This is an old debate and not one we can resolve. It has raged since GNOME
first came on the scene. The biggest thing that GNOME has going for it is
that Ubuntu is the distro of choice for many users. People do not choose
GNOME, but rather Ubuntu. Many new users are surprised that there is an
alternative.

I was a GNOME user once, but changed when Mono was being forced on me. You
can't install Ubuntu without Mono at present. That may change. Fedora has
removed Mono from its default GNOME installation. Ubuntu is replacing F-Spot
and now there are only two Mono applications in Ubuntu's Live CD, gBrainy
and Tomboy. Yes, I can remove Mono, but I don't even want it on my system
temporarily. It is the principle that is important. The only thing that will
chamge my mind is when Microsoft desists from alleging patent violation and
says that Mono is free and open.

As I said, I like GNOME. I like variety. I have KDE, GNOME, LXDE, XFCE,
Fluxbox, Openbox and Enlightenment installed. Choice is important to me. I
don't want everyone choosing GNOME or Ubuntu or any other distro or desktop
because once we are all the same then we will have no choice.

I like KDE because it gives me more options and therefore more choice. I
change just about everything that I can in KDE or GNOME. I move the KDE
panel to the top so that I can run AWN along the bottom. I add widgets and
tailor it to my personal preferences. In GNOME, I remove the bottom panel
and change double click to single click. When I am done there is little
difference between KDE and GNOME. As for the weather applet, KDE has several
weather widgets. If you don't like that you can run Google Gadgets in either
KDE or GNOME.

KDE is on the desktop on steriods. I can have different wallpaper on each
virtual desktop without running a separate application. I can have many more
widgets. I can have a different location shown on each desktop. If you want
to do things to the max then it is no contest. But, this is not everyone's
cup of tea. Many people want simplicity. This brings us back to choice. It
is great that we have a great selection of top notch desktop environments.

As for the whiners comment, I can only draw a parallel. I use Kubuntu and
Ubuntu, both from Canonical. In Kubuntu there was no complaining with
changes made in Lucid. There was no end of it in the blogosphere and online
journals for Ubuntu. Kubuntu was smooth sailing. Enough said. You can
attribute that to more users if it makes you feel better, but I know because
I have covered Ubuntu for years now. Every Ubuntu release brings complaints
about what they have done or sometimes not done. Fedora which I also use is
nearly as popular and it never is steeped in controversy despite being
considered to be more cutting edge than Ubuntu.

It wasn't always this bad. The harping is getting worse and it is sometimes
mean spirited. Perhaps division is inevitable once you get large. My take on
it is that Ubuntu extolled the community to become popular, but now that
they are they are taking users for granted. That is the source of some of
the discontent. Shuttleworth's comment about Ubuntu not being a democracy
while true was not what people wanted to hear and he has fed the beast
rather than calmed nerves. I hope that I am wrong and that we are more
unified than we are coming across.

It is not a bad thing if users are defecting to other distributions. Look
for Mint to pass Ubuntu in popularity sometime soon. They will capitalise
from the dissension by not following Ubuntu's changes. They are already
doing this by keeping buttons on the right. They are in the enviable
position of being able to cherry pick. I will stick with Ubuntu, BTW,
because I like change.