Version: (using KDE 4.3.0) Installed from: Ubuntu Packages When a user changes theme elements in "System Settings -> Advanced -> Customize individual theme items", he is presented with the following message: """ To change your desktop theme to "(Customized)", open the desktop Appearance Settings and select "(Customized)" from the droplist. """ In my opinion this step should be done automatically. Please make it so. Thanks!
Actually, I cannot even find the desktop Appearance Settings' option to choose Customized. I don't claim to be a KDE wiz, but if I cannot find it then I wonder how new-to-KDE-Joe will find it.
isn't this a duplicate to one of the bugs already open about that control panel?
I searched, Aaron, but did not come up with a dupe. I will search again.
Aaron, this does not appear to be a dupe. There are already bugs that discuss the change of themes as not having any effect (bug #198572, bug #182823) however none of them suggest that the "customized" theme should be selected automatically (as this bug does).
I'm not sure that activating the theme right there is the right solution, simply because that configuration dialog is there to *configure* the themes, not to *activate* them. However, what I do think would make things vastly more intuitive, is to add an extra button for this ("Activate theme now" or such) and/or make all configurable elements/plasmoids provide a way to change their theme. For example, right clicking on the "Analog Clock" plasmoid and selecting "Analog Clock Settings" should have an option (a drop-down menu perhaps) where the theme could be selected. Changing it there should automatically update system settings and switch the clock to the new theme immediately.
> I'm not sure that activating the theme right there is the right solution, > simply because that configuration dialog is there to *configure* the themes, > not to *activate* them. What is the purpose of configuring something, but not activating it? Is the user supposed to know what activating something is? Even the popup dialogue box does not make this clear. It only adds confusion. What other KDE options must be "activated" after they are configured. Restarting an app or KDE itself is straightforward, and the dialogue boxes associated with this necessity are clear. This case is not.
Ok, so I intend to work on automatically changing the plasma theme when "Apply" is clicked before the 4.4 feature freeze. For a little clarity, this wasn't simply a brain-dead decision not to automatically change the theme. There was a time when it wasn't possible to do outside of the plasma process. Now it is.
> For a little clarity, this wasn't simply a brain-dead > decision not to automatically change the theme. We trust you, Andrew. Often when something looks brain-dead from the outside (like the desktop Cashew) there is a good technical reason behind it. The important part is remembering that KDE is for the users and either making clear the reason behind the decision or advancing the technology to make it unnecessary. The Plasma devs in particular have been very good at both.
SVN commit 1040925 by alake: Change desktop theme to cusomized theme when Apply is clicked. Tidy up ui. CCBUG:202591 CCBUG:205330 M +203 -150 DesktopThemeDetails.ui M +71 -61 desktopthemedetails.cpp M +2 -1 desktopthemedetails.h WebSVN link: http://websvn.kde.org/?view=rev&revision=1040925
Created attachment 40848 [details] Proposed patch Let's set the Plasma theme for real.. Implement detection for Plasma Desktop or Netbook (code borrowed from style kcm)
The patch should be used. May be we can merge both Plasma Themes (to set the themes, GHNS, and so) with this KCM (adding a "Customize theme" button); hopefully reducing some duplicated code (previewing themes in the list) and avoiding the confusion ("desktopthemedetails should allow to set the theme)
FIX to my previous comment: my patch should NOT be used.
This bug can be closed, in the current KDE 4.10.1 the theme is automatically set to "Customized".
Confirmed that it works now. Closing