Which desktops allow users to customize menus?

MarjaE · 08-15-2023, 11:57 PM

I've been trying Linux Mint Cinnamon, but un into a few problems with the main menu:

1. It's a single menu. I need to cut down on scrolling, so I'd much prefer the classic 3 menus.

2. I've tried editing it in Menu Editor/Alacarte, but every time I uncheck an item to hide it, move on to the next section, and then move back, I see that Menu Editor/Alacarte has rechecked that item.

I previously tried Fedora, and while I wasn't able to replace the menu, I was able to install other menu apps. So that's something.

fatmac · 08-16-2023, 03:43 AM

All menus are a file somewhere on your system, so just find the file & add what you want - the trick is finding what it is called, & where it is located.

As per your problem, maybe try -

Quote:

Right click on Menu, then Configure, then button [Menu] and finally button [Open the menu editor].

Also, this might help.
https://unix.stackexchange.com/quest...-items-located

MarjaE · 08-16-2023, 05:40 AM

The Linux Mint Cinnamon Menu Editor doesn't work for me.

1. It doesn't seem to be able to replace the single main menu with multiple smaller menues, and

2. It doesn't seem to be able to hide unwanted items in each menu, and

3. somehow I've ended up with extra menu folders, such as 2 versions of "Accessories," and more menu shortcuts some of the items I'm trying to hide.

fatmac · 08-16-2023, 05:59 AM

You may need to 'save' it, before closing it(?), & you may need to restart your desktop (cinnamon).

MarjaE · 08-16-2023, 07:30 AM

I still haven't found an easy way to customize these, but turning off "Change categories on hover" helps me navigate the multi-layered menus.

Cabanel · 08-29-2023, 06:14 AM

LXQt allows you to edit the start menu: https://lxqt-project.org/blog/2022/0...iting-in-lxqt/

I prefer window managers like bspwm and xmonad but LXQt is (in my opinion) the best (full) desktop that BSD and Linux currently have.

DavidMcCann · 08-29-2023, 12:09 PM

This might help — I've never used Cinnamon, so I can't say for sure:
https://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?t=358891

Mint may have alternative menus for Cinnamon, so have a look in the package manager.

The comment #2 is, I believe, misleading. Cinnamon, like Mate and Gnome, compiles the configuration files with dconf, so you can't just edit them — you have to extract them, edit them, and then re-compile them. That's why you get provided with graphical tools for the job and there's not much guidance around for how to do it manually.

Xfce has a choice of two menus, traditional and Whisker, and you can edit them using a file in ~/.config/menus/. There's documentation — the best is probably
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Xfce

Gerard Lally · 08-31-2023, 08:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidMcCann

.Xfce has a choice of two menus, traditional and Whisker, and you can edit them using a file in ~/.config/menus/.

There's also jgmenu

eight.bit.al · 08-31-2023, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidMcCann

Xfce has a choice of two menus, traditional and Whisker, and you can edit them using a file in ~/.config/menus/. There's documentation — the best is probably
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Xfce

Xfce also has a right-click on the desktop menu, very much like Openbox which is easy to edit with MenuLibre.
https://bluesabre.org/projects/menulibre

2³bit

Michael Uplawski · 09-02-2023, 04:38 AM

I think that all is said.

But I just like Fluxbox. The most basic right-click (global) menu for Fluxbox is configured in an ini-like file like in this excerpt:

Code:

[begin] (Fluxbox-1.3.7)
  [encoding] {UTF-8}
  [exec] (LXTerminal) {lxterminal}
  [exec] (Firefox) {firefox}
  [exec]   (Run) {fbrun}
  [exec]   (Mail) {/home/michael/bin/xgetmail}
[submenu] (Browsers)
  [exec]   (firefox) {firefox}
  [exec]   (QuteBrowser) {qutebrowser}
  [exec]   (w3m) {xterm -e w3m ~/}
  [end]
[submenu] (Education)
  [exec]   (stellarium) {stellarium}
  [end]
[submenu] (Graphics)
  [exec]   (gimp) {gimp}
  [exec]   (inkscape) {inkscape}
  [end]

(...)

I do not use this menu, because the one from my fbpanel is just alright with me. But it makes me nostalgic ... oh Inis.

MarjaE · 09-07-2023, 02:26 PM

I ended up installing Fedora because I couldn't get the wifi working on Mint.

Using Gnome Classic in Fedora, I have trouble with its default menu, and with font sizes, and with scrollbars. I tried Cinnamon, still had trouble with font sizes and didn't check everything else. I tried Mate, had a much better main menu, and better font sizes, but couldn't block as much animation, or get usable scrollbars. Also parts of Firefox stopped working. I tried Budgie, but I can't use dark themes, and the light themes aren't working yet.

kilgoretrout · 09-08-2023, 10:31 AM

In general, the answer to any question in the form of "What desktop allows users to customize X?" is KDE Plasma. KDE is the most user customizable desktop out there and it's designed to be just that.

mrmazda · 09-16-2023, 12:53 AM

If KDE Plasma is not your cup of tea, take a look in /usr/share/applications/ and you'll probably see a bunch of familiar app names. Those are files for menuitems. You can add your own from scratch or based on existing ones in /usr/local/share/applications/ that should automatically appear via the xdg system.

MarjaE · 09-17-2023, 04:28 PM

I tried Kde couple months ago. It was full of animation. It gave me an awful migraine, and I couldn't get through the animation to find ways to disable the animation. Apparently the compositor settings *can* disable at least some of the animation.

In Cinnamon, Gnome 3 Classic, etc. there are a couple settings to disable effects, disable cursor blinking, etc. which can stop most of the animation.

mrmazda · 09-17-2023, 04:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MarjaE

I tried Kde couple months ago. It was full of animation. It gave me an awful migraine, and I couldn't get through the animation to find ways to disable the animation. Apparently the compositor settings *can* disable at least some of the animation.

Disabling that nonsense is among the first steps I take on a virgin login.