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Friday, October 30, 2015

Xfce App Launcher `Whisker Menu` Sees New Release

Whisker Menu is an application menu / launcher for Xfce that features a search function so you can easily find the application you want to launch. The menu supports browsing apps by category, you can add applications to favorites and more.

The tool is used as the default Xubuntu application menu starting with the latest 14.04 release and in Linux Mint Xfce starting with version 15 (Olivia).

Whisker Menu was updated to version 1.4.0 recently, getting some interesting changes:

added option to switch position of categories and launchers;
added waiting for grabs;
allow modifier as shortcut;
added padding to username;
added single panel row option;
added about entry to context menu;
the applications are now loaded immediately;
recognize keypad enter as return for searching;
the menu window type hint is now set to DIALOG;
translation updates.

Install / upgrade to the latest Whisker Menu in Xubuntu or Linux Mint

The Whisker Menu PPA was updated to the latest 1.4.0 version recently and you can use to both upgrade to the latest version obviously, as well as to install the tool in (X)Ubuntu versions for which Whisker Menu isn't available in the official repositories (supported versions: Ubuntu 14.04, 13.10 and 12.04 and the corresponding Linux Mint versions).

Note: I've only tested the latest Whisker Menu 1.4.0 in Xubuntu 14.04.

To add the Whisker Menu PPA and install / update the application, use the following commands:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gottcode/gcppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install xfce4-whiskermenu-plugin

If you've already had an older Whisker Menu version installed, you'll also need to restart the Xfce panel (or log out and log back in) to get the latest version:

xfce4-panel --restart

If this is a new Whisker Menu installation, add the menu to the panel by right clicking the panel and selecting: Panel > Add New Items, then select "Whisker Menu" and click "Add".

If you're not using Ubuntu / Linux Mint, grab Whisker Menu from HERE.

Arch Linux: install Whisker Menu via AUR.

via lffl.org

Whisker Menu 1.5.0 Released, Install It In Xubuntu Or Linux Mint Xfce

Whisker Menu 1.5.0 was released yesterday, bringing new options for setting the background opacity and displaying your profile picture, customizable recently used limit and more, as well as quite a few bug fixes.

The app is used as the default Xubuntu application menu starting with Xubuntu 14.04 (Trusty Tahr) and in Linux Mint Xfce starting with version 15 (Olivia).

Most important changes in the latest Whisker Menu 1.5.0:

added option to set background opacity;
added profile picture and a command which allows editing the profile picture (via Mugshot);
added customizable limit for recently used;
added support for non-square panel button icon;
added items of Xfce settings manager to allow searching;
rearranged options in configuration dialog and renamed some options;
expand subcategories when activated;
load default settings from XDG location;
make launchers executable when they are added to desktop;
refactored list page code;
use a single instance of the garcon menu;
fixed search activation to allow input methods;
fixed broken menu when closed by window manager;
various other bug fixes and translation updates.

Install Whisker Menu 1.5.0 In Xubuntu Or Linux Mint Xfce

1. To add the official Whisker Menu PPA and install the application in in Xubuntu 15.04, 14.10, 14.04 or 12.04 / Linux Mint 17.1, 17 or 13, use the following commands:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gottcode/gcppa
sudo apt-get update

2. Then, to install/update Whisker Menu in Xubuntu (any version) or Linux Mint 13, use the command below:

sudo apt-get install xfce4-whiskermenu-plugin

The Whisker Menu package is pinned in Linux Mint 17 and 17.1 so a simple update/install won't install the latest version from the PPA, but the latest version available in the Linux Mint repositories (1.4.0). So to install/update to the latest Whisker Menu in Linux Mint 17 or 17.1, use the following command:

sudo apt-get install xfce4-whiskermenu-plugin/trusty

If for some reason you want to downgrade to the version available in the official Linux Mint repositories, use "sudo apt-get install xfce4-whiskermenu-plugin/rebecca" (or "qiana", depending on your Linux Mint version).

3. And finally, if Whisker Menu was already installed on your system, you'll need to restart the Xfce Panel (or log out and log back in), which can be done by using the following command:

xfce4-panel --restart

Xfdashboard: GNOME Shell Like Dashboard For Xfce

Xfdashboard is a GNOME Shell like dashboard for Xfce: it displays an overview of the currently open applications, allowing the user to switch between them, an application launcher / finder as well as a workspace selector.

Xfdashboard features:

windows view: shows all windows of the current workspace (with live previews) - you can use this to switch between applications / windows or close them;
applications view: it's like a menu, showing all installed applications with categories, etc. - using this view, you can launch applications or add them to your favorites (which will add a shortcut in the quicklaunch / left panel);
favorites: you can add application shortcuts to your favorites - the shortcuts will be displayed in the left panel, just like in GNOME Shell. To remove an application from the favorites, drag and drop it onto the application icon (first icon from the top) - the icon should turn into a delete icon while dragging one of the favorites;
search view: when you start typing, a search view is displayed, useful to quickly find and launch an application;
workspace selector: shows each workspace with live window previews in their stacked order. Note that the live previews might not work if you're using a window manager that doesn't allow this, such as Xfwm4 (in that case, only non-minimized windows of the current active workspace will be updated and the application icon will be displayed for the other windows). You can switch between workspaces by using the mouse wheel (in which case Xfdashboard won't be closed) or by simply clicking on a workspace (in which case, Xfdashboard will be closed);
theming support.

Here are a few more Xfdashboard screenshots:

While Xfdashboard was created for use under Xfce, it can be used in any desktop environment however, it has a couple of Xfce dependencies: xfconf and garcon.

The application is great for those who want the GNOME Shell Activities functionality (or at least most of it) under a light desktop environment such as Xfce, but there are two things which need to be improved: in my test, Xfdashboard was a bit slow when searching for applications and also, its design needs some improvements in my opinion. The latter might be solved by using a theme since Xfdashboard supports theming, but I couldn't find any themes for it. I see that the app is under heavy development so hopefully these will be solved soon.

For how to use Xfdashboard, see THIS guide. You may also want to check out the Xfdashboard Xfconf settings, which are documented HERE.

Note: to quit / close Xfdashboard, either select a window or start an application or simply press ESC (if you've entered some text in the search box, ESC will clear the search so in that case, you need to press ESC twice to close Xfdashboard).

Xfdashboard video

Below you can watch an Xfdashboard demo video (also includes some hints on how to use Xfdashboard - make sure the video annotations are enabled) I've recorded in Ubuntu 14.04 - Xfce session:

(direct video link; for more videos, subscribe to the failsdownloads YouTube channel!)

How to install and set up Xfdashboard in Xubuntu 14.10, 14.04 or 13.10 / Linux Mint Xfce 17 or 16

Xfdashboard can be installed in Xubuntu 14.10, 14.04 and 13.10 (as well as Linux Mint Xfce 17 or 16) by using the Xubuntu Extras PPA. To add the PPA and install Xfdashboard, copy/paste the following commands in a terminal:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:xubuntu-dev/extras
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install xfdashboard

Arch Linux users can install Xfdashboard via AUR: stable | git.

For other Linux distributions, grab the source code from the Xfdashboard GitHub page.

Once you've installed Xfdashboard, you need to set up a way to launch it:

A. The easiest way is to search for Xfdashboard in the Xfce menu and drag and drop it to the panel - you can then simply click its icon to launch Xfdashboard.

B. Some of you will probably prefer to launch it by using a keyboard shortcut so below you'll find instructions for how to set up a keyboard shortcut in Xfce to launch Xfdashboard:

1. Open the Xfce Settings, select Keyboard and click on the Application Shortcuts tab:

2. Click "Add" and in the window that pops up, enter "xfdashboard" as the command, then click OK:

3. Next, you'll be prompted to press a keyboard shortcut which will be used to show Xfdashboard:

Here, enter the keys you want to use and you're done (important: make sure that the key combination you've set isn't already in use!).

C. Of course, using a keyboard shortcut or a launcher aren't the only ways of activating Xfdashboard. For instance, you can get a complete GNOME Shell "feel" by opening Xfdashboard using hot corners: you can assign commands to screen edges / corners under Xfce by using Brightside.

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