Desktop Customization
Introduction to Desktop Customization in Linux/BSD.
Click download in: [PDF], [Impress]
All slides in: [slides]
About Me 🙋🏻♂️!
Yet, another underachiever 👻.
But hey, I have my own dotfiles repository 🎉.
About This Material 🤠
After watching this, you will understand:
So that you can pick what customization suitable
for you for daily basis usage.
🙏🏽
This material contain a bunch of terminal screenshots.
It does not mean that your daily desktop is all about terminal.
How Modular is Linux 🤔?
- Package Manager:
APT, ALPM, DNF, XBPS, Zypper, Portage - Init:
SysV, systemd, openRC, runit, S6. - Filesystem:
ext4, XFX Reiserfs, BTRFS, ZFS. - Standard C library in OS:
glibc or musl. - DE (Desktop Environment):
GTK+ based, QT based, enlightenment. - WM (Window Manager):
Stacking, Tiling, Dynamic, Compositor.
How Modular Linux is🤠
Dive into Linux Subsystem
for Personal Educational Purpose.
[Learning Linux Diversity]
Yet Another Presentation.
What Customization 🤔?
- DE/WM Customization:
window manager, panel, notification and the most ingredient called wallpaper. - Terminal Customization:
shell, prompt, pixel-art, and multiplexer.
Terminal ricing along with CLI application,
are part of desktop ricing.
The Difference: DE or WM 🤔?
- Desktop Environment:
Full Experience: Panel, File Manager, Application. - Stacking Window Manager:
Stripped Down Version of Desktop Environment - Tiling Window Manager:
Non-overlapping screen real estate.
When you customize a Window Manager,
you are basically making your own Desktop Environment.
Desktop Environment Example 🤠
The good Cinnamon (GTK+3) based.
DE/WM Categorization 🤠
- GTK+ based Desktop Environment:
XFCE4, Gnome shell, Cinnamon, Mate, Budgie - QT based Desktop Environment:
KDE Plasma, LXQT, Deepin - DE with Other Library:
Enlightenment, Lumina, or such. - Stacking Window Manager:
Openbox, Fluxbox. - Tiling Window Manager:
AwesomeWM, XMonad, i3wm (gaps), BSPWM, HerbsluftWM, DWM, or many others. - Compositor:
KWin, Compiz.
The separation is not very clear, sometimes overlapped.
Desktop Customization Step by Step?:
- Install Linux Distribution:
Pick your favorite distribution.
Debian Based, Arch Family, Void, or others. - Desktop Environment:
Plasma, Gnome, XFCE4, and such.
Explore Theming. - Terminal Customization:
Terminal, shell, prompt, multiplexer (tmux), pixel art,
compositor (picom), CLI app (neofetch), editor (ViM). - Stacking Window Manager:
Configuration: Openbox, Fluxbox.
Explore Panel (task bar), and Tools. - Tiling Window Manager:
i3wm, AwesomeWM, BSPWM,
DWM, XMonad, HerbstluftWM.
Learn how to google, make a screenshot (scrot),
read documentation, and english.
DE Customization 🤠
LXQT with Windowish Looks, No Kidding
You can switch to any looks with parts from internet.
DE Customization 🤠
What can I do with my DE 🤔?
- Theming: Taskbar and Border
- Color Scheme
- Window Animation
- Cursor and Icon Collection
- Context Menu in File Manager
- Wallpaper:
The most ingredient for success. - Other Stuff: Font, Conky, or such.
DE Customization 🤠
Example: Custom XFCE4 Theme: PNG Gradient over XPM
DE Customization 🤠
Example: Custom XFCE4 Theme: SVG Inkscape Source
The previous window icon was designed easily using inskcape.
UI/UGM (User Interface/ Unified Graphic Material)
Window Layout 🤔?
What Layout is Available with Your DE/WM?
- Stacking:
Suitable for ricing. - Tiling:
For masochist desktoper.
Avoid n00b. - Floating:
Enable stacking in tiling.
Window Layout 🤠
Stacking Layout Example: LXQT
Window Layout 🤠
Tiling Layout Example: HerbstluftWM
Window Layout 🤠
Floating Layout Example: AwesomeWM
Ricing Guidance 🤔?
- Aesthetic is First class:
It is a work of art. - Technical Difficulty is Appreciated:
Basic knowledge is a must. - Everyone has their own personal character:
Yes, there is culture.
Many factions blended in, such as dark mode, or weebs, or flat color vs transparency. - Ricing people prefer WM over DE:
More customization to avoid hardcoded looks. - Be creative, be different:
Beautiful.
Tips: Find your own style!
Ricing 🤠
Is it worth it ?
- Socially: you need to show of, and get some votes.
- Technically: You need a good screenshot
while communicating your issue on social media,
or publishing your work in a blog or other media. - Learning: A fun case while studying OS, and also coding.
- Community: Give a fun direction for n00b
that showing of ricing screenshot can be a better life,
instead of just showing of illegal hacking.
Window Manager Customization 🤔?
- Window Manager itself:
Choose your WM. - Panel:
Polybar, dzen2, Lemonbar, or others. - Notification:
Dunst, or others. - Launcher:
dmenu, rofi, or others. - Original Wallpaper:
Ricing Culture: Mostly Anime. - Make your own authentic stuff.
Tips: There is no wrong or right. It is all about choices.
Window Manager Customization 🤠
Example: Custom Standalone Panel
Window Manager Customization 🤠
Optional tools 🤔?
- Screenshooter:
scrot or others. - Compositor Manager:
picom or compton or xcompmgr. - Wallpaper Manager:
Nitrogen or feh: [Openbox Install - Common Utility] - Good Font Installation:
FontAwesome, siji, terminus: [Linux - Installing Font] - Logging Out:
OB Menu or others. - LXAppearance
Window Manager Customization 🤠
Example: Custom Material Wallpaper
Why Stacking Window Manager 🤔?
- More on Customization:
Configuration in Text Editor (suitable for coder),
Shareable with dotfiles - Lightweight:
Small Memory Footprint.
Install only what I need. - The Looks:
Avoid hardcoded looks or just be simple.
Stacking Window Manager 🤠
Example: openbox
Stacking Window Manager 🤠
More Articles about Stacking WM
Stacking Window Manager 🤠
Example: Openbox Theme: Multi Color
Stacking Window Manager 🤠
Example: openbox theming with Inkscape
UI/UGM (User Interface/ Unified Graphic Material)
Stacking Window Manager 🤠
Example: Fluxbox
Why Tiling Window Manager 🤔?
- Efficient:
Non-overlapping screen real estate. - Scaling:
With Workspace or Tags. - Customizable:
Most parts can be automated. - Keyboard-driven workflow:
For masochist-desktoper. - Lightweight:
Compared to DE.
Tiling Window Manager 🤠
Good Watch: Aline Abler Presentation on Youtube
Explained in systematic fashioned,
easy to follow,
and she is pretty too.
What Tiling Window Manager 🤔?
- i3wm:
Simple configuration, suitable for beginner. - HerbstluftWM:
Challenging technical difficulties.
The extra frame almost make me cry for happiness. - XMonad:
I can config, but weird, I still don't understand Haskell. - BSPWM
Tips: do not let the blackscreen intimidate you.
Dynamic Window Manager 🤔?
It is a kind of Tiling WM, with presets layouts.
- Awesome WM:
Easy to use for beginner, but very long config.
Built in menu, systray, notification. - DWM:
First install for any minimalist distro.
You have to compile to change the behaviour.
Dynamic Window Manager 🤠
Example of presets layout: AwesomeWM.
Tiling Window Manager 🤠
Example: i3wm (gaps, bright)
Tiling Window Manager 🤠
Example: AwesomeWM
Tiling Window Manager 🤠
More about AwesomeWM
Tiling Window Manager 🤠
Example: HerbstluftWM
Tiling Window Manager 🤠
Solving HerbstluftWM Technical Difficulties
Tiling Window Manager 🤠
WM customization can be combined with Specific Panel Bar.
Example: Dzen2 in XMonad
Other DE/WM issue 🤠
Xorg and Wayland
Terminal Ricing 🤔?
Main Parts.
- Terminal:
urxvt, xfce4-terminal, termite. - Shell:
bash, zsh, fish.
Prompt: powerline, oh-my-bash, oh-my-zsh, oh-my-fish. - Multiplexer:
tmux, gnu screen.
wrapper: teamocil, byobu. - Background Decoration:
Wallpaper.
Terminal Customization 🤠
Terminal Ricing 🤔?
Additional Parts.
- Compositor Decoration:
Picom or Compton. - Padding Decoration:
gtk.css. - Example CLI application:
neofetch, htop, cava. - Special CLI application:
ViM Text Editor. - Pixel Art
Terminal Customization 🤠
Example: Pixel Art: [ANSI color]
Terminal Customization 🤠
Example: [Standalone CLI System Monitoring Using Conky]
Terminal Customization 🤠
Example: Shell Prompt.
Where to find resources 🤔?
- Blog:
Example: epsi-rns.github.io, bandithijo.github.io
Local Guidance: Loonix-Newfag - dotshare.it:
This is not a dead site. - Dotfiles Repository on github or gitlab:
Example: gitlab.com/epsi-rns/dotfiles, github.com/addy-dclxvi, github.com/okitavera, github.com/myugan - Community: Facebook Group:
Example: Linuxer Desktop Art - Community: Telegram Group:
Example: @dotfiles_id or, @dotfiles_id_channel
@window_managers
Dotfiles 🤔?
Configuration files on linux can be shared between hobbyist.
Configuration mostly lies under .config directory.
Or single files with name started with dot.
Dotfiles 🤠
Sharing Resources require good folder management.
Dotfiles 🤠
I share mine: gitlab.com/epsi-rns/dotfiles
Would you do the same with each other?
🙏🏽
What is Next 🤔?
- Make your own custom Statusbar Panel!
- Make your own custom Window Manager!
- Port old tools to a better programming language!
🙏🏽
Leverage Coding Skills!
Questions 🤔?
Don't be shy 🙋🏻♂️!
The End
🙇🏻
Thank You for Your Time.