Themes for Mozilla Thunderbird: A Workaround Until Better Integration Arrives

Mozilla Thunderbird has been a popular email client among users, and its customization options are one of the reasons behind its success. One such option is themes, which can change the appearance of your Thunderbird interface to suit your taste. However, if you're using Snap apps on Linux, you might be experiencing some issues with installing and configuring GTK and icon themes.

The Current State of Themes in Snap Apps

Presently, you need to install each additional Snap theme individually, which can be time-consuming and labor-intensive. Furthermore, you have to manually configure your setup to make Snap'd software use the new theme, repeating the process for every new Snap app installation. This might seem like a minor issue, but it's enough to put some users off using Snap apps altogether.

A New Development: Packaging GTK and Icon Themes as Snap Apps

Fortunately, developers are now packaging GTK and icon themes as Snap apps and making them available on the Snap Store for easy installation. This development is a welcome change, especially since popular themes like Adapta, Layan, Orchis, Mojave, Canta, Qogir, and Vimix are already available.

The Problem with Non-Bundle Themes

However, there's still an issue that needs to be addressed: what happens when you use a GTK theme not included in the Snap theme bundle? Unfortunately, changing themes doesn't seem to make a difference in this case. The text appears pretty dark against the black background, making it difficult to read.

A Workaround for Non-Bundle Themes

Until better theme integration arrives in Snaps, here's a workaround: if your system GTK theme is not included in the gtk-common-themes bundle, Snap apps will use the standard Adwaita theme. This might not be ideal, but at least it provides some relief.

In conclusion, while installing and configuring themes for Mozilla Thunderbird on Linux can be a bit of a hassle, developers are working to improve the situation. In the meantime, using a workaround like the one described above can help alleviate some of the issues you might encounter with non-bundle themes. With automatic theme installation on the way, we can expect better integration and more customization options for Snap apps in the future.

Themes for mozilla thunderbird