mate-python-applets

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I wanted to create applet for MATE.
I started digging and checking tutorials, forums, source codes on github.
Finally I decided to write it to remeber it.

https://wiki.mate-desktop.org/docs:devel:mate-panel

Applet requires three files:

your-folder/TestApplet.py  
/usr/share/mate-panel/applets/TestApplet.mate-panel-applet  
/usr/share/dbus-1/services/TestAppletFactory.service  

Some examples on internet use names with prefix org.mate.panel. and org.mate.panel.applet. but it works without those prefixes. They are rather for uniq names - so you can install two applets with name TestApplet.

/usr/share/mate-panel/applets/org.mate.panel.TestApplet.mate-panel-applet
/usr/share/dbus-1/services/org.mate.panel.applet.TestAppletFactory.service

You can install .mate-panel-applet and .service once. Inside these files you have to change path to your .py.

I created install.sh to (re)install these files. You may have to edit it if you don't use name TestApplet.py.

Debugging

Applet will NOT display print() because it has no access to terminal. But first you can run applet in terminal to see any errors/typos in code.

You can add and remove applet ro panel to test it OR you can use mate-panel-test-applets to run it from terminal without installing. But applet still will not display print().

I don't know how to start it with parameter --iid to run

To see any debug messages you can use module logging and save messages in file to see them after stoping applet. I took this part from mate-i3-applet

Refresh text on label

It needs

GLib.timeout_add(1000, update_label)

instead of

Gtk.timeout_add(1000, update_label)

Class Applet

https://saravananthirumuruganathan.wordpress.com/2010/01/15/creating-gnome-panel-applets-in-python/

Some applets which I previewed to learn it

https://github.com/search?l=Python&q=mate+applet&type=Repositories

logging: https://github.com/city41/mate-i3-applet/blob/master/matei3applet.py

https://github.com/linuxmint/mintmenu-vala/blob/master/mintmenu.vala

https://github.com/ubuntu-mate/mate-optimus/blob/master/usr/lib/mate-optimus/mate-optimus-applet

https://github.com/benpicco/mate-panel-python-applet-example/blob/master/mateAppletExample.py

https://github.com/robint99/mate-dock-applet/blob/master/src/dock_applet.in

https://github.com/projecthamster/hamster/blob/gnome_2x/src/hamster-applet

Examples how to extends right menu with ActionGroup

https://github.com/mate-desktop/mate-applets/blob/master/mateweather/mateweather-applet.c

https://github.com/mate-desktop/mate-applets

Other links

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/49498316/auto-refreshing-mate-panel-applet?rq=1

https://ubuntu-mate.community/t/python-menu-panel-applet/9376/2

https://askubuntu.com/questions/751608/how-can-i-write-a-dynamically-updated-panel-app-indicator

All started with this

https://wiki.mate-desktop.org/docs:devel:mate-panel

http://candidtim.github.io/appindicator/2014/09/13/ubuntu-appindicator-step-by-step.html

https://askubuntu.com/questions/750815/fuzzy-clock-for-ubuntu/752675#752675

Tool(s) to run applet without installing it manually (again and again)

https://askubuntu.com/questions/229511/how-can-i-add-an-applet-to-mate-from-the-terminal

/usr/lib/gnome-panel/mate-panel-add --applet=OAFIID:MATE_DockBarXApplet --panel=top_panel_screen0 --position=500
mateconftool-2 --all-dirs /apps/panel/toplevels

https://saravananthirumuruganathan.wordpress.com/2010/01/15/creating-gnome-panel-applets-in-python/