Feature changed by: Tomáš Chvátal (scarabeus_iv) Feature #312754, revision 7 Title: Let's kick SuSEGreeter, and create a shiny new website instead - openSUSE Distribution: Evaluation by engineering manager + openSUSE Distribution: Done Priority Requester: Important Requested by: Kim Leyendecker (openlhag) Developer: Robert Lihm (rlihm) Partner organization: openSUSE.org Description: See this discussion before reply: http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-marketing/2011-07/msg00039.html ======================================================== The goal is to create a start page for our delivered browser instead of SuSEGreeter. Use Case: After an installation, first time the user opens his browser. Business case (Partner benefit): openSUSE.org: We can deliver more dynamic content with the website, instead of SuSEGreeter. Imagine: * Links to openSUSE documentation * Twitter plugin * News.o.o links * Comprehensive information Discussion: #1: Benjamin Misja (alvanx) (2011-08-21 11:18:53) Sounds like a good idea! I'm all for making openSUSE more welcoming, intuitive and instantly accessible. SUSEGreeter isn't exactly fresh and dynamic (although it looks respectable). A website might have greater potential and offer more flexibility. One thing about the discussion though: Why cookies and polls? That will just make it look like one of those free-as-in-beer programs that you can only use for free because you endure regular advertisements. IMO, this should be about a welcoming first experience - to turn the metaphorical forage into uncharted territories into a slightly more familiar experience. Polls will have to be very polite and unobtrusive on that front page in order to not make openSUSE look trashy. Also, I would keep in mind that these polls will only be useful and meaningful if there is 1. a purpose behind them (which I can't see so far) and 2. somebody will organize and utilize them toward that purpose. As far as contents go, SuSEGreeter is stingy. It will be very useful for anyone with Linux experience who already knows the basics and is not afraid of asking for help in forums. But the few links will not help anyone who is new, but much more likely scare them away. And here is a useful principle: If you want to attract new users, the only way is to explain the basics in a way that somebody who is new to the matter will understand and become more interested in them, rather than go back to their familiar WinXP. If you don't do it, you won't get their attention. It's Plato's cave parable all over: If you don't make this juicy and appealing, take them by the hand and lead them out into the light, then they'll stay with what they know, however bad it will be in comparison. The only thing useful for new users so far is probably the KDE4 tour, though it is not set up in the most accessible way (much text, little visuals). What I think should be on this website is maybe a few links and boxes in the corners with the contents that SuSeGreeter offers so far. They are useful, but they are not what will really introduce you to a Linux experience. What we really need is professional-quality video (or even better, interactive) tours of different aspects, including a tour of your desktop, but also a tour to installing new software, security and how the file system works. This is what your average new user will really be interested in, and these items should take up the center space. Example? When Google+ came out, I really wasn't interested in another social network. But when I tried the interactive tour (http://plus.google.com/up/start/) , I discovered it was so much fun that my mouth watered to try it! Now I am a happy user. What a successful introduction to a product! And this is exactly what we need for our favorite Linux distro. + #2: Tomáš Chvátal (scarabeus_iv) (2017-06-09 12:44:34) + We now have a completely different website we plan to stick to. + And for the greeter we decided to stick with 'branded google'. -- openSUSE Feature: https://features.opensuse.org/312754