Created attachment 188120 [details] This is default configuration I was wondering why my panel wasn't usable, and then figured out that the task manager widget was shrinking and expanding making things that should be static-- move.. I rely on things staying in the same place, so pinning applications doesn't work, things move or represent both a program that is open and not open and multiple windows... So I use the traditional task manager. I found the option to make the behavior be as expected, I just suggest that we make it be default. I use left side panels, quick launch, show everything in system tray, These have incredible legacy and breaking them will impact all of my clients.
Created attachment 188121 [details] This is it with the fill space that should be default
Defaults are tricky. Different people will always think different things should be default. With the vertical panels, I see your point about the task manager being more usable with your suggested default. The plasmashell maintainers can weigh in. Changing this to wishlist, since it's a feature request rather than a bug.
I just tried the following two things: - Add a default panel, make sure it's a vertical panel. Right-click the icon-only task manager, show alternatives, choose icon-and-text task manager - Add an empty panel, make sure it's a vertical panel. Click the + button, add a icon-and-text task manager. In both cases, it had "Fill free space on panel set". This is also set as the default in the kconfigxt xml file: https://invent.kde.org/plasma/plasma-desktop/-/blob/master/applets/taskmanager/main.xml?ref_type=heads#L135 Can you be a bit more explicit about how you got to a state where it did not fill the empty space by default?