Formal complaint concerning the use of the name "System Settings" by GNOME

[Matthias Clasen]

On Fri, Jul 22, 2011 at 5:53 PM, Jeremy Bicha <jbicha at ubuntu.com> wrote:
> On 22 July 2011 17:17, Ben Cooksley <bcooksley at kde.org> wrote:

> To be more specific about the problem, installing kde-workspace to a
> GNOME installation results in 2 indistinguishable apps named System
> Settings and 2 named System Monitor. On Ubuntu at least, if I want the
> GNOME version, I have to remember to click the first System Monitor
> but the second System Setting which is awfully frustrating. Here's a
> screenshot from my Ubuntu install:
> https://launchpadlibrarian.net/75745040/Gnome%20Shell%20screnshot.png

This is what happens when you mix and match bits and pieces from
different operating systems. There is really not much that can be done
about it. Since that is what both KDE and GNOME are trying to do:
build complete, self-contained systems. Arguably, KDE is a little
further along, with their big monolithic modules like kde-workspace
that drag in most of the desktop, while GNOME apps can often still be
installed without much of the desktop.

> I'd like to suggest that the GNOME developers consider changing the
> public name of their app to "System Preferences." This matches the Mac
> OS X design and arguably GNOME follows some parts of OS X design.
> Furthermore, it is more in line with Gnome 2's System>Preferences and
> System>Administration.

That is an absurd proposal. What next, rename gnome-terminal to
'Commandline Window' because Xfce also ships a 'Terminal' ?!
Generic names don't come with exclusive ownership...

And as has already been pointed out, offering the user a meaningless
choice between 'System Settings' and 'System Preferences' is no less
of a failure than having 2 identical items.