Pre-ramble

Here at 2buntu, one of our main focuses is on enabling and showcasing the community. One of the members of the Linux community who makes a big splash and a big difference, is the famous (drum roll please) Padster, of GNOME-Look and DeviantArt fame. Through networking with him over Google+, we've managed to glean his views on a number of things, including themes, the Desktop wars, F/OSS politics, and more.

So, without much further ado - here's what went down:

The Real Deal

Basics

2buntu: Introduce yourself.

Padster: I'm Padster (theRealPadster on deviantART, since "Padster" was taken. I've been making themes for a few years, and find it pretty fun. Now, to rip off what I use on public profiles:

I love Linux, art and gaming.
I make themes for Linux, and occasionally wallpapers.
I enjoy gaming, especially on Linux, but I use Windows for games that don't run on Linux.
I'm a geek, and enjoy reading fantasy and sci-fi.

2buntu: Have a better half (wife/gf)? Need one? (We're just kidding!!!). Who inspires you the most?

Padster: I mostly get my inspiration from other artists. If I see something cool, and it gives me an idea, that kind of thing.

2buntu: Are you an Ubuntu user?

Padster: I used to be an Ubuntu-user, but I actually dropped it a year or two ago. Now I use mainly Arch and Linux Mint.

2buntu: What is your Desktop Environment of choice?

Padster: My DE of choice is GNOME-Shell.

2buntu: Have you tried others? (XFCE, LXDE, Pantheon, Enlightenment (E17))

Padster: I have tried others, yes. I started out with KDE 3.5 or so, and switched to GNOME 2.x when KDE 4 came out. I've briefly used a little XFCE and LXDE, and even Awesome (tiling WM) for a few days. I tried eOS Luna (Pantheon) a while ago, too, but it just got so buggy I dropped it. I'll give it anther try when they make the official release.

2buntu: What's your favourite theme site?

Padster: My favourite theme site is probably deviantART, then OpenDesktop.org.

Your themes:

2buntu: Do you take contracts?

Padster: If by contracts, you mean people ask me to make a theme or port a theme, then, yes.

2buntu: Do you make themes for others (for pay/for free)?

Padster: I've gotten ideas from others for themes to make, but mostly I do them myself. If I get a good suggestion I usually go for that, though.

2buntu: Any plans to sell professional themes?

Padster: I hadn't really thought of selling themes, mostly I think things like that should be free. That's one of the great things about Linux and the F/OSS community. :)

2buntu: How many themes have you created so far?

Padster: How many themes have I created so far? /me looks it up... Woah, it seems like I have made ~40 themes, I had no idea ^^

2buntu: What drew you to GNOME Shell?

Padster: I'm not really sure what actually drew me to GNOME-Shell, I think I just tried it, since it was the new version of GNOME, which I use. It has some problems, but so far it's not bad, in my opinion.

2buntu: Apart from theming GNOME, do you try your hand at XFCE/LXDE friendly themes? (That would be window manager mostly).

Padster: I've done a bunch of Emerald themes, and a good number of Metacity themes. Also, some GTK-2.0 themes (which are usable with XFCE and probably LXDE, too). Then I did a few cursor themes and Xsplash themes. (Xsplash was the boot screen for Ubuntu 9.10, I think.)

Opinions on F/OSS, Linux, the community/Randomness:

2buntu: Are you into F/OSS politics?

Padster: Yes, I'd say I'm interested in F/OSS politics, like things going on between different distros/DEs/userbases. I like to know all the stuff that's happening in the F/OSS world, and usually form an opinion on it, too.

2buntu: Did you try Unity before you decided not to buy?

Padster: From what I'd seen on the internet, mostly I thought Unity would be a real pain to use, and doesn't look all that great. I did have an experience with it, though, from in the live disc installer, when I installed eOS Luna (they recommended using Ubuntu 11.04, and adding the elementary PPAs).

2buntu: What's your take on the "split" that has recently begun to sweep the community?

Padster: I think "the split" was bound to happen with so many new and vastly different UIs coming around all at once. I think it makes sense, too, since people can get very particular about the software, especially, UI, that they run.

2buntu: I see you recently have been using Arch a lot. What led to this?

Padster: I tried Arch, since I'd heard it was pretty good, and I wanted to advance my Linux skills. I actually really like it, it's just such a pain to set up ^^

2buntu: Do you prefer Qt to GTK+?

Padster: I prefer GTK to QT, I have this thing against KDE now. :P

2buntu: On that note, are you a Meego/Harmattan fan? If it had succeeded would you have branched into theming it?

Padster: I don't really use mobile devices much, so I haven't really had any experience with Meego/Harmattan, sorry.

Likes/Fan-boyism:

2buntu: Are you a fan boy of anything (tech-wise specifically)?

Padster: I wouldn't say I'm much of a fanboy, but if anything I guess I'd be a Linux fanboy :)

Final Questions + Misc:

2buntu: Do you ever rant/get frustrated with F/OSS or the community around it?

Padster: I get somewhat annoyed when things don't work right. cough ATI drivers cough

2buntu: Any big plans for the future (that you choose to share, completely up to you) that the world should look out for?

Padster: Not many big plans for the future, I'd say, but as for themes, I'm currently working on a glassy GNOME-Shell theme, and a Grooveshark-inspired GTK3 theme, as well as a GTK-3.2 port of my London Smoke GTK-2.0/GNOME-Shell theme.

Fun questions:

2buntu: This is a deep, burning question on our minds... do you like trains?

Padster: I haven't rode many trains, but they're alright.

2buntu: Planning on world domination with us?

Padster: You're inviting me to dominate the world with you? Sure, why not!

Contact:

2buntu: Where (what sites) can users/disciples/loyal subjects/fanboys/fangirls/fanaliens (like me O.o!) find you?

Padster:

deviantART: http://therealpadster.deviantart.com/

OpenDesktop: http://opendesktop.org/usermanager/search.php?username=Padster

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/101446252652134552307

Final words:

We (especially me :P) are honoured to have the opportunity to touch bases with someone as awesome (and famous!) as Padster! Personally, his themes almost make me want to use GNOME Shell :)!

*Reference to the asdf movie series :)

NB: Updated to remove some of the questions. My apologies for any mistakes in that regard.