Notices

Would it be possible to code some follow function on to widgets, so that they would follow you on to your active desktop?
For example having media player widget follow active desktops would be great when listening to music. It may not seem like a big thing and it isn't. But these little usability addons is what makes things shine IMO.

This could also be done like so, that you could attach a "cord" to a widget, which would show up as a bubble on the side of your desktop. If you want the media player quickly in to view, you drag the bubble from the side to pull up the media player for example.

Of course the original position of the widget shouldn't move, so it should be a ghost player that you could drag around.

This optionality could be added to a widget or any item on your desktop through the desktop modifying mode that you get by holding down on the desktop.

What do you guys think? Possible? Worth it?

I was thinking of something like this also, but i was thinking more of a static box you could put what you want in.

Then when you swiped... the static box would stay along with whatever you put inside it and everything outside would move.

That's also a really good idea. Could be a floating box, so it wouldn't be a task to always move it from on top of other items on your desktops.

Not sure about it, but sounds like it could be a lot easier to accomplish than cords and bubbles :P

Ive always thought something like this would be handy. You could put your phone icon in it, or whatever else you wanted on all desktops, this could even be other widgets. As long as they are in the frame widget, it would be completely static.

Would be so useful, and would also replicate kind of what the iphone does, by keeping some icons static at the bottom but having desktops scrolling.

Yeah I've always been annoyed that the phone option doesn't follow you, but I enabled turn setting on, so I get phone when I rotate phone. It's mostly annoying though :P

But I think this could serve multiple applications.

Not sure if this helps but couldn't you just use the status area for that? You can find status bar applets for almost anything including desktop shortcuts (like phone) and media player, although I'm not sure that (as yet) the media player applet actually controls the media player or whether it just shows current song info.

Obviously it does involve an additional keypress to having a widget follow you from desktop-to-desktop.

One other thing is I've always had that 'bug' which replicates pre-installed apps, but what that means is I can have the same app on more than one desktop. There is also a hack you can do to enable multiple instances of applications.

D4rKlar

I think that 1 click is exactly the problem, and it's a pain to add stuff in the status area. Should be easier, or well more usable anyway.

I've also looked in to creating multiple phone buttons for example. But even though it kinda works, I don't see it as a way to solve the problem, cause it just clutters your desktops too much.

I don't know of any existing applications that follow view changes, probably not terribly difficult to code up a draw that sits at the side of the screen on all desktops and slides open when you touch - though an alternative that was kind of mentioned in this thread already is to allow multiple instances of widgets or icons.

An example: SwipeCounter.

Edit its desktop file: /usr/share/applications/hildon-home/swipecounter.desktop and change X-Multiple-Instances=false to X-Multiple=true

Reboot your phone or give hildon a kick and you can now add as many swipe counters to your views as you want. Definitely this can clutter your screen but the alternatives mentioned above will do the same thing as well to one extent or another.

Not sure if this is safe or socially acceptable, but it does work.