The reason for going to "push button drive" in automobiles has to do with the increasing cost reductions made possible by using electronic controls instead of mechanical linkages.
Since the underlying systems are all monitored and controlled through integrated circuits it now just makes sense to adopt that control scheme for automatic transmissions.
Manual transmissions still require a mechanical linkage for gear changing.  Any of the so called auto/manual trans setups is just an automatic transmission with an override on the automatic part.
Now if they would just start using a linux based system for the super wiz bang toys instead of the microsoft system...
--

“If I had a dollar for every time that capitalism was blamed for the problems caused by government, I’d be a fat filmmaker with a baseball cap.”  - from a Facebook viral video
 

<div>
<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, Nov 30, 2011 at 10:24 AM, J <span dir="ltr">&lt;<a href="mailto:dreadpiratejeff <at> gmail.com">dreadpiratejeff <at> gmail.com</a>&gt;</span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote">
<div class="im">On Wed, Nov 30, 2011 at 12:36, Art Edwards<br>
&lt;<a href="mailto:edwardsa <at> icantbelieveimdoingthis.com">edwardsa <at> icantbelieveimdoingthis.com</a>&gt; wrote:<br>
&gt; Interesting that you brought up push button drive. That ended up being a<br>
&gt; gimmick that was dropped a few years later by all the major auto makers.<br>
&gt; I had a 1963 Dodge Dart with push button drive. Not a great innovation,<br>
&gt; really. IMHO, either is the dock in Unity.<br><br>
</div>Only because the shifter on the stalk and in the console were "more<br>
familiar" and not as strange. &nbsp;However, if you notice today's vehicles<br>
are slowly coming back to push button drive.<br><br>
There's been push-button AWD/4WD for some time now, and high end and<br>
even some lower end cars are coming with push-button or spinny-knob<br>
automatic transmissions.<br><br>
So really, if you're saying that Unity is the Push Button Automatic,<br>
well, then it will eventually become accepted.<br><div class="HOEnZb"><div class="h5">
<br>
--<br>
ubuntu-users mailing list<br><a href="mailto:ubuntu-users <at> lists.ubuntu.com">ubuntu-users <at> lists.ubuntu.com</a><br>
Modify settings or unsubscribe at: <a href="https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-users" target="_blank">https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-users</a><br>
</div></div>
</blockquote>
</div>
<br>The reason for going to "push button drive" in automobiles has to do with the increasing cost reductions made possible by using electronic controls instead of mechanical linkages.<br>
Since the underlying systems are all monitored and controlled through integrated circuits it now just makes sense to adopt that control scheme for automatic transmissions.<br clear="all">Manual transmissions still require a mechanical linkage for gear changing.&nbsp; Any of the so called auto/manual trans setups is just an automatic transmission with an override on the automatic part.<br>
Now if they would just start using a linux based system for the super wiz bang toys instead of the microsoft system...<br>-- <br><br> &ldquo;If I had a dollar for every time that capitalism was blamed for the 
problems caused by government, I&rsquo;d be a fat filmmaker with a baseball 
cap.&rdquo;&nbsp; - from a Facebook viral video<br><a href="http://linuxcounter.net/cert/544489.png" target="_blank"></a>&nbsp; <br>
</div>

On 11/30/2011 02:25 PM, Douglas Pollard wrote:

On 11/30/2011 04:05 PM, Art Edwards wrote:

On 11/30/2011 11:24 AM, J wrote:

On Wed, Nov 30, 2011 at 12:36, Art Edwards <edwardsa <at> icantbelieveimdoingthis.com> wrote:

Interesting that you brought up push button drive. That ended up being a gimmick that was dropped a few years later by all the major auto makers. I had a 1963 Dodge Dart with push button drive. Not a great innovation, really. IMHO, either is the dock in Unity.

Only because the shifter on the stalk and in the console were "more familiar" and not as strange. However, if you notice today's vehicles are slowly coming back to push button drive. There's been push-button AWD/4WD for some time now, and high end and even some lower end cars are coming with push-button or spinny-knob automatic transmissions. So really, if you're saying that Unity is the Push Button Automatic, well, then it will eventually become accepted.

AWD/4WD is a niche. In that sense Unity will probably be accepted.  If I were to guess the non-4WD transmision variations are a marketing gimmick. It's something new without any increase functionality.  So, in that sense, it's better than Unity--Unity reduces functionality, or makes the functionality more clumsy.

I do think that the idea of being accepted eventually is telling. Important innovations are readily accepted. Cell phones, laptops, USB drives, as examples, needed no persuasion. Even things like tablets and smart phones have been immediate successes. Their utility was obvious. When you have to have arguments with your users about the utility of something, you should listen to it. That is not the sound of brilliant innovation. When you see surveys like the one at the top of this thread, it should tell you something. When Linus Torvalds calls Gnome 3 'an unholy mess' in a g+ thread attended by major developers who agree, the abandonment of a great interface should be rethought. As I have stated, now that I have Xfce working well, this is more of an academic conversation. I'm guessing that Xfce will be the new gnome.

Art Edwards

I have never tried Xfce before and installed about an hour ago. So far I like it!  I have my 6 desktops that I like so much. It's familiar and handsome and the colors are soothing and nice.   How do you try Thunar, I haven't look at that yet?     Doug

Thunar is simply the default file manager. If you open a terminal and type

thunar

You will see it and be in your home directory. If you want to look like gnome, xfce has a Places applet for the Xfce panel. If you click any of the directories under Places, you will get a thunar window. There is also an Applications applet. System is subsumed under Applications. 

HTH

Art Edwards

<div>
    On 11/30/2011 02:25 PM, Douglas Pollard wrote:
    <blockquote cite="mid:4ED69F59.10207 <at> verizon.net" type="cite">

      On 11/30/2011 04:05 PM, Art Edwards wrote:
      <blockquote cite="mid:4ED69AAE.2030606 <at> icantbelieveimdoingthis.com" type="cite">

        On 11/30/2011 11:24 AM, J wrote:
        <blockquote cite="mid:CAFB6qZvp7y2o8Xv4jK=G6aM3UbX+AWa3mYc4VNreHjr5UuBT6w <at> mail.gmail.com" type="cite">
          On Wed, Nov 30, 2011 at 12:36, Art Edwards
<a moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:edwardsa <at> icantbelieveimdoingthis.com">&lt;edwardsa <at> icantbelieveimdoingthis.com&gt;</a> wrote:

          <blockquote type="cite">
            Interesting that you brought up push button drive. That ended up being a
gimmick that was dropped a few years later by all the major auto makers.
I had a 1963 Dodge Dart with push button drive. Not a great innovation,
really. IMHO, either is the dock in Unity.

          </blockquote>
          Only because the shifter on the stalk and in the console were "more
familiar" and not as strange.  However, if you notice today's vehicles
are slowly coming back to push button drive.

There's been push-button AWD/4WD for some time now, and high end and
even some lower end cars are coming with push-button or spinny-knob
automatic transmissions.

So really, if you're saying that Unity is the Push Button Automatic,
well, then it will eventually become accepted.

        </blockquote>
        AWD/4WD is a niche. In that sense Unity will probably be
        accepted.&nbsp; If I were to guess the non-4WD transmision variations
        are a marketing gimmick. It's something new without any increase
        functionality.&nbsp; So, in that sense, it's better than Unity--Unity
        reduces functionality, or makes the functionality more clumsy. <br><br>
        I do think that the idea of being accepted eventually is
        telling. Important innovations are readily accepted. Cell
        phones, laptops, USB drives, as examples, needed no persuasion.
        Even things like tablets and smart phones have been immediate
        successes. Their utility was obvious. When you have to have
        arguments with your users about the utility of something, you
        should listen to it. That is not the sound of brilliant
        innovation. When you see surveys like the one at the top of this
        thread, it should tell you something. When Linus Torvalds calls
        Gnome 3 'an unholy mess' in a g+ thread attended by major
        developers who agree, the abandonment of a great interface
        should be rethought. As I have stated, now that I have Xfce
        working well, this is more of an academic conversation. I'm
        guessing that Xfce will be the new gnome. <br><br>
        Art Edwards<br><br><br>
</blockquote>
      I have never tried Xfce before and installed about an hour ago. So
      far I like it!&nbsp; I have my 6 desktops that I like so much. It's
      familiar and handsome and the colors are soothing and nice.&nbsp;&nbsp; How
      do you try Thunar, I haven't look at that yet? &nbsp; &nbsp; Doug <br>
</blockquote>
    Thunar is simply the default file manager. If you open a terminal
    and type<br><br>
    thunar<br><br>
    You will see it and be in your home directory. If you want to look
    like gnome, xfce has a Places applet for the Xfce panel. If
    you click any of the directories under Places, you will get
    a thunar window. There is also an Applications applet.
    System is subsumed under Applications.&nbsp; <br><br>
    HTH<br><br>
    Art Edwards<br>
</div>