Minimalist tricks and treats
To start you need xorg-xinit and openbox installed:
From AUR download, build, and install obmenu-generator
You can use pacopts or cower if you don't have something else as an AUR helper, ask for help if you want details.
Once built and installed you can add perl-gtk3 (an optional dependency) for use of gtk3 icons.
edit % sudo $editor /usr/bin/obmenu-generator (it is a script not a binary) and search down for GTK3, the 2nd or 3rd hit says use_gtk3 = 0 change the 0 to 1 so it can use icons from gtk3 which are the prevalent icon systems arch uses now, gtk2 is fading away.
Then on terminal again type % obmenu-generator -p -i and the menu is created. Right click on the screen away from windows and a menu will open up. Down on the advanced options there is a sub menu to edit the menus yourself and make new ones. The default editor is geany, if you don't have it installed or like using it, edit ~/.config/obmenu-generator/menu.pl and change editor=geany to editor=mousepad or whatever you like as gui-text-editor.
Now, the black screen or gray screen, it is ugly and hurts your eyes, I know. Easy fix!
Download feh --> % sudo pacman -S feh
Also, do you have obarun-install installed in your system? If not, you can just install the themes package, this way, temporarily. If you installed obarun openbox, xfce, plasma, jwm, you must have the following two items already. If you installed base you may not have them. So here is how you get them. (dark obarun background and obarun pointer theme).
If you don't like that one, find any picture you like, save it in some place ~/.Pictures/bg.jpg then
Alternatively you can use nitrogen if you have a directory full of background pictures to use.
Use this line on autostart
If you search the forum (this category) for conky you will find my Obarun conky module to copy and modify as you like. I currently use the old conky because they changed format and it needs some corrections. From AUR you can also install conky-manager which has many samples of modules to use.
I don't use a panel anymore, with obmenu-generator my conky and shortcuts/hot-keys I get everything I need with just a clean screen, no clutter.
I can share my openbox rc.xml modification if you like, but take a look first on the default at ~/.config/openbox/rc.xml
I have Ctrl Shift W opens my browser, Ctrl T for lxterminal (inside lxterminal C Shift T opens a new tab of the terminal). I also use nano for editing everything and I avoid the ctrl keys inside nano to be set on openbox, so if you use hot-keys anywhere else try not to use the same for openbox.
I also use gksu (AUR) instead of consolekit so I can make root tasks open in obmenu-generator with gksu and I have no use for dbus or consolekit (elogind in almost all other distros). Arch dropped gksu/gksudo due to "security" reasons. Yes, if anything by-passes systemd's spider-webs is a security issue, while the live recorder of everything you do with dbus as a little snitch to the recorder is "secure". Give us a break you little NSA/IBM puppets.
on obmenu-generator schema.pl ~/.config/obmenu-generator/schema.pl
The first line is there by default (you need to have gmrun installed) the second I added and I can run anything as root, it asks for user password
Things that you do often you should make into items in the menu.
I can make my openbox look and act just like lxde or xfce4. I just don't need or want to.
You can use a file manager to set background, and desktop icons like windows if you want to fool someone
you are working on ms-Windows. I have a background with an ms-like windows logo with the glass broken.
Pcmanfm or spacefm are common filemanagers used for this purpose, I don't know if thunar does the same for xfce.
You can also test the ability with .xinitrc to just have your favorite terminal starting with xinit, no WM no DE.
Change the line from exec openbox-session to exec sakura for example.
Black background and fixed terminal window. Type openbox-session in the terminal now. Here is your openbox. If on another terminal tab you have opened your browser, and a third has an editor gui like geany, they stay on.
Then type openbox --exit and then type jwm if you had this installed already. You go from openbox to jwm in 1 second, no reason to exit X, and your windows stayed in tact if you didn't close the terminal tabs that started them.
Now if you really need a fancy panel/bar/tray in your openbox you can try lxpanel. There may be a couple of things/widgets in the panel that may require dbus functionality, but other than seeing a couple of warning on terminal, lxpanel works fine.
The other alternative is tint2 but needs some reasearch and a few hours of configuring to make it half as functional as lxpanel, and although many people say it is a light choice, it is not that much lighter than lxpanel.
You want to flip from one language/keymap to another while on X?
/etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/00-keyboard.conf
edit this: /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/00-keyboard.conf
Alternatively you can enter two lines into obmenu-generator like this:
One thing you may need in a wm is a place that keeps memory of things you were copying. If you copy something from the browser and want it pasted in the editor and you make a mistake and close the browser before you paste, the copied part is lost. Clipit is a simple program that keeps this cut/copy/paste memory active between windows. You can add it to autostart or add it in the panel which gives you an icon like a clipboard and shows the past "n" pieces you copied.
Why do I like running conky? I like seeing ram and processor use, see how little of resources are taken up just to get terminals and guis running. All you need really is a terminal that is better than console, and if you can't remember the names of the programs you want started in terminal a menu like obmenu-generator is all you need. The rest is all fluff.
Fluff that can take 3-4 times more ram starting up than OB or jwm, or i3, or awesome, bspwm, ..etc.
To start you need xorg-xinit and openbox installed:
From AUR download, build, and install obmenu-generator
You can use pacopts or cower if you don't have something else as an AUR helper, ask for help if you want details.
Once built and installed you can add perl-gtk3 (an optional dependency) for use of gtk3 icons.
edit % sudo $editor /usr/bin/obmenu-generator (it is a script not a binary) and search down for GTK3, the 2nd or 3rd hit says use_gtk3 = 0 change the 0 to 1 so it can use icons from gtk3 which are the prevalent icon systems arch uses now, gtk2 is fading away.
Then on terminal again type % obmenu-generator -p -i and the menu is created. Right click on the screen away from windows and a menu will open up. Down on the advanced options there is a sub menu to edit the menus yourself and make new ones. The default editor is geany, if you don't have it installed or like using it, edit ~/.config/obmenu-generator/menu.pl and change editor=geany to editor=mousepad or whatever you like as gui-text-editor.
Now, the black screen or gray screen, it is ugly and hurts your eyes, I know. Easy fix!
Download feh --> % sudo pacman -S feh
Also, do you have obarun-install installed in your system? If not, you can just install the themes package, this way, temporarily. If you installed obarun openbox, xfce, plasma, jwm, you must have the following two items already. If you installed base you may not have them. So here is how you get them. (dark obarun background and obarun pointer theme).
% sudo pacman -Sdd obarun-install-themes
% sudo cp /var/lib/obarun/obarun-install/config/openbox/rootfs/usr/share/wallpapers/obarun-wallpapers.jpg /usr/share/wallpapers/
% sudo cp -r /var/lib/obarun/obarun-install/config/openbox/rootfs/usr/share/icons/Jeex_Mix /usr/share/icons/
% sudo pacman -R obarun-install-themes
% feh --bg-fill /usr/share/wallpapers/obarun-wallpapers.jpg
If you don't like that one, find any picture you like, save it in some place ~/.Pictures/bg.jpg then
% feh --bg-fill ~/.Pictures/bg.jpg and it will be your background.% edit .config/openbox/autostartfeh --bg-fill /usr/share/wallpapers/obarun-wallpapers.jpg &Alternatively you can use nitrogen if you have a directory full of background pictures to use.
Use this line on autostart
nitrogen --restore &(sleep 1s && feh --bg-fill /usr/share/wallpapers/obarun-wallpapers.jpg) &
(sleep 2s && lxpanel) &
(sleep 3s && conky -c ~/.conky/Obarun) &
(sleep 4s && lxterminal) &
If you search the forum (this category) for conky you will find my Obarun conky module to copy and modify as you like. I currently use the old conky because they changed format and it needs some corrections. From AUR you can also install conky-manager which has many samples of modules to use.
I don't use a panel anymore, with obmenu-generator my conky and shortcuts/hot-keys I get everything I need with just a clean screen, no clutter.
I can share my openbox rc.xml modification if you like, but take a look first on the default at ~/.config/openbox/rc.xml
I have Ctrl Shift W opens my browser, Ctrl T for lxterminal (inside lxterminal C Shift T opens a new tab of the terminal). I also use nano for editing everything and I avoid the ctrl keys inside nano to be set on openbox, so if you use hot-keys anywhere else try not to use the same for openbox.
I also use gksu (AUR) instead of consolekit so I can make root tasks open in obmenu-generator with gksu and I have no use for dbus or consolekit (elogind in almost all other distros). Arch dropped gksu/gksudo due to "security" reasons. Yes, if anything by-passes systemd's spider-webs is a security issue, while the live recorder of everything you do with dbus as a little snitch to the recorder is "secure". Give us a break you little NSA/IBM puppets.
on obmenu-generator schema.pl ~/.config/obmenu-generator/schema.pl
{item = ['gmrun', 'Run cmd', 'system-run']},
{item = ['gksudo', 'Root Run', 'applications-system']},The first line is there by default (you need to have gmrun installed) the second I added and I can run anything as root, it asks for user password
% gksudo lxterminal % gksu lxterminal % gksudo geany /etc/pacman.conf will let you edit pacman.conf with geanyThings that you do often you should make into items in the menu.
I can make my openbox look and act just like lxde or xfce4. I just don't need or want to.
You can use a file manager to set background, and desktop icons like windows if you want to fool someone
you are working on ms-Windows. I have a background with an ms-like windows logo with the glass broken.
Pcmanfm or spacefm are common filemanagers used for this purpose, I don't know if thunar does the same for xfce.
pcmanfm --desktop-onpcmanfm --desktop-offYou can also test the ability with .xinitrc to just have your favorite terminal starting with xinit, no WM no DE.
Change the line from exec openbox-session to exec sakura for example.
Black background and fixed terminal window. Type openbox-session in the terminal now. Here is your openbox. If on another terminal tab you have opened your browser, and a third has an editor gui like geany, they stay on.
Then type openbox --exit and then type jwm if you had this installed already. You go from openbox to jwm in 1 second, no reason to exit X, and your windows stayed in tact if you didn't close the terminal tabs that started them.
Now if you really need a fancy panel/bar/tray in your openbox you can try lxpanel. There may be a couple of things/widgets in the panel that may require dbus functionality, but other than seeing a couple of warning on terminal, lxpanel works fine.
The other alternative is tint2 but needs some reasearch and a few hours of configuring to make it half as functional as lxpanel, and although many people say it is a light choice, it is not that much lighter than lxpanel.
You want to flip from one language/keymap to another while on X?
/etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/00-keyboard.conf
edit this: /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/00-keyboard.conf
Section "InputClass"
Identifier "system-keyboard"
MatchIsKeyboard "on"
Option "XkbLayout" "us,fr"
Option "XkbModel" "pc105"
Option "XkbOptions" "grp:alt_shift_toggle"
EndSection
Alternatively you can enter two lines into obmenu-generator like this:
{item => ['setxkbmap fr', 'French', Flag FR']},
{item => ['setxkbmap us', 'English', 'Flag US']},
One thing you may need in a wm is a place that keeps memory of things you were copying. If you copy something from the browser and want it pasted in the editor and you make a mistake and close the browser before you paste, the copied part is lost. Clipit is a simple program that keeps this cut/copy/paste memory active between windows. You can add it to autostart or add it in the panel which gives you an icon like a clipboard and shows the past "n" pieces you copied.
Why do I like running conky? I like seeing ram and processor use, see how little of resources are taken up just to get terminals and guis running. All you need really is a terminal that is better than console, and if you can't remember the names of the programs you want started in terminal a menu like obmenu-generator is all you need. The rest is all fluff.
Fluff that can take 3-4 times more ram starting up than OB or jwm, or i3, or awesome, bspwm, ..etc.