How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

Extreme Coder · 2006-11-24 19:58:50

Hey guys.
I installed Xubuntu 6.10(Edgy) a while ago, and everything was fine. i wanted to update Xfce, so I installed it, and everything is still fine, except that when I right click, the Xfce menu pops up, instead of the desktop menu that appeared when I right-clicked before the Xfce update. the menu I want appears when I right click on an icon, is the bottom choice(desktop).

the set of options I am talking about is:
Create Launcher
Create from Template...
Copy...
Paste
Desktop settings
Desktop options

So my question is:
How do I make that when I right click anywhere on the desktop(icon or not) the desktop set of options appear?

Thanks.

SimonJ · 2006-11-25 02:57:57

You may want to check this out Solved Desktop Icons in Ver 4.3.99.1

xanthon · 2006-11-25 12:55:06

Hi. That doesn't work for me. There is no "Behaviour" tab because I have not updated. And this question is NOT about desktop icons, it's about getting the menu (containing application shortcuts and so on) when you right-click on the desktop. You should also get the window-list when you middle click on the desktop. I couldn't care less about the icons - I never use them.

I tried to update Xfce but Synaptic copped out without completing the process and it was then, I believe, that I lost the right-click for desktop and middle-click for window list.

Now right-click gets me the silly menu which Extreme Code mentioned and middle-click gets nothing.

I uninstalled Xfce4, then reinstalled. I also tried removing my .config folder so that I started with a clean slate. None of that worked. The obnoxious menu is there and the other menu and list have gone. o me miserum. :-(

BTW, if I update to 4.3.90, do I lose the system tray, as some of the messages from Synaptic suggest?

SimonJ · 2006-11-26 05:10:09

You may want to tick Show desktop menu on right click

xanthon · 2006-11-26 06:20:50

Good idea. It has been ticked all along. I've tried unticking and re-ticking, to no avail.

I've uninstalled my older Xfce, because neither Synaptic nor Smart could upgrade it, and installed a newer version, so I now have the "Behaviour" tab.

The interesting (did I say interesting?) thing is that now the commands (in the silly context menu which has supplanted the desktop menu) no longer work.

I think I need to locate the relevant config file and do brutal things to it.

EDIT: Strange to relate, opening and closing that settings module, has restored the desktop menu and window list. Ah, sweet peace. Thanks for your patience.

xanthon · 2006-11-26 23:33:32

From someone on the mailing list, I've learnt that this problem may be caused by running Nautilus. I ran Nautilus in the early stages without using the --no-desktop option, which may not have helped anyway.

I find that Nautilus has been running hidden and the running instances have been saved with each session. Thus, the problem recurred after apparently being fixed.

There is an option on the Desktop settings module "Allow Xfce to manage Desktop". The cure seems to be to select that and kill any running instances of Nautilus. Thunar provides a good alternative to Nautilus.

Extreme Coder · 2006-12-02 13:42:40

I'm back ;D
Literally, I went on a trip:
I tried GNOME, Fluxbox, and KDE. My conclusion is that:
GNOME is Xfce with more bloat(or you could say Xfce is GNOME with less bloat tongue )
Fluxbox is too minimalistic to be usable for me.
KDE is ok, but it is a resource hog after all.
I do plan on using Xfce as my main session, but only after I figure out this problem. I will take a few screenshots to show you what is my problem.

Thanks in advance.

xanthon · 2006-12-02 21:52:59

1. Open the Task Manager and kill all instances of Nautilus.

2. If you use Nautilus again, add --no-desktop to the command line. Check the Task Manager again to make sure all instances stop when you exit the browser; if they don't, use Thunar instead of Nautilus. (I use Konqueror as well.)

3. Select Desktop settings and make sure Xfce is again appointed manager of the desktop and that the menu option is selected.

4. Save the session when you log out.

Extreme Coder · 2006-12-03 13:02:19

Thanks, I will check this ASAP! and reply with the results.
I also wonder why would one use Nautilus instead of Thunar? Thunar is made for Xfce, so I guess it may result in better performance. any other reasons?

xanthon · 2006-12-03 13:22:56

When I first used Xfce (like, last month), I had an older version which did not have Thunar. I couldn't remember what Nautilus was like but it looked more the part than whatever that other file browser is called.

I was used to using Konqueror and still use it for file management proper, such as moving files around. I would use it to open files as well except that it repeatedly forgets non-kde file associations.

Thunar really isn't good for anything except opening files where it's about the same as Nautilus. The lack of tabs is a nuisance even when it comes to finding files.

Extreme Coder · 2006-12-03 13:43:30

I don't know how, I don't know why, but:
Nautilus actually was running for some reason even though I never used it.
I followed your steps and my menu is back big_smile

Thanks a lot xanthon.

(BTW, another simple question: Is there a difference in speed of GTK and GNOME applications when running on Xfce? Which runs faster? Thx)

xanthon · 2006-12-03 23:19:56

Perhaps Nautilus is activated by Gnome apps? The only Gnome app I envisage using is File-Roller and it isn't worth keeping just for that, so Gnome is about to become history.

All my apps open faster on Xfce than they did on Kde. In addition, configuration is a lot simpler - if you've ever configured Konsole, you'd know what I mean. There is something about Xfce - it is much more pleasant to use. Perhaps it's just that it's faster.

Extreme Coder · 2006-12-05 19:43:54

Thanks, but you got me wrong. What I actually meant is that:
If you have the same app but two versions: gnome version(version that depends on gnome libs) or gtk version. Which of these would produce faster performance on your PC? I was just making sure lol

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#1 2006-11-24 19:58:50

How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#2 2006-11-25 02:57:57

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#3 2006-11-25 12:55:06

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#4 2006-11-26 05:10:09

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#5 2006-11-26 06:20:50

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#6 2006-11-26 23:33:32

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#7 2006-12-02 13:42:40

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#8 2006-12-02 21:52:59

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#9 2006-12-03 13:02:19

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#10 2006-12-03 13:22:56

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#11 2006-12-03 13:43:30

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#12 2006-12-03 23:19:56

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

#13 2006-12-05 19:43:54

Re: How to make right-click activate desktop menu?

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