Are Webapps All They're APPed Up To Be?

It may be me, but the whole concept of webapps is a little vague. Just saying that:

" It [webapps] will enable Ubuntu users to run online applications like Facebook, Twitter, Last.FM, Ebay and GMail direct from the desktop. Making web applications behave like their desktop counterparts improves the user experience dramatically; it's faster and it reduces the proliferation of browser tabs and windows that can quickly make a desktop unmanageable."

...doesn't really tell you much about what webapps are and what they do. Neither does there seem much enlightenment elsewhere on the Internet.

So, for the uninitiated, webapps are web pages that don't need a browser to run. The operating system treats these browserless web pages (almost) like any other application; for instance, you can tab through open apps, lock quick-launch icons to the Launcher, and use the HUD system to search them. So, if you want an application that logs you straight into your GMail or Twitter account without first having to start your browser, select your bookmark, and sign in - webapps are the perfect answer.

Webapps are certainly fast and accessible. They're great for posting those Twitter updates, rattling off a quick email, or editing web-based documents.

So far, so good. But (and it's a big but) this just moves the problem of browser tab proliferation from the browser to the desktop, so the claim that it makes web/desktop integration more manageable is moot. Moreover, the dearth of developed webapps hardly makes the concept of the web browser defunct. I use the word developed loosely: for example, whilst the GMail webapp gets you to your inbox quickly, when you get there, you can't click on hyperlinks in messages and there's no new mail notification integration on the Unity launcher. Suddenly, the promise of a dramatic improvement in speed and user experience, doesn't quite match the practise.

There's more trouble: whilst webapps play nice with Firefox, integration with Chromium (supposedly supported) doesn't work in 14.04 (at least, not for me!). If you want Chromium to be your default browser, you'll have to access your webapps from the Launcher, Dash, or message indicator on the top panel.

Conclusion

Reading between the lines, webapps are an artefact of convergence. Single application icons make sense on small form-factor devices where screen real estate and battery life are at a premium: after all, this is how iOS & Android mobile systems function already.

If true convergence is still an overarching strategy, it makes sense to focus development efforts on a single channel that crosses multiple platforms and if Canonical is serious about developing a mobile version of Ubuntu, this technology will be essential to its success.

Nonetheless, at the moment the desktop versions of these applications are rudimentary and it's not clear what, if any, development work is going on. Clearly, the current mobile OS are far more advanced than the Ubuntu webapps. That said, for q&d access to some of your favourite applications, webapps are a useful addition to the Ubuntu desktop.

Sources & Resources:

• Canonical Blog: Introducing Ubuntu Web Apps: setting the web free of the browser
• Launchpad: Webapps Project Group Information

If You Don't Kill It, It Won't Die

Microsoft included XP users in its IE security update this week - this despite the (second) end-of-life date having passed.

"We made this exception based on the proximity to the end of support for Windows XP."

Notwithstanding Adrienne Hall's claims to the contrary, the real reason for this decision is more pragmatic: XP still accounts for the majority of Windows users in the wild. The fact that its customers refuse to abandon this defunct product must be utterly terrifying for the Redmond giant.

Anyway, I'm going a little further than CERT or ENISA and recommending that users abandon Windows altogether - Ubuntu 14.04 runs beautifully on machines designed and built for XP and Canonical has delivered a viable alternative. Surely the possibility of a genuinely secure operating system that costs nothing to install on existing hardware must be worthy of consideration.

Sources & References:

• The Register: Friends don't let friends use Internet Explorer - advice from US, UK, EU
• BBC News/Technology: Microsoft includes XP users in Internet Explorer fix
• MaximumPC: Windows XP Market Share Outnumbers Windows 8/8.1 and Vista Combined

Keeping Up With The Jones's

This week more than a couple of sites are reporting on the Firefox refresh, Australis. Both are also pointing out the similarities between this latest incarnation and a close rival; Google Chrome.

I've blogged before about preferring Chromium to Firefox and these reviews do nothing to persuade me that I'm wrong. Indeed, the only significant difference appears to be that the options menu in Firefox is now icon (rather than text) based: hardly, the height of innovation. Convergent, it seems, means emulating your competitors.

I may give it a look over the next few weeks, but it won't be at the top of my to do list.

Sources & References:

• The Register: Firefox, is that you? Version 29 looks rather like a certain shiny rival
• OMG!Ubuntu!: Mozilla Firefox 29 Released With Brand New Look

Quick Tip - 14.04 Summoning the Keyboard Shortcut Splash Screen

Do you remember the shortcut splash screen that appeared on your desktop the first few times you booted into Ubuntu Trusty? After a while it no longer appears automatically, but you can summon it at any time by pressing & holding the super key (also called the Windows Key).

Summon the Shortcut Splash Screen with the Super Key

Sources & Resources:

• None

Bluefish Sinking

I've indicated that I use Bluefish as my html markup editor. However, it's not stable in 14.04 and apparently this has been a problem since 13.04.

It's not catastrophic, but if it's not fixed soon I may revert to gedit.

Sources & References:

• Launchpad: bluefish crashed with SIGSEGV in append_escaped_text()

14.04 Replacing LibreOffice With OpenOffice

Recently I was asked to replace the bundled LibreOffice with OpenOffice on a vanilla install of Ubuntu 14.04. It's kind of tricky because you have to remove everything connected with LibreOffice before OpenOffice will install.

First, uninstall LibreOffice. I tried several methods but, in the end, the following was the only one that worked. Open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) & type:

sudo apt-get remove --purge libreoffice*.*

Download OpenOffice into your Downloads folder and then right-click on your download and click Extract Here. The resultant directory (/home/usr/Downloads/en-GB)^* contains a sub-directory called, DEBS - change to this directory using the terminal:

cd /home/usr/Downloads/en-GB/DEBS

Now do:

sudo dpkg -i *.deb

Not quite finished: we need to integrate OpenOffice into the Ubuntu desktop. Change directory to the ./DEBS/desktop-integration folder:

cd ./desktop-integration

Now run the dpkg instruction again:

sudo dpkg -i *.deb

Now, exit the terminal and you should find OpenOffice in the dash.

Sources & References:

• OpenOffice: Downloads
• Ask Ubuntu: How Do I Install OpenOffice.org Instead Of LibreOffice?

Notes:

1. ^* Where usr is your user name & en-GB is your installation file after extraction.

14.04 Keyboard Conundrum Continued...

One little problem that has popped up since my upgrade to 14.04 is that the keyboard, despite being set to English UK, layout is not reflected in the keystrokes. This can be irritating when you press the hash (#) key and get a forward slash (/) symbol.

Fortunately, I've come across this problem before and the fix is satisfyingly easy! Open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and type:

sudo setkeycodes 91 100

Done!

Sources & References:

• Karmic Odyssey - Keyboard Conundrum