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Operating System Specific Discussions => Other Operating Systems => Topic started by: vidarh on March 25, 2011, 09:21:06 AM

Title: Amiga-izing Linux
Post by: vidarh on March 25, 2011, 09:21:06 AM

Last night I got a sudden urge to make my Linux setup more like Amiga in terms of look and feel and (partially) functionality after looking at some Workbench screenshots.

First I replaced my backdrop, and then I downloaded a few archives of Amiga PNG icons (Gnome sees ".info" files with a PNG icon as just a PNG image and takes no notice of the other stuff in it) and started modifying the theme I use to make use of them.

I then installed gnome-globalmenu. From before I use a narrow, menu bar like panel at the top of the screen, so that gives me a global menu bar for most Gnome apps, though it's visibile all the time. It also has the advantage of removing the menu bars from Nautilus which is the only app I use that doesn't have an option to turn off the per-window menu bar without it.

Next I'm thinking of finding or adjusting the window imagery to feel more like Workbench or alternatively install Amiwm, but I've not used Amiwm in a decade so I'm not sure if it'll have the features I want. Another alternative is E17 (Enlightenment 0.16 at least had support for Amiga-like screen-dragging when I used that back in '99). I want a "cross" of 3.x and 4.x look - I don't quite like the standard  4.x look but I want a slightly more modern / metallic look than 3.x - sort of a more subtle 4.x :)

No screenshots yet, but maybe I post some this weekend.

Anyone got any other good suggestions for other changes to make?  (other than running AmigaOS - I do that too, in UAE, as well as run AROS, but neither are quite there yet for me to replace my Linux usage yet, so this is a  substitute...) Or gone through the same exercise of making another OS look and behave more like AmigaOS?

Title: Re: Amiga-izing Linux
Post by: Fats on March 25, 2011, 06:22:03 PM

Quote from: vidarh;624507

Anyone got any other good suggestions for other changes to make?

For some old-school 2-pane file management there is worker (http://www.boomerangsworld.de/worker/).

greets,
Staf.

Title: Re: Amiga-izing Linux
Post by: Khephren on March 26, 2011, 02:31:42 AM

Nice, never heard of that before. He reckons it looks like midnight commander...never heard of Dopus?

Title: Re: Amiga-izing Linux
Post by: vidarh on March 26, 2011, 06:25:29 AM

Quote from: Khephren;624740

Nice, never heard of that before. He reckons it looks like midnight commander...never heard of Dopus?

For most long time Linux users MC is the only reference they'll have in two pane file managers...

Makes me feel so old.

Title: Re: Amiga-izing Linux
Post by: vidarh on March 26, 2011, 09:41:01 AM

Thanks for suggesting Worker...

Also, I actually found a properly packaged up Gnome version of Ken's icons (http://gnome-look.org/content/show.php/Ken%27s+Icons?content=118574).

Also gconftool-2 --type string --set /apps/metacity/general/button_layout "close:minimize,maximize" puts the window butttons back in a more Amiga-like order if using metacity (the default Gnome WM)

Haven't replaced the window manager though, maybe later. In the meantime I might fire up gimp and adjust the window gadget look based on one of the AmigaOS like themes (the ones I found look too big for my taste)

Title: Re: Amiga-izing Linux
Post by: cicero790 on March 26, 2011, 11:11:38 AM

I did some experimenting on Ubuntu in virtualbox a while back and I found this.
Perhaps it could be useful.

http://ubuntu-art.org/content/show.php/Amiga+Ubuntunized?content=120041