Big Button Game: Metacity Introduces Flexibility
The current button arrangement redesign in Ubuntu causes numerous bugs in GNOME and Ubuntu. The Metacity team now wants to step in.
The recent hot discussion around the redesign of the three standard window buttons to move them from right to left in the Ubuntu 10.04 window alerted Metacity window manager developers to a problem they've long been grappling with: if a designer includes specific images for the buttons in a developed theme, they can't be moved without breaking the underlying design.
A GNOME user can now freely determine where the buttons go, but themes present a special problem in that the button_layout key specifies their position in the GNOME configuration. The solution is not optimal because button_layout is persisted across themes (the global setting) so that a user can't change the positioning when introducing a new theme.
GNOME developers want to solve this problem so that future themes will overwrite the button_layout setting, which would require a new Themes v3 format. Metacity developer Thomas Thurman in his blog is rather recommending a workaround involving a separate GKeyFile configuration file in the theme directory that would parse the key-value file to set the button layout for any new theme.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Linux Mint 22.3 Now Available with New Tools
Linux Mint 22.3 has been released with a pair of new tools for system admins and some pretty cool new features.
-
New Linux Malware Targets Cloud-Based Linux Installations
VoidLink, a new Linux malware, should be of real concern because of its stealth and customization.
-
Say Goodbye to Middle-Mouse Paste
Both Gnome and Firefox have proposed getting rid of a long-time favorite Linux feature.
-
Manjaro 26.0 Primary Desktop Environments Default to Wayland
If you want to stick with X.Org, you'll be limited to the desktop environments you can choose.
-
Mozilla Plans to AI-ify Firefox
With a new CEO in control, Mozilla is doubling down on a strategy of trust, all the while leaning into AI.
-
Gnome Says No to AI-Generated Extensions
If you're a developer wanting to create a new Gnome extension, you'd best set aside that AI code generator, because the extension team will have none of that.
-
Parrot OS Switches to KDE Plasma Desktop
Yet another distro is making the move to the KDE Plasma desktop.
-
TUXEDO Announces Gemini 17
TUXEDO Computers has released the fourth generation of its Gemini laptop with plenty of updates.
-
Two New Distros Adopt Enlightenment
MX Moksha and AV Linux 25 join ranks with Bodhi Linux and embrace the Enlightenment desktop.
-
Solus Linux 4.8 Removes Python 2
Solus Linux 4.8 has been released with the latest Linux kernel, updated desktops, and a key removal.