Yes, that's true.

Or then you would need to do like the "Google Phone", i.e. Android 2.1, have a button to show thumbnails of all the home screens. With this you could switch between any of those screens with two clicks.

Exactly. I already noticed this with 4 desktops and always used the menu. Now with 3 it makes more sense. Thought when we start getting more quality widgets that show what you need or you can enter to some function faster more desktops make more sense.

If it's up to me there can be option for 16 desktops as long as we can adjust how many is in use.

A programme like Personal Menu with just one icon and a popup list of executable shortcuts on the same screen would be perfect as the icons don't have to be that big.

alternatvely you could have 9 desktops and use both horizontal and vertical scrolling. then any desktop would only be 2 steps away ?

*included in Maemo 6/harmattan*

Actually it would max at 3 steps. For example: from middle top row to corner bottom row or vice versa... but enough nitpicking ;-)

Personally I'd think that this would not be a very useable solution. Hard to describe.... it would "feel" more complicated to search for a specific screen vertically and horizontally... something along the line of: "Heaven where am I know? top row? middle row?"
I think that it is more practical only to move in one direction in an endless loop.

Sorry if this reads a little strange but english is not my first language und expressing vague feelings or concepts is a little hard on me in english.

Regards,
Glasswalker

The current way allows to loop from extreme left to extreme right by trying to go 1 more step left (and vice versa).
The vertical and horizontal arrangement should allow looping too, making top-left to bottom-right doable in 2 steps (left, up).

However I agree with you, as cool as 2D would be, I think that would challenge an important part of the basic users. If there's only one dimension to browse through, the dumbest users should eventually find the desktop they're looking for. With a 2D arrangement, that could become problematic.

A solution would be to have it as an option, maybe even let the user choose the number of dimensions. Accelerometer to browse forward/backward, anyone ? a 3x3x3 desktop arrangement would allow 27 desktops each 3 steps away from each other, probably more than enough for the basic geek.

I would love to browse through a N-dimensional arrangement too, swipe up/down for dimension 1, left/right for dimension 2, push/pull the n900 for dimension 3, move the n900 left/right/up/down for 2 more dimensions, pan on 3 axis to add 3 more dimensions, maybe even more. I think I would totally be lost after dimension 4, but I know some people would have no problem with that.
That would probably be more of a cool proof of concept than a really useful tool though.
Maybe I could use some sleep, too...

Only activated two Desktops so far... Two on reserve. Or don't need them at the moment.

Heh - is there anything else headed to Fremantle? Geez - sorry, but this is getting old quickly for a 1-month old device that is not complete and still isn't fully shipped.

Having ranted on the usual Harmattan response, I have 5 desktops on the Cliq in portrait mode and it is not full. How can I do that with much lower resolution and so many more apps? Lots of ways.

Oh, before I go on, maybe I haven't found it, but the equivalent of Quicksilver on OS X (Command + Space - or whatever combo) pops up a box that allows you to start typing the name of the app, it pops up before you're done and learns what you use most to display first and press enter to launch. Now you just need 1 or 2 desktops.

1) Don't need to put contacts on desktop for easy dial - mark them as favorite. If we could do that in Fremantle, that would spare a lot of real estate (I have 8 I call enough and want easy access that I had to place them on 1 of my desktops). Don't tell me I should use the log either - that's full of other incoming/outgoing calls - idea is a quick, direct access. Or, make those contact shortcuts half the size or make a widget.

2) Where can we have the N900 go back to the "main" desktop? I haven't figured it out and is something I've been used to doing with a simple key press on [you name the device]. Swipe, swipe, swipe, oh shott, I missed it, swipe, swipe...

3) Give us the *option* of portrait mode. Much easier and more convenient to swipe with one hand so whether 4 or 20 desktops, it's easier to get to them.

4) I agree with Android 2.1 comment - that should be done as well.

5) More desktops == more resources/memory so that should be user definable. I don't need more than 4 with a few other simple changes like not having to plaster very large contact shortcuts all over. More reliable rotate to activate phone and give us a 'favorites' or 'speed dial' functionality - that frees up another shortcut to get to the phone.

6) Better contact integration within the phone - get rid of having to press a button, wait a few seconds for contacts to pop up, go through hundreds via scrolling/selecting letters on side OR using keyboard to type so wait for landscape (again), type, select contact, then select one of their numbers. Use tabs: one all contacts, one favorites OR make contacts default rather than phone log (kinda useless - I normally want to see call times if I look at the log, but don't need it as often as contacts). And allow contact editing from the contacts in phone (nice to have more than one way to do this) - this drops another shortcut on the desktop.

7) Smaller shortcuts in general. About 1/2 the size, with a different way to delete them than clicking the 'x', which I constantly already do accidentally.

I know I got a bit off base and I could go on a bit, but just some thoughts that I know would make 4 desktops just fine for me w/out needing the additional resources more would require. The option would be nice, but I can think of quite a few things I'd rather see sooner (you just heard of some of them :-)

Think Open Home on Android if you want more desktops with more customization options. Seems that could be done quicker than waiting for Maemo 8 or 9 :-)

Is it possible to have more than 4 desktops for the N900?

I can't figure out any hardware nor software constraints that stopping this.