What is KDE

Interestingly enough, there has always been speculation about what “KDE” stood for. Quite some time ago (circa 2000) I spoke with one of the lead KDE developers who informed me that “KDE” stood for “KDE Desktop Environment”. Linux always loves its recursive acronyms.

KDE is a complete desktop environment which means nearly all of the bundled components are fully aware of one another.

Originally (up to the KDE 3.5 release) KDE was a very standard desktop with a taskbar, start menu, desktop icons, etc. When 4.0 was released KDE was completely rebuilt. Although it still contains the standard items, KDE 4 now offers many other features that might be considered more advanced. To take a look at these features, see the KDE 4.5 content here on Ghacks.net. Let’s now take a look at the different pieces that make up the basic KDE 4.5 desktop.

Panel

As you would expect, KDE has a panel. Unlike GNOME, KDE has only ONE panel. The KDE 4.5 panel is used as you would expect it. This panel contains the following:

• Start Menu: Where you launch applications (including System Configuration tools).
• Winlist: Where applications are minimized.
• Notification area: Small area of the panel that contains dock-able applications (such as the clipboard, interactive sound icon, battery status, clock, etc).
• Pager: This is a feature unique to UNIX variants. This tool allows you to have more than one workspace at a time.

You can add items to the Panel but, unlike GNOME, you are limited to only adding application launchers.

Menus

KDE has but one menu on the panel – the “K” menu. From this menu you can launch applications, add applications to favorites, open up the system settings or open your file manager (Dolphin) to various locations (such as Home, Network, Root, or Trash).

You will also find a desktop menu when you right-click anywhere on the desktop. This menu allows you to do the following:

• Run a command.
• Add widgets.
• Add a panel.
• Switch between your desktop activities.
• Lock widgets/screen.
• Log out.
• Open up the desktop configuration tool.

You will notice, missing from the above menu is the ability to create new items such as Launchers and files. These have been replaced by widgets.

Windows

As I mentioned in the GNOME article, I am not speaking of Microsoft Windows. Very much like GNOME, you will notice your applications nicely housed within windows that look very much like anything you have ever used in any other environment. At the top right you will see three buttons for Minimizing, Maximizing, and Closing your windows. You will also notice a button in the top left corner (not the application icon) that allows you to pin that window to all workspaces. Typically, when you open up an application on a Linux workspace, that application is only visible to the workspace it was opened in. If you click this button that application will then be visible on all workspaces.

Run dialog

Figure 2

If you know the command you want to run, but do not know where to find the launcher within the menu, you can always open up the run dialog (see Figure 2) and enter your command there. To open the Run Dialog click the Alt-F2 keys together. Type your command and hit Enter and the command will run.

KDE Kontrol Center

Figure 3

Just like GNOME, KDE has a control center. This control center (see Figure 3) is a one-stop-shop for all of your KDE configuration needs. To open up this tool click Start > Computer > System Settings. From here you just need to click whatever it is you need to configure.

The Cashew

An odd little name for a very useful tool. In the upper right corner of your screen there is a small icon, commonly referred to the “Cashew”. When you click on this icon the rest of your screen will fade out and a menu will appear. On this menu you can:

• Add Widgets
• Switch desktop activities
• Shortcut settings (for keyboard shortcuts)
• Desktop settings
• Lock widgets

You may wonder why the “Lock Widgets” entry. This is simple. If you want to make sure your current state of widgets (as well as the panel) are not accidentally changed. If your widgets are locked you have to unlock them in order to make any changes.

Final thoughts

There are a number of topics that were mentioned in this article that you should take the opportunity to further read up on. One in particular is Desktop Activities. Once you feel comfortable using the KDE desktop, you should definitely learn how to take advantage of this outstanding feature.

Docky is a little bit different. Docky is really nothing more than a front-end for Gnome Do (for more information on GNOME Do, check out my article “Don’t search, do – with GNOME Do“) that also serves as a really solid doc bar for the launching of applications in a very OS X like fashion.

In this article I will show you how to install and use Docky.

Installation

Because this is a front-end for GNOME Do, I highly recommend you install GNOME Do as well. What is really cool about this, however, is that you do not have to install GNOME Do. You can opt to only install Docky and use it as a simple Doc bar. Of course if you install GNOME Do, you will most likely want to work with Docky via the GNOME Do interface. It seems a bit convoluted, so let’s install both and you will see what I mean.

We’ll install Docky in Ubuntu. You can see how to install Docky in other distributions from the Docky Wiki. In order to install Docky in Ubuntu, follow these steps:

1. Add the correct repository with the command sudo add-apt-repository ppa:docky-core/ppa
2. Update your sources with sudo apt-get update.
3. Install with the command sudo apt-get install docky.

That’s it. If Docky doesn’t start right away you can then hit <Alt>F2 and enter the command docky to start the application.

Using Docky

Figure 1

When Docky starts you might find it overlapping your bottom GNOME panel and it will be in Panel Mode (it will stretch all the way across the bottom of your screen). To move Docky click and drag it to one side or the other. Or, if you like it at the bottom, you opt to delete the bottom GNOME panel instead.) Once you have Docky where you want it, you might want to switch it out of Panel mode. To do this click the Docky icon (the anchor) on Docky to open up the settings window (see Figure 1).

Figure 2

If Panel Mode is checked, uncheck it and Docky will switch from Panel mode to to Dock mode (see Figure 2).

Adding launchers

By default Docky will only contain a few launchers. As far as most of the documentation goes, it would seem all you need to do is open up a GNOME menu, select and item, and drag it to Docky. That doesn’t really work. Instead, here’s how you add launchers to Docky.

1. From the GNOME menu, launch the application you want to add.
2. An icon for the launched application will appear on Docky.
3. Right click the new icon on Docky.
4. Select “Pin to Dock” from the new menu.

Removing launchers

Removing a launcher is simple. Click on the launcher you want to remove and drag it off of Docky. That’s it. You can also organize your launchers by dragging and dropping them where you want them.

Docklets and Helpers

From the Docky settings window you can also add Docklets and Helpers. Docklets are similar to applications you will find in the GNOME notification area (monitors, clocks, etc). Helpers are more along the lines of application controls (Banshee, Pidgen, etc).

Final thoughts

Docky is an easy way to extend the functionality and look of your GNOME desktop. But don’t forget that Docky does function with GNOME Do. In later articles I will show you how to take advantage of this feature.

The Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar that rests at the bottom of your desktop that launches applications, holds applets, serves as a window-list, and more. Avant is very easy to install, takes up little to no resources, and is simple to manage. Let’s take a look at installing and setting up this nifty tool.

Getting and installing

Fortunately Avant will be found in your distribution’s repositories. So all you have to do is fire up Synaptic (or your favorite Add/Remove Software utility) and add it. There are a few packages you will want to search for and add (many of these will be auto-selected when you select the main Avant package):

• python-awn
• avant-window-navigator-data
• awn-manager
• libawn-extras0
• libawn0
• avant-window-navigator
• python-awnlib
• awn-applets-c-extra
• awn-applets-c-core
• awn-applets-python-extras
• python-awn-extras
• awn-applets-python-core

It’s a long list but it will give you everything you need. There will be one or two extra dependencies, depending upon your installation, but when the installation is complete you will have everything you need for Avant.

So do a search for “avant” (no quotes) and mark the above for Installation. Click Apply to run the installation. When the install finishes you are ready to start Avant.

Starting Avant

Figure 1

If you are using the GNOME desktop you might want to get rid of the panel on the lower edge of your desktop. What I did was move anything that I use to the upper panel and then delete the lower panel. Now, go to the Applications menu, click the Accessories sub-menu, and then select the Avant Window Navigator entry. This will start up Avant which will appear at the bottom of your desktop (see Figure 1). As you can see (in Figure 1), this dock acts very much like the OS X doc. When you open an application a small icon will appear where you can de-iconify a window. In the image shown I have opened a few applications. These have all be opened from the GNOME Applications menu. But can you add icons directly to the Avant dock so you don’t have to rely on the GNOME menu? Yes. And it’s much like adding any launcher to any bar.

Adding launchers

Figure 2

If you have no windows open, by default, your Avant Window Navigator will only have one icon – the AWN Manager. That is where you do all of the configuration for the dock. In that window (see Figure 2) click on the Launchers “tab”. You will see (in Figure 2) I have already created a couple of launchers for my dock. To do this click the Add button which will open up a small window. In this window you need to configure four pieces of data:

Name: The name of the application

Description: The description of the application.

Command: The command to launch the application. NOTE: Command must be in the users $PATH.

Icon: An icon for the application.

When you choose an icon for the application, the icon must be in a directory the user has permission to use. For example: Google Chrome installs into the /opt directory so any of the application icons are not usable by AWN. To get around that copy the icon you want to use to a directory your user has access too (for example ~/Pictures).

After you fill out the information click the OK button and icon will appear on AWN.

There are a lot of other possible configurations for the Avant Window Manager (all of which are within the AWN Manager). Play around with them to discover the perfect setup for your desktop. One particular configuration option you might want to take care of is in the General “tab”. If you want Avant to start up automatically check that box in the General tab and Avant will start when your desktop starts.

Final thoughts

The Avant Window Navigator is a fine addition to the Linux desktop. If you like the OS X doc you are certain to enjoy AWN. Install this dock, configure it, and see if you can eventually remove the remaining GNOME panels.

In this article I will show you the bits and pieces that make up the GNOME panel. From there you will have a solid understanding of how to work with the GNOME panel.

“Start” Menu

Applications Menu

You will notice, right away, that there is not just one Panel menu but three. This is done to keep the menu from getting out of hand and to keep it well organized.

The menu has been split into three smaller menus:

Applications: This is where you can launch all of the user applications installed on your machine.

Places: This menu contains shortcuts to removeable media as well as networked locations and Nautilus bookmarks. NOTE: Nautilus is the GNOME file manager.

System: This menu contains desktop preference tools as well as administrative tools. From within this menu you can also log out of GNOME, lock the screen, and launch the “About GNOME” window.

Launchers

Add Application Launcher

The Launchers on the panel are small application icons that allow you to launch an application with a single click. You add new launchers by right clicking an empty space on the panel and selecting Add To Panel. A new window will open where you can select to add either an Application Launcher or a Custom Application Launcher. Choose to add an Application Launcher if the application in question is already within the GNOME Applications menu. If the application is not in the Applications menu you will select Custom Application Launcher.

You can move launchers around be right clicking the launcher and selecting Move. Once you have selected Move you just drag the launcher to where you want to move it. If the launcher is locked to the panel you will have to de-select that option from the right-click menu of the launcher.

Winlist

Winlist

The Winlist is a simple Panel element that holds all of the minimized windows you have running. When you minimize a window you can get that window back by simply clicking on the Winlist entry for that window on the panel.

Notification Area

Notification Area

Most people call this the “system tray”. The true name of this feature is the Notification Area. The name is fitting because this area holds small applets that notify you of various actions or offer you information about your system or even the time. The Notification Area also lets you know when updates are available for your system.

Panel Properties

If you want to alter the look of your panel you can do so by right clicking the panel (in an empty spot) and selecting the Properties entry in the menu. Here you can configure the color, size, transparency, the autohide, and the location of your panel.

Final Thoughts

The GNOME Panel is one of the easiest desktop panels to use. You will find it very flexible, stable, and user-friendly.