I wrote this on G+, but it seemed appropriate to share it here too:
So, today Canonical decided to refocus their business and move away from convergence and devices. This means that the Ubuntu desktop will move back to GNOME.
I have seen various responses to this news. Some sad that it is the end of an era, and a non-zero amount of “we told you so” smugness.
While Unity didn’t pan out, and there were many good steps and missteps along the way, I am proud that Canonical tried to innovate. Innovation is tough and fraught with risk. The Linux desktop has always been a tough nut to crack, and one filled with an army of voices, but I am proud Canonical gave it a shot even if it didn’t succeed it’s ultimate goals. That spirit of experimentation is at the epicenter of open source, and I hope everyone involved here takes a good look at how they contributed to and exacerbated this innovation. I know I have looked inwards at this.
Much as some critics may deny, everyone I know who worked on Unity and Mir, across engineering, product, community, design, translations, QA, and beyond did so with big hearts and open minds. I just hope we see that talent and passion continue to thrive and we continue to see Ubuntu as a powerful driver for the Linux desktop. I am excited to see how this work manifests in GNOME, which has been doing some awesome work in recent years.
And, Mark, Jane, I know this will have been a tough decision to come to, and this will be a tough day for the different teams affected. Hang in there: Ubuntu has had such a profound impact on open source and while the future path may be a little different, I am certain it will be fruitful.
