Feedback of Zorin 15 Lite

Post your experiences, good, bad, or indifferent here.

As for me I could not possibly comment!

You already know my comments about XFCE4.14.

On Zorin 15 Lite, some trouble with Gdebi not working correctly or at times, not working at all.

Some trouble with the automatic lockscreen. This is a notorious XFCE issue.

There is no Zorin connect on XFCE desktop. This is probably because Zorin connect uses GSConnect, in part.

Over-all, however, Zorin 15 Lite is very solid and very appealing. It offers a standard package for an XFCE desktop O.S. Somehow, it works well on the 5.3 Kernel even though by rights, it shouldn't.
Everything else I have tested on it works very well. Including, again, programs that shouldn't work well. I have NOT yet tested Wine or Valves "Proton" on it.
Lite 15 has an elegance to it, working smartly and easily right at the start of installation. Lite 15 Works efficiently even on an older machine. However, go back pre-2010 and I would think Zorin 12.4 Lite would be preferable until the LTS explodes.
The GTK 3.22 offers some advantages over the GTK 3.18 of Zorin 12.4 Lite.

KDE Connect:
Similar to Zorin Connect, I have installed and it DOES work on Zorin 15 Lite.
It requires certain dependencies to work, including qt5ct.
I got a bit... Lazy... So I installed dolphin and allll the vittles that come with it.

Once these two items were done;
Settings> Session and Startup -Advanced tab- select KDE services at start up. Log out and in.

Code:

qdbus org.kde.kded /kded loadModule kdeconnect
true

Code:

kbuildsycoca4 -noincremental

Installed KDE Connect on Android from Google Play Store. Opened and paired, then opened settings and allowed permissions on each of the plugins.

If anyone else is interested...

Some Step by step instructions on how to do this would be great for us, less than knowledgeable folks...
Namely me Aravisian... I don't fully understand 'dependencies' and what to do with them...
"It requires certain dependencies to work, including qt5ct. I got a bit... Lazy... So I installed dolphin and allll the vittles that come with it." It's Greek, right?

Be careful what you ask for...

JeffK969 wrote:Some Step by step instructions on how to do this would be great for us, less than knowledgeable folks...
Namely me Aravisian... I don't fully understand 'dependencies' and what to do with them...
"It requires certain dependencies to work, including qt5ct. I got a bit... Lazy... So I installed dolphin and allll the vittles that come with it." It's Greek, right?

Dependencies are other bits of software that the program you are trying to install will need to use in order to run. Like gears in a machine, their operation is shared by different programs.
In the Other OS by M$, You have dependencies, too. In that OS, when you go to install something, everything that program needs is included with the download and installer.
Everything.
Sounds good? Except that it brings major bloat, clutters the HDD, causes fragmentation and carries security or corrupted file risk.
In Linux, the developer gives you only the program and tell you what it will depend on to run. This gives you more control and allows you to keep download sizes smaller and faster. You have less clutter, more control. It allows base (gears) software to be provided by known safe sources instead of always included by any unknown developer.
When I said "I got lazy" earlier, I merely installed a known KDE program that also depends on the same things. This is so that I did not need to go down the rabbit hole of chasing dependencies manually. For example, libfakekey depends on QT5-base and so on.
Step by step:
Install what KDEConnect will depend on- the lazy way...

Code:

sudo apt-get install qt5ct

This allows KDEConnect to cooperate with your system theme and appearance

Code:

sudo apt-get install dolphin

By installing Dolphin, this installs a metric ton of other KDE dependencies from the KDE Plasma Desktop. This includes kcmutils, libfakekey, qca and so on. And their dependencies, as well.

Now install KDE Connect:

Code:

sudo apt-get install kdeconnect

Why did I do it this way? Because Synaptic managed to Fumble it. It told me that it had gotten all the pieces and installed KDE Connect and I believed it. But I could not get KDE Connect to work. This set me back a bit trying to figure out why..

Now that you have everything installed, configure KDEConnect.
It uses the following ports that you want to give it access to (For Zorin Users):

Code:

sudo ufw allow 1714:1764/udp

Code:

sudo ufw allow 1714:1764/tcp

Code:

sudo ufw reload

IF you are not using Zorin and landed on this page or you are using Zorin but switched to using Firewalld instead of gUFW,

Code:

sudo firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-port=1714-1764/tcp

Code:

sudo firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-port=1714-1764/udp

Code:

sudo systemctl restart firewalld.service

Now in terminal paste in

Code:

qdbus org.kde.kded /kded loadModule kdeconnect

hit enter and then type in "true" and hit enter.
In terminal

Code:

kbuildsycoca4 -noincremental

hit enter. If you get, command not found but can be installed with klibs-bin, don't worry about it unless testing KDEConnect has it not working.

Ok... Now let's undo our laziness from earlier:

Code:

sudo apt-get remove --purge dolphin

Code:

sudo apt-get autoremove

Code:

sudo apt clean

Configure KDEConnect:
Above should have it configured on your Computer. You should install KDEConnect on your android device using Google Play Store.
If you are using iPhone, take a long walk off a short pier.
Open "KDE Connect Settings" fromyour app menu.
Here, you can see the settings for it- computer side. Now, on your phone, open the KDEConnect app and the screen will automatically go to the pairing screen. It has a hamburger icon on the left and three dots on the right. Click the three dots and click refresh and see if your computer appears below as Available Device. If so, tap it and then select Request Pairing.
If it does not, then - restart the phone because it is being a ****.
Start the KDEConnect app again and this time, you should see your computer under Available devices. Tap, request, then accept the pairing request on your computer.
You will now see a new list on the app on your phone:
Send Files
Slidewhow remote and so on.
If you hit Remote Input, you can move your finger on your phone screen and the mouse on your computer screen will follow it. You can tap the Keyboard icon on the top right and type on your phone keyboard and the text will appear in a Notepad or other text entry field available on your screen.
Spooky.
Ok, first, hit Send Files. This is the easy (Lazy:D) way of allowing all the permissions. The app will tell you it need certain permissions which will appear as options below on your phone screen. Go down this list selecting all the permissions you want to allow.
When you send files to your phone, it will go to the downloads folder on your phone and when you send from phone to computer, it will go to your Downloads in Home. You can change this in settings. I don't know why anyone would want to... Unless you are taking nudie pics on your phone which is
"Like OMG, that is like soooo 1990's!"
Remote for Media Player only works on some media players. I have not tested them all. I know it works on the KDE media apps (that I don't use) but it does not work so hot with Audacious. Or Parole. I have not tried VLC.

Aravisian, my Friend, I bow to you Sir... A Big Thanks from me, and I'm sure many more from other uses who can't sign on here...

I tried KDE Connect too, didn't have the knowledge to get it to work. One would think the Zorin team would have a work around or
something to use their Zorin Connect (which would help it appeal to more users). Maybe that's in the works, I hope... I tend to think
they've been busy of late (Last couple years)... I'm sure this is something Swarf can now not have to worry about, Thanks to you....

Kudos to you Sir... As always, I appreciate You... As I also appreciate Swarf...

Aravisian wrote:KDE Connect:
Similar to Zorin Connect, I have installed and it DOES work on Zorin 15 Lite.
It requires certain dependencies to work, including qt5ct.
I got a bit... Lazy... So I installed dolphin and allll the vittles that come with it.

Once these two items were done;
Settings> Session and Startup -Advanced tab- select KDE services at start up. Log out and in.

Code:

qdbus org.kde.kded /kded loadModule kdeconnect
true

Code:

kbuildsycoca4 -noincremental

Installed KDE Connect on Android from Google Play Store. Opened and paired, then opened settings and allowed permissions on each of the plugins.

If anyone else is interested...

does kdeconnect require a wifi module on the PC side?
My desktop doesn't have one and the paring process doesn't seem to be working for me...

So... since this is FEEDBACK OF ZORIN 15 LITE. I just installed on the Used/New laptop I got, Dell Latitude E5530. Everything seemed to go smooth. Installed under UEFI (from advice I received). So after removing some packages and a bunch of fonts, I installed some needed packages. Then came XFCE-Look. I found a couple themes I wanted to test out (I will be using this laptop for work, so nothing too crazy). I came across this AzenisEX theme some mechanic made. I became intrigued. I download, extracted, moved into folder I created. Selected them via Appearance. Was checking it out then suddenly, the icons reverted back to Zorin-95. Tried it again, same. So I went under Zorin Appearance just to see and darn it, same thing. Powered down, back on and now not only are the icons back to the original, but the dark theme was switched back too. I like the Oxygen Icons. I had the little yellow triangle, but fixed that issue in terminal. Also like the darker themes. I tried doing some forum searches, and google. Way too many appearance related issue to sort through. Anyone have any ideas????

JeffK969 wrote:So... since this is FEEDBACK OF ZORIN 15 LITE. I just installed on the Used/New laptop I got, Dell Latitude E5530. Everything seemed to go smooth. Installed under UEFI (from advice I received). So after removing some packages and a bunch of fonts, I installed some needed packages. Then came XFCE-Look. I found a couple themes I wanted to test out (I will be using this laptop for work, so nothing too crazy). I came across this AzenisEX theme some mechanic made. I became intrigued. I download, extracted, moved into folder I created. Selected them via Appearance. Was checking it out then suddenly, the icons reverted back to Zorin-95. Tried it again, same. So I went under Zorin Appearance just to see and darn it, same thing. Powered down, back on and now not only are the icons back to the original, but the dark theme was switched back too. I like the Oxygen Icons. I had the little yellow triangle, but fixed that issue in terminal. Also like the darker themes. I tried doing some forum searches, and google. Way too many appearance related issue to sort through. Anyone have any ideas????

Right off the bat, I wouldn't trust something that some mechanic made instead of a Bonafide developer.

Are you saying that you applied the theme, then it switched back to Zorin-95 on its own, but reverted back to your theme after a reboot?

Wish I knew where his shop was for all my future repairs. He seems to take pride in his work...

I applied the theme. Closed the appearance window. Continued doing other things and screen would blink and the original icons would appear. (The sky blue, Zorin-95).
I change back to either AzenisEX or Oxygen, close, move on and screen would blink and original icons appeared in place of what I changed them too. Also, I had the
dark theme, it switched back to light. My 1st thought was, it this due to running in UEFI instead of Legacy? Never had this particular problem with legacy. I've had a bunch
of other problems, lol, just not this one.

JeffK969 wrote:Wish I knew where his shop was for all my future repairs. He seems to take pride in his work...{/quote]
Far from you:D
I am in Texas. We have statues here but none stand for liberty.

JeffK969 wrote:I applied the theme. Closed the appearance window. Continued doing other things and screen would blink and the original icons would appear. (The sky blue, Zorin-95).
I change back to either AzenisEX or Oxygen, close, move on and screen would blink and original icons appeared in place of what I changed them too. Also, I had the
dark theme, it switched back to light. My 1st thought was, it this due to running in UEFI instead of Legacy? Never had this particular problem with legacy. I've a bunch of
other problems, lol, just not this one.

You got me... This is a fresh install of Zorin 15, light, right?
I really do not see how booting in UEFI rather than Legacy would create an issue like this one. That deals with whether you boot from BIOS firmware or from EFI service volumes. Once its job is done, job's done.

Needless to say, most of my testing on making the themes were done on Zorin, though I also used disks for MX Linux, Makulu and many others. Never saw this issue.

One Unlikely possibility that I can think of is if you were switching between Home windows and apps and Root Windows and apps but your theme and icons are installed only in Home. In which case, the theme and icons would be system default in the Root Windows.
Easily resolved by adding the theme to usr/share/themes/
and icons to usr/share/icons
folders.

But that would not explain the Blinks in the screen. You are using XFWM4 window manager with AzenisEX XFWM applied?

htt200610200 wrote:

Aravisian wrote:KDE Connect:
Similar to Zorin Connect, I have installed and it DOES work on Zorin 15 Lite.
It requires certain dependencies to work, including qt5ct.
I got a bit... Lazy... So I installed dolphin and allll the vittles that come with it.

Once these two items were done;
Settings> Session and Startup -Advanced tab- select KDE services at start up. Log out and in.

Code:

qdbus org.kde.kded /kded loadModule kdeconnect
true

Code:

kbuildsycoca4 -noincremental

Installed KDE Connect on Android from Google Play Store. Opened and paired, then opened settings and allowed permissions on each of the plugins.

If anyone else is interested...

does kdeconnect require a wifi module on the PC side?
My desktop doesn't have one and the paring process doesn't seem to be working for me...

All you need for this to work is ensure you are connected to your router with wiereless enabled - that is what worked for me at the start. Zorin connect has just been updated, as has the Android app. [Acknowledgement to AZorin who notified me of this by PM today]

Swarf - Thanks for the update on Zorin Connect..

Aravi - I don't think it has anything to do with usr/share/icons folders. Why - Because I tried Oxygen (system install) also and same thing happened prior and after me fixing the little yellow triangle.
This has, in my mind, nothing to do with the theme I downloaded, but rather a Zorin related issue.

JeffK969 wrote:Zwarf - Thanks for the update on Zorin Connect..

Aravi - I don't think it has anything to do with usr/share/icons folders. Why - Because I tried Oxygen (system install) also and same thing happened prior and after me fixing the little yellow triangle.
This has, in my mind, nothing to do with the theme I downloaded, but rather a Zorin related issue.

That does sound like an odd ball bug. I recall a time when after an update from Zorin, all the text on my screen looked smeared all across the screen. It did it randomly and was ---odd. Doing a net search on such a problem gave no results. Then, a day or so later, the issue went away after another update.
Zorin used the latest Kernel in Zorin 15 Lite- a risky move, in my book... 4.15.0-72 is what I am running with best results. But Zorin Team also know a thing or two I don't about patching things together. They can do the risky moves because they know how to ameliorate things. Usually.
I honestly am at a total loss on what would cause an issue like you describe but--- You are an Ultimate User...
Why not shoot a PM at Azorin. I think they should be aware of bugs.

I hear ya. 1st of all, been to San Antonio a few times, love it down there. Now onto Zorin topic. I was spending so much time doing searches, rephrasing the questions, in hopes of coming across something. I realized that since it was a relatively new install that it would be more efficient just to do a fresh re-install and see what happens. Low and behold. Problem seems to be gone. Just did it last night so real test will be to keep an eye on things and to see if it re-occurs, and what I did just prior to it re-occurring. Since I was removing a bunch of packages I'd never use, crazy foreign language fonts and installing things I do use, or want to try. But as of right now, moot point, problem gone.

But the good news is, now I can install Zorin Connect on Lite 15 Ultimate.... If I read that right...ha

JeffK969 wrote:I hear ya. 1st of all, been to San Antonio a few times, love it down there. Now onto Zorin topic. I was spending so much time doing searches, rephrasing the questions, in hopes of coming across something. I realized that since it was a relatively new install that it would be more efficient just to do a fresh re-install and see what happens. Low and behold. Problem seems to be gone. Just did it last night so real test will be to keep an eye on things and to see if it re-occurs, and what I did just prior to it re-occurring. Since I was removing a bunch of packages I'd never use, crazy foreign language fonts and installing things I do use, or want to try. But as of right now, moot point, problem gone.

Sounds like a graphics thingamabobber didn't doohicky during the install, then.

JeffK969 wrote:But the good news is, now I can install Zorin Connect on Lite 15 Ultimate.... If I read that right...ha

Oh?
How?

Read Swarfs post, about 3, 4 above...

JeffK969 wrote:Read Swarfs post, about 3, 4 above...

Hmm, I had not put the pieces together that Zorin Connect now works on XFCE desktop.
I will have to try that out
Correction, if so, I think it it must be available only on Lite Ultimate.

Just checked software, Zorin Connect isn't list.

Zorin Connect is a certain Perk of having Zorin O.S. I do not think it would be distributed separate from the O.S. itself.

Looks as if I'm wrong about Zorin connect working on Zorin Lite/Ulimate. I read today an article on the new updates for 15.1 in regards to connect for Ultimate.
However, haven't seen anything in regards to it working on Lite. I'm pretty sure I misunderstood Swarf's post.

JeffK969 wrote:Looks as if I'm wrong about Zorin connect working on Zorin Lite/Ulimate. I read today an article on the new updates for 15.1 in regards to connect for Ultimate.
However, haven't seen anything in regards to it working on Lite. I'm pretty sure I misunderstood Swarf's post.

Well, let's ask him.

SWARF!!!!!!

If he answers within the next minute or so, I'm gonna S*+t my pants... He's good, but can't be THAT good... Or can he....?????

Probably because I forgot it was Lite! I just added the note that Connect is now updated but I should have remembered that it is only in Core and Ultimate, not lite - why? Because you'd have to install Gnome as it uses GSConnect.

I'm so glad it was more than a few minutes.... I have some Zorin Lite / Connect info to pass along...

you should be able still use Zorin Connect in the Lite editions by downloading the Zorin Connect Android app on your phone and installing the
KDE Connect indicator with these 3 Terminal commands:
sudo apt install kdeconnect
sudo flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
sudo flatpak install flathub com.github.bajoja.indicator-kdeconnect

Zorin Connect works on the same protocol as KDE Connect, so the KDE Connect desktop-side software is interchangeable with that of Zorin
Connect, and most (if not all) functionality should work identically. (Oh, this wasn't from me, but from someone much smarter.....)

Well, I'm not sure that KDE will run on xfce? GSConnect is a port of KDE Connect so it can run on Gnome DE. Having visited the Alternative to site here are few you might want to try with Lite (and report back):

LanXchange: https://alternativeto.net/software/lanxchange/

Easyjoin: https://alternativeto.net/software/easyjoin/

Feem: https://alternativeto.net/software/feem/

Cellsend: https://alternativeto.net/software/cellsend/ N.B. this is for sending texts to cell phone via a browser only.

Linconnect: https://alternativeto.net/software/linconnect/ just a notification of what comes on your cell to your Linux desktop.

DeskCon: https://alternativeto.net/software/deskcon/ - sadly no longer developed as the main dev passed away in 2014 but still available on GitHub and Playstore.

Nuntius: https://alternativeto.net/software/nuntius/ - notifications only.

Bridge - mirror notifications (notification sync): https://alternativeto.net/software/brid ... ion-sync-/

KDE will run on xfce?

Hello Swarf, it does. Aravi set me up a week or so ago. It does run on Ultimate 15 Lite, and should on Lite 15 as well.
The info was from this guy in Ireland who I've yet to meet, but would like to buy him a pint someday. Hopefully if that
happens you'll be around too....

JeffK969 wrote:KDE will run on xfce?

Hello Zwarf, it does. Aravi set me up a week or so ago. It does run on Ultimate 15 Lite, and should on Lite 15 as well.
The info was from this guy in Ireland who I've yet to meet, but would like to buy him a pint someday. Hopefully if that
happens you'll be around too....

OK, I stand corrected. Mines a pint of pure Icelandic water - I've been teetotal for over 4 years now - I've never had a problem with drinking (only ever been drunk once!).

I have not tried using the Zorin Connect app on KDE connect.
I am using just the KDE connect app on my phone with KDE Connect on the Lite.
So far, everything works. There is one annoying issue... When I lock the screen, I have to restart my phone to get it to see the computer on the KDE connect app each time.

Terminal issue - so I opened terminal to follow instructions to install kde connect. Opened my terminal and it's acting up. Won't allow me to copy or paste.
When I click on it I get 1 or 2 solid white lines going all the way across. Anyone have this issue?

JeffK969 wrote:you should be able still use Zorin Connect in the Lite editions by downloading the Zorin Connect Android app on your phone and installing the
KDE Connect indicator with these 3 Terminal commands:
sudo apt install kdeconnect
sudo flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo (this is how I had to do it)
sudo flatpak install flathub com.github.bajoja.indicator-kdeconnect

Zorin Connect works on the same protocol as KDE Connect, so the KDE Connect desktop-side software is interchangeable with that of Zorin
Connect, and most (if not all) functionality should work identically. (Oh, this wasn't from me, but from someone much smarter.....)

Have Zorin Connect (on android phone) working with kde connect on Zorin Ult Lite 15. Did notice the pointer for the slideshow doesn't work.
I just followed the instructions. Then set the firewall rules.
sudo ufw allow 1714:1764/udp
sudo ufw allow 1714:1764/tcp
sudo ufw reload

now to focus on terminal issue.

JeffK969 wrote:Did notice the pointer for the slideshow doesn't work.

Pointer works with KDE Connect app and KDE Connect PC.
It may be because the Zorin Connect is looking for the Gnome aspect.

JeffK969 wrote:now to focus on terminal issue.

JeffK969 wrote:Terminal issue - so I opened terminal to follow instructions to install kde connect. Opened my terminal and it's acting up. Won't allow me to copy or paste.
When I click on it I get 1 or 2 solid white lines going all the way across. Anyone have this issue?

That's a new one... Have you uninstalled and reinstalled the terminal emulator?
If on Ultimate/Core (Gnome) it will be gnome-terminal and on Lite (XFCE) it will be xfce4-terminal.
Incidentally, both are stand-alone and you can use gnome-terminal on XFCE and you can use xfce4-terminal on Gnome.
DO NOT accidentally install "sudo apt-get install xfce4-terminator"
I did that once... will never do that again, I tell you what.

Zorin Lite working fine for me. I had to install it after my video card wemt bad, and my computer is back to onboard graphics (11 year old computer). Zorin Core wouldn't work with those graphics, but Lite works great, and I barely know the difference. The only very minor complaint is I don't care much for the icons on the bottom panel. I have changed some of them, but a better icon set would be nice. But not a big deal, I'm sure there are more pressing matters. I use this computer just for email and browsing, don 't do anything fancy with it, so it works fine for me. In fact, I'll be purchasing Ultimate just so I can support the team. You've done a great job with Zorin 15, it's the best distro out there!

mdiemer wrote:The only very minor complaint is I don't care much for the icons on the bottom panel. I have changed some of them, but a better icon set would be nice.

Did I hear my name?

LMAO.... Who do you think you are, Swarf or something....lol

So I went to uninstall the terminal via software> installed (wanted to see the proper/correct package name). Terminal was not listed. However a UXTerm & XTerm were listed. Don't ever recall ever seeing them prior. So I removed them. I then clicked on my terminal icon on panel, and my terminal worked like it should. So I didn't need to download anything. Rebooted, low and behold, Terminal shows up under software> installed. Is it possible one or the other hijacked my terminal, which why why it wasn't working correctly? You ever hear of UXTerm or XTerm? It's now working like normal.

JeffK969 wrote:LMAO.... Who do you think you are, Swarf or something....lol

He said he needed an icon set.

JeffK969 wrote:So I went to uninstall the terminal via software> installed (wanted to see the proper/correct package name). Terminal was not listed. However a UXTerm & XTerm were listed. Don't ever recall ever seeing them prior. So I removed them.

Did it take your desktop with it?

JeffK969 wrote: I then clicked on my terminal icon on panel, and my terminal worked like it should. So I didn't need to download anything. Rebooted, low and behold, Terminal shows up under software> installed. Is it possible one or the other hijacked my terminal, which why why it wasn't working correctly? You ever hear of UXTerm or XTerm? It's now working like normal.

Yes, xterm is the terminal emulator for X window system. Usually... you cannot remove that... Maybe I am missing something, here.
Or, you may be in for a surprise shortly if you just freshly uninstalled it. In which, reinstall that puppy quick!

Oh.... I've rebooted 3X, things seem normal. But will put in back on. Also to note, under preferred applications, found it was set to XTerm, and not Gnome-Terminal. Even though I removed, changed to Gnome-Terminal.
So it didn't hijack, just changed the preferred. Which is kinda like a hijack, but the kind you can say put down your weapons and leave us alone (by changing preferred) and they leave.

JeffK969 wrote:Oh.... I've rebooted 3X, things seem normal. But will put in back on. Also to note, under preferred applications, found it was set to XTerm, and not Gnome-Terminal. Even though I removed, changed to Gnome-Terminal.
So it didn't hijack, just changed the preferred. Which is kinda like a hijack, but the kind you can say put down your weapons and leave us alone (by changing preferred) and they leave.

This is very odd. Something caused xterm to get set but xterm itself didn't.

Yes, the Preferred Applications GUI will still show what you set it to, regardless of whether that program is still installed. Sometimes, I forget to go in and change it after removing something. Then when I hit a launcher, it screeches like a banshee that Exo-utils cannot find such and smuff and I have to go in and change the preferred application.

I believe I posted an issue on a different distro in conversation with pcfan5 that I could not run a command correctly unless XTerm was present!

Doesn't the calendar look too small? It is a pain to my eyes!
please enlarge this in the next update.

htt200610200 wrote:Doesn't the calendar look too small? It is a pain to my eyes!
please enlarge this in the next update.

The gnome shell theme you are using is what is causing the calendar to look that way. Please try using a compliant gtk 3.22 theme.

The lite version needs the Zorin connect feature. You can install KDE connect but it doesn't work the same. Also, the nightlight feature would be nice. Yes, you can install redshift but again not as good. Lite works great but my favorite features of the full os aren't available.

So far, I'm very pleased with Zorin OS 15 Lite that installed on my laptop dell inspiron 3452 with dual core celeron n3050 which is not a powerful laptop. I haven't found a bug so far on this wonderful OS. Everything works, the media buttons (brightness and sound), the system, the file manager, everything just flawless. But, I wont say that this is the best Linux OS just yet, afraid that it would disappointed me later on with the "sudden appearance bug" out of no where, just like Ubuntu MATE did before i install Zorin. What happened back then when I have MATE was the mounting system f**cked up for no reason, I couldn't mount my NTFS partition or any flashdrive, but it was doable in terminal using "sudo mount", yes, manually. sollution was just non-existence because MATE's community is pretty dead already i guess.

Hello, find it a little funny you ask people's thoughts about Zorin, on the Zorin forum filled with Zorin users..lol. I love Zorin. I only use Zorin & Mint. Have tried a dozen others. Am done with the looking for something else, what else is out there feeling. I personally prefer Zorin Lite over Ultimate/Core, but that's just me. It's solid, works perfectly for my use. FYI, I like it so much I paid the $39. I could use for free, but helped the cause, want it around forever. You're going to hear mostly good thing on here in regards to Zorin. You may hear some bad too, since there are soooo many different pc's, which are used for soooo many different purposes. However, overall, it's a damn good solid Distro, And there a a few really good people that help a lot in the forum. So Congratulations on your choice, enjoy.

quenyan wrote:So far, I'm very pleased with Zorin OS 15 Lite that installed on my laptop dell inspiron 3452 with dual core celeron n3050 which is not a powerful laptop. I haven't found a bug so far on this wonderful OS. Everything works, the media buttons (brightness and sound), the system, the file manager, everything just flawless. But, I wont say that this is the best Linux OS just yet, afraid that it would disappointed me later on with the "sudden appearance bug" out of no where, just like Ubuntu MATE did before i install Zorin. What happened back then when I have MATE was the mounting system f**cked up for no reason, I couldn't mount my NTFS partition or any flashdrive, but it was doable in terminal using "sudo mount", yes, manually. sollution was just non-existence because MATE's community is pretty dead already i guess.

As an aside, LinuxMints "Cinnamon" desktop is essentially the Mate Desktop. So when you have Mate issues, you can turn to the Linux Mint Forums for an active community.
I use Cinnamon on Zorin Lite, in protest of the Direction XFCE has recently taken, switching XFCE to being a Gnome3 Clone.

no matter the other Ubuntu family are, Zorin is still the best in performance and stability in my opinion, because I tried them all. not all tho, but most of them. most linux distros out there now, most of them based on ubuntu. well, because that is the most popular and most robust i guess. What's bugging me now is something called Manjaro, does any of you tried this flavor before? what do you think, compared to zorin..I know it sounds weird because it is not based on ubuntu but Arch, but this OS is claimed to be sitting on no.1 seat right now, and many people are boasting about it.

JeffK969 wrote:Hello, find it a little funny you ask people's thoughts about Zorin, on the Zorin forum filled with Zorin users..lol. I love Zorin. I only use Zorin & Mint. Have tried a dozen others. Am done with the looking for something else, what else is out there feeling. I personally prefer Zorin Lite over Ultimate/Core, but that's just me. It's solid, works perfectly for my use. FYI, I like it so much I paid the $39. I could use for free, but helped the cause, want it around forever. You're going to hear mostly good thing on here in regards to Zorin. You may hear some bad too, since there are soooo many different pc's, which are used for soooo many different purposes. However, overall, it's a damn good solid Distro, And there a a few really good people that help a lot in the forum. So Congratulations on your choice, enjoy.

that bad things happen on all linux distribution, so it is not zorin fault at all when it comes to that. some company just being A Hole for not supporting driver for the linux. to be honest, I think Ubuntu did a great job on the driver support. And Zorin most specifically good at Appearance, Lightweight, Unbloated(Maybe, for 2 GB ISO file IDK if it should be considered bloated or not, but I don't see or havent found any suspicious process), and most people saying NVIDIA (I dont do gaming on my laptop so IDK about that one), If i'm missing something more about zorin please tell.

Aravisian wrote:

quenyan wrote:So far, I'm very pleased with Zorin OS 15 Lite that installed on my laptop dell inspiron 3452 with dual core celeron n3050 which is not a powerful laptop. I haven't found a bug so far on this wonderful OS. Everything works, the media buttons (brightness and sound), the system, the file manager, everything just flawless. But, I wont say that this is the best Linux OS just yet, afraid that it would disappointed me later on with the "sudden appearance bug" out of no where, just like Ubuntu MATE did before i install Zorin. What happened back then when I have MATE was the mounting system f**cked up for no reason, I couldn't mount my NTFS partition or any flashdrive, but it was doable in terminal using "sudo mount", yes, manually. sollution was just non-existence because MATE's community is pretty dead already i guess.

As an aside, LinuxMints "Cinnamon" desktop is essentially the Mate Desktop. So when you have Mate issues, you can turn to the Linux Mint Forums for an active community.
I use Cinnamon on Zorin Lite, in protest of the Direction XFCE has recently taken, switching XFCE to being a Gnome3 Clone.

what kind of direction XFCE has taken, please enlighten me.

quenyan wrote:no matter the other Ubuntu family are, Zorin is still the best in performance and stability in my opinion, because I tried them all. not all tho, but most of them. most linux distros out there now, most of them based on ubuntu. well, because that is the most popular and most robust i guess. What's bugging me now is something called Manjaro, does any of you tried this flavor before? what do you think, compared to zorin..I know it sounds weird because it is not based on ubuntu but Arch, but this OS is claimed to be sitting on no.1 seat right now, and many people are boasting about it.

I am in full agreement with you. I have tried- MANY - distros and Zorin topped all of them on performance, even MXLinux. And MXlinux is a close second, for me.
Zorin generally comes with much of the necessary packages you may want or need, like imagemagick and cmake. It's Very Thoughtfully put together.
However, it does not come with a lot of Duplicate Packages like many distros out there - offering too many choices of the same software on one system, adding bloat.
If Zorin comes with a software package and I don't like it- I just replace it. Easy. But at least I do not have to go down a Long List of stuff to remove (uninstall) just to get up to speed.
Memory leaks are rare and far between. CPU usage on Zorin tends to stay low, or spike and then drop down, whereas on the same computer with a different distro, CPU usage tends to be high without tweaking it (And some, you cannot tweak it away).
I have installed Zorin on five different makes, desktop and notebook and had fewer issues, total, than any other distro. And I had fewer issues on installations.
Updates with Zorin are fast-paced and Precise.

I have honestly tried to replace Zorin with a "better distro" on a few occasions. I have always ended up right back at using Zorin. It may have been aimed for helping the windows-user adjust to Linux, but it is solid, well maintained and top performance enough even for the veteran Linux User.

Zorin is not bug-free. That is impossible. But in my own experience, I have seen fewer bugs, less problems, faster solutions, faster fixes from Zorin team. And for being a distro supported by TWO developers, that is a phenomenon. No, it is not perfect. But it is Good. This forum is active, but not Hopping trying to keep up with questions and it has only ONE moderator.

I have tried Manjaro and it comes with a LOT of Bling and bloat. It is a good OS and functions well. It eats more CPU on two of my machines than Zorin. Much of the Bling and Blaot Manjaro comes with is impressive and the Software Manager is good. But over-all, I prefer sleek and simple Zorin that I can tune to MY liking, not the developers, easily and neatly with little conflict.
And I prefer Synaptic, anyway - if I am going to use a software Manager at all. The vast majority of installs and removals I do happen outside of any software manager, so that, to me, is not really a selling point.

These days, I am using the Cinnamon desktop environment on Zorin Lite and it works Flawlessly on Zorin lite with Heavy usage over long periods of time, whereas on Linux Mint, which Cinnamon was developed for, it bogs down with usage over a brief time, slowing the computer.
It works better on Zorin.

quenyan wrote:what kind of direction XFCE has taken, please enlighten me.

XFCE Core developers have decided to switch to using CSD layout and more gtk - gnome toolkit in XFCE 4.16.
Much of Window management and core features of what differentiates XFCE from gnome- that many of us Gnome refugees left gnome and fled to XFCE for- will wither away and some are being removed outright.
This decision was contentious and made against the feedback provided by several of the XFCE developers as well as a strong backlash from the users.
Instead of listening to and responding to that feedback professionally, Matt opted to get insulting and derisive, telling us that essentially we have no choice and we just need to accept it.
To which our response was: "We really don't" and I switched desktops.
They have spent their days writing posts trying to convince others that this is the best way to go. They do not listen- they only tell us what to think.
The reality is, it is only the best way to go For Them and themselves. By switching XFCE to a Gnome-Clone, they can DROP a lot of the support they currently supply to XFCE, by making it a gtk issue, or by dumping fixes on App Developers to resolve, instead of the Desktop Environment.
This increases the workload for the user, the app developers etc. but reduces the workload of the D.E. developer from what was their previous responsibilities to being less responsibilities.
They claim they are understaffed and overworked is the reason why and this could be Valid... But that claim also contrasts with many claims that they had previously made to support their decision, which makes me feel like I have been misled.
The finger-pointing, derision and stone-walling they have done has made me lose all respect for their team. The way they treated their own developers that opposed the change disgusted me.

I love Zorin, it just works, and works well, with no BS. But I also love XFCE! When it came to customizing my Zorin OS, Gnome was holding me back from achieving full customization. With Aravisians help, we got XFCE 4.12 desktop installed, and I am running Zorin OS 12.4 with XFCE Desktop 4.12. The result allowed my OS to run faster, and allowed me to fully customize it how I wanted it.

I've tried a couple other Linux Os's as well, and none of them held up to my standards. So I came back to Zorin, and have been with it ever since. Also, XFCE developers are going to get a backlash from the users so bad, that the developers a**es will be red from the proverbial lashes. And it just might make the developers re-think their awful decision.

Hi, I am going to pull rank here and move this to Zorin Lite feedback!

New Zorin user here, using it in dual-boot on my netbook which i take it with me when i have nothing to do at work, or when travelling, only using it for the basic
i have to say, thank you Zorin for making a lite version that runs pretty well on Atom CPU powered netbooks.
Curiously, the lite version is better than the normal one in one simple thing. the Windows key" enables the Zorin menu
Watching youtube videos in it, chat on discord app snd some office work, are all easily manageable here.
Sure i could still do this with windows 7, actually there's an app that doesn't work on zorin neither with wine or similar, but that's ok. At least is a more modern and secure system.
Only two issues for me are:
-> the touchpad (elantech) when I set it for edge scrolling, the area is far too wide. (only distro that worked great on this was Q4OS)
-> the theming seems a bit limited would fancy something glossy. Other than that, is pretty enjoyable.

SandStorm wrote:New Zorin user here, using it in dual-boot on my netbook which i take it with me when i have nothing to do at work, or when travelling, only using it for the basic
i have to say, thank you Zorin for making a lite version that runs pretty well on Atom CPU powered netbooks.
Curiously, the lite version is better than the normal one in one simple thing. the Windows key" enables the Zorin menu
Watching youtube videos in it, chat on discord app snd some office work, are all easily manageable here.
Sure i could still do this with windows 7, actually there's an app that doesn't work on zorin neither with wine or similar, but that's ok. At least is a more modern and secure system.
Only two issues for me are:
-> the touchpad (elantech) when I set it for edge scrolling, the area is far too wide. (only distro that worked great on this was Q4OS)
-> the theming seems a bit limited would fancy something glossy. Other than that, is pretty enjoyable.

I don't know if this would work in Zorin 15 Lite but you could try it!:

https://www.addictivetips.com/ubuntu-li ... ows-vista/

Request to Zorin OS devs to add a torrent link to download zorin os 15 core/zorin os 15 lite iso files because downloading directly from the server is very slow over 2.4GHz Wifi.

new user here, I discovered Zorin more then a month ago, but I installed lubuntu first because I tought zorin lite would have required more ram (it used 500MB of ram while I tried it live), but once installed I found it requires just 300mb (acer aspire 5610 here).

I fall in love with zorin, nice, userfriendly, customisable.. and I read in another thread 32bit will be supported till 2023 ( a little sad anyway, since I found zorin only lately.

here my desktop and a question:

https://imgur.com/a/kThyRT2
https://imgur.com/a/G48tavs

I'd like to change title bar color, but I managed to do it only changing the whole theme and I don't even like it (blu with white text), solutions?

thank you

Doncic wrote:new user here, I discovered Zorin more then a month ago, but I installed lubuntu first because I tought zorin lite would have required more ram (it used 500MB of ram while I tried it live), but once installed I found it requires just 300mb (acer aspire 5610 here).

I fall in love with zorin, nice, userfriendly, customisable.. and I read in another thread 32bit will be supported till 2023 ( a little sad anyway, since I found zorin only lately.

here my desktop and a question:

https://imgur.com/a/kThyRT2
https://imgur.com/a/G48tavs

I'd like to change title bar color, but I managed to do it only changing the whole theme and I don't even like it (blu with white text), solutions?

thank you

In XFCE, the title bar color is set by the background image used in the theme, which is why you need to switch out the whole theme in order for it to change the background color.
The Label, or Text of the titlebar color is usually changeable in the xfwm4.
If you would like to change the title bar color of that theme, I can walk you through doing so OR send you a modified theme that you can apply.

Aravisian wrote:

Doncic wrote:new user here, I discovered Zorin more then a month ago, but I installed lubuntu first because I tought zorin lite would have required more ram (it used 500MB of ram while I tried it live), but once installed I found it requires just 300mb (acer aspire 5610 here).

I fall in love with zorin, nice, userfriendly, customisable.. and I read in another thread 32bit will be supported till 2023 ( a little sad anyway, since I found zorin only lately.

here my desktop and a question:

https://imgur.com/a/kThyRT2
https://imgur.com/a/G48tavs

I'd like to change title bar color, but I managed to do it only changing the whole theme and I don't even like it (blu with white text), solutions?

thank you

If you would like to change the title bar color of that theme, I can walk you through doing so

thank you, how is it supposed to work?

Doncic wrote:

Aravisian wrote:If you would like to change the title bar color of that theme, I can walk you through doing so

thank you, how is it supposed to work?

First, check which theme you are using.
From the App Menu, go to Settings > Appearance
Once you are certain of the theme name,
Open a terminal and enter:

Code:

sudo -i

Enter your password, now you are in Root Terminal
Enter in

Code:

thunar

This will open a thunar FM Instance in Elevated permissions for accessing Root.

Navigate to:
/usr/share/themes/
The Theme name you got from your Appearance settings earlier is the folder you are looking for here.
Enter that folder and look for a folder within called xfwm4. That is where the Window Border theme is for any XFWM4 D.E.
That's XF Window Manager Desktop Environment.
Let's assume that your theme name was ZorinBlue-dark. Then your full path would be:
/usr/share/themes/ZorinBlue-Dark/xfwm4

Inside of this folder, you will find the Image Files used to build your window borders.
The files that you want are at the bottom:
title-1 through title-5 (active and inactive)
top-left and top-right (Active and inactive)
You can open any of these image files in an image editor like GIMP.
Edit it to be the color you want. In Gimp, you can do this in many ways. One easy way is to use the Menu at the top, select Colors, then Colorify.
Another easy way is to use the Toolbox. Select the Eyedropper Icon and click that icon on any image that has the color you want to use. It will add that color to the palette, which you will See in the bottom portion of the toolbox.
Next, select the icon that looks like a Tipped Bucket Spilling Paint- that is "Bucket Fill" icon and click the area that you want to change to the color on the palette.
There are more involved ways- Feel free to play with Gimp and explore- Assuming that you are new to Gimp.
To save: Click File on the Menubar, then click EXPORT. If you click "save" that will only save the project, it will NOT save or overwrite the file.
Before you export any images and change the theme, make a BACK UP COPY OF THE THEME, in case you dislike the changes or make a mistake.

Next, the Title Text Color. Next to the title-1 image, you will see a text file "Themerc". That is Theme Resource File.
Open it and you will see right at the top the Title Text Color settings. Change them as you wish.

Once you have made the changes to the titlebar, you may find you want the rest of the theme to match. You can draw on your experience in changing the titlebar colors to alter the rest of the theme images like the bottom, left and right side...

Alternatively, you can use a program called Oomox:
https://github.com/themix-project/oomox
Which is, in my opinion, more tedious and difficult to work than just doing the above.

Good luck and feel free to ask more questions.

Aravisian wrote:

Doncic wrote:

Aravisian wrote:If you would like to change the title bar color of that theme, I can walk you through doing so

thank you, how is it supposed to work?

First, check which theme you are using.
From the App Menu, go to Settings > Appearance
Once you are certain of the theme name,
Open a terminal and enter:

Code:

sudo -i

Enter your password, now you are in Root Terminal
Enter in

Code:

thunar

This will open a thunar FM Instance in Elevated permissions for accessing Root.

Navigate to:
/usr/share/themes/
The Theme name you got from your Appearance settings earlier is the folder you are looking for here.
Enter that folder and look for a folder within called xfwm4. That is where the Window Border theme is for any XFWM4 D.E.
That's XF Window Manager Desktop Environment.
Let's assume that your theme name was ZorinBlue-dark. Then your full path would be:
/usr/share/themes/ZorinBlue-Dark/xfwm4

Inside of this folder, you will find the Image Files used to build your window borders.
The files that you want are at the bottom:
title-1 through title-5 (active and inactive)
top-left and top-right (Active and inactive)
You can open any of these image files in an image editor like GIMP.
Edit it to be the color you want. In Gimp, you can do this in many ways. One easy way is to use the Menu at the top, select Colors, then Colorify.
Another easy way is to use the Toolbox. Select the Eyedropper Icon and click that icon on any image that has the color you want to use. It will add that color to the palette, which you will See in the bottom portion of the toolbox.
Next, select the icon that looks like a Tipped Bucket Spilling Paint- that is "Bucket Fill" icon and click the area that you want to change to the color on the palette.
There are more involved ways- Feel free to play with Gimp and explore- Assuming that you are new to Gimp.
To save: Click File on the Menubar, then click EXPORT. If you click "save" that will only save the project, it will NOT save or overwrite the file.
Before you export any images and change the theme, make a BACK UP COPY OF THE THEME, in case you dislike the changes or make a mistake.

Next, the Title Text Color. Next to the title-1 image, you will see a text file "Themerc". That is Theme Resource File.
Open it and you will see right at the top the Title Text Color settings. Change them as you wish.

Once you have made the changes to the titlebar, you may find you want the rest of the theme to match. You can draw on your experience in changing the titlebar colors to alter the rest of the theme images like the bottom, left and right side...

Alternatively, you can use a program called Oomox:
https://github.com/themix-project/oomox
Which is, in my opinion, more tedious and difficult to work than just doing the above.

Good luck and feel free to ask more questions.

thank you very much, I read your reply only now since I do not receive email notifications.
I'll try it later, thank you once again




another feedback of zorin lite: there isn't a sw like rufus/unetbootin preinstalled right? I can't find it, well, you should preinstall it

Doncic wrote:another feedback of zorin lite: there isn't a sw like rufus/unetbootin preinstalled right? I can't find it, well, you should preinstall it

dd command is available in your terminal.

another alternative is to download "Etcher.appimage" a portable, executable file to make bootable drive, no need to install anything. maybe you need java installed.

quenyan wrote:

Doncic wrote:another feedback of zorin lite: there isn't a sw like rufus/unetbootin preinstalled right? I can't find it, well, you should preinstall it

dd command is available in your terminal.

another alternative is to download "Etcher.appimage" a portable, executable file to make bootable drive, no need to install anything. maybe you need java installed.

the terminal is not much userfriendly as zorin tries to be.. there isn't something the software center? I found a couple of sw but I never used them, why there is not unetbootin in the software center?

thank you

Doncic wrote:

quenyan wrote:

Doncic wrote:another feedback of zorin lite: there isn't a sw like rufus/unetbootin preinstalled right? I can't find it, well, you should preinstall it

dd command is available in your terminal.

another alternative is to download "Etcher.appimage" a portable, executable file to make bootable drive, no need to install anything. maybe you need java installed.

the terminal is not much userfriendly as zorin tries to be.. there isn't something the software center? I found a couple of sw but I never used them, why there is not unetbootin in the software center?

thank you

First: The Software Center is developed and maintained by Ubuntu, not by Zorin. Zorin has no control over what is in or not in the Software Center.

The terminal really IS your friend. It is powerful, useful and easy. The problem is that these days, we are trained early on to rely on pretty GUI windows.
So when we see a Text Based Terminal, it seems intimidating. How do you know what commands to enter? What if you do something wrong? What if you must get dependencies?
The ' -y' command and the "sudo apt --fix-broken install" can resolve many dependency concerns. It's not so easy to do something wrong in the terminal. There are TWO dangerous things: the 'rm -rf' command and the 'sudo apt autoremove' command. You can block the rm -rf command in settings. You can avoid auto-removals by setting your packages to "manually installed."
When I moved over to Linux from Windows, I avoided the terminal every chance I got.
Now, however, I avoid GUI apps and use the terminal for almost everything from moving files, copying files, searching, installing and removing... It is just Too Strong and Too useful.
AND IT IS FAST
Instead of searching for pictures on a GUI interface and playing with the mouse, type a few brief commands and DONE.

I would encourage you to give the terminal a chance. It is too amazing to waste. The more you use it, the more you will feel Free and In control over your machine.

That being said...
I use Unetbootin. I prefer it over the others, but there are many good ones. Unetbootin is pretty solid and basic.
To easily install it:

Code:

sudo apt-get install unetbootin

If you are not using the Main Server, you can use a .deb package for 64bit:
http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/pool/u ... _amd64.deb
Enter the commands in terminal to install in a flash:
Change to the Downloads directory to access the .deb file:

Code:

cd ~/Downloads

Code:

sudo dpkg -i unetbootin_608-1_amd64.deb

If you use 32bit:
http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/pool/u ... 1_i386.deb

Code:

cd ~/Downloads

Code:

sudo dpkg -i unetbootin_608-1_i386.deb

If you just really prefer GUI apps:

Code:

sudo apt-get install synaptic

Synaptic is a utility that is very powerful and very useful. It has a lot of functions and options and all the abilities that the terminal has.
Use the Search Button on Synaptic to search for your desired software. In this case: Unetbootin.
When the results come up, right click the "unetbootin" entry and it will automatically prompt you that it must install any dependencies.

I installed unetbootin from the terminal then, following the commands on their website.
thank you for your advice, actually sometimes I prefer the terminal, to install/uninstall for example (I would remove even gnome-software, like I did on lubuntu, and other softwares that are not essential, to make the OS even smoother).
as far as autoremove is concerned, I used it every time the terminal says the there is something that is no more used/usefull/essential.

Doncic wrote:as far as autoremove is concerned, I used it every time the terminal says the there is something that is no more used/usefull/essential.

I use autoremove all the time, too.
But must remember to read what it will remove. Sometimes, it will bite you.

Aravisian wrote:

Doncic wrote:

Aravisian wrote:If you would like to change the title bar color of that theme, I can walk you through doing so

thank you, how is it supposed to work?

First, check which theme you are using.
From the App Menu, go to Settings > Appearance
Once you are certain of the theme name,
Open a terminal and enter:

Code:

sudo -i

Enter your password, now you are in Root Terminal
Enter in

Code:

thunar

This will open a thunar FM Instance in Elevated permissions for accessing Root.

Navigate to:
/usr/share/themes/
The Theme name you got from your Appearance settings earlier is the folder you are looking for here.
Enter that folder and look for a folder within called xfwm4. That is where the Window Border theme is for any XFWM4 D.E.
That's XF Window Manager Desktop Environment.
Let's assume that your theme name was ZorinBlue-dark. Then your full path would be:
/usr/share/themes/ZorinBlue-Dark/xfwm4

Inside of this folder, you will find the Image Files used to build your window borders.
The files that you want are at the bottom:
title-1 through title-5 (active and inactive)
top-left and top-right (Active and inactive)
You can open any of these image files in an image editor like GIMP.
Edit it to be the color you want. In Gimp, you can do this in many ways. One easy way is to use the Menu at the top, select Colors, then Colorify.
Another easy way is to use the Toolbox. Select the Eyedropper Icon and click that icon on any image that has the color you want to use. It will add that color to the palette, which you will See in the bottom portion of the toolbox.
Next, select the icon that looks like a Tipped Bucket Spilling Paint- that is "Bucket Fill" icon and click the area that you want to change to the color on the palette.
There are more involved ways- Feel free to play with Gimp and explore- Assuming that you are new to Gimp.
To save: Click File on the Menubar, then click EXPORT. If you click "save" that will only save the project, it will NOT save or overwrite the file.
Before you export any images and change the theme, make a BACK UP COPY OF THE THEME, in case you dislike the changes or make a mistake.

Next, the Title Text Color. Next to the title-1 image, you will see a text file "Themerc". That is Theme Resource File.
Open it and you will see right at the top the Title Text Color settings. Change them as you wish.

Once you have made the changes to the titlebar, you may find you want the rest of the theme to match. You can draw on your experience in changing the titlebar colors to alter the rest of the theme images like the bottom, left and right side...

Alternatively, you can use a program called Oomox:
https://github.com/themix-project/oomox
Which is, in my opinion, more tedious and difficult to work than just doing the above.

Good luck and feel free to ask more questions.

thank you very much I easily found the folder but it is hard to figure which file you have to edit in order to change the title bar (1 / 2 etc..) ( https://imgur.com/a/8pNqJcK ) , further more if I open those files with gimp, this show up: https://imgur.com/a/mBRs7mF

Doncic wrote:thank you very much I easily found the folder but it is hard to figure which file you have to edit in order to change the title bar (1 / 2 etc..) ( https://imgur.com/a/8pNqJcK )

Everything in that image looks correct.
Look toward the bottom and you see the TITLE image files. Those are the ones you want edited.
Now, you are seeing Pieces of a titlebar instead of it all assembled. So, title-1 and title-2 are among the first pieces.
Let me put them in order for you in text:
[top-left] [title-1] [title-2] [title-3] [title-4] [title-5] [top-right] < Assembles the titlebar
Each of these also have an ACTIVE and INACTIVE state. If you want, they can look the same. OR you can leave the inactive ones as they are to differentiate the active windows in use from background windows.

Doncic wrote:further more if I open those files with gimp, this show up: https://imgur.com/a/mBRs7mF

This is because it is an indexed color layer.
All you need to do is hit the 4 or 5 key to zoom in real good, then right click the image. Move to "Image" > then to "Mode" and select RGB instead of Indexed.
Now, you can re-color the image and save it.

I would recommend keeping them as RGB so that you can alter or change them later if you prefer a different color.
But, when you have finished your modifications, you may also revert it back to indexed (to your new) color if you wish.

Aravisian wrote:[top-left] [title-1] [title-2] [title-3] [title-4] [title-5] [top-right] < Assembles the titlebar

yes, I got that they assembles the titlebar, but how do you now "title-3" which part of the bar is, before editing it? file manager titlebar here for example (sorry I have hidden my name) https://imgur.com/a/dgwYJk7

anyway I zoomed it till 2300% and selected RGB but I keep ok seeing grey squares: https://imgur.com/a/Qgt4jZ1
Shouldn't I see it black for exemple?

thank you

Doncic wrote:yes, I got that they assembles the titlebar, but how do you now "title-3" which part of the bar is, before editing it? file manager titlebar here for example (sorry I have hidden my name) https://imgur.com/a/dgwYJk7

For the theme you are using, all the pieces of the titlebar excluding the "top-left" and "top-right" look exactly the same.
So, really, you can just edit one of them, then export it to the name of each of the following files.
So if you edit title-1, then overwrite it, then you can select 'export as', select the name of the next file, title-2, export, repeat; select title-3, export - all the way to title-5.
This is true for THIS theme, but not others.
Let me show an example of a theme that uses different images. For this example, the Azenis titlebar as seen in the XFWM4 folder. You can see that title-1 looks very different from title-2. Title-2 and title-3 look the same. All look different from title-4.

Now, let's assemble all of the pieces together and make a titlebar, showing where the pieces fit.
Title-left on the far left. Then title-1. Title-2 is next. Then, title-3 repeats over and over, filling in the length of the titlebar for how wide the window is opened. Next is title-4. There is no title-5 in THIS theme, but there is on yours. Finally, we have the Titlebuttons, Min, Max and Close. Then, title-right.

Doncic wrote:anyway I zoomed it till 2300% and selected RGB but I keep ok seeing grey squares: https://imgur.com/a/Qgt4jZ1
Shouldn't I see it black for exemple?

thank you

At 2300% zoom, you are way too close.
Here is an image at 1600% of title-1 for Zorin Theme XFWM4. I have Right clicked, then selected "image," then "mode" then "RGB.
I then Re-Colored the item in the box to Red, to make it visible. You can see it is made of the Top One-Pixel Height and eight-pixel wide piece.
At the top.


Remember, it is Indexed. It is also semi-transparent. So, that color, once indexed, will extend all the way down to fill in the rest. All you need to do is re-color that one part, and the indexing will fill in the rest.
The color it currently is, is harder to see.
You may want to save it at first as RGB until you are sure of the color, first. You will only see that color as a Top Line during testing.... But once you save the pieces all as "indexed" instead of "RGB", that will go back to normal and fill in the whole titlebar. It just may be slightly easier on you to save as RGB until you are sure you are happy with the color. Them save it as indexed for each. OR, you may save each as indexed right away, to have the full experience, if you are confident that you will like the color, go ahead and save as indexed right away.

Ok thank you very much
I thought that zooming and switching to RGB I would have seen that piece black, my mistake

Doncic wrote:Ok thank you very much
I thought that zooming and switching to RGB I would have seen that piece black, my mistake

It makes sense you would think that. I apologize for not thinking ahead and pointing out the translucent image as well as the amount of space it actually takes up to prepare your expectations.
I have been making and sometimes, altering themes for a while, and I take details for granted now.

sorry, I appeciate your effort and patience very much, but I prefer to not touch anything else for now: I edited title-1 in blu with mpaint (because I think I messed up something with gimp colors, I select blue and it stays black), I clicked save, file icon changed to blue, but noting in the file manager windows changed at all, and furthermore the OS freezed, XFWM4 folder crashed.. fortunately I made a copy of that file so I should have restored everything.

The OS works just fine, I prefer not to mess up.

well, just like on lubuntu, it happened a couple of times that the CPU went to 100% ( freeze) and stayed at 100% until I forced the reboot of the notebook using the power button. I know it is an old CPU (t2350 core duo 1,86ghz), but windows 10, even if it is slower than linux, never freezes.

Doncic wrote:sorry, I appeciate your effort and patience very much, but I prefer to not touch anything else for now: I edited title-1 in blu with mpaint (because I think I messed up something with gimp colors, I select but and it stays black), I clicked save, file icon changed to blu, bot noting in the file manager windows changed at all, and furthermore the OS freezed, XFWM4 folder crashed.. fortunately I made a copy of that file so I should have restored everything.

The OS works just fine, I prefer not to mess up.

well, just like on lubuntu, it happened a couple of times that the CPU went to 100% / freeze) and stayed at 100% until I forced the reboot of the notebook using the power button. I know it is an old CPU (t2350 core duo 1,86ghz), but windows 10, even if is slower than linux, never freezes.

Well, would you like for me to try my hand at creating a usable XFWM4 theme for you?
If you give your specs and color - I can have one made within a day or so.

@Doncic Terminal is our source of life in Linux. It is applicable in many areas. for this particular case, installing apps, lets compare it with Windows and Macs.
in Windows:
-opening up a browser, search for apps, avoiding ads, avoiding viruses, download, scan downloaded, etc.
-in Windows 10, app store exists but the catalogue is still not as much as what available.
in Macs:
-Appstore has a lot of non-free pricey apps, also slow server, very slow, slow installation with no indication except a blue bar.
-Similar to the 1st step in windows, except instead of searching for exe app, we search for dmg app.
in Ubuntu based linux:
-open the damn Terminal
-type some app name, if the app exists it will suggest something like.....apt-get install *your-favorito-app*, just follow that and you are done.
-no need to open up a browser, no need to open up appstore, no ads, no gimmick, just a cup of coffee for you to drink.
-some rare app which might be home-made by someone is not listed in apt-get but you can get it on brew, or git, or whatever the other source is. again, a cup of mojito is what you need.

Doncic wrote:sorry, I appeciate your effort and patience very much, but I prefer to not touch anything else for now: I edited title-1 in blu with mpaint (because I think I messed up something with gimp colors, I select blue and it stays black), I clicked save, file icon changed to blue, but noting in the file manager windows changed at all, and furthermore the OS freezed, XFWM4 folder crashed.. fortunately I made a copy of that file so I should have restored everything.

The OS works just fine, I prefer not to mess up.

Doncic, as long as you backed up the theme file, you will be fine. Nothing you were working on could Crash the system. Nor will it mess up the O.S. The worst that could happen is you could lose the theme file.
If you messed up the theme, it would not even crash the XFWindowManager. It would just display improperly or poorly.
That said, there is another option that, like above, did not occur to me as soon as it should have. We were trying to attempt a theme in Root that is using Indexed coloration... We may not have started out with the easiest approach.
What I did when I very first started out making themes was I tried modifying a theme I had in /~.themes that I had downloaded off of the internet.
Instead of modifying the existing Zorin theme and immersing yourself in New Gimp Instructions, you could also do something a lot easier, that is stored and run from your home folder instead.
Or Download an existing one that you like.
https://www.xfce-look.org/browse/cat/138/order/latest/

Thank you very much, yes I already installed other themes found on other websites when I used lubuntu, but zorindark blue was quite fine.

Another feedback/suggestion: for future zorin lite versions, devs may consider to install LXDE to make it even more “lite”

Doncic wrote:Thank you very much, yes I already installed other themes found on other websites when I used lubuntu, but zorindark blue was quite fine.

Well, my offer stands. If you like, I can make you a Blue Lite theme with your alterations and send it to you.

Doncic wrote:Another feedback/suggestion: for future zorin lite versions, devs may consider to install LXDE to make it even more “lite”

Agreed. In fact, back in the old days, Zorin did use LXDE for the Zorin Lite.
LXDE became defunct and Zorin moved to XFCE for Lite.
However, today there is now LXQT which is lighter than XFCE4 and will remain so as XFCE4 switches to full CSD and becomes more like Gnome.

I strongly think that Zorin should move away from Gnome and toward Cinnamon for their Core version. It can be modified to appear much closer to what Windows users are familiar with, from XP all the way to 10. And it allows more easy access to customization and modification, an Apps Menu that can be arranged to closely resemble Win10 and so on. While it is Nothing Like Windows beneath the surface, the surface can be given the facade of looking familiar to a new user.
And being able to Right Click anything to change a setting or load new... It helps a LOT. With Gnomes lack of user-friendliness and Gnome being geared far more toward Programmers... Gnome is a very poor starting place.
I have been using this, myself. As I switch others from Win to Zorin, I loaded up Zorin Lite, then installed Cinnamon with a custom theme. ALL of them have been happy. Not a single one said it looked alien or that they could not get 'such and such" to work.
On Gnome, however, they all found the interface to be too frustrating and wanted to go back to Windows.

Gnome is great for heavy programming duties and as a rough workstation for an experienced Linux User. I Hate it, but I recognize where it succeeds, even if it fails in places I believe it should not.
But for moving to Windows- It is like handing a 10 year old a Calculus textbook.

Aravisian wrote:

Doncic wrote:Thank you very much, yes I already installed other themes found on other websites when I used lubuntu, but zorindark blue was quite fine.

Well, my offer stands. If you like, I can make you a Blue Lite theme with your alterations and send it to you.

Doncic wrote:Another feedback/suggestion: for future zorin lite versions, devs may consider to install LXDE to make it even more “lite”

Agreed. In fact, back in the old days, Zorin did use LXDE for the Zorin Lite.
LXDE became defunct and Zorin moved to XFCE for Lite.
However, today there is now LXQT which is lighter than XFCE4 and will remain so as XFCE4 switches to full CSD and becomes more like Gnome.

I strongly think that Zorin should move away from Gnome and toward Cinnamon for their Core version. It can be modified to appear much closer to what Windows users are familiar with, from XP all the way to 10. And it allows more easy access to customization and modification, an Apps Menu that can be arranged to closely resemble Win10 and so on. While it is Nothing Like Windows beneath the surface, the surface can be given the facade of looking familiar to a new user.
And being able to Right Click anything to change a setting or load new... It helps a LOT. With Gnomes lack of user-friendliness and Gnome being geared far more toward Programmers... Gnome is a very poor starting place.
I have been using this, myself. As I switch others from Win to Zorin, I loaded up Zorin Lite, then installed Cinnamon with a custom theme. ALL of them have been happy. Not a single one said it looked alien or that they could not get 'such and such" to work.
On Gnome, however, they all found the interface to be too frustrating and wanted to go back to Windows.

Gnome is great for heavy programming duties and as a rough workstation for an experienced Linux User. I Hate it, but I recognize where it succeeds, even if it fails in places I believe it should not.
But for moving to Windows- It is like handing a 10 year old a Calculus textbook.

You are very kind, but I don't want to bother you so much, furthermore I may not like the edit unitill I see it, so you may waste time


as far as lxde is concerned, I didn't know it was defunct, isn't it preinstalled on lubuntu?
is it possible to install lxqt on zorin lite? (I don't want to do it know, but maybe one day)

thank you

Doncic wrote:as far as lxde is concerned, I didn't know it was defunct, isn't it preinstalled on lubuntu?
is it possible to install lxqt on zorin lite? (I don't want to do it know, but maybe one day)

thank you

Maybe I am wrong about it being defunct, or it may be being maintained to some degree by Ubuntu for Lubuntu... I really do not know. It's final release was several years ago.

Doncic wrote:Yes, it is certainly possible to install LXQT on Zorin. I have never tried it, so I do not know how well it performs. I would guess it would run well.
You are very kind, but I don't want to bother you so much, furthermore I may not like the edit unitill I see it, so you may waste time

I am not that kind. If it was a bother, I would not offer. It is for me, maybe ten minutes of work. Could peck away at it while waiting on a download to finish.
If you did not like the edit- you could change it the same way as we discussed above - more easily, since it would be a Full image I would send you that can be opened in Gimp, hit colorize and choose your color. No indexed color and no missing image.

Doncic wrote:Thank you very much, yes I already installed other themes found on other websites when I used lubuntu, but zorindark blue was quite fine.

Another feedback/suggestion: for future zorin lite versions, devs may consider to install LXDE to make it even more “lite”

There is nothing to stop you adding LXQt - the Qt version of LXDE:

Swarfendor437 wrote:

Doncic wrote:Thank you very much, yes I already installed other themes found on other websites when I used lubuntu, but zorindark blue was quite fine.

Another feedback/suggestion: for future zorin lite versions, devs may consider to install LXDE to make it even more “lite”

There is nothing to stop you adding LXQt - the Qt version of LXDE:

Screenshot_20200731_221900.jpeg

nice

Swarfendor437 wrote:

Doncic wrote:Thank you very much, yes I already installed other themes found on other websites when I used lubuntu, but zorindark blue was quite fine.

Another feedback/suggestion: for future zorin lite versions, devs may consider to install LXDE to make it even more “lite”

There is nothing to stop you adding LXQt - the Qt version of LXDE:

Screenshot_20200731_221900.jpeg

is it stable?
compared to current XFCE desktop, how is it different? in performance speed, especially.

Aravisian wrote:I am not that kind. If it was a bother, I would not offer. It is for me, maybe ten minutes of work. Could peck away at it while waiting on a download to finish.
If you did not like the edit- you could change it the same way as we discussed above - more easily, since it would be a Full image I would send you that can be opened in Gimp, hit colorize and choose your color. No indexed color and no missing image.

Well just like the title bar of this forum thread and sections should be fine: blue with white text
Thank you

I switched from thunderbird to sylpheed: it works better with gmail and it is lighter than thunderbird, I suggesto to preinstall it. It is on lubuntu too but it didn't worked well there

Doncic wrote:

Aravisian wrote:I am not that kind. If it was a bother, I would not offer. It is for me, maybe ten minutes of work. Could peck away at it while waiting on a download to finish.
If you did not like the edit- you could change it the same way as we discussed above - more easily, since it would be a Full image I would send you that can be opened in Gimp, hit colorize and choose your color. No indexed color and no missing image.

Well just like the title bar of this forum thread and sections should be fine: blue with white text
Thank you

It is pretty stable - the only 'bug' is that you have to click on the rectangle next to the search bar in the menu or the next time you launch will have the last search showing rather than the menu. There are quite a few themes and I was able to install Aravisian's AzenisEX icons to it.

The best way is to install and give it a try - after install reboot then you will see it as an option in the Cog next to the login.

Is flatpak preinstalled in zorin lite? the first time I opened the Software it said it was retrieving flatpak metadata

Another question: what file system did you use to installa zorin? I used btrfs since many people suggest it for Linux (or at least for Ubuntu based distro as far as I know)
I mean with which file system zorin is more stable? Thank you

Doncic wrote:Another question: what file system did you use to installa zorin? I used btrfs since many people suggest it for Linux (or at least for Ubuntu based distro as far as I know)
I mean with which file system zorin is more stable? Thank you

I always ues Ext4 - if its SSD then it should be Ext2.

Doncic wrote:Is flatpak preinstalled in zorin lite? the first time I opened the Software it said it was retrieving flatpak metadata

the terminal says this:

Code:

~$ flatpak --help
Usage:
  flatpak [OPTION…] COMMAND

Builtin Commands:
Manage installed applications and runtimes
  install                Install an application or runtime
  update                 Update an installed application or runtime
  uninstall              Uninstall an installed application or runtime
  mask                   Mask out updates and automatic installation
  list                   List installed apps and/or runtimes
  info                   Show info for installed app or runtime
  history                Show history
  config                 Configure flatpak
  repair                 Repair flatpak installation
  create-usb             Put applications or runtimes onto removable media


so I suppose flatpak is already installd in zorin, right?

I believe that snapd and Flatpack both come pre-installed on Zorin.

Aravisian wrote:I believe that snapd and Flatpack both come pre-installed on Zorin.

snapd for sure.
do you use zorin daily?thank you

Doncic wrote:

Aravisian wrote:I believe that snapd and Flatpack both come pre-installed on Zorin.

snapd for sure.
do you use zorin daily?thank you

Yes, I use Zorin exclusively. I have tried a large number of Distros and while there are a lot of similarities, what I like about Zorin is that it is the most stable I have ever tried on a pretty wide variety of computers. It is updated quickly. It performs well or better than most on a wide variety of computers. It comes with good apps pre-installed, but not so much extra fluff you cannot see your screen through the fog.

Swarfendor437 wrote:

Doncic wrote:Another question: what file system did you use to installa zorin? I used btrfs since many people suggest it for Linux (or at least for Ubuntu based distro as far as I know)
I mean with which file system zorin is more stable? Thank you

if its SSD then it should be Ext2.

why?

Doncic wrote:

Swarfendor437 wrote:

Doncic wrote:Another question: what file system did you use to installa zorin? I used btrfs since many people suggest it for Linux (or at least for Ubuntu based distro as far as I know)
I mean with which file system zorin is more stable? Thank you

if its SSD then it should be Ext2.

why?

I believe Swarf would tell you that on an SSD, Ext2 is less damaging. something about overwriting or such, I can't remember exactly, but the upshot is, Ext2 will prolong the life of the drive.

Remember thos Eee pc netbooks that had Windows XP on? And formatted to FAT32 for the SSD? That was because FAT32 is a non-journaling system - like NTFS.
Journaling leads to constant re-writes of the SSD - hence Ext2 is a non-journaling file system - Ext3 and Ext4 are both journaling systems that will shorten the life of the drive. If you only have an SSD in your machine you should invest in an HDD for Data or an external HDD if a Notebook. SSD's can't recover accidentally deleted files where as an HDD can.

Swarfendor437 wrote:Remember thos Eee pc netbooks that had Windows XP on? And formatted to FAT32 for the SSD? That was because FAT32 is a non-journaling system - like NTFS.
Journaling leads to constant re-writes of the SSD - hence Ext2 is a non-journaling file system - Ext3 and Ext4 are both journaling systems that will shorten the life of the drive. If you only have an SSD in your machine you should invest in an HDD for Data or an external HDD if a Notebook. SSD's can't recover accidentally deleted files where as an HDD can.

brtfs does not have journaling

Doncic wrote:

Aravisian wrote:I am not that kind. If it was a bother, I would not offer. It is for me, maybe ten minutes of work. Could peck away at it while waiting on a download to finish.
If you did not like the edit- you could change it the same way as we discussed above - more easily, since it would be a Full image I would send you that can be opened in Gimp, hit colorize and choose your color. No indexed color and no missing image.

Well just like the title bar of this forum thread and sections should be fine: blue with white text
Thank you

Doncic, your profile lacks a way to contact you. I was going to send yo ua PM on this. How do I send you the XFWM4 theme?

Aravisian wrote:

Doncic wrote:

Aravisian wrote:I am not that kind. If it was a bother, I would not offer. It is for me, maybe ten minutes of work. Could peck away at it while waiting on a download to finish.
If you did not like the edit- you could change it the same way as we discussed above - more easily, since it would be a Full image I would send you that can be opened in Gimp, hit colorize and choose your color. No indexed color and no missing image.

Well just like the title bar of this forum thread and sections should be fine: blue with white text
Thank you

Doncic, your profile lacks a way to contact you. I was going to send yo ua PM on this. How do I send you the XFWM4 theme?

ops, sorry, could you try now? than you very much

Doncic wrote:

Swarfendor437 wrote:Remember thos Eee pc netbooks that had Windows XP on? And formatted to FAT32 for the SSD? That was because FAT32 is a non-journaling system - like NTFS.
Journaling leads to constant re-writes of the SSD - hence Ext2 is a non-journaling file system - Ext3 and Ext4 are both journaling systems that will shorten the life of the drive. If you only have an SSD in your machine you should invest in an HDD for Data or an external HDD if a Notebook. SSD's can't recover accidentally deleted files where as an HDD can.

brtfs does not have journaling

Then you might need these scripts for maintenance:

https://github.com/kdave/btrfsmaintenance