Puppy Linux Discussion Forum

[DaveS]

Puppy 4.1 and the brilliant new 4.3 provide a wonderful base upon which to build a distro customised exactly the way you want. This section deals with adding a launchbar to the top of your screen, WITHOUT resorting to adding more megabytes of new program.
A top launchbar is actually a JWM feature, all you have to do is set it up. It consists of nothing more than a text file called whatever you like, in your /root/ directory. Conventionally it is called
.jwmrc-tray-top
Once you have created the text file, you tell jwm where to find it by adding this code to /root/.jwmrc AND /etc/xdg/templates/_root_.jwmrc

[DaveS]

The Text File Format

Creating the text file .jwmrc-tray-top is no big problem, just use your favourite text editor, Geany is good.

It really consists of three sections, the overall 'envelope', the command that sets the screen position etc of the bar, and the commands the bar contains.

The envelope is just a command at the very top that says

[DaveS]

More Complex Launchers

Its worth bearing in mind that you can use these buttons to execute more complex commands. Suppose you use a particular file regularly, maybe a database or home banking file. Maybe you would go to the menu, launch Gnumeric, and then open your file. Well, you could add a launcher that would go straight to it. The command bit of the line would look something like this:

exec:gnumeric /root/my-documents/myfile.*

where myfile.* is the name of your file with its extension.

Pretty much if you can get a command to run in a terminal window, you can make the same command run via a JWM launcher button.

[aarf]

thanks for your efforts DaveS but.....

can we just have a pet to download and click , my mind is now reluctant to do anything more arduous now that puppy has spoiled me

[DaveS]

[aarf]

[caleb72]

Thanks for this - I didn't realise that you could do this without the application. I actually prefer this method of adding the launch bar.

Regards
Caleb

[DaveS]

[Kal]

Ptray was a little too involved and I had to modify the configure file all the time anyway. I earlier had added the top tray to 412, and 430, just the same as you have said. A very nice write up.

Here is a Tray Button I add for getting to the config file:

[DaveS]

Dont forget, you are not restricted to only a top try, or even a single top tray. Here is the code for a side tray that I have for downloading podcasts when I want them:

[aarf]

have found a time where my mind was not on strike or R&R.
from 421

[aarf]

podcasts downloader looks good.
how do you change the background colour of the tray?

[DaveS]

Yay aarf, way to go. The poweroff command in 4.3 is wmpoweroff and is located in /usr/bin

[aarf]

[DaveS]