OESF Portables Forum

Model Specific Forums => Sharp Zaurus => Zaurus - pdaXrom => Topic started by: BerndS on October 21, 2007, 05:03:54 am

Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: BerndS on October 21, 2007, 05:03:54 am
Hi again,

I installed and configured fbpanel 4.12 (announced here: https://www.oesf.org/forum/index.php?showto...&start=420) (https://www.oesf.org/forum/index.php?showto...&start=420)) on my Zaurus running weeXpc (pdaxrom beta13). It works pretty well (better than matchbox).

Unfortunately the documentation at http://fbpanel.sourceforge.net/docs.html (http://fbpanel.sourceforge.net/docs.html) is not that usable - especially the plugins are poorly documented.

So I'm just looking for a better documentation for fbpanel.

regards

Bernd
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: scheck.r on October 21, 2007, 06:21:05 am
Can you tell us why fbpanel is better than matchbox-panel ? (memory usage, added features, ...)
I just know that there is a taskbar included and makefbmenu that generates the menu scanning .desktop files.
Can you have windows overlapping the panel ? may be that's more of a window manager issue...
I am using Fluxbox partially because of this missing feature and true fullscreen also.

Thanks

EDIT: after reading the doc I can answer some of my questions.
Indeed, windows can overlap the panel, you can configure the panel this way setting SetPartialStrut variable in ~/.fbpanel directory
Code: [Select]
     # Reserve panel's space so that it will not be covered by maximazied windows
     # legal values are boolean
     # SetPartialStrut = true
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: BerndS on October 21, 2007, 07:12:49 am
Hi,

Quote from: scheck.r
Can you tell us why fbpanel is better than matchbox-panel ? (memory usage, added features, ...)

IMHO it's better because it supports virtuell screens (the panel are visible on all screens) and it appears to be faster than matchbox.

The (hopefully temporary) disadvantages are

- screen Rotating works with some bugs (see screenshot below)

- the documentation is incomplete

- fbpanel does not use the directory /usr/share/applications to build the menu (but you can use the matchbox applet mb-applet-menu-launcher also with fbpanel to get around this limitation)

Quote
I just know that there is a taskbar included and makefbmenu that generates the menu scanning .desktop files.

If using mb-applet-menu launcher you don't need this function of fbpanel.

regards

Bernd
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: scheck.r on October 21, 2007, 09:59:38 am
Quote from: BerndS
Hi,

Quote from: scheck.r
Can you tell us why fbpanel is better than matchbox-panel ? (memory usage, added features, ...)

IMHO it's better because it supports virtuell screens (the panel are visible on all screens) and it appears to be faster than matchbox.

The (hopefully temporary) disadvantages are

- screen Rotating works with some bugs (see screenshot below)

- the documentation is incomplete

- fbpanel does not use the directory /usr/share/applications to build the menu (but you can use the matchbox applet mb-applet-menu-launcher also with fbpanel to get around this limitation)

Quote
I just know that there is a taskbar included and makefbmenu that generates the menu scanning .desktop files.

If using mb-applet-menu launcher you don't need this function of fbpanel.

regards

Bernd

Thanks for the explanations.
The rotation bug makes fbpanel unusable in portrait mode. I remember pdaxrom r121 used fbpanel but I don't remember if the rotation bug was present.
If you use mb-applet-menu launcher, don't you use more RAM than just running makefbmenu once ?
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: Capn_Fish on October 21, 2007, 11:17:19 am
I believe we saw the rotation issue with the new Matchbox that was compiled. There is probably a patch somewhere (I can't remember where the pdaX patches are) for fbpanel that will fix it.
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: BerndS on October 21, 2007, 01:31:55 pm
Quote from: scheck.r
Thanks for the explanations.
The rotation bug makes fbpanel unusable in portrait mode.

I don't think so; fbpanel also works in portrait mode - only the popup windows are not where I would expect them.

Quote
If you use mb-applet-menu launcher, don't you use more RAM than just running makefbmenu once ?

Yes, but I must admit I did not test makefbmenu only now.

regards

Bernd
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: ecc_hy on October 22, 2007, 12:38:44 pm
1. why fbpanel?
fbpanel use less memory than matchbox. When develop mb-applet-powerctrl, I found the menu function in libmatchbox use much memory, and try to find the problem where is, but no result.
fbpanel project is active than matchbox.
fbpanel support transparent.

2.Notice for fbpanel ipk
makefbmenu has been modified for desktop's l10n menu item, but it really slow when starting X-windows. So it is ignored in fbpanel-session.
There is a binary file of makefbmenu in r198, But no source. Who do it before?
In IPK, eXit_fb was lost, so you can not exit x-window. It should be attached soon.

3. menu rotate?
In my c1k, pdaxrom 1.1 beta3, fbpanel's menu postion is not recalc when actived. Others of fb panel are ok.
Soorry, I have not test the other plugins, because mb-applet-powerctrl and tclock is enough for me.

4. About pdaxrom patch
I use the patch come from pdxrom 1.1 beta3 builder. Since a lot of source has been changed, I have to patched it line by line.

5. Due to the memory usage in menu function of libmatchbox.
I plan to rewrite mb-applet-powerctrl, and use gtk+ only, but it should not come soon.

openbox + fbpanel + rox should be perfect.
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: scheck.r on October 22, 2007, 01:35:36 pm
Thank you for developping mb-applet-powerctrl, I use it all the time, it is so handy to have everything in one place. But you are right it still uses too much memory. I use it with fluxbox but I dont' have tool tips popping up when cards are ejected for example since it's designed for matchbox-panel. It would be great if it could be integrated in any panel with all functionalities. Maybe add activate/deactivate swap would be helpful too.

Sorry for being a little off topic

Ideally: openbox 3.4.4 + fbpanel 4.12 + new mb-powerctrl in gtk+ (+ rox)
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: Meanie on October 22, 2007, 08:51:07 pm
Quote
1. why fbpanel?
fbpanel use less memory than matchbox. When develop mb-applet-powerctrl, I found the menu function in libmatchbox use much memory, and try to find the problem where is, but no result.
fbpanel project is active than matchbox.
fbpanel support transparent.

2.Notice for fbpanel ipk
makefbmenu has been modified for desktop's l10n menu item, but it really slow when starting X-windows. So it is ignored in fbpanel-session.
There is a binary file of makefbmenu in r198, But no source. Who do it before?
In IPK, eXit_fb was lost, so you can not exit x-window. It should be attached soon.

3. menu rotate?
In my c1k, pdaxrom 1.1 beta3, fbpanel's menu postion is not recalc when actived. Others of fb panel are ok.
Soorry, I have not test the other plugins, because mb-applet-powerctrl and tclock is enough for me.

4. About pdaxrom patch
I use the patch come from pdxrom 1.1 beta3 builder. Since a lot of source has been changed, I have to patched it line by line.

5. Due to the memory usage in menu function of libmatchbox.
I plan to rewrite mb-applet-powerctrl, and use gtk+ only, but it should not come soon.

openbox + fbpanel + rox should be perfect.
[div align=\"right\"][a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=169592\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a][/div]

fbpanel actually is the default in r197/r198. It does not rotate properly out of the box but with my SP8 package, that is fixed. the popups are also correctly positioned so they don't go off the screen.

makefbmenu is in svn. I have updated it so it ignores certain desktop files like reboot and exit so they don't appear as duplicated.

fbpanel can use matchbox applets as well so you can continue to use mb-applet-powerctrl until a newer more lightweight version comes out.

openbox + fbpanel is the default in r197/r198.  rox can be easily added just like in beta3
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: Jon_J on October 22, 2007, 09:39:48 pm
I tried to install fbpanel onto my Z running pdaxii13v2
First, I needed to install libtool, to get libltdl.so.3
Then I tried to link .xinitrc to fbpanel-session-rox, but it failed.
I think it failed because in pdaxii13, .xinitrc is already a symlink to /usr/bin/mbsession
Below is the message I got in the console.
Code: [Select]
ln -s ~/.xinitrc /usr/bin/fbpanel-session-rox
ln: /usr/bin/fbpanel-session-rox: File exists
After I did the above, I checked .xinitrc properties, and it is still linked to /usr/bin/mbsession
I restarted X, and ran "top"
fbpanel is not running.
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: ecc_hy on October 23, 2007, 02:07:57 am
Quote from: Meanie
fbpanel actually is the default in r197/r198. It does not rotate properly out of the box but with my SP8 package, that is fixed. the popups are also correctly positioned so they don't go off the screen.

makefbmenu is in svn. I have updated it so it ignores certain desktop files like reboot and exit so they don't appear as duplicated.

fbpanel can use matchbox applets as well so you can continue to use mb-applet-powerctrl until a newer more lightweight version comes out.

openbox + fbpanel is the default in r197/r198.  rox can be easily added just like in beta3

I really test fbpanel ipk for r197/198, since it segament error in pdaxrom 1.1beat3, and so I recompile it for 1.1beta3.
Where is your source patched? where is svn?
I would like to modify fbpanel source according your patch, and try to add some L10N support for makefbmenu.

Now, I am starting to learning gtk+, and try to modify mb-applet-powerctrl to gtk+. The plugin in fbmenu is a good sample for my project.
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: Meanie on October 23, 2007, 03:21:23 am
Quote from: ecc_hy
Quote from: Meanie
fbpanel actually is the default in r197/r198. It does not rotate properly out of the box but with my SP8 package, that is fixed. the popups are also correctly positioned so they don't go off the screen.

makefbmenu is in svn. I have updated it so it ignores certain desktop files like reboot and exit so they don't appear as duplicated.

fbpanel can use matchbox applets as well so you can continue to use mb-applet-powerctrl until a newer more lightweight version comes out.

openbox + fbpanel is the default in r197/r198.  rox can be easily added just like in beta3

I really test fbpanel ipk for r197/198, since it segament error in pdaxrom 1.1beat3, and so I recompile it for 1.1beta3.
Where is your source patched? where is svn?
I would like to modify fbpanel source according your patch, and try to add some L10N support for makefbmenu.

Now, I am starting to learning gtk+, and try to modify mb-applet-powerctrl to gtk+. The plugin in fbmenu is a good sample for my project.

try https://pdaxrom.svn.sourceforge.net/svnroot...al/fbpanel-4.3/ (https://pdaxrom.svn.sourceforge.net/svnroot/pdaxrom/branches/pdaxrom-stable/patches-local/fbpanel-4.3/)

good luck
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: ecc_hy on October 23, 2007, 04:02:09 am
Good, I should check it, and modify for 4.12
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: Jon_J on October 23, 2007, 10:20:05 am
I got fbpanel working in pdaxii13v2. Should I start a new thread, since this one is about documentation?
BTW the fbpanel attachment in the "New Announcements" thread has gone missing. (forum bug).

I renamed ~/.xinitrc to .xinitrc-old, then using rox, I dragged /usr/bin/fbpanel-session-rox to ~/ and renamed it .xinitrc
None of the shortcut buttons work, is that implemented differently in fbpanel? Shortcut buttons are 6th row, ie calendar, address, etc.
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: Meanie on October 23, 2007, 08:47:53 pm
Quote from: Jon_J
I got fbpanel working in pdaxii13v2. Should I start a new thread, since this one is about documentation?
BTW the fbpanel attachment in the "New Announcements" thread has gone missing. (forum bug).

I renamed ~/.xinitrc to .xinitrc-old, then using rox, I dragged /usr/bin/fbpanel-session-rox to ~/ and renamed it .xinitrc
None of the shortcut buttons work, is that implemented differently in fbpanel? Shortcut buttons are 6th row, ie calendar, address, etc.


fbpanel has been updated to work with pdaXiiv2

what you need to do is relink ~/.xinitrc to /usr/bin/fbpanel-session
if you want it to use rox instead of matchbox desktop, create a file called ~/.fbpanel/use_rox (assuming you actually got rox installed)

all the shortcut keys are controlled by openbox so if you upgraded to some unsupported version of openbox, then you would had lost all your shortcut keys...
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: Jon_J on October 24, 2007, 12:40:30 am
Quote from: Meanie
Quote from: Jon_J
I got fbpanel working in pdaxii13v2. Should I start a new thread, since this one is about documentation?
BTW the fbpanel attachment in the "New Announcements" thread has gone missing. (forum bug).

I renamed ~/.xinitrc to .xinitrc-old, then using rox, I dragged /usr/bin/fbpanel-session-rox to ~/ and renamed it .xinitrc
None of the shortcut buttons work, is that implemented differently in fbpanel? Shortcut buttons are 6th row, ie calendar, address, etc.


fbpanel has been updated to work with pdaXiiv2

what you need to do is relink ~/.xinitrc to /usr/bin/fbpanel-session
if you want it to use rox instead of matchbox desktop, create a file called ~/.fbpanel/use_rox (assuming you actually got rox installed)

all the shortcut keys are controlled by openbox so if you upgraded to some unsupported version of openbox, then you would had lost all your shortcut keys...
I tried the updated fbpanel. It's fbpanel 4.3-3 from pdaxii13v2 feed
I have rox and depends fully installed. (that's the first thing I do when reflashing pdaxii13 akita)
I have reflashed since I tried the openbox version in the "New Packages" thread
The version of openbox I have is 3.4.4-2 (pdaxii13v2 upgrade, upgraded this).
I relinked ~/.xinitrc to /usr/bin/fbpanel-session and created the file ~/.fbpanel/use_rox
When I restarted X, all I had was a gray screen with my home folder, and no taskbar, so I couldn't access any programs.
None of the 4 (6th row) buttons worked. (calendar, address, mail, menu)
I set everything back to what I had before and now my menu button doesn't open the "start" menu.

Edit
I think some of my small problems are a result of using pdaxii13-akita and trying to upgrade pdaxii13v2 and the newer packages.
Meanie mentioned in the pdaxii13v2 upgrade thread, that there is no pdaxii13v2 base, and only the full version has been tested.
This is probably the reason I am having to find dependencies for certain packages manually, and why "some" packages don't work correctly..
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: Jon_J on October 24, 2007, 09:35:27 am
I fixed my menu button.  I edited ~/config/openbox/rc.xml
It seems that a dependency of fbpanel 4.3-3 is causing a re-write to "rc.xml"
The dependency is mouseclick. Look at the below lines in rc.xml.
The first one is a copy that I extracted from spitz-full (hdimage-full.tgz)
The second one is what my "rc.xml" looked like after I restored my setup back to matchbox, after installing fbpanel 4.3-3 and mouseclick.
Code: [Select]
  
    mb-start-button

  
    mouseclick 0 480n
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: ecc_hy on November 01, 2007, 04:18:45 am
I had released the version 4.12 at:
https://www.oesf.org/forum/index.php?showto...8415&st=420 (https://www.oesf.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=18415&st=420)

But menu postion is not correct when screen rotated.
I had modified the function called menu_pos in misc.c, and the menu position is really changed, but the size of rox's desktop is not changed.

It really confuse me, is it a problem of rox/openbox/fbpanel?
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: ecc_hy on November 02, 2007, 01:37:35 am
add patch to calc menu pos correctly.
The screen change to...

Anything missing?
Title: Fbpanel Documentation
Post by: ecc_hy on November 13, 2007, 10:25:24 am
Quote from: Meanie
makefbmenu is in svn. I have updated it so it ignores certain desktop files like reboot and exit so they don't appear as duplicated.

new makefbmenu source based on SVN version, perfect fbpanel menu get from .desktop.

fbpanel 4.12 has been updated as following.
https://www.oesf.org/forum/index.php?showto...420#entry169445 (https://www.oesf.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=18415&st=420#entry169445)

The attach file is source of makefbmenu.