Gnome 3 Tricks for Centos 7
I started using Gnome 3 on Centos 7 because the bluetooth support was not complete in Mate. I discovered several items to make it work better.
- yum install gnome-shell-browser-plugin
This will allow you to easily install the gnome extensions from the extensions web site - If you have installed the plugin or extension in Chrome or Firefox named “GNOME shell integration” remove it then restart the web browser or else you will get the error message “Although GNOME Shell integration extension is running, native host connector is not detected. Refer documentation for instructions about installing connector.” when you try to install the extensions below. The gnome-shell-browser package (see step 1 above) takes care of what this plugin/extension does for Centos 7.
- https://extensions.gnome.org/
Select an extension you want. Click on the on/off switch and it is installed!
My preferred extensions are:- Battery Status A configurable lightweight battery charge indicator and autohider. Includes a few quirky display modes.
- Cpu Power Manager Manage Intel_pstate CPU Frequency scaling driver – reduce power consumption when on battery – increase performance when your laptop is plugged in
- Freon Shows CPU temperature, disk temperature, video card temperature (NVIDIA/Catalyst/Bumblebee&NVIDIA), voltage and fan RPM
- Frippery Panel Favorites Add launchers for Favorites to the panel (see note below on how to add items to the Favorites menu)
- Impatience Speed up the gnome-shell animation speed
- No Topleft Hot Corner This extension disables the top left hot corners. You can still click on Activities or press the dedicated key to reach the overview. I think this is one of the greatest extensions out there!
- Sound Input & Output Device Chooser Shows a list of sound output and input devices (similar to gnome sound settings) in the status menu below the volume slider. Various active ports like HDMI , Speakers etc. of the same device are also displayed for selection
- Caffeine Disable the screensaver and auto suspend
- Refresh Wifi Connections gnome-shell does not request for wireless network scan once the wireless selection dialog once the dialog is opened. This extension adds a refresh button to the Wifi connection selection dialog to request for a network scan manually.
- Lock Keys Numlock & Capslock status on the panel
- yum install gnome-tweak-tool
You will find this under the Utilities menu. Remove unwanted extensions and lots of other great tools in there.
How to add items to the Favorites menu (the easy way)
- Start the application that you want in the favorites menu
- Press the “windows” or “super” key on your keyboard
- You should now see miniature versions of all the windows you have open, plus a series of icons on the left side of the screen representing everything currently in the Favorites menu plus icons for all apps that are running
- Right click on the icon on the left (not the miniature window) that represents the application you want to add to the Favorites menu. Select “Add to Favorites” It will now be in your Favorites menu. If you have installed the Frippery Panel Favorites, it will also appear on the top panel!
- To remove an item from the Favorites menu, select the “windows” or “super” key on your keyboard, right click the icon on the left that represents the application, then select “Remove”