I started releasing extension updates in 2014 due to a lot of extensions being unmaintained and seemingly break every time GNOME releases a new version of the Desktop Environment (DE). This is my third batch release post for GNOME extensions and these extension packages are for GNOME 3.18.

Most of the time when a GNOME Extension breaks, it didn't actually break but GNOME Shell declares it not compatible whether it works or not. The extension breaks are self-imposed arbitrarily by the GNOME project via hardcoded values in an extension's metadata.json file so if maintainers don't continue to update the metadata.json file for each GNOME release, GNOME Shell automatically deems it broken without any testing to see if it works or not. This forced breakage is incredibly annoying and is the main reason people think extensions break every 6 months, the packages provided on this blog post are still fully functional despite GNOME Shell saying they are incompatible. To correct this issue I just updated the metadata of the extensions so now GNOME Shell will see the current version 3.18 in the supported metadata. GNOME could fix this fundamental issue simply by changing it to a blacklist structure, instead of a whitelist, assuming everything works until tested to fail. The problem with that approach is it would require a team of people to test extensions to see if they work or not so until GNOME creates a team for that . . . this cycle of "everything breaks until updated" will just continue.

The following extension packages are for GNOME 3.18 so if you are using GNOME 3.14 then use these packages and GNOME 3.16 users should use these packages.

MT Maintenance Policy:

• I do not have the time to maintain these extensions in an official capacity with the EGO (extensions.gnome.org) website because that requires me to make a commitment to fix any issues that may arise.
• However, I am willing to make the commitment to update these packages to each new version of GNOME Shell as long as they continue to work as expected.
• If an extension breaks in a way that requires a rewrite then I will mark it as broken and future batches will not include that extension.
• If an extension is picked up by another maintainer, on the official EGO website, then I will mark it as such and it will be removed from future batches.

I originally started making these extension update batches because I was using these extensions on my own setup but I no longer use GNOME as my main DE which is why there was a delay from the GNOME 3.18 release to this batch release. I will try to be more attentive to the updates of 3.20+ versions so these batches will be more timely for anyone who wants these extensions. I am going to continue to maintain these extensions because, based on the download statistics, a lot of people utilize my batches and I don't want to abandon them even though I no longer have need for these extensions.

Notes:

1. These updated packages are compatible with the official packages so when the official packages update these will be overwritten and will smoothly transition into the official packages.

2. These updated packages will NOT overwrite your settings so you will not have to start over, they are compatible with existing settings.

Download Statistics for 3.14 Batch: 2,847 (October 2014 - February 2016)

Download Statistics for 3.16 Batch: 5,123 (April 2015 - February 2016)

Extensions Updated: 8

• Audio Input Switcher
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../768/audio-input-switcher
  • MT 3.18 Update: shell-extension.zip
  
  
• Audio Output Switcher
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../751/audio-output-switcher
  • MT 3.18 Update: shell-extension.zip
  
  
• Extension Update Notifier
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../797/extension-update-notifier
  • MT 3.18 Update: shell-extension.zip
  
  
• Hide Top Bar (requested by Mike H on 2015-04-11)
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../545/hide-top-bar
  • This extension has been receiving official maintainer updates recently so my updates for this package are no longer necessary.
  
  
• Hot Edges
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../798/overview-edge-gesture
  • MT 3.18 Update: shell-extension.zip
  
  
• Icon Hider
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../351/icon-hider
  • MT 3.18 Update: shell-extension.zip
  
  
• Maximus Two (broken for 3.18)
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../844/maximus-two
  • Unfortunately, this extension is broken for 3.18 so updating it in this batch is no longer possible.
  • The Maximus NG extension is also broken so there is no replacement available at this time.
  
  
• Quick Close in Overview
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../352/middle-click-to-close-in-overview
  • This extension has a new official maintainer so my updates for this package are no longer necessary.
  
  
• Show Desktop from Overview
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../496/show-desktop-from-overview
  • MT 3.18 Update: shell-extension.zip
  
  
• Weather (deprecated & replaced)
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../613/weather
  • I think there is a better extension for weather that is already up to date with 3.18 so I now consider this extension deprecated.
  • Replacement Extension: OpenWeather - .../750/openweather
  
  
• Window Options
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../353/window-options
  • MT 3.18 Update: shell-extension.zip
  
  
• WinTitle - Window Title on AppMenu Hover
  • extensions.gnome.org: .../731/wintitle
  • MT 3.18 Update: shell-extension.zip
  
  

How To Install:

The simplest way to install a GNOME Extension, outside of the extensions.gnome.org site, is to use the GNOME Tweak Tool. This tool should be included in your distro's official repos but if you have any trouble with installing it just comment down below. I've made the rest of the tutorial in a image gallery style so here it is.