Debian User Forums

Venting steam, here. I'm running Debian 9.5 with Mate desktop, on an old Dell Inspiron 9400. I've reached a point where I've developed a severe case of the f'k-its re. the volume control slider. It's next to impossible, to set it with precision. I try to keep it at 70% - but sometimes vids or sound files force me to change it - and then, when I try to change it back to 70%, the trouble starts. When I click on the round dot, it shifts upward or down, leaving 70%. When using the slider, there's no indication of what the current sound level it. So, the only way to see the % is to collapse it, for hovering the pointer above the icon. Then, when it's found wrong (which is 99% of the time), it has to be changed. It's like throwing darts wearing a blindfold. Or, trying to draw a picture while wearing boxing gloves. What I wonder is, why don't these shortcomings bother the people who spend their precious time designing the volume control?

NOTE: When I first posted this, I screwed up by calling it "Mint" desktop. But it's not - it's Mate. So, I edited this to correct that mistake.

Do you mean you are using Linux Mint Debian Edition --- and not Debian?

If so, perhaps you should ask here: https://forums.linuxmint.com/viewforum. ... f919050e98

A quick look at OP's previous posts indicates Debian 9 with MATE desktop.

If this is the case then hovering the cursor over the volume control will allow you to adjust the volume, in 5% increments, using the mouse wheel. You can also add mate-volume-control as a separate item on the panel. Clicking on it will open the Sound Preferences applet window where you can control input, output and other aspects.

I think the OP is referring to the Cinnamon desktop, which is available in Debian.

@OP: have you tried using the volume keys instead?

Sorry, I've been gone a long time, busy w/ other things.

I'm currently running Debian v10.6 (v10.3 upgraded), w/ Mate desktop. Nope, I don't have a mousewheel. I use a 2-button trackball as my mouse. I eventually just accepted that the slider adjustment routine is defective, and lived with it. For example, doing a click & tiny drag on the slider's button makes the button move in the opposite of the desired direction. And of course, there's no way to be accurate when seeking an exact percentage for the volume. It only achieves the percentage goal by accident. (For example, 73%...)

Head_on_a_Stick wrote:I think the OP is referring to the Cinnamon desktop, which is available in Debian.

@OP: have you tried using the volume keys instead?

Nope. I screwed up, writing "Mint", where I should have written "Mate". I'm currently running Mate desktop on Debian v10.6.
What volume keys?

I don't know if this is relevant but thought I would give my experience with the volume control slider. I use XFCE and have the PulseAudio Plugin volume control on dock. The default settings for the plugin is to show notifications when the volume changes. This of course causes problems trying to set the volume. By right clicking on the icon I was able to changing the default setting to NOT show notifications when the volume changes. It now works very smoothly. Perhaps there is a similar setting in your setup.

ticojohn wrote:I don't know if this is relevant but thought I would give my experience with the volume control slider. I use XFCE and have the PulseAudio Plugin volume control on dock. The default settings for the plugin is to show notifications when the volume changes. This of course causes problems trying to set the volume. By right clicking on the icon I was able to changing the default setting to NOT show notifications when the volume changes. It now works very smoothly. Perhaps there is a similar setting in your setup.

Not showing notifications? Interesting. I'll have to try that, if I can get back into the D10 OS. (My laptop's screen died.)