Note: This article is not a joke. It is not satire. It is a very real -- and very stupid -- thing that is happening right now. And, while it may only impact a small portion of the Linux-using world, it is simply too ridiculous to not talk about.
I've talked about the problems with openSUSE a few times before. It is an historically significant piece of the Linux world... one which I used to sit on the Board of. I have a deep fondness for openSUSE, despite the many problems, and gross mismanagement, it currently faces.
Yet, despite all of the problems that plague openSUSE -- ranging from deliberate alienation of 50% of their users... to a confusing, ever-changing array of download options -- there has remained one aspect of this Linux distribution that has been rock solid.
The logo.
It may be a small thing... but it's important.
The openSUSE chameleon is one of the most recognizable and beloved logos and mascots in the Linux world (perhaps only second to Tux the Penguin, himself).
I used to go to Linux conferences with boxes full of hundreds of stuffed openSUSE chameleon plushies... people clammored for them. I would stand on stage and toss them out to people, often literally jumping up and down for them. Those boxes would be empty within moments. That logo / mascot was instantly recognizable, on sight.
And, just as importantly, it made people smile.
So if there's one thing that openSUSE would not possibly think about changing... it's that logo. Right?
And, yet, that is exactly what openSUSE has decided to do. To take what is one of the only good pieces of branding they have... and throw it into the garbage.
Right now, the openSUSE membership is voting one which proposed logo to replace it with. Here's a sampling.
In all honesty... I can't decide which of those logos I hate the most. And what, exactly, is that weird aligator on the right doing to the poor... is that an iOS app icon? You know what. I don't even want to know.
Which abomination will the openSUSE members choose to replace their existing, recognizable, beloved logo? It will be interesting to see, when voting finishes.
"Interesting" in the same way that "sneezing out a giant booger onto your computer screen and then trying wipe it up with your sleeve only to realize that you now have a pretty big booger on your sleeve" is... "interesting".
