xubuntu does not disable gtk overlay scrollbars (i.e. use solid scrollbars)

This is likely because Synaptic is launched as a root user. If running synaptic from the commandline without sudo, the overlay scrollbars are not used.

Most likely, pkxec does not pass the DESKTOP_SESSION variable when launching an application, so we don't gain the benefits from /etc/X11/Xsession.d/56xubuntu-session

Thank you for the quick response. I didn't even think bout how root privileges entered into it. I remember from trying out kde in transition (4->5) that apps run as root from get-go had messed up display settings (icons were mix-and-match, etc).

I'm not totally against the overlay scrollbars and thy may be for the best in the long run, especially if it's going to remain default in gtk3. (I think traditional dialogs with ssd are default as well if I''m not mistaken. The defaults aren't crazy)

Manjaro does a good job of it. They make sure that the overlay scrollbars stay at a consistent width and mesh well with gtk2. The only problem is there, and anywhere else using xfce 4.12, is that instead of all apps showing a gtk2 theme or a gtk3 one, they generally show gtk2 or they show gtk3 if natively gtk3. The result is that overlay bars are on some apps and not others. It's not just inconsistent, but also makes me make mistakes. If only some apps have the overlay, I won't bother to check to check if the text in the window continues left or right. If they're all like that, then it's alright, but until xfce converts to gtk3, I think the inconsistency will continue, especially if firefox and libreoffice and chromium don't play nicely (being they're gtk2 ontop of other toolkits).

In any case, is this disconnect from gtk3 apps in xfce and root-enabled gtk3 apps in xfce something we can avoid? Is it possible to tweak the ubuntu settings for pkexec? Or does this have to be fixed upstream?

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

Problem is still active as of 16.10. Otherwise, a very happy camper.

There are niggling Ubuntu-isms like that Unity Music Menu and Messaging Menu, but they are easily replaced/disabled/uninstalled. Still unable to figure how to edit configuration files to fix Synaptic. Yet other root apps activated via pkexec work as expected. Is there something particular to Ubuntu or to the Debian app, Synaptic, specifically?

It's not huge, but it's a bit disorienting, especially since the rest of the desktop uses solid scrollbars. Frankly, it really only works on mobile or small screen or touch interfaces. Mouse-users need to know where to put the mouse and jiggling the cursor to make scrollbars appear before clicking on the section where the page is on the scrollbar (the off-colored block), is not much fun.

Probably the biggest complaint after not having Linux installations run popular Windows apps, is the lack of consistency. Synaptic doesn't make the library/executable distinction obvious, but I still recommend it for newbies. The command line is scary and the Ubuntu Software Center and every DE native installer (Gnome, KDE Apper, etc) are unstable and/or slow as molasses. Using a search text box in Synaptic, on the other hand, isn't far from typing in "0AD" into Google and looking for the .exe. The overlays only work with GTK3 apps anyhow. So, even if you love them, running any Gtk2 or Qt apps ruins the consistency and makes the desktop look more like a jerry rig.

Sorry for the rant. It's really more the Gnome people making things difficult for anything non-Gnome and assumes no other software will ever be installed. At least, they made Gtk3 dialogs behave with normal ssd outside Gnome and Gnome app menus have a sane fallback. Hearing "where did the scrollbar go?" is not a good thing to hear when converting people. On the plus side, Gtk 3 finally stabilized everything with 3.20 and 3.22 will be viable for some time and does Wayland. Then we can put this behind us. (I hope)

Closing as won't fix. This won't be addressed by Xubuntu.