Transparent gnome-panel fails to properly blur desktop background

[Kevin Fishburne]

Binary package hint: gnome-panel

Description: Ubuntu lucid (development branch)
Release: 10.04
gnome-panel: 1:2.30.0-0ubuntu1
compiz: 1:0.8.4-0ubuntu13

Using updated Lucid (as of 04/01/10) the GNOME panel no longer blurs the desktop background behind it properly. I'm using the Compiz Blur plugin (Blur Filter: Gaussian, Gaussian Radius: 15, Gaussian Strength: 0.1000, Mipmap LOD: 5, Independent texture fetch), Compiz Opacity, Brightness and Saturation plugin ((class=Gnome-panel) & class=90) and a png background image for the panel with an alpha channel (approx. 25% opaque).

Before this bug the panel was beautiful and the text clearly readable with most backgrounds, but now it looks pretty bad unfortunately. I've experimented with different settings, themes, etc., but the effect remains the same. If I use Alt-Middlemouse over the panel to gradually adjust the panel opacity, it will slightly blur the desktop background at around the 25% opaque mark, but the blur strength doesn't correspond at all to the blur strength of other windows' opacity levels.

With the panel set to 25% opaque, moving a window behind the panel will result in the window being more blurry than the desktop background, where before they'd be blurred by the same amount. Using the panel properties (Solid color with transparency) results in no blurring at all of the background or windows moved underneath it. Using only the alpha channel in the panel background image for transparency results in no blur at all in the desktop background and any windows moved under the panel can't be seen at all.

There are several similar problems here, all of which I hope are related to one or more recent changes in gnome-panel or Compiz and/or its plugins. Which themes are used seems to be irrelevant.

Here's the panel background image I'm using if anyone would like to experiment with this:
http://www.eightvirtues.com/misc/bar_horizontal_05_supertrans_32.png

Here's my Compiz settings:
http://www.eightvirtues.com/misc/Compiz_Settings (right-click, Save Link As)

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.04
Package: gnome-panel 1:2.30.0-0ubuntu1
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.32-18.27-generic 2.6.32.10+drm33.1
Uname: Linux 2.6.32-18-generic x86_64
NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
Architecture: amd64
Date: Thu Apr 1 20:31:49 2010
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 9.10 "Karmic Koala" - Release amd64 (20091027)
ProcEnviron:
 LANG=en_US.utf8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
SourcePackage: gnome-panel

[MvW (2nv2u)]

Same here. Compiz blur filter does not work on the gnome panels.

[Jared Klingenberger (itsjareds)]

I have this issue too. All of your symptoms are the same with me, even the 25% opacity trick.

Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, 32bit
Kernel 2.6.32-23-generic

[gluxon (gluxon)]

Same problem here. Blur effect works fine in gnome-terminal though.

[Pedro Villavicencio (pedro)]

This bug is an upstream one and it would be quite helpful if somebody experiencing it could send the bug the to the people writing the software. You can learn more about how to do this at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/Upstream/GNOME . Thanks in advance!