<para>The taskbar is a quick way to switch between applications. The taskbar
can be located in the panel (default), or outside the panel on the
desktop.</para>
<para>This module has options to control how the taskbar operates:</para>
<para><guilabel>Show windows from all desktops</guilabel>, determines
if all open windows are included in the taskbar or not. By default,
the taskbar only shows the open windows <emphasis>on the current
desktop</emphasis>. If this option is enabled, the taskbar will show
all open windows <emphasis>on all desktops</emphasis>.
<guilabel>Sort windows by desktop</guilabel> changes the
sort order of the icons on the taskbar, so that windows on virtual
desktop 1 are shown first (to the left, or at the top of the taskbar),
followed by windows on virtual desktop 2, and so on.</para>
<para><guilabel>Sort alphabetically by application name</guilabel> shows
the icons in an alphabetical sort order on the taskbar.</para>
<para>You can have the taskbar <guilabel>Show only minimized
windows</guilabel>. In this case, when you minimize a window, it will
show up on the taskbar, and when you open it again, its taskbar entry
will disappear.</para>
<para>You can disable <guilabel>Show application icons</guilabel>, and show just the
text. You might want to do this to save space on your taskbar, for
example.</para>
<para>Using the <guilabel>Show window list button</guilabel> option,
you can enable a little button to be shown in the taskbar: this button
will open a popup menu offering access to applications on other desktops
as well as some useful actions, like <guilabel>Unclutter
Windows</guilabel> or <guilabel>Cascade Windows</guilabel>.</para>
<para><guilabel>Group similar tasks</guilabel> allows
you to save some space on your taskbar, by only showing one icon for
each running application, no matter how many windows are shown. You can
click on the icon to display a menu of all the windows that are
available. This is most useful when you have enabled <guilabel>Show windows
from all desktops</guilabel>.</para>
<para>The next option allows you to set the <guilabel>Appearance</guilabel> to <guilabel>Elegant</guilabel>, <guilabel>Classic</guilabel> or <guilabel>For Transparency</guilabel>.</para>
</sect2>
<sect2>
<title><guilabel>Actions</guilabel></title>
<para>The next set of options allow you to customize the actions
performed with different mouse clicks on taskbar icons.</para>
<para>You can select any action from the list for the <guilabel>Left button</guilabel>,
the <guilabel>Middle button</guilabel> and the <guilabel>Right button</guilabel>.</para>
<para>The options available are:</para>
<variablelist>
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Show Task List</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
<para>Show the list of tasks grouped under the icon you have clicked
on. If there is only one task or window for that icon, it will become
the active window.</para>
<para>This is the default action for the &LMB;.</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Cycle Through Windows</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
<para>If there is more than one task grouped under the icon, switch
from one to the next, until you release the button (&ie; when you have
reached the window you are looking for). If there is only one task or
window for that icon, it will become the active window.</para>
<para>This is the default action for the &MMB; if window grouping is
determine which special menu items appear in the &kmenu;.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Bookmarks</guilabel>
menu allows you to quickly select from the same bookmarks that are available in &konqueror;.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Find</guilabel> menu offers access to the &kfind; application to search for local files, and a quick link to a search engine to search for things on the Internet.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Konqueror Profiles</guilabel> menu allows you to
launch &konqueror; with any of your configured profiles.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Network Folders</guilabel> menu can launch a
&konqueror; file manager window displaying any of your configured
network folders.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Preferences</guilabel> menu allows you to launch each &kcontrol; module
directly from the TDE menu.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Print System</guilabel> menu provides several menu entries to help manage
the printer(s) attached to your system.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Quick Browser</guilabel> menu gives you quick links to locations on your hard drive.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Recent Documents</guilabel> menu lists the most recently edited documents and will automatically
launch the application to edit or view this document.</para>
<para>The <guilabel>System</guilabel> menu allows you quick access to
some commonly visited places, including your Home folder, and the
Trash. You may find this useful instead of having a separate entry for
each of these in the &kmenu;</para>
<para>The <guilabel>Terminal Sessions</guilabel> menu provides menu items to launch several different types of
terminal programs (command line interfaces).</para>
</listitem>
<listitem><para><guilabel>Show side image</guilabel> will add a small
image to the side of the menu. This is purely decorative.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>The <guibutton>Edit TDE Menu</guibutton> button launches the &tde;
menu editor.</para></listitem>
</itemizedlist>
<para> In the <guilabel>QuickBrowser Menus</guilabel> area you can configure
whether the panel's browser menus will show hidden files or not (hidden
files on &UNIX; systems are those whose filenames begin with a dot) as
well as how many files at most will be shown in a browser menu. The
latter option may be especially useful if you have a rather small screen
resolution, as then the browser menus will quickly fill up your screen
when you browse folders containing many files.</para>
<para>The quick start section in the TDE menu offers quick access to
programs you have used often or recently. In the <guilabel>Quick Start Menu Items</guilabel>
frame you can choose whether
this section will show the most recently or the most frequently used
programs. Using the option <guilabel>Maximum number of entries</guilabel>
combo box, you can configure how many programs the quick start
<para>The <guilabel>Hide button size:</guilabel> option allows you to
choose a width in pixels for the hide buttons, if they are
visible.</para>
<para>The panel itself has several default sizes set, which you can
switch between by simply dragging the edge of it, or by &RMB; clicking
on an empty space in the panel, choosing <guisubmenu>Size</guisubmenu>
and selecting the desired size from the submenu. If you enable
<guilabel>Allow Drag and Drop resizing of panels</guilabel> then by
choosing <guimenuitem>Custom</guimenuitem> in the panel menu, you can
drag the panel edge to any size you like.</para>
<para>Applet handles are normally visible beside each applet on the panel, so that it is clear where to click to configure them, or to get to the panel menu. You can instead have them <guilabel>Fade out</guilabel>, or hide unless you hover the mouse over them, or you can choose to <guilabel>Hide</guilabel> them completely.</para>
<para>Finally, if the panel is transparent, you can tint it with a
color of your choice. The slider allows you to choose how opaque the
tint is. At the lowest end, there is no tint visible, while at the
highest, the panel is not transparent at all.</para>
</sect2>
<sect2 id="panel-author">
<title>Section Author</title>
<para>This section written by: Jost Schenck <email>jost@schenck.de</email></para>
&kicker; is the &tde; application starter panel and is also capable of
@ -46,7 +51,7 @@ the desktop.
</abstract>
<keywordset>
<keyword>KDE</keyword>
<keyword>TDE</keyword>
<keyword>Kicker</keyword>
<keyword>tdebase</keyword>
<keyword>panel</keyword>
@ -59,7 +64,6 @@ the desktop.
<chapter id="introduction">
<title>Introduction</title>
<para>
&kicker; is the application launcher panel of the Trinity Desktop Environment.
Besides the <guimenu>TDE</guimenu> Menu, where you can start applications,
@ -69,10 +73,30 @@ taskbar or the clock, and extensions, such as child panels.
<para>
&kicker; usually resides on the bottom of the desktop, but it can also
be moved to any other border. Please report any problems or feature
requests to the &tde; mailing lists.
be moved to any other border.
</para>
<para>The panel gives you quick access to applications and makes it
easier for you to organize your desktop. Using the &tde; panel you
can:</para>
<itemizedlist>
<listitem><para>Launch applications using the <guimenu>TDE</guimenu> menu or
the application buttons.</para></listitem>
<listitem><para>Switch desktops using the panel's pager applet.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem><para>Switch active windows, and minimize or maximize them.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem><para>Browse folder using the browser menu functionality.</para>
</listitem>
<listitem><para>Access panel applets that extend the panel's functionality,
offering for example mixers, clocks or a system monitor.</para> </listitem>
</itemizedlist>
<para>Please report any problems or feature requests to the &tde; mailing lists.</para>
</chapter>
<chapter id="using-kicker">
@ -150,7 +174,7 @@ Having a look at the screenshots above, there are from left to right:
<listitem>
<para>
It is used for launching applications and some other useful
things. Refer to <link linkend="k-menu">The <guimenu>TDE</guimenu> Menu
things. Refer to <link linkend="tde-menu">The <guimenu>TDE</guimenu> Menu
</link>for more information.
</para>
</listitem>
@ -257,7 +281,8 @@ As mentioned before, there are a lot of things that can be added to
&kicker;. This section will tell you everything about application
starting, folder browsing and adding some kinds of applets and
extensions. Lots of things can be done from the context
menu with <guimenuitem>Configure Panel...</guimenuitem> or via the &kcontrolcenter;'s section <menuchoice><guimenu>Desktop</guimenu> <guisubmenu>Panels</guisubmenu></menuchoice>.
menu with <guimenuitem>Configure Panel...</guimenuitem> or via the &kcontrolcenter;'s
You can also move icons using the &MMB; if you have one. To do this click on an icon using the &MMB;, hold for a second and then drag the icon to its new position.
You can also move icons using the &MMB; if you have one. To do this click on an icon using the &MMB;, hold for a second and then drag the icon to its new position.
You can also move icons using the &MMB; if you have one. To do this click on an icon using
the &MMB;, hold for a second and then drag the icon to its new position.
Another way to remove a folder is by clicking the &RMB; on any free space
and then choosing <menuchoice><guimenu>Remove from Panel</guimenu>
<guisubmenu>Applet</guisubmenu></menuchoice> and then the applet you want to be
@ -420,7 +447,7 @@ fileref="k_menu_icon.png"
format="PNG"/></imageobject></inlinemediaobject></guiicon> The
<guiicon>TDE Menu icon</guiicon> is one of the most necessary icons in
&kicker;. As you might guess, it opens the <guimenu>TDE</guimenu> Menu,
which you can learn more about in <link linkend="k-menu">The K
which you can learn more about in <link linkend="tde-menu">The K
Menu</link>.
</para>
</listitem>
@ -614,7 +641,8 @@ menu will remove the icon from &kicker;.
<para>
Another way of removing icons is clicking the &RMB; on any free space in
&kicker; and choosing <guimenuitem>Remove From Panel</guimenuitem> and then
<guimenuitem>Applet</guimenuitem>, <guimenuitem>Application</guimenuitem> or <guimenuitem>All</guimenuitem>. You can then choose the button you want to remove in
<guimenuitem>Applet</guimenuitem>, <guimenuitem>Application</guimenuitem> or
<guimenuitem>All</guimenuitem>. You can then choose the button you want to remove in
Applets can be removed by choosing the <guimenuitem>Remove <replaceable>applet name</replaceable></guimenuitem> option from the context menu, which appears when the
&RMB; is clicked on the applet's handle (left or top side of the applet) or on the icon itself.
Applets can be removed by choosing the
<guimenuitem>Remove <replaceable>applet name</replaceable></guimenuitem> option from the
context menu, which appears when the &RMB; is clicked on the applet's handle (left or top
side of the applet) or on the icon itself.
</para>
@ -669,7 +699,8 @@ There is also the possibility to add external extensions to &kicker;,
like the <guimenuitem>External Taskbar</guimenuitem>, the <guimenuitem>Dock
Application Bar</guimenuitem> for WindowMaker
dock-applications, <guimenuitem>Kasbar</guimenuitem>, an iconic kind of
taskbar, an <guimenuitem>Universal Sidebar</guimenuitem> and even child <guimenuitem>Panel</guimenuitem>s which behave like new instances of
taskbar, an <guimenuitem>Universal Sidebar</guimenuitem> and even child
<guimenuitem>Panel</guimenuitem>s which behave like new instances of
&kicker;.
</para>
@ -710,8 +741,9 @@ menu.
<para>
Every <guiicon>application starter</guiicon> has some preferences you
can set from their context menu with <guimenuitem>Configure <replaceable>application name</replaceable>Button...</guimenuitem>. Usually applications
and folders have the same preferences as in &konqueror;. Only the
can set from their context menu with <guimenuitem>Configure <replaceable>application name</replaceable>
Button...</guimenuitem>. Usually applications
and folders have the same preferences as in &konqueror;. Only the
applications which are located in the <guimenu>TDE</guimenu> Menu (for
experienced users: those which have a <literal
role="extension">.desktop</literal> extension in the <filename
@ -824,7 +856,7 @@ This feature is not implemented yet.
</listitem>
<listitem><para>&kicker; has the possibility to swallow some applications
like <abbrev>e.g.</abbrev> <application>XOSView</application>. This means that
the application will show up directly in the panel. Therefore you have to
the application will show up directly in the panel. Therefore you have to
insert the exact title of the application window in the <guilabel>Window
Title</guilabel> Textfield. You can also specify an application that will be
executed when clicking on the swallowed application by typing it's name in the
@ -919,8 +951,8 @@ Not yet written
<para>
This section describes the ways &kicker; can be configured. It's only
about the basic &kicker; settings, configuration of the applets are
described in their <link linkend="applets">sections</link>
about the basic &kicker; settings. Configuration of applets are
described in another <link linkend="applets">section</link>.
</para>
<para>
@ -931,7 +963,6 @@ going to <guilabel>Desktop</guilabel> and then selecting the
<guilabel>Panels</guilabel> or the <guilabel>Taskbar</guilabel> module.
</para>
<sect1 id="panel">
<title>The Panel Section</title>
@ -939,7 +970,7 @@ going to <guilabel>Desktop</guilabel> and then selecting the
<title>Extensions</title>
<para>
Panels and panel <link linkend="extensions">extensions</link> are configured
on the same page. Simply choose one of your extensions (⪚
on the same page. Simply choose one of your extensions (⪚
Child Panel) from the <guilabel>Settings for:</guilabel> listbox. You will then
be adjust its settings rather than that of the Main Panel.
</para>
@ -956,68 +987,138 @@ panel applications as well; later we'll come to the more interesting
features).
</para>
<para>If you have more than one panel on screen, you can select at the
top of the window which panel you wish to configure.</para>
<para>
In the <guilabel>Position</guilabel> frame you can choose which
screen border the panel should be attached to. Please note that usually
the available space is used more efficiently if the panel is aligned
horizontally, &ie; attached to the top or bottom screen border. If you
In the <guilabel>Position</guilabel> section you can choose which
screen border the panel should be attached. If you
want to play around with different settings you can change the panel's
position even easier by dragging the panel from one border to the other.
</para>
<para>In the section labeled <guilabel>Position</guilabel> is a set of
12 buttons arranged in a square. Each button corresponds to a
location for the panel. Click on a button and notice where the panel
is located on the preview monitor to the right.</para>
<tip><para>Generally, the available space in kicker is used more
efficiently when the panel is aligned horizontally, &ie; attached to the
top or bottom screen border.</para></tip>
<para>
The <guilabel>Length</guilabel> frame lets you define how much space a panel
The <guilabel>Length</guilabel> section lets you define how much space a panel
will occupy on the side of the screen which it resides. By default this is on the
bottom so changing this value will affect a panel's width. The value can be anywhere
from 1% to 100%.
Checking the check box <guilabel>Expand as required to fit contents</guilabel>
makes sure that a panel is at least as big as needed to show every icon and
applet.
from 1% to 100%. Use the combo box and slider to adjust the <emphasis>minimum</emphasis>
length of the panel. Checking the check box <guilabel>Expand as required to fit
contents</guilabel> makes sure that a panel is at least as big as needed to show
every icon and applet. The panel will become longer if more space is needed. When
less space is required on the panel, the panel will shrink down to the minimum size.
If there is no mark in the checkbox, then the panel is fixed to the
length specified in this section.
</para>
<para>The final section of this table is labeled
<guilabel>Size</guilabel>, and refers to the
<emphasis>height</emphasis> of the panel. The panel's size can be
<para>Clicking with the mousebutton will open a menu with all
applications of that group, where every application has its window
menu as a submenu and there are some group specific entries like
@ -1375,22 +1661,26 @@ appends those actions to all applications of that group.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Cycle Through Windows</guilabel></term>
<listitem><para>If this action is chosen, each
click with the mousebutton on the <guibutton>taskbar button</guibutton> will
activate one of that group's applications, one after each others.</para>
<term><guilabel>Activate, Raise or Minimize Task</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
<para>When a task is minimized, this option activates and raises the task to focus. When open
in the background but not visibile, this option raises the task to focus.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Activate Task</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
<para>
<guilabel>Activate Task</guilabel>: Clicking with the mousebutton will activate
Clicking with the mousebutton will activate
the first application in that group without opening the group menu.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Raise Task</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
@ -1398,6 +1688,7 @@ the first application in that group without opening the group menu.
put in the foreground without giving focus to it.</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Lower Task</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
@ -1406,6 +1697,7 @@ The first application of that group will be
put in the background. It won't lose the focus.</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Minimize Task</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
@ -1413,17 +1705,33 @@ put in the background. It won't lose the focus.</para>
minimized. If it is already minimized, it will be restored again.</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
<para>Please note that some of these settings only have effect if a
taskbar button contains more than one application.
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Move To Current Desktop</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
<para>When the taskbar is configured to show all apps from all desktops, this options will move the
selected app from a different desktop to the current desktop.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term><guilabel>Close Task</guilabel></term>
<listitem>
<para>This option closes or terminates the task.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
</sect2>
</sect1>
</chapter>
<chapter id="k-menu">
<chapter id="tde-menu">
<title>The <guimenu>TDE</guimenu> Menu</title>
<para>
@ -1436,7 +1744,7 @@ There are five main groups in the <guimenu>TDE</guimenu> Menu which will
be described now from bottom to top.
</para>
<sect1 id="kde-group">
<sect1 id="tde-group">
<title>The &tde; Group</title>
<para>
@ -1496,7 +1804,7 @@ This will bring up a small but powerful application start dialog.
<para>
In the standard case, you just type in a command and press
<keycap>Enter</keycap> or click <guibutton>Run</guibutton>. But there
<keycap>Enter</keycap> or click <guibutton>Run</guibutton>. But there
is also an <guibutton>Options >></guibutton> button which will bring up
some starting options to the command window.
</para>
@ -1530,7 +1838,7 @@ below.
<para>
Check this option to run with a different priority. A higher priority
will tell the operating system to give more processing time to the
applications. You can use the slider to change the priority. If you
applications. You can use the slider to change the priority. If you
want to give your app a higher priority than the default one (middle
position), you will need to enter the root password below.
</para>
@ -1674,7 +1982,7 @@ desktops, you can move this app to the current desktop.
<para>
There is also a small icon on the left or top side of the taskbar, which
opens a menu. This is called the <guibutton>windows list
icon</guibutton>. The menu's first entry, <guimenuitem>Unclutter
icon</guibutton>. The menu's first entry, <guimenuitem>Unclutter
Windows</guimenuitem>, tries to move the windows on your active desktop
in a way to see as many as possible. <guimenuitem>Cascade
Windows</guimenuitem> puts all windows on the active desktop over each
@ -1885,7 +2193,8 @@ tab of <guilabel>Configure</guilabel> dialog of the clock applet with
<para>
This option starts the <guilabel>Date & Time</guilabel>
configuration module in the section <guilabel>System Administration</guilabel> of the &kcontrolcenter;.</para>
configuration module in the section <guilabel>System Administration</guilabel> of the
&kcontrolcenter;.</para>
<note>
<para>
@ -1899,8 +2208,10 @@ You will need the super user password for adjusting date and time.
<title><guimenuitem>Date & Time Format</guimenuitem></title>
<para>
This will open the <guilabel>Country/Region & Language</guilabel> module in the section <guilabel>Regional & Accessibility</guilabel> of the &kcontrolcenter;
where you can set your formats on the page <guilabel>Times & Dates</guilabel>. There aren't any special permissions needed for that.
This will open the <guilabel>Country/Region & Language</guilabel> module in the section
<guilabel>Regional & Accessibility</guilabel> of the &kcontrolcenter;
where you can set your formats on the page <guilabel>Times & Dates</guilabel>. There aren't
any special permissions needed for that.
</para>
</sect2>
@ -2059,7 +2370,7 @@ messagebox will appear and ask you how to handle that application.
<para>
Clicking it with the &LMB; will show a configuration dialog. Here you
can set the <guilabel>Update interval</guilabel>, which is set in
seconds, and the <guilabel>CPU load threshold</guilabel>. At the
seconds, and the <guilabel>CPU load threshold</guilabel>. At the
moment, there is no real advice for setting this up, you will have to do
some experimenting. These settings will probably change in a future
release. There is also a section <guilabel>Programs to ignore</guilabel>
@ -2092,7 +2403,8 @@ There are also some features that run outside of &kicker;, the
extensions. They are added from the
context menu by choosing <guisubmenu>Add New Panel</guisubmenu>. You can move them to any
screenborder by dragging them at the small applet
handle on their side and remove it by right clicking on an empty space and choose <guimenuitem>Remove Panel</guimenuitem>.
handle on their side and remove it by right clicking on an empty space and choose
<guimenuitem>Remove Panel</guimenuitem>.
</para>
<para>
@ -2331,7 +2643,7 @@ another picture?
Look for <filename>$HOME/.trinity/share/apps/kicker/pics/go.png</filename>
and <filename>$HOME/.trinity/share/apps/kicker/pics/mini/go.png</filename>
and replace them. Do not forget to flatten the replacements to one
layer, or else you will not see anything. Create the folders if
layer, or else you will not see anything. Create the folders if
Darrell Anderson
10 years ago