Bodhi Guide - Main Menu

Introduction

The Menu is a ubiquitous part of modern Graphical Operating systems and is commonly accessed by clicking a button or icon on a panel or taskbar. The infamous Windows Start button, for example.

Enlightenment (E17) provides this common user interface through the use of a Start Gadget which can be placed anywhere on the desktop - usually it is placed on a Shelf. Most of the Profiles that come in Bodhi Linux include a "Start Button", and in most of the Themes, it looks like a Bodhi Linux leaf.

However, it is possible to remove the Start button. This may seem an odd thing to do to people unfamiliar with E17. But fear not, this does not remove the Main Menu, merely its button. E17's menus can be displayed by clicking on any unoccupied spot on the desktop.

In addition to accessing E17's Main Menu from either the Start button or from the left-click on the desktop, in Bodhi Linuxthere is a default key-binding to open the Main Menu from the keyboard. It's the Menu key! On most keyboards this key is to the right of the spacebar, between the Alt and Ctrl keys and looks like the image to the right. Naturally this keyboard shortcut can be changed by the user or deleted altogether.

Where Did it Go?

A minor digression on an aspect of E17's menu that may confuse some new users of Bodhi Linux: As you scroll down the Main Menu list, the sub-menu entries always open to the right of the menu. Ordinarily this is not a problem, but what if you open the Main Menu close to right edge of the screen? In that case, the sub-menu may open and be partially or totally offscreen. It appears to be a quirk with E17's menu implementation, but that thought is perhaps a bit hasty. In this scenario, you merely have to move the cursor against the right side of the screen, and the whole menu structure moves to left to reveal the hidden sub-menu items. Another example of the elegance and beauty of Enlightenment!

Menu Structure

This section is a brief description of the structure of Bodhi Linux's Main Menu, although really the best way to gain familiarity with the menu is to open it up and explore it. Nonetheless, the Main Menu in a default installation of Bodhi Linux lists, from top to bottom:

• Applications

  Contains most of the GUI applications installed on your system, arranged in sub menus based upon categories. Most command-line applications are not displayed in the Applications Menu by default. They can, however, be added.  
  

• Navigate...

  Navigate is actually the menu-integrated form of the Enlightenment File Manager (EFM), the default Bodhi file manager as of 2.1.0. It allows you to open many directories directly from the menu. It has the unique feature of being able to display sub-menus of the directories within directories, as well.
  
  The EFM requires that the EFM (Starter) Module be loaded for it to function. This module is enabled by default, with the Places module as an alternative that also has a menu-integrated form. It can be unloaded, in which case it will disappear from the menu, as well as cease to function.
  

• Run everything

  Launches the Run Everything Application. The Swiss Army Knife of Enlightenment!
  

• Take Screenshot

  One-click screenshot. This function is provided by the ShotModule, which is loaded by default. As with the EFM (Starter)and Places Modules, Shot can be unloaded, in which case theTake Screenshot option will disappear from the Main Menu.
  Note: A screenshot of the desktop may also be taken by pressing the Print Screen key, and a screenshot of only a specific window may be taken by right-clicking most window-borders and selecting Take shot.
  

• Desktop

  Allows an easy switch to any virtual desktop as well as fast access to Virtual Desktops Settings and Shelves Settings. You also have the option to show or hide all open windows on the current Desktop.
  

• Windows

  Gives an option to clean up windows, an option to find lost windows, and allows fast access to any open window.
  

• Bodhi Linux

  Here you will find Bodhi Linux's extension to the E17's Main Menu. There are four sections:
  

  • About

    Opens the About Bodhi Linux window.

  • Quick Start

    Opens a locally stored Quick Start web page in the default web browser.

  • Add Software

    Opens the Bodhi Linux AppCenter web page in the default web browser. Here you can easily and conveniently install useful applications and more.

  • Artwork

    Opens the Bodhi Art web page where you can get some extra eye candy for your desktop. Most of the artwork contributors on this page are users of Bodhi Linux rather than professional graphic artists.

• Enlightenment

  
  

  • About

    Opens the About Enlightenment window.

  • Theme

    Opens an About Theme window which displays information about the current E17 theme.

  • Restart

    Choosing this restarts E17, sometimes necessary if settings do not seem to take effect or in the rather unlikely event that E17 seems to not be working correctly. This doesn't close any open files or apps or log you out, it just refreshes your interface!

  • Exit

    Shuts down E17.

• Settings

  Opens E17's Settings Panel and other settings options, as well as a menu-integrated form of the Settings Panel. A tweakers paradise!
  

• System

  Here are the familiar Shutdown, Reboot, Suspend, Lock, et. al. functions.

                                   bodhi linux introduction

This Bodhi Guide to Enlightenment is intended to be your resource for using Enlightenment (E17) and getting the most out of it. New Bodhi Linux users may also want to check out our brief introduction, the Quickstart Guide, which is available online and locally on your system, accessible via the Main Menu.

One of the beauties of a Linux system is the plethora of choices for a Window Manager, and Bodhi Linux uses Enlightenment as its default. But what exactly is a Window Manager?

According to Wikipedia, “A window manager is system software that controls the placement and appearance of windows within a windowing system in a graphical user interface … They work in conjunction with the underlying graphical system which provides required functionality such as support for graphics hardware, pointing devices, and a keyboard, and are often written and created using a widget toolkit."

Basically a Window Manager controls the way you interact with your computer, at least in the Graphical User Interface (GUI). Over time, many Window Managers have been extended to become full-fledged Desktop Environments. A Desktop Environment is generally considered to be a Window Manager that integrates common applications and services, which are often built using the same widget toolkit, into the GUI.Enlightenment is known as a Window Manager, but provides most of the functionality found in much more resource-hungry Desktop Environments. You could say that it straddles the line between a Window Manager and a Desktop Environment.

The first version of Enlightenment was released in 1997. In December 2000, it was completely re-written using the Enlightenment Foundation Libraries (EFL), and remains in active development to this day. The current incarnation of Enlightenment is 0.1.7, often referred to as simply E17. It is officially stable. E18 is in the works, though a stable release is far into the future.

In the Fall of 2010, the lead-developer, Jeff Hoogland, began working on the idea of a new Linux distribution utilizing a current and relatively stable version of Enlightenment, built on the rock-solid EFL foundation, as the Window Manager, with an Ubuntu Long Term Support release as its base.

Enlightenment and Bodhi Linux

Enlightenment is the natural choice as a Window Manager in Bodhi Linux, as it fits in perfectly with two of the most important Bodhi Linux ideals:

• Minimalism - A default install of Enlightenment will run in less than 100 MB of RAM. That is FAR less than most modern Window Managers, not to mention complete Desktop Environments. But it doesn't come at the expense of great looks or functionality. Enlightenment is one of the most elegant Window Managers available, and is highly extensible through the use of Modules. Which brings us to the second ideal …
• User Choice - Enlightenment is likely the most highly configurable Window Manager in existence, so you can make your system look and work the wayyou want.

There are other Linux distributions that use Enlightenment as their Window Manager, but none (that we know of) deliver such frequent E17 updates, ensuring that you always have the best Enlightenment has to offer.

Another great advantage of using Enlightenment in Bodhi Linux is that two active E17 developers (Stephen “okra" Houston and Christopher “devilhorns" Michael) are also active developers on the Bodhi Linux team. This relationship benefits both parties. Any issues that appear in the E17 version that Bodhi Linuxis using can be addressed and corrected quickly. And those fixes can then quickly go “upstream" to the main E17 development and out to the widerEnlightenment community as a whole.