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Orb is a free and open source web desktop

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Re: Orb is a free and open source web desktop

#11
post #3
post #2

Somewhat more eleaborate than 2 sentences-long README would be welcome. Including a screenshot[1] there would be nice for a GUI project. BTW, I've been out of touch with PHP for years. How are its performance and security these days? [1] https://gitlab.com/hsleisink/orb/-/blob/master/screenshot.jp...

Performance is adequate, security is up to the dev.

> security is up to the dev.

As in basically any web app development... mostly independently of the chosen implementation language. PHP hast lost its insecure beginnings (like injecting variables using GET arguments...) since long.

Re: Orb is a free and open source web desktop

#12
I took a peek at the "Explorer" app code base. PHP + JS + jQuery, but surprisingly readable (but a lot of practices in there that are not exactly considered "best" today). Perhaps we have sunk too deep into the SPA/API rabbit hole that we can no longer appreciate simplicity.

https://gitlab.com/hsleisink/orb/-/blob/master/public/apps/e...

https://gitlab.com/hsleisink/orb/-/blob/master/public/apps/e...

Re: Orb is a free and open source web desktop

#13
post #8
post #5

Why don't we see more of these, given that canvas and webgl and fullscreen are a thing now? Shouldn't this have put Citrix et al out of business?

Best comment here. Never thought about if from that angle, considering my hate for window in window.

Everything that runs inside this "desktop" environment is made for it. So it is definitely not competing with Citrix & co. which are made to run existing stuff under existing operating systems...

Re: Orb is a free and open source web desktop

#14
post #7
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My Synology NAS uses something like this for its navigation and even if it's initially strange, you instantly miss it when you access it from your phone, when the UI turns into this nested list which is not intuitive at all

I personally hate this from Synology. While their apps are meaningful structured and look good, it is just a natural mismatch to put sub windows into a parent window. Anyone remembering multi sub window apps in the Microsoft office suite in the 90s/00s. Was also horrible without a browser/html involved. This is definitely a taste thing

> Anyone remembering multi sub window apps in the Microsoft office suite in the 90s/00s

It was called MDI: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Multiple-document...>

Re: Orb is a free and open source web desktop

#15
post #7
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My Synology NAS uses something like this for its navigation and even if it's initially strange, you instantly miss it when you access it from your phone, when the UI turns into this nested list which is not intuitive at all

I personally hate this from Synology. While their apps are meaningful structured and look good, it is just a natural mismatch to put sub windows into a parent window. Anyone remembering multi sub window apps in the Microsoft office suite in the 90s/00s. Was also horrible without a browser/html involved. This is definitely a taste thing

StarOffice (precursor to LibreOffice) used to take this one step further and replicated the taskbar and start menu inside the application window: https://winworldpc.com/product/staroffice/5x

Re: Orb is a free and open source web desktop

#16
post #13
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Best comment here. Never thought about if from that angle, considering my hate for window in window.

Everything that runs inside this "desktop" environment is made for it. So it is definitely not competing with Citrix & co. which are made to run existing stuff under existing operating systems...

well, given that everything is made for the web, it seems like it would be pretty straightforward to jam most existing SPA webapps into something like this.

Re: Orb is a free and open source web desktop

#18
I wonder how things would have been if we had JavaScript based WMs and DEs. I'd have loved an HTML/CSS supported DE, imagine the possibilities! and seeing how performance of web-based DEs is amazing, I really hope we can get a Linux distro with a HTML/CSS/JS based DE.
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