xfce with taskbar

[Michael Hipp]

Thanks. Any indication of when this might go to release (presumably we'll 
have a gentoo .ebuild shortly afterward)?

I'm still trying to figure out anyone could get along without a taskbar 
(given that alot of these wms/desktops don't have one). That's the one 
single indispensable feature of the gui: instantaneous random-access task 
switching.

Michael

On Friday 28 June 2002 10:15 pm, Collins wrote:
> xfce hasn't produced a release with this code, but it is committed in
> CVS and quite stable.
>
> Unlike the minority opinion you got earlier, I touch this everyday
> with or without a fork <grin>
>
> Of course, if you keep 40 or 50 open tasks, your taskbar is going to
> be quite crowded!  I keep about 16 active tasks, and thus I love the
> hell out of it.  The advantage of using it is that clicking on a
> taskbar button takes you to the appropriate desktop and raises/focuses
> the selected window all in one operation.
>
> Here's how to get it.  (All of this is pieced together from various
> emails on the xfce-user list.)
>
> 1. su -
> 2. cd to desired directory to hold cvs image
> 3. cvs -z3 -d:pserver:anonymous at cvs.xfce.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/xfce
> co xfce-stable (it really helps if you have installed cvs <grin>)
> 4. cd to directory downloaded (xfce-stable)
> 6. ./autogen.sh     --prefix=/usr \
>        --datadir=/usr/share \
>        --sysconfdir=/etc/X11 \
>        --enable-xft \
>        --enable-taskbar \
>        --enable-gdm && \
>     make [-k] install-strip (the -k is needed for some later versions
> of
>                                           autoconf)
> 7. restart xfce and enjoy
> 8. To activate the taskbar, click in the miniscule space between the
> bottom of the panel and the dividing line for the buttons area.  Once
> opened, the taskbar will remain open when you restart xfce
>
> Some notes
> ======
>
> Depending on your colour palette, some of the taskbar buttons can have
> different background colour to distinguish between current and other
> screens' windows. Window which has focus (is active) is indicated by
> 'pushed' (selected) button. By
> clicking that button the window can be minimalised and maximised
> alternatively.
> To select (make active) another windows click corresponding button --
> it
> will be maximised. Taskbar can be closed by clicking leftmost, small
> button (so called close button). When you click right mouse button (in
> fact >=second) on that
> button, pop-up menu appears. From it you can:
> 	- make taskbar standalone window (Windows-like behaviour) and switch
> 	   that feature off
> 	- chose buttons order on taskbar. They can be sorted by Xwindow id,
> 	   name, desktop they appear on or remain unsorted.
> 	- turn on/off indicator of processor load. It is available only (?)
> on
> 	   linux when '/proc/stat' pseudo-file is present. When turned on
> 	   t askbar close button changes colour according to current
> processor load.
>
> Hovering over a taskbar button displays a hint with wider version of
> name
>
> There are some additional features like "jared tasks" that I haven't
> experimented with.  This feature combines all like programs under one
> task button and a popup window opens to let you select the appropriate
> one.
>
> <a real hoot>
> There, I managed to post an email without a single reference to the
> dreaded distro, except for my signature.  dep will be so proud of me!
> </a real hoot>
>
> Enjoy,