brent what's the default dock in xfce?
As you said, it's a default. It was present -- just as you see it now -- when I first installed that DE. But not being much of a dock user, I haven't figured out how to assign something to it yet.
I haven't figured out how to name the workspaces, either. I do know where to put their names in the settings. It's just that the names don't show up as tool-tips for the workspaces afterwards. I hesitate to call that a bug, because it might just be a step I haven't discovered yet. I didn't see an [Apply] button for the settings, but I could have missed some other step.
If I were setting up another laptop for Solus Xfce, I'd probably get rid of the dock. I tend to eschew redundancy, and it seems pretty redundant to me. I realize it will automatically go away when the bottom of the screen is needed for something else, but when it's visible -- and thus useful -- it eats a lot of the screen real estate.
I think an application menu with a Favorites section, like MATE's makes a lot more sense. Together with the Workspace Switcher in the top panel, I don't think I'd have any need for a dock at the bottom. I might even see if I can install an icon-only task manager (like Plasma's) in place of what's now on the left of the panel, right after the application menu. Just a thought.
