Gnome-Panel White Square (Gnome-Fallback-Session/Flashback)

[Rafael Medina]

Description:
White squares appears in blank sections of gnome panel at Ubuntu Startup and during window Minimize / Maximize Actions. Gnome-Flashback with Compiz (Effects) only.

Distribution:

Ubuntu Saucy Salamander (development branch)
Release: 13.10

Packages:

compiz:
  Installed: 1:0.9.9~daily13.04.18.1~13.04-0ubuntu1
  Candidate: 1:0.9.9~daily13.04.18.1~13.04-0ubuntu1
  Version table:
 *** 1:0.9.9~daily13.04.18.1~13.04-0ubuntu1 0
        500 http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ saucy/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status

gnome-session-fallback formerly gnome-session-flashback in ubuntu 13.10:
  Installed: 1:3.6.2-0ubuntu11
  Candidate: 1:3.6.2-0ubuntu11
  Version table:
 *** 1:3.6.2-0ubuntu11 0
        500 http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ saucy/universe amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status

How to Reproduce:

Normally after distro-upgrade or a clean install, since the 1st Boot you'll see a white square in unussed portion of gnome panels (totally white if the panel is clean)

Steps:

1.- Launch some application (firefox in this case)
2.- Left Mouse Click on Firefo's Window List Box (This Will Minimize Firefox to Panel)
3.- At this Step, maybe the White panell has disappeared ( Now the color is normal according to Ambiance Theme )
4.- Click Again in Firefox's Windows List Box ( The Window must Maximize and the White Square in Gnome Panel appears Again. If its not, repeat the Minimize and Maximize actios to rise up the bug)

Temporary WorkArround:

Enable "Show Hide Buttons" under Panel Properties. This will "transfer" the buggy white color effect to the sidebuttons in the panel.

How to Reproduce with Adwaita theme:
1) Open file for edit:
/usr/share/themes/Adwaita/gtk-3.0/gtk.css

2) Add these lines end of file:
.gnome-panel-menu-bar,
PanelApplet > GtkMenuBar.menubar,
PanelToplevel,
PanelWidget,
PanelAppletFrame,
PanelApplet {
    background-image: -gtk-gradient(linear, left top, left bottom, from(shade(#3c3b37, 1.5)), to(shade(#3c3b37, 1.05)));
}

3. Switch gtk theme to Adwaita. If already using it, restart gnome-panel.

4. gnome-panel has black background instead of gradient. menu bar and indicator applet complete looks like it should.

5. Opening panel properties and switching background from none to solid color and back will bring gradient to whole panel.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Cavsfan (cavsfan)]

Every time I boot into Saucy the middle section of the top and bottom panels are a light color close to white.
I have found that if I hold ALT+Super+right click the mouse on each panel, go to properties, click background,
change it to solid color and then back to none (use system theme) then it straightens out and the color matches the rest of the panels. I used to have to do this multiple times per session but, recently it appears I can do it once after login but, not absolutely sure.

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

This bug is not caused by gnome-panel nor by compiz!

1. Installed rairing and gnome-session-fallback. Gnome-panel is ok. compiz version is some as currently on my saucy install.
2. Opened sources.list and changed raring to saucy. Run apt-get update and apt-get upgrade. There was many packages kept back. Tried to restart, install was broken. :(
3. Started to install some of kept back packages - xserver-xorg-core. Installed many other packages, some removed. Than i was able to do another apt-get upgrade. After that there was still 143 kept back packages, gnome-panel one of them. Rebooted, now I was able to login, but now gnome-panel has white color.

in upgrade process gnome-panel, compiz versions didn't change.

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

gnome panel got white color after installing/upgrading these packages to versions available in saucy:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following packages will be REMOVED:
  libegl1-mesa-drivers libwayland0
The following NEW packages will be installed:
  libwayland-client0 libwayland-cursor0 libwayland-server0
The following packages will be upgraded:
  libegl1-mesa libgail-3-0 libgtk-3-0 libgtk-3-bin libgtk-3-common
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

After downgrading libgtk-3-0 package to version 3.6.4-0ubuntu8 problem disappears...

[Doug McMahon (mc3man)]

Try a different gtk3 theme other than the default light-themes/ambiance , for example adwaita is fine

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Why? I don't whant use different theme. I like Ambiance.

There is problem, and i want it to be fixed. Problem maybe is with gtk (regression) or gnome-panel must be updated to work correct with newer gtk version.

If it is gtk problem, i hope gtk devs will fix it.
If it is gnome-panel problem, than I could try to fix it, but than I need to know 100% that it is problem with gnome-panel.

[Rafael Medina (rafael-medina)]

Im agree with Alberts, There are only a few thinks that make me use Ubuntu until now...

1.- Compiz:

           Tools Like Zoom Plugins are great and usefull in daily work.

2.- Gnome fallBack Session with Ambience Theme.

           Ambiance theme in gnome-fallback-session looks great and even works better than unity itself and highly smooth than Gnome 3 Shell.

It is clear the way cannonical is taking to the future, but until we have a chance to maintain the nice old-gnome style i'll be insistent with try to find a solution.

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Reason why metacity seasion is not affected probably is because it still uses gtk 2. So it could be realy gtk bug. I have filled one against gtk - https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/gtk+3.0/+bug/1200689

Can gtk devs comment on this? Or no one is reading this bug?

[Jeremy Bícha (jbicha)]

This doesn't affect the Adwaita theme. I assume that this should actually be fixed in ubuntu-themes.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Yes, it doesn't affect Adwaita, because it doesn't use gradient for gnome-panel. Installed gnome-themes-standard, changed gtk theme to adwaita, gnome-panel got simple black color as background.

[Jeremy Bícha (jbicha)]

Alberts, could you please update the bug description then with steps to reproduce even without Ambiance?

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Description updated with steps to reproduce this bug with Adwaita theme.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Attached patch with posible fix.. Can someone confir it is real fix? Now gnome-panel works ok for me.

Linked branch includes anoter fix for gnome-panel.

[Rafael Medina (rafael-medina)]

How can i Apply the Patch?

[Ubuntu Foundations Team Bug Bot (crichton)]

The attachment "fix-for-1196177.patch" seems to be a patch. If it isn't, please remove the "patch" flag from the attachment, remove the "patch" tag, and if you are a member of the ~ubuntu-reviewers, unsubscribe the team.

[This is an automated message performed by a Launchpad user owned by ~brian-murray, for any issues please contact him.]

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Ok, I was wrong, it dosn' t fix problem... :( I guess it is realy not gnome-panel bug. There is nothing wrong with default_pattern in panel-background.c. It is always passed to gdk_window_set_background_pattern.

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Probably I have found fix that works. :) Now Ambiance theme realy works for me with metacity or compiz. I dont see any regression. Made quick test with Adwaita theme, it seems that it works just fine.

Maybe someone can explain me why this line was needed :
GTK_WIDGET_CLASS (panel_widget_parent_class)->style_updated (widget);

It seems that with gtk 3.8.2 it was causing only problems...

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Fix gnome-panel background (this bug, https://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=704203);
Fix gnome-panel creation under two or more separate x screens (https://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=704019)

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Added to deb packages built for saucy, amd64 which includes fix for this bug and one other. If anyone want to test than simply download these two packages and install them - sudo dpkg -i gnome-panel*.deb.

[Cavsfan (cavsfan)]

Ignore the above post.
I just tried the amd64 deb and got these errors:

cavsfan@cavsfan-MS-7529:~/Downloads$ sudo dpkg -i gnome-panel_3.6.2-0ubuntu12_amd64.deb[sudo] password for cavsfan:
(Reading database ... 209648 files and directories currently installed.)
Preparing to replace gnome-panel 1:3.6.2-0ubuntu11 (using gnome-panel_3.6.2-0ubuntu12_amd64.deb) ...
Unpacking replacement gnome-panel ...
dpkg: dependency problems prevent configuration of gnome-panel:
 gnome-panel depends on gnome-panel-data (= 1:3.6.2-0ubuntu12); however:
  Version of gnome-panel-data on system is 1:3.6.2-0ubuntu11.

dpkg: error processing gnome-panel (--install):
 dependency problems - leaving unconfigured
Processing triggers for bamfdaemon ...
Rebuilding /usr/share/applications/bamf-2.index...
Processing triggers for gnome-menus ...
Processing triggers for desktop-file-utils ...
Processing triggers for mime-support ...
Processing triggers for man-db ...
Errors were encountered while processing:
 gnome-panel

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Install with this command (it will install both packages):
sudo dpkg -i gnome-panel*.deb

[Cavsfan (cavsfan)]

I installed both debs and still have the white top and bottom middle panels.

[Cavsfan (cavsfan)]

I had installed each deb separately and that caused problems. I installed both debs with sudo dpkg -i gnome-panel*.deb this time and I can confirm that this did fix this problem.

[Alberts Muktupāvels (muktupavels)]

Deleted deb attachmets because it included incorrect fix. I submited correct patch upstream as well updated related branch with new patch. Now it is definetly correct fix.

If someone needs I can attach patched gnome-panel here again.

How to remove affected packages ? This bug does NOT affect compiz nor ubuntu-themes. It was bug in gnome-panel.

[Logan Rosen (logan)]

Marked all non-GNOME-Panel packages as Invalid.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

This bug was fixed in the package gnome-panel - 1:3.6.2-0ubuntu12

---------------
gnome-panel (1:3.6.2-0ubuntu12) saucy; urgency=low

  * debian/patches/93_use_correct_screen.patch:
    - Fix gnome-panel creation under two or more separate x screens
  * debian/patches/94_fix_background.patch
    - Fix gnome-panel background (LP: #1196177)
 -- Alberts Muktupavels <email address hidden> Thu, 18 Jul 2013 19:28:02 +0300

[Martin Jelen (martyj)]

We want FIX !!!! This bug is still on Ubuntu 14.04

[Filip Stanek (filip-stanek)]

I can confirm, that this bug is still present on LTS version 14.04.3 with all.
Can someone please use the fix from Saucy for Trusty?