GNOME Bugzilla – Bug 641560
Allow hiding the user's name
Last modified: 2013-01-25 21:00:28 UTC
"Can I have a bit of privacy?" I think it should be possible to hide my name, or switch to using my login name, if I didn't want everyone peering over my shoulder to know who I am.
You can use a pseudonym? But I understand what you want to say.
You can click on your name, click "My Account", click on your name and change it to anything you want right?
I don't want to change my name in GECOS, I want it not being broadcast to whoever might see my screen.
I think whatever is done it makes sense to keep it consistent at the lock screen and gdm. The way you do this now is by changing the display name for the account. Shrug.
(In reply to comment #4) > I think whatever is done it makes sense to keep it consistent at the lock > screen and gdm. The way you do this now is by changing the display name for > the account. Shrug. Fair enough. The main point is that there's no other OSes actually plastering my name on the interface in such a way. I'd be happy with just a simple tickbox (or setting) that would allow me to choose whether or not to show my name (though it would obviously cause problems for the screen lock/gdm).
Actually, _not_ keeping the lock screen consistent makes even more sense. The reasons for removing the user name in the user menu is that it is unnecessary and annoying: * It is unnecessary because the user already knows his own name * It is annoying because it takes up a lot of panel space (it is by far the largest item in the panel for me, and I don't even have an exceedingly long name). However, the situation in the lock screen is completely different: * The person looking at the lock screen is often not the logged in user (who would just unlock the screen and get on with things). If you come across a locked workstation it is perfectly reasonable to want to know who locked it. So the information is not useless in this case. * On the lock screen the panel is basically completely empty, so there is no problem with the name occupying a large portion of it. So I don't think there is any need to paint the oranges green to make them consistent with the apples... ;-)
By the way, I made a patch to make the title configurable using gsettings. No preference window (yet) though... https://github.com/zeldin/gnome-panel/blob/f5ae6375d077cf13e03f0af2888edbbeba6e9357/debian/patches/13_configurable_user_menu_title.patch
There's two extensions for this on extensions.gnome.org: https://extensions.gnome.org/extension/106/remove-user-name/ https://extensions.gnome.org/extension/40/status-only-icon/ I can't see a setting for it fitting in with the general approach we're taking for the level of shell configurability.
These extensions seem to be for gnome-shell, which I assume mean they will not work with gnome-panel?
(In reply to comment #9) > These extensions seem to be for gnome-shell, which I assume mean they will not > work with gnome-panel? If you mean, that they won't have any effect on fallback mode - yes, that is correct.
*** Bug 673426 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
The user menu shows my name. But I already know my name, so all it does is steal valuable space and add clutter making the user menu much more wider than other icons. I would like an option to hide the name from the user menu so that it only shows the icon.
I want it hidden both from gnome-shell and gnome-panel due to it stating the obvious, my name which I already know, hence just wasting precious screen space. Please merge the patch!
I'm sure that there is a well-thought reason to display the user name on the screen. It's just not obvious to me. Could someone please explain it or point to a documentation or design document? (As I wrote in another bug report, my "significant other" insists on having her name displayed when I'm logged in.) Proposal: Why not remove the user name from the screen and let people who want it write an extension?
The extension to hide it already exists, so you can enable it if you want, that's as easy as having an option for that.
No, because I use gnome-panel. When I file report bug #666738, then they say "We do this in gnome-panel by default to mimic the gnome-shell experience." So now I file it here, so they can change it here and then there too. Face it, this was a stupid design decision that wasn't thought out.
(In reply to comment #16) > Face it, this was a stupid design decision that wasn't thought out. Maybe, maybe not. So far, nobody explained the reason for showing the name on the screen, but surely there is one. (In reply to comment #15) > The extension to hide it already exists, so you can enable it if you want, that's as easy as having an option for that. I have installed the package "gnome-shell-extensions" (Debian testing/unstable aka wheezy/sid), but to no avail.
(In reply to comment #16) > No, because I use gnome-panel. > > When I file report bug #666738, then they say "We do this in gnome-panel by > default to mimic the gnome-shell experience." > > So now I file it here, so they can change it here and then there too. Yeah, this makes sense, but I don't think a GSettings key will be added for that in the Shell, so it's back to gnome-panel, which does not have extensions. Of course, if gnome-panel adds a key, the Shell might start using it, so we might as well think about it here first. I'm reopening so that a dev can react, but don't be too confident... > Face it, this was a stupid design decision that wasn't thought out. I'm not the one who made the decision, but I can see two reasons: - on multi user computers, this allows you to check easily if it's your account - this is consistent with the lock screen, where it's really needed - this menu needs a name, and since it contains user-related actions, using your name is nicer than saying "User" - in the Shell, this space is not used anyway, and it is even an advantage that this menu is wider than the indicators, so that it's easier to reach
Note that on really skinny displays, the name is hidden entirely.
(In reply to comment #16) ... > Face it, this was a stupid design decision that wasn't thought out. Please try and be nice. The user menu provides access to chat status, the user account, system settings and control over the session (lock screen, log out, suspend, etc). The user name is a good label for a menu that contains these items: they are all somewhat under the umbrella of 'me, my status, my session'. The user name also works well in relation to the chat status icon. The label has performed well in user tests that I know of, with participants being able to find the menu items it contains. If you remove the user name you're left with a chat status icon, which doesn't indicate what the contents of the menu are - it's not a 'chat' menu.
Okay but I am the *only* user of *my* PERSONAL computer (PC) which also have only *one* account. I already know my name, and I am tired of seeing it there every single day all the time. I prefer minimalism; less is more. That space could be reserved for more useful stuff, such as having one panel instead of two.
(In reply to comment #21) > Okay but I am the *only* user of *my* PERSONAL computer (PC) which also have > only *one* account. SHOUTING won't help, nor will putting *emphasis* on *every* other *word*. > I already know my name, and I am tired of seeing it there every single day all > the time. I prefer minimalism; less is more. That space could be reserved for > more useful stuff, such as having one panel instead of two. You are repeating yourself. This is a bug tracker - make your points and then be quiet.
(In reply to comment #20) > The user menu provides access to chat status, the user account, system settings > and control over the session (lock screen, log out, suspend, etc). The user > name is a good label for a menu that contains these items: they are all > somewhat under the umbrella of 'me, my status, my session'. Thanks for the explanation! This makes some sense, but surely with a label such as "User" it would be more obvious to me. OT: Now it's clear to me, why former minister and ex-PhD, Karl Theodor Maria Nikolaus Johann Jacob Philipp Franz Joseph Sylvester Freiherr von und zu Guttenberg, did not yet switch to GNOME3 — he would need a super-wide screen :~)
(In reply to comment #23) > OT: Now it's clear to me, why former minister and ex-PhD, Karl Theodor Maria > Nikolaus Johann Jacob Philipp Franz Joseph Sylvester Freiherr von und zu > Guttenberg, did not yet switch to GNOME3 — he would need a super-wide screen > :~) As I already said, if the name is too long for the screen, it gets ellipsized.
I like the suggestion to simply call the menu "User". It's short and unobtrusive. Also, speaking of the chat status icon, could we please have that disappear when it isn't connected to anything? I run gajim for chat, which displays its own chat status icon in the notification area applet, leaving the user menu chat status icon dead and dysfunctional... I imagine many people don't even use chat at all.
Please open a new bugreport if you want something other than to hide the username. Bugzilla is not a forum.
This is implemented in GNOME 3.8 (Settings -> Privacy). *** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of bug 688577 ***