Fallback from 3D should offer Unity 2D download as an option

[Mark Shuttleworth]

Binary package hint: unity

When the Unity check finds that there are not sufficient resources / drivers to support Unity 3D, we should offer the users the option to download Unity 2D and use that, as well as the straightforward "switch to Classic" option. The download and install should be done immediately if the user requests it, handling network failures. Once installed, the session should just begin.

[Didier Roche-Tolomelli (didrocks)]

Not sure it's actually possible easily (if policykit is started at this point), but let's give it a shot :)

[Didier Roche-Tolomelli (didrocks)]

just confirmed, polkit is not launched at this stage, that will make things way more difficult and a little bit late for such a disruptive change. The "easy way" would be to start software-center on the unity2d page for natty and revisit that for oneiric?

[Didier Roche-Tolomelli (didrocks)]

So, I give it some thoughts over night and here is the blockers for that option as far as I can see:
Take in mind that's the very first step of the session deciding on which session "flavor" we are jumping into, launched components being dependent on that.

- Policykit is indeed unavailable at this step, so launching an install (without any window manager), with a dialog asking for your password to get right privilege to install the package isn't quite straightforward.

- NM as well isn't available as well as gnome-keyring. And that's the main blocker IMHO: Indeed, the keyring contains the Wifi passphrase. I think the laptop/netbook over Wifi here is one of the main target and it won't be able to connect at this stage then. Even if we (by some tricks) delayed the installed to get those two services started at first, there will be an issue at first run. The dialog will be shown with "do you want to download unity2d", but at it's the first reboot after installation, the network settings being correctly filed by the user yet. So, it's more a less a lot of people won't be able to enjoy the feature.

- If we are going to the path to ignore latest concern and just try to launch all service before switching to the new "session type" installed, gnome-session doesn't make dynamically switching to session type easily. Even upstream tried that for gnome-shell and postpone as they got a lot of ackward side-effects.

Is that all and not possible? Well, I would say that for this cycle and at this stage of the release, we have two options less risky:
-> 1st one is to launch software-center on the unity2d page, then, the user has time to file his internet settings, and all services to start (the only thing is that we have to ensure avoiding doing that on the live cd)
-> 2nd and the one which make more sense to me, is to include this question in ubiquity if we detect that it can't support unity (the tester is an binary which is available on the live). I proposed a similar option (additional question for nvidia user) at latest UDS. The preferred way was to add that to the "proprietary addon" (like mp3) checkbox, but I think that an additional dialog can make sense for installing unity2d in desired case and will make even more sense.

What do you think?

[Mark Shuttleworth (sabdfl)]

On 08/03/11 08:02, Didier Roche wrote:
> So, I give it some thoughts over night and here is the blockers for that option as far as I can see:

Thanks for continuing to explore it in dreamtime, Didier, that's what
makes you so awesome!

> -> 1st one is to launch software-center on the unity2d page, then, the user has time to file his internet settings, and all services to start (the only thing is that we have to ensure avoiding doing that on the live cd)

Interesting - we could also use Jockey as a preliminary step. So when we
detect that (a) the user hasn't

> -> 2nd and the one which make more sense to me, is to include this question in ubiquity if we detect that it can't support unity (the tester is an binary which is available on the live). I proposed a similar option (additional question for nvidia user) at latest UDS. The preferred way was to add that to the "proprietary addon" (like mp3) checkbox, but I think that an additional dialog can make sense for installing unity2d in desired case and will make even more sense.

This one is the best I agree. I think we should avoid an extra dialog,
just show an extra checkbox on one of the existing screens *if* the
tester finds it is necessary.

Great thinking!

Mark

[Didier Roche-Tolomelli (didrocks)]

heh, thanks :)

ok, let's go with the ubiquity road right now, I'll discuss that with evan and offer some help there.

[Mark Shuttleworth (sabdfl)]

On 08/03/11 08:44, Didier Roche wrote:
> ok, let's go with the ubiquity road right now, I'll discuss that with
> evan and offer some help there.

Just do the mental triangulation for now - we'll have to evaluate
Unity-2D closer to the time and see if it's ready to promote.

Mark

[Mario Limonciello (superm1)]

Didier:

Just to circle back and be clear:
Does this also include the case that for whatever reason the user is trying to log into unity 3d and can't, so gracefully offer that dialog after installation is finished? Or should that be a separate bug, with this bug just trying to get them into the right UI initially?

[Mark Shuttleworth (sabdfl)]

Mario, if 2D is installed it will automatically be used (silently) if
folk select the "Ubuntu Desktop Edition" session at login. So this is
just about prompting folk to install the 2D (if we think 2D is ready for
prime time at release even though it can't go on the CD).

Mark

[Omer Akram (om26er)]

I believe this won't be necessary anymore as Oneiric has both versions of Unity depending on the hardware capabilities