“With the latest GNOME 3 development snapshots came a lot of
disappointment. Several blogged and dozens commented about the
missing minimize and maximize buttons. Folks had grown used to
using those buttons and wondered how to cope without. Mostly they
just wondered why were they removed? Where did the buttons go?“To answer this, Allan Day, GNOME Marketing Contractor, has
offered his explanation. For him, there are a number of factors for
the removals. First he says that the minimize button is no longer
of any use in GNOME 3 as there is no dock or window list. Where
would a window minimize to? GNOME wants to focus on the new rather
than trying to make the old work in some logical manner. Overall,
he thinks this makes for a more streamlined experience.”