Re: [Tails-dev] Camouflage status for 1.1

23/05/14 13:04, Alan wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Summary
> =======
>
> I committed to update our windows camouflage for Tails 1.1. I belive
> that I reached the point where only details are missing and would
> appreciate feedback.
>
> The goal is to look similar to Microsoft Windows 8 (which I don't have
> access to, so I based my work on videos and screenshots).

This looks like a mix of Windows 8 and 8.1:

* the color theme is like the default in 8
* the background image is the default from 8
* the start button is only present in 8.1

IMHO this mixing is ok.

I've attached a screenshot of a Windows 8.1 desktop I managed to get my
hand on to #6342. I changed the pinned applications to

Some comments and suggestions about the panel:

* The current icon for Iceweasel is the IE6/7 icon from XP, but it
looks different in Windows 8. See my screenshot.

* The icons for pidgin and claws should be changed to those of the
People (or Skype) and Mail apps, respectively, like in my screenshot.
Or they should be removed, which perhaps is the simplest.

* The icons for KeyPassX and GNOME terminal should be removed. There
are no immediate *common* applications corresponding to these.

* Possibly we can add a launcher for the home directory, as the
left-most one, which seems to be the default in Windows 8/8.1.

* Can we remove the "separators" (or whatever those lightblue, "dotty"
things are calleD) on the left and right of the tasks?

* The shutdown applet is actually quite stealthy as it is (size and
color), but it'd be better if it could be moved to between the system
tray and the clock applet. On windows the clock seems to always be
touching the right edge of the screen.

* The clock applet's text should be white.

* The Vidalia icon in the system tray has a weird grey rectangle
beneath it. Can we remove it?

* Can we make the icons in the system tray smaller? The size of
Vidalia's and the shutdown applet icon are pretty good.

Also, about the desktop: it seems the only thing there by default is the
Recycle Bin, so we should remove everything else, IMHO.

> Details
> =======
>
> Ticket with remaining tasks: https://labs.riseup.net/code/issues/6342
> Tails branch: feature/6342-update-camouflage-for-gnome3
> Theme repository: http://git.tails.boum.org/gnome-theme-windows8/
>
> Questions and comments
> ======================
>
> - The taskbar doesn't really look like windows 8's. Do we want to
> include (and package) https://github.com/lanoxx/window-picker-applet/

I definitely think we want this (and migrate the launchers to it as
"pinned" applications, or whatever it's called). The way running
applications are shown in the task bar currently is an obvious give-away
and wouldn't pass the "quick look over the shoulder" test.

> - I implemented add the theme in gnome-theme-windows8, which includes
> several upstream tarballs and modifications. This looks quite messy.
> Do you think I should split this in specific packages with debian
> patches for our modifications before 1.1? Later? Or is this good
> enough for you?

Personally I don't really care.

> - I didn't port torbrowser camouflage. It looks like we have no chance
> to actually look like IE10 and its metro interface,

Windows 8 has a desktop mode which is separate from the crazy metro
stuff, and in it everything (applications included) looks much like
Windows 7 (i.e. traditional windows desktops). This desktop mode is what
you currently are trying to emulate, AFAICT, so it should be possible to
make Iceweasel look like an approximation of IE10. This is how IE10
looks in desktop mode:
http://i1-news.softpedia-static.com/images/news2/Internet-Explorer-10-Is-the-Best-Browser-for-Windows-8-Microsoft-2.png

The Firefox theme FoxE9 almost gets it right (it just has a more Windows
7-ish look) but it's not available for Linux for some reason.

With some DIY we may get a long way by:

* Disabling the menu-bar. Then we get the Iceweasel menu button to the
left of the address bar, which isn't good, but I see no immediate way
to improve this.

* Moving the tabs to right of the address bar and removing most other
controls, including the search bar.

* Using a Light Weight Theme similar to the one we use for the Unsafe
Web Browser but that instead of setting everything to red sets
everything to the same blue as in the title bar.

> so just looking like firefox doesn't seem me that bad.

If so, we should stop pretending it is IE completely. After all, Firefox
is pretty common in Windows too. But Iceweasel isn't. So this would
introduce of to the legal dilemmas of Firefox' non-free art work; we
cannot legally distribute e.g. the Firefox icon and use it for our
patched browser.

Another issue with this is that many public computers probably seem to
use IE, so Firefox would be a strange sight if running Tails in such a
setting => a bad thing for the "quick look over the shoulder" test.

> - I replaced the windows XP theme, but it wouldn't be that hard to port
> my changes to that theme too and to let the user choose. I don't
> commit to this however.

Windows XP was EOL:ed last month, so I suppose its market share will
decrease quite fast now, especially on public computers. If we want to
add another camouflage theme, I think Windows 7 or Mac OS X are better
in the long-term.

Cheers!