Re: Linux and Software Freedom

On 17 août, 08:32, Asa Dotzler <[email protected]> wrote:
> Answering the question "am I on the latest version"
> is the primary usability goal of the About window for Mozilla.

That's the main point of contention here. The opposing voices (myself
included) are only saying that the main use case for the "About
Firefox" dialog is to find out the version number. It shouldn't even
be phoning home to check for updates in the first place !

> Users shouldn't have to learn how to find out if they're up to date.

So make it even easier ! How about a top-level "Check for Updates"
menu item ? And then you can leave the About dialog as it is today, a
relic of the past, a shrine where geeks can find the version number,
copyright and licensing info and maybe an easter egg. The About
dialogs have never been meant for regular users, it's too late to
invent a new, more "mainstream" use case for them.