“Desktop Effects” (aka compiz) is nice but it reduces the number of virtual desktops to 4. Come on, who can work in just 4 desktops!!?!
I finally worked out there is a way to increase this, although it’s completely non-obvious and not exposed through GNOME (bug 382901).
# yum install ccsm
Run ccsm (CompizConfig Settings Manager) which has the strangest most non-intuitive interface since Blender. Go to General → General Options. Go to the Desktop Size tab. Change Horizontal Virtual Size from 4 to the number of desktops desired.
That’s it. Not clear if you need to save that setting, but I guess I’ll find out when I next log in.
I just don’t understand – why ubuntu have a smooth transition from a “normal” desktop to compiz an vice versa, and fedora does not?!
Does it matter much? You only transition once.
Definitely NO. At some point some program fail to work proper with Compiz and you need to switch back, then it fixed (or you simply finish your work) and you switch back. Then some driver fail. And etc.. etc.. etc…
Fedora has the desktop-effects program that let’s you chose between a normal Gnome session and (if installed) Compiz or even Gnome-Shell.
Of course, it doesn’t let you customize anything and you get some default chosen effects, but that’s what the Ubuntu UI does as well.
Transition is just one radio button to click, just like on Ubuntu, really.
in ubuntu users have similar ability to switch BUT that program respect the number of virtual desktops both in compiz and metacity
I’ve been irritated by this for ages and tried changing the setting in ccsm but it didn’t work. Been tracking that bug for a couple of years, with no apparent proper fix yet.