How to use multiple workspaces in Ubuntu Netbook Remix 9.10

[ohiomoto]

First of all, let me say that I love UNR. It just works for me because everything you need to navigate in and between applications is right at the top of the screen.

The only thing I didn't like was that by default, UNR limited you to only one workspace or desktop. I like to keep my projects and applications on separate workspaces. I might have a music player and a web browser open on one workspace, a IDE and a terminal on another. This way I can quickly find the applications I need without having my "personal" stuff getting in the way of my "project" or visa versa.

It's not difficult to work with multiple workspaces in UNR. I recently did a fresh install on one of my laptops so I decided to make the guide that explains how to configure and use workspaces in Remix.

It only takes a few clicks and about 10 minutes....

[ohiomoto]

Launch Pad user jfmchivall suggested an even easier way to accomplish the first 5 steps of this guide. If you use the alternative method, go directly to post #3.

Alternative Method

You can more simply change the number of workspaces by launching gconf-
editor and going to apps->metacity->general and changing the value for
num_workspaces.

Or, even quicker, in a terminal type:
gconftool-2 -s /apps/metacity/general/num_workspaces 4 --type int

change 4 above to however many workspaces you want.

Original Method
1) Go to the top left corner. Right click the divider that is located just to the left of the Go Home icon.
Screenshot.png

2) Unlock and move the divider slightly to the right. Now lock it to the panel. This makes enough space to right click the panel.
Screenshot-1.png

3) Right click the panel > Add to panel.. > Workspace Switcher
Screenshot-2.png

4) Right click the switcher > Preferences > Number of workspaces > 4 (or whatever you want.)
Screenshot-3.png
Screenshot-4.png

5) Right click the switcher > Remove from panel (unless you actually like the switcher up there.)

Continued...

[ohiomoto]

Now your screen should look like this. You can Ctr + Alt > right/left arrows to navigate between the workspaces.
Screenshot-5.png

Notice that there are two icons shown in the Window Picker at the top left of the screen. Now look at the Workspace Switcher in the center of the screen. Notice that the icons are being pulled from multiple workspaces. The problem with this is that every application is displayed in the picker regardless of the workspace it belongs to. This can be a real issue if you regularly keep multiple instances of the same application open at the same time. For example, I often have multiple instances of Firefox and terminals open in multiple workspaces plus additional programs. It gets a little tough to keep track of them after a while. This is why I prefer my Window Picker to show only the windows that belong to the workspace I'm using at that time. This is easy to change.

6) Minimize all windows > right click the Window Picker (center of top panel) > Preferences > un-check "Show windows form all workspaces"
Screenshot-6.png

Now when you switch between workspaces, you will only see the windows from the current workspace in the window picker.
Screenshot-7.png

[paul pom]

Hey man !
You made my day !

That was a nice mouse using trick.

Actually I found out how to add workspace using command line but not how to organize them in 2 lines.

link to command line method :
http://library.gnome.org/admin/syste...ml.en#gconf-12

thanks for sharing,

Paul

[ohiomoto]

Thanks for the link Paul.

[Torrilin]

Very useful tutorial. Not because I wanted multiple desktops, but because it showed me how to access the gnome-applets. I've seen references to them in a lot of places, but never any instructions for how to USE them.

Now I can set up a CPU frequency adjuster like the EEEpc SuperHybrid Engine in Windows. And I can have a system load monitor. Most of the other stuff isn't useful to me... but this opens up a lot of tools that most users would really find handy.

[ohiomoto]

I added an alternative method to post #2.

[slash3s]

you rlz men D: im so thank you : )

[Gemnoc]

Well it'd be great if I was actually able to move the #$%?!!! separator. I right-click on it like a madman and nothing happens.

I'm getting sick to death of UNR. The touchpad and its buttons are often unresponsive, but only in the UNR interface. Once I'm in an app or Nautilus, no problem whatsoever.

Sorry ohiomoto to barge in on your thread like that, I'm just so pissed that I couldn't use your tip.

[ohiomoto]

Gemnoc,

As for the divider, it can be tricky to get unlocked. You might want to use the alternative method. It's actually easier.

As for the problems with the netbook interface, I actually had the same problem on one of my computers. (The other one still works great.) You can use alt + F1 to use the menu or do what I did and add the "main menu" to the top panel and enable "Show Desktop" in the gconf-editor.

Here is a link to a post that explains how to do it: http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php...0&postcount=16

Now I have a classic desktop look with multiple workspaces, a top panel that has a classic menu, and UNR functionality. So while I was disappointed with the slow Remix desktop, I'm very pleased with the final result.
Screenshot.jpg