Save Space on Your Ubuntu Desktop

If you like to have many windows open and visible at the same time on your Ubuntu desktop or you are just limited on space on your desktop, here are some tips for maximizing your screen “real estate.”

Installing a Compact Theme

First, we will install a compact theme that will shrink the size of your icons, menu bars and items, buttons, etc. There are two files you must download.

• Download the Human Icons set here.
• Download the Human Compact Theme here.

For the theme, there two options. You can download the regular compact theme, or you can download the “small icons” version. We install the “small icons” version in this post.

Installing the Human Icons

First, you must install the Human Icons because the Human Compact Theme depends on them. In the File Browser, navigate to the location to which you downloaded the two files from above and double-click the .deb file for the Human Icons (most likely named something similar to human-icon-theme_0.35_all.deb).

You may see a dialog box display, warning you that the same version is available in a software channel. If you do see this dialog box, click Close on it. We will install from the .deb file, which is just as easy.

The Package Installer dialog box displays. Click the Install Package button.

A dialog box may display when the installation is finished. Click Close.

Select Quit from the File menu to close the Package Installer.

Installing and Activating the Human Compact Theme

To install the Human Compact Theme, select Preferences | Appearance from the System menu.

Make sure the Theme tab is active on the Appearance Preferences dialog box.

Drag the Human Compact file you downloaded earlier (most likely named something similar to HumanCompactSmallIcons-8.10.tar.bz2) from the File Browser to the Theme tab on the Appearance Preferences dialog box and then select it.

Here is an image showing the File Browser before applying the Human Compact theme:

Here is the File Browser after applying the Human Compact theme:

You can see that the theme saves a significant amount of space.

Consolidating Panel Icons

Another method of saving more room on your desktop is to consolidate the top and bottom panels into one.

For example, to move the Trash icon from the bottom panel to the top panel, right-click the Trash icon and select Lock To Panel from the pop-up menu to uncheck the option.

Then, right-click on the Trash icon again and select Move from the menu. To move the Trash icon to the top panel, just move your mouse, without clicking any buttons, to the new location on the top panel. Once the Trash icon is in place, click the left mouse button to finalize the move.

To lock the Trash icon in its new location, right-click the icon and select Lock To Panel to check the option.

The Trash icon is now on the top panel.

The other icons, in addition to the Trash icon, that are on the bottom panel by default are the Show Desktop and Workspace Switcher icons and the Window List button bar.

To add these items to the top panel we will use the Add to Panel option. Right-click on the top panel and select Add To Panel from the pop-up menu.

On the Add to Panel dialog box, scroll down and select Window List. Click the Add button. The Window List button bar is added to the top panel, but the Add to Panel dialog box stays open. This allows you to add multiple items easily. Find the Show Desktop and Workspace Switcher items and add those to the top panel also. Add any other items you want and then click Close to close the Add to Panel dialog box.

Below is how our final top panel looks after adding the bottom panel items to it.

If you do not want the bottom panel to show, but you want to be able to easily get it back in the future, you can have it automatically hide. That means that the bottom panel will not display unless you move your mouse to the very bottom of the screen.

To do this, right-click on the bottom panel and select Properties from the pop-up menu.

On the Panel Properties dialog box, check the Autohide check box.

You can also use the Show hide buttons option to display button on both ends of the panel to hide the panel. Once you hide the panel, there is one button left on the side you used to hide the panel that allows you to show the panel again.

You can turn this option on for the top panel to hide that when you want to use all the screen “real estate” that you possibly can. Click the button at the end of the panel again to show the panel only when you need it.

by Lori Kaufman