Brainstorm

This solution might actually be the same as the first one with a little more detail, so I'll put it here anyway.

Since the actual installation process is cpu consuming and the download process can be time consuming I suggest a solution where you'd have a download queue and a separate (not necessarely visible) installation queue.

It would work like this. When you select an application for installation, that application would immidiately start downloading, and a button to "install all" would appear. That way you can continue to add applications to the queue while at the same time download the already selected stuff. After you're done you can click the install all button and let the installer hog the cpu for a while. If not all applications have been downloaded when install all is clicked, it can start installing the completed ones while downloading the rest.

I think this would really streamline the installation process, and minimize the wasted time.

The uninstall process would work in a similar way, but obviously would not start before the "uninstall selected" or whatever you'd label it.

EDIT: Added uninstall notes

The app-list-browser should show the repos shortname additional to app-name and app-description.

Before parsing to apt HAM should check if dependencies are installed from different repo and if user should be asked for it. A list of available versions for the dep with current repo to install from shown but choosable which version to install.

After an application has been updated or installed the yellow notification bar displays, letting you know the application installation is complete. You need to click on the screen to dismiss this, the application then either refreshes the installed apps or the application list, this inevitably takes a while (meaning you have to wait for a refresh - which is quite annoying).

Why is this refresh dependent on the dismissal of the notification? I propose the application refresh behind the notification bar - speeding up use of the application manager.

I also thought perhaps this 'basket' idea could be slightly modified and extended to the 'update' section. A tickbox could be added next to each application, allowing multiple selection of application updates and an 'update all selected' box. This would work with the same basket/queuing solution (a la Android).

Currently application manager spends some time refreshing repository info on slow connections every time it starts or when user press update option. In CLI you run "apt-get update" once and then other actions take much less time of you close application and open again or just want to update.

• Make automatic update an option.
• Make an app menu button - "update now" in case manual mode is set
• Ask user to update when application starts.

Up and down keys should go... up and down.

Typing a word should go to that position in the list. E.g. typing V will scroll down the applications that start with V.

Issue: Some app descriptions are incomplete, or uninformative.

Have a standard list of what to include in the long description

For example:

Address all of the below if possible:

• What the app does (repeat short description)
• -Start Long Description
• What the purpose of the app is
• -If a Game, state genre, -If tool (e.g. anglemeter) state use, etc.
• What it is ported from or based off of (if needed)
• Other useful information.

Useful for people who are unfamiliar with the said app.

READ UPDATE BELOW FIRST. Implement (if not already in the works), what Mr. Zhilin has concepted. -Adds screenshots of apps, includes rating and popularity system from maemo.org. -App specifics include more screenshots if avaliable, descripton, changes from last version, etc. -Also includes comments. -Basically includes everything from maemo.org/downloads. -(Read info in link for more information) [B]UPDATE:[/B] This is now known as "r" and is in the extras-devel repository. This Solution now proposes that the extras-assistant be merged with the current application manager.

If you have the application already installed on your device you should see a changelog in the application manager before you install the update.

Summary: This is a purely cosmetic change that is already implemented: it just needs to be included by the App Manager maintainers. It flows the extended description text to fill the window.

I made a very simple patch for App Manager a while ago that improves the "nicefy" function that prepares a package's extended description for display. This is what the user sees when they ask to see details about a package.

Currently, the text is fixed-width. If the package's extended description has lines that are too long, they will wrap to the next line and leave an ugly linebreak midway through the next line.

My patch flows the text so that it fills the window properly, looking more like a GUI should and less like a nasty UNIX CLI-cum-GUI wrapper.

Details here:  Extended description panel doesn't flow text.

There should be an option to hide applications from the application manager. Options > Hide Then you get the list of applications for enabled catalogs and tick off those that you want to hide. [UI similar to the delete function in file manager]

Changelog description in updating info of app.