Fixing Gnome with Extensions
When it comes to Linux desktop environments, there are quite a few options. Two of the most commonly used desktop environments are Gnome and KDE Plasma. Between the two, it's obvious that they share very little in regards to user space philosophy. Some users suggest that Gnome lacks customization and can't easily be altered by the user. However, with a few extensions and settings, Gnome is quite customizable. Here's a basic list of extensions and settings I use within the Gnome desktop environment.
Extension Manager
The first thing you'll need to do is add a way to manage your Gnome extensions. Mainly there are two ways of doing this. You can download and use the official Gnome Extensions app, or you can use Extension Manager for Gnome, available as a Flatpak.
The benefit to using the Gnome Extension Manager is that it also offers a built in search for Gnome extensions, meaning you won't have to use the website.
Choice Gnome Extensions
Dash to Panel
If you're looking for your dock to activate on mouse over, the best two options are Dash to Dock and Dash to Panel. Personally I prefer Dash to Panel for its inclusion of window previews on mouse over. On first look Dash to Panel completely reworks the dock, however with just a few options Dash to Panel makes the perfect dock with window previews on mouse over.
Arc Menu
By default the Gnome overview opens a full screen list of apps along with a search function. However if you're looking for a simple app section where you can pin items, ArcMenu is the perfect choice. ArcMenu features several styles of app menus along with various settings and tweaks to create the perfect app launcher menu.
Tray Icons Reloaded
For some reason the developers of Gnome don't think it's important to include a list of apps running in the background. If you launch Steam or Discord it's easy for these windows to simply stay running without the user knowing. There are few options to add icons into the environment for background apps. My personal favorite would have to be Tray Icons Reloaded. This will add a list of background apps to the top bar of Gnome.
Tiling Shell
If you're running an ultra wide monitor or simply want easily configurable drag and drop window zones, there's no better option than Tiling Shell. This extension adds the ability to create customized zones for window placement that can be set to snap and arrange windows perfectly. This extension is an absolute must have for productivity. I don't believe I would be able to use the Gnome desktop environment without it.
Hide Top Bar
Whether you have an OLED or simply don’t like seeing the top bar, this extension helps to auto hide the default top bar in Gnome. This extension is somewhere between a requirement and personal preference. If you are running an OLED, I would absolutely consider this a requirement. Personally I enjoy seeing the top bar, so this is an extension that I don't enjoy using, but I'm very glad that it exists.
Don’t Forget Settings and Tweaks
While Gnome has an incredible amount of polish, there are some design choices that leave the environment feeling awkward at best. While we don't have to change an incredible amount of settings, there are a few that make a huge difference for the daily desktop user.
First you'll need to install gnome tweaks, found in most package managers as gnome tweaks. There is also the option to add this with most distributions software apps.
Window’s close and minimize buttons
By default the Gnome environment lacks both the close and minimize buttons for windows. These can both be obtained through a simple setting in Gnome Tweaks. Simply enable these options under the Window section in Tweaks. There are a few more options in Gnome Tweaks, however we mostly use it to obtain the minimize and close buttons.
Snappy and responsive
This is definitely more personal preference but I prefer a more snappy desktop experience than Gnome's default. By default the Gnome desktop makes use of animations through the environment that can make it feel sluggish and slow to some users. Luckily this can be fixed by using the accessibility options in the main settings. Simply disable the animation effects under the seeing section of accessibility.
Settings > Accessibility > Seeing > Animation Effects
Always More to do
There are always more extensions and settings that can be tweaked to give users the perfect desktop environment that fits their needs. This is a simple list of quick changes that I use across all my installs.
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