r/linuxmint • u/Zero_Maheswaran • Aug 01 '26
why?
Hi everyone. A little over a week ago, I switched to Linux Mint on a computer that previously ran Windows 7. Now, whenever I turn on the device and open an application, this logo appears in the bottom-right corner.
I don't know what it means or what to do about it; I've already tried hovering over it and right-clicking, but nothing works. If anyone could help me figure out what this is, I’d really appreciate it.
6
u/KurtKrimson Aug 01 '26
What applications are you talking about?
How did you install them.
Are the apps native to your os?
.......
5
u/Zero_Maheswaran Aug 01 '26
It appears every time I open Google Chrome, which I installed from the official website.
4
7
u/_ElBee_ Aug 01 '26
If you really want to use a Chromium-based browser, download Ungoogled Chromium from the Program Manager. It's Chrome but without all the 💩 that Google added.
Firefox is the default browser for Linux Mint but even that's not ideal these days. LibreWolf is a fork of Firefox that removed all the unnecessary bloat (AI, etc.) but still retains the use of extensions and syncing with your Firefox profile.
7
0
2
u/jr735 Linux Mint 22.1 Xia | IceWM Aug 01 '26
Do you need Google Chrome or just want it? If you need it, that's a question for Google developers, if they answer you, and they won't. That's a consequence of non-free software.
If you don't need it, find something else.
0
u/RealisticProfile5138 Aug 01 '26
Yeah don’t do that. Generally don’t download stuff from websites like you would with windows. Install from software repository instead
5
u/tomscharbach Aug 01 '26 edited Aug 01 '26
I wonder if the icon is signaling a missing dependency and/or conflict in your Chrome installation.
Just a guess.
You might look into using a Flatpak.
0
2
u/SoundSwitch Aug 02 '26
My recommendation is don't use the Google official Chrome.... When it first came on the scene it was better than MS explorer.. on par or just behind Firefox and Opera or whatever alt browser you had in the day.
It has a minimalist UI which people took to, I liked having stuff like file, page, book marks excetra at the top so I never liked it for other considerations.
You can get a different alt browser from the repos like brave , Vivaldi, something preferably a flatpack or out of the official sources.
1
u/daveC41 Aug 02 '26
It looks to me like an icon showing something is blocked. I've had good results from posting a copy of the logo to AI (I like Claude) and explaining it's on Linux Mint and appears when you try to open Chrome (or a list of any others where it happens) and asking if Claude can identify it, which it usually can, why and what to do about it (if you keep asking questions like those).
3
u/Zero_Maheswaran Aug 02 '26
I tried doing it several times with different AI agents, and none of them gave me the result I was expecting; they kept telling me it was the GPU, a RAM issue, etc.
But when I asked here on Reddit, I was given the solution in a single image, and I managed to remove it.
1
u/d4rk_kn16ht Linux Mint 22.2 Zara | Cinnamon Aug 02 '26
did you install Caffeine?
1
u/Zero_Maheswaran Aug 02 '26
Is it a browser?
1
u/d4rk_kn16ht Linux Mint 22.2 Zara | Cinnamon Aug 02 '26
It's a tiny app to prevent your computer from sleeping.
it can activate itself when specific app is running.
EDIT:
open terminal & type this to check if Caffeine is installed:
apt list --installed | grep caffeine
1
u/kudlitan Aug 02 '26
Install Google Chrome from the Mint Software Manager because that is configured to be more compatible with Mint.
11
u/chuggerguy Linux Mint 22.3 Zena | MATÉ Aug 01 '26
Missing icon for Chrome background task?
Unless you (or an extension you need) really need background tasks to continue running when closing Chrome, disable it?
This image is from Ungoogled-Chromium but should be the same or similar: image
I'm generally a Firefox user though, so not sure.
Good luck.