How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

DEF · 2009-09-25 21:47:15

Hi !
I succeeded in removing icons, but i'm still allowed to create files and folders on the desktop.
Also, when i delete /home/def/Desktop, this folder reappears !!! It is very annoying :^(

How can i disable this ?

BTW, the separation between Desktop and /home/user is a very bad idea, invented with windows and unfortunately copied by many window manager...

For my part, i prefer to keep it clean.

ManOfSteel · 2009-09-25 22:07:24

- "Settings" > "Desktop" > "Icons" tab > "Icon type:" > "None"

And if it's not enough...
- "Settings" > "Session and Startup" > "Session" tab > select "xfdesktop" > "Quit Program" > "Save Session" (never tried it, use at your own risk)

DEF · 2009-09-26 20:18:20

Thanks, but unfortunately, it kills the desktop, right click and wallpaper disappears...
I wonder why we are now forced to use the desktop...
Any other idea ??

martinbaselier · 2009-09-26 23:01:23

If you remove the writing permissions from the folder, won't that solve it?

ManOfSteel · 2009-09-27 09:37:25

DEF wrote:

Thanks, but unfortunately, it kills the desktop, right click and wallpaper disappears...
I wonder why we are now forced to use the desktop...
Any other idea ??

Of course the second solution kills the desktop, since you're telling it to kill the desktop.

If you follow the first solution though, the desktop icons won't be displayed anymore but you'll still have both the root menu and the wallpaper.
Yes, the "Desktop" directory will still be there, but it won't be displayed. You're not forced to use it. Just remove it's contents and it'll be nothing more than an empty directory.
So what's the problem?

DEF · 2009-09-27 17:06:13

Well i know it's not a big problem, but the Desktop folder is useless. And i simply don't want it.
Also, i don't want to see the options "create file, create folder" when i right-click on the desktop. Again because this is useless.
I enjoyed this in previous Xfce releases, so i wonder why this changed without letting us choose the ancient setting...

s0ulslack · 2009-09-27 17:38:32

You'll need to disable Desktop Icons in order to disable the Context Menu. What use is just the Applications Menu when Desktop Icons are enabled? It makes it a pita to use.

For info on modifying the XDG_DESKTOP_DIR, see http://freedesktop.org/wiki/Software/xdg-user-dirs . All of this is set in the default xinitrc for Xfce, located @ /etc/xdg/xfce4/xinitrc

DEF · 2009-09-27 21:48:20

I disabled desktop icons, but i still can create folders and files on the desktop.
I'll take a look @ .xinitrc

s0ulslack · 2009-09-27 23:13:17

Disabled via Desktop Icons via Settings-> Desktop-> Icons? You shouldn't have a context menu, just a Application Menu on right click.

DEF · 2009-09-28 19:01:15

I always have create launcher, URL, folder, from a model...

infinitelink · 2009-09-28 22:26:16

DEF wrote:

BTW, the separation between Desktop and /home/user is a very bad idea, invented with windows and unfortunately copied by many window manager...
For my part, i prefer to keep it clean.

I do/not agree. I have personally changed my Desktop to /home/user before on Linux systems (you can re-set special folders, or symlink them), and liked it, but either way is just a design decision: separating these two isn't a bad idea. If we're using the 'desktop paradigm', the desktop is just that, the top of the desk: that doesn't mean the filing drawers to the left or right, then, need have all their contents on top the desk, nor the smaller desk drawers: things are separated for good reasons.

It just provides versatility: in my user folder there is a 'media' (not the Linux /meda, but mine own for digital meda) folder, the desktop folder, and the 'Public' folder: I might not want either 'Media' or 'Public', or other folders, that go into '[user]' placed on the desktop, such as, perhaps, 'Documents', or to make them hidden folders so they wouldn't show, either; nor would I want all the config files on the Desktop rather than in the user folder.

So again, it's design, and neither bad design, nor a bad idea, just preference: with Linux you can usually have it your way, however, so customize if you will, if you can--I've never merged '/home/user' and the 'Desktop' folder in XFCE, only Gnome and KDE, but something I've found is that in general, better to do this when setting-up a system, rather than later, and also to carefully preserve file and folder permissions.

DEF wrote:

Well i know it's not a big problem, but the Desktop folder is useless. And i simply don't want it.
Also, i don't want to see the options "create file, create folder" when i right-click on the desktop. Again because this is useless.

Note this is opinion, that the Desktop is useless to you (in your mind), but not necessarily anyone. If you want that nobody can create icons/shortcuts/etc., you should open the terminal, type 'sudo thunar' and hit enter, navigate to [user], and change the permissions for 'Desktop' to set ownership thereof to root; doing this will prevent the creation of anything. Either way, however, if the desktop is useless, then why in the world are you clicking on it?

As far as I know, the Desktop on XFCE is not drawn or controlled by Thunar, though I don't know about the context menu, or even whether context menus are even controlled by Thunar, so you may be able to edit the Desktop menu through XML (if that is, in fact, how it's contents are determined, like as the Applications menu is) and remove unwanted items: there may be XML in a config file somewhere, but here's where my personal knowledge ends.

See these links for more, however:
http://support.zenwalk.org/viewtopic.ph … d3&start=0
http://cody.zapto.org/

and one where someone seems to have achieved what you want:
http://forum.xfce.org/index.php?action= … pic=4712.0

addendum:
more (but still mostly just about the applications menu, but may touch on what you're looking for):
http://support.zenwalk.org/viewtopic.ph … view=print

When I select 'None' for Icons under the Desktop Settings, I get the functionality you're looking for, so toggle that setting as it recommends in the link at forum.xfce.org/index... and see; perhaps you'll need to restart your desktop after saving the session or something like that, or maybe select None then log-out and get back to us.

DEF · 2009-09-29 19:59:10

Crushing my own head with a hammer is a bad idea, but there's always someone to say it's a bad idea "in my point of view".
Anyway, i'm not here to discuss if blue is a nice color, or if blue is a color.

So thank you for your links, i'll dig it and i'm hoping to post a solution soon.

geoffleach · 2011-07-23 23:36:02

Could someone update this response for 4.6.5/Fedora 14? Thanks.

Xfce Forum

Sub domains

#1 2009-09-25 21:47:15

How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#2 2009-09-25 22:07:24

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#3 2009-09-26 20:18:20

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#4 2009-09-26 23:01:23

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#5 2009-09-27 09:37:25

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#6 2009-09-27 17:06:13

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#7 2009-09-27 17:38:32

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#8 2009-09-27 21:48:20

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#9 2009-09-27 23:13:17

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#10 2009-09-28 19:01:15

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#11 2009-09-28 22:26:16

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#12 2009-09-29 19:59:10

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

#13 2011-07-23 23:36:02

Re: How to totally disable desktop in 4.6.1 ?

Board footer