Release Switch GUI: Openbox

[JeanLouSchmidt]

hum,


I spend few hours tuning my conf, so the result is on the wiki, but I got trouble with the Wiki engine who recognize xml code, I have to find a way to escape the conf...


http://pandorawiki.org/OpenBox


I didn't use many desktops, there is only one in my conf.


Here is a summary of the shortcuts :

• Root Menu: "Pandora Key"
  
• Window Listing and Desktop Management Menu: Shift "Pandora Key"
  
• Client Menu: Ctrl Space
  
• Next Window: Ctrl DPAD-Right
  
• Previous Window: Ctrl DPAD-Left
  
• Toggle Maximize: Ctrl DPAD-up
  
• Toggle FullScreen (No Decoration): Ctrl o
  
• Toggle Desktop: Ctrl u
  
• Window on left side : Ctrl j
  
• Window on right side : Ctrl k
  
• Window on half top : Ctrl i
  
• Window on half bottom : Ctrl m
  
• Quit Application: Ctrl-q
  
• Launch urxvt : Ctrl Shift t
  
• Launch Thunar : Ctrl Shift f
  
• Launch mousepad : Ctrl Shift e
  
• Launch FireFox : Ctrl Shift w
  

And also the menu, with :

• "Pandora Setting" menu: Wifi on/off, BT etc.
  
• "OpenBox Tools" menu: toggle System tray, warlock Bar.
  
• Direct cast a term
  
• Direct cast mousepad
  
• Direct cast a Browser
  

Edit and make them yours.

 

[Binky]

Any chance mousepad could go on the root menu?


I consider

• terminal
  
• text editor
  
• file manager
  
• package manager
  

the most important pieces of software on any computer.


Possibly rename config to openbox config


Is there anyway to keep the contents of the PNDs menu in RAM? It takes about 5 seconds to load every time I select it.


Admittedly, I have a huge number of PNDs installed I'm nitpicking - this is a really nice setup as it is!

 

[freamon]

I'm uploading a version 4 today, so I'll stick 'Text Editor' in the root menu (along with SD-mass storage).


The PNDs menu already is in RAM (from version 3 onwards) - you can see it in /tmp/obcache/menus/ - so I don't think it'll get any faster unfortunately.


I'm not sure about renaming 'Config' to 'Openbox Config', because it also does config for things like wbar and tint2. I'm planning to add more infomation to the wiki page, which should explain how things work more, and so people will be able change stuff according to their personal preference.

 

[freamon]

New version uploaded. Here's a screenshot (the root menu also has 'Text Editor' and SD-Mass Storage in the released version):

---------------------------


Main difference is tint2 panel. From left to right, you can see:


3 spaces for application launchers - the applications menu is in slot 1 by default, and when I took the screenshot, I had Firefox and Kobo Deluxe in slots 2 and 3. You can use these launchers for any application with a pre-existing .desktop file (i.e. all PNDs), or you can create custom .desktop files (for example, to open the File Manager at the root of an SD card).


Taskbar - this lets you see what apps you have open, and lets you resurrect any you've minimized.


System Tray - there's orange and Radiotray in the screenshot, but normally the network icon will be there too (if you're online).


Clock / Date.


Battery Indicator.


---------------------------


I also separated each program into it's own ipk, and automated the install of them. It's a bit slow to install, but it'll make future updates a lot easier and is more sensible if ED still plans to include openbox in the next OS update (maybe he can include the essential files, and I'll create a "Openbox Extras" pnd for the optional stuff). It might be a bit scary seeing 10 ipks being installed, but the total size of it all is still only about 3 MB (even less, considering installs to the NAND get compressed).


---------------------------


Hopefully, this'll the last major update. I realize there's still stuff to do (a proper Shutdown dialog for instance), but I'm going to try and create an entry for the DragonBox compo. In the meantime though, I'll add a bit more info to the wiki page (CountOrlock has already already added lots of useful stuff). Link: http://pandorawiki.org/OpenBox

 

[JeanLouSchmidt]

Cool, now It's perfect !


Wiki updated according to the new pnd.

 

[Askarus]

Great improvements.


This looks great now.


I don't even know what's left to complain about .


You'll enter the compo? Great as well.


If you need someone to test some stuff, simply write me a PM.

 

[Binky]

I don't even know what's left to complain about

wait, wait, I'll think of something...

 

[Askarus]

Come one.


I can't be without.


EDIT:


Found it.


Didn't I say I want to hide/unhide the Panel with some button combination?


Let's be serious for at least one sentence:


I'd really like to see this installed on the on as many people might like to use it.

 

[Binky]

Ah! Found something that would improve it!


Integrate mount-menu nicely in the root menu...

 

[Binky]

/me installs the update


This is really, really great. Looks awesome, works beautifully, runs efficiently.


Perhaps start a thread encouraging people to use it for a week and suggest improvements?


It really is fine tweaking now


Here's my list (some are personal opinion, and some just don't matter)

• include the mount menu scripts in some neat way
  
• sort out a proper shutdown dialogue
  
• reorder the root menu to put hardware toggles together
  
• use the emulators icon for games
  
• use clearlooks as the default theme for both openbox and gtk
  
• nope, I'm gonna stop there, because there, because there's nothing else that can't be easily changed by the user
  

Get this into the official OS, and take a gold star (or five)


Awesome work B)

 

[Askarus]

I also tried it out now.


I CAN toggle the Warlock and panel easily with the Pandora button menu.


Openbox is great and everyone should try it out.

 

[freamon]

Thanks for your kind words. Also - a big thank you for all the suggestions so far - I haven't always been 100% convinced when I first read them, but I've had to acknowledge that they're really useful after implementing them.


Here's my TODO list:

• Fix problem where if you've got XFCE/MiniMenu as your default GUI, switch to Openbox and then shutdown, you get Openbox's gtk theme in XFCE/Minimenu when you reboot (Openbox sorts it out when switching, but not when shutting down).
  
• Fix problem where icon for "Text Editor" doesn't show if you've upgraded Mousepad (this is especially brain-dead, as Upgrade Mousepad is one my PNDs)
  
• Update Pandora scripts like op_battlow.sh and op_power.sh so they display their messages (when the battery low and the unit is suspended, respectively).
  
• Feature requests (a proper shutdown dialog, mount-menus, .etc)
  

Perhaps start a thread encouraging people to use it for a week and suggest improvements?

This has probably had enough exposure from the activity on this thread, and from updates to the repo. I'm guessing most people have seen it and are interested in it, or they've seen and they're not. I don't want to become too much of a nag about it, essentially - especially considering there's still a few (minor) problems. Part of the maintaining PNDs hobby is accepting that you can spend a lot of time doing something, which most people will be indifferent to (I'm okay with that. To give an example, Linux-Swat mentions Slackware a lot, and it's totally understandable given how much work he's put into it, but I'm still unlikely to ever try it).

• reorder the root menu to put hardware toggles together
  

My thinking for the root menu layout is: PNDs at the top; then a "Connectivity" section; then a App Launcher section (which has Toggle USB host and SD-Mass Storage by default, put provides a template for adding different ones); then the Config submenu, then a "Visibility" section for toggling tint2 and wbar; then the universal apps sections (PND Manager / PND Store, Text Editor, Terminal, File Manager); and finally a "Exit" section, with Switch GUI and Shutdown. I think I tried having a Toggle Bluetooth, Toggle Wifi, Toggle USB Host at one point, and decided it looked a bit silly.

• use clearlooks as the default theme for both openbox and gtk
  

Clearlook is a sensible default, you're right. I didn't use it for the mundane reason that it didn't seem to go with the default background. I'm not the most 'visual' of people, but the current idea is that the Blacks the Syscrash Openbox theme and the Purples of the Crux GTK+ theme complement the Black and Purples of the background. I'll probably change the default background in future to match Clearlooks, but I didn't want to keep changing it because I'd already changed it once (from one you created, which is a shame because I liked it - unfortunately it didn't seem to work well with Warlock Bar's transparency).


===============


Anyways, I seem to have waffled a bit. The point of this post was to say: I've updated the wiki at http://pandorawiki.org/OpenBox


Lots of (hopefully) useful stuff there from me and CountOrlock - for example, it should be fairly self-evident how to create a keybinding to call "openbox-functions toggletint2" to implement Askurus's suggestion a few posts above.

 

[Askarus]

Where do I have to save themes I downloaded?

Lots of (hopefully) useful stuff there from me and CountOrlock - for example, it should be fairly self-evident how to create a keybinding to call "openbox-functions toggletint2" to implement Askurus's suggestion a few posts above

Great.

 

[ZXDunny]

The only thing that I dislike about this is that when you open the menu, the PND menu opens automatically when highlighted, and it takes such a long time to open that it feels like I'm getting stuck on my way down to one of the other root options.


What would be nice is an automatic wBar configurator that mimics the PND submenu. That would rock.


Edit: Also, a second press of the Pandora button doesn't remove the menu. I just timed the PND submenu - stalls the OS for just over 3 seconds while it builds. Subsequent openings of the PND menu are instant, unless the menu is closed - on re-opening, it stalls again.


D.

 

[Askarus]

^


The problem with the Pandora menu is easy to solve:


Press Pandora button, then press UP on the D-Pad.


You'll start at the end of he list instead of getting stuck.


Some suggestion.


1:


EDIT 2:


Removed as I found it.


EDIT:


2:


In Panel Menu it would be great to get the Alt +Up menu with right mouse klick.


Is this possible?


I couldn't set the configuration file to "Showmenu".

 

[Askarus]

I made some shortcuts to toggle Warlock bar and Panel.

<keybind key="C-S-Up">

	 <action name="Execute">

	 <command>openbox-functions toggletint2</command>

	 </action>

</keybind>

<keybind key="C-S-Down">

	 <action name="Execute">

	 <command>openbox-functions togglewbar</command>

	 </action>

</keybind>

Ctrl+Shift+Up is Panel

Ctrl+Shift+Dow is Warlock bar



I also edited

<keybind key="A-Up">

	 <action name="ShowMenu">

	 <menu>client-menu</menu>

	 </action>

It's now

<keybind key="A-1">

	 <action name="ShowMenu">

	 <menu>client-menu</menu>

	 </action>

I need Alt+Up as it navigates to the previous directory in the file manager.


I need this a lot.


As the menu appears on the upper left (of the window), why not put it to "1". It's also on the upper left (of the keyboard) and very intuitive to use then.


If you want to include it in your next release feel free to do so.


make keybindings as you wish.

 

[ZXDunny]

^


The problem with the Pandora menu is easy to solve:


Press Pandora button, then press UP on the D-Pad.


You'll start at the end of he list instead of getting stuck.

Not a solution - that's a work-around. XFCE doesn't pause when it opens the menu; neither should open-box.


D.

 

[A2000]

^


The problem with the Pandora menu is easy to solve:


Press Pandora button, then press UP on the D-Pad.


You'll start at the end of he list instead of getting stuck.

Not a solution - that's a work-around. XFCE doesn't pause when it opens the menu; neither should open-box.


D.

Yes it does! On my CC Pandora XFCE pauses when the root menu is opened and it pauses when a submenu with many entries is to be displayed.

 

[Binky]

PNDs at the top; then a "Connectivity" section; then a App Launcher section (which has Toggle USB host and SD-Mass Storage by default

SD mass-storage and certainly USB host are connectivity

 

[ZXDunny]

^


The problem with the Pandora menu is easy to solve:


Press Pandora button, then press UP on the D-Pad.


You'll start at the end of he list instead of getting stuck.

Not a solution - that's a work-around. XFCE doesn't pause when it opens the menu; neither should open-box.


D.

Yes it does! On my CC Pandora XFCE pauses when the root menu is opened and it pauses when a submenu with many entries is to be displayed.

All I ask is an equality with XFCE - no more than that. And on my 256MB CC Panda, the menu does not pause


D.