Been a Gnome user for years and always glad to see them modernize the UI more, but the one thing I desperately want is .stl and/or .3mf thumbnailers to just work with Nautilus. Tried several times to set up in Fedora using f3d, but instead just get blurry question mark thumbnails
Not a fan of slicing up the title bar like that, to be honest. Yeah, it saves some space, but I’m on a desktop with plenty of screen space, so that really isn’t a priority, and being able to easily move windows around is a priority.
Also, what the hell is wrong with old-fashioned menus? This isn’t a phone. GNOME doesn’t even run on phones.
As a laptop user I love the idea that some of the titlebar space being utilized. I don't use GNOME though. I hope there will continue to be good UXs for both of us.
That's the thing. There is no title bar. The title bar, if forced to exist, would go above both of those sections.
GNOME apps seem to have been headed in this direction for a while.
If I open gnome-disks, for example, the title bar is kind of odd because it doesn't show the name of the program at all. It only shows the size of the currently selected disk, and underneath that in a smaller text subheading is the actual device pathname of the disk. How many other programs do you know that have a subheading under the window title in the title bar?
This feels like an early decision to do something different with that part of the window.
Further along in the evolution is the dconf-editor which no longer shows any kind of title bar at all. The window manager shows that the window title is "dconf Editor" but there's nothing on the window itself that says that.
Earlier versions of each definitely had a standard title bar (I remember dconf-editor having one fairly clearly, because the new interface seemed strange at first), but not any more.
There's also that desktop web browsers generally request that their title bar not be shown. Given that everyone has at least one browser window open, it would be almost foolish to assume there's been no influence from that design choice.
There’s also that desktop web browsers generally request that their title bar not be shown.
Those have the excuse that they’re basically several windows in one, and the tabs are the title bar-equivalents. Very few apps have that excuse, though.
Side note: KDE’s tabbed windows feature was pretty neat. Too bad it’s gone.
Yeah same. There are some types of text file where gedit doesn’t even appear as an option. Like sometimes I don’t want to open .xml files in the browser.
I was able to set VScode for .xml files but not gedit. It’s not a huge deal but that one thing makes gnome feel like immature software.
I’d love a setting to change the default file manager. I always install Nemo and configure it to be the default but last I checked, it’s not a simple GUI setting like changing the default browser or email client or whatever. And then you end up with two programs called “Files,” which obviously isn’t ideal.
Would it be that much of a problem to have what app is “Files” be a simple setting? Maybe it’s way more complicated than one assumes.
My dream is that one day we will be able to assign default applications to the “generic” names in Gnome. Launch “Browser” and open Firefox (or chrome 🤢), Files and open Dolphin, Messages and open Elements etc etc.
Obviously I can do the same with custom .desktop files but it would be a nice flair to use the settings to just assign applications to those generic names.
Maybe they added this when I wasn’t looking. It’s been awhile since I did a fresh install of a Gnome distro. (I use Fedora for work stuff and I’ve learned over the years to leave my work laptop the fuck alone and distro hop on a personal laptop.)
It’s still a problem. And then once I finally set thunar as default, Firefox continues to open Nautilus. Removing Nautilus isn’t an option either since it’s a dependencie of something else.
I really hope choosing a default file manager woll be simple and always working at some point.
Yes and no. The setting affects the file manager, but things like “open/save file” dialogues will still use the Gnome file chooser, which is separate from Nautilus and not easily circumvented.
Firefox uses xdg-mime or xdg portals, depending on the configuration of the package. If you are using it as a flatpak, it will use portals.
Apps using portals will use the file picker your portal provides. This will usually be either the GNOME or Plasma file picker. Note that this file picker is separate from your default file manager.
It wasn’t about the file picker but the file manager that opens after clicking the button to open the folder a downloaded file is saved in. It was indeed flatpak firefox iirc.
It did work at some point but broke again… At the moment it works I believe (at least I didn’t get a call from my mom about the file manager being wrong again).
I find Dolphin wy better… But renaming & adding files to new folder is better on Nautilus, but as I don’t care much about renaming anymore, and Dolphin is quick enough to surpass the other feature, meh
The search on nautilus is probably better because a lot of gnome distros have the file indexer enabled by default, and that’s what nautilus uses, but many kde distros don’t come with the kde indexer, so dolphin doesn’t index by default.
Also looks like it’s removing an important visual affordance (i.e., which areas you can click to drag the window), unless I’m misinterpreting it
The top bar has been full of buttons with no whitespace for a year or more now, that’s not new (you can still drag the window using the whole bar, but it’s definitely not intuitive and made me subconsciously do Win+drag to be safe many times).
This seems to be a relatively minor visual update to have the left sidebar fill the whole window - maybe they want more space for shortcuts at a given window height? No clue.
Edit: never mind, checked again and it’s literally just a tiny visual update with no change to the actual content of the sidebar, but it takes some space away from the top bar.
I absolutely love this shortcut, and have been using it for a little bit. Now I just wish there was one that would let me enter “resize” mode. The idea being that you hold a key down, and when you drag the window it’ll resize from corner your cursor is closest to.
Ah! It appears while that isn’t a default shortcut in GNOME, you can kinda get that by setting the Resize Window shortcut under Keyboard -> Shortcuts -> Window menu.
It’s a bit wonky if you want to resize it diagonally, as it moves the cursor to the center of the window, and then whichever is the first direction you drag the mouse is the edge it snaps to in order to start resizing. Works perfect for top/right/bottom/left, but if you try it diagonally then often it gets one of the other directions instead.
I will however have to remember that shortcut for when I’m on other DEs!
The current version has some problems with adaptivity, e.g. resizing the app window can cause issues. This led to the creation of new libadwaita widgets. If you want to read the technical details, see blogs.gnome.org/alicem/…/rethinking-adaptivity/
i’m not even sure it’s worth having an option. i don’t think i’d even have noticed a difference, apart from the menu button being in a slightly different place to every other gnome app. it’s fine; but it wasn’t worth the development time
The last thing I want is an option for this. My gosh, imagine the amount of options you would end up with if every single design choice was turned into an option. Who in the world would like that many options.
I'm happy to just have a design team work on whatever they think looks better and works best for the user experience, and implement it after some rounds of public review and testing. This looks neat enough to me - slightly less cluttered than what my current Nautilus window looks like while maintaining the same functionality.
Seriously, I envy you guys. Every time I try to use Plasma, I end up spending all my time tweaking the desktop, and by the time I’m done, I realize I’ve just recreated the Gnome workflow…
I had to look up Fitts’s law, and I’m not sure I get it. Could you explain what you mean?
ETA: I kinda feel like mine was about KDE not being a fit for me personally, and yours was a slam on Gnome rather than a statement of personal preference.
I had to look up Fitts’s law, and I’m not sure I get it. Could you explain what you mean?
basically; the speed that it takes to click a button is dependant on the size of the button and the distance from the cursor. however, buttons at the edge of the screen have effectively infinite size, as they can’t be overshot. the most used actions should be placed there, as they are the easiest to click by muscle memory (particularly the corners, as they have infinite size in both dimensions)
on windows, kde, cinnamon, etc.; by default the bottom left is start, the bottom right is show desktop (this one i can’t explain), and the top right is close maximised window. the top of the screen is also used for other window-related actions like minimise, restore, change csd tabs, etc.
gnome flouts this by having most of the top of the screen doing nothing (most of it is completely empty) apart from rarely used actions like calendar and power. and the bottom right and left doing nothing[^1]
did i explain well?
ETA: I kinda feel like mine was about KDE not being a fit for me personally, and yours was a slam on Gnome rather than a statement of personal preference.
nah it was very much a personal thing: some people like having a minimal and clutter-free feature set; i like having as many features as possible, because then i find features i didn’t even know i liked.[^2]
as for the top bar: this one confuses me - it just seems objectively bad. but obviously it’s not as some people clearly like it. i haven’t had anyone actually explain to me why, though
I personally love the feature set of Gnome, but I can see your point. Compared to other DEs, it might seem like a lot of wasted space. And I guess in a way it is, but I don’t miss those other functions.
The top right corner doesn’t even need a click to go to overview, which brings up my desktop view and the app launcher - that’s the bottom left and bottom right functions you described in one place, which makes sense to me since in my head they’re related.
The top right is still close maximized windows, but because of the way the Gnome workflow is structured, I don’t really use minimize basically ever, so I don’t miss it. Also in the upper right we have volume control and battery feedback.
I never have more virtual desktops than I’m actually using. Everything is exactly where I expect it to be. My brain is wired for the Gnome workflow, and extra options justbatent needed.
I’ve used Dolphin’s terminal in file manager thing, and while I can see the utility, I prefer my right-click -> open in Console setup. That’s just me, though.
Eh. It takes all kinds to make the world go round, I guess. FTR, I am a huge fan of the KDE project. Their contributions to the Linux world are massive and cannot be overstated. Krita alone is amazing, and I used calligre as my main office software for a few years.
I found it rather laggy. Maybe I should give it more of a chance just felt clunky and laggy to me (I assume because it’s superimposed ontop of GNOME not integrated into it)
Edit: I gave it another chance and I actually really like it thank you for calling me out on that
Think it was only clunky because I already had a bunch of stuff open before turning it on
Well I just switched to KDE Plasma last week and I’m pleasantly surprised just how many things are configurable via a menu and how well it runs on Wayland With a Nvidia GPU.
I used to despise KDE Neon, and used Gnome for a bit, but I don’t think I can go back anymore until their design philosophy changes again.
Problem for me is KDE is dependant on configuration to get it to look nice, GNOME looks nice and works well out of the box but sucks if you want to do anything ontop of that base
The idea is that you’re not supposed to minimize windows at all under Gnome’s workflow, and you maximize by double-clicking the headerbar to save space. You get used to it.
It’s a bit weird to me how, on a post regarding a GNOME update, people feel the need to come out of the woodwork to explain how they prefer to use Plasma or any other DE or WM.
This is Linux, you can use whatever you feel like using. Let people be happy with what they’re happy with.
I think “modern” can be interpreted as nice and clean UI which is beautiful to watch and only the absolutely most important stuff is shown and the rest is hidden. So, like apple design approaches, I guess. Say form over function. Microsoft tends to go that route as well. Luckily for user who like function over form, there are different flavors of Linux.
Clearly the dark mode is the modern one! Jokes aside, I just realized that there THREE menu options on that toolbar: hamburger, kebab, and waffle! I realize they do different things, but no wonder people are confused by and scared of computers. Also, now I’m hungry!
as someone who’s not scared of computers, i have no idea what they do. i assume the right one is icons/list/compact[^1] not a waffle menu, but the hamburger and kebab? i have no clue
[^1]: though why it’s showing list when the current view is icons, i don’t know either
maybe; but if the location of menu buttons hints at their use then the hamburger should collapse the side drawer like the one on e.g. youtube, but i doubt it does
It has the same options as right clicking on an empty space in a directory. Stuff like Create a new folder, Create a new file, that sort of thing. “Actions you might wanna make on this directory”. When you start searching, there is another button that appears and that one is the one that let you filter search options
I dont see the usefulness of that button tbh. Its like it assumes good ol right click isnt discoverable on its own. Idk anyond who has a mouse and hasnt pressed right click ever.
List/grid view are in the top right. This is an unfair comparison having one in list and one in grid, when they both clearly have a button (in the same location even) to switch modes.
Dark is clearly the modern one though, but presumably you can switch between dark and light.
It’s just my opinion (since it’s not in the article) but a thing that makes Gnome and Libadwaita a “modern design” is the fact that the production behind it tries to bridge the gap between a “mouse and keyboard” and a “touch screen” workflow.
None of the other DEs come even close to Gnome when used on a tablet
meh, subjectively i find that creates a “worst of both worlds” situation. but this comment was more about the futility of the development time that went into this specific feature
this comment was more about the futility of the development time that went into this specific feature
yeah sorry, I should have been more specific with my answer: features like this are supposed to help you in a touch screen situation or in general with smaller screens.
When the window is resized under a certain size, the left panel becomes hidden and with it part of the top bar, to make it less cluttered and confusing.
The difference is minimal, in the newer version you have 1 less element when the sidebar is collapsed (the hamburger menu).
Generally speaking Gnome 44 is already well optimized, 45 is going to be a more “tweaks and small improvements” kind of update rather than a big design changes