Reviews of KDE 4.3

Since KDE 4.3 has been released, various reviews have appeared on the web. The DOT had a look at some of them.

Polishlinux once again offers an extensive review with many screenshots showing what is new in KDE 4.3. According to Korneliusz Jarzębski, "Finally the day has come, when the curiosity about the KDE4.3 development branch took the better of me.". The result:

Polishlinux likes the new Air

"Like it or not, KDE 4.3 will be a great leap forward in this environment’s development. I won’t hesitate to say, it will be a bigger one than KDE 4.1 to 4.2. Interestingly enough, my compilation of development snapshot worked stable and jerk-free - no major issues there."

SoftVision from Terminal Variant shares his vision on "Caizen" noting how "Even with a new direction however, the KDE developers have shown that they are aware of the users’ needs." He gives a special thumbs up to the KDE Games team:

"Now I’ve got to hand it to the KDE games team for this unique idea. There’s no better way to show off the theming capability of the KDE games module than a special theme for the next release – an Egyptian theme."

The improvements in the 4.3 release amaze and even scare this writer:

"If you look at the amount of effort being put in, its quite scary I think. The potential is pretty much infinite in all aspects be it bringing the Web to the desktop, window management and more. There’s so much that can still be done and I’m sure the ideas will keep flowing and be implemented over time. Nepomuk, Akonadi and Phonon – these technologies all have so much potential and we’ve just started to see it in applications like Dolphin, KDE PIM, Gwenview, etc. KDE 4.4 should take it to the next level and it will be another six months till then. But it’ll be worth the wait. To infinity, and beyond!"

Ars Technica's Ryan Paul focuses in his review on the Social Desktop integration.

"KDE 4.3 was released this week with a number of intriguing improvements. Ars test the new version, which introduces KDE's Social Desktop initiative, an effort to bring social networking integration to the popular desktop environment." "One of the fundamental ideas behind the Social Desktop effort is to facilitate community-building by providing a vehicle for connecting open source software enthusiasts to each other. It can be used to help inform others about Linux user group meetings, release parties, and similar events. It can also help you find fellow Linux enthusiasts in your region. Another important motivator behind the project is the need to simplify the process of providing community-based software support for new users. The OCS knowledge base framework, for example, allows users to ask questions about open source software and get answers from other members of the community."

Bruce Byfield writes on LinuxPlanet about "Bling, Widgets, Security, Usability" and appreciates the more incremental nature of this release:

"However, the move to incremental releases is perhaps inevitable. Many users have yet to absorb the possibilities of features like multiple folder views and activities, so a release that consists of smaller enhancements only seems suitable. If the KDE 4.3 beta contains nothing earth-shattering, it still includes dozens of improvements that, although not necessary, are still very welcome." "As an enthusiastic KDE 4.2 user, I look forward to the final 4.3 release, and expect it to improve my everyday computing in all sorts of minor ways -- mostly by offering me more choice."

And 'Cyber Cynic' Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols considers the KDE 4.3 release a "change for the better" in his article A first look at KDE 4.3:

"What really struck me about this release aren't any of the new features. Instead, it was the improvement in its overall performance and looks that caught my attention."

Besides these reviews you can find buzz surrounding KDE all around the web. Even the more cynical begin to see and appreciate the vision behind the KDE 4 series. Our community, from developers to artists to those members helping out fellow users on IRC or forums, has reason to be proud on the accomplishment which is KDE 4.3. As SoftVision said, "To infinity, and beyond!"