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35a32c5
(Get the code!)
@Adam
You make some strange arguments here.
FOSS philosophy has nothing to do with customization. It's about providing access to the source code. The Unity project is 100% FOSS (GPL/LGPLv3).
Ubuntu's goals might be different from yours. You might want to have a desktop perfectly configured for your needs. The Ubuntu project is trying to make a free operating system for the masses. Mark is clear that in trying to achieve these goals he will 1) be taking bold risks, and 2) he will not meet everybody's needs. Time will tell if he's on the right path.
I personally have many doubts, because when I've introduced Ubuntu and Unity to new people -- and I've done this a lot, in professional and personal contexts -- I've heard a lot of frustrations about its usability, configurability and stability. And so I've stopped recommending the regular Ubuntu, and instead recommend Xubuntu, which is *awesome*. But, maybe we got it all wrong and Mark got it right and Unity will make people flock to Ubuntu. Adam, you make a comparison to Apple: well, the Apple UI has proven itself very popular with the masses. So, maybe Mark (and GNOME) is on to something in trying to emulate their approach.
To the Ubuntu project's *great* credit, it offers support (in terms of computing, bandwidth and other resources, if not personnel) to *several* different flavors. While GNOME 3 seems to have the same general goals as Unity, the others absolutely do not, and will likely better suit your personal needs. Xubuntu is still Ubuntu, with the excellent repositories, PPA, and the entire ecosystem. It is an excellent and free operating system.
My problem, and it is central to this particular bug about making the Launcher movable, is not Unity's philosophy but the fact that it's essentially *broken* for certain setups, such as multimonitor and right-to-left setups. Unity should not be the default desktop, or at least it should have a big disclaimer up front that it is an experimental desktop interface, with an easy path (one click!) to let users install and use something that is proven to work.
Actually, there is a second problem: Mark has made me not want to help the Unity project. He has alienated many long-time Ubuntu supporters by his abrupt closure of bugs like this, with little or misleading communication about the reasons. So, yeah, no way I will contribute my programming skills to it. But I do love Xfce and will do my best to open bugs, submit patches, and spread the love. :)