Installation guide

36 Chapter 3. The KDE Desktop Environment

Figure 3-4. The Panel

The panel is highly conﬁgurable. You can add and remove buttons that launch applications easily.

Right-click on the panel and select Panel => Conﬁguration to open the panel Settings.

Other tabs in Settings contain options to further customize your panel. Click on Help for more infor-

mation on these options.

Applications and utilities can be added easily to the panel. To add an application to the panel, right-

click on the panel and choose Panel => Add. Then select Button, Applet, Extension, or Special

Button, and make your choice from the corresponding menus.

3.5.1. Using The K Menu

The K Menu

is the main menu for KDE. Clicking on the K Menu icon on the panel displays

a large master menu from which you can perform tasks such as launch applications, ﬁnd ﬁles, and

conﬁgure your desktop. The main menu also contains several submenus that organize applications

and tools into several categories, including Utilities, Graphics, Internet, and Multimedia.

From the K Menu, you can lock your screen, which will display a password-protected screensaver.

You can also run applications from a command line as well as logout of your KDE session.

3.5.2. Using Applets

Applets are small applications that run on the panel. There are several types of applets performing

functions such as system/network monitoring, launching applications by typing commands in a text

box, and even checking the local weather.

There are some applets that run on the panel by default. This section covers them in detail.

3.5.2.1. Working with Multiple Desktops

By default, KDE provides four desktops that you can use to display multiple applications without

having to crowd all of them onto one desktop. Each desktop can hold icons, open applications, and

have individually customized backgrounds.

For example, while you are writing a message in KMail on desktop one, you can have Konqueror

browsing the Web on desktop two, the KWord word processor open on desktop three, and so on.

You can change the number and names of desktops available in KDE by making these adjustments:

1. Right-click on the desktop; you will see a brief menu of actions you can take.

2. Select Conﬁgure Desktop; the KDE panel conﬁguration tool will open.

3. Click the Number of Desktops tab (see Figure 3-5).