Ubuntu – Create launcher shortcut for RDesktop

command linelaunchershortcutsunity

I am trying to create a 'shortcut' that I can pin to my launcher in Ubuntu 12.04.3 LTS that will launch an RDesktop session.

It works fine from the command line thus:

rdesktop -u UserName -d Domain -g 1024x720 -a 16 ServerName

I found something close in Terminal command script launcher, but it does not quite work.

I made the desktop file that contains this (made it executable etc as per the link above):

[Desktop Entry]
Version=1.0
Name=RDP-ServerName
Comment=Open an RDP session to ServerName
Exec=rdesktop -u UserName -d Domain -g 1024x720 -a 16 ServerName
Terminal=true
Type=Application
Categories=Utility;Application;

I figured if I could get it to work from the desktop, then I could somehow pin it to the launcher afterwards?

However, when I run it from the desktop, nothing seems to happen. I tried choosing the 'terminal' option, and also the 'run' option, but neither seems to work.

Best Answer

You can just copy your *.desktop file to ~/.local/share/applications.

Or use alacarte application for this.

sudo apt-get install alacarte

Related Solutions

Unity Launcher Icons – How to Create and Pin Shortcut to Specific Command or Shellscript

You need to setup the WMClass to rdesktop in your .desktop file. This one works for me:

[Desktop Entry]
Version=1.0
Type=Application
Name=Gacela
Exec=rdesktop #####:####
Icon=/usr/share/icons/gacela.png
Comment=Conexion co Gacela
Categories=Internet;
Terminal=false
StartupNotify=true
StartupWMClass=rdesktop
GenericName=

To get the WMClass of any running window, you need to use this command:

xprop

and click on the window that you want to identify. Look for the value of WM_CLASS in the output, or grep it if you prefer a smaller output:

xprop | grep WM_CLASS

Unity – Icon Missing When Application is Launched: How to Fix

What will most probably solve your problem is to do the following:

Open the application
When it is running, open a terminal and type:
```
xprop WM_CLASS
```
Then click on the open application window.
The output will look like (example gedit):
```
WM_CLASS(STRING) = "gedit", "Gedit"
```
Use the first part (in this case would be gedit), to compose a line in your .desktop file:
```
StartupWMClass=<string>
```
(replace <string> with the actual (first part of the) output of xprop WM_CLASS, e.g. StartupWMClass=gedit)

Now try again (you might have to log out / in), most likely the application will appear in the launcher under its own icon.

Explanation

When an application starts up correctly from a launcher (.desktop file), but another icon appears with only a generic icon (question mark), it is most likely that the application window and the launcher do not connect for some reason, and the launcher does not recognize the application's window as "his". This is often the case when a script or a non- standard application (-command) is used. In those cases the StartupWMClass= line is often the solution.

Best Answer

Related Solutions

Unity Launcher Icons – How to Create and Pin Shortcut to Specific Command or Shellscript

Unity – Icon Missing When Application is Launched: How to Fix

Explanation

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