open lxde menu with the "win key"
How to bind the "windows key" to open lxde menu?
I know is possible with Mate or Xfce, but how to do with Trisquel Mini 10?
I am afraid you are not allowed to do that: the "Meta" key is supposed to be a modifier in LXDE, so you can use it as a shortcut in combination with another key only.
EDIT: the path I mentioned was for MATE, sorry. In LXDE, the correct path is Preferences > Setup Hot Keys (LXHotkey).
>"I am afraid you are not allowed to do that"
Not very GNU-y or linux-y. Has LXDE been taken over by the Gnome foundation?
GNOME is actually a great desktop environment for those who prefer the keyboard.
On GNOME, Super (the Windows key on most keyboards) opens the "Activities" (to search as you type applications/parameters/contacts/documents/etc.). That key can be used (and is used by default) in combinations with other keys to define other shortcuts. For instance, by default, Super+A directly display the applications. Another shortcut can be defined to open the "Activities", display the applications, etc.
Good to know. Haven't tried Gnome since a miserable experience on Fedora back in about 2015. Don't think I would ever bother to go back. Hopefully it's improved by now, but I have no need for it regardless.
There's a new rant on this subject on DT's channel.
https://odysee.com/@DistroTube:2/linux-desktop-kinda-stinks.-how-did-we:0
"There is a lot of drama right now in the Linux community involving various Linux desktops, including: GNOME, Budgie and Pop OS's Cosmic desktop. The Linux desktop was so good about 12 years ago. How did we get into the shape that we are in now? And why is the Linux desktop so fragmented right now?"
I saw that video two nights ago. The point I disagree with him on is he claims Gnome 2 was the best desktop "ever". I never cared for it much. It was better than what I experienced with Gnome 3 though.
I think a lot of people that started their GNU/Linux experience on Ubuntu, like DT did, think back on Gnome 2 as a great desktop. I was never an Ubuntu user.
> I was never an Ubuntu user.
I was an Ubuntu Gnome user from the day I saw that Fedora Gnome 3 screenshot and realized that it was not originally orange, but blue.
And until the day I switched to Trisquel 7 and thus back to two-dimensional desktops, for the better. Gnome 3 always was one too many dimensions for my flat brain anyway, not to mention Gnome 41.
> about 12 years ago
Poor smooth-faced bald guy clearly never recovered from Gnome 3. Maybe the bearded bald guy could brief him about MATE.
These heated debates are not for us the fainthearted anyway. We restrict the scope of our discussions to XFCE and MATE, in order to avoid hair-splitting. By the way, did you know that XFCE does allow you to use the Meta key as a shortcut to call the Whisker main menu? Or as we now call it, the Four Freedom key.
Meta is Alt on most keyboard. I believe you are referring to the Super key.
> Meta is Alt on most keyboard
Such was indeed my vision of the world until recently. However, XFCE calls that four-squared key "Meta L", most probably for "Left Meta" (not to be confused with Meta + Left, and although there is only one such key on my current keyboards). Ark74 here also mentioned the Alt + Meta + S combination to kill Orca. Maybe there has been a shift from Alt to "the four square key" as the Meta key?
Gnome indeed calls it the Super key and uses it intensively, as you mentioned. Intensively and accurately, since by default it displays a mosaic of opened windows. MATE modestly calls it "mod4", which is arguably not very helpful as a describer.
Following this thread I realized I was wrong.
The "Windows" key is Super, I was referring as Meta, while it's Super.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_key_(keyboard_button)
I got confused, sorry about that.
This is confusing anyway. More details here about the mysterious Meta key: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meta_key.
It appears that the shift went otherwise, from 'Meta' to 'Super':
"On keyboards that lack a physical Meta key, its functionality may be invoked by other keys such as the Windows key. However, software often provides another workaround, such as using the Alt key (which does not exist on the Knight keyboard), or using the Esc key as a prefix (e.g., in Emacs). Because of these workarounds, the need for Meta — despite being the most-used additional modifier key — was less than for other modifier keys. It is more common today to use the Windows key to emulate the Super key."
XFCE users will still have to do with "Meta L", the origin of which can be easily found in the picture below:
I don't mind the fragmentation. What's wrong with having a variety of desktop environments?
It is much better for the buzz if you call it "fragmentation" and rant about it.
I don't know. You should ask DT.
The lines I quoted are from the introduction to his rant about GNU/Linux Desktop Fragmentation and the Unbearably Awful GNOME.
I think GNOME is fine, apart from the politics such as joining in on the crusade against RMS.
I am a translator!
For application developpers, doesn't it create more work as applications need to be integrated/tested in more desktop environments?
In general, MATE is ok but I already encountered problems for which I have no solution and that appear specific to some desktop enviroment (for instance, with Gajim and the default Trisquel MATE settings, the verified OMEMO fingerprints look almost like the non-verified ones, while in other desktop environment there is no such problem).
For users, doesn't it make it more difficult to get help on the configuration of their environment due to different people using different environments? And also to get the apps look as expected by the developpers?
I am pretty sure the keybindings I mentioned were the same at that time. That page presents some of the most useful ones (the defaults that can be changed): https://wiki.gnome.org/Projects/GnomeShell/CheatSheet
For an allegedly keyboard friendly desktop, it's very mouse-centric:
>"Window maximizing and tiling: You can maximize a window by dragging it to the top edge of the screen. Alternatively, you can double-click the window title. To unmaximize, pull it down again. By dragging windows to the left and right edges of the screen you can tile them side by side."
By comparison, both Mate and XFCE can easily be set up for keyboard-based window movement and tiling. The keybindings already exist, all I ever have to do is change them to comfortable default key combos. And instead of half-screen tiling, they both have right-left, top-bottom, and 4-quadrant tiling with key-bindings by default.
However, window managers are far advanced beyond this, which is why I spend most of my time in DWM. My hands almost never need to leave the keyboard, except to move something inside a specific graphical program. The operation of the menu, window tiling and resizing, workspace movement and switching - everything you do on a desktop is handled better and easier on the keyboard with a good window manager.
Rather remarkable that Gnome's window tiling options are almost exactly the same as those for MS Windoze. Kind of gives an idea what kind of desktop experience Gnome is angling for I guess.
By default, in GNOME, Super+Up maximizes the active window, Super+Down unmaxmizes it, Super+Left makes it occupy the left-hand side of the screen, Super+right the right-hand side. Those defaults can be changed and there are more (Super+H hides the window, etc.), you can define keybindings to maximize the active window horizontally and vertically, to switch (with or without the active window) to any workspace (I defined such keybindings for ten workspaces), etc.
Also, if something you feel a setting or simple feature should be in GNOME Shell but is not, then there is probably an extension for it: https://extensions.gnome.org
Many thanks lanun, I try during the weekend
I'm not a lxde user, but if I'm not wrong, you can use openbox configuration to change the key bindings.
True. But the "win key" is still a modifier: it can be used to modify another key to create a shortcut, but not as a shortcut itself.
https://defkey.com/linux-lxde-shortcuts
I find this page on the net and I read ctrl+esc open the lxde menu and esc close it
for me is good, and also there are more keyboard shortcuts to use with lxde