AppIndicator Support For GNOME Shell With A New Extension

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X0JfKfJlNCc/UTFcw-_Z7rI/AAAAAAAAOTk/7q6FcL-r518/s1600/gnome-shell-indicators.png" imageanchor="1" rel="image_group" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="GNOME Shell AppIndicator support"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X0JfKfJlNCc/UTFcw-_Z7rI/AAAAAAAAOTk/7q6FcL-r518/s320/gnome-shell-indicators.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>A new extension adds native-looking Ubuntu Unity like AppIndicator support for GNOME Shell</b>, a feature for which some <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2011/06/gnome-shell-might-support-appindicators.html">patches were submited</a> more than a year ago, but they were rejected because the feature "conflicts with the design".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">AppIndicators have are widely used now, with Ubuntu disabling the message tray (systray) by default, and popular applications like Dropbox or <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2013/02/get-ubuntu-mono-icons-for-steam-ubuntu.html">Steam</a> come with AppIndicator support by default.</div><br /><br /><a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>AppIndicator support for GNOME Shell is a GNOME Shell extension, which, like the name says, integrates AppIndicators into GNOME Shell and it's based on the original patches I've mentioned above, created by Giovanni Campagna.</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The extension is a bit rough on the edges, but it generally works well and is basically the same as in Unity, but using GNOME Shell's theming / style.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In my short test, there was only one AppIndicator that didn't work: <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2011/06/use-classic-menu-in-unity-classicmenu.html">ClassicMenu Indicator</a>, which is probably related to its multiple submenus, but other than that, all the AppIndicators that I've tried worked as expected, and I've tried quite a few, including Steam, <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2012/11/google-calendar-indicator-adds-options.html">Calendar Indicator</a>, <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2011/09/ubuntu-indicator-for-qt-applications.html">Skype</a> (which uses sni-qt as it doesn't come with AppIndicator support by default - this is used by all Qt apps), <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2012/07/monitor-hardware-temperature-in-ubuntu.html">Psensor</a>, <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2012/05/2-ways-to-temporarily-disable.html">Caffeine</a>, <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2013/02/everpad-25-released-with-note-sharing.html">Everpad</a>, <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2012/11/variety-wallpaper-changer-sees-new.html">Variety</a>, <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2012/12/get-htc-like-weather-clock-widget-in.html">My Weather Indicator</a> and Dropbox. Even the Ubuntu Network Manager indicator (a system indicator) has showed up.</div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-McDeAG-S-K0/UTFdGrqIGAI/AAAAAAAAOTs/zOp_DDdQ3_Y/s1600/gshell-appindicator-dropbox.png" imageanchor="1" rel="image_group" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Dropbox"><img border="0" height="219" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-McDeAG-S-K0/UTFdGrqIGAI/AAAAAAAAOTs/zOp_DDdQ3_Y/s320/gshell-appindicator-dropbox.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dropbox</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4Q7XfuZmF0w/UTFdGsbJiQI/AAAAAAAAOTw/wF-oKFxDeAU/s1600/gnome-shell-appindicator-variety.png" imageanchor="1" rel="image_group" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Variety Wallpaper Changer"><img border="0" height="253" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4Q7XfuZmF0w/UTFdGsbJiQI/AAAAAAAAOTw/wF-oKFxDeAU/s320/gnome-shell-appindicator-variety.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Variety Wallpaper Changer</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--3Ew_H6p50I/UTFdGhPXTjI/AAAAAAAAOT0/YJDEqmUGh1w/s1600/gnome-shell-appindicator-system-load.png" imageanchor="1" rel="image_group" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="System Load Indicator"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--3Ew_H6p50I/UTFdGhPXTjI/AAAAAAAAOT0/YJDEqmUGh1w/s320/gnome-shell-appindicator-system-load.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">System Load Indicator</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AbePedYA_6Q/UTFeACwy-lI/AAAAAAAAOUU/cBa2helM4D4/s1600/gnome-shell-appindicator-skype.png" imageanchor="1" rel="image_group" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Skype"><img border="0" height="243" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AbePedYA_6Q/UTFeACwy-lI/AAAAAAAAOUU/cBa2helM4D4/s320/gnome-shell-appindicator-skype.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Skype</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">AppIndicator extension for GNOME Shell comes with a <b>configuration tool</b> which you can use to <b>set the AppIndicators position: on the top bar and/or in the Message Tray </b>(you can even have some in the Top Bar and some in the Message Tray), as well as an option to <b>hide some of the existing AppIndicators:</b></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ublYeZkuZMU/UTFdPtUrJZI/AAAAAAAAOUI/IpiEw6DOMHk/s1600/gnome-shell-appindicator-config.png" imageanchor="1" rel="image_group" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ublYeZkuZMU/UTFdPtUrJZI/AAAAAAAAOUI/IpiEw6DOMHk/s320/gnome-shell-appindicator-config.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1VBEiAQ6OVU/UTFdPtMAzKI/AAAAAAAAOUE/mgqoZHTqvG8/s1600/gnome-shell-appindicator-bottom.png" imageanchor="1" rel="image_group" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Steam AppIndicator in the Message Tray"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1VBEiAQ6OVU/UTFdPtMAzKI/AAAAAAAAOUE/mgqoZHTqvG8/s320/gnome-shell-appindicator-bottom.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">GNOME Shell AppIndicators in the Message Tray</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">As you can see, however, the AppIndicator icons look a lot better on the top panel. The icons don't match those used in Unity though, so they don't have a consistent look.<br />  <br />According to its <a href="https://github.com/rgcjonas/gnome-shell-extension-appindicator">GitHub page</a>, the extension is missing the following features:<br /><ul><li>support for oversized icons like the ones used by indicator-multiload (although this AppIndicator has worked in my test somehow);</li><li>labels are only supported on the Top Panel (so for instance, My Weather Indicator won't display the current weather text if used in the Message Tray);</li><li>overlay icons, icons pixmaps and tooltips. </li></ul></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">So what's next? Maybe proper Unity-like AppMenu (<a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2011/11/install-gnome-shell-global-menu-in.html">global menu</a>) support? Some users sure hope so and this may be a step in that direction.</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><h2>Install AppIndicator Support extension for GNOME Shell</h2><br /><br />I've tested the AppIndicator extension using <b>GNOME Shell 3.6</b> (in Ubuntu 13.04 Raring Ringtail) and looking at the metadata file, that's the only GNOME Shell version it supports right now. Update: the theme should also work with GNOME Shell versions newer than 3.6 - simply change the GNOME Shell version in the metadata file under ~/.local/share/gnome-shell/extensions/appindicatorsupport@rgcjonas.gmail.com/ (thanks to Mathias Rudolf for the confirmation).<br /><br /><b>You can install AppIndicator Support GNOME Shell extension from <a href="https://extensions.gnome.org/extension/615/appindicator-support/">extensions.gnome.org</a> or get the code via <a href="https://github.com/rgcjonas/gnome-shell-extension-appindicator">GitHub</a>.</b><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Important: <b>by default, the AppIndicators will be displayed at the bottom</b>, <b>in the Message Tray</b>. To change their position, use the built-in tool by clicking on the settings icon next to the extension name, either on the <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vDHl-AHBOlg/UTFi4RvLUdI/AAAAAAAAOUc/kTrTaH0ssXY/s1600/gnome-shell-extension-settings-icon.png">website</a> or in <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1m_wczkkX-g/UTFjFloseiI/AAAAAAAAOUs/LUfHc38_1lQ/s1600/gnome-shell-extension-settings-tweak-tool.png">GNOME Tweak Tool</a>.<br /><br />The extension has just been released so you may find bugs. In case you do, report them @ <a href="https://github.com/rgcjonas/gnome-shell-extension-appindicator/issues">GitHub</a>. </div>

AppIndicator Support For GNOME Shell With A New Extension

A new extension adds native-looking Ubuntu Unity like AppIndicator support for GNOME Shell , a feature for which some patches were submited ...

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How To Disable The GNOME Shell AppMenu While Retaining Its Functionality

<div style="text-align: justify;">GNOME has introduced the AppMenu for some of its core applications a while back (for some applications like Epiphany, with GNOME 3.4 and for others like Nautilus, etc. with GNOME 3.6), meaning that part of the menu or the whole menu is displayed as a drop-down on the top GNOME Shell bar:</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CssfIqYJULc/USeVanQHvZI/AAAAAAAAOEU/x7oGlaoFMbE/s1600/gnome-shell-appmenu.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="GNOME Shell AppMenu Nautilus" border="0" height="187" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CssfIqYJULc/USeVanQHvZI/AAAAAAAAOEU/x7oGlaoFMbE/s320/gnome-shell-appmenu.png" title="GNOME Shell AppMenu Nautilus" width="320" /></a></div><br /><a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Some applications now have two menus:</b> an <b>AppMenu</b> that's displayed on the top GNOME Shell bar which is used for <b>actions that affect the entire application</b> and <b>another menu that's displayed in the application window, which affects the currently focused window</b>.  Such applications include: Nautilus 3.6+ (the AppMenu includes: Preferences, New Window items, etc., while the cog menu that's displayed in the application window can be used to open a new tab, create a new folder, etc.), Totem 3.6+ (uses an AppMenu and a regular horizontal window menu) or Epiphany (Web) browser.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Other GNOME applications only use an AppMenu, without a secondary window menu: GNOME Documents, Contacts, Boxes, Cheese or Empathy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">While using an AppMenu for actions that affect the entire application and another one for window-specific actions makes sense in theory, in reality this seems to have caused confusion, inconsistency and some would say that it brings no real benefit. Further more, <b>GNOME Shell's top bar is only displayed on the main monitor </b>when using multiple monitors and thus, if you want to access it for an application that's displayed on another monitor, the mouse needs to travel a considerable distance.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">And this isn't confusing just for GNOME Shell users. <b>The GNOME Shell AppMenu is also used in Unity and for instance, in Nautilus 3.6 (which is installed by default in Ubuntu 13.04 and can easily be <a href="http://www.webupd8.org/2012/10/how-to-install-nautilus-36-or-patched.html">installed in Ubuntu 12.10</a> using the GNOME 3 PPA)</b>, it's not clear that there's a menu on the top Unity panel:</div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kMPFSf6ZWlc/USeV1k4fRZI/AAAAAAAAOEc/L4wtCSagBYs/s1600/nautilus-unity-confusing.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Nautilus 3.6 Unity" border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kMPFSf6ZWlc/USeV1k4fRZI/AAAAAAAAOEc/L4wtCSagBYs/s320/nautilus-unity-confusing.png" title="Nautilus 3.6 Unity" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It doesn't look like there's a menu on the top panel</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kRf5yngBOh0/USeV173_dOI/AAAAAAAAOEg/Whu8Xao39y0/s1600/nautilus-unity-confusing_2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Nautilus 3.6 Unity" border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kRf5yngBOh0/USeV173_dOI/AAAAAAAAOEg/Whu8Xao39y0/s320/nautilus-unity-confusing_2.png" title="Nautilus 3.6 Unity" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">But there is a menu...</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Further more, Ubuntu 13.04 (with Unity) users can't access the Totem preferences<b>, </b>among other menu items, because Totem uses the classic horizontal menu and thus, the menu is displayed on the top Unity panel, so the Shell AppMenu is not displayed at all - I've reported the bug <a href="https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/totem/+bug/1131754">here</a>, hopefully this will be fixed in Ubuntu.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">So here's how to remove the AppMenu, but retain its functionality.</div><br /><br /><br /><h2>How the menus will work after disabling the GNOME Shell AppMenu</h2><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Removing the GNOME Shell AppMenu doesn't mean you'll lose the AppMenu menu items. They will still be available - here's how things will work after using the instructions below:</b></div><ul><li style="text-align: justify;">for Nautilus 3.6+ and Epiphany 3.6+, the contents of the AppMenu will be merged into the Cog menu; for Epiphany 3.4, the Shell AppMenu will be displayed in the application window, but not as a horizontal menu bar but as a single menu item;</li><li style="text-align: justify;">GNOME Shell: for Totem 3.6+, you'll get a new menu in the application window, so the menu will be displayed on two lines. I'm not aware of a work-around for this (hopefully, Totem will at least get a cog menu soon);</li><li style="text-align: justify;">Unity: this tweak will only affect Nautilus 3.6+ and Epiphany 3.6+. For applications that only have a Shell AppMenu, the menu will continue to only be displayed on the top panel. Also, for Nautilus 3.6 and Epiphany 3.6, the contents of the Shell AppMenu will be merged in the cog menu, but it will also be displayed on the top panel;</li><li style="text-align: justify;">for the applications that only use a Shell AppMenu (GNOME Documents, Contacts, Empathy, Cheese, etc.), the menu will be displayed in the application window, but not as a horizontal menu bar but as a single menu item (see screenshot below).</li></ul><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5MTgJj-96Lk/USevFlwyPPI/AAAAAAAAOE0/N5VworbN9Z0/s1600/gnome-documents.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="GNOME Documents AppMenu displayed in the window" border="0" height="102" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5MTgJj-96Lk/USevFlwyPPI/AAAAAAAAOE0/N5VworbN9Z0/s320/gnome-documents.png" title="GNOME Documents AppMenu displayed in the window" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">GNOME Documents with the AppMenu displayed in the application window</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">And an extra note for Unity with Totem 3.6+ (installed by default in Ubuntu 13.04 Raring Ringtail): you can get access to Totem's Shell AppMenu without using the tweak below, by launching Totem with "<i>UBUNTU_MENUPROXY=0 totem</i>" so you'll get the regular menu in the application window and the Shell AppMenu on the top Unity panel (actually, using the tweak below won't fix Totem and you'll still have to use that command).</div><br /><br /><br /><h2>Disable the GNOME Shell AppMenu</h2><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Don't worry, if you don't like the way things work after disabling the Shell Appmenu, you can easily revert this change.</div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>GNOME Shell 3.4:</b> To disable the AppMenu but still get the AppMenu functionality in the application window, simply install the <a href="https://extensions.gnome.org/extension/32/remove-panel-app-menu/">Remove Panel App Menu</a> GNOME Shell extension.</div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>GNOME Shell 3.6: </b>The Remove Panel App Menu extension doesn't yet support GNOME Shell 3.6, but you can still remove the AppMenu and get its functionality in the application window. To do this, firstly install the <a href="https://extensions.gnome.org/extension/591/remove-app-menu/">Remove App Menu</a> GNOME Shell extension. Unlike the other extension, this one only only removes the AppMenu from the top GNOME Shell panel, but the AppMenu functionality isn't added to the application window. To get the AppMenu functionality in the main application window, you can simply use the command below:</div><pre class="linux-code"><code>gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.xsettings overrides '@a{sv} {"Gtk/ShellShowsAppMenu": <int32 0>}'</code></pre><br />You can also use the command above if you want the AppMenu functionality in the main application window, but you also want the AppMenu to be displayed on the top GNOME Shell panel.<br /><br /><b> If you want to revert this change use the command below:</b><br /><pre class="linux-code"><code>gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.xsettings overrides '@a{sv} {}'</code></pre>and also, disable the  extension (either "Remove App Menu" or "Remove Panel App Menu", depending on which you've installed).<br /><br />You don't need to restart GNOME Shell or even the applications -  the changes will be applied instantly. <br /><br /><b>Since Unity users can't install GNOME Shell extensions, they can use the same command as above to get the AppMenu functionality in the "cog" menu for Nautilus 3.6+ and Epiphany 3.6+.</b><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><i>some bits via GNOME Shell <a href="https://mail.gnome.org/archives/gnome-shell-list/2013-February/thread.html">mailing list</a>.</i></div>

How To Disable The GNOME Shell AppMenu While Retaining Its Functionality

GNOME has introduced the AppMenu for some of its core applications a while back (for some applications like Epiphany, with GNOME 3.4 and for...

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GPaste GNOME Shell Clipboard Manager Available For Ubuntu 12.10 (GNOME Shell 3.6)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-scRDEuF15MY/UI7F4trqYwI/AAAAAAAALZA/KyVZUHPe_ik/s1600/gpaste-2.9.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="gpaste" border="0" height="140" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-scRDEuF15MY/UI7F4trqYwI/AAAAAAAALZA/KyVZUHPe_ik/s320/gpaste-2.9.png" title="gpaste" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><a href="https://github.com/Keruspe/GPaste">GPaste</a>, a native GNOME Shell clipboard manager, is now available for Ubuntu 12.10 / GNOME Shell 3.6 through the WebUpd8 GNOME 3 PPA.</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">GPaste features uris support (remembers copied files, not just text), a command line tool, option to backup / restore clipboard history, image support and other useful options.</div><br /><a name='more'></a><br /><h2>Install GPaste in Ubuntu 12.10</h2><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>To install GPaste in Ubuntu 12.10 (with GNOME Shell 3.6), use the following commands:</b></div><pre class="linux-code"><code>sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/gnome3<br />sudo apt-get update<br />sudo apt-get install gnome-shell-extensions-gpaste</code></pre><br />Once installed, enable the extension using <a href="https://apps.ubuntu.com/cat/applications/gnome-tweak-tool/">GNOME Tweak Tool</a>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Note: there's a memory leak when enabling the image support (it occurs when taking a screenshot for instance). For this reason, I've disabled it by default in GPaste package available in our PPA but you can enable it from the GPaste settings if you want to use it anyway.</div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><i>Unfortunately, the latest GPaste 2.9 doesn't compile successfully for Ubuntu 12.04, that's why the latest version is only available for Ubuntu 12.10.</i></div>

GPaste GNOME Shell Clipboard Manager Available For Ubuntu 12.10 (GNOME Shell 3.6)

GPaste , a native GNOME Shell clipboard manager, is now available for Ubuntu 12.10 / GNOME Shell 3.6 through the WebUpd8 GNOME 3 PPA. GPaste...

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