GNOME

GNOME

GNOME 3+ is most psychopatic GUI ever seen.

Why? Because you have exactly ONE way how to do things. Any different opinion is strictly forbidden, humiliated and punished to all available extent. You have to resort to 3rd party extensions or tweaks to have freedom of choice - if such extension exists.

Common GNOME tweaks

Stop hiding scroll-bars:

1. CLI:

   gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface overlay-scrolling false

2. or in GUI
   • right-top click (on power icon etc..)
   • click on "Settings"
   • click on "Accessibility"
   • expand "Seeing"
   • uncheck "Overlay Scrollbars"

Reduce wasteful animations

1. CLI:

   gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface enable-animations false

2. or in GUI:
   • go to "Accessibility" and "Seeing" as described above
   • check "Reduce Animations"

How to stop automount (I have several disks with lot of volumes, so it is really annoying):

• official RedHat instructions: https://access.redhat.com/solutions/20107
• here is version for current GNOME user:

  gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.media-handling automount false
  gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.media-handling automount-open false
  sudo systemctl restart gdm

• or better way (from same RedHat page):
  • create file /etc/dconf/db/local.d/00-media-automount with contents:

    [org/gnome/desktop/media-handling]
    automount=false
    automount-open=false

  • and then call as root dconf update

Fedora 39 GNOME tweaks

Always install at least these tools:

sudo dnf install gnome-tweaks dconf-editor gnome-applets

Stop hiding Dash:

• Dash (application launch bar) is by default hidden - you have to click at top-left to reveal it

• there are two extensions that change this behaviour:

  a) Dash to Dock - this will ensure that Dash (launch pad) will be always visible. It is similar MacOS X ui. b) Dash to Panel - this will replace both Dash and Top bar with single "panel". It has similar look as windows Task bar.

• to fix it you have to do this:

  sudo dnf install gnome-shell-extension-dash-to-dock gnome-shell-extension-dash-to-panel
  # IMPORTANT: Now Log-out and Log-in - otherwise extensions will not be available!
  # And then:
  gnome-extensions list
  #enable ONE of these extensions:
  # a) ensure that Dash is always visible
  gnome-extensions enable [email protected]
  # b) OR move top-bar and Dash to single "Windows like" task bar at bottom:
  gnome-extensions enable [email protected]

Installing System Load Indicator

Indicator is an application that will show information on Top Bar

Here are instructions how to install two versions of system load indicators:

a) Installing standard Fedora Package

• First install package:

  sudo dnf install gnome-shell-extension-system-monitor-applet

• Logout and Login so new Extension will be visible
• Enable Extension using:

  gnome-extensions enable [email protected]

b) Building Ubuntu System Load Indicator under Fedora 39

I really like Ubuntu System Load Indicator (it will chart various kinds of system load - on top bar). (The only drawback is missing Tooltips (to know which chart is what). There is only one summary tooltip showing all information at once.)

So i decided to build it for Fedora.

Official Ubuntu page with downloads is here:

• https://launchpad.net/indicator-multiload/+download

Do this to build and install it:

mkdir src
cd src/
curl -fLO https://launchpad.net/indicator-multiload/stable/0.4/+download/indicator-multiload-0.4.tar.gz
tar xvf indicator-multiload-0.4.tar.gz
cd indicator-multiload-0.4/
#dnf grouplist
sudo dnf groupinstall "Development Tools"
# dependencies to build this Indciator
sudo dnf install libgnome-devel
#dnf provides intltool-update ...
sudo dnf install intltool libgtop2-devel glib-devel cairo-devel \
                 libappindicator-gtk3-devel
./configure
make
sudo make install

Because there is only one way how to do things in GNOME we need to first install and enable AppIndicator Extension:

sudo dnf install gnome-shell-extension-appindicator
# from /usr/share/doc/gnome-shell-extension-appindicator/README.md
gnome-extensions enable [email protected]

To quote above README.md

This extension integrates Ubuntu AppIndicators and KStatusNotifierItems (KDE's blessed successor of the systray) into GNOME Shell. Including support for legacy tray icons.

Now simply click on Apps and click on System Load Indicator - it should magically appear on right-top.

To enable more load charts right-click on CPU chart and select Preferences... I prefer color scheme XOSView (it is name of very old X-Window program that did same thing).

Enable bold font in GNOME Terminal

It was first hidden and then removed entirely. Because supreme GNOME God decided that it was wrong(!). For details see:

• https://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=762247
• https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gnome-terminal/-/issues/201
• https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/vte/-/issues/323

I found two ways how to allow bold fonts in GNOME.

1. Install better terminal:

   dnf install xfce4-terminal

   Problem fixed! There is even icon - so you can add this sane terminal Icon to your Dash.

2. Set Bold Monospace font in Gnome Tweaks:

   • install: dnf install gnome-tweaks terminus-fonts
   • run Tweaks and: select Fonts -> Monospace Font -> Terminus bold
   • ensure that GNOME Terminal use "System settings" - in that case it will not filter out bold fonts(!)

Unable to resize Totem video player

GNOME terrorists decided that Totem player should always resize video to full screen and does not allow to change it to 1:1 or other size(!). See

• https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/24k8xr/what_the_fuck_gnome_removes_ability_to_resize/?rdt=63773
• https://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=694457 They are completely ignoring that some hardware is able to accelerate video playback only on 1:1 resolution...

GNOME tracks your location

Even when you disable Location tracking on First boot wizard, GNOME will happily ignore it(!)

• see https://discourse.gnome.org/t/what-s-using-location-services/12848/3
• recommended to mask it:

  sudo systemctl mask geoclue

  • here is list of issues that were ignored using vicious excuses:
  • https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/geoclue/geoclue/-/issues/111
  • https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gnome-control-center/-/issues/805
  • https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gnome-control-center/-/issues/964
• and reboot

Above issue

• https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/geoclue/geoclue/-/issues/111
• https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=924516 is very useful as it shows several ways how to track specific application if it make connection

a) iptables variant:

• setup iptables -A OUTPUT -m owner --gid-owner geoclue
• after a while show output usage statistics: iptables -nvxL OUTPUT b) nfatbles:
• run these commands:

nft add table inet geoclue
nft "add chain inet geoclue geoclue { type filter hook output priority 0; }"
nft add rule inet geoclue geoclue skuid geoclue counter

• after a while run nft list rulese and watch for skuid "geoclue" ... packets X bytes X
• if X is not zero it means that process in geoclue group made output connections...

Disable suspend

• I have old desktop (so always on AC power)
• but GNOME insists on Suspend
• solution here: https://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/36477/how-do-i-prevent-gnome-suspending-while-i-finish-a-compilation-job

  gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.power sleep-inactive-ac-timeout 0

Warning! Also GDM login manager will suspend your computer - even if you are not logged in - see discussion on

• https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/t/gnome-suspends-after-15-minutes-of-user-inactivity-even-on-ac-power/79801
• there is this setting:

  sudo -u gdm dbus-run-session gsettings list-recursively org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.power | grep sleep