Desktop desires and questions

[Steven Stern]

On 02/18/2012 02:17 PM, les wrote:
> HI, everyone, 
> 	I know that this has been discussed before, and I will go back and read
> more of that.  
> 
> 	I want more efficient use of my desktop.  Pretty is nice for most
> people and of course design driven types, but I am a technophile, closer
> to Sheldon (of big bang theory) than normal people.  I know that.
> 
> 	Here is what I find in using the desktop as it exists in F16:
> 
> The need to click to get to the computer is annoying at its very best
> and a real vocabulary expander in normal use.  Every time I use one
> application and I want to access another I have to click 
> 	"activities"
> 	my windows shrink....
> 	and I have to move the mouse to
> 	"applications"
> 	click
> 	I get the menubar I should have in the first place
> 	of course its on the opposite side of the screen and I now have 
> 	to mouse over there and click
> 	"topic" (and the applications are somehow scattered by my view)
> 	which should be a pullright to a menu
> 	but which sprinkles applications all over the screen.
> 	mouse to my application
> 	click 
> 	"my application"
> 	And finally my application comes up.
> 	Oh, yes, I do have a 23" monitor, so the route of crossing the desktop
> will get worse when I upgrade or go to multiple monitors later this
> year.
> 
> This is so ergonomically inefficient, so slowing that it adversely
> impacts my progress.
> 
> Anyway, that is only the most irritating bit I have found so far, but it
> is worse.  I don't see anyway to move the icons, change their sizes,
> move them to various menus, expand the menus, or do anything at all to
> change the current layout which is not at all conducive to my work.  I
> put this off long enough to hope that these issues had been addressed,
> but they are not.  
> 
> 	I don't want to start a flame war.  I don't want to start a debate
> about desktop managers (I know there are many out there) Nor do I wish
> to castigate anyone.  I want to just make the thing do what I want
> without a whole lot of deep investigation into XML files.
> 
> 	I want to know where the documents and or utilities are that will let
> me do something to improve my working environment and get back to
> efficiency.  If you have useful information, please send it on.  I am
> sure I am not the only one who wants this information, nor should it be
> hand editing xml files, although if that is the only method, I will do
> it until I get too frustrated with Fedora.  AT this point I will not
> give the disks to a friend who wants to use Fedora, because he is sight
> impaired and this desktop will not work.  That is a real affront to
> disabled people and should spark some kind of action by everyone
> involved.
> 
> Please keep it civil and provide solutions for this desktop, don't say
> change desktops, don't start flaming, just help me and others get this
> thing to do what we need.
> 
> With all that said, the basic needs as I see it are:
> 	1. a way to get a list type menu instead of icons
> 	2. a way to move the icons (if a list is not possible) or listing to
> different top level applications menus.
> 	3.  Get the applications menu on screen all the time as a pulldown.
> 	4.  ability to change icons by right clicking on the current icon and
> selecting a "change icon" menu which will open a file navigator.
> 	5. remove the "activities" switch and put the windows and applications
> buttons in its place with pull downs optional.
> 	6. remove the "favorites" and just let us put the icons on the desktop
> if we so desire.
> 	7.  do whatever else can be done to allow font selection, including
> fontsize as well as icon size for the desktop.  This is an HID
> requirement anyway.
> 	8. Stop the messing around with the open desktop in any way whatsoever.
> It is distracting and interferes with efficiency.
> 
> 
> Oh, and I did do some Google-ing, but got very little useful
> information.  Since Fedora is the cutting edge, lets make it cut a good
> swath. Thanks.
> 
> Regards,
> Les Howell
> 


I'm very happy with XFCE4 and avant-windows-navigator

-- 
-- Steve