| Unity | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Unity 7.7, running onUbuntu 24.04 | |
| Original author(s) | Canonical Ltd. |
| Developer(s) | Unity7 Maintainers |
| Initial release | 9 June 2010; 15 years ago (2010-06-09)[1] |
| Stable release | 7.7 / 24 December 2022 |
| Repository | |
| Written in | Unity 2D:C++,JavaScript,QML 2.0–7.4:C,C++,Python,Vala[2] UnityX:Fish |
| Operating system | Ubuntu Unity |
| Type | Graphical shell |
| License | GPL v3,LGPL v3 |
| Website | unityd |
Unity is agraphical shell originally developed byCanonical Ltd. for itsUbuntu operating system. It debuted in 2010 in thenetbook edition ofUbuntu 10.10 and was used untilUbuntu 17.10. Following its discontinuation by Canonical in 2017, development offorks of Unity7 and Unity8 has continued – the latter was renamedLomiri in February 2020.
Unity7 is the default desktop environment inUbuntu Unity, an official flavor of Ubuntu since 2022. The maintainers of Ubuntu Unity and Unity7 have started working on the successor of Unity7, UnityX.[3]
It was part of the Ayatana project, an initiative with the stated intention of improving the user experience within Ubuntu.[4] It was initially designed to make more efficient use of space given the limited screen size ofnetbooks, including, for example, a vertical application switcher called thelauncher, and a space-saving horizontal multipurposetop menu bar.[5][6] Unlike GNOME,KDE Plasma,Xfce, orLXDE, Unity is not a collection of applications. It is designed to use existing programs.[7]
The Unity user interface consists of several components:[8]
Dash is adesktop search utility with preview ability. It enables searching for applications and files. Dash supports searchplug-ins, known as Scopes (formerly Lenses). Out of the box, it can queryGoogle Docs,Ubuntu One Music Store,YouTube,Amazon, andsocial networks (for example,Twitter,Facebook, andGoogle+). Starting with Ubuntu 13.10, online search queries are sent to a Canonical web service which determines the type of query and directs them to the appropriate third-party web service. Pornographic results are filtered out.[14][15][16]
None of Ubuntu's official derivatives (Kubuntu,Xubuntu,Lubuntu, orUbuntu GNOME) include this feature or any variation of it.
One of the new features of Unity inUbuntu 12.10 is the shopping lens. As of October 2012, it sends (through a secureHTTPS connection) the user's queries from the home lens toproductsearch.ubuntu.com,[16] which then pollsAmazon.com to find relevant products; Amazon then sends product images directly to the user's computer (initially, through unsecuredHTTP). If the user clicks on one of these results and then buys something, Canonical receives a small commission on the sale.[17]
Many reviewers criticized it: as the home lens is the natural means to search for content on the local machine, reviewers were concerned about the disclosure of queries that were intended to be local, creating a privacy problem.[16] The feature is active by default[16][17][18][19] (instead of opt-in) and many users could be unaware of it.
On 23 September 2012,Mark Shuttleworth defended the feature. He posted "the Home Lens of the Dash should let you find *anything* anywhere" and that the shopping lens is a step in that direction. He argued that anonymity is preserved because Canonical servers mediate the communication between Unity and Amazon and users could trust Ubuntu.[16][20] Ubuntu Community ManagerJono Bacon posted "These features are neatly and unobtrusively integrated into the dash, and they not only provide a more useful and comprehensive dash in giving you visibility on this content, but it also generates revenue to help continue to grow and improve Ubuntu."[21] Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols fromZDNet said the feature does not bother him and wrote "If they can make some users happy and some revenue for the company at the same time, that's fine by me."[19] Ted Samson atInfoWorld reported the responses from Shuttleworth and Bacon, but he still criticized the feature.[18]
On 29 October 2012, theElectronic Frontier Foundation criticized the problem. It argued that since product images were (as of October 2012) returned via insecure HTTP then a passive eavesdropper—such as someone on the same wireless network—could get a good idea of the queries. Also, Amazon could correlate the queries with IP addresses. It recommended Ubuntu developers make the feature opt-in and make Ubuntu's privacy settings more fine-grained. It noted that the Dash can be stopped from searching the Internet by switching off "Include online search results" in Ubuntu's privacy settings.[16][22]
On 7 December 2012,Richard Stallman claimed that Ubuntu containsspyware and should not be used by free software supporters. Jono Bacon rebuked him; he said that Ubuntu responded and implemented many of the requirements the community found important.[23][24][25]
Since September 2013, images are anonymized before being sent to the user's computer.[26]
A legal notice in the Dash informs users of the sharing of their data.[27] It states that unless the user has opted out, by turning the searches off, their queries and IP address will be sent toproductsearch.ubuntu.com and "selected third parties"[17][28] for online search results. Ubuntu's Third Party Privacy Policies page informs all of the third parties that may receive users' queries and IP addresses, and states: "For information on how our selected third parties may use your information, please see their privacy policies."[16]
Soon after being introduced, doubts emerged on the conformance of the shopping lens with the EuropeanData Protection Directive.[29][30] By late 2013, these doubts made the grounds for a formal complaint on the shopping lens filed with theInformation Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK data privacy office. Almost one year later the ICO ruled in favour of Canonical, considering the various improvements introduced to the feature in the meantime to render it conformal with the Data Protection Directive.[31] However, the ruling also made clear that at the time of introduction the feature was not legal, among other things, since it lacked a privacy policy statement.
In March 2014, Michael Hall speaking for Canonical Ltd, indicated that in Unity 8 users will have to opt-in for each search, which will be conducted by opening a special scope and then choosing where to search, addressing previous criticism of its functionality.[32] As of April 2016, with the release ofUbuntu 16.04 LTS, the setting is off by default.[33]
Initially Canonical maintained two discrete versions of Unity, which were visually almost indistinguishable but technically different.
Unity is written as a plugin forCompiz[34] and uses an uncommonOpenGL toolkit called Nux.[14] Being a plugin for Compiz gives UnityGPU-accelerated performance on compatible systems. It is written in the programming languages C++ andVala.
Unity 2D was a set of individual applications[35] developed for environments that Compiz does not run on, such as when graphics card does not supportOpenGL. They were written in the GUI building languageQML from the widespreadQt framework.[36] By default Unity 2D used theMetacity window manager[35] but could also use accelerated window managers like Compiz orKWin. In Ubuntu 11.10, Unity 2D used Metacity's XRender-based compositor to achieve transparency effects.[citation needed] Starting withUbuntu 11.10, Unity 2D replaced the classic GNOME Panel as the fall-back for users whose hardware could not run the Compiz version of Unity.[37]
Unity 2D was discontinued for the release of Ubuntu 12.10 in October 2012, as the 3D version became more capable of running on lower-powered hardware.[38]
As Unity and the supporting Ayatana projects[39] are developed primarily for Ubuntu and Ubuntu was the first to offer new versions.
Outside of Ubuntu, other Linux distributors have tried to pick up Ayatana, with varying success. The Ayatana components require modification of other applications, which increases the complexity for adoption by others.
Unity was originally unveiled on 10 May 2010 during Ubuntu founderMark Shuttleworth's keynote at the Ubuntu Developer Summit in Brussels.[51] It was announced as the new interface of both Ubuntu Netbook Edition and a then-planned OEM platform called Ubuntu Light.[52] The new interface was also made available for download during the keynote and visitors of the summit could try it out on aDell Mini 10v.[53]
Ubuntu originally used the fullGNOME desktop environment; Shuttleworth cited philosophical differences with the GNOME team over the user experience to explain why Ubuntu would use Unity as the default user interface instead ofGNOME Shell, beginning April 2011, withUbuntu 11.04 (Natty Narwhal).[54]
In November 2010, Ubuntu Community ManagerJono Bacon explained that Ubuntu will continue to ship the GNOME stack, GNOME applications, and optimize Ubuntu for GNOME. The only difference, he wrote, would be that Unity is a different shell for GNOME.[55]
Canonical announced it had engineered Unity for desktop computers as well and would make Unity the default shell for Ubuntu in version 11.04.[56] GNOME Shell was not included inUbuntu 11.04 Natty Narwhal because work on it was not completed at the time 11.04 was frozen, but was available from aPPA,[57] and was available in Ubuntu 11.10 and later releases, through the official repositories.[58]
In November 2010, Mark Shuttleworth announced the intention to eventually run Unity onWayland instead of the currently usedX Window System,[59] although this plan has since been dropped, replacing Wayland withMir forUnity 8.[60]
In December 2010, some users requested that the Unitylauncher (ordock) be movable from the left to other sides of the screen, but Mark Shuttleworth stated in reply, "I'm afraid that won't work with our broader design goals, so we won't implement that. We want the launcher always close to the Ubuntu button."[61] However, with Ubuntu 11.10, the Ubuntu button was moved into the launcher. A third-party plugin that moved Unity 3D's launcher to the bottom was available.[62] An option to move the launcher to the bottom of the screen was officially implemented in Ubuntu 16.04.[63]
As of 2010[update], the Unity shell interface developers use a toolkit called Nux instead of Clutter.[64] Unity is a plugin of theCompiz window manager,[14] which Canonical states is faster thanMutter,[65] the window manager for which GNOME Shell is a plugin.
On 14 January 2011, Canonical also released a technical preview of a "2D" version of Unity based onQt and written inQML.[36] Unity-2D was not shipped on the Ubuntu 11.04 CD, instead the classic GNOME desktop was the fall-back for hardware that could not run Unity.[66][67]
In March 2011, public indications emerged of friction between Canonical (and its development of Unity) and the GNOME developers. As part of Unity development Ubuntu developers had submittedAPI coding for inclusion in Gnome as an external dependency. According to Dave Neary, "... an external dependency is a non-GNOME module which is a dependency of a package contained in one of the GNOME module sets," and the reasons why libappindicator was not accepted as an external dependency are that "... it does not fit that definition," it has "... duplicate functionality with libnotify," (the current Gnome Shell default) and itsCLA does not meet current GNOME policy.[68] Mark Shuttleworth responded,
This is a critical juncture for the leadership of Gnome. I'll state plainly that I feel the long tail of good-hearted contributors to Gnome and Gnome applications are being let down by a decision-making process that has let competitive dynamics diminish the scope of Gnome itself. Ideas that are not generated 'at the core' have to fight incredibly and unnecessarily hard to get oxygen... getting room for ideas to be explored should not feel like a frontal assault on a machine gun post. This is no way to lead a project. This is a recipe for a project that loses great people to environments that are more open to different ways of seeing the world ... Embracing those other ideas and allowing them to compete happily and healthily is the only way to keep the innovation they bring inside your brand. Otherwise, you're doomed to watching them innovate and then having to "relayout" your own efforts to keep up, badmouthing them in the process. We started this with a strong, clear statement: Unity is a shell for Gnome. Now Gnome leadership have to decide if they want the fruit of that competition to be an asset to Gnome, or not.[69][70][71]
In April 2011, Mark Shuttleworth announced thatUbuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot would not include the classic GNOME desktop as a fall-back to Unity, unlikeUbuntu 11.04 Natty Narwhal. Instead Ubuntu 11.10 used the Qt-based Unity 2D for users whose hardware cannot support the 3D version.[37][72] However, the classic GNOME desktop (GNOME Panel) can be installed separately in Ubuntu 11.10 and later versions throughgnome-panel, a package in the Ubuntu repositories.[73]
At the November 2011Ubuntu Developer Summit, it was announced that Unity for Ubuntu 12.04 would not re-enable the systray, and would have better application integration, and the ability to drag lenses onto the launcher, and that the 2D version of Unity would use the same decoration buttons as the 3D version.[74]
A variant of Unity was planned to run on Ubuntu TV, an ultimately unreleasedsmart TV operating system demonstrated at the 2012Consumer Electronics Show.[75]
During the planning conference forUbuntu 12.10 it was announced that Unity 2D would probably be dropped in favour of making Unity 3D run better on lower-end hardware.[38]
In July 2012, atOSCON, Shuttleworth explained some of the historical reasoning behind Unity's development. The initial decision to develop a new interface in 2008 was driven by a desire to innovate and to pass Microsoft and Apple in user experience. This meant a family of unified interfaces that could be used across many device form factors, including desktop, laptop, tablet, smart phones and TV. Shuttleworth said "‘The old desktop would force your tablet or your phone into all kinds of crazy of funny postures. So we said: Screw it. We’re going to move the desktop to where it needs to be for the future. [This] turned out to be a deeply unpopular process."[76]
Initial testing of Unity during development was done in a laboratory setting and showed the success of the interface, despite public opposition. Real world shipping return rates also indicated acceptance. Shuttleworth explained, "ASUS ran an experiment where they shipped half a million [Unity netbooks and laptops] to Germany. Not an easy market. And the return rates on Ubuntu were exactly the same as the return rates on Windows. Which is the key indicator for OEMs who are looking to do this."[76]
Microsoft's development ofWindows 8 and itsMetro interface became an additional incentive for Unity development, as Shuttleworth explained, "we [had to move] our desktop because if we didn’t we’d end up where Windows 8 is. [In Windows 8] you have this shiny tablet interface, and you sit and you use then you press the wrong button then it slaps you in the face and Windows 7 is back. And then you think OK, this is familiar, so you’re kind of getting into it and whack [Windows 8 is back]."[76]
In March 2013 the plan to use theMir display server was announced for future development of Unity, in place of the previously announced Wayland/Weston.[60][77][78][79]
In April 2015 it was announced that Unity 8 would ship as part of Ubuntu 16.04 LTS, or possibly later. It was also noted that this version of Unity would not visually differ much from Unity 7.[80]
In April 2016 Ubuntu 16.04 was released with Unity 7, not Unity 8, as the default user interface, though Unity 8 could be installed through the Ubuntu software repositories as an optional, preview package.[81] During an Ubuntu Online Summit, Canonical employees said that their goal is to ship Unity 8 as the default interface for Ubuntu 16.10, to be released in October 2016.[82] These plans are now changed and for now Unity 8 will come preinstalled with 16.10 but not as default.[83][needs update]
On 5 April 2017,Mark Shuttleworth announced that Canonical's work on Unity would end.Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, a year away from release at the time, would abandon the Unity desktop and employ theGNOME 3 desktop instead.[84] Development of Unity 7 was taken over by the Unity7 Maintainers team, and they released version 7.6 on 30 June 2022 as the first new version in 6 years.[85] Development of Unity8 continued separately under UBports as part ofUbuntu Touch – this fork was renamed toLomiri in February 2020.[86]
In May 2020,Ubuntu Unity, a new unofficial Ubuntu version was first released, using the Unity7 desktop as its default environment.[48][49][87] It became an official Ubuntu flavor starting with version 22.10[88] and includes early support for Lomiri starting with version 24.04.[89]
Early versions of Unity received mixed reviews and generated controversy. Some reviewers found fault with the implementation and limitations, while other reviewers found Unity an improvement over GNOME 2 with the further potential to improve over time.[53][90][91][92][93] Reception later improved upon the release of Ubuntu 12.10, with Jack Wallen describing it as an "incredible advancement" and Jesse Smith describing it as "attractive" and saying that it had grown to maturity. Ryan Paul said Unity was responsive, robust and had the reliability expected from a mature desktop shell,[94][95][96] though the Dash feature of Unity in Ubuntu 12.10 generated aprivacy controversy.[97]
In reviewing analpha version of Unity, shortly after it was unveiled in the summer of 2010, Ryan Paul ofArs Technica noted problems figuring out how to launch additional applications that were not on the dock bar. He also mentioned a number of bugs, including the inability to track which applications were open and other window management difficulties. He remarked that many of these were probably due to the early stage in the development process and expected them to be resolved with time. Paul concluded positively, "Our test of the Unity prototype leads us to believe that the project has considerable potential and could bring a lot of value to the Ubuntu Netbook Edition. Its unique visual style melds beautifully with Ubuntu's new default theme and its underlying interaction model seems compelling and well-suited for small screens."[53][90] In an extensive review ofUbuntu 10.10 shortly after its release in October 2010, Paul made further observations on Unity, noting that "Unity is highly ambitious and offers a substantially different computing experience than the conventional Ubuntu desktop." He concluded that "The [application] selectors are visually appealing, but they are easily the weakest part of the Unity user experience. The poor performance significantly detracts from their value in day-to-day use and the lack of actual file management functionality largely renders the file selector useless. The underlying concepts behind their design are good, however, and they have the potential to be much more valuable in the future as unity matures."[91][92]
In March 2011, writer Benjamin Humphrey of OMG Ubuntu criticized the development version of Unity then being tested forUbuntu 11.04 on a number of grounds, including a development process that is divorced from user experiences, the lack of response to user feedback, "the seemingly unbelievable lack of communication the design team has," and a user interface he described as "cluttered and inconsistent". Overall, however, he concluded that "Unity is not all bad... While a number of the concepts in Unity may be flawed from a design point of view, the actual idea itself is not, and Canonical deserve applause for trying to jump start the stagnant open source desktop with Unity when the alternatives do not evoke confidence."[90]
On 14 April 2011, Ryan Paul reviewed a pre-release build of Unity, praising its "close attention to detail" and citing the top menu bar and launcher as particular highlights. He criticized the process of finding applications not present on the launcher, along with the "distracting and largely superfluous" presentation of available uninstalled applications, concluding that Unity was potentially better than GNOME for regular usage while calling some of the changes "disorienting".[92] On release, he further criticized the lack of customization options.[98] In a more thorough review of Ubuntu 11.04, Paul commended Unity as a positive development for Ubuntu, but that more resources had to be invested to improve outstanding issues.[99]
On 25 April 2011, the eve of the release of Ubuntu 11.04, reviewer Matt Hartley ofIT Management criticized Unity, saying that the "dumbing down of the Linux desktop environment is bordering on insane".[100]
Reviewer Joey Sneddon ofOMG Ubuntu was more positive about Unity in his review of Ubuntu 11.04, encouraging users, "Sure it's different—but different doesn't mean bad; the best thing to do is to give it a chance." He concluded that Unity on the desktop makes "better use of screen space, intuitive interface layouts and, most importantly, making a desktop that works for the user and not in spite of them."[101]
Following the release of Ubuntu 11.04Canonical Ltd. founderMark Shuttleworth indicated that, while he was generally happy with the implementation of Unity, he felt that there was room for improvement and that he "would not be satisfied unless we fixed many of [the early issues] in 11.10", further stating that Unity was "the best option for the average user" and that Ubuntu "had to choose a default position."[102]
In reviewing Unity in Ubuntu 11.04 on 9 May 2011, Jesse Smith ofDistroWatch criticized its lack of customization, menu handling and Unity hardware requirements, saying, "There's really nothing here which should demand 3D acceleration." He also noted that "The layout doesn't translate well to large screens or multiple-screen systems."[103] Jack M. Germain ofLinux Insider reviewed Unity on 11 May 2011, indicating strong dislike for it, saying, "Put me in the Hate It category" and indicating that as development has proceeded he likes it less and less.[104]
More criticism appeared after the release of Ubuntu 11.10. In November 2011 Robert Storey writing inDistroWatch criticized Unity for taking up developer time to the point that Ubuntu's stability was negatively affected, calling it "kind of cute, but nothing to write home about."[105]
Developers of Linux distributions based upon Ubuntu have also weighed in on the introduction of Unity in early 2011, when Unity was in its infancy. Some have been critical, including two distributions who base their criticism onusability testing. Marco Ghirlanda, the lead developer of the audio- and video-centric ArtistX, stated, "When I tried Unity on computer illiterates, they were less productive and took ages to understand the concepts behind it. When I show them how to use it, they said that it is pretty to see but hard to use." Stephen Ewen, the lead developer forUberStudent, an Ubuntu-based Linux distribution forhigher education and college-bound high school students, stated, "Unity's design decreases both visual and functional accessibility, which tabulates to decreased productivity." Ewen also criticized Unity's menu scheme as much less accessible than on GNOME 2, which he said, "means that the brain cannot map as quickly to program categories and subcategories, which again means further decreased productivity."[106]
Reviewing Ubuntu 12.04, Jesse Smith ofDistroWatch wrote that previously "underwhelming" parts of Unity had "come together to form a whole, clear picture", highlighting the HUD as easy to use for novice users and versatile for power users, though citing inflexibility of Unity as a whole as an issue.[95] Jack Wallen ofTechRepublic, who had been critical of earlier versions of Unity, wrote that he was "working much more efficiently" with the environment and called it an "incredible" advancement.[94] Ryan Paul praised Unity's responsiveness, robustness and reliability, highlighting the HUD as a feature which contributed to making it "even better in Ubuntu 12.04", while criticizing aspects of the user experience as "detract[ing] from [its] predictability and ease of use."[96]
Jack Wallen ofTechRepublic, in reviewing the changes scheduled for Unity in Ubuntu 16.04 LTS, concluded, "Ubuntu Unity is not the desktop pariah you once thought it was. This desktop environment has evolved into a beautiful, efficient interface that does not deserve the scorn and derision heaped upon it by so many."[107]
{{cite web}}:External link in|type=The version of Unity that will be released in 11.04 is definitely implemented as plugin(s) in Compiz.
The Ayatana Project is the collective project that houses user interface, design and interaction projects started by Canonical.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)The next major transition for Unity will be to deliver it on Wayland ...
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