I have been thinking about writing this down for quite a while: my hands-on experiences testing Ubuntu Unity and GNOME Shell on the WeTab tablet.

Unity

Unity makes a fine netbook interface, but tablet support feels underdeveloped. After configuring auto-login, I was greeted by the standard desktop and launcher. However, launching an application and maximizing it hides the dock launcher entirely, making it awkward to bring back with a finger. Furthermore, scrollbars are difficult to grab, and multi-touch gestures like drag-to-scroll aren’t yet implemented. Aside from those tablet friction points, the interface shows potential.

GNOME Shell

GNOME Shell is currently one of the strongest touch-oriented interfaces available on Linux. The toggle buttons and icons are large, distinct targets. Switching applications is effortless because the “Activities” hotspot is always within reach. Navigating workspaces is intuitive since they remain accessible during window overview mode.

One gripe is system notifications: they are easy to overlook, along with any actions requiring immediate user attention. It would be great to have a quick toggle switch directly in the status menu to view or dismiss pending notifications.

Where Both Excel

Both environments handle window tiling and auto-maximization well. A tiling window manager with multiple virtual desktops can be surprisingly productive on a tablet. What we really need next is an ergonomic thumb keyboard or a corner-docked layout tailored for single-handed typing.

Areas for Improvement

  • Hit targets: Both shells would benefit from slightly larger fonts and touch targets across default themes.
  • Multi-touch drivers: X11 still lacks a consistent, unified multi-touch input foundation across major distributions.
  • Gestures: Smooth kinetic scrolling and two-finger gestures need first-class integration.
  • Orientation: The gnome-settings-daemon XRandR plugin should automatically rotate touchscreen input coordinates alongside screen rotation.

References