(old)Puppy Linux Discussion Forum

I am currently using the default Openfox/Rox/FBPanel that comes with this interesting distro.

What WM/DE do you prefer using?

Are there other DE/WM that offer more features, config options etc... than what I am using? Biggest bang for the buck so to speak?

I have Icewm, jwm, and xfce installed and have dabbled with them. I also hear of other WM like 13 which is totally new to me, Fluxbox, and so on and so on.

I am using the same default configuration as you are - with the addition of Wbar which is a light weight dock where I have my favorite and most used applications.

I've tried just about everything else there is and find that although the configuration I use now has less eye candy, it is extremely fast and stable, configurable to the way I work and still nice to look at without any major distractions.

What more could you ask for?

Those are excellent points. I would try wbar but I remember a while back trying it and what I found was that there was no way to quit out of it. Is there a more recent update that I should look at to see if it will meet my needs?

Thanks for the reply!

JWM is well established as Puppy's default WM and I couldn't really argue with that (it's lightweight and very good), but if you want an alternative I think pekwm is worth looking at for its wider range of configuration options.

I never heard of that one. I'll check if it is in the repos and try it out. Thanks for the info!

How do I launch pekwm? I installed it but I don't see it in WMSwitcher.

If you used plogout it'd be fairly easy to set up a new button and so on for convenient switching ~or~ xwin pekwm from the usual cli

No way to quit wbar? Surely you jest - zap it in htop (or do a 'killme' icon in wbar itself with an appropriate cmd). Same goes for the lighter yeahlaunch dropdown. Both are really convenient and basically universal for just about all wms, though. Update wbar? Up to you - I find 133 with the offset patch is all I really need or want (sometimes a config gui just gets in the way).

wm/des are various, my solution is to have a bunch and use whatever works best for the tasks at hand. Yep, jwm is great (do try the latest, btw ) but afaik there's no autoraise .. openbox has lots of nice features (but no one has done it for puppy with imlib2/icons-in-rootmenu yet ), blackbox, fluxbox 'way cool (e16 as well or even e17 if you like), miwm (fast and simple), ctwm, wmx the list goes on and on...

5.28 is Lucid, right?

Yes. The one and only Puppy Lucid 5.2.8. Love it although I would like to love thew other pups out there but for some reason they don't seem to offer the functionality of 5.2.8. Maybe it's me or maybe I just haven't taken the time to fully discover the other pups out there. So many options....

Nope

Windows 5.2.8 took input from virtually everybody on this forum and is just brilliant for the user it is geared for.

Doesn't work on the later Intel iCore Machines but if you haven't got one of those and you have 512K RAM there is no need to use anything else for basic work.

I agree. It's an attractive puppy to use.

Hi.

I did remove all window managers and extra panels from my private version of LazY Puppy (which is based on Lucid 528-004), except: Openbox!

If I want to have a panel I do load the LP2_Tint2_0.11.sfs by a menu entry which is executing a RunScript, that loads the SFS and executes the Tint2 panel after loading the SFS.

Openbox is my favorite window manager because of it's rich options to modify it. And I did modify a whole lot of stuff that has never been seen in any puppy (I think)!



Some features from my modified Openbox Menu:

- several key commands inserted f.e. to execute shutdown-GUI by key command (ctrl-alt-q) or to popup the Openbox menu by key command (ctrl-alt-w)

- Menu pipe for the Wallpapers in /usr/share/backgrounds to switch desktop wallpapers by Openbox menu (a new inserted wallpaper appears immediately in the Openbox menu)

- Menu Pipe for different Documents (like: pdf, html, txt, mp3, wav, mid, odt, doc, xcf, cpt, jpg, png and many more)
- - these documents are outside the running OS, stored in a documents directory on my usb flash drive
- - added files do appear immediately in the Openbox menu
- - clicking the menu entry executes the MIME-type-Application of the file

- Menu pipe for portable linux applications (standalone binaries)
- - these binaries are outside the running OS, stored in a portable apps directory on my usb flash drive (incl sub-categories)
- - added programs (binaries) do appear immediately in the Openbox menu
- - clicking the menu entry executes the program
- - some of them need dependencies like java or python which is then loaded from SFS automatically by a pre-executed script

- Menu pipe for loaded sfs files (in alphabetical order)
- - sfs files do unload when clicking its menu entry
- - new loaded sfs files do appear immediately in the Openbox menu (doesn't matter if loaded by RunScript or manually loaded)

- predefined 30 desktops switched either by a key command (alt 1-0 = desktop 1-10, ctrl-alt 1-0 = desktop 11-20, ctrl-alt-shift 1-10 = desktop 21-30) or by the WBar
- - WBar doesn't execute programs, it switches the Variomenu-Groups
- - Variomenu-Groups are selections of applications related to a category, like: Graphics, Multmedia etc.pp.
- - Openbox Desktops and Variomenu-Groups are synchronized
- - this means:
- - switching the Openbox desktop by key command switches also the Variomenu-Group
- - switching the Variomenu-Group by WBar icon switches also the Openbox desktop

Example:

Internet is desktop 15 and Variomenu-Group 15
Favorites is desktop 13 and Variomenu-Group 13

(of course it can also configured like Internet is desktop 11 and Variomenu-Group 2 !!!)

So, if working on the desktop for the Graphics applications (desktop and VM-Group: 9) and clicking the Internet icon in WBar will switch Openbox desktop to desktop 15, Variomenu-Group 15 and presenting only running programs of desktop 15 and pre-defined icon (application) selection on the desktop like Firefox, Connect etc.pp.

Entering key command 'ctrl-alt 3' switches immediately to Openbox desktop 13, Variomenu-Group 13 and presenting the usual puppy desktop icon (application) selection on the desktop.

Entering key command 'alt 9' returns me to my still opened graphics applications and its desktop (9) and Variomenu-Group (9).

Desktops 1 to 5 are not synchronized to the Variomenu so, I can still switch desktops by not changing the icons on the desktop (alt 1-5)!

Sorry for the German-Images. I hope you'll understand though!

RSH

deleted (duplicate somehow)

rmcellig wrote:I am currently using the default Openfox/Rox/FBPanel that comes with this interesting distro.

What WM/DE do you prefer using?

I'm using Openbox/PCmanfm/Lxpanelx.
I prefer Rox and JWM, I just haven't got around to getting the file associations and menu set up for them (they aren't compliant enough with the freedesktop standards)...

Hello, rmcellig.

I have found the combination pekwm / rox / fbpanel to be the most satisfactory for my needs -- on any Puppy.

Actually, if you use a rox panel on one side of the screen, you do not need fbpanel.

pekwm is easier to fine-tune than openbox, IMO, because the pekwm configuration files are in straight text that you can modify in a text editor. Whereas openbox is written in xml, not txt, so you need to know this computer language to fine-tune openbox -- or use the specialized openbox editor.

Best regards.

musher0

I just installed pekwm on my Mac G4 PPC. How can I get it to work with rox and fbpanel like you suggested in your last post. I guess I would go to Synaptic Package Manager and install rox and fbpanel if they are in the repos , but I'm not sure what to do after I install them.

You mentioned that the pekwm config files are text based. How do I access them? Thanks for all the help!! Can't believe I am running this on an old PPC Mac.

Open http://www.pekwm.org/files/pekwm/doc/0. ... index.html up in a browser, goto section III Configuration and then use your favorite text editor..

reload pekwm every now'n'then

Pretty sure there's an all-on-one-longish-page somewhere if you want a local copy for ref.

Fluxbox has been my main choice for a while now, it's really lightweight and non-demanding for resources just as jwm, but deals with windows better then jwm + much more configurable.
I also use wbar with just several icons for most used apps and nothing more for clean desktop.

Thanks Dejan555!!

I have always used the default config in puppy whIch is rox/openbox/fbpanel. Is fluxbox easy to configure and set up?

Yes, you can still use rox desktop with it, fluxbox has it's own taskbar, but without menu button on it, you have to right click on desktop to bring it but I'm used to it, although there's a hack to put a button.
It looks simple but still has some nice styles and you can even configure pseudo transparency if you like, most other config options are in fluxbox menu, I think one of my fluxbox packages for lupu is in repo, if not here's the link
http://puppy.b0x.me/software/packages/w ... 6-lupu.pet

Here's a screenie