Re: strange session management stuff

[bbarnett L8R net]

> 
> hmmmm. Gnome without session management. Can be done methinks. Use a
> ~/.xinitrc which contains something like...
> 
>#######################################
>#!/bin/sh
> panel &
> screensaver-properties-capplet --init &
> background-properties --init &
> keyboard-properties --init &
> mouse-properties -init &
> gmc --nowindows &
> exec windowmanager
>#######################################
> 
> instead of the usual "exec gnome-session".
> 
> Don't forget to replace the windowmanager with your chosen windowmanager.
> 
> Any help? Did I forget anything?
> 


Well, it seems to run OK... and.. its nice ;)  I thought I'd mention a couple
of things to the list as a whole (or hopefully someone working on the
particular parts I'm about to mention).  I often find that new users have a
fresh perspective on things, and notice problems others sometimes overlook,
because of their familiarity with the product in question.

Anyhow, here they are :

1) the screensaver is nice.. and I expecially like the "power saving" feature. 
I could be wrong, but this is the first time I've seen it in X.  Anyhow, even
if it is available elsewhere, its good to have it in gnomecc, as a central sort
of group of programs.  Anyway, the point is, I don't like screensavers, but I
DO like to have my monitor turned off.  Here is the bug :

i) I can't turn off password auth .. so every time the screensaver goes on, I
have to enter my password to turn it off.  Obviously there is something wrong
here, since there is a button specifically designed to turn that off.

ii) since the password feature couldn't be turned off, I decided to change the 
screensaver time to 0 minutes, hoping that it would simply bypass the
screensaver, and count down to powersaving.  It did this the first time.  But
not the second, or the third.. but it did the fourth ;)  It seems that when you
set the screensaver turn on time to 0, it just flips a coin and decides to go
on in 5 minutes sometimes, and never other times.  This may not be a bug, but
why not have a feature so you can turn the screensaver off, but have the
powersaving feature on?

2) I love the idea of being able to use gmc to click on url's on my root
window.  Its kind of handy, at times.  The problem is, I don't want to use
gnome-moz-remote.  I don't run netscape my main user, but as another user. 
That's one of the benefits of linux and multiple users.  I can have what I deem
unsafe, run as another user, giving me that extra bit of security.  Anyhow,
here's my beef

i) as hard as I tried, the URL-Handlers section of gnomecc doesn't seem to
allow you to change the default.  It allows you to edit it, it allows you to
commit the changes, it takes the changes.  After you click "ok" however, it
simply has reverted to "gnome-moz-remote --newwin "%s" the next time you check
it.  This has to be a bug, otherwise, why are you allowed to edit it? ;)  If
its not a bug, then my beefs are 

ii) to those that are foolish enough to say "well, you don't need to change
it", what about those that want to run mozilla, instead of netscape?  or lynx? 
or netscape as another user?  


Anyhow, just a couple of REALLY annoying bugs I noticed.  Gnome is cool, but as
will everything (including my gut ;)  it needs a little work.  I hope that the
problems I've noticed will be taken as genuine interest in gnome, and a desire
on my part to see gnome improve even more. 



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