Features/Xfce-4.10

Feature Name Xfce-4.10

Summary

Updates the Fedora Xfce desktop to very 4.10. This release incorporates major changes to the core of the Xfce desktop environment and many bugfixes and improvements.

Owner

• Name: Kevin Fenzi
• Name: Christoph Wickert

• Email: kevin@scrye.com, cwickert@fedoraproject.org

Current status

• Targeted release: Fedora 18
• Last updated: 2012-04-25
• Percentage of completion: 95%

Detailed Description

This update fixes many bugs and improves the lightweight and featurefull Xfce desktop.

Benefit to Fedora

Fedora Xfce users will have the latest software from Upstream and enjoy an improved experience.

Scope

Xfce core packages need to be upgraded. (17 packages):

 exo
 garcon
 gtk-xfce-engine
 libxfce4ui
 libxfce4util
 thunar
 thunar-volman
 tumbler
 xfce4-appfinder
 xfce4-dev-tools
 xfce4-panel
 xfce4-power-manager
 xfce4-session
 xfce4-settings
 xfconf
 xfdesktop
 xfwm4

xfce-utils needs to be obsoleted (it's replaced by xfce4-session in 4.10)

Some xfce panel plugins may need reworking to work with the new panel.

How To Test

The full Xfce-4.10 desktop tests should be run on this feature. Any common desktop functions should work.

User Experience

• New application finder replaces the old application finder and xfrun4 with many new features.

• New Deskbar mode for the panel for vertical panels

• Settings helper has been integrated with xfsettingsd, saving a process.

• Settings dialogs have been reworked to provide a cleaner/pluggable setup.

• Basic Synaptics and Wacom settings in the Mouse settings

• New MIME-type editor

• Thunar gained a more polished layout to reduce space usage and more responsive interaction with the thumbnail generator.

• Xfdesktop has received various improvements, including single-click support, desktop icon thumbnails and better pasting of files.

• The Session Manager has improved power management code, tips have been removed and cleanup sessions from the interface

• Xfwm4 now has support for tiling windows and arrow key navigation in the task switcher.

• Local copies of documentation has been removed in favor of http://docs.xfce.org/

http://xfce.org/download/changelogs/4.10pre1 has a full list of changes in pre1.

Dependencies

Planned release of 4.10 is 2012-04-28

Contingency Plan

Packages could be downgraded with Epoch if needed, but there should be lots of time to fix any issues.

Documentation

http://xfce.org/download/changelogs/4.10pre1

http://xfce.org/download/changelogs/4.10pre2

http://docs.xfce.org/

Release Notes

• New application finder replaces the old application finder and xfrun4 with many new features.

• New Deskbar mode for the panel for vertical panels

• Settings helper has been integrated with xfsettingsd, saving a process.

• Settings dialogs have been reworked to provide a cleaner/pluggable setup.

• Basic Synaptics and Wacom settings in the Mouse settings

• New MIME-type editor

• Thunar gained a more polished layout to reduce space usage and more responsive interaction with the thumbnail generator.

• Xfdesktop has received various improvements, including single-click support, desktop icon thumbnails and better pasting of files.

• The Session Manager has improved power management code, tips have been removed and cleanup sessions from the interface

• Xfwm4 now has support for tiling windows and arrow key navigation in the task switcher.

• Local copies of documentation has been removed in favor of http://docs.xfce.org/

http://xfce.org/download/changelogs/4.10pre1 has a full list of changes in pre1.

Comments and Discussion

• See Talk:Features/YourFeatureName