Since the release of FunOS 24.04.4 LTS (Build 20260618) and FunOS 26.04 LTS (Build 20260618) on June 19, 2026, several improvements have been made to the desktop environment and its configuration. These changes are designed to simplify everyday use, reduce manual configuration, and make the desktop experience more intuitive while preserving the lightweight nature of FunOS.

Most users will immediately notice that certain tasks are now handled automatically. For example, the JWM applications menu updates itself whenever applications are installed or removed, display settings configured through the Monitor Settings application are automatically restored after reboot, and the currently selected JWM theme is now clearly identified in the Themes menu.

This article explains these improvements, why they were introduced, and how they affect both users and the documentation available on the FunOS website.

1. Automated Dynamic JWM Menu

One of the biggest improvements is the introduction of an automatically updating JWM applications menu.

In previous FunOS releases, installing or removing an application required users to manually reload the JWM menu before the changes became visible. This was done by selecting Reload menu from the desktop menu.

As a result, the following entry has been removed from the ~/.config/jwm/menu file:

<Program icon="system-reboot" label="Reload menu" confirm="false">mjwm --no-backup && jwm -reload</Program>
<Separator/>

The removal of this menu item reflects a fundamental improvement rather than a loss of functionality.

FunOS now uses a lightweight background watcher that automatically detects changes to installed desktop applications. Whenever an application is installed or removed, the JWM menu is regenerated automatically without requiring any user interaction.

This provides several benefits:

• No need to manually reload the applications menu.
• Newly installed applications appear automatically.
• Removed applications disappear automatically.
• A cleaner and more modern desktop menu.

Although this change is largely invisible behind the scenes, it significantly improves the overall user experience.

2. Dynamic JWM Theme Management

Another major improvement affects the JWM Themes menu.

Previous FunOS releases used a static ~/.config/jwm/themes-list file that contained every available theme as fixed menu entries. Selecting a theme simply copied the corresponding theme file into place before restarting JWM.

Beginning with FunOS 24.04.4 LTS (Build 20260618) and FunOS 26.04 LTS (Build 20260618), theme management has become dynamic.

Instead of executing the theme change directly, every theme entry now calls the new script:

~/.config/jwm/set-theme.sh

This script performs several tasks automatically:

• Applies the selected theme.
• Rebuilds the Themes menu.
• Marks the active theme with a ✓ indicator.
• Restarts JWM to apply the new appearance.

For example, if the Default theme is currently active, the menu now displays:

✓ Default

This makes it immediately obvious which theme is currently in use, eliminating any guesswork when browsing available themes.

3. New set-theme.sh Script

To support the new dynamic theme system, FunOS now includes a new file:

~/.config/jwm/set-theme.sh

This script replaces the previous method of changing themes directly from the menu.

It automatically:

• Detects the currently active theme.
• Generates the Themes menu.
• Adds a ✓ indicator beside the active theme.
• Applies newly selected themes.
• Restarts JWM after a theme change.

Because the menu is generated automatically, future additions or removals of JWM themes require much less manual maintenance.

4. Removal of the Blue-Day Theme

The Blue-Day theme has been removed from the default theme collection.

This change was made because the Blue-Day theme was effectively identical to the Default theme, making it unnecessary to maintain two copies of the same design.

Removing duplicate themes helps simplify the available choices while reducing maintenance.

5. Persistent Display Settings

FunOS now automatically preserves display settings configured through the Monitor Settings (lxrandr) application.

In previous releases, users often needed to manually add xrandr commands to their ~/.xprofile file to restore custom display settings after logging in or rebooting.

This manual step is no longer necessary.

When you configure your display using Monitor Settings and click Save, FunOS now automatically restores those settings during graphical startup.

This includes settings such as:

• Screen resolution
• Refresh rate
• Screen orientation
• Primary monitor
• Multi-monitor layouts

Once configured, your preferred display layout remains persistent across reboots without requiring additional configuration.

6. What These Changes Mean for Existing Documentation

The improvements described in this article also affect many existing tutorials published on the FunOS website.

For example, older articles may instruct users to:

• Click Reload menu after installing software.
• Edit the ~/.xprofile file to make display settings persistent.

These instructions remain correct for older FunOS releases, but they are no longer required for systems running FunOS 24.04.4 LTS (Build 20260618), FunOS 26.04 LTS (Build 20260618), or later.

The FunOS website currently contains more than 200 tutorial articles covering a wide range of topics. Updating all of these articles will take some time, and the documentation will be revised gradually.

During this transition period, some articles may still describe procedures intended for earlier FunOS releases. Where possible, these articles will be updated to reflect the latest improvements while continuing to provide useful guidance for users running previous versions of FunOS.

Conclusion

The desktop improvements introduced in FunOS 24.04.4 LTS (Build 20260618) and FunOS 26.04 LTS (Build 20260618) are focused on eliminating unnecessary manual steps and making the system easier to use without compromising its lightweight design.

Automatic JWM menu updates, dynamic theme management, active theme indicators, and persistent display settings all contribute to a smoother desktop experience while reducing the amount of configuration users need to perform themselves.

These enhancements represent another step toward making FunOS not only lightweight and fast, but also more intuitive and user-friendly for both new and experienced Linux users.