Add messaging menu to mate panel

Support & Help Requests
1

Is it possible? I’m referring to the little envelope in the Ubuntu/Xubuntu panel that shows Thunderbird mail, Pidgin, and so forth.

Apaprently, I can’t upload an image because I am new here, but you can see an image of the messaging menu here – http://askubuntu.com/questions/66134/remove-mail-menu-from-indicator-messages

2

I haven’t seen one yet for Mate. But it is basically an indicator. I am sure someone with the proper skills could whip one up or make the ubuntu one work in Mate.

3

Thanks. Appreciate the quick reply. The panel is about the only thing I don’t like about Mate; wish it was more flexible.

4

You could install firetray addon in Thunderbird. This allows you to have an indicator of thunderbird available on the panel at bootup. It sits there alongside all of the other indicators such as sound, wireless connections etc. It is actually open, so that means it is collecting your new emails as soon as you have logged in. I even think it will display them as flags on your screen as they arrive, much like the flags you get when you, say, print something etc. In any event, if you single click on the firetray/thunderbird indicator, it immediately opens thunderbird on your desktop with all of your emails in view. When you close thunderbird, insrtead of shutting down, it shrinks back to just the indicator.

In other words,all of the above is more or less functionally equivalent to the envelope. which I also missed quite a bit, as it happens, until I discovered firetry.

After installing firetray addon, go to its setting and set it to open thunderbird shrunk to the system tray. You will also then need to add thunderbird as a startup program. This means thunderbird will automatically start when you log in, but will be immediately shrunk to the system tray.

1 Like
5

Thanks, Steve. Will give Firetray a shot, though I also wanted to have Pidgin, Skype, and Polly in the messaging menu, as I do on my desktop Xubuntu.

6

Can’t speak for Pidgin and Polly, but Skype can be set up in the same way as thunderbird to be visible and active in the system tray at login. Skype’s capaicty to do this is built in from the off. You just need to go to the preferences.