Window Snapping Always Screws Up

FrustratedNoob · 2017-07-24 22:54:30

Hello everybody.

I've been using Mint 18 XFCE for a few months and it always works great at first and over the next week or two I start having lots of problems and I'm too noobish to fix them so I reinstall from scratch again and again only to have similar problems next time.

One of the main problems that I run into on every install is with window snapping. It works fine at first and then on some programs it wont work at all, or wont be the right size, or leaves space under the window where it shouldn't, or the window is permanently too big and wont resize past a point, etc.

Does anyone else have problems like that? Does anyone know what I could be doing wrong or how to fix it? I'm utterly clueless and I'm on the verge of admitting defeat and going back to windows even though I really hate it.

Here's links to me trying to figure it out with the help of the nice people on the Mint boards.

https://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic. … 0&t=248733

https://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic. … 0&t=249215

Thanks in advance for any help I get.

Last edited by FrustratedNoob (2017-07-24 22:55:38)

ToZ · 2017-07-25 01:19:08

Hello and welcome.

Perhaps you can be a little more specific about the issues and the applications (different distros have different applications and different configurations).

One of the main problems that I run into on every install is with window snapping.

How do you have window snapping configured? Which options are selected? An easy way to get this information is to post back the results of the following command:

xfconf-query -c xfwm4 -lv

It works fine at first and then on some programs it wont work at all,

Which programs? Are there any specific steps that you perform that makes this happn?

or wont be the right size,

Can you expand on this? Which programs and how is it not the right size?

or leaves space under the window where it shouldn't,

Which program? If you are referring to the terminal, it's sizing is affected by the font spacing so you won't get a exact fit when snapping.

or the window is permanently too big and wont resize past a point, etc.

Can you give a specific example? Which program and which steps do you perform to get it to happen?

In the linked thread you talked about Thunar and running thunar as root affects the window snapping. You mention a option in thunar that allows you to open in root. This is a distro-specific configuration. Most probably a custom action. Can you post back the contents of ~/.config/Thunar/uca.xml? It would be helpful to see which command is being run to get this root window.

FrustratedNoob · 2017-07-25 05:30:12

Thanks for the reply, ToZ.

1.Here's the output of the command you said do:

$ xfconf-query -c xfwm4 -lv
/general/activate_action bring
/general/borderless_maximize true
/general/box_move false
/general/box_resize false
/general/button_layout HO|
/general/button_offset 0
/general/button_spacing 0
/general/click_to_focus true
/general/cycle_apps_only false
/general/cycle_draw_frame true
/general/cycle_hidden true
/general/cycle_minimum true
/general/cycle_preview true
/general/cycle_tabwin_mode 0
/general/cycle_workspaces false
/general/double_click_action maximize
/general/double_click_distance 5
/general/double_click_time 250
/general/easy_click Alt
/general/focus_delay 250
/general/focus_hint true
/general/focus_new true
/general/frame_opacity 100
/general/full_width_title true
/general/horiz_scroll_opacity false
/general/inactive_opacity 100
/general/margin_bottom 0
/general/margin_left 0
/general/margin_right 0
/general/margin_top 0
/general/maximized_offset 0
/general/mousewheel_rollup true
/general/move_opacity 100
/general/placement_mode center
/general/placement_ratio 20
/general/popup_opacity 100
/general/prevent_focus_stealing false
/general/raise_delay 250
/general/raise_on_click true
/general/raise_on_focus false
/general/raise_with_any_button true
/general/repeat_urgent_blink false
/general/resize_opacity 100
/general/restore_on_move true
/general/scroll_workspaces false
/general/shadow_delta_height 0
/general/shadow_delta_width 0
/general/shadow_delta_x 0
/general/shadow_delta_y -3
/general/shadow_opacity 50
/general/show_app_icon false
/general/show_dock_shadow false
/general/show_frame_shadow false
/general/show_popup_shadow false
/general/snap_resist false
/general/snap_to_border true
/general/snap_to_windows true
/general/snap_width 10
/general/sync_to_vblank false
/general/theme Default-hdpi
/general/tile_on_move true
/general/title_alignment left
/general/title_font Monospace 11
/general/title_horizontal_offset 0
/general/titleless_maximize false
/general/title_shadow_active false
/general/title_shadow_inactive false
/general/title_vertical_offset_active 0
/general/title_vertical_offset_inactive 0
/general/toggle_workspaces false
/general/unredirect_overlays true
/general/urgent_blink false
/general/use_compositing false
/general/workspace_count 3
/general/workspace_names <<UNSUPPORTED>>
/general/wrap_cycle true
/general/wrap_layout true
/general/wrap_resistance 10
/general/wrap_windows false
/general/wrap_workspaces false
/general/zoom_desktop true

2."Which programs? Are there any specific steps that you perform that makes this happen?"
Right now, Xed, Xplayer, and XFCE Terminal are the main culprits. Others have screwed up in similar ways in previous installs, especially Thunar.

Xed
-Window wont snap to sides or corners at all.
-I cant make the window narrower than about 65% of the screen. I can make it as short or tall as I want, just cant control the width

XFCE Terminal
-Theres always a bunch of space under and around the window when I snap it to the sides or corners. It's like it doesn't know where the bottom of the screen or the quandrant it's supposed to go in really is.
-The terminal window starts out really big every time now.

Xplayer
-Window wont snap at all anymore if the playlist is open. Window snapping works normally if the playlist is closed.

I'll happily post a screenshot of all that if someone tells me how.

3."and which steps do you perform to get it to happen?"
Nothing, really. I just run the program and it's like that one day even though it worked fine at first. I've often wondered if it's cuz of updates or something I installed or something but I'm too noobish to know how to find out.

4."In the linked thread you talked about Thunar and running thunar as root affects the window snapping. You mention a option in thunar that allows you to open in root..."

I'm not sure if that has anything to do with it or not. That's what the non-noobs in the Mint forum started talking about when I brought it up so maybe there's something to it, but I still don't understand what root permissions have to do with window snapping even though I've had 2 threads about it.

"Can you post back the contents of ~/.config/Thunar/uca.xml? It would be helpful to see which command is being run to get this root window"

~ $ cat ~/.config/Thunar/uca.xml
<?xml encoding="UTF-8" version="1.0"?>
<actions>
<action>
<icon>Terminal</icon>
<name>Open in Terminal</name>
<unique-id>1499555539867846-1</unique-id>
<command>exo-open --working-directory %f --launch TerminalEmulator</command>
<description>Open terminal in the selected folder</description>
<patterns>*</patterns>
<directories/>
</action>
<action>
<icon>stock_open</icon>
<name>Open as Root</name>
<unique-id>1499555539868152-2</unique-id>
<command>gksu Thunar %F</command>
<description>Open the folder with administration privileges</description>
<patterns>*</patterns>
<directories/>
</action>
<action>
<icon>emblem-symbolic-link</icon>
<name>Create a Link</name>
<unique-id>1499555539868460-3</unique-id>
<command>ln -s %f 'Link to %n'</command>
<description>Create a symbolic link for each selected item</description>
<patterns>*</patterns>
<directories/>
<other-files/>
</action>
<action>
<icon>gnome-run</icon>
<name>Check SHA256</name>
<unique-id>1499555539868498-4</unique-id>
<command>mint-sha256sum %f</command>
<description>Computes SHA256 checksum for the selected file.</description>
<patterns>*.iso;*.ISO</patterns>
<audio-files/>
<image-files/>
<other-files/>
<text-files/>
<video-files/>
</action>
<action>
<icon>media-optical</icon>
<name>Mount/Unmount ISO</name>
<unique-id>1499555539868532-5</unique-id>
<command>mountiso %f %n</command>
<description>Mount or Unmount ISO file.</description>
<patterns>*.iso;*.ISO</patterns>
<directories/>
<other-files/>
</action>
<action>
<icon>gtk-find</icon>
<name>Search</name>
<unique-id>1499555539868888-6</unique-id>
<command>catfish %f</command>
<description>Search for Files</description>
<patterns>*</patterns>
<directories/>
</action>
<action>
<icon>fonts</icon>
<name>Install .ttf Font</name>
<unique-id>1499555539868946-7</unique-id>
<command>fontinstaller %f %n</command>
<description>Installs .ttf Fonts for the user or system</description>
<patterns>*.ttf;*.TTF</patterns>
<other-files/>
</action>
</actions>

Thanks again.

Xfce Forum

Sub domains

#1 2017-07-24 22:54:30

Window Snapping Always Screws Up

#2 2017-07-25 01:19:08

Re: Window Snapping Always Screws Up

#3 2017-07-25 05:30:12

Re: Window Snapping Always Screws Up

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