Who uses pure GNOME (no extensions)

I really like gnome and how it looks. However every time I try it I find myself in need of more functionality and so I install a bunch of extensions. For example I can’t live without a dock and some sort of system tray that shows which apps are running in background.

Sometimes the extensions have small UI inconsistencies or use more memory than usual. That’s why I totally ditched gnome and switch to KDE.

Also I tend to think it’s been designed for people who are more comfortable using a keyboard. I’m mostly a mouse person.

Do any of you run pure gnome with no extensions? How do you cope with the lack of a dock and system tray?

Euphoma, (edited )

I only use an extension for tray icons. I use it kind of like how I would use a tiling window manager with a keyboard based workflow and non tiling windows. I just hit the super key and type app names to launch stuff and drag windows around with the super key. Instead of alt-tabbing I hit the super key to see the overview and click on the window I want.

In the newest gnome versions, there’s a menu that shows you what apps are in the background, so if you know what apps are already open. I’m not a huge fan of that but I wouldn’t really care if my tray icons didn’t work because its close enough.

tekeous,

I’m using pure GNOME with the exception of a single extension which tiles windows on my screen on a grid(gTile) because I have a massive screen and five windows. I also have an icon pack if you’re counting that. Rest of it is stock and I quite like it. It gets out of my way when I’m trying to work and the alt+tab and other features are always fast. Top left hot corner is a godsend.

serratur,

The only extension I really need is hot edge, I never liked the hot corner and I will never like it, especially since I have a super ultra wide.

Spectacle8011,
@Spectacle8011@lemmy.comfysnug.space avatar

I use both GNOME and KDE. I do have a system tray, but it’s for a single program: fcitx-mozc. If I didn’t need to build ibus-mozc from source, I would just use that. iBus IMEs get their own spot in the top right without needing appindicators. That being said, I don’t need the system tray either as I can just switch between Japanese and English with CTRL+SPACE. But it’s nice to have some kind of constant indication what IME I’m using.

On the subject of a dock, though, I love the way GNOME completely separates it from the workspace. It just takes up space and I don’t have any utility for it. Windows and macOS only allow you to hide the dock; not remove it completely. I’ve accidentally opened the dock by moving my cursor to the corner of the screen way too many times and it is sooo annoying. This never happens on GNOME because it’s just not possible.

Also I tend to think it’s been designed for people who are more comfortable using a keyboard. I’m mostly a mouse person.

That’s absolutely true, but you can navigate GNOME completely with a mouse. If you’re on a laptop, you can use the trackpad to flick between workspaces with three fingers. Every aspect of the GNOME desktop is navigable with the mouse, including the Activity Overview. GNOME’s workflow changed the way I use computers.

One thing I miss from KDE is GNOME’s tiling. KDE’s is far more inconsistent. But there are a lot of things I like more about KDE too. I use it in basically the same way as GNOME.

kzhe,

I use the pure GNOME workflow with the exception of pop shell and scroll panel. Few aesthetics here and there.

Presi300,
@Presi300@lemmy.world avatar

I used to use gnome with just a system tray extension until very recently, though I’ve now switched to plasma… And copied my gnome workflow there

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