Social Desktop

Social Desktop logo
Social Desktop Plasmoid (KDE 4.3 beta)

The Social Desktop idea describes how online communities and web collaborations can be integrated into desktop environments such as KDE and GNOME and how they could directly be accessed by desktop applications such as a Plasmoids.[1]

A core idea of the Social Desktop is to connect and to improve the communication in the free software community between the user. Its main pillars are user generated content such as applications, artwork, an event database and a common knowledge base. Integrating this kind of information and data to the desktop and to be accessible for everyone is the main goal of the initiators.

The idea was presented for the first time on Akademy 2008 by Frank Karlitschek.[2]

Backend

Backend of the Social Desktop is Open Collaboration Services API.[3] As it is a freedesktop.org standard it allows to have several different and independent backend provider for the Social Desktop.

Parts of the Social Desktop

News

Highly personalised news feed with specific user-selected data and news.

People and Groups

Finding new people with the same passion, connecting with and meeting them, sharing of interesting topics and knowledge in groups is possible.

Activities

Informs users about their friends' activities, e.g. a friend posted a new blog entry or a friend of mine is looking for a new job.

Events

An event database which informs people about open source conferences or Linux User Group meetings nearby them is also part of the Social Desktop. Every user is allowed to create and to enregister new events, to take part in them and to comment the event.

Knowledge Base

Questions concerning applications can be posted and their responds are viewable for everyone. Tips and tricks and short guidances from project owners or users can be posted.

Implementation

Many of these features are already visible and usable via the site openDesktop.org. Ubuntu 10.04, released in April 2010, included the social desktop application Gwibber,[4] already supporting Twitter, Facebook, Identi.ca and other microblogging services. An early realisation of the social desktop concept was already implemented as a plasmoid (a desktop widget) for the KDE desktop. The release of KDE 4.3 in July 2009 already has a so-called Social Desktop Plasmoid integrated. Furthermore, the official KDE community forum is also working on integrating the Open Collaboration Services API into the platform.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Article about the Social Desktop Plasmoid for KDE 4.3".
  2. ↑ "Presentation of the Social Desktop as keynote of the aKademy 2008 from Frank Karlitschek".
  3. ↑ "Official OCS API website".
  4. ↑ "List of packages included in Ubuntu 10.04.1".
  5. ↑ "KDE community forum admin on OCS/Social Desktop".

External links

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