XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

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GeneC

XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by GeneC »

Love it or hate it.... :lol:
Its an interesting new concept. I use XFCE almost exclusively, but have used Gnome-Shell quite a bit in the past, and do like it. So if your in the minority and not a Gnome hater..... :arrow:

http://www.webupd8.org/2014/07/xfdashbo ... buntu.html

http://xfdashboard.froevel.de/

Image

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XFDASHBOARD: GNOME SHELL LIKE DASHBOARD FOR XFCE
Written by Andrew | Date: Thursday, July 03, 2014



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 Xfce Xubuntu

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);
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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nomko

Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by nomko »

Not really my cup of tea..... Looking at that i get some kind of Gnome3/Unity like nightmares all over again.... :shock: :shock: :shock: :evil: :evil: :evil:
Last edited by nomko on Thu Jul 03, 2014 11:05 am, edited 2 times in total.
GeneC

Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by GeneC »

Hi Nomko...

I know many just hate it, but its not Unity at all, its a fork of 'Gnome-Shell's overview... :wink: I am about to give it a look on Mint 17 XFCE.

Quite small package

Code: Select all

gene@mint ~ $ sudo apt-get install xfdashboard
[sudo] password for gene: 
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  xfdashboard
0 upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
Need to get 314 kB of archives.
After this operation, 886 kB of additional disk space will be used.
GeneC

Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by GeneC »

PS

It works nicely on Mint 17 Cinnamon as well.

Image
mellobob

Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by mellobob »

It seems to work okay in Mate. But in xfce4 desktop I get very odd behaviour ... so much that it's useless. Example:

Clicking on an empty desktop icon (right panel) does nothing. If there is an active window, clicking works.

The menu for finding an application (left side) is off by one. I need to click the item below the one I want.

Anyone know where I could report this issues?
mellobob

Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by mellobob »

Yes, the workspace switcher works great from alt-tab. What I'm missing in xfce4 is a workspace selector. When using Cinnamon I have a hot corner set up to display all my workspaces. Easy to select a workspace with the mouse.

Problem I have with workspaces in cinnamon is that you can't easily go up/down using the arrow keys. I was using the hot corner thing to work around that. Now, I'm back to using xfce4 and I sort of miss the hot corner option. And, no, xfdashboard isn't generating love here :)
MtnDewManiac
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Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by MtnDewManiac »

mellobob wrote:Yes, the workspace switcher works great from alt-tab. What I'm missing in xfce4 is a workspace selector. When using Cinnamon I have a hot corner set up to display all my workspaces. Easy to select a workspace with the mouse.
It ought to be easy to select a workspace with the mouse in Xfce, too. There is a "workplace switcher" panel applet that can easily be added to any Xfce panel. You can then use it with your mouse.

Regards,
MDM
Mint 18 Xfce 4.12.

If guns kill people, then pencils misspell words, cars make people drive drunk, and spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat.
mellobob

Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by mellobob »

Yes, I'm quite familiar with how to do xfce4 workspace switching.

It's just that the way a hot corner in cinnamon works is very nice. The screen displays all the workspaces and the applications running in each one. Now, you can select with mouse. It's very nice.

Thanks.
Neil Edmond
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Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by Neil Edmond »

Installed it. Tried it. Doesn't add anything to my work flow. Actually, I found it rather useless. To each his/her own, I suppose.
TL7

Please add XF Dashboard to official repository.

Post by TL7 »

nomko wrote: Thu Jul 03, 2014 9:01 am Not really my cup of tea..... Looking at that i get some kind of Gnome3/Unity like nightmares all over again.... :shock: :shock: :shock: :evil: :evil: :evil:
This is just an optional feature, so you do not need to use it necessarily.
However, I would like it to be downloadable from an official repository instead of bulky tar balls.

It could be very useful for users who want this on Xfce, because Cinnamon and KDE suck at having multiple taskbar rows and multiple panels on top of each other (yes, KDE puts them in a way they cover each other, which is an unpleasant reality).

I would like to have a second panel exclusively for the taskbar above the first panel.
Hoser Rob
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Re: XFDashboard (gnome-like 'overview' for xfce).

Post by Hoser Rob »

I don't see the need for multiple task bars (BTW in Linux they're called panels). If the app icon area is getting crowded, that's what multiple workspaces are for.
For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong - H. L. Mencken
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mint4all
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Re: Please add XF Dashboard to official repository.

Post by mint4all »

TL7 wrote: Thu May 03, 2018 10:24 am
nomko wrote: Thu Jul 03, 2014 9:01 am Not really my cup of tea..... Looking at that i get some kind of Gnome3/Unity like nightmares all over again.... :shock: :shock: :shock: :evil: :evil: :evil:
This is just an optional feature, so you do not need to use it necessarily.
However, I would like it to be downloadable from an official repository instead of bulky tar balls.

It could be very useful for users who want this on Xfce, because Cinnamon and KDE suck at having multiple taskbar rows and multiple panels on top of each other (yes, KDE puts them in a way they cover each other, which is an unpleasant reality).

I would like to have a second panel exclusively for the taskbar above the first panel.
Greetings! Afaik, XFCE in v4.12 introduced such a dashboard-like feature: simply use the alt-tab combo (keeping the alt-key pressed) to bring up XFCE's built-in preview of open windows, then tab through (fwd & bwd) those thumbnails. The pic that gets the focus will cause that window to get restored to the foreground once you let go of the alt-key ... The screenshots @ https://xfce.org/about/tour tell it all. Btw: i did try the XF Dashboard a while ago (on xubuntu 14.04) but never got it to work right.

Re. the "second panel" you would like to have: easy to setup. Just create/add a 2nd (or 3rd) panel, set its desired height (ie 28px) and width (ie 100%), then move it just to where you want it (you may have to move the 1st/primary panel out of the way first). Once your twin panels are positioned just right, "lock" those panels in place, and begin populating your new panel with whatever applets/buttons you want.
TL7

Expo View

Post by TL7 »

mint4all wrote: Thu May 03, 2018 11:55 am
TL7 wrote: Thu May 03, 2018 10:24 am
nomko wrote: Thu Jul 03, 2014 9:01 am Not really my cup of tea..... Looking at that i get some kind of Gnome3/Unity like nightmares all over again.... :shock: :shock: :shock: :evil: :evil: :evil:
This is just an optional feature, so you do not need to use it necessarily.
However, I would like it to be downloadable from an official repository instead of bulky tar balls.

It could be very useful for users who want this on Xfce, because Cinnamon and KDE suck at having multiple taskbar rows and multiple panels on top of each other (yes, KDE puts them in a way they cover each other, which is an unpleasant reality).

I would like to have a second panel exclusively for the taskbar above the first panel.
Greetings! Afaik, XFCE in v4.12 introduced such a dashboard-like feature: simply use the alt-tab combo (keeping the alt-key pressed) to bring up XFCE's built-in preview of open windows, then tab through (fwd & bwd) those thumbnails. The pic that gets the focus will cause that window to get restored to the foreground once you let go of the alt-key ... The screenshots @ https://xfce.org/about/tour tell it all. Btw: i did try the XF Dashboard a while ago (on xubuntu 14.04) but never got it to work right.

Re. the "second panel" you would like to have: easy to setup. Just create/add a 2nd (or 3rd) panel, set its desired height (ie 28px) and width (ie 100%), then move it just to where you want it (you may have to move the 1st/primary panel out of the way first). Once your twin panels are positioned just right, "lock" those panels in place, and begin populating your new panel with whatever applets/buttons you want.
I rather imagined something like what is called Expo Viewing Mode on the Cinema or Cinnamon desktop.

Cinnamon looks eye-candy, but has no multiple-row taskbar, s far as I can find.
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