"maemo.org Extras" is to be renamed "maemo.org Applications" according to https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3307#c10 and https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3279#c10.

I can see the logic of calling it Applications rather than Extras, as the former makes more sense to a new user, but it would have been nice to have more warning about this, as there are loads of references to "maemo.org Extras" all over the place in articles, blog posts etc.

Since I posted, there's been some more discussion at https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3307#c10. To be clear, the discussion is about the friendly name for the repository as it will appear in Application Manager - I assume the underlying URL will stay the same. The latest suggestion seems to be to call it simply "maemo.org".

all the apps on that repository are final? i mean are not test? or are just the ones that n900 early user are testing? if my question is stupid just sorry but i want to now that.

Well, they are deemed stable enough for end users. You might find apps with version numbers like 0.16 but that (usually) just means that the planned feature set has not been achieved yet.
There's a different repository for testing purposes: extras-devel. Apps in this one are likely to be buggy as developers use this repo to test new stuff on a larger audience.

The repository for testing is http://wiki.maemo.org/Extras-testing

Extras-devel is really for development purposes: http://wiki.maemo.org/Extras-devel
Regular users should stay away from it.

The repository discussed here is Extras, which contains community software that has gone successfully through Extras-devel and Extras-testing. More at http://wiki.maemo.org/Extras

Note that the discussion here and in the bugreport is exclusively about the string defining the repository for end users in the Application Manager after some clicks. "maemo.org Extras" might be a popular expression among current tablet users but simply "maemo.org" is surely simpler for the new N900 users.

fwiw the Ovi repository will be called simply "Ovi" in the Application Manager.

This changes nothing in maemo.org itself, where no rename is needed in repositories or wiki pages etc.

Unfortunately that isn't the case, as the strings Nokia picks on the device and in the manual have repercussions on the strings used on the community. It has an effect when the community has to answer questions about that "Applications repository". The strings Nokia picks are important, and I'm not sure what the justification here is for not using "maemo.org Extras".

"maemo.org Extras" is confusing if you have never heard of it before.

Extras of what? Of maemo.org? Is there a maemo.org "proper", then?

Extras of... Maemo? That was the original meaning in the times where maemo.org was (basically) the only place of reference to get "extra" stuff not developed directly by Nokia. But now with Ovi this won't be like that anymore.

So time to review semantics, now that Ovi is coming and the Extras repository is enabled online: "maemo.org" describes perfectly the source of the "catalog" so why not call it simply like that. Less words and more clarity.

Because it takes more than "Nokia has decided we're changing this" to change the status quo.

I'm really tired of Nokia going behind closed doors to have discussions on these trivial issues then coming out and rendering their decisions upon us like the goddamn SCOTUS. What would've been wrong with a short discussion in the bug? I'd've been much more amenable to this change if Nokia would have bothered to discuss it with us, but instead we get rendered another decision.

We've got lots of smart people on both sides here, and the opt discussion has shown that we're quite capable of pounding out effective solutions when allowed the opportunity. But these trivial issues seem to be adding up more and more lately and we're backsliding on all of the work we've put into the whole "openness" thing.

But Maemo.org is vague at best, the name should reflect the usage, I personally think the applications tag is a good one as it will clearly show in the phone menu when you are looking for stuff to install. Its bad enough that you have to go to two different places to install apps (Ovi + Maemo) and the confusion that exists between the two places, having a clear naming convention is essential for noobs stumbling around trying to find out if there is an application that will do 'x' for their n900??

Maemo.org doesn't tell me anything about the contents, shouldn't we be looking for the lowest common denominator here?

GenerallAntilles, if you complain about the formalities ok - I'll take the blame. In reality the internal discussion was about enabling Extras by default yes or not. The decision was YES (finally, and I was very happy about it after all this time). There was the comment about the "Extras" not making much sense nowadays in such context.

I thought I was proposing something obvious with "maemo.org Applications" not even worth discussing since it's a string visible in a place most users won't even see. I communicated to the bug report the same day. You and others complained about "Applications". In the meantime I got to know that "Ovi" would be "Ovi", then "maemo.org" seemed obvious conclusionto make everybody happy.

If still after that you see a reason to be upset, alright and I even understand it. In my pragmatic opinion any community discussion would end up more or less in the same place and the Fremantle program was asking me to give a string without localization needs asap.

edgemon, as explained at https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3307#c16 the user sees "Applications" several times before seeing that "maemo.org" string, if he ever sees it.

As a community member I think we have more important things to discuss than this one. Extras will be activated by default, Extras apps will show up without extras clics from users and theremore I believe most of them won't bother to click the menu of the Application Manager ever.