PATCH: Menu Spec - Categories

[William Jon McCann]

Hi Waldo,

On 9/7/06, Bastian, Waldo < waldo.bastian at intel.com> wrote:

> I have made a patch for the Appendix A of the menu spec that clarifies
> what desktop entries can expect in terms of supported categories and
> what desktop environments must support. I will also attach a HTML
> version of the new Appendix for your convenience in a followup mail.
>

In GNOME we install desktop files for programs that provide screensaver
functionality with "Categories=GNOME;Screensaver;" [1].  We then install a
menu that includes all Screensaver category programs [2].  This menu is not
used by the gnome-panel menus [3] but by the screensaver framework to look
up programs.  There is some precedent for this type of thing.  For example,
even when "main applications menus" don't show items from the Settings
category they have been used by various control panel shells  [4].

This seemed to have been allowed by the previous versions of the spec.
However, in this patch you have added:
 "Additional Categories should always be used in combination with one of the
Main Categories."

That said, it seems to me that your changes are worthwhile.  So, what should
we do?  Are you trying to explicitly forbid this type of usage?  Or can we
interpret this, as written, as a strong recommendation but not a
requirement?  Can we promote Screensaver to a main category similar to
Settings?

I think that this usage is worthwhile for its potential as a desktop neutral
way for third parties to define screensaver modes.

Thanks,
Jon

[1]
http://cvs.gnome.org/viewcvs/*checkout*/gnome-screensaver/savers/footlogo-floaters.desktop.in.in?rev=1.3
[2]
http://cvs.gnome.org/viewcvs/*checkout*/gnome-screensaver/data/gnome-screensavers.menu.in?rev=1.2
[3] http://cvs.gnome.org/viewcvs/gnome-menus/layout/
[4] http://cvs.gnome.org/viewcvs/gnome-control-center/control-center/control-center-categories.c?rev=1.12&view=markup


http://cvs.gnome.org/viewcvs/slab/control-center/src/control-center.c?rev=1.1&view=markup
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