Menu editors

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-28 05:28:24

I've been using Xfce for years, and for all that time I have been swearing at the pathetic choices for menu editors. Alacarte and Menulibre are the only two worth trying to use, and they don't usually work:

Alacarte: Try moving an item up or down. If you have 20 items to move the item over plan on spending a lot of time on the task. And when you're done half the time you discover that the item was not moved at all. And why can't I drag and drop an item to where I want it?

Menulibre: At least it moves things up and down quickly. It's just that doing so appears to work, but when you're finished and you close Menulibre you discover that nothing was moved at all. OK, so you decide that you'll just delete an item and recreate it in a different position. You can recreate it, but most of the time the Delete button is grayed out, and when it is actually usable it doesn't delete the item.

LX Menu Editor isn't even worth discussing. The interface shows items that are not even installed, and fails to show many others, and usually in the wrong folders and folders that don't even exist.

Is there a menu editor that really works?

Jerry3904 · 2018-05-28 09:04:19

If you are using a Debian-based distro, you might take a look at our MX Menu Editor:

app: http://mxrepo.com/mx/repo/pool/main/m/mx-menu-editor/
video: https://mxlinux.org/mx-menu-editor

alcornoqui · 2018-05-28 11:14:53

Jerry3904 wrote:

If you are using a Debian-based distro, you might take a look at our MX Menu Editor:
app: http://mxrepo.com/mx/repo/pool/main/m/mx-menu-editor/
video: https://mxlinux.org/mx-menu-editor

Half off-topic: Jerry, how compatible would be the MX apps with Ubuntu (actually Xubuntu) 16.04 or 18.04?

I know you don't recommend doing the opposite (adding Ubuntu PPAs to MX), but this and other comments from you make me think that I can use MX apps in Xubuntu.

Can I add MX repo as a Ubuntu PPA, or only install .deb packages one by one (which wouldn't auto-update then, I guess)?

I tried MX-17 and the MX apps were top-notch, great work!

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-28 17:24:30

I'm on Xubuntu 16.04. From the link that Jerry3904 gave I downloaded a .deb file and installed it - no problems.

However, in trying to use it I found it pretty hopeless:

- No way to move items around or alphabetize items in a category.
- You can edit, add or delete items within a category, but no way to edit, add or delete a category itself.
- It crashes a lot.
- I made a few changes and saved them, then I noticed that application icons in Window Buttons (in my panel) were all moved around.
- I don't know where it gets information for applications, but what it displays bears little relation to what actually appears currently in my menu, e.g., whole categories are missing, and other categories appear that don't exist.

On the plus side, there appears to be a forum here: https://forum.mxlinux.org/. I didn't find anything useful, though.

Jerry3904 · 2018-05-28 17:45:26

"It appears there is a forum here..." I love it: never heard of MX Linux, huh?!
"I didn't find anything useful..." I'm sensing some attitude here.

--First, there is a Help file (triggered by the...ummm, let's see...Help button).

--To find out how to edit a category, read the Help file

--You don't know where the information comes from? Desktop files in /usr/share/applications/ plus any the user has in Home.

--The order is alphabetical in Whisker

--Again, read the Help file to see how to show and hide Categories.

Without knowing what OP actually wanted, all I suggested was that he take a look at it.

Last edited by Jerry3904 (2018-05-28 17:49:12)

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-28 18:43:02

Jerry3904 wrote:

--First, there is a Help file (triggered by the...ummm, let's see...Help button).
--To find out how to edit a category, read the Help file
--You don't know where the information comes from? Desktop files in /usr/share/applications/ plus any the user has in Home.
--The order is alphabetical in Whisker
Without knowing what OP actually wanted, all I suggested was that he take a look at it.

I am the OP, and yeah, I have some attitude. You might also if you had spent as many hours as I have unsuccessfully trying to modify my menus.

I should have added at the beginning that the defaults that DE environments come with are the first thing I change after a new install. Just as a small example: My sole panel is on the left, where I have the Launcher plugin for a quick launcher, and there is no Whisker Menu (don't like it). The main launcher is 'Applications Menu,' which I like because of its simple appearance.

Back to MX menu editor, perhaps there is something wrong with the version I installed (18.3). The first thing I did was read the Help file (that's how I found the forums), but there is something wrong with this line:

- Add an additional category for the menu entry in the middle of the left pane, where you can also change the icon for the menu entry.

I see the category list on the left, and underneath there is a button for Add Custom Application. The popup allows for adding a menu entry, but not for adding a category. Just now I tried selecting a category and hitting Enter to see if it would open a new line, but MX Menu Editor crashed. And when a category is selected the entire right side of the display is grayed out.

I see discussion of version 17.x, but not about 18.3. Maybe editing categories was removed in 18.3?

Edit:
WAIT! I think we are talking about different things. Yes you can add a category to an application entry when you have the application entry selected. But you cannot add, modify or delete a category in the left pane. That was my kvetch.

Last edited by John_Jason_Jordan (2018-05-28 18:50:42)

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-28 19:06:41

Regarding *.desktop files, yes I have long known about them, but I have a couple of questions.

- What happens if there are *.desktop files in places other than /usr/share/applications? Where do these menu applications look for *.desktop files? And where in ~/ are they supposed to be?

- I dimly recall that at one time in Linux-world there was a text file that controlled menu entries. I remember trying to edit such a file a long time ago and having a devil of a time getting the syntax right. Do such files still exist, and if so where? And if they still exist what takes priority, the text file or the *.desktop files? Or both (god forbid, what a mess!)?

Jerry3904 · 2018-05-28 19:24:55

You probably know all this, but I'll dump my little cache:

This all is set by Xfce and Opendesktop.org, I believe. The basic docs are here IIRC:

https://specifications.freedesktop.org/ … html#paths
https://wiki.xfce.org/howto/customize-menu
/usr/share/doc/menu/html
https://wiki.xfce.org/howto/customize-menu, on the xml file

On categories:

https://standards.freedesktop.org/menu- … t/apa.html

The user can create his/her own desktop files in ~/.local/share/applications/

ToZ and others here know a lot more about this...

Last edited by Jerry3904 (2018-05-28 19:26:28)

Jerry3904 · 2018-05-28 19:37:02

BTW: the person who is responsible for creating, editing and keeping up-to-date those Help files is...me. So if you have changes you would like to suggest that would be great and actually motivate me to get going.

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-29 01:25:14

Thanks for the suggestions.

I have decided to give up on menu editors - none have the capability that I need, plus they tend to be buggy.

Instead, I am going to embark on a program of fixing the *.desktop files. Catfish found a couple hundred of them, mostly in ~/, but a few in /usr/share/applications. There are many, many duplicates, and they are a huge mess.

As a trial run I found 'treeform.desktop,' a file for a Java program to draw phrase structure trees. I had been trying to get it to appear in my Education category, with no luck. So I opened the file in Gedit, noted that it had no category line at all, so I added one specifying Education (which went red as soon as I typed it), and saved the file. Then from the command line I did xfce4-panel -r, et voilà! TreeForm now appears in my Education category.

It's going to take a long time to fix all the *.desktop files, but I think it's the best solution.

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-29 20:17:28

It may take more than a long time - it may be impossible. I say that because wherever the instructions are seems to be hidden from me and google. For example: the category= line takes the name of the categories where it is to appear, separated and ended by semicolon. Fine, I wanted an item to appear in Accessories, but putting 'Accessories' in the line doesn't work. However, if I type 'Utility;' in the line the item appears in Accessories. I did figure out that, using Menulibre, as each item is selected its listings in the .desktop file appear together with the category that the listing belongs to. I went through every application and copied down all the aliases - over 50 of them - and typed them into a table in LO Writer where I could sort them on columns. But there are several that I object to, e.g., FileTransfer > Internet. There must be a list of default substitutions somewhere, or a place in the .menu file where such things are defined. I'd like to know where it is so I can edit it.

Also, I'm trying to add two categories, but so far nothing I've done has succeeded. I started with Alacarte and Menulibre, which appeared to create them, but in fact, nothing appears in the Applications list (after refreshing the panel). So then I tried editing ~/.config/menus/xfce-applications-menu, but again, nothing changes after refreshing the panel. This left me wondering if I'm editing the right file, so I renamed it and refreshed the panel. The Applications list in the panel changed, but not everything. I can't find any specific instructions for how to edit the .menu file.

ToZ · 2018-05-29 22:55:09

Have you come across the desktop menu spec? It lists the registered categories, additional categories and also documents how to create your own?

In a nutshell, to create new categories, create a .desktop file in ~/.local/share/desktop-directories, inject a section for this directory into the ~/.config/menus/xfce-applications.menu, and then assign that category to the desktop file of the app that you want to show up in that category.

Here is a bit of a walk-through/example:

~/.local/share/desktop-directories/toz.deskop

[Desktop Entry]
Type=Directory
Name=ToZ's Favourites
Icon=applications-internet

smippet of ~/.config/menus/xfce-application

    <Menu>
        <Name>ToZ's Favourites</Name>
        <Directory>toz.directory</Directory>
        <Include>
            <Category>toz</Category>
        </Include>
    </Menu>

~/.local/share/applications/toz.desktop

[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Name=YRadio
GenericName=Radio Player
Comment=Listen to the radio
Icon=teamspeak3
Exec=/home/toz/Development/yradio/yradio
Terminal=false
Categories=toz;
Path=
StartupNotify=true

Result:

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-30 00:59:18

@Toz
Thanks for the suggestions.

Yes, I found the desktop menu spec page yesterday, but I understood only a bit of it. Here's an example that I found incomprehensible:

Here are the files defined by this specification:
$XDG_CONFIG_DIRS/menus/${XDG_MENU_PREFIX}applications.menu

I have no idea what the uppercase letters in the above refer to. And throughout there were so many places with references to things that the author assumed I would understand, that I pretty much gave up on it.

Your walk-through is more understandable, but I haven't got it working yet.

In ~/.local/share/desktop-directories I created the file Multimedia - Editors.desktop containing:

[Desktop Entry]
Type=Directory
Name=Multimedia - Editors
Icon=applications-internet #probably wrong, but I figure I can fix the icon later

In xfce-applications.menu I inserted this between the end of one section (</Menu>) and the start of the next section (<Menu>):
<Menu>
<Name>Multimedia - Editors</Name>
<Directory>Multimedia - Editors.directory</Directory>
<Include>
<Category>Multimedia - Editors</Category>
</Include>
</Menu>

And then I opened the desktop file for mediainfo-gui (which works), and edited the category line to:
Categories=AudioVideo;Multimedia - Editors;

I saved all the files, then refreshed the panel (xfce4-panel -r). There was no change.

When I added the new category to the mediainfo-gui desktop file it did not go red as the AudioVideo category did, so right there I suspected that it wasn't going to work. And the fact that the new category did not go red leads me to think that my new category doesn't exist yet. And that makes me think that there is an error in the lines that I added to the xfce-applications.menu file.

ToZ · 2018-05-30 01:19:35

John_Jason_Jordan wrote:

@Toz
Thanks for the suggestions.
Yes, I found the desktop menu spec page yesterday, but I understood only a bit of it. Here's an example that I found incomprehensible:
Here are the files defined by this specification:
$XDG_CONFIG_DIRS/menus/${XDG_MENU_PREFIX}applications.menu
I have no idea what the uppercase letters in the above refer to. And throughout there were so many places with references to things that the author assumed I would understand, that I pretty much gave up on it.

Here and here is some more info on XDG environment variables. You can run the following command to see which are set on your system:

env | grep XDG

If one is not set, then the default is used. For Xfce, XDG_MENU_PREFIX defaults to "xfce-".

Your walk-through is more understandable, but I haven't got it working yet.
In ~/.local/share/desktop-directories I created the file Multimedia - Editors.desktop containing:
[Desktop Entry]
Type=Directory
Name=Multimedia - Editors
Icon=applications-internet #probably wrong, but I figure I can fix the icon later
In xfce-applications.menu I inserted this between the end of one section (</Menu>) and the start of the next section (<Menu>):
<Menu>
<Name>Multimedia - Editors</Name>
<Directory>Multimedia - Editors.directory</Directory>
<Include>
<Category>Multimedia - Editors</Category>
</Include>
</Menu>
And then I opened the desktop file for mediainfo-gui (which works), and edited the category line to:
Categories=AudioVideo;Multimedia - Editors;
I saved all the files, then refreshed the panel (xfce4-panel -r). There was no change.
When I added the new category to the mediainfo-gui desktop file it did not go red as the AudioVideo category did, so right there I suspected that it wasn't going to work. And the fact that the new category did not go red leads me to think that my new category doesn't exist yet. And that makes me think that there is an error in the lines that I added to the xfce-applications.menu file.

The spaces will always cause you problems. Try changing every instance of "Multimedia - Editors" to "Multimedia-Editors". Even the filename of the .desktop file.

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-30 02:57:40

I ran 'env | grep XDG' and it turns out that the default xfce- is what is set on my system. But there is plenty more in that file that I don't understand, so I'll set it aside for now.

Regarding the spaces, I deleted all of them and resaved the files, but I still don't see the new directory. There must be something else that I am doing wrong.

ToZ · 2018-05-30 02:59:54

Try with my example above and see if you can get it to work. If not, post back the full contents of all 3 files one more time. I'll try them on my system.

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-30 04:12:16

ToZ wrote:

Try with my example above and see if you can get it to work. If not, post back the full contents of all 3 files one more time. I'll try them on my system.

Didn't work.

There is something that has been bugging me throughout this process. I am wondering if I am using the right xfce-applications.menu file. OK, there is only one file on my computer with that name, so it must be the correct file, right? Well, there are some odd things that make me wonder:

I had made a number of attempts that didn't work, but rather than delete them I commented them with # in front of each line. I also did this to the entire Multimedia folder as well (about 40 entries, which is why I want to split it up). But after refreshing the panel the Multimedia folder remained unchanged. So I'm thinking, 'OK, maybe # doesn't work as a comment.' So I deleted the entire Multimedia menu item (saved in a separate, unsaved file). And after refreshing the panel again the Multimedia category still appeared unchanged. But then consider this: I moved a .desktop entry that was at the top of the Accessories directory down a few lines. After refreshing the panel the entry appeared in its new location.

Strange stuff going on. Here is the xfce-applications.menu file:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>
<!DOCTYPE Menu
  PUBLIC '-//freedesktop//DTD Menu 1.0//EN'
  '[url]http://standards.freedesktop.org/menu-spec/menu-1.0.dtd[/url]'>
<Menu>
	<Name>Xfce</Name>
	<DefaultAppDirs />
	<DefaultDirectoryDirs />
	<DefaultMergeDirs />
	<Include>
		<Category>X-Xfce-Toplevel</Category>
	</Include>
	<MergeFile type="parent">/etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu</MergeFile>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Accessories</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-accessories.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>xfce4-run.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-about.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-accessibility-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>Alacarte.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>menulibre-mx-menu-editor.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>file-roller.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>Thunar-bulk-rename.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gcalctool.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>catfish.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gucharmap.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gedit.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>menulibre-lx-menu-editor.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>MenuLibre.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>mousepad.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-notes.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>onboard.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>onboard-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>globaltime.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>apport-gtk.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-screenshooter.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-settings-editor.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>exo-terminal-emulator.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>time.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-sensors.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfburn.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Development</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-development.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>python2.7.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>JB-mission-control-jdk8.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>python3.5.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>DigiaQt-qtcreator-community.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>Qt-MaintenanceTool.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Games</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-games.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>sol.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gnomine.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gnome-sudoku.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gnome-mines.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Graphics</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-graphics.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>menulibre-new-launcher2.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>evince.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>evince-previewer.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>eog.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>fontforge.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>font-manager.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>font-sampler.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>fontmatrix.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gv.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gimp.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gscan2pdf.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gthumb.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gthumb-import.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gwenview.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>display-im6.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>inkscape.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>laidout.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>mupdf.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>pdfchain.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>pdfedit.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>pdfsam.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>pdfshuffler.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>ristretto.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>scribus-trunk.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>simple-scan.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>VivaDesigner.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xaralx.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xsane.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xpdf.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>okular.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Education</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-education.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>anki.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>pspp.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>praat.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-1.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Network</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-network.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>claws-mail.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>chromium-browser.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>firefox.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gftp.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>transmission-gtk.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>deluge.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>filezilla.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>qBittorrent.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>bittornado.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>midori.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>midori-private.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>JB-javaws-jdk8.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>qupzilla.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>synology-assistant.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>tixati.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>ktorrent.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
    <Menu>
        <Name>Multimedia-Editors</Name>
        <Directory>Multimedia-Editors.directory</Directory>
	       <DirectoryDir>/home/jjj/.local/share/desktop-directories</DirectoryDir>
        <Include>
            <Category>Multimedia-Editors</Category>
        </Include>
    </Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Office</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-office.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>abiword.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>AdobeReader.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>calibre-gui.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>lrfviewer.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-dict.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>evince.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>evince-previewer.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>FoxitReader.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>libreoffice-startcenter.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>libreoffice-base.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>libreoffice-calc.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>libreoffice-impress.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>libreoffice-writer.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfcalendar.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>globaltime.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>pdfmod.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>qnotero.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>qpdfview.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>YAGF.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>menulibre-zotero-standalone.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>okular.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>zotero.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
    <Menu>
        <Name>ToZ's Favourites</Name>
        <Directory>toz.directory</Directory>
        <Include>
            <Category>toz</Category>
        </Include>
    </Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Settings</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-settings.directory</Directory>
		<Menu>
			<Name>Screensavers</Name>
			<Directory>xfce-screensavers.directory</Directory>
			<Layout>
				<Merge type="menus" />
				<Merge type="files" />
			</Layout>
		</Menu>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Menuname>Screensavers</Menuname>
			<Filename>xfce-settings-manager.desktop</Filename>
			<Separator />
			<Filename>mugshot.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-accessibility-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>software-properties-drivers.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-ui-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>blueman-manager.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-backdrop-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-display-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>thunar-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>im-config.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-keyboard-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>ibus-setup.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>language-selector.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-mime-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-mouse-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>network.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>nm-connection-editor.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-notifyd-config.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>onboard-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-xfcalendar-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>panel-preferences.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-power-manager-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>exo-preferred-applications.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>system-config-printer.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>thunar-volman-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xscreensaver-properties.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-session-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-settings-editor.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>shares.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>software-properties-gtk.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gtk-theme-config.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>time.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>ubuntu-software-center.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>update-manager.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>users.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-wm-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-wmtweaks-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce-workspaces-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>blueman-adapters.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>nvidia-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>JB-controlpanel-jdk8.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>JB-policytool-jdk8.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xkeycaps.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gparted.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>System</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-system.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>software-properties-drivers.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>blueman-manager.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>Thunar-bulk-rename.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>appimagekit-Etcher.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gdebi.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gigolo.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gmount-iso.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-terminal.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gparted.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>im-config.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>language-selector.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>network.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>nm-applet.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>nvidia-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>onboard-settings.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>JB-jconsole-jdk8.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>JB-jvisualvm-jdk8.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>virtualbox.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>panel-preferences.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>exo-preferred-applications.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>system-config-printer.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gksu.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-sensors.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>xfce4-settings-editor.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>shares.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>software-properties-gtk.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>ubuntu-software-center.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>unetbootin.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>update-manager.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>users.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>vmware-player.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>mx-menu-editor.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
	<Menu>
		<Name>Other</Name>
		<Directory>xfce-other.directory</Directory>
		<Layout>
			<Merge type="menus" />
			<Filename>gcr-prompter.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>panel-desktop-handler.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gnome-disk-image-mounter.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gnome-disk-image-writer.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>gcr-viewer.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>mono-runtime-common.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>mono-runtime-terminal.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>JB-java-jdk8.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-13.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>kmailservice5.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>ktelnetservice5.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>sleepyhead.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-16.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-12.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-3.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-17.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>libreoffice-xsltfilter.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>chrome-dhkddichhdneakoipnkclldommdcplil-Default.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-10.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-6.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-2.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-7.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-8.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-11.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>alacarte-made-9.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>kmailservice.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>ktelnetservice.desktop</Filename>
			<Filename>mediainfo.desktop</Filename>
			<Merge type="files" />
		</Layout>
	</Menu>
	<Layout>
		<Filename>xfce4-appfinder.desktop</Filename>
		<Filename>xfce4-run.desktop</Filename>
		<Filename>menulibre-new-launcher.desktop</Filename>
		<Separator />
		<Menuname>Accessories</Menuname>
		<Menuname>Development</Menuname>
		<Menuname>Games</Menuname>
		<Menuname>Graphics</Menuname>
		<Menuname>Education</Menuname>
		<Menuname>Network</Menuname>
		<Menuname>alacarte-made</Menuname>
		<Menuname>Multimedia</Menuname>
		<Menuname>Office</Menuname>
		<Menuname>Settings</Menuname>
		<Menuname>System</Menuname>
		<Separator />
		<Filename>xfce4-about.desktop</Filename>
		<Filename>exo-terminal-emulator.desktop</Filename>
		<Menuname>Other</Menuname>
		<Filename>menulibre-mx-menu-editor.desktop</Filename>
		<Filename>kaffeine.desktop</Filename>
		<Filename>kmplayer.desktop</Filename>
		<Filename>kplayer.desktop</Filename>
	</Layout>
</Menu>

Toz: Added code tags

Last edited by ToZ (2018-05-30 10:24:24)

ToZ · 2018-05-30 13:55:24

There is something wrong with the formatting of your xfce-applications.menu file (compare the first few lines of your file with that of /etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu).

There are 3 places where the xfce-applications.menu could reside:
- the Xfce default location => /etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu
- distro-specific defaults => (e.g. for Xubuntu it is /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/menus/xfce-applications.menu
- user configurable location => ~/.config/menus/xfce-applications.menu

It is this user-configurable location that you should be using.

Let's start from the beginning:

Copy over the default file for personal editing and use:

cp /etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu ~/.config/menus

Create the ~/.local/share/desktop-directories/Multimedia-Editors.desktop file:

[Desktop Entry]
Type=Directory
Name=Multimedia-Editors
Icon=applications-internet

Create the ~/.local/share/applications/mediainfo-gui.desktop file that has it's categories line like:
```
Categories=Multimedia-Editors;
```

Add the directory information into the xfce-applications.menu file (I'm inserting it just above the Development section):

    <Menu>
        <Name>Multimedia Editors</Name>
        <Directory>Multimedia-Editors.directory</Directory>
        <Include>
            <Category>Multimedia-Editors</Category>
        </Include>
    </Menu>

This should create the category for you.

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-30 15:29:13

Voilà!!!

Thanks a million for all your help and for the education! I hope this long and troubled thread helps the next person who needs help with menu editing. Personally, now that I know at least some basics I doubt that I will ever use the GUIs again!

Jerry3904 · 2018-05-30 16:09:16

Nice work ToZ! Added this to my little collection of tips as a link to a free-standing doc for future expansion.

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-31 17:14:29

I have been working to fix my menus by editing the .desktop files for applications. this is not as simple as I thought it would be. There are .desktop files scattered from hell to breakfast all over my computer. Most are in ~/.local/share/applications or /usr/share/applications, but not all. A bigger problem is duplicates - tons of them, and they are not always named the same so they are in different locations. They create duplicate entries so I would like to delete the extras, but often I can't figure out which .desktop file is generating which item. I thought I could use one of the GUIs to find the .desktop file behind an item, but none of them show that information.

1) Is there an easy way to find which .desktop file is creating an existing menu item?

2) What are the locations where the Applications panel plugin looks for .desktop files when I click on it?

alcornoqui · 2018-05-31 18:01:54

John_Jason_Jordan wrote:

I would like to delete the extras

Wouldn't they come back after an update?

(Genuine question, I don't know and can't find out right away)

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-05-31 20:19:00

alcornoqui wrote:

John_Jason_Jordan wrote:
I would like to delete the extras
Wouldn't they come back after an update?

For the few where I have found both .desktop files it turns out that one of them was created by Alacarte, typically a year or two ago. That means that I was the author.

These .desktop files are also kind of weird when viewed in Thunar because Thunar does not always display the .desktop extension. Most of them are located in /usr/share/applications where, annoyingly, they are owned by root. So, again in Thunar, I selected all of them, and then copied them to the clipboard. Then I went to ~/.local/share/applications and created a new subfolder, and pasted them all into the subfolder. Amazingly, this worked and now I have copies that I own. And the Applications menu does not pick them up, apparently because they are in a subfolder. This shows why I am curious about the rules for where they are supposed to be. I read the links above and all that I have found is that ~/.local/share/applications is supposed to trump /usr/share/applications, so if there is a file for the same application in both locations only the one in ~/.local/share/applications is supposed to be used. But when I search with Catfish I find lots more in all kinds of locations. Keeping your menus straight isn't easy when your computer is a mess.

MountainDewManiac · 2018-06-01 05:03:42

John_Jason_Jordan wrote:

Most of them are located in /usr/share/applications where, annoyingly, they are owned by root.

John_Jason_Jordan wrote:

This shows why I am curious about the rules for where they are supposed to be.

It's my understanding (possibly flawed?) that applications "filed" in /usr/share/applications are available to ALL users on the system, while those "filed" in the user's directory (/home/{user}/.local/share/applications) are installed for that user specifically.

Synaptic Package Manager installs everything so as to be referenced in /usr/... Which explains why they're owned by root (as I must type that password into Synaptic Package Manager when I run it). I vaguely remember years ago that, if one did not do that, then the user ended up installing applications to his/her "local" directory, instead.

Again, I might be wrong about some/all of this.

Regards,
MDM

John_Jason_Jordan · 2018-06-01 05:44:54

MountainDewManiac wrote:

It's my understanding (possibly flawed?) that applications "filed" in /usr/share/applications are available to ALL users on the system, while those "filed" in the user's directory (/home/{user}/.local/share/applications) are installed for that user specifically.

That part is my understanding as well.

The part that confuses me is that Catfish finds files in all kinds of places in ~/ besides just ~/.local/share/applications, and some of them appear in the Applications menu and others do not. And ditto for /. Somewhere there has to be a list of places where .desktop files will be used, so what appears in the menu and what does not will make sense.

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#1 2018-05-28 05:28:24

Menu editors

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Re: Menu editors

#3 2018-05-28 11:14:53

Re: Menu editors

#4 2018-05-28 17:24:30

Re: Menu editors

#5 2018-05-28 17:45:26

Re: Menu editors

#6 2018-05-28 18:43:02

Re: Menu editors

#7 2018-05-28 19:06:41

Re: Menu editors

#8 2018-05-28 19:24:55

Re: Menu editors

#9 2018-05-28 19:37:02

Re: Menu editors

#10 2018-05-29 01:25:14

Re: Menu editors

#11 2018-05-29 20:17:28

Re: Menu editors

#12 2018-05-29 22:55:09

Re: Menu editors

#13 2018-05-30 00:59:18

Re: Menu editors

#14 2018-05-30 01:19:35

Re: Menu editors

#15 2018-05-30 02:57:40

Re: Menu editors

#16 2018-05-30 02:59:54

Re: Menu editors

#17 2018-05-30 04:12:16

Re: Menu editors

#18 2018-05-30 13:55:24

Re: Menu editors

#19 2018-05-30 15:29:13

Re: Menu editors

#20 2018-05-30 16:09:16

Re: Menu editors

#21 2018-05-31 17:14:29

Re: Menu editors

#22 2018-05-31 18:01:54

Re: Menu editors

#23 2018-05-31 20:19:00

Re: Menu editors

#24 2018-06-01 05:03:42

Re: Menu editors

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Re: Menu editors

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