How to use the command guake (with examples)

Guake is a drop-down terminal for GNOME. It provides a quick and easy way to access the terminal without opening a separate window. This article will illustrate various use cases of the guake command.

Use case 1: Toggle Guake visibility

Code:

F12

Motivation: Toggling Guake visibility using the F12 key is useful when you want to quickly hide or show the terminal window without interrupting your workflow.

Explanation: Pressing the F12 key will toggle the visibility of the Guake terminal window. If the window is hidden, it will be shown. If it is already visible, it will be hidden.

Example output: The Guake terminal window is hidden or shown based on its previous state.

Use case 2: Toggle fullscreen mode

Code:

F11

Motivation: When working with Guake, toggling fullscreen mode can provide a distraction-free environment.

Explanation: Pressing the F11 key will toggle the fullscreen mode of the Guake terminal window. If it is in fullscreen mode, it will switch back to the normal windowed mode, and vice versa.

Example output: The Guake terminal window switches between fullscreen and normal windowed mode.

Use case 3: Open a new tab

Code:

Ctrl+Shift+T

Motivation: Opening a new tab in Guake allows you to have multiple terminals within a single window, making it easier to manage different tasks and commands.

Explanation: Pressing the Ctrl+Shift+T key combination will open a new tab in the Guake terminal window. This tab will be blank, ready for you to enter commands or run scripts.

Example output: A new tab is created in the Guake terminal window, displayed next to the existing tabs.

Use case 4: Close the terminal

Code:

Super+X

Motivation: Closing the Guake terminal window when you’re done with your tasks or want to free up screen space is necessary.

Explanation: Pressing the Super+X key combination will close the Guake terminal window. All active tabs and their content will be closed and any unsaved work will be lost.

Example output: The Guake terminal window is closed and removed from the screen.

Use case 5: Go to the previous tab

Code:

Ctrl+PageUp

Motivation: Navigating between different tabs in Guake allows you to switch between different sets of commands or tasks quickly.

Explanation: Pressing the Ctrl+PageUp key combination will navigate to the previous tab in the Guake terminal window. This is useful when you need to refer back to a previous command or output.

Example output: The focus of the Guake terminal window is shifted to the previous tab, and its content is displayed.

Use case 6: Search the selected text in the browser

Code:

Shift+Ctrl+L

Motivation: Being able to search the selected text in the browser directly from the Guake terminal can save time and streamline the workflow.

Explanation: After selecting a text in the Guake terminal window, pressing the Shift+Ctrl+L key combination will search the selected text in the default browser’s search engine. This is useful when you want to quickly search for documentation or look up an error message.

Example output: The default browser opens a new tab with the search results for the selected text.

Conclusion:

The guake command provides an efficient and convenient way to work with a drop-down terminal in GNOME. With a set of keyboard shortcuts, you can easily toggle visibility, switch between tabs, open new tabs, search the selected text, and more. Incorporating Guake into your workflow can enhance productivity and streamline your command-line tasks.