Fedora Linux

Most KDE configuration is performed through the KDE Control Center, which is found on the K menu. The Control Center is shown in Figure 2-9.

If you do not have KDE installed, you can install it; see Lab 5.3, 'Using Repositories.' 

Figure 2-9. KDE Control Center 

 Along the lefthand side of this window, there is a collapsible menu of configuration categories; each category contains several subcategories, which can be revealed or hidden by clicking on the +/- icon in front of the category name. Each subcategory is handled by a separate configuration module . When you click on a configuration category, the configuration module for that category is shown on the righthand side of the window.

You can also configure some desktop components by right-clicking on them. For example, right-clicking on the desktop and selecting Configure Desktop will bring up a subset of the Control Center options, which is useful for changing the appearance of the desktop.

Unlike GNOME, KDE settings are not usually automatically applied; you must click on the Apply button before your changes take effect.

An alternative, express way to change basic KDE desktop settings is to select Settings>Desktop Settings Wizard (or enter the command kpersonalizer), which will walk you through the process of setting the most common desktop options.

2.3.1.1. Customizing the desktop appearance using themes

To configure KDE themes, select Appearance & Themes>Theme Manager in the Control Center (Figure 2-9). You can select a theme from among the options listed by clicking on it and then clicking Apply.

To install a new theme, click the 'Get new themes...' link in the upper-right corner to open the Konqueror web browser with the kde-look home page (http://kde-look.org). Select a theme that is packaged into a .kth file and download it to your system. Click the Install New Theme button within the KDE Control Center and open the downloaded file to install it into the list of available themes.

Relatively few themes are packaged in the .kth format required by the Theme Manager. Themes supplied in source format cannot be installed by the Theme Manager and must be configured manually.

2.3.1.2. Customizing the panels

KDE panels are configured in much the same way as GNOME panels.

You can add a new panel by right-clicking on an existing one and selecting Add New Panel>Panel. You can move the new panel to any edge of the screen by dragging it with the mouse.

The Add New Panel facility can add special panel types that are pre-populated with specific tools; for details, right-click on a panel and select Help. 

To delete a panel, right-click on any panel and select Remove Panel, and then select the panel you wish to remove. It is not possible to remove the original panel. If the panel contains anything, a confirmation dialog will appear before the panel is deleted.

To add items to a panel, right-click on the panel and select 'Add Applet to panel' or 'Add Application to panel'the difference being that applets run within the panel, displaying information or performing useful actions, while applications are simply buttons that launch programs.

To delete an application from the panel, right-click on it and select 'Remove application.' To delete an applet, place your mouse cursor over it, which will cause a small bar to appear beside it; right-click on this bar, and select 'Remove applet.'

To move a panel object, middle-click on the object (or on the bar beside the object if it is an applet) and drag it to the desired location. To push other objects around, hold down the Shift key while dragging; to move between bars, left-click and drag.

To set a panel's properties, right-click on a panel and select Configure Panel, which displays the window in Figure 2-10 . You can also start the KDE Control Center and select Desktop>Panels, in which case the window arrangement is modified slightly to fit into the design of the Control Center.

Figure 2-10. KDE panel configuration window  

In either case, you will have buttons or tabs for Arrangement, Hiding, Menus, and Appearance.

The Arrangement section contains these settings:

Position

The location of the panel on the screen. There are twelve buttons, enabling you to place the panel in the center or either corner of any edge of the screen (for example, if you place the panel on the bottom edge of the screen, you can place it in the left corner, the center, or the right corner). The position along an edge has no effect if the panel length has been set to 100%.

Length

The percent of the screen edge that will be occupied by the panel. The default is 100%, where the panel fills the entire length of one side of the screen. The checkbox labeled 'Expand as required to fit contents' makes the specified length the minimum.

Size

The thickness of the panel in pixels. The Fedora default is rather big, so I usually set this to Small or Tiny.

The settings affect the panel selected by the 'Settings for' drop-down menu. As you adjust the settings, the preview in the Screen section is updated to show your changes.

The Hiding section contains three settings:

Hide Mode

Configures the panel to be displayed all the time unless manually hidden, to hide itself after a period of time, or to be coverable by other windows. To reveal an automatically hidden panel, place the mouse cursor along the edge of the screen where the panel would normally appear.

Panel-Hiding Buttons

Allows you to add buttons to the left and right (or top and bottom) ends of the panel.

Panel Animation