the other day saw the main view of GNOME Shell, today we enter the Activities , a key part in innovation that aims to provide GNOME Shell. This time, however, but is also applicable to the above and which follow, warning the reader should keep in mind that all tests are on the GNOME 3/Shell their current major distributions in their repositories “stable”, it is clear that in the future many of the failures or behaviors listed are polished and changed for the better. This article deals with this.

By default there are two ways to launch applications in GNOME Shell, using the known shortcut Alt + F2 , with all the limitations that entails (not just KRunner or GNOME-Do), or by the Activities , which are neither more nor less than how to manage applications and workspaces in GNOME 3 .

There are three ways to access the activities by clicking on the same name by pressing the Meta key (Windows) or by directing the cursor to the upper left corner of the screen, exactly like the famous Exposé in Mac OS X whose benefits are also found in desktop effects like Compiz or KDE.

Activities

view focuses default your first choice, Windows , the Exposé we speak, and WIN second in Applications as you can see in following image:

Applications

option is a dash those that are so fashionable lately with an overview of all installed applications, and can move categories if you will, but not necessarily as Basateen with once in Activities, start typing the name of the application to search and the results will be filtered as they form the name (for example, type “fi” and Firefox will , File-Roller, LibreOffice, etc., from there it can be added to applications and fixed to the side panel). It is quite fast and also filters and places recent documents. A look (a warning for this and other videos: it has lost some quality, but the times are accurate, no slowdowns … I mean yes, GNOME Shell gets stuck a bit at times):

We spent the

sidebar applications and is no longer possible to attempt to avoid comparison with Unity, that against the proposal shows a lot Shell GNOME more usable, intuitive and intelligent in this section . There are several reasons why this is so:

launching several applications and finish filling panel icons

workplaces and management is an intrinsic part of the Activities of GNOME Shell (not to be confused with the activities proposed KDE Plasma, much more ambitious, in the case of GNOME Activities are the Unity in workspaces called or what in Linux come a long desk calling virtual). At this point the comparison with Unity fades somewhat, because although it is true that both proposals are betting on the same an application for stay or virtual desktop to maximize space , we must recognize that Shell management in GNOME is faster and more intuitive than that of Unity, but has several edges to polish, a particularly pretty sharp.

Once you enter Activities, a virtual desktop panel half-hidden (this behavior changed in GNOME 2.3) does appear to the right of the screen . The proposal does is open and manage a desktop window but with a bad approach: When you open an application, no matter if it is seeping into the dash and WIN search by pressing Enter or clicking on it , as make 99% of users, with the left mouse button, it opens in the same desktop. If we add the minimize button is castrated, the confusion is served for a window covering other and switch between them only leaves the option of going over and over again in the way activities or use the keyboard shortcuts.

my point of view, this is the great flaw GNOME usability Shell . How to remedy? In the first instance, launching applications panel with middle mouse button , which will open directly into a new desk, something that at least the GNOME developers have been consistent Shell and for every application covering a new desk, another will appear just below the list. Of course, this has the same problem the panel: what happens if you open many applications in different desktops

That’s what happens, more confusion. In a traditional desktop environment you can get away While most people to have a panel that quickly minimize windows , here things get complicated. True, GNOME 3 continues to allow minimize windows (right over the edge), but also how to do layer quickly.

not all bad, obviously, as I said at the beginning of this section, the management of windows between virtual desktops in GNOME is better approach to Shell in Unity, as we explain, whenever we open many. This is because it is faster, and since activity is required to enter, will have to take advantage , right? Here’s how:

This is done with the mouse, to switch more quickly between different virtual desktops that do not move the windows as we do, the shortcut is the same as Unity, Ctrl + Alt + arrow keys .

here Activities GNOME Shell. Do I leave things? It is possible, but as cursory glance is enough. Next week will surely come back and conclude this series of articles on GNOME Shell (see tricks, performance …), do not be the miss