Migrating to Gnome3/Gnome shell - Things I don't like about Gnome3/Gnome shell

Going from Gnome2 -> Gnome3

I've been using Gnome2 and Compiz for years. I've grown used to it and have customized it to my liking. But software moves onward and Gnome3/Gnome shell has been around for a while and running the old Gnome2 with Compiz required installation of fallback session software, etc. It's time to move forward. And I'm not against change but either there's a lot of functionality that I have lost or it exists in Gnome3 and I can't find it. I need a "Gnome3 for Gnone2 users" website.

So I'll list them here and ask around and perhaps come back here to post my solutions to the problems listed below.

Problems

• Configuring Application Shortcuts: Perhaps the biggest thing I miss is configuring application shortcuts in gnome-panel. I used to have app shortcuts for various applications and things I frequently do. I had shortcuts for Chrome, Firefox, Thunderbird as well as things like invocations of gnome-terminal for a local terminal, but also for terminals that ssh to my laptop or my server in the cloud. I also have shortcuts there that merely execute a script like screensaver.sh or lightsout.sh which are bash scripts that either invoke the screensaver or turn off the screens. I had shortcuts starting nautilus on various different directories like /tmp, /Videos, /Music, /Pictures, etc. In Gnome3 I can "Add to favorites" which will put them in the dock but all that does is launch the application, not launch the application with some specific parameters. I don't see how I can add to the dock a button to run a script. Also, I'd prefer multiple "icons", one for each terminal that I start, etc. Instead, I get one button and must right click on say Terminal then select New Window which gets me a new local terminal, then ssh mars to ssh to my laptop. Contrast that with one configured button that you simply click on.
• Lack of an application menu: There is no application menu that you can use like a Start button in Windows to find and launch applications. Additionally, when you install something new (e.g. Zoom) how do you then launch it? Sure I can hit the Super key and type zoom and then I guess "Add to Favorites" so it will be in my dock but I can't put everything there. And having to hit many more keys and remember hows to search for and quickly find things is a loss of productivity. Having a menu is hierarchical and makes intuitive sense if well organized.
• Global menu/top bar: I dislike the Apple-like "one menu bar for all applications" that all applications must use. For one, having two large monitors in UHD resolution, having to swipe a mouse all the way from the lower right corner of one monitor to the upper left corner of the other monitor just to access the menu is just plain dumb. How do I turn this off?
• Minimize application on the second click: In Gnome2 if you click on the application's icon it will normalize. Click it again and it will minimize. In Gnome3 you can click all you want but it won't minimize.
• Lack of configurability: Seems the trend is to dumb down the interface for the newbies. But along with that goes a loss of functionality. Case in point, there doesn't appear to be a way to resize the global menu on the top. There are icons that get put in there from applications like Dropbox, Livepatch, Google Hangouts, Clipit as well as things like the Network Manager and Logout multi-button. The icons are tiny on my monitor and I'd like to make that top bar larger. No way to do it. Easy to do in gnome-panel. I can also configure the gnome-panel to be transparent, something I really like. Similarly, with the dock, no way to configure anything other than add/remove favorite. And there's no way to add to the dock without first running the app then pinning it.
  
  Speaking of lack of configurability, my mouse pointer is also tiny. How can I make it bigger? No easy way. 
  
  I installed gnome-tweaks because the default settings app lacks a lot of things. Here are some of the things that gnome-tweaks gives me that I can't find in the settings app:

• Appearance: I can change the theme, cursor, icons, and sound as well as backdrop and lock screen. And while I want to change my mouse cursor to be larger, I can only select the mouse cursor in the theme. So now I have to be a theme create just to resise my mouse cursor?!?
• Fonts: At least I can set the fonts in use and the size being used here. Without gnome-tweaks I'd have no way of making my fonts larger. I can also set the Scaling factor which helps immensely.
• Keyboard & Mouse: Ah yes! Emacs input. That's much better!
• Startup Applications: Yes! I have several startup applications. Note there's also gnome-session-properties and after all, who wouldn't associate startup apps with gnome-session...
• Top Bar: Allows me to set things like the clock, date, and seconds for the top bar's date-time thing. Don't see how I can set this otherwise. 
• Window Titlebars: Let's me set what happens when I click on a title bar as well as what buttons I want there.
• Windows: There allows me to set many things I like like detached modal dialogs, turning off Edge Tiling,, and most importantly, getting Focus on Hover (I hate Click to Focus!)
• Workspaces: In Gnome2 I could right-click on the application's icon and select Appear in all workspaces. This functionality appears to be missing in Gnome3. In Gnome2 if I attempted to move a window off the right-hand side it would bump into the next workspace. This is gone now.

• Desktop: I like to use my desktop as a temporary area or a very visible mess of things I'm working on. So if I have say a PDF that I need to read or some research I need to get back to and have a few links I want to temporarily save I'll put them on the desktop. Then I am reminded to get that done in order to clean up my desktop. Also, some others offer the ability to put things on your desktop. For example, if you want to install the new YouTube Music app (go to https://music.youtube.com and there'll be a little icon on the right in the URL bar that says install YouTube app) and it'll put an icon on your desktop oddly named chrome-cinhimbnkkaeohfgghhklpknlkffjgod-Default.desktop. OK, I can rename that. But what does it do? Nothing really. It opens up this desktop file in an editor instead of running the application!
  
  I can't drag and drop a URL from Chrome onto the desktop - nothing happens. I can try to drag and drop a URL into a Nautilus file manager focused on ~/Desktop but I get "Drag and drop is not supported - An invalid drag type was used". I can drag and drop a file to the desktop but only to another Nautilus file manager focused on ~/Desktop. I can't drag it to the actual desktop. It just rubber bands back to it's the original location. However a copy from Nautilus the right-click and paste on the desktop works. A drag from the desktop back to the Nautilus windows also fails but a cut and paste works. Didn't anybody test these things?!? Totally inconsistent and broken IMHO.
• Keyboard Shortcuts: There doesn't seem to be a way to configure keyboard shortcuts. Yeah you can add your own but you cannot see what any of the predefined ones actually do nor can you change them. You can only assign a different key combination or disable them.

The Healthcare market is not free

Why is it that we treat the Healthcare Market (HM) differently than all other markets? Sure people will say "Well it's about life and death! Your health and thus it's different". Really? Need it be? Surely it should only vary from other industries where it truly differs from other markets and only to the extent that it needs to. By that I mean your local doctor's office and your car dealership have many things in common. They all are businesses, must obtain some office space, run an accounting system, have employees, pay said employees, have healthcare administration plans themselves, inventory specialized in both cases, etc. IOW why wouldn't you use the many innovations and tried and true methods that say the local auto dealership uses for these basic, needed by most businesses, things. Why wouldn't you consider the doctor's office as the exact same thing as an auto dealership with WRT to these issues/processes and procedures?

This is not to say that the two businesses do not have special or unique attributes as the dealership is interested more in things like tires, oil, nuts, and bolts while the doctor's office may be busier with things like XRay machines and interfacing with pharmacies to provide services to their patients.

Yet there are numerous things in HM that are decidedly different than other businesses. Some may be motivated by things like HIPPA but did you ever noticed you can't elect to exclude HIPPA for yourself. IOW, while HIPPA has all kinds of assurances, for your security and privacy only, that you can't say "Fuck privacy and security - I don't need them". That is not an option you can claim.

Here's a random list of things that are peculiar to HM:

• People in the HM do not provide pricing information.
• There's no real way to shop for better prices on say getting an XRay
• Ever notice the HM brags about having these new-fangled electronic records? Why isn't such electronic records shared by doctors such that I don't have to constantly arrive 15 minutes beforehand to fill out the required paperwork time and time again for your electronic records that you'll never share with another sole! If HIPPA would have any use at all it would be to allow such information to be shared by people in the HM in a protected manner so we are not constantly duplicating effort with all that entails of human error?!?
• Do you know your doctor's email address? Probably not but you'd have a much better chance that the email address of your service advisor is emprinting on his card that he'll gladly hand you.
• I've been to many non-HM businesses where I schedule an appointment and I get an email with an appointment event properly attached so I can one-click add it to my calendar. With an HM? You'd be lucky to get a fax!
• Why is it you have to constantly listen to instructions about calling 911 if this is a life-threatening event. SHIT, WE KNOW THIS ALREADY!!!
• Why is it that HM hours are akin to bankers hours and trying to get a hold of your actual doctor, at any of 15 different offices, always a hassle?
• What's with this "If you do not give us 24-hour notice of a canceled we have a service fee", yet you are forced to wait in the waiting room for hours to see the doctor? Can't I charge you for being late if you're gonna charge me? BTW, try collecting. I won't pay you shit for services not rendered.
• I recently was proscribed a new and expensive medication. I was then told to get a "savings card". WTF?!? Apparently, I can sign up for a savings card for that particular medication and save some 20-70%. Why should this be the case? Why not simply offer the medication at a price with a reasonable amount of profit? Why different prices?!? Where else does this happen? When I go to the tire store and wish to purchase a tire I'm not told to go to the manufacturer's website to sign up for a savings card. Sure, occasionally there might be a sale or coupon that I could apply but this seems different when it comes to medicine.
• As I have my prescriptions delivered to me in convenient packs, I wanted to add on this new medication to all of my other medications I was getting. But the packs come out in monthly or 30 day deliveries and I was in mid-month. So the pharmacy fulfilled the prescription for 21 days instead of 30. Yet the price for 21 pills was almost 1/2 the price of 30 pills! WTF! I know math and this is weird. If the price per pill was $1 I'd expect 21 pills to be $21 and 30 pills to be $30. But 21 pills was like $15. So I asked the stupid question? Can I buy these in smaller quantities where it ends up being way cheaper for me? Of course, the answer is no. Now normally in a normal business, buying a smaller amount would cost you more because it's a special order and buying in bulk is supposed to be cheaper. But not in the healthcare industry - it's exactly bassawards!
• I have yet to call let's say and auto shop between noon and 1 Pm and get their voicemail saying "We're at lunch now, please leave a message". Nope at every small business, I patronize when I call during lunch they have somebody manning the phones. Why? Because, if I called and got that sort of "We're at lunch -> VM" I'd simply call up their competitor!
• In talking to a nurse practitioner I was told that one trick to dealing with expensive medications is that whenever you go to see a doctor ask for samples. She said they use to throw like 4 or 5 bottles as samples to help defer the cost of medication. Now if I could only go to Firestone tires and ask for a couple of "sample" tires for my Corvette...
• I called my primary care physician today to ask for a referral to a physical therapist because my left shoulder had been hurting. I called at around 1:05 Pm knowing that they don't even bother to answer their phones for lunch. Instead, I got an outgoing message that the office was closed! I listened to the message and they said they were open Monday - Friday 8 - 5 Pm yet here on a Tuesday, @ 1:05 Pm they are making like they are close. This is June 30th, 2020. There's no holiday. So I have to call their "Answering service" and I'm now in a hold queue. Apparently, they do lunch til 1:30! UGH!
• Recently (July 27th) I got bloodwork done on the advice of my endocrinologist. As my cardiologist is also interested in the results, while drawing blood, I asked for my test results to be sent to my cardiologist too. A few days later I get a letter from my primary care physician saying it's time for me to do some bloodwork. So I call the primary care doctor and say that I just got bloodwork done and asked if they can use that. They said I need to call up Quest Diagnostics to have them send it over. After being on hold with Quest for 20 minutes the lady comes on and say "Oh you want this other department, I'll transfer you" and after yet another 20 minute period on hold I speak to the next lady and she says I need to have my doctor call them and request it. I said, couldn't I just fill out the form I did the first time to send the results to my cardiologist and they said no, that HIPPA says all that paperwork needs to be done at the same time. For some fucked up reason you cannot fill out another form on a different day because that's not secure or private or some other stupid fucked up reason. So I call up my primary care physician and tell them that Quest told me to tell them to call Quest. They said it doesn't work that way and they doubt if they call up Quest that Quest will release the test results. Why is this so fucking hard to get accomplished?!? Anyway I said call them and let me know what happens, I'm not gonna pay for another blood test.
• OK so today I get a call from my primary care physician and they left a message saying they need the date that the bloodwork was done. The lady's name was Vennessa and she said her extension was 615. So I call back and dial the extension 615 and I get a ringing for like 2 minutes, nobody answers, never get sent to voice mail. I try this several times to verify that that was indeed what was happening. I mean Vennessa left her message at like 8:32 Am and I called back at 8:35 Am - 3 minutes after she left the message. She was not there. Her phone doesn't go to voice mail it just rings and rings. So I call back up and dial 0. To my surprise eventually a real live human being answers.  I tell her I wish to speak with Vennessa and she transfers me. This time, however, I get her voicemail. Doesn't anybody answer their own fucking phones anymore?!? I left a simple message stating my name and saying that the blood test was on Monday. I guess we'll see what happens...
• Next, I get a call from Express Scripts - my new pharmacy. They say there's an important message and I need to call them back. HIPPA dictates that they can't tell me what's the story in a message. That would be too simple and of course, it's for your protection and all even if you don't want that protection! So I call up and the damn voice menu system can't detect that 06281960 is my birthday (gotta protect your birthday!) and after several attempts of saying "June 28th, 1960" the stupid voice recognition system finally gets it. They then proceed to tell me that they can't fulfill my request for Vitamin D3 because my insurance doesn't accept that but luckily since it's OTC, I can just buy it myself. As I've already said if you want OTC medication delivered to you when you have prescription medication also being delivered to you you have to get a script for that. Now I already have D3 vitamins but I figured that since I was renewing all my prescriptions I might as well get the D3 on the shipment. Now, why the fuck can't they just deliver this OTC D3 pills and simply charge me for them. Why the fuck is the insurance company involved at all? And why does the insurance company have the power to deny me an OTC medication?!?

Brad Gruber - The PROFESSIONAL Recruiter

I got approached by Brad Gruber on LinkedIn. Brad Gruber sent the following message through LinkedIn on 02/20/2020 at 5:04 PM:

Hi Andrew,

My name is Brad from Apex in San Diego. I wanted to reach out and see if either you or anyone in your network would be open to some positions in Devops, ETL, or System Admin in San Diego? We offer a referral bonus for anyone referred and hired!

Details:

- 3 different openings - Devops Engineer, ETL Engineer, and System Admins, including some early career and Sr. level roles

- MYSQL is most important skillset* in a Linux environment. Must be able to script using Bash.

- Jenkins and kubernetes used, however similar skillsets are ok.

- Need to know or be willing to learn MongoDB

- Pay rate depends on experience but around $50-60/hour

If you're interested in hearing more or know someone who can be a fit, please reply with an updated resume and the best time/ph # to reach you.

Thanks!

Brad Gruber 

Technical Recruiter

Apex Systems, San Diego, CA

Here's my response:

You know, Brad. The good thing about LinkedIn is that it allows me to look back at the actual experience that you list. Now mind you, you've labeled yourself as a PROFESSIONAL Recruiter. But are you really a pro? Do you really have a long time of service in the field of tech recruiting?

Looking at your LinkedIn profile I see you've only been a recruiter for 3 years. Now that's not really enough time to be a real pro. 

But if I look at your earlier experience I see a mixed bag of Field Energy Consultant for a whopping 3 months. Guess you couldn't hang on to that job. Then a Rent-a-car manager for 8 1/2 years. Now that's your strong suit I guess and it has nothing to do with tech recruiting. Then, of course, there are the obligatory financial and sales jobs. Don't be like Andy Satulla.

I will give you a shot at recruiting me. You need to do the following, exactly, or you will fail. In the process, you will learn the ropes about what it means to be a tech recruiter.

The first job of a recruiter is to screen or qualify candidates. That means that you ensure that the candidate meets, at a minimum, ALL the requirements. That's why they call them requirements! Any candidate who does not meet all of the requirements is not qualified for the job and should not be contacted. After all what would be the point? They could not take the position and therefore you don't make a "sale" and Apex gets no money. You waste your time and my time and piss me off.

Given the above, you need to show me that you've properly qualified me. Take the job descriptions you have and isolate the requirements. Take my resume (if you don't have it already go to https://defaria.com/resume) and ensure that I have each and every requirement met. For this exercise, you'll need to email me (that's right Andrew@DeFaria.com - LinkedIn is not my inbox!) the job description, then take each requirement, one by one and tie it to where you've verified that I have that skill on my resume. If you cannot verify each requirement, well then re-read the previous paragraph.

If you can prove to me, by exact, comprehensive proof of tying each requirement to a skill set I possess and have detailed on my resume then you may proceed to contact me for that position. If you cannot then stop and do not contact me. Actually don't stop, instead, contact me and apologize for bothering me with jobs I am not qualified for (pssst. I know you said you wanted me to let you know if I have anybody that I think does fulfill these jobs but I will remind you that I refuse to do your job for you - you're not doing my job for me so it's only fair).

You see, Brad, this is what a truly professional recruiter does - all others are rank amateurs and only serve to waste my time.

Let's "exercise" some tech recruiters - shall we?

One Andy Satulla, pretending to be a tech recruiter. Here's what millennials are like...

So this dude emails me the following:

From: Andy Satulla <AndyS@fortitudesys.com>
To: Andrew DeFaria <Andrew@DeFaria.com>
Subject: Full Time Sr Python Developer Roles in San Jose and LA (starting at 150k and can go up!) 

I wanted to circle up with you here in regards to your resume because your background lines up great with a couple of positions I currently have available. Give me a call as soon as you can and we can discuss the logistics and details of these positions further. You can reach me at 469-249-0700.

So I respond:

You are cleared to be able to send me email. Please send any job descriptions that you have properly screened me for. 

Thanks.

He says:

I do not have any concrete job descriptions, but would love to discuss this position in further detail.

So I shoot back:

If you have no concrete details then what would we talked about? Tell you what when you get some concrete details let me know.

He responds with:

Hi Andrew, 

So, what I mean by that is I do not have a concrete job description. I work off of bullet points mostly and know that we are looking for a strong python developer, who has also been a part of a devops environment. My manager, Luke, has an exclusive relationship with these guys and they are one of the biggest networking and cyber security companies in the country. Additionally, this person will be working in an open source environment. 

Best Regards,
Andy

Ugh! Seem he doesn't know what he's doing so I educate him:

Dude, dude, dude. If you have no concrete job description then you have no way to properly screen me. To do so would require that you concretely know the requirements in order to compare them to my skill set to ensure you're not wasting my time. This is common sense. This has nothing do to with bullet points but everything to do with the words and meanings that appear after the actual bullet point. 

Even given the limited information you are working with you have full information from my side. You said you are looking for a strong Python developer. Am I a strong Python developer? Let's check with my resume. The word Python occurs only once @ ICANN, a contract that I was at from May 2016 - July 2016 - 3 fucking months. Even a stupid person who knows nothing about technology wouldn't say that such a person was a strong Python developer! Do you think I give a crap about whether this company is "one of the biggest networking and cyber security companies"? Here's a clue - no I don't. 

Usually when I encounter a tech recruiter who fails to provide me with the relevant details about an opportunity thus failing to show that he has done his due diligence in properly screening me for the position such that he is not about to waste my time, and yet insists we get "on the horn" to discuss the position (as if his crackerjack sales techniques will leave me panting at this wonderful position with "one of the biggest networking and cyber security companies") I can tell instinctively that this person has little to no experience with technology nor tech recruiting and definite didn't do shit to make sure he's got a match. So over to LinkedIn... 

From LinkedIn I find, as expected, that you've only been on the job for a mere 7 months. Prior to that, your big experience has been as a summer intern!!! For fitness and sport?!? And yet only for 4 months... with a previous 4-month stint as a driver!!! Hmmm... How many Americans can drive a car?!? 

You're longest gig was 1 year and 3 months as a fucking umpire! And you have the gall to approach me about a highly technical job and you don't know the first thing about?!? Oh and your education in "Exercise Science"!!! Got a BS in that eh? Typical stupid millennial who doesn't know his ass from his elbow WRT the ways of the world and business. 

Even administered a "jumping test". Jump like an uneducated rabbit. Jump away! 

You're privilege to email me has been revoked!

There's a lesson to be learned here and that is if a tech recruiter approaches you, check his background to ensure he knows what the fuck he's doing!

In a way I feel sorry for this Andy dude as it's clear he has a lot to learn...