The latest iteration of the Desktop Sync clients (33.0.0) for Fedora and Windows 11 are a great step up!. The user interface is so much more intuitive and yet compact.
Many Thanks for the work!
(and even e2ee works 
)
“This” what? You showed a cut off top part of the Linux client window that illustrates nothing whatsoever since it hides most of the useless, empty side bar and the unnecessary bottom part. Not sure what you’re trying to show here but it has nothing to do with “compact”. Show the entire client window and compare it to the old one the way I did.
On Windows the new client is enormous with wasteful use of space for no benefit, as on my screenshot above. It is the polar opposite of “compact”.
1 Like
The sidebar should probably be collapsible like this.. (random example from the internet to illustrade what I mean)
This would eliminate the issue of wasted space almost entirely, as the spacing of the folder list and the other elements in the main area appears to be identical to the old client, and it seems to be scrollable. So how much additional space you’re going to “waste” with that depends entirely on how large you make the window. 
So the only space that is actually wasted, compared to the old version, is the non-collapsible sidebar. I guess this is something they could solve in future, in a similar way to the example picture I posted.
Yup, agreed, that would work. But the issue of the rarely used and non-hideable “Connection Settings”, now uselessly occupying the space below the folder list can only be solved by putting it back under a tab, the way it was before. There is no reason to have it always shown and take up space that could be used for the folder list otherwise. That is a “compact” design: out of the way, yet easily reachable, if needed.
This is basically a typical “change for the sake of change” that solves no existing problems and just creates new ones.
The 4.x client has performance and stability issues on Windows, there was little wrong, if anything, with its UI.
1 Like
Cant’ fully agree with that.
Yeah tabs in sidebars seem to be trendy with UI designers right now, but they also kind of make sense in the age of widescreen and ultra-wide monitors.
Also, the connection/proxy settings disappear when you make the window small enough, i.e. they are no longer in the visible area then, and you have to scroll down to get to them. So, they don’t really waste space in the actual sense.
Also, I assume they are inside the account tab because they can be configured individually for each account…?
I have a 34” ultrawide monitor and I find this change to be totally useless and completely unnecessary, it solves no problems whatsoever. Also, ultrawide users make up less than 2% of PC users so that’s a weak argument to mess up the UI for the remaining 98% of users.
Resizing the window to hide an unwanted, unused section and then having to scroll to get back to it is awfully inefficient and a very poor UI design. Something so infrequently used like this (Connection Settings is basically something that is “set once and forget it”), should be behind a tab a menu so it does not take up space in the main/default UI space. Yes, these “are inside the account tab because they can be configured individually for each account” but it worked just fine when it was hidden under a tab on the top. This really is a bizarre change.
But, honestly, you probably don’t need any of the other settings every day, either. So who really cares? I have to say, though, that I find the new settings menu simpler and more intuitive. Either way, it’s just the settings menu, I only look at it every few weeks, if even that often.
The main view, the one with the activity view, could really use an overhaul though.
I really don’t care, as I rarely go there, like you said. What bothers me is that the Windows 4.* client needs work under the hood. Version 33 has the same problems. Its performance is abysmal compared to the Linux client and Nextcloud wastes resources on useless UI change instead.
I’m not a developer, and I don’t follow the client’s development in detail. Generally speaking, though, the people who contribute changes to the user interface aren’t necessarily the same ones working on the technical foundation of an app. In fact, it’s often the case that the “technicians” aren’t particularly good at UI design, and vice versa.
I know that but it still leaves a bad taste. OK, I’m done here. Take care.
I I agree that there are still too many technical issues with version 33, given the reports in the forum and the numerous open issues on GitHub. However, I highly doubt these issues are actually related to the UI changes in the settings menu.
1 Like
yeah, ui issues can be different than performance, but still attention served better elsewhere. i look at that section nearly every day as it shows me a better idea of what folders are syncing since i have multiple sync points. i hope they are not moving this this “trendy” side bar mess for settings. ui designers have lost sight of usability, and UIs that make sense. i saw the same thing in ghost cms settings, they moved everything to a side bar with a mess of the settings off to the right, where previously it was a neatly organized area of settings that made sense where they are and you didnt have to scroll or search. this is slightly different, but its just a waste of space and looks silly
Trends ruin software. Unnecessary UI changes are often bored or overeager management issues who care more about trends than actual functionality and usability. They feel like “something” needs to be changed or “refreshed” because that shows “progress”, that’s what is seen first, and unless they change the looks the public may see this as stagnation, while there is no actual reason for that.
This is the dreaded “change for the sake of change” syndrome that too often ruins good software.
Similar thing happened to PiHole some years ago, they ruined the UI for no reason but for the sake of change and some misguided ideology and I switched to AdGuard.
I use Retrospect Backup desktop software and its GUI has barely changed in over 20 years because its developers know why people use their software and it’s not the looks but the function.