Installation guide

Chapter 3. The KDE Desktop Environment 35
Figure 3-3. A Typical KDE Desktop
The KDE desktop displays application launchers, document windows, file folders, and so on. You can
also access the main menu and configure the desktop to suit your needs.
The long bar across the bottom of the desktop is the panel. The panel contains application launchers,
status indicators, and the desktop manager. You can have up to 16 desktops running at the same time
in KDE. The panel taskbar shows your currently running applications.
Icons located on the desktop can be files, folders, device links, or application launchers. Click on an
icon to open the associated resource.
The KDE desktop works similarly to other graphical desktop environments. You can drag and drop
files and application icons to any location on the desktop. You can also add new icons for all types
of applications and resources to the desktop, panel, or file manager. The desktop itself is also highly
customizable. You can change the appearance of buttons, window and frame decorations, and back-
grounds easily. Configuration tools are also available which allow you to customize the way the desk-
top behaves at events such as single- and double-clicking mouse buttons and combining (also called
chording) keystrokes to create time-saving shortcuts.
The default KDE desktop displays icons for the trash can, your home directory, the KDE Control
Panel, and a link to the Red Hat website. You can access any one of these resources by clicking on
the associated icon.
When you right-click on these icons, you will see several options for working with these resources,
such as Delete Rename Move to Trash, and Copy.
You can drag and drop unwanted items such as files you no longer need to the Trash icon. Right-click
on the trashcan and select Empty Trash Bin to delete the items from your system permanently.
3.5. Using The Panel
The panel stretches across the bottom of the desktop. By default, it contains the main menu icon and
quick-launch icons for logging out, opening a terminal window, and other common applications and
utilities.