Linux GUI Control

Control the Linux desktop GUI using xdotool, wmctrl, and dogtail. Use when you need to interact with non-browser applications, simulate mouse/keyboard input, manage windows, or inspect the UI hierarchy of applications on X11/GNOME. Supports: (1) Clicking/typing in apps, (2) Resizing/moving windows, (3) Extracting text-based UI trees from apps (A11y), (4) Taking screenshots for visual analysis.

This skill provides tools and procedures for automating interactions with the Linux desktop environment.

Quick Start

1. Identify Target Window

Use wmctrl to find the exact name of the window you want to control.

wmctrl -l

2. Inspect UI Hierarchy

For apps supporting accessibility (GNOME apps, Electron apps with --force-renderer-accessibility), use the inspection script to find button names without taking screenshots.

python3 scripts/inspect_ui.py "<app_name>"

3. Perform Actions

Use xdotool via the helper script for common actions.

# Activate window
./scripts/gui_action.sh activate "<window_name>"

# Click coordinates
./scripts/gui_action.sh click 500 500

# Type text
./scripts/gui_action.sh type "Hello World"

# Press a key
./scripts/gui_action.sh key "Return"

Workflows

Operating an App via Text UI

1. List windows with wmctrl -l.
2. Activate the target window.
3. Run scripts/inspect_ui.py to get the list of buttons and inputs.
4. Use xdotool key Tab and Return to navigate, or click if coordinates are known.
5. If text-based inspection fails, fallback to taking a screenshot and using vision.

Forcing Accessibility in Electron Apps

Many modern apps (VS Code, Discord, Cider, Chrome) need a flag to expose their UI tree:

pkill <app>
nohup <app> --force-renderer-accessibility > /dev/null 2>&1 &

Tool Reference

• wmctrl: Window management (list, activate, move, resize).
• xdotool: Input simulation (click, type, key, mousemove).
• dogtail: UI tree extraction via AT-SPI (Accessibility bus).
• scrot: Lightweight screenshot tool.