[kde-linux] Re: Individual Desktop Settings

[Alex Schuster]

Duncan writes:

> Wolfgang Mueller posted on Fri, 15 Apr 2011 13:51:41 +0200 as excerpted:
> > If I select a new desktop setting, i.e. a different background color or
> > wallpaper, the all virtual desktops are affected.
> > 
> > Is it possible to make a different choice for each virtual desktop, and
> > if so, how is that done?
> 
> In kcontrol (wrongly aka system settings), workspace appearance and
> behavior, workspace behavior, there's an applet virtual desktops.  This
> applet has two tabs.  On the default, desktops tab, there's a layout
> section, with a checkbox entitled "Different widgets for each
> desktop"  (This is the kde 4.5+ location.  4.4 and earlier have a
> different kcontrol layout.)
> 
> Checking that and hitting apply should do the trick.
> 
> That will give you a different activity for each virtual desktop,
> locking> the two concepts, activities and virtual desktops, together.  

That was changed somewhere around KDE 4.5.x. Before, Plasmoids normally were 
on all desktops, but you could make KDE create a different activity for each 
desktop with this checkbox. Now, this checkbox makes each activity have 
multiple desktops. I have six desktops, but only a single activity (yet).

Not sure yet what to make about this ativity stuff. I like the idea, but I 
don't use it at all. Yet. Maybe later, it does not seem ready yet to me. For 
example, I just created a 2nd activity, and tried the different layouts. The 
first thing that I think is misleading is that I first did not see how to 
change the layout / the type of activity. The layout is set by desktop menu 
-> settings for X, if your current layout is X. Like, I had it set to 
'workspace', and wanted to change it to 'search and execute' (or something 
like that in English locale). So I have to open the 'workspace' settings, 
and change the layout to 'search and execute'. But the latter just is not a 
setting for workspace, but a layout of my activity. Uhm, this sounds 
strange, I hope you understand what I mean, I probably wouldn't.

BTW, I set the background image to weather, and I think now I should have a 
dynamic wallpaper depending on the current weather, but this does not work, 
I still have my default background.

Anyway. I notice that with my newly created activity, I see some of my 
applications, but not others. That is, some applications (Chromium, Amarok, 
Konsole) are sticky on all activities, others (like Kontact) only show up on 
the activity I already had, not on the new one. No idea how I can configure 
this, which applications shall be visible on which activities. I expected to 
be some setting for this in the application's window settings, but I see 
none.

Then, there is this activity panel (you ghet it via the cashew menu). Each 
activity has an icon. And some stop button. I clicked it, now there are no 
buttons. Shouldn't there be a play button? I remember seeing one the last 
time I tried this.

Meanwhile, due to a memory problem with the fglrx driver, I logged out and 
in again. And when I open the activity menu, I suddenly have four 
activities: Admin (my default one), Test (the 2nd one I just created), Test 
(same name, and this one has the play button, while all others show the stop 
button), and one called New Activity. Again I clicked at the stop button on 
a activity, and the button is gone. What does this button do? I have no 
idea. Should I?

There'a also a tool button on each activity icon. I wondert what this does. 
I think it should open a menu to configure the activity layout, but it seems 
you can only chaneg the activity name here. Took me a while to figure this 
out. Maybe I'm too stupid, maybe it's just not intuitive yet.

I selected one of the Test activities, and now the cashew is gone. Meta-A 
also no longer opens the activity panel. Great. But I can change the 
desktop, there I still have the cashew, and Meta-A opens the Activity panel. 
Oh, and now kontact crashed, but my composing window stays open, at least.

Okay, I think I'll wait for 4.7.0 before I try this activity stuff again.

	Wonko