How To Fix Eclipse Menus Cut Off or Not Showing in Ubuntu

In this article, we will discuss a common issue faced by Ubuntu users: Eclipse menus getting cut off or not showing up entirely. This problem is particularly prevalent in Ubuntu 13.10, but the solutions provided here can also be applicable to other versions. We will walk you through several methods to resolve this issue.

Understanding the Issue

Eclipse is a widely used integrated development environment (IDE) that supports multiple programming languages. However, in Ubuntu, especially in version 13.10, users often encounter an issue where the Eclipse menus are cut off or do not show up at all. This can significantly hamper productivity and workflow.

The root cause of this issue is often related to the UBUNTU_MENUPROXY variable. This variable is used by Ubuntu’s Unity desktop environment to display menus in the top bar. However, it can sometimes interfere with how Eclipse displays its menus.

Solution 1: Modifying the eclipse.desktop file

One of the most reliable ways to fix this issue is by modifying the eclipse.desktop file. Here are the steps:

1. Open your terminal using the shortcut CTRL+ALT+T.
2. Enter the following command to open the eclipse.desktop file in a text editor (we’re using gedit in this example):

sudo -H gedit /usr/share/applications/eclipse.desktop

3. In the file, look for the line that starts with Exec=. Replace this line with the following:

Exec=env UBUNTU_MENUPROXY= eclipse

4. Save the file and exit the text editor. Now, when you run Eclipse from its icon, the menus should display correctly.

In this solution, we’re setting the UBUNTU_MENUPROXY environment variable to an empty value just for Eclipse. This prevents Unity from interfering with Eclipse’s menus.

Solution 2: Using a Terminal Command

If you don’t have the eclipse.desktop file or prefer a quicker solution, you can run Eclipse with a specific command that sets the UBUNTU_MENUPROXY variable. Here’s how:

1. Open your terminal.
2. Enter the following command:

UBUNTU_MENUPROXY= eclipse

This solution is quick and easy, but you’ll need to run this command every time you want to start Eclipse.

To make this more convenient, you can create an alias. An alias in Linux is a sort of shortcut for a command. You can create an alias for this command like so:

alias eclipse='UBUNTU_MENUPROXY= eclipse'

Now, you can just type eclipse in the terminal to run Eclipse with the correct environment variable.

Solution 3: Using UBUNTU_MENUPROXY=0

Another alternative is to use UBUNTU_MENUPROXY=0 instead of just UBUNTU_MENUPROXY=. This is essentially the same as the previous solution, but explicitly sets the variable to 0 instead of leaving it empty.

Here’s the command:

UBUNTU_MENUPROXY=0 eclipse

Conclusion

We’ve covered several ways to fix the issue of Eclipse menus being cut off or not showing in Ubuntu. These solutions involve setting the UBUNTU_MENUPROXY environment variable in different ways to prevent it from interfering with Eclipse’s menus.

Remember, these solutions are specific to Ubuntu and may not work for other Linux distributions. Always make sure to back up any files you modify in case you need to revert your changes.

If you’re still experiencing issues, you might find additional solutions in the Eclipse community forums.