Panels and menus are your desktop palettes that hold icons and links to programs and files. Without panels and menus, you would just have a pretty desktop picture and nowhere to go. Every operating system and desktop environment may style their panels and menus differently, but the common function makes them easy to recognize. KDE and GNOME handle these important widgets in a similar manner. KDEThe KDE desktop environment (see Figure 2.3) gets alternately praised and critiqued for its similarity to the Windows desktop. There are similar concepts insofar as there are windows, a taskbar type of object, and desktop icons, but KDE is its own creature with its own complexities. Let's look at the basic components of your KDE desktop, starting with the panel at the bottom of your desktop. Figure 2.3. The KDE desktop in Mandrake.The Kicker PanelThe Kicker panel is the bar at the bottom of your desktop that looks like the taskbar in Windows. The objects on the panel help you access the programs installed on your computer, see what windows you have open, take advantage of virtual desktops, and use a few other utilities. The panel is your dashboard, where you have everything you need to run the machine. Here are descriptions of the panel objects that you see, moving from left to right. KDE Kicker Panel ObjectsKDE provides a default set of panel objects and icons for you. Most of the icons link to frequently used programs, and the other objects include a few bare necessities. The K MenuKDE calls its main menu the K menu. The K menu is arranged into categories in which you will find most of the programs that are installed on your computer. The category names are simple enough (Office, Internet, Multimedia). You can guess what programs are in most of the categories. The K menu, of course, looks different in Mandrake than it does in Fedora. We will look at the Mandrake version. The Fedora version of the K menu is quite similar to the Fedora GNOME main menu described later in this topic. The more ambiguous category names in the K menu are System and More Applications. The System menu is a maze of submenus. This is the place to take care of configuring KDE, configuring your computer, and accessing other system utilities. More Applications is your miscellaneous category that contains links to programs that Mandrake didn't think fit well in any other category. The other menu items in the K menu that are near the bottom are important items that you might need often. Here is a quick rundown of those menu items, starting at the bottom and moving up. LogoutThis asks if you want to end your session (log out and return to the login screen), turn off the computer, or restart the computer. Mandrake has a mysterious picture of a cute little dragon in this dialog box. There's probably something Freudian in that. Lock ScreenThis activates the screensaver and prevents access to your desktop. To get back to your desktop, you need to enter your user password. Start New SessionThis displays multiple user options. Linux allows more than one user to be logged in at a time. Most graphical desktops do not emphasize this option, in favor of simplicity. When you start a new session, you see the login screen again. Just log in and go. You can click on this option to read the warning, which explains how function keys are used for switching between sessions. Run CommandThis brings up a text box for commands. If you know the terminal command for a program, you can use this option to type in the terminal command for the program you want to start. This can be a quick alternative to mousing through menus and submenus. Recent DocumentsThis lists many of the recent documents you have had open in KDE programs. This menu often isn't good at including documents used in non-KDE programs. You can clear the list with the Clear History button.
FindTwo items are on this submenu, Find Files and Web Search. Find Files opens a dialog box to search for files. To perform a basic search, type in a file name and select Find. Web Search opens KDE's default Web browser, Konqueror, to a search engine page. HomeThis opens your file manager, Konqueror, to your home directory. KDE Desktop Icons
GNOMEFedora's default of the GNOME desktop (see Figure 2.4) is simple and should look familiar to you if you have used computers before. There is a taskbar-like object on the bottom of the screen, a desktop background image, and a few desktop icons. Right-click on the desktop to see a number of menu options that include opening a terminal, creating shortcuts (launcher), aligning objects, and changing the desktop background. Figure 2.4. GNOME in Fedora.In GNOME, that taskbar-like object is called the panel. A panel is a base on which you can add other objects, such as your main menu, icon links to programs, a window list, a clock, and other system controls, such as volume and a logout button. Panels give you a lot of flexibility and control over the appearance and geography of your desktop. You can have multiple panels on the same desktop. Use the panel for a while as it is right now, to get used to how everything works. You can then experiment with adding new objects to your panel, changing the panel placement, and adding multiple panels. The Default PanelYou already have everything you need to start on the bottom panel. The first thing you see on the left side of the panel is a series of icons. These are for menus and programs that Fedora and GNOME thought you might like to have handy. There are also helpful utility objects on the panel to help you arrange windows and perform common tasks. GNOME Panel ObjectsHere is a quick run-down of the default objects on the GNOME panel.
You can right-click empty areas of the panel to add new objects or to change the properties of the panel. You can right-click any panel object to go to the properties or preferences for that object. The GNOME MenuNow let's talk about that hat on the panelor foot, or star depending on which distribution you are inotherwise known as the main menu (or the GNOME menu). This thing has more disguises and aliases than most seasoned criminals. The GNOME menu (see Figure 2.5) contains links to most of the programs that are installed on your computer. The programs are divided into categories. Fedora adds another layer of preference to the main menu categories. Within each category are first the programs that the distribution favors and then the rest of the menu items that fit the category, in a submenu. So, you get menu items that look like this: Internet > More Internet Applications. You can find most KDE programs and programs that you added later after install in the More submenus. Figure 2.5. The main menu in GNOME, with the Internet menu expanded into view.A few of the main menu items are not squirreled away in submenus. These items are at the bottom of the main menu. The lineup of menu options at the bottom of the GNOME menu includes utility items that you might use often. That is why they are so conveniently located. Starting at the bottom of the menu, let's go over the menu items. Log OutThis logs out to the login manager screen, but it also gives you the option to shut down or restart the computer. Lock ScreenThis activates the screensaver and prompts you for your user password to turn off the screensaver. Recent DocumentsThis lists recent documents you have opened. The list notoriously does not include many documents from non-GNOME programs. Search for FilesThis brings up a Search window to look for files using a variety of criteria. Run ApplicationThis opens a dialog box with a text field so you can run a program using its command. This is sometimes quicker than wading through menus and submenus. Network ServersThis opens your file manager, Nautilus, to view other computers on your local area network (LAN). HelpThis starts the GNOME Help browser, in which you can read up on many help topics for different programs. Browse File SystemThis opens your file manager, Nautilus, to your home directory in browser mode. GNOME Desktop Icons
|