Rethink LXPanel 0.5.0+ ..please

[shiki08]

Hello! I wasnt really active in the forums so far... but I hope this way the developer will reconsider the new changes. (By the way ,to introduce myself, I'm Shiki from the -hu translation team).

The problem. I used LXpanel since I first seen LXDE. Its a good panel.. it was. What is my problem? I used it because I need a vertical panel. I got a wide monitor, and I love if I can have as much space as possible. LXpanel 0.4.x was OK, only 22p, really nice arrangement, its awesome. Then 0.5.0 came out.. ITS HUGE. Takes a LOT of space from my display, makes it nonsense to put it to the side. Autohide came in.. BUT.. if I bring up panel, it resizes my window.. ridiculous. You cant even find such solution ANYwhere.. and there is a reason for that. Every panel uses the usual approach. When you activate it, it comes up, and covers your app, but it wont resize it.. since its really annoying.

I don't say that changes are bad thing... but these..

Please. RECONSIDER the mentioned stuff. Or add a setting which allows the old layout AND allows NOT TO resize the windows whenever I bring up my panel. Or panel can be covered.. (Like KDE4, it allows you 4 different options).

Thank you very much.

[bulkley]

shiki08, I agree with you. LXPanel is one of the reasons I don't go fully LXDE on my base Debian/Openbox system. I don't want an imitation Windows panel complete with a START button menu. Instead I use Pypanel (set transparent) which is much less intrusive.

[shiki08]

Well.. I removed the whole LXDE environment and lxpanel after 0.5 came out since it made unusable. Now I use openbox+gtk/qt/kde+tint2. :-/

[Marty Jack]

You can set the width of the vertical panel as narrow as you want. The only downside I can think of is that the taskbar would not have space to show the window title; you could set it to be "icons only". If you turn off "Reserve space" on the Advanced tab, it will not create the strut that causes your windows to change size.

This change was described in the initial release notes on 0.5.0 at http://forum.lxde.org/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=521 on July 4. It is unfortunate that you didn't provide this feedback at that time.

[shiki08]

I got this package too late for my system. Since I loved LXDE, I thought everyone goes into the right direction, I don't have to check such things, everything will be alright. By the way... can't you just add an option which changes the orientation? Between old and new? New makes no sense for wide screens..150px? geez... every time I bring up my panel , the whole desktop gets resized..

I used ~20px wide panel. Now?.. hmm..45?.. awesome. Well.. I guess this will be the final farewell for LXDE on every PC I use, since no one can afford this much space. Anyway.. we can still use tint2, pypanel. :/

[Marty Jack]

I continue not to understand why this is a showstopper for you. Right now I am running with a 16 pixel wide left side panel with 16 pixel icons. It is perfectly usable except for the clock and that I can fix by stacking it vertically with \n and going just a little wider.

[bulkley]

It's not a show stopper except for LXPanel. One of the delights of LXDE is that the components function individually as well as together. Thus, we can pick and choose. I came to LXDE by way of PCManfm which is a terrific file manager. I added several other LX components. (I was already using Openbox.) But, I don't like LXPanel, it's too intrusive. I am also not a fan of desktop icons.

On the other hand, I do some live-CD re-mastering. LXDE is an absolute natural for this because it is so light and quick.

[Marty Jack]

Saying "it's too intrusive" doesn't help me understand specifically what we could change that would make you like it better. Ultimately there are many choices in desktop environments and panels and you have to settle on one that pleases you. For example, I really disliked how the text was drawn on its side in the 0.4.x series. It being open source, I do not have a monopoly on deciding what happens and if there is something someone wants to change, be my guest about posting patches.

[bulkley]

Saying "it's too intrusive" doesn't help me understand specifically what we could change that would make you like it better.

Marty, I'm really not your target audience. I'm the guy with the stripped down window manager and no eye candy, unless one gets excited by a transparent Conky display. I have no icons and you have to right click to find a menu. I don't even have a screen saver, preferring instead to let xorg turn off the screen. So, what would I do to LXPanel? I'd remove the LXDE menu button. I'd make it transparent. I'd make it skinny. It would have no systray. It would have a time/date and a desktop name or number. Minimal utility. If you notice it, then it's intrusive. But, as I said, I'm not your target audience. No offence meant.

Any installation that other people will use, such as a live-CD, is a different matter. Most computer users are accustomed to Windows and are most comfortable with familiar gimmicks. When I look at most computers I shudder at the mess. People seem to like clutter. I have no idea why.

[Marty Jack]

I'd remove the LXDE menu button. I'd make it transparent. I'd make it skinny. It would have no systray. It would have a time/date and a desktop name or number. Minimal utility.

I don't use eye candy either. My wallpaper is "xsetroot -solid".

You could configure it that way. Delete everything but the clock and desktop number plugins, shrink it down to 16 pixels, alignment left or right, size dynamic. As to transparent, I don't have a way to check that right now, but I thought it would do that if you were running a compositing window manager and you set the alpha value. How do you deiconify something without a taskbar?

Thanks for all your effort on live CDs by the way.