How to add Unity Quicklists?
Ubuntu came out with an API for the Unity launcher and anyone can create their own quicklists with a different modification of the configuration file. Currently there is no easy way to add a quicklist item. The following is the summary of the steps required to add a quicklist item: The X-Ayatana-Desktop-Shortcuts code refers to the entries that appear when you right click on the app icon. The following [XXX shortcut Group] is the action for each entry.
Some of the most useful Unity Quicklists
1. Add Private/Safe mode, Profile Manager and your frequently accessed site to Firefox icon.
Copy the Firefox desktop configuration file to your home folder. Open the file with gedit. Replace the line with Next, add the following code to the end of the file: Save and close the file. Lastly, restart Unity
2. Add New Window and Incognito Mode to Google Chrome
This is assuming that you have installed Google Chrome in your Ubuntu. Run the command: Add the following code to the end of the file: Save and close the file. Restart Unity
3. Add Favorite and Bookmarks to Home Folder
This will allow you to access the various folders directly from the launcher. Run the command: Scroll down the file and replace the line: with Add the following code to the end of the file: Save and close the file. Restart Unity
4. Make the LibreOffice Start Center More Useful
Run the command: Add the following code to the end of the file: Save and close the file. Restart Unity
5. Add Custom Commands to the Terminal
The terminal is not an application that you will use frequently, but if you do, there will always be a few commands that you use regularly. You can add these commands to the quicklist for quick access. Run the command: Scroll down the file and replace the line: with Next, add the following code to the end of the file: Save and close the file. Restart Unity
6. Create a Google Services Center
If you use Google services as much as I do, this is going to be very useful to you. Open a text editor and copy/paste the following code: Remember to change the icon file path (You can download the Google icon that I used here.) The code above uses Google Chrome. You can change it to use Firefox or your favorite browser. Save the file with the name “google-services.desktop” in the folder “/home/username/.local/share/applications folder“ Next, drag this file to the launcher.
7. Add Google Shortcut
Instead of accessing the Google services, if what you want is to have quick access to the various tasks in Google, like composing new email, adding a calendar, open a new doc etc, this is how you can do it. Open a text editor and copy/paste the following code: Remember to change the icon file path. Save the file with the name “google-shortcuts.desktop” in the folder “/home/username/.local/share/applications folder“ Next, drag this file to the launcher.
8. Quick Add PPA in Ubuntu Software Center
Our usual method of adding PPA is via the terminal, but this could be a more efficient way. Run the command: Add the following code to the end of the file. Save and close the file. Restart Unity The above are only a small fraction of what you can do with the Unity quicklists. You can also checkout AskUbuntu for more quicklists. Note: If after adding the quicklist code and it causes problems to your system, you can easily restore your system by deleting the respective .desktop file from /home/username/.local/share/applications folder and restart unity.
