So, I think cosmic apps should support whatever the global menu protocol is called, and have the top bar be ssd. The ssd would use the global menu protocol to add the already existing menu bar to the titlebar.
This would have quite a few benefits, including
- Making every third party app with a menu bar look more native, with them getting a COSMIC-style titlebar.
- Making COSMIC apps integrate nicer with other desktops, especially for people who use a mac-style global menu.
- A more unified and flexible desktop experience overall.
Obvious problems being what to do with other buttons in titlebars(I propose to just move them to wherever else would make sense) and what to do on desktops with no server side decorations like GNOME. Also, on other desktops that have ssd, but don’t put the global menu anywhere, there would have to be a more classic, less elegant menu bar.
This proposal definitely has downsides, but I think it’d be a definite improvement and align with COSMIC’s philosphy, so tell me what you all think!
Also, if any system76 employees are reading this, pretty please 🥺 ?
Oops, shouldve probably explained it in the post.
ssd= server side decorations
server side decorations is when the system draws the titlebar, as opposed to client side decorations (csd) where the applications draws it.
for example, gnome uses csd, but kde uses ssd.
There’s debate over which is better, but the main difference is that csd allows applications to put anything in the titlebar, which can make the design nicer, and ssd allows the titlebars on all apps to be consistent, which I personally value more.
Aha oops I edited at the same time as your reply! Thanks for the elaboration, that’s helpful!
The realistic answer IMO is that SSD should be the default with client overrides being available.
Yes consistency is important but if someone wants to do something weird, let them. Open software ecosystems should prioritize flexibility like that.