Bug 85937

Summary: KDesktop should have a truncate option for icon text
Product: [Unmaintained] kdesktop Reporter: Brian Koppe <bkoppe>
Component: generalAssignee: David Faure <faure>
Status: CLOSED WORKSFORME    
Severity: wishlist CC: finex
Priority: NOR    
Version: unspecified   
Target Milestone: ---   
Platform: Compiled Sources   
OS: Linux   
Latest Commit: Version Fixed In:
Sentry Crash Report:
Attachments: Truncated icon text in Windows XP
Selected icon in Windows XP
Deselected icon in Windows XP

Description Brian Koppe 2004-07-25 15:11:33 UTC 
Version:            (using KDE KDE 3.2.3)
Installed from:    Compiled From Sources
OS:                Linux

The current behavior for KDesktop is such that the icon grid is based on the height of the icon+text.  With files of various lengths on the desktop, this can cause problems, such as erarranging the aligned icons, sometimes even to different columns.  This can be seen, for example, by having multiple one line text icons on the desktop and then add a 5 line text icon to the desktop.  The icons realign as if they all have 5 lines of text.  If the 5 line icon is removed, the icons go back to alignment as if they are 1 line, but not necessarily back to their original positions.

While I understand truncated icon text may not be preferred by all, I think it should at least be an option.  As much as I hate to use it as an example, Windows XP handles this very well.  The icon grid is designed so that it is assumed that all icons have 2 lines of text (it would be nice to be able to specify this in kcontrol however) and if the text goes beyond 2 lines, it is truncated.  For example:

Icon with                                    Icon with
three lines of         ---Becomes--->        three lines...
text

When the icon is selected, the full text is shown.  If an icon is below it, the text simply overlaps, but does NOT realign the icons.  In Windows XP, if the icon is deselected by clicking elsewhere (but NOT on another icon) the text remains completely showing, but unselected.  The text goes back to being truncated when another icon is clicked on.

An option to specify a concrete size for the icon grid and enable truncating of icon text would be extremely helpful to maintaining a more elegant appearance on kdesktop and preventing random icon realignment simply because a new icon with a greater height has been added.

Thanks for the hard work and making KDE so great.  Here's to making it even better!
Comment 1 Brian Koppe 2004-07-25 15:15:46 UTC 
Created attachment 6836 [details]
Truncated icon text in Windows XP

Here you can see on icon on the Windows XP desktop that has more than 2 lines
of text to it.	Since it is unselected, it is truncated.
Comment 2 Brian Koppe 2004-07-25 15:17:11 UTC 
Created attachment 6837 [details]
Selected icon in Windows XP

Here, the icon is selected and the text overlaps the icon below as opposed to
realigning it.
Comment 3 Brian Koppe 2004-07-25 15:18:31 UTC 
Created attachment 6838 [details]
Deselected icon in Windows XP

Finally, the icon has been deselected by clicking elsewhere but NOT on another
desktop icon.  The text remains, unselected, overlapping the icon below.  When
a new icon is selected on the desktop, the text of the icon we see here would
go back to looking like that in the first attachment.
Comment 4 klee 2004-11-18 21:53:35 UTC 
I believe this is KDesktop's behavior as of 3.3.0.  This bug should be closed as fixed.
Comment 5 David Faure 2004-11-19 10:00:51 UTC 
Yes text is truncated here with 3.3.
Comment 6 Brian Koppe 2004-11-19 11:08:20 UTC 
Thank you KDE developers for your committment to community!
Comment 7 FiNeX 2009-01-02 20:28:41 UTC 
Bug closed. Kdesktop is no more mantained.