The 7 best desklets for the Cinnamon desktop
The Cinnamon desktop a lot of unique features that make it useful. One of the best features it has is the “desklet” one, as it allows users to add custom features to your workspace. In this list, we’ll go over the top desklets for the Cinnamon desktop. We’ll also cover how to install them on the system and activate them too.
Note: to use the desklets on this list you’ll need to be running version 3.4 of Cinnamon or newer, so be sure to update before trying to install any of them!
1. Google Calendar
Google Calendar is handy, especially for busy people, though, it’s quite annoying having to open browser tabs to access it. That’s where the Google Calendar desklet for Cinnamon comes in. It lets you view your upcoming events right from the desktop.
The desklet works by using a command-line tool (gcalcli) to pull your data from Google. It works on Cinnamon version 3.4 – 3.8.
Installing – Google Calendar
The Google Calendar desklet application is on the top of the list at the Spices Website. Despite its popularity, it isn’t one of the default desklets you can set up without installing. As a result, if you want to use it, you’ll need to set it up first. The quickest way to install the Google Calendar desklet on Cinnamon is through the command-line. Open up a terminal and enter the four commands below to get it working.
cd ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/ wget https://cinnamon-spices.linuxmint.com/files/desklets/googleCalendar@javahelps.com.zip unzip googleCalendar@javahelps.com.zip rm googleCalendar@javahelps.com.zip
2. Disk Space
Are you the type of person that likes to keep track of the space left on your hard drive, or RAM? Instead of opening up a terminal window and tinkering around with the command-line, consider installing the Disk Space desklet for Cinnamon.
With Disk Space, you’ll be able to see the exact file-system usage for your system’s hard drive (home/root). You’ll also be able to track how much physical RAM is in use, all right on the Cinnamon desktop!
Installing – Disk Space
If you want to get your hands on the Disk Space desklet for Cinnamon, you must install it through the Spices store, or download the package by hand. Open up a terminal and enter each of the commands below, one after the other.
cd ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/ wget https://cinnamon-spices.linuxmint.com/files/desklets/diskspace@schorschii.zip unzip diskspace@schorschii.zip rm diskspace@schorschii.zip
3. Desktop Calculator
This applet is just as it sounds: it’s a widget for the Cinnamon desktop that gives you a calculator available and sitting on the desktop. It can do all of the calculations that you’d expect from a calculator, like division, multiplication, percentages, etc.
If you’re like me and you always find yourself opening up calculators a lot in Cinnamon, install Desktop Calculator instead. It’ll save time, not to mention, it’s legitimately a great calculator!
Installing – Desktop Calculator
Looking to check out Desktop Calculator? If so, launch your favorite terminal application and enter these four quick commands. After that, you’ll be able to add it to the desktop and use it!
cd ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/ wget https://cinnamon-spices.linuxmint.com/files/desklets/calculator@scollins.zip unzip calculator@scollins.zip rm calculator@scollins.zip
4. Crypto Coins Ticker
Those who are obsessed with tracking the prices of various Crypto-currencies will love Crypto Coins Ticker. It’s a desklet that lets you display the current value of over 220+ coins, as well as price changes throughout the hour, day, and week.
Installing – Crypto Coins Ticker
Grab the latest version of Crypto Coins Ticker and install it on your Cinnamon desktop environment by entering the following commands into a terminal session.
cd ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/ wget https://cinnamon-spices.linuxmint.com/files/desklets/cryptocoins@pbojan.zip unzip cryptocoins@pbojan.zip rm cryptocoins@pbojan.zip
5. Note
The Note desklet is a great little addition to Cinnamon that lets users quickly post sticky notes to the desktop. It’s perfect for setting reminders for yourself, creating to-do lists, etc.
While it’s pretty easy to find sticky-note applications for Linux, the Note desklet stands out as it’s unique to Cinnamon and has great features like note themes, scaling, and is highly integrated to the desktop environment overall.
If you’re in need of a great note app that integrates tightly with Cinnamon, look no further than this desklet!
Installing – Note
Want to use Note as your default sticky note app in Cinnamon? You’ll need to download and set it up on Cinnamon first. To do that, run these four commands in a terminal window on your Linux PC.
cd ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/ wget https://cinnamon-spices.linuxmint.com/files/desklets/notes@schorschii.zip unzip notes@schorschii.zip rm notes@schorschii.zip
6. Soundbox
Cinnamon as a desktop environment is very far ahead of others regarding music player integration and does a great job at integrating a rich media-player ticker right into the desktop. However, for as useful as that feature is, not everyone is a fan of it and may seek an alternative.
The best alternative to Cinnamons own music player integration is Soundbox. When installed, it displays a rich media control box right on the desktop, complete with a playback ticker, media controls and more.
Installing – Soundbox
Soundbox is available for download on the Cinnamon Spices website, and the desklet store browser, however, the quickest way to get it installed is to launch a terminal window and enter the four commands below.
cd ~/.local/share/cinnamon/desklets/ wget https://cinnamon-spices.linuxmint.com/files/desklets/soundBox@scollins.zip unzip soundBox@scollins.zip rm soundBox@scollins.zip
Adding desklets to the Cinnamon desktop
So, you’ve downloaded and set up some of the desklets on this to Cinnamon. Now what? Well, the next step is to activate and use them.
Unsure how to enable and add desklets to the desktop? Check out our guide on how to customize the Cinnamon desktop environment. In it, we outline in detail adding desklets, applets and much more!
Conclusion
In this list, we covered some great Desklets to set up on your Cinnamon desktop. What are your favorite ones to use? Let us know what ones you think are the best in the comments below!
