the market so no idea how much this concept is going to take in future. We can only see the reaction of people online and it is not right time to release because sept to dec is the purchase spree and this may not bring much sales.

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i remember when i tried installing Ubuntu for netbook (where i first saw their implementation of the Ubuntu One like layout)... it took me only a few minutes after playing around with the GUI to remove Ubuntu hehe... i've Never used ubuntu since then, only tried out later versions on VBox for testing purposes...

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I don't think Ubuntu is that bad. It's just that they are tampering with gnome shell more than necessary. I mean gnome 2 shell is perfect and there is no need to strip it out and replace to something like slingshot. I think gnome 3 shell is really not good at all and it just eats the memory, not worthy of user interface simplicity.If they come out with something like Mate desktop which I guess is modified in Mint linux or in it's own shell based on gnome2 then I don't mind. The very idea of replacing the interface of gnome to make it more user friendly for touch screen users, ignoring desktop and laptop users is what I find irritating. Windows 8 is going to be similar like gnome3 so it's turn off anyway.That aside, why would anyone wants to use their TV services? Are they offering something that our satellite subscription based service is not offering at all. I would love to see the comparison before opting for apple or ubuntu based tv services. I don't plan to use because I spend more time with computer instead of TV.

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