So Ubuntu is getting the ability to search Amazon direct from the home lens. From the reactions I am seeing online you'd think they'd advocating kicking puppies or stealing children's allowance!
Frankly I am really happy to see a Linux distribution innovate and develop their own way of doing things, the thing I'm seeing all over sites is that it's adware. I feel like these people have missed the point, that this is only the first step towards a web enabled desktop, I have no doubt that there will be Facebook, Twitter and maybe even Google results aggregated into your desktop.
Imagine a desktop that didn't require a browser because the search engine is built into system. The web browser itself would become little more than a web viewer, because the desktop and web blend seamlessly into one product. Wasn't that the dream way back when? You know, before Microsoft decided that they didn't want a platform to compete with Windows?
I've said it before in a previous article that I believe the future of desktops will be search focused instead of the more traditional WIMP paradigm. The fact that Canonical are moving to have web results along with local results will be the logical conclusion to a desktop that uses searching to get around.
I will admit to some scepticism about how integrated it will be at first, it's for that reason I tend to only use LTS releases, but I can see the use, I'll probably wait til the next LTS though, just to wait for it to get some extra love and attention (and the other cool features that will no doubt make their way through the pipe line).
So anyway there's some concerns about this and Mark Shuttleworth has addressed most of them. I wont bother to re-hash the issues and answers, but he does have a point, if you don't want experimental new features don't use anything other than the LTS releases. This is what the LTS releases are for!
Really though, it sounds like a cool feature and I congratulate Canonical for continuing to innovate and refresh the desktop. It's hard to remember when I last got really excited about technology.
Even if I don't use it full time I'll at least give 12.10 a good go and I'm sure I'll like it.
