Invisible Windows

[GaryT]

On 29/06/13 00:03, Liam Proven wrote:
> On 28 June 2013 12:02, GaryT <taig at melbpc.org.au> wrote:
>> Using version 10.04 LTS.
>
> That's it? That's all you're giving us?
>
> What desktop?
> What model of mouse? What mouse interface?
> You mention a KVM - what else is connected? Could you temporarily disconnect it?

Thanks, Liam.
The desktop is Gnome. Default desktop IIRC.

The mouse, its interface and/or the KVM are hardly likely to affect the 
way the windows disappear. That mouse going crazy may have caused the 
damage, but I don't REALLY know and in any case I'm treating them as 
separate problems. I had a mouse act like that 2-3 years ago, different 
computer, different version of Ubuntu, most likely also a different mouse.

On that occasion I concluded I'd been hacked and created a completely 
new setup. Everything has been apparently normal since.

Actually I believe that today the random mouse clicks MAY HAVE caused 
this, but again, one cannot be sure.

I'm looking for an answer that reveals the particular panel setting I 
missed, or the option I didn't see...  something, ANYTHING to give me a 
clue how to reset things back to normal.

Questions I thought of later:
- How would you cause a panel to be hidden permanently?
   Because I wondered whether maybe the windows were being minimised to
   a hidden panel... after all it's obvious they still exist!
- How do you set the default display of a particular panel?

HEY!  just now while checking this out and double checking what I knew 
and didn't know, I began going through the motions again and whereas 
earlier today I had managed to add a "Window Selector" to the panel, 
this time I noticed another option, to add a "Window List". Blow me 
down, that is the answer.  Somehow today the "window List" got taken OFF 
the panel and just now I've managed to add a replacement.

The problem is solved, completely.  Simply by adding a Window List to 
the panel. The NEW question is HOW WOULD YOU REMOVE THE WINDOW LIST?

If I was hacked by a clever programmer, the method might be to remove 
the panel entirely, including its default contents, ie. Desk 1, Desk 2, 
the Garbage Bin and so on. Then create a new panel and add only some of 
the default stuff. That would no doubt require access to the Ubuntu 
internals and could only be done by someone or something a lot bigger 
than me. Another method would be to send the minimised windows to a new 
location or a panel located outside the screen boundary.

Yes...life goes on... today's problem solved and I learnt a little more.
If you followed this episode closely I hope you did too.
GaryT