I like the new Gnome Shell. It feels like Ubuntu's Unity shell, but Done Right. The Shell is kind of hard to describe, because it almost- but not quite- does away with the traditional desktop/window/taskbar model. It reminds me, in a way, of OS X. It's shiny and cohesive, but also functional.
I liked the fact that desktops are a fluid resource: you don't define that you want 4 desktops arranged on a 1x4 grid, you simply drag a window the next desktop down and it pops another one up below it. If you empty out a desktop, it disappears and the unused desktop moves up. The integrated messaging is useful for me, since I use Facebook and Google chats constantly. It's very out-of-the-way, but still right there when you need it.
In terms of dislikes, it felt very strange to not have a taskbar hanging out on the bottom of the screen. I think it's something that I'll just have to get used to (once I get a build for Ubuntu with the right theme), but I for one am not ready to entirely drop the window list. I understand the rationale for taking it away, since it is distracting, but it's also an indicator of how much work my system is/isn't doing at a given time.
I liked the fact that desktops are a fluid resource: you don't define that you want 4 desktops arranged on a 1x4 grid, you simply drag a window the next desktop down and it pops another one up below it. If you empty out a desktop, it disappears and the unused desktop moves up. The integrated messaging is useful for me, since I use Facebook and Google chats constantly. It's very out-of-the-way, but still right there when you need it.
In terms of dislikes, it felt very strange to not have a taskbar hanging out on the bottom of the screen. I think it's something that I'll just have to get used to (once I get a build for Ubuntu with the right theme), but I for one am not ready to entirely drop the window list. I understand the rationale for taking it away, since it is distracting, but it's also an indicator of how much work my system is/isn't doing at a given time.