[MATE Desktop} How to install Ayatana Indicators

[johnsonmt01]

As described in the official wiki, “Ayatana is a collective effort to improve the user experience of software in and for Ubuntu.” Projects included Window Management, Gestures, File Management, Software Management and System State/Global Controls. This last project included Application Panel Indicators, which were intended to create a simplified consistent interface in the notification area. The Ayatana team introduced these indicators with Ubuntu 9.04, where they remained until the transition to GNOME 3 in Ubuntu 17.10. Previously a feature of Ubuntu’s GNOME 2 implementation and the Unity desktop, here is how you can get them in Debian's MATE desktop.

1. Ensure contrib and non-free are enabled in sources.list

2. Open a terminal and run "sudo apt install ayatana-indicator-application ayatana-indicator-common ayatana-indicator-bluetooth ayatana-indicator-datetime ayatana-indicator-messages ayatana-indicator-notifications ayatana-indicator-power ayatana-indicator-printers ayatana-indicator-session ayatana-indicator-sound ayatana-settings ayatana-webmail mate-indicator-applet mate-indicator-applet-common -y"

3. You may notice that there is no package for a network indicator. This is because by default Debian's nm-applet.desktop launches as "nm-applet," while Ubuntu launches as "nm-applet --indicator." This is a simple fix.

4. Navigate to /etc/xdg/autostart and open nm-applet.desktop

5. Open it with an editor, scroll to the bottom, and look for the line Exec=nm-applet

6. Edit this line to read Exec=nm-applet --indicator

7. Logout/login, then add "indicator applet complete" to your panel. You should see a complete set of indicators including one for networks.

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Ayatana
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/DesktopExperien ... ndicators
https://arstechnica.com/information-tec ... apercuts/
https://ayatanaindicators.github.io/about/
https://github.com/AyatanaIndicators/li ... /issues/41

[craigevil]

Never quite understood why they would be needed. The MATE panel has applets for most if not all of the ayatana indicators.

[sunrat]

Ubuntu seems to make a habit of screwing up things that work fine in Debian.

[radquark]

Thank you all. Just discovered another strange thing that has stopped me following #1. Under System/Admin all I have listed is Print Settings. It seems a lot of 'things' are missing. I have carried out apt -y install task-mate-desktop in addition to installing the mate version when I installed Debian 12. I must admit when I followed the Debian 12 installer I did not concentrate 100% as I have been using ubuntu for over 10 years. I'm wondering whether there was an option to do some minimum install?

[None1975]

Hello. If you want install minimal system, install system with net installer, uncheck all options of DE, select only standard system utilities. After installation is complete, reboot and install

Code: Select all

mate-desktop-environment-core

This brings a true minimalist MATE installation.