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A Walkthrough Of Enlightenment's New Launcher "Luncher"

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  • A Walkthrough Of Enlightenment's New Launcher "Luncher"

    Phoronix: A Walkthrough Of Enlightenment's New Launcher "Luncher"

    A few weeks back we wrote briefly about Enlightenment landing a new launcher named Luncher. The Samsung developers have now posted more details about this project...

    Phoronix, Linux Hardware Reviews, Linux hardware benchmarks, Linux server benchmarks, Linux benchmarking, Desktop Linux, Linux performance, Open Source graphics, Linux How To, Ubuntu benchmarks, Ubuntu hardware, Phoronix Test Suite

  • #2
    Is this strictly a launcher? Can we have it act more like a dock where:

    Clicking on a closed app launches it.
    Clicking on open app with one window minimizes it.
    Clicking on open app with multiple windows, shows an expose like overview with only those apps.

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    • #3
      Originally posted by slacka View Post
      Is this strictly a launcher? Can we have it act more like a dock where:

      Clicking on a closed app launches it.
      Clicking on open app with one window minimizes it.
      Clicking on open app with multiple windows, shows an expose like overview with only those apps.
      that's how ibar has worked for ages EXCEPT the "clicking an open app with one window minimized" bit. it has popped up a menu with window content live thumbnails to select the window to "focus" as opposed to just clicking the icon does this. there is an option under "settings -> apps -> desktop environment" at the top "only launch single instances" if you want a single instance kind of ui (mobile/tablet-like) and THEN clicking on the icon will focus the window when you click on it like a taskbar. you can right click on the window in the popup menu too and get a menu for actions like minimize etc. - i really think minimizing on click would be really bad - focusing is far more logical and as above... that's an option.

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      • #4
        Originally posted by raster View Post
        there is an option under "settings -> apps -> desktop environment" at the top "only launch single instances" if you want a single instance kind of ui (mobile/tablet-like)
        The actual term for that kind of interaction is "application-centric GUI".

        The opposite end of the spectrum is a "document-centric GUI" like on the Apple Lisa where you couldn't open an application directly but, instead, had to tear a new document off a special "blank pad" file and then double-click it.

        I think you can see why most systems sit in the middle.


        Originally posted by raster View Post
        i really think minimizing on click would be really bad - focusing is far more logical and as above... that's an option.
        I think what's being asked for is "focus if not focused, minimize if focused", similar to how pretty much any taskbar all the way back to Windows 95 will do it. If that's the case, he's just asking for behaviour equivalent to how pinned apps behave on the Windows 7 taskbar.

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        • #5
          Originally posted by ssokolow View Post
          The actual term for that kind of interaction is "application-centric GUI".
          I have never heard that term used before, but document-centric i have. but... neither has to do with "i click a representation of an app as an icon on the screen and it will always show/focus/ the running app as opposed to launch an new instance of it".

          every quick-launcher since i can remember (back to the 1980's) would launch a new instance of an app. the applications menu what i saw in win95 would launch a new instance... and later a quick launch bar appeared too. ibar works the same. it was a shortcut launcher. it got the pseudo-i-can-do-other-things later on. tbh i never wanted that nor cared as i never grew up on windows nor mac. i grew up on amiga then unix/x11 and the desire to mimic this and why everyone pretty much goes "well then it's useless *exasperated sigh*" baffles me. it smells of people unable to change their behavior at all and just want what they already have. you can get it mostly... but i've never been a fan. i find the whole idea that i should have just one of any app infuriating...

          Originally posted by ssokolow View Post
          The opposite end of the spectrum is a "document-centric GUI" like on the Apple Lisa where you couldn't open an application directly but, instead, had to tear a new document off a special "blank pad" file and then double-click it.
          I am not sure this is even the topic here. it's the "i want really by default a single instance of any process and i want my ui to behave as if this is the one true way of a ui, so of COURSE when i click on an icon and app already runs i want app focused". it actually is a cakewalk to add the "then also unfocus if focused" ... though the description said this was the only action it should have... thus i wasn't going to even think of adding it for reasons given.

          Originally posted by ssokolow View Post
          I think what's being asked for is "focus if not focused, minimize if focused", similar to how pretty much any taskbar all the way back to Windows 95 will do it. If that's the case, he's just asking for behaviour equivalent to how pinned apps behave on the Windows 7 taskbar
          and i think this is the issue. e was made ... or a lot of its core... by me and i totally detested what i saw in taskabrs as well as the whole "let's maximize every window and switch with a taskbar" way of working rather than using virtual desktops or laying out windows to not overlap (much). i never actually used it beyond the very odd occasion i had windows thrust upon me... and thus things in e don't work this way. i wrote tasks module+gadget to "shut people up". here's your taskbar - be happy. it's an option. you're asked about it on first run (if you want it or not). it actually does just that - click the task button and it toggles minimized state and focuses. it's been in e for years. now everyone wants what was the quicklauncher icon bar to BE a taskbar like the osx dock. now mimic OSX instead. it wasn't meant to be this, but it's been semi-beaten into that shape while still being a launcher until you enable single-instance mode.

          i'm just saying that the whole "how on earth could you not design it to work exactly like windows taskbars so give that to me" view of the world is not the view of the world behind the original design. i know i'm not a "i used windows or mac and now want to map my workflow onto linux/enlightenment" person. that's why it just doesn't work the same. that's by intent and design. if you want it to work the same there will be friction. but it can be done. for that you (the general you) need to be very specific on what you want and why because we don't share a view of the world and how it should work.

          you were much clearer on that and that is good. thanks.

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by raster View Post
            i find the whole idea that i should have just one of any app infuriating...
            It makes some sense in the context of a browser that has their own windows management (tabs) and can't \ won't switch to daemon\client model to have the history, bookmarks and so on synced between processes.

            Slightly off subject, have you guys considered writing a browser extension for chrome & firefox (I think they use the same extensions APIs now?) that exposes the open tabs for your launcher to manage? Windows been doing something similar with internet explorer where by different tabs are exposed as a sub-menu.

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            • #7
              Originally posted by c117152 View Post
              It makes some sense in the context of a browser that has their own windows management (tabs) and can't \ won't switch to daemon\client model to have the history, bookmarks and so on synced between processes.
              well ok - but such apps are doing it to themselves already (run and it connects to an existing instance of itself passing params) so that's a "solved problem".

              Originally posted by c117152 View Post
              Slightly off subject, have you guys considered writing a browser extension for chrome & firefox (I think they use the same extensions APIs now?) that exposes the open tabs for your launcher to manage? Windows been doing something similar with internet explorer where by different tabs are exposed as a sub-menu.
              actually haven't considered it. have never looked. to do it an extension would have to be able to talk to the system somehow (unix socket, abstract unix socket, dbus, even set properties on an x11 window - which isn't portable to wayland...). i don't know if this is allowed. smells to me like it'd be "privileged" and maybe not allowed. of course if browsers did this anyway/already that might be a different story...

              Comment


              • #8

                Originally posted by raster View Post
                well ok - but such apps are doing it to themselves already.
                Not on small screen devices. Navigating multiple tabs in Firefox or Chrome on a smartphone or even a tablet is a pain in the ass.

                [/QUOTE]i don't know if this is allowed. smells to me like it'd be "privileged" and maybe not allowed. of course if browsers did this anyway/already that might be a different story...[/QUOTE]

                There's similar stuff like the notifications API that does IPC from browsers to daemons: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/...ifications_API

                Originally posted by raster View Post
                actually haven't considered it. have never looked. to do it an extension would have to be able to talk to the system somehow (unix socket, abstract unix socket, dbus, even set properties on an x11 window - which isn't portable to wayland...).
                I think an extension that sets all new tabs as new windows and then does something with WmClass could do it... Assuming there's existing APIs for any of this. Well, something to consider if you guys ever deicide to write your own browser I suppose :3

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