I would like to set a dark theme that is easy to read (no dark fonts on dark backgrounds or vice versa). And I want a consistent look for Qt and GTK applications (especially Firefox and Libre Office).
I'm running Arch Linux. All packages are very recent.
I know little about themes.
When trying the Breeze Dark and Adwaita Dark themes, the problems I have run into include:
- text input boxes in Firefox have white text on white backgrounds on many web pages (e.g., google.com).
- Tooltips (and some menus) in Libre Office have black text on black backgrounds.
- Menu icons in Libre Office cannot be seen easily due to lack of contrast
- I have found many webpages are hard to read with a dark GTK theme. (Is this a general problem? I would think not given the popularity of dark themes. I assume I am doing something wrong.)
My general experience with custom themes is a lack of font contrast. Menus, for example, generally become harder to read in many of the themes I tried.
I have heard that there are now three themes that are available for both KDE and GTK: numix, arc and adapta. Are there others?
Which is good in terms of contrast and being easy to read?
Regarding installation, which elements do I need to modify in KDE to achieve a consistent look across all applications? I know I need to change the Plasma 5 desktop theme and the GTK 3 theme. I assume I need to change the GTK 2 theme. How do I know if I need to change icon themes?
Finally, I have a general question. What exactly does a Plasma 5 (or GTK) theme change? What elements are not changed? For example, I know a theme changes colors, but they do not always change all colors (example: white text on white backgrounds in input boxes on google.com indicates a failure to change a color somewhere). I know a theme can change some icons, but again, not all icons are changed. Can anyone give me a simple summary of the rules that come into play here?
