MX Linux Forum

Hello all! I've been using MX Linux 18.3 lately and i got only good things to say about it.

I have some suggestions that I think will improve the user experience in MX Linux.

1. Show Desktop shortcut should be set to Super + D by default. (from the XFCE Window Manager)

Explanation: Many users come from Windows, in which the default shortcut for showing the desktop is Super + D.



2. Set the window title to a slightly larger font and make it bold. (from the Window Manager)

Explanation: Making the window title larger and bold will make the window title stand out more.



3. Delete / Disable the shortcut for the XFCE Whisker Menu (from the Keyboard shortcuts section)

Explanation: If you will add any shortcut that will user the Super key in combination with any other key, the XFCE whisker menu will pop-up every time you use that shortcut. (for example add a shortcut Super + E for Thunar. If you use Super + E, Thunar will open but behind the Whisker Menu)



4. Enable compositing by default

Explanation: I have an old rag (e4600@2.4ghz, Radeon 7470) and I have no issues in running with compositing enabled. Also, MX will look better.
Here are my settings:



5. DISABLE flat-volumes (please!) from Pulseaudio (/etc/pulse/daemon.conf)

Explanation: If you don't want to have ear problems, just disable it. REALLY! Everyone will benefit from this.
Just uncomment flat-volume line and set it to no. (restart pulseaudio after)



6. Add Redshift-GTK + geoclue2-0 in to the default installation

Explanation: WE need this. Especially at night.

7. Enable desktop icons to be visible by default.

Explanation: Many new users will have problem in finding the way to enable Desktop Icons.



8. Chromium - Please enable Title Bar to be visible (minimize + maximize)

Explanation: As a user, i would like to have the possibility to minimize, maximize Chromium without additional tweaks.

No minimize, maximize - default install:



With Title Bar enabled (maximize and minimize are visible):



I really hope someone will look at these. Note that I've been a long time XFCE user, it has some quirks but overall it's great.

I would like to contribute to this distro, so this is part of my scope :)

Can you please reduce the image sizes to 600x600 max to comply with the rules, thanks.

viewtopic.php?f=133&t=48374

Eadwine Rose wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:23 am Can you please reduce the image sizes to 600x600 max to comply with the rules, thanks.

viewtopic.php?f=133&t=48374

Sure. Images do not exceed 600x600 anymore. Thanks.

Thank you! :)

Thanks for the thoughtful suggestions! As you know, we are in early development for MX-19 so this is the perfect time to put something like this out there.

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 4. Enable compositing by default
Explanation: I have an old rag (e4600@2.4ghz, Radeon 7470) and I have no issues in running with compositing enabled. Also, MX will look better.

I agree that compositing can make MX look better, but given that the minimum requirements per the manual are "a modern i686 Intel or AMD processor" and "512 MB of RAM memory" having compositing pre-enabled may cause issues on older, less-powerful hardware than yours. For example, this afternoon I installed MX on a 32-bit notebook that was made in 2009. It has 2MB of DDR2 RAM and a single-core Atom processor at 1.6GHz, though for some reason its BIOS is showing that it's running when idle at only 800MHz, and 128MB of shared memory for use by the onboard video, and an 11 inch VGA (I think) screen. I suspect that enabling a compositor would use up even more of its limited resources just for the sake of some eye candy that I don't need for the computer and OS to run. I think it's better to have the minimum of stuff enabled by default then let those who want to and whose systems can support it enable more if they wish, rather than pre-enabling it and potentially causing issues for some users.

Thank you for your suggestions.

Your ideas are primarily about personal choice, not functionality, and you will never get agreement as to what is 'best'. For example, I often use the 'Super' key to select the Whisker menu, and I hate having any desktop icons on any operating system. Some of your proposed changes would be annoying for me.

Chris

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 6. Add Redshift-GTK + geoclue2-0 in to the default installation

Explanation: WE need this. Especially at night.

Yes, please! Redshift helps prevent me getting a "second wind' at night and ending up getting lost in watching YouTube videos and staying up way too late because "I'm not sleepy."

(On the other hand, having one's screen change color temperature after local sunset might be annoying to some people, such as those who work graveyard shift and primarily use their computers between midnight and sunrise for example, or coders or gamers who frequently pull all-nighters. So maybe it's better to leave it as an option for those who want it.)

The Super key is often used to bring up the menu, on many distros, & is especially useful if the task bar is hidden, also for those that use the keyboard, this alteration is probably not a good idea.

chrispop99 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 6:39 am Thank you for your suggestions.

Your ideas are primarily about personal choice, not functionality, and you will never get agreement as to what is 'best'. For example, I often use the 'Super' key to select the Whisker menu, and I hate having any desktop icons on any operating system. Some of your proposed changes would be annoying for me.

Chris

I have the same habits: for a few weeks I always use 'Super' key to select start menu and type in program (earlier I used Alt+F3) - and I really don't like icons on desktop. Actually, the fewer distractions (signs, icons, information,stimulus), the better work. Anyway, it's personal choice/preferences.

Too many icons on desktop is a 'bad' habit from Windows (just a subjective opinion).

What old Windows users (any users) are often missing is more flexible attitude to changing habits and maybe learning new things. They should take into consideration that there are habits and there could be even better habits - but must be first tried/acquired.

Fibogacci wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 7:27 am What old Windows users (any users) are often missing is more flexible attitude to changing habits and maybe learning new things. They should take into consideration that there are habits and there could be even better habits - but must be first tried/acquired.

Windows users coming from Windows 7 to Windows 10, as many will be, will have more to learn than if they transition to a decently set up Xfce machine!

Chris

I'm curious about the flat-volumes thing. Any thoughts from other users on that?

mxer wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 6:41 am The Super key is often used to bring up the menu, on many distros, & is especially useful if the task bar is hidden, also for those that use the keyboard, this alteration is probably not a good idea.

Correct. The problem is that if you use another shortcut for another program, let's say the File Manager. (SUPER + E).

If you will press the Super + E combination, the Whisker menu will pop-up first and then the File Manager. Is just bad functionality.

Jerry3904 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 6:06 am Thanks for the thoughtful suggestions! As you know, we are in early development for MX-19 so this is the perfect time to put something like this out there.

It is my pleasure to express some things I've noticed.

I really like this distro and of course, many of the things I've reported are "personal" customizations but I think an average user will benefit from this.

I'm curious about the flat-volumes thing. Any thoughts from other users on that?

There are a zilliion complaints about that on the web ("pulseaudio flat volumes"). Here is the FreeDesktop discussion:

There is no single well-defined meaning attached to the 100% volume for a sink input. In fact, it depends on the server configuration. With flat volumes enabled, it means the maximum volume that the sound hardware is capable of, which is usually so high that you absolutely must not set sink input volume to 100% unless the the user explicitly requests that (note that usually you shouldn't set the volume anyway if the user doesn't explicitly request it, instead, let PulseAudio decide the volume for the sink input). With flat volumes disabled the sink input volume is relative to the sink volume, so 100% sink input volume means that the sink input is played at the current sink volume level. In this case 100% is often a good default volume for a sink input, although you still should let PulseAudio decide the default volume. It is possible to figure out whether flat volume mode is in effect for a given sink by calling pa_context_get_sink_info_by_name().

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am Hello all! I've been using MX Linux 18.3 lately and i got only good things to say about it.

I have some suggestions that I think will improve the user experience in MX Linux.

1. Show Desktop shortcut should be set to Super + D by default. (from the XFCE Window Manager)

Explanation: Many users come from Windows, in which the default shortcut for showing the desktop is Super + D.

OK, makes sense I guess if Super+D is not standard for anything else.

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 2. Set the window title to a slightly larger font and make it bold. (from the Window Manager)

Explanation: Making the window title larger and bold will make the window title stand out more.

Windows 7 has same size. Windows 8 has larger size. Windows 10 I have forgotten because MX Linux has largely saved me from it.

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 3. Delete / Disable the shortcut for the XFCE Whisker Menu (from the Keyboard shortcuts section)

Explanation: If you will add any shortcut that will user the Super key in combination with any other key, the XFCE whisker menu will pop-up every time you use that shortcut. (for example add a shortcut Super + E for Thunar. If you use Super + E, Thunar will open but behind the Whisker Menu)

I think this is a bad suggestion because many Windows users press Super and start to type to launch programs. I do the same in MX Linux.

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 4. Enable compositing by default

Explanation: I have an old rag (e4600@2.4ghz, Radeon 7470) and I have no issues in running with compositing enabled. Also, MX will look better.

I don't know if having compositing by default is a safe option and if it fails gracefully.

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 5. DISABLE flat-volumes (please!) from Pulseaudio (/etc/pulse/daemon.conf)

Explanation: If you don't want to have ear problems, just disable it. REALLY! Everyone will benefit from this.
Just uncomment flat-volume line and set it to no. (restart pulseaudio after)

I agree. It's potentially dangerous and MX Linux (and Debian) is the only desktop OS I know of that has implemented this behavior.

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 6. Add Redshift-GTK + geoclue2-0 in to the default installation

Explanation: WE need this. Especially at night.

This would probably be useful for the average user, because it's a little tricky to install and set up. Windows has this by default in Windows 10.

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 7. Enable desktop icons to be visible by default.

Explanation: Many new users will have problem in finding the way to enable Desktop Icons.

Maybe a good idea.

kepler1 wrote: Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:19 am 8. Chromium - Please enable Title Bar to be visible (minimize + maximize)

Explanation: As a user, i would like to have the possibility to minimize, maximize Chromium without additional tweaks.

Good idea.

Windows users coming from Windows 7 to Windows 10, as many will be, will have more to learn than if they transition to a decently set up Xfce machine!

Chris

You got that right

I'm curious about the flat-volumes thing. Any thoughts from other users on that?

From what I've read about flat-volume it reminds me of a problem I had on my Dell laptop. It came with Ubuntu installed. From the first boot the volume was always maxed. Turning the volume low right before shutting down didn't matter. It didn't take long before the speakers were fried. I decided to try other OS'es and see if that would help. That was actually how I discovered MX Linux. and the rest is history. I will say that I've not noticed this flat-volume problem in MX, but now that I know the setting to disable it I will be checking that box. I did have a problem keeping it set to Digital HDMI setting for a while, and had difficulty in determining, between alsa, and pulse audio, which controlled volume for laptop.

I'll just throw this out there...I hadn't noticed it before, but the MX18.3 install has a bench-marking utility for LUKS encryption. That's pretty nice. To build on that; a utility to benchmark the actual hardware, maybe one device, or multiple devices, would be awesome. I remember Windows XP having a utility in its install that would tell you of hardware compatibility issues...

Regarding the shortcut for Whisker Menu - Super key.

I know that most of the people use this to open the Whisker Menu.

Maybe i was misunderstood :).

The actual issue is the following, for better explanation:

1. Set the Whisker Menu shortcut to default (SUPER key)
2. Set another shortcut for any program but using SUPER key (for example File Manager to SUPER + E)
3. Use SUPER + E to open the File Manager (thunar)

Result:
The File Manager will open, but also the Whiskermenu. Basically every time you release the SUPER key, the Whiskermenu is popped.

kepler1 wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 4:21 am Regarding the shortcut for Whisker Menu - Super key.

I know that most of the people use this to open the Whisker Menu.

Maybe i was misunderstood :).

The actual issue is the following, for better explanation:

1. Set the Whisker Menu shortcut to default (SUPER key)
2. Set another shortcut for any program but using SUPER key (for example File Manager to SUPER + E)
3. Use SUPER + E to open the File Manager (thunar)

Result:
The File Manager will open, but also the Whiskermenu. Basically every time you release the SUPER key, the Whiskermenu is popped.

I just verified this. What's happening is that the SUPER key by itself opens Whisker Menu, so as soon as you hit SUPER and before you type the E, Whisker is opening. Per Settings/Keyboard - Application Shortcuts tab, Whisker Menu's shortcut is SUPER L. If I edit the entry and assign SUPER + L to xfce4-popup-whiskermenu it works as expected and SUPER + E to open Thunar no longer also opens Whisker Menu. It may be a bug in the default MX or Xfce settings (or maybe not?)

Rarely having used keyboard shortcuts in MS Windows I don't have any idea what the default keystroke is for opening the start menu (though ISTR that once upon a time it was something like control + alt + escape, wasn't it? That was many, many snows ago, like in Windows 95 days.)

That's what the super key does on MS, or at least it used to, it opens the menu, that's why it's not a good key to use.

mxer wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 7:01 am That's what the super key does on MS, or at least it used to, it opens the menu, that's why it's not a good key to use.

It doesn't bother me that the key is used to open the menu... i got used to this from Windows, the problem is that whenever I use the SUPER key in combination with another one, the Whiskermenu will always pop up.

kepler1 wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 7:30 am

mxer wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 7:01 am That's what the super key does on MS, or at least it used to, it opens the menu, that's why it's not a good key to use.

It doesn't bother me that the key is used to open the menu... i got used to this from Windows, the problem is that whenever I use the SUPER key in combination with another one, the Whiskermenu will always pop up.

Why do you use the Super key in combination with other keys? There are 105 keys to choose from on my current keyboard. If you press the Super key in Windows the menu will also pop up. It's standard behavior.

dreamer wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 9:45 am

kepler1 wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 7:30 am

mxer wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 7:01 am That's what the super key does on MS, or at least it used to, it opens the menu, that's why it's not a good key to use.

It doesn't bother me that the key is used to open the menu... i got used to this from Windows, the problem is that whenever I use the SUPER key in combination with another one, the Whiskermenu will always pop up.

Why do you use the Super key in combination with other keys? There are 105 keys to choose from on my current keyboard. If you press the Super key in Windows the menu will also pop up. It's standard behavior.

Not really :)

In Windows, if you press Super (Win key) + E to open the File Manager, only the File Manager opens. The Windows Start menu will not open.

kepler1 wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 10:07 am
Not really :)

In Windows, if you press Super (Win key) + E to open the File Manager, only the File Manager opens. The Windows Start menu will not open.

OK, that's interesting. Then I guess you have to press Super + E simultaneously in Windows for that to happen. I guess Linux was a little bit slower to adopt the Super key for the menu. Many Linux menus still do not open from the keyboard, but it's considered a feature. Ubuntu MATE developer switched to Brisk menu despite it wasn't ready just because it could open with the Super key. He stated it's something that users expect in this day and age and I agree.

Yes, having the Super key function as a meta key and activate the menu is something that I couldn't get to work in XFCE on MX. It's probable that other DEs distinguish between pressing a key and releasing it without a second input and pressing it and releasing it after a second input. Perhaps this isn't possible at present in XFCE, but it would be a nice feature to have. Hitting the Super key to bring up the menu is muscle memory for me, just as Ctrl+Alt+T is to bring up a terminal (a combination that I add as soon as possible after installing MX).

rgb wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 11:33 am Yes, having the Super key function as a meta key and activate the menu is something that I couldn't get to work in XFCE on MX. It's probable that other DEs distinguish between pressing a key and releasing it without a second input and pressing it and releasing it after a second input. Perhaps this isn't possible at present in XFCE, but it would be a nice feature to have. Hitting the Super key to bring up the menu is muscle memory for me, just as Ctrl+Alt+T is to bring up a terminal (a combination that I add as soon as possible after installing MX).

Yes, for me too. So basically this is a XFCE bug, that the menu opens basically every time the SUPER key is used (and assigned as a shortcut)

kepler1 wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 5:13 am

rgb wrote: Mon Jul 08, 2019 11:33 am Yes, having the Super key function as a meta key and activate the menu is something that I couldn't get to work in XFCE on MX. It's probable that other DEs distinguish between pressing a key and releasing it without a second input and pressing it and releasing it after a second input. Perhaps this isn't possible at present in XFCE, but it would be a nice feature to have. Hitting the Super key to bring up the menu is muscle memory for me, just as Ctrl+Alt+T is to bring up a terminal (a combination that I add as soon as possible after installing MX).

Yes, for me too. So basically this is a XFCE bug, that the menu opens basically every time the SUPER key is used (and assigned as a shortcut)

It was reported years ago already. Maybe fixed in Xfce 4.14? There's also a work-around mentioned toward the bottom of the page.
https://bugzilla.xfce.org/show_bug.cgi?id=7845