So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

Samohttnias · 2024-06-30 08:27:54

So I recently installed Arch (like, six times, because I'm still learning as I go), and I don't have any data to worry about yet, I haven't had a computer in years, and that was Mint.
Anyway, I can't stand the taskbar. It looks fine and when I'm just going about my business it's not an issue, but organizing my go-to apps it's like herding cats, and I'm not married to the whole design either, so any suggestions on a different taskbar or functionality to replace it? I don't really know the culture or variety that there is to pick from, but I'd love to rice the devil out of this particular piece of.... carefully and lovingly curated software....

I'm really here just to grab ideas and see what experienced users suggest.

For KDE, for now. I'm not interested in starting from the bottom again, maybe later.

Last edited by Samohttnias (2024-06-30 22:35:40)

cryptearth · 2024-06-30 14:18:32

well - if you don'T like KDE - how about GNOME?

Funny0facer · 2024-06-30 21:28:18

KDE is in general quite customizable. You can browse for example on https://store.kde.org to see, what is possible.

Samohttnias · 2024-06-30 22:33:55

To answer Cryptearth, first, I love KDE. I am perfectly happy with it, though, as I said, not married to it. I chose plasma because I heard KDE was very customizable (and being a form designer, I like a functional and attractive interface). I don't really care about the internet points or anything, I'm doing it for me. So, right now I'm looking for KDE functional modifications, nothing too heavy.
I may look into gnome at a later date, but I want to verse myself in Linux a little more before switching flavors; I heard gnome can be a little more involved and I don't have time to learn a whole new environment. I really only went back to Linux because my old Laptop wouldn't run Windows anymore, and being a Gaming Laptop, that's ridiculous, even with wear and tear.
I'm really here just to grab ideas and see what experienced users suggest.

benm · 2024-07-01 00:55:23

Can you be more clear about what you do not like about it?

seth · 2024-07-01 07:15:02

There're plenty of panels for X11, waylan is gonna be a problem.
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/List_o … r#Taskbars

Samohttnias · 2024-07-02 00:29:01

Thanks again, Seth, I'll look into it.
As for Benm, I just wanted some shopping advice for a replacement module for the "Icon Only Taskmanager", I'd like a different task manager because this one is so buggy. Honestly, though, I'll live if I'm stuck with it. My complaint is almost purely aesthetic.

benm · 2024-07-02 00:40:56

I use the icons and text task manager.

OpusOne · 2024-07-03 02:51:16

Samohttnias wrote:

Thanks again, Seth, I'll look into it.
As for Benm, I just wanted some shopping advice for a replacement module for the "Icon Only Taskmanager", I'd like a different task manager because this one is so buggy. Honestly, though, I'll live if I'm stuck with it. My complaint is almost purely aesthetic.

I don't understand what you mean exactly by "Icon Only". The "task manager" panel has 3 alternatives that you can select if you go into Edit mode. There is Icon only, Icon + Text (which I personally use), and Window List.
As to bugs, I don't think I've run into that many bugs with it. If you're using Wayland, you may experience "window preview", when hovering items in the task manager, occasionally not showing the window content, but a blank content instead. That's a (relatively) long-standing issue with kwin, I think. But that's relatively minor.

I've experienced a couple plasmashell crashes though, with the very latest updates. Not sure what triggers it, but I've seen a number of possibly related tickets on the KDE bug tracker, regarding Plasma 6.1, so that's probably under investigation.

Samohttnias · 2024-07-05 07:56:28

It may just be a glitch on my end, then. I did see the options and I tried them but I run into the same problem there too. I'll keep digging.

V1del · 2024-07-05 10:44:30

Can you clarify your issues, or what it is you'd want to change? It's unclear what doesn't work or what you're looking for. FWIW in KDE 5 times latte dock used to be a quite well received alternative, however development halted. I think someone else picked it back up for a KF6 port, but that's probably not entirely finished yet.

Samohttnias · 2024-07-07 03:31:11

Oh, I think it's just the program. So I use the "Icon Only" variation, for space, and I load it up like a dock. Now obviously they are going to move around as I launch them, so to indicate the "Running" apps from the "Not Running" apps; that's fine. But organizing the pinned icons is like pulling teeth; I'll pick up one icon and then the machine thinks I'm moving Konsole when I originally clicked on Firefox. It's a headache, so I basically gave up on organizing the icons, and just look before I click.
I have a few applications I shuffle through every day, so having a dock is useful to me, but there are enough of them I'd like order in a specific succession. Like Internet{email,browser,freetube] games{retroarch,steam,curseforged] productivity{office,terminal,dolphin].
Like I said it looks like a glitch, or just an unnoticed piece of behaviour, but practically it doesn't impact anything aside from my appetite for visual order. I tried cairo dock, and that kind of worked, but it was too cluttered; latte was like fighting an confused lobster (I would know, I was one) and so I'm just asking if anyone knows of other gadgets that may do the same or better than the built in docks; which are fine.

Last edited by Samohttnias (2024-07-07 16:26:13)

Funny0facer · 2024-07-07 06:26:06

I guess you are describing this upstream bug: https://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=482770

theRedCyclops · 2024-07-10 17:01:29

Have you tried the quicklaunch widget?

Nikolai5 · 2024-10-01 18:31:43

Yeah, its a bug when running wayland, the app icons don't reorder nicely, you have to move it, then double click it when it's moved else it will revert position.

Maybe run X11 for now if your display set up is happy to run under it, despite KDE moving to use Wayland first, X11 is still more stable. Though I understand their reasoning, if nobody uses it, it won't improve.

Arch Linux

#1 2024-06-30 08:27:54

So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#2 2024-06-30 14:18:32

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#3 2024-06-30 21:28:18

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#4 2024-06-30 22:33:55

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#5 2024-07-01 00:55:23

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#6 2024-07-01 07:15:02

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#7 2024-07-02 00:29:01

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#8 2024-07-02 00:40:56

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#9 2024-07-03 02:51:16

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#10 2024-07-05 07:56:28

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#11 2024-07-05 10:44:30

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#12 2024-07-07 03:31:11

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#13 2024-07-07 06:26:06

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#14 2024-07-10 17:01:29

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

#15 2024-10-01 18:31:43

Re: So, I hate the Plasma Task Manager. Suggestions?

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