Gnome finally has an extension to enable rounded corners for all app windows, and customize the window borders!

Start in Gnome 40, more and more applications use GTK4 toolkit for rendering their user interface. So, you have modern apps with rounded (bottom) corners and classic GTK3 and Qt apps with sharp (bottom) corners.

To make your system apps look consistent, this project is created and works on Ubuntu 22.04, Fedora 35/36, Arch Linux, Manjaro Linux with GNOME.

GTK3 app with rounded corners

The extension provides options for configuring window border width, color, and radius. There can be some applications that are not working well with the extension, so it provides blacklist option. Also, it supports for setting different clip padding on per app basis.

Set border width, color. radius, and blocklist

How to Install the Extension in Ubuntu 22.04

Ubuntu 22.04 user can simply search for and install ‘Extension Manager‘ first in Ubuntu Software.

Then, search for and open ‘Extension Manager’ from Activities overview. Finally, use the tool to search and install “Rounded Window Corners” extension under ‘Browse’ tab:

After installation, you may switch back to “Install” tab in the tool, and click on gear icon to open the settings dialog for the extension.

Configure Extension

Install the Extension in Fedora 35/36 & other Linux

For Fedora and other Linux with GNOME 40+ desktop, simply go to the link button below in your web browser:

If you don’t see the ON/OFF switch, click the link in that page to install browser extension and refresh.

For Ubuntu 22.04, there’s now an extension to enable animation when you move mouse pointer over app icons on the left/bottom panel.

It’s a magnifying animation for the dock app icons under mouse cursor. Which, remind me of the old popular Avant Window Navigator.

The extension is called ‘Dash Animator‘ designed for Ubuntu with the default GNOME Desktop. As it requires GNOME 40+, only Ubuntu 22.04 meet the request so far. Though, it should also work on other GNOME based Linux that uses Dash-to-Dock, such as Manjaro Linux.

How to Install the “Dash Animator” Extension in Ubuntu 22.04

1. Firstly, search for and install “Extension Manager” application from Ubuntu Software.

If Ubuntu Software does not work, you may press Ctrl+Alt+T to open terminal, and run the command below to install the tool:

sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-manager

2. After installed the tool, press Super (the ‘Windows’ logo key) to open Activities overview. Then search for and open it.

3. When it opens, navigate to ‘Browse’ tab, search for “dash to dock animator“, and finally click on “Install” button to install the extension.

Other Linux may simply go to the extension page via the link button below. And, use the ON/OFF switch to install it.

Without any configuration, the animation should work immediately after properly installed the extension.

(Optional) To disable or remove the animation, either use Gnome Extensions App or Extension Manager (both available in Ubuntu Software), or turn off the slider in the extension web page (see the button above).

Disable or Remove via Extension Manager

NOTE: removing the extension need restart GNOME (log out and back in) to apply change.

GNOME announced the first alpha for the next 43 stable series. See what’s new in this popular Linux desktop environments.

GNOME is the default desktop environment for Ubuntu and Fedora Workstation, and optional for Debian, Arch Linux and so forth.

The next v43 is planned for September 21, 2022. So far, it features new “Device Security” sub-settings page of “Privacy” in GNOME Control Center. With it, you can easily find out if “Secure Boot” is enabled in your machine.

Not sure if it’s unfinished or because of running in Virtual Machine. The shield icon has no description text. By clicking on it will show you current HSI security level, as well as options for “Minimal Protection”, “Basic Protection”, and “Extended Protection”. But, all of them shows only blank page for me.

Gnome Software now support for Web Apps. It as well allows swiping back in the shell using touchpad gestures. Gnome Weather now has a new ‘About’ dialog:

Other changes in GNOME 43 include:

• Gnome Calendar now has a sidebar in main window, and has ability to zoom the Week view.
• Dconf Editor now has a new app icon.
• Gnome Text editor now support for opening local STDIN streams

Get GNOME 43 Alpha:

A GNOME OS installer image as well as the news file and source packages are available to download in the announce page below:

Use Alt+Tab or Super+Tab frequently in Ubuntu or Fedora Linux? This extension replace the default window switcher with advanced options.

It’s AATWS, Advanced Alt-Tab Window Switcher, a Gnome Shell extension which may be useful for those working with many application windows at the same time.

The extension adds type to search function to the Alt/Super + Tab window/app switchers. Which allows to quickly find your opened app or window. It will also try to search and launch system applications if no match app/window exist.

As you see, each item in the switcher has corresponding hotkey (F1, F2, F3 …) for quick access with one key, rather than hitting Tab multiple times.

Also, many configure options are available in the extension settings dialog, including:

• Move Alt/Super + Tab switcher in screen top, center or bottom.
• Show switcher in different monitor.
• Use Up/Down arrows to switch workspace while using the switcher.
• Configure window/app icon size, mouse actions, and more.

Many configure options for app/window switcher

How to Install AATWS App/Window Switcher

For Ubuntu 22.04, search for and install “Extension Manager” in Ubuntu Software. You may then use the tool to install the extension:

Install AATWS via Extension Manager

For Ubuntu 20.04 and other Linux with GNOME, use the ON/OFF switch in the link below to install it:

NOTE: Debian and Ubuntu need to first install the agent package by running the command below in terminal first:

sudo apt install chrome-gnome-shell

And install the browser extension via the link in that page if you don’t see the ON/OFF switch, and finally refresh the web page.

Want to configure the top-bar, dock, overview and other Gnome shell components with more settings? Shell Configurator is now updated with GNOME 41 & 42 support.

It’s an extension for add, remove, configure, and customize GNOME Shell with advanced settings. With it, you can:

• Select login into blank desktop, overview or app grid.
• Hide or auto-hide top bar.
• Show/hide panel elements, e.g., Activities, clock, app menu, system menu (aggregate menu).
• Change height size of top-bar.
• Move top-bar to bottom.
• Enable/disable Dash (the dock).
• Remove the separator in dock between favorite and running apps.
• Show or hide search in overview.
• Set how many rows and columns in app grid.
• Change looking glass size and postion.
• Change notification bubble, OSD position and time out.
• Show the new screenshot UI in top.

How to Install Shell Configurator:

For Ubuntu 22.04, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal and run the command below to install Extension Manager:

sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-manager

Then, click “Activities” on top bar, search for and open the app:

Finally, navigate to ‘Browse’ tab, search and click install the “Shell Configurator” extension:

To open the settings dialog, switch back to “Installed” tab in Extension Manager and click on the gear button for the extension.

For other Ubuntu edition as well as Fedora, Debian with GNOME, use the on/off switch to install extension in the link page below, after installed the chrome-gnome-shell agent:

sudo apt install chrome-gnome-shell

Have your Ubuntu PC connected with multiple monitors? Here’s how to enable the top bar in all the displays.

In Ubuntu 22.04, you may easily enable the left Dock in all displays via System Settings ->Appearance -> Dock -> show on ‘All Displays’.

However, due to GNOME’s design issue, the top panel only appears in the primary display. So I’m writing this tutorial that could help.

Method 1: Multi Monitors Add-On

There was an extension called “Multi Monitors Add-On” to do the job, which however discontinued. Contributors keep forking the project with new Gnome versions support, and here’s the one for GNOME 42.

NOTE: The extension has an issue in my case that indicators and top-right system menu do not display in external display.

1. First, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. When it opens, run command to grab the source tarball.

git clone https://github.com/realh/multi-monitors-add-on.git

Install git if you don’t have it via sudo apt install git command.

2. After cloned the source, navigate to the source folder, and install it by copy and pasting to local extension directory.

cd multi-monitors-add-on

cp -r multi-monitors-add-on@spin83 ~/.local/share/gnome-shell/extensions/

3. To avoid error in extension manager, disable the version validation check by running command:

gsettings set org.gnome.shell disable-extension-version-validation true

4. Before being able to enable the extension, you have to restart GNOME Shell. For default session, you need to log out and back in. If you’re running the classic Xorg session, press Alt + F2, type r in pop-up ‘Run a command’ box and hit Enter.

5. Finally, use either Gnome Extensions app or Extension Manager (both available to install in Ubuntu Software) to enable and configure this extension to display top panel on multi-monitors.

Method 2: use dash to panel

If you’re OK to merge the left dock and top-bar into a single panel. The popular “Dash-to-panel” extension can do the job with a simple on/off switch.

Dash to Panel

To install the extension, first press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard and run command in pop-up terminal to install ‘Extension Manager’:

sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-manager

Then search for and launch extension manager in ‘Activities’ overview screen:

Finally, search for and install ‘Dash to panel’ extension from the app window under ‘Browse’ tab.

Once successfully installed the extension, your panels change automatically. And, you can right-click on panel and select the last menu option to open the configuration dialog.

Some applications display notifications in the lock screen, which could be quite annoying!

If you want, you can disable all of them or certain app notifications easily via Gnome Control Center.

1.) Firstly, go to the top-right corner system menu. Then click on “Settings” to open system settings utility, which is also known as gnome control center.

2.) When it opens, navigate to “Notifications” from the left pane. Then, just turn off “Lock Screen Notifications” will disable all the notifications:

3.) For choice, you may scroll down to find out a certain application. Click on it, and toggle the option in the next pop-up dialog.

As you see, there are also options to turn on/off sound alerts, notification bubble, message content in per app basis.

That’s it. Enjoy!

Want to display your computer’s temperature, voltage, fan speed, memory usage, and other system resources usage in top panel? Vitals is a good choice for Ubuntu, Fedora Workstation, and other Linux with GNOME desktop.

It’s a Gnome Shell extension that can display following information on your system tray area:

• CPU core temerature.
• Voltage.
• Fan speed.
• Memory and Swap usage.
• Processor load, frequency.
• System load, uptime.
• Network speed.
• Storage usage.

A drop-down menu is available to take a glimpse of all available data. And, user may click on menu option to select which to display on panel.

There are as well bottom buttons to quickly launch system monitor utility and open the extension “Preferences” dialog. In which, you may configure the refresh interval, indicator position, as well as toggle display sensors.

How to Install Vitals Extension:

The extension supports GNOME from version 3.18 to the current 42. Which means, you may install and run it in Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 22.04, Fedora 34/35/36, and other Linux (e.g., Debian, Arch, Manjaro) with GNOME.

Method 1: Install the extension via browser

Ubuntu user needs to firstly press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. Then, run command to install the agent to install Gnome Extension from web browser.

sudo apt install chrome-gnome-shell

Then, go the link below and turn on the slider icon to install the extension:

Click the link in the page to install browser extension if you don’t see the slider icon, and refresh the page.

Method 2: Install the extension in Ubuntu 22.04 via Extension Manager

Ubuntu 22.04 defaults to Firefox as Snap which does not support installing Gnome Extensions. Besides using another browser or install back the classic .Deb package, “Extension Manager” is a good alternative.

1. Firstly, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. When it opens, run command to install the application:

sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-manager

2. Next, search for and open the tool from either Activities overview or app grid:

3. Finally, navigate to ‘Browse’ tab in Extension Manager app, search for and install ‘Vitals’ extension:

The indicator should appear immediately on your system panel after installation.

Want to hide the lock screen option from the upper-right corner system menu? Here’s how to do the trick in Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.

For Ubuntu, Fedora and other Linux with GNOME desktop, the screen lock can be disabled either totally or only from the system menu.

Method 1: Single command to disable lock screen

GNOME has a hidden option to disable the lock screen. Simply press “Ctrl+Alt+T” on keyboard to open terminal, then run the command below will do the trick:

gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.lockdown disable-lock-screen true

This command works on all current Ubuntu releases, including Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 22.04, Ubuntu 24.04, and even other Linux with recent GNOME, e.g., Debian 11/12, Fedora, etc.

NOTE: This command not only hide the menu option, but also completely disable the lock screen function. The Super+L shortcut and automatic screen lock when system idle will no longer work!

For those prefer a graphical configuration tool, this can also be done via “Dconf Editor” tool which is available to install in Ubuntu Software.

To re-enable this feature, open terminal and run command:

gsettings reset org.gnome.desktop.lockdown disable-lock-screen

Method 2: Only hide menu option via Gnome Extension

To just hide the option from system menu, but keep all other ways (e.g, Super+L and idle action) to trigger lock screen, there’s an extension for Ubuntu 22.04, Fedora 36, and other Linux with GNOME 42.

1.) Firstly, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. When it opens, run the command below to install extension manager:

sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-manager

2.) Next, press Super (Windows) key on keyboard to open “Activities” overview screen, then search for and open the tool:

3.) Finally, search for and install “Hide Lock item in System Menu” extension from Browse tab and done.

For Fedora 36, you may visit the extension web page and turn on the slider icon to install it.

Got an invisible app window called “gjs” in Ubuntu 22.04 desktop? Here’s how to kill it without log out the current session.

GJS, stands for Gnome JavaScript, it’s part of Gnome-shell use as JavaScript programming environment. In Ubuntu, the default Desktop Icons NG (DING) extension use gjs, which could cause the issue sometimes.

When the issue happens, you’ll see an app icon called “gjs” in the dock, but no app window visible. You can not close it by the context menu option. And, it’s annoying that other applications are not reachable via mouse clicks until switch focus via Alt+Tab keyboard shortcut.

Invisible gjs in overview

Until GNOME or maybe the extension developers fixed the issue, user may manually kill the process to get rid of it.

Kill the process via system monitor

Firstly, press Super / Windows key on keyboard to open ‘Activities’ overview, search for and open “System Monitor” app:

When it opens, scroll down and find out the process. There are usually multiple gjs processes. Move mouse pointer over one of them will display a tooltip about it.

It’s safe to kill the process by clicking to highlight and then hitting “End Process” button. The invisible “gjs” window should disappear immediately if you killed the correct one. And, the process will start again automatically.

Kill the process via Linux command:

For those familiar with Linux command, simply open terminal and run command to find out the process:

ps ax |grep gjs

Then, kill process by using the pid:

sudo kill -9 PID_HERE