[ubuntu-art] Reversion to Dapper Artwork

[Toby Smithe]

I sent this to sabdfl but no-one else. Here it is:

I agree with your points. But most of the community (that is, real users
using your distribution) seem to hate the decision:

http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=276048

On Thu, 2006-10-12 at 18:53 +0100, Mark Shuttleworth wrote:
> Toby Smithe wrote:
> > This second clause rather contradicts the first (in the second
> > sentence). We have invested a huge amount of time, but you're still
> > prepared to waste that when people have spent their own spare time,
for
> > free, on it?
> I don't consider it a waste. We have all learned a lot about
> coordinating artwork. We've had no shortage of energy but a great
> shortage of direction and discipline. 
> >  This just seems unprofessional and against the spirit of
> > free software.
> >   
> No - unprofessional is missing all the agreed dates, and not pulling
> together as a team but instead having too many people pulling in too
> many directions.

True... I'll find a different word next time! :)

> Before you react - consider for a moment that the REST of the
> distribution does not run that way.

Although coding is an art, this art is a different beast. What makes you
think it should run /the same/?

>  It could never be the tight, focused thing that it is if it did. It's
> up to the art team to rise to the level of the rest of the distro, not
> simply to assume that release management processes apply less strictly
> in the artwork department.

And Ubuntu is indeed very tight and focused. I'd have it no other way,
and it's one thing I congratulate the whole team on.

> It took several releases before the work of the doc team got directly
> baked into the distro, too. It's not unusual for us to have to figure
> out how a particular team works best. I think we've learned a lot in
> this round, it's in no sense wasted work, but if the results are
> either too late or not tight and polished enough we will stick with
> what we have.

Wasted is something that has been made and not used. All the new (for
Edgy) community artwork is wasted if you take my rather crude
definition, and I think most people do. What's yours?