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LINUX ENTERPRISE DESKTOP 10 - KDE 21-06-2006
User Manual
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Novell LINUX ENTERPRISE DESKTOP 10 - KDE 21-06-2006, SUSE LINUX ENTERPRISE DESKTOP 10 KDE User Manual

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop
www.novell.com10
June21,2006 KDE User Guide
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KDE User Guide
This publication is intellectual property of Novell Inc.
Its contents can be duplicated, either in part or in whole, provided that a copyright label is visibly lo­cated on each copy.
All information found in this book has been compiled with utmost attention to detail. However, this does not guarantee complete accuracy. Neither SUSE LINUX GmbH, the authors, nor the translators shall be held liable for possible errors or the consequences thereof.
Novell, the Novell logo, the N logo and SUSE are registered trademarks of Novell, Inc. in the United States and other countries. * Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other third party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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Contents
About This Guide ix
Part I KDE Desktop 13
1 Getting Started with the KDE Desktop 15
1.1 Logging In and Selecting a Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
1.2 Logging Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
1.3 Desktop Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.4 Managing Folders and Files with Konqueror . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
1.5 Accessing Network Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
1.6 Opening or Creating Documents with OpenOfce.org . . . . . . . . . 40
1.7 Finding Data on your Computer or in the File System . . . . . . . . . . 41
1.8 Exploring the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
1.9 E-Mail and Scheduling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
1.10 Moving Text between Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
1.11 Important Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
1.12 Managing Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
1.13 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
2 Customizing Your Settings 61
2.1 Changing Individual Desktop Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
2.2 Conguring Your Desktop with the Control Center . . . . . . . . . . . 64
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Part II Ofce and Collaboration 75
3 The OpenOfce.org Ofce Suite 77
3.1 Understanding OpenOfce.org . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
3.2 Word Processing with Writer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
3.3 Using Spreadsheets with Calc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
3.4 Using Presentations with Impress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
3.5 Using Databases with Base . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
3.6 Creating Graphics with Draw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
3.7 Creating Mathematical Formulas with Math . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
3.8 Finding Help and Information About OpenOfce.org . . . . . . . . . 108
4 Kontact: E-Mailing and Calendaring 111
4.1 Kontact Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
4.2 Mail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
4.3 Contacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
4.4 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
4.5 Syncing Data with a Handheld . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
4.6 Kontact for GroupWise Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
4.7 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
5 GroupWise Linux Client: E-Mailing and Calendaring 125
5.1 Getting Acquainted with the Main GroupWise Window . . . . . . . . 125
5.2 Using Different GroupWise Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
5.3 Understanding Your Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
5.4 Using the Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
5.5 Using Shortcut Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
5.6 Learning More . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
6 Synchronizing a Handheld Computer with KPilot 143
6.1 Conduits Used by KPilot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
6.2 Conguring the Handheld Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
6.3 Conguring the KAddressBook Conduit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
6.4 Managing To-Do Items and Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
6.5 Working with KPilot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
7 Instant Messaging with Kopete 151
7.1 Conguring Kopete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
7.2 Adding Contacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
7.3 Adding Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
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7.4 Using Kopete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
8 Using Voice over IP 155
8.1 Conguring Linphone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
8.2 Testing Linphone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
8.3 Making a Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
8.4 Answering a Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
8.5 Using the Address Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
8.6 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
8.7 Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
8.8 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
9 Accessing Network Resources 167
9.1 General Notes on File Sharing and Network Browsing . . . . . . . . . 168
9.2 Accessing Network Shares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
9.3 Sharing Folders in Mixed Environments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
9.4 Managing Windows Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
9.5 Conguring and Accessing a Windows Network Printer . . . . . . . . 176
9.6 Conguring Shortcuts to Network Folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
9.7 Conguring and Using a Small Web Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
10 Encryption with KGpg 185
10.1 Generating a New Key Pair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
10.2 Exporting the Public Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
10.3 Importing Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
10.4 The Key Server Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
10.5 Text and File Encryption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
10.6 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
11 Searching with Kerry 195
11.1 Searching Using Kerry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
11.2 Conguring Kerry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
12 Managing Printers 199
12.1 Installing a Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
12.2 Modifying Printer Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
12.3 Deleting a Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
12.4 Starting Print Jobs in KDE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
12.5 Monitoring Print Jobs in KDE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
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Part III Internet 207
13 Browsing with Konqueror 209
13.1 Tabbed Browsing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
13.2 Automatic Scrolling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
13.3 Proles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
13.4 Saving Web Pages and Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
13.5 Searching with Konqueror . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
13.6 Bookmarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
13.7 Java and JavaScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
13.8 Enabling Advertisment Blockers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
13.9 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
14 Browsing with Firefox 217
14.1 Navigating Web Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
14.2 Finding Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
14.3 Managing Bookmarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
14.4 Using the Download Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
14.5 Customizing Firefox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
14.6 Printing from Firefox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
14.7 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
15 Transferring Data from the Internet 227
15.1 Adding Transfers to the List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
15.2 Timer-Controller Transfers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
16 Reading News Feeds with Akregator 229
Part IV Multimedia 231
17 Manipulating Graphics with The GIMP 233
17.1 Graphics Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
17.2 Starting GIMP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
17.3 Getting Started in GIMP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
17.4 Saving Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
17.5 Printing Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
17.6 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
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18 Using Digital Cameras with Linux 241
18.1 Connecting to the Camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
18.2 Accessing the Camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
18.3 Using Digikam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
18.4 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
19 Playing Music and Movies 253
19.1 Mixers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
19.2 Playing Music Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
19.3 Handling Audio CDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
19.4 Playing Movie Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
20 Burning CDs and DVDs 267
20.1 Creating a Data CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
20.2 Creating an Audio CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
20.3 Copying a CD or DVD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
20.4 Writing ISO Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
20.5 Creating a Multisession CD or DVD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273
20.6 For More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
A Finding the Information You Need 275
A.1 Included Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
A.2 Additional Resources and More Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
B Moving from Windows to Linux 281
B.1 Starting Applications from the Main Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
B.2 Managing Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
B.3 Using the Command Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
B.4 Customizing Your Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
B.5 Setting Up Printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
B.6 Switching between Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
B.7 Accessing Network Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
C Getting to Know Linux Software 289
C.1 Ofce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289
C.2 Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294
C.3 Multimedia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298
C.4 Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
C.5 System and File Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
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C.6 Software Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310
Index 313
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About This Guide
This manual introduces the KDE desktop of your SUSE® Linux Enterprise Desktop and a variety of applications you will encounter when working with the KDE desktop. It guides you through using these applications and helps you perform key tasks. It is intended mainly for end users who want to make efcient use of KDE in everyday life.
The manual is subdivided into the following parts:
KDE Desktop
Get to know your KDE desktop and learn how to cope with basic and daily tasks, using the central KDE applications and some small utilities. Get an impression of the numerous possibilities KDE offers to modify and individualize your desktop according to your needs and wishes.
Ofce and Collaboration
Use the ofce and collaboration software your SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop offers, such as the OpenOfce.org suite, several e-mailing and calendaring programs, and applications for online conversations. Also nd vital information concerning the management and exchange of data on your system: how to share les on the network, how to effectively search and encrypt data, and how to manage printers.
Internet
Find out how to use the Internet applications included in your SUSE Linux Enter­prise Desktop, such as Konqueror or the Firefox Web browser, a download manager, or a news feed reader.
Multimedia
Find topics such as graphics applications, digital cameras, sound applications, and CD and DVD writers.
1 Feedback
We want to hear your comments and suggestions about this manual and the other doc­umentation included with this product. Please use the User Comments feature at the bottom of each page of the online documentation and enter your comments there.
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2 Additional Documentation
There are other manuals available on this SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop product. If you want to have a look at the other end user documentation for SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop, the following manuals might be interesting:
Installation Quick Start
Lists the system requirements and guides you step-by-step through the installation of your SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop.
GNOME User Guide
This manual introduces the GNOME desktop of your SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop and a variety of applications you will encounter when working with the GNOME desktop. It guides you through using these applications and helps you perform key tasks. It is intended mainly for end users who want to make efcient use of applications running on the GNOME desktop.
For an overview of all manuals shipped with SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop, refer to
http://www.novell.com/documentation/sled10/, where you can also
download the manuals. You can also access the information online in the Help Center of your desktop.
3 Documentation Conventions
The following typographical conventions are used in this manual:
• /etc/passwd: lenames and directory names
• placeholder: replace placeholder with the actual value
• PATH: the environment variable PATH
• ls, --help: commands, options, and parameters
• user: users or groups
• Alt , Alt + F1 : a key to press or a key combination; keys are shown in uppercase as on a keyboard
x KDE User Guide
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•
File, File → Save As: menu items, buttons
•
Dancing Penguins (Chapter Penguins, ↑Reference): This is a reference to a chapter in another book.
About This Guide xi
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Part I. KDE Desktop
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1
Getting Started with the KDE Desktop
This chapter assists you in becoming familiar with the KDE desktop of your SUSE® Linux Enterprise Desktop. If you have not yet installed your system, see Installation Quick Start at http://www.novell.com/documentation/sled10/.
KDE stands for K Desktop Environment and is a graphical user interface that has many applications designed to help you in your daily work. KDE also offers many choices to modify your desktop according to your needs and wishes. Read more about cong­uring your desktop in Chapter 2, Customizing Your Settings (page 61).
The following description is based on the default conguration of the KDE desktop shipped with your product. If you or your system administrator has modied the defaults, some aspects may be different, such as appearance or keyboard shortcuts.
1.1 Logging In and Selecting a Desktop
If more than one user account is congured on your computer, all users must authenti­cate. When you start your system, you are prompted to enter your username and pass­word. This is the username and password you created when you installed your system. If you did not install your system, check with your system administrator for your user­name and password.
Getting Started with the KDE Desktop 15
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NOTE: Auto Login
If your computer is not run in a networking environment and you are the only person using it, you can automatically log in to the desktop environment on boot. In this case, you do not see any login screen. This feature, called auto login, can be enabled or disabled during installation or at any time using the YaST user management module.
The program managing the login process depends on the desktop environment installed on your system. For KDE, it is KDM. If additionally the GNOME desktop is installed on your system, it may be GDM.
As shown in Figure 1.1, “A KDM Login Screen” (page 16), the default KDM login screen provides input elds for username and password and two menu items. To start a normal login, just enter your username and password.
Figure 1.1
A KDM Login Screen
The KDM login screen has input elds for username and password and the following menu items:
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Session Type
Species the desktop to run when you log in. If desktops other than KDE are in­stalled, they appear in the list. Make changes only if you want to use a session type other than your default (usually KDE). Future sessions are automatically of the same type unless you change the session type manually.
System
Performs a system action, such as shutting down the computer or starting different login actions. Remote Login enables you to log in on a remote machine.
NOTE: Connecting to an Active Directory Server
To access shared network resources, you can also authenticate a KDE client machine against an Active Directory server. For further details, refer to Chap-
ter 9, Accessing Network Resources (page 167). If your machine is congured
for this kind of authentication, the login screen also provides an additional eld. In this case, proceed as follows during login:
1. Select the domain from the list.
2. Enter your Windows username.
3. Enter your Windows password and press Enter .
1.1.1 Controlling a Session
The Session Manager starts after your username and password are authenticated by the login process. The Session Manager lets you save certain settings for each session. It also lets you save the state of your most recent session and return to that status the next time you log in.
The Session Manager can save and restore the following settings:
• Appearance and behavior settings, such as fonts, colors, and mouse settings.
• Applications that you were running, such as a le manager or OpenOfce.org.
Getting Started with the KDE Desktop 17
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IMPORTANT: Saving and Restoring Applications
You cannot save and restore applications that Session Manager does not manage. For example, if you start the vi editor from the command line in a terminal window, Session Manager cannot restore your editing session.
For information about conguring session preferences, see Section 2.2.4, “KDE Com-
ponents” (page 70).
1.1.2 Switching Desktops
If you installed both the KDE and the GNOME desktops, use the following instructions to switch desktops.
1
If you are logged in to KDE, select Log Out → End Current Session from the main menu. On the login screen, click Session Type.
2
Select the GNOME desktop.
3
Enter your username.
4
Enter your password. The GNOME desktop is started.
See GNOME User Guide http://www.novell.com/documentation/
sled10/ for more information about using the GNOME desktop.
5
To switch back to KDE again, click Desktop → Log Out on the panel of the GNOME desktop then click OK. The session is closed and the login screen reappears.
6
Before logging in again, click Session Type and select KDE in the login screen. If you do not select a new session type, your next session will be of the same type (GNOME) as the session before.
1.1.3 Locking Your Screen
To lock the screen, do either of the following:
18 KDE User Guide
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•
From the main menu, select Lock Session.
• Use the keyboard shortcut dened in the KDE Control Center. Usually, this is Ctrl + Alt + L .
TIP: Looking Up KDE Keyboard Shortcuts
If you want to look up the keyboard shortcuts dened in KDE, select Per­sonal Settings → Regional & Accessibility → Keyboard Shortcuts from the
main menu. See also Section 2.2.6, “Regional & Accessibility” (page 72).
For quick access, you can also add the Lock and Logout icons to the panel. To do so, right-click the panel then click Add Applet to Panel. In the following window, select Lock/Logout Buttons and click Add to Panel.
When you lock your screen, the screensaver starts. To unlock the screen, move your mouse to display the locked screen dialog. Enter your username and password then press Enter .
For information about conguring your screensaver, see Section 2.2.1, “Appearance
& Themes” (page 65).
1.2 Logging Out
When you are nished using the computer, you can log out and leave the system running or restart or shut down the computer. If your system provides power management, you can also suspend the computer, making the next system start much faster than a complete boot.
To log out and leave the system running, do one of the following:
•
From the main menu, select Log Out → End Current Session.
• Use the keyboard shortcut that is dened in the KDE Control Center, described in
Section 2.2.6, “Regional & Accessibility” (page 72). Usually, to log out with
conrmation, this is Ctrl + Alt + Del . In the following dialog you still have the choice to cancel the logout process. If you want to log out without any conrmation, press Ctrl + Alt + Shift + Del .
Getting Started with the KDE Desktop 19
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•
Click the Logout icon in the panel. If your panel does not include the logout icon, you can add it to the panel as described in Section 1.1.3, “Locking Your Screen” (page 18).
1.3 Desktop Components
The graphical desktop environment should not pose any problems for former Windows or Macintosh users. The main components of the desktop are the icons on the desktop and the panel at the bottom of the screen.
Figure 1.2
An Example KDE Desktop
Desktop icons represent les, directories, applications, functions, and removable media, like CDs or DVDs.
The desktop has the following icons by default:
Trash
Contains les and folders that have been deleted. For information about using the trash bin, see Section 1.3.4, “Managing the Trash Bin” (page 29).
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My Computer
Displays information about hardware, network status, operating system, hard disks, common folders, and removable devices. For more information, refer to Sec-
tion 1.3.3, “Accessing Removable Media” (page 26).
Network Browsing
Displays network services you can access. Some of the services might require au­thentication. To learn more, refer to Chapter 9, Accessing Network Resources (page 167).
Printer
Opens KJobViewer that displays print jobs you have sent to printers. See Sec-
tion 12.4, “Starting Print Jobs in KDE” (page 202) for more information.
Firefox
Opens the Firefox Web browser. For more information, refer to Chapter 14,
Browsing with Firefox (page 217).
Ofce
Opens a new OpenOfce.org document. For an introduction to this ofce suite, refer to Chapter 3, The OpenOfce.org Ofce Suite (page 77).
The panel (in KDE also called “Kicker”) is a bar, typically located at the top or the bottom of the screen. It is designed to provide information about running applications or the system and easy access to some important functions or applications. If you hold your pointer over an icon, a short description is displayed.
Figure 1.3
KDE Panel (Kicker)
The panel typically consists of the following areas:
Main Menu Icon
By default, the left end of the panel has an icon that opens the main menu, similar to the start button on the MS Windows desktop. The main menu has a well-ordered structure for accessing the main applications. It also contains menu items for major functions like logging out or searching for applications. For more information, see
Section 1.3.1, “Accessing the Main Menu” (page 22).
Getting Started with the KDE Desktop 21
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Quick Launcher
Next to the main menu icon, nd the quick launcher. It holds some icons for the most important functions or applications to enable you to start them without going through the main menu. It also contains an icon for the Help Center, which provides online help for your system.
Desktop Previewer
Next to the quick launcher, nd the desktop previewer, which shows your different desktops. These virtual desktops enable you to organize your work. If you use many programs simultaneously, you might want to run some programs in one desktop and other programs in the other desktop. To switch between desktops, click the desktop symbol in the panel.
Taskbar
The taskbar is located next to the desktop previewer. By default, all started appli­cations and open windows are displayed in the taskbar, which allows you to access any application regardless of the currently active desktop. If you click a window title in the taskbar, the application is moved to the foreground. If it is already in the foreground, clicking minimizes the application.
System Tray
The rightmost part of the panel usually holds the system clock, the volume control, and several other helper applications.
To learn how to congure the appearance and behavior of your desktop, including the main menu, desktop icons, or the panel, refer to Changing Panel Elements (page 62).
1.3.1 Accessing the Main Menu
Open the main menu by clicking the icon to the far left of the panel. Alternatively, press
Alt + F1 . The main menu is subdivided into these sections: Most Used Applications,
All Applications (a menu with all applications sorted according to categories), and Ac­tions. Applications that you start most often appear in the Most Used Applications
section.
The function-oriented menu structure makes it easy to nd the right application for your purpose even if you do not know the application names yet. If you already know the name of an application (or at least a part of its name) but are not sure how to start
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it from the main menu, you can use the search function provided in the All Applications section.
Figure 1.4
Main Menu Search Function
Just type a part of the application name into the search eld without pressing the Enter key afterwards. If the application is installed on your system, the menu structure leading to this application is highlighted in the main menu.
The following section provides information about a number of actions that can be trig­gered from the main menu.
Recent Documents
Lists the most recently opened les or folders. When you select a document, the application to view or edit this document is started. You can also clear the history of documents.
My System
Gives quick access to some places often needed, such as your home directory or media devices.
Run Command
Opens a dialog where you can enter an command to start the application. The name of the command is often (but not always) the application name written in lowercase. You can use autocompletion of the command by typing the rst letters then pressing
→| . If the command was executed before and can be uniquely identied, it is
completed to full length.
Switch User
To start a second session with a graphical user interface on your machine, select Start New Session. Your current session remains active while you are taken to the
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login screen where you can log in as a different user. You can access the rst session by pressing Ctrl + Alt + F7 . To access a new session, press F8 instead of F7 . Ad­ditional sessions can be accessed by pressing Ctrl + Alt + F9 to F12 .
Lock Session
If you leave your computer you can prevent unauthorized access by others by locking your screen. After locking, a screensaver starts. Access to the session can only be regained with a password. To unlock, enter your normal login password.
Log Out
Opens a dialog with several options: you can end the current session, turn off the computer, restart the computer, or cancel the logout. End Current Session leaves your system running and restores the applications for your next login. If your system provides power management, you are also offered to suspend the computer, making the next system start much faster than a complete boot.
1.3.2 Inserting or Connecting Removable Media
If you insert or connect removable media to your computer (such as CD-ROMs, digital cameras, or USB sticks), these are usually automatically detected. In KDE, a dialog appears, showing the medium type detected and offering several options of what to do with the new medium. The list of options depends on the type of medium inserted.
Figure 1.5
Autodetection of a USB Stick in KDE
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To view the data with a le manager, select Open in New Window and click OK. The Konqueror le manager appears, showing the contents of the removable device.
Figure 1.6
Viewing the Contents of an USB Stick
If you want the same action to be performed every time you insert a removable medium of that type, activate Always do this for this type of media in the autodetection dialog before clicking OK.
Procedure 1.1
Conguring How to Handle Removable Media
In the autodetection dialog, you can also congure how KDE should handle several types of removable media. For example, if you know that a certain type of medium that you use often always contains photos, you can congure it to open an image viewer application automatically:
1
In the autodetection dialog, click Congure.
2
A conguration dialog appears, showing a list of all available actions.
3
Click the Medium types drop-down list and select the type of medium for which to congure a certain action. The list of available actions now only shows actions applicable to the medium type selected.
4
Select the action to apply and click Toggle as Auto Action.
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Figure 1.7
KDE Conguration Dialog for Removable Media
5
Click the Advanced tab and make sure the Enable medium application autostart after mount check box is selected.
6
Click OK to apply the changes and close the conguration dialog. Now every time you insert a medium of this type, the congured action is executed automat­ically and the autodetection dialog does not appear any more.
To reset the action assigned to the type of medium and restore the default options, proceed as follows:
1
Start the KDE Control Center from the main menu by selecting Personal Settings.
2
In the left-hand navigation bar, click Peripherals → Storage Media. The con­guration dialog appears on the right.
3
Click Default and Apply. The next time you insert a medium, the autodetection dialog appears again, leaving you the choice of what to do with the medium.
1.3.3 Accessing Removable Media
KDE offers several ways to access removable media at any time. Clicking My Computer on the desktops opens a view as shown in Figure 1.8, “My Computer” (page 27).
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Figure 1.8
My Computer
If you start Konqueror as a le manager (see Section 1.4, “Managing Folders and Files
with Konqueror” (page 29)) and click Storage Media on the start window or enter
media:/ in the location bar, Konqueror displays the storage devices as shown in
Figure 1.9, “Displaying Media in Konqueror” (page 28).
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Figure 1.9
Displaying Media in Konqueror
You can also name removable devices, such as USB sticks, with Konqueror. Right­click the USB stick in Konqueror and select Properties. On the General tab, enter a name in the input eld and click OK. When inserting the stick the next time, Konqueror displays the name of the stick.
A small green arrow indicates that a medium has been mounted (integrated into your le system, which is necessary to access the data on the medium). In SUSE Linux En­terprise Desktop, you normally do not have to care about mounting removable devices because this is done automatically by default.
NOTE: Removing Media Safely
If you want to remove or disconnect a medium from your computer, make sure that the data on the medium is currently not accessed by any application or user. Otherwise risk a loss of data. To safely remove the medium, proceed as follows:
1. Open a view that displays all removable media.
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2. Right-click the medium to remove and select Safely Remove or Eject. Safely Remove unmounts the medium after which you can disconnect
the medium from your computer. Eject automatically opens the CD or DVD drive of your computer.
1.3.4 Managing the Trash Bin
The trash bin is a directory for les marked for deletion. Drag icons from the le manager or the desktop to the trash bin icon by keeping the left mouse button pressed. Then release to drop them there. Alternatively, right-click an icon and select Move to Trash from the menu. Click the trash bin icon to view its contents. You can retrieve an item from the trash if desired.
Files removed with Delete are not moved to the trash bin, but deleted completely. To delete the les in the trash bin completely, right-click the trash bin icon then click Empty Trash Bin.
1.4 Managing Folders and Files with Konqueror
Konqueror is a unied Web browser, le manager, document viewer, and image viewer. The following sections cover using Konqueror for le management. For infor­mation about Konqueror as a Web browser, see Chapter 13, Browsing with Konqueror (page 209).
Start Konqueror as a le manager by clicking the house icon in the panel. Konqueror displays the contents of your home directory.
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Figure 1.10
The File Manager Konqueror
The Konqueror le manager window consists of the following elements:
Menu Bar
The menu bar holds menu items for actions like copying, moving, or deleting les, changing views, starting additional tools, dening your settings, and getting help.
Toolbar
The toolbar provides quick access to frequently used functions that can also be accessed through the menu. If you hover the pointer over an icon, a short description is displayed. To the right, the toolbar features the Konqueror icon, which is animated while a directory or Web page is loaded.
Location Bar
The location bar shows the path to the directory or le in your le system. You can enter a path to a directory directly by typing it in or by clicking one of the di­rectories in the display eld. Delete the contents of the line by clicking the black symbol with a white X located left of the location bar. After typing an address, press Enter or click Go to the right of the input line.
Unlike a Windows operating system, Linux does not use drive letters. In Windows, you would address the oppy drive as A:\, Windows system data is under C:\, and so on. In Linux, all les and directories are located in a tree-like structure. The topmost directory is referred to as the le system root or just /. All other directories
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can be accessed from it. In the following, nd a short overview of the most important directories in a Linux le system:
/home holds the private data of every user who has an account on your system. The les located here can only be modied by their owner or the system adminis­trator. Your e-mail directory is located here, for example.
NOTE: Home Directory in a Network Environment
If you are working in a network environment, your home directory may not be called /home but can be mapped to any directory in the le system.
/media generally holds any type of drive except the hard drive of your system. Your USB ash drive appears under /media once you have connected it, as do your digital camera (if it uses USB) and DVD or CD drive.
Under /usr/share/doc, nd any kind of documentation on your Linux system and the installed packages. The manual subdirectory holds a digital copy of this manual as well as the other manuals and the release notes of the installed version of your Linux system. The packages directory holds the documentation included in the software packages.
/windows only appears if you have both MS Windows and Linux installed on your system. It holds the MS Windows data.
Learn more about the Linux le system concept and nd a more comprehensive list of directories in Section 14.1.2, “Linux Directory Structure” (Chapter 14, Working with the Shell, ↑Deployment Guide).
Navigation Panel
You can hide and show the navigation panel by pressing F9 . The navigation panel displays your information in a tree view. Determine which contents you want to see by clicking one of the symbols in the tab at the left of the navigation panel. If you hold your mouse pointer over an icon, a short description is displayed. For example, you can show the le system as a tree starting at the root folder or at your home folder.
Display Field
The display eld shows the contents of the selected directory or le. In the View menu, choose between different view modes to display the contents, such as Icon
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View, Tree View, or Detailed List View. If you click a le, Konqueror shows a preview of the contents or loads the le into an application for further processing. If you hold the mouse pointer over the le, Konqueror shows a tool tip with detailed information about the le, such as owner, permissions, or last modication date.
By default, Konqueror does not show any hidden les, which are often system les that you usually do not want to access or see. In Linux, hidden les are indicated by a dot in front. You can toggle the view to see or hide hidden les by selecting View → Show Hidden Files.
1.4.1 Copying, Moving, or Deleting Files
For performing actions like copying, moving, or deleting les, you need appropriate permissions to the folders and les involved in your action. Read more about changing access permissions in Section 1.4.3, “Changing Access Permissions” (page 33).
TIP: Selecting Objects in Konqueror
Clicking a le or a folder in Konqueror directly starts an action: a preview of the le is displayed or the folder is opened. To former users of MS Windows, this behavior may be rather unusual. If you just want to select one or several les without any other action, press Ctrl then click the object. Alternatively, alter your mouse settings in the KDE Control Center (see Section 2.2.6, “Regional
& Accessibility” (page 72)).
To copy or move a le or folder, proceed as follows:
1
Right-click the object and select Copy or Cut from the context menu. The object is kept in the clipboard.
2
Navigate to your destination folder under which you want to insert the object. Right-click the destination folder and select Paste. The object is copied or moved there.
The quickest way to perform actions like copying or moving objects in Konqueror is the drag-and-drop method. For instance, you can easily move objects from one window to another by simply dragging them. When dropping the object, you are asked whether the objects should be moved or copied.
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To delete a le or folder, proceed as follows:
•
Select the object and press Del or right-click the le then select Move to Trash from the context menu. The object is moved to the trash bin. If necessary, you can restore the le or folder from there or delete it completely. See also Section 1.3.4,
“Managing the Trash Bin” (page 29).
•
To delete the object irretrievably, click Edit → Delete or press Shift + Del . If you want to add Delete to the context menu, congure this behavior in Konqueror by clicking Settings → Congure Konqueror → Behavior and activating the respective check box.
1.4.2 Creating a New Folder
To create a new folder in Konqueror, proceed as follows:
1
Right-click the folder to which to add a subfolder.
2
Select Create Folder.
3
In the New Folder dialog, enter a name for the new folder and click OK.
1.4.3 Changing Access Permissions
Because Linux is a multiuser system, every le in a Linux le system belongs to a user and a group. All users, including the superuser, have their own home directories where private data, like documents, bookmarks, or e-mail, are stored. Write access to these home directories is strictly limited to the owner by default. As an owner of a le or di­rectory, you can change the access permissions to your les. For example, you can protect les holding sensitive data against read access by other users and you can au­thorize other users to write, read, or execute several of your les where appropriate.
Traditionally, three permission sets are dened for each le object on a Linux system. These sets include the read (r), write (w), and execute (x) permissions for each of three types of users—the le owner, the group, and other users. For detailed information about the user concept of Linux, refer to Section 14.2, “Users and Access Permissions” (Chapter 14, Working with the Shell, ↑Deployment Guide). Instead of using the “tradi-
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tional” way to change access permissions in a shell, you can also use the graphical user interface Konqueror provides.
To set permissions for a le, choose from the following options in Konqueror:
Forbidden
Users can see the lename in the le system but cannot open the le and read it.
Can Read
Users can open and read the le but cannot change it.
Can Read & Write
Users can open, read, and change the le.
To set permissions for a folder, the following options are available in Konqueror:
Forbidden
Users can see the folder name in the le system but cannot open the folder.
Can View Content
Users can see the folder contents.
Can View & Modify Content
Users can see the folder contents and create new les or subfolders.
To change access permissions:
1
Open Konqueror and select the le or folder for which to change access permis­sions.
2
Right-click the le and select Properties. A new dialog opens.
3
Click the Permissions tab. It shows the ownership of the le or folder in the lower part. The upper part shows the current access permissions.
4
From the lists for Owner, Group, and Others, select the permissions to set for the le or folder.
5
Click OK to apply the changes.
Apart from this traditional permission concept for le system objects, you can also use access permission lists (ACLs) with Konqueror. With ACLs, permissions can be dened
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more exibly than the traditional permission concept allows. They allow assigning permissions to individual users or groups even if these do not correspond to the original owner or the owning group. For more in-depth information about ACLs, refer to Chapter 12, Access Control Lists in Linux (↑Deployment Guide).
To grant certain users or groups access permission to a le or folder, proceed as fol­lows:
1
Open Konqueror and select the le or folder for which to change access permis­sions.
2
Open the Properties dialog for the le or folder and click the Permissions tab.
3
Click Advanced Permissions. The following dialog shows the current permissions for the object.
Figure 1.11
Advanced Permissions for a File or Folder
4
Click Add Entry.
5
To grant a certain user access permission to the le or folder, select Named User and select a user from the list.
To grant a certain group access permission to the le or folder, select Named Group and select a group from the list.
6
In the Advanced Permissions dialog, the added user or group appears in the list showing the current permissions. The green check marks in the columns r, w,
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and x indicate that the user has read, write, and execute access to the le or folder.
Figure 1.12
Assigning Permissions to a Certain User
7
You can modify the access rights for the user by clicking the corresponding check marks for this user in the column r, w, or x.
8
When all access permissions are set according to your wishes, click OK to close the dialog.
9
Click OK to apply your changes and to close the Properties dialog.
1.4.4 Changing File Associations
With Konqueror, you can decide which application should be used to open a le.
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Figure 1.13
Conguring File Associations in Konqueror
1
In Konqueror, click Settings → Congure Konqueror → File Associations.
2
To search for an extension, enter the extension in Find Filename Pattern. Only le types with a matching le pattern appear in the list. For example, to modify the application for *.png les, enter png in Find Filename Pattern.
3
In the Known Types list, click the le type to open the setting dialog for this le type. You can change the icon, the lename patterns, description, and the order of the applications.
If your tool is not listed, click Add in Application Preference Order then enter the command.
To change the order of the list entries, click the program to move then give it a higher or lower priority by clicking Move Up or Move Down. The application listed at the top is used by default when you click a le of this type.
4
If you need a le type that is not listed in the Known Types list, click Add to open a dialog where you can select a group and enter a type name. The group deter­mines the main type, for example, audio, image, text, or video. Your le type can usually be assigned to one of these.
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a
Click OK then determine the extensions of the lename.
b
Specify a description in the text eld and select which application to use.
5
Click OK.
1.4.5 Saving View Proles
You can temporarily change the view of certain folders by selecting a different View Mode in the View menu. To apply these changes to all folders, you can save your options
to a view prole. To do so, change the view according to your wishes and click Settings → Congure View Proles. Enter a name for the prole to save and click Save. The view is changed for all folders and saved in this prole. You can now load this prole at any time by clicking Settings → Load View Prole. By default, Konqueror contains several view proles designed for various tasks. You can also take one of these proles as a draft and modify it according to your needs.
1.4.6 Accessing Digital Cameras with Konqueror
With Konqueror, you can also access your digital camera. Connect your camera to the USB port. A camera icon should appear on the desktop. Click this icon to open the camera in Konqueror. The camera can also be accessed by entering the URL camera:
/ in Konqueror. Navigate through the camera's directory structure until the les are
shown. Use the usual Konqueror le management features to copy the les as desired.
1.4.7 Viewing Images with Konqueror
You can also easily use Konqueror as image viewer. For a quick and comfortable overview of all images in a directory, select the directory and click the Image View icon in the toolbar. Konqueror generates thumbnails and shows them on the left-hand side of the window. Click a thumbnail to see the full-size view of the picture on the right­hand side of the window. A number of additional icons appears in the toolbar for navi­gating back and forth, zooming or rotating the pictures, or creating a slide show. To toggle to “normal” view again, click Icon View or Tree View in the toolbar.
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Apart from this functionality, you can also create image galleries that show your images in an album-like fashion. Open your image directory in Konqueror and click Tools → Create Image Gallery. A dialog opens where you can specify the background and foreground colors, the page title, the location to save the gallery, and other settings. Click OK to start the action. By default, a le called index.html is created. If you click this le in Konqueror, your images are displayed in a miniaturized, organized view. Click an image to access its full-size view.
Figure 1.14
Creating an Image Gallery with Konqueror
For viewing your images, you can also use Gwenview. To start Gwenview, press Alt + F2 and enter gwenview. For further information about Gwenview, see the Gwenview online help.
For downloading photographs from digital cameras, you can use Digikam as described in Chapter 18, Using Digital Cameras with Linux (page 241).
1.5 Accessing Network Resources
From your desktop, you can access les and directories or certain services on remote hosts or make your own les and directories available to other users in your network.
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SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop offers various different ways of accessing and creating network-shared resources. Given that the network structure and the conguration of your computer allow for it, you can easily browse your network for shared resources and services with your le manager, Konqueror.
To do so, click the Network Browsing icon on the desktop. The window displays the network share types that you can access. Click a network resource type then click the network share to access. You might be required to authenticate to the resource by pro­viding a username and password.
Figure 1.15
Workgroups on a Windows Network
1.6 Opening or Creating Documents
with OpenOfce.org
The ofce suite OpenOfce.org offers a complete set of ofce tools including a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, vector drawing, and database components. Because OpenOfce.org is available for a number of operating systems, you can use the same data across different computing platforms. You can also open and edit les in Microsoft Ofce formats then save them back to this format, if needed.
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To start OpenOfce.org, press Alt + F2 and enter OOo or click the Ofce icon on the desktop.
For an introduction to OpenOfce.org, see Chapter 3, The OpenOfce.org Ofce Suite (page 77) or view the help in an OpenOfce.org program.
1.7 Finding Data on your Computer or in the File System
KDE provides more than one application for nding data on your computer or in the le system. With Kerry, you can very easily search your personal information space (usually your home folder) to nd documents, e-mails, Web history, IM/ITC conversa­tions, source code, images, music les, applications, and much more. For more infor­mation, refer to Chapter 11, Searching with Kerry (page 195).
With KFind, you can locate les on your computer or in the le system using a variety of search criteria, such as le content, dates, owner, or le size. Start it from the main menu with Find Files/Folders. Alternatively, press Alt + F2 and enter kfind.
Figure 1.16
Finding Files with KFind
1.7.1 Finding Files
To perform a search for certain lenames, proceed as follows:
Getting Started with the KDE Desktop 41
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1
Start KFind from the main menu or command line.
2
Click the Name/Location tab to perform a basic search.
3
Specify the name of the le to nd in Named. You can use the following wild cards:
Asterisk
The asterisk (*) stands for any number of missing characters (even zero). For example, searching for marc* can nd the les marc, marc.png, and
marc_must_not_read_this.kwd. Searching for mar*.kwd can nd market­place.kwd and marc_must_not_read_this.kwd.
Question Mark
The question mark (?) stands for exactly one character. For example, searching for mar? can nd marc, but marc? cannot nd anything if your les are named marc and marc.png. You can put as many question marks in the search term as you want. It nds exactly that number of characters.
You can combine those two wild card symbols in any search term.
4
Specify the folder to search in Look In or click Browse to nd the folder you want. Select Include Subfolders to also search all subfolders starting from your specied folder.
5
Press Enter or click Find.
1.7.2 Performing an Advanced File Search
For a more detailed search, you can also specify further options, such as a text the le to nd must contain:
1
Start KFind from the main menu or the command line.
2
Click the Name/Location tab.
3
Specify the name of the le to nd in Named.
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4
Specify the folder in which to search in Look In or click Browse to nd the folder.
5
Click the Contents tab.
6
In File Type, specify the type of le to nd.
7
In Containing Text, enter the word or phrase the le you are searching for must contain.
8
If you want to specify further options, click the Properties tab and choose the options you want. If you hold the mouse pointer over the options or elds, a short description is displayed.
9
Click Find to perform the search.
For detailed information about the search options available, refer to the KFind online help.
For advanced searches, you may want to use search patterns or regular expressions. KRegExpEditor offers search options based on regular expressions. You can install KRegExpEditor with YaST as the package kdeutils3-extra. For more information about search patterns and the use of wild cards or regular expressions, refer to Sec­tion 14.1, “Getting Started with the Bash Shell” (Chapter 14, Working with the Shell, ↑Deployment Guide).
1.8 Exploring the Internet
In KDE, the default Web browser is Konqueror. To start Konqueror, click the Konqueror icon on the panel or press Alt + F2 and enter konqueror. Learn more about Konqueror as a Web browser in Chapter 13, Browsing with Konqueror (page 209).
In addition to Konqueror, you can use a Mozilla-based browser, Firefox. Start Firefox from the main menu or by pressing Alt + F2 and entering firefox. You can type an address into the location bar at the top or click links in a page to move to different pages, just like in any other Web browser. For more information about Firefox, see Chapter 14,
Browsing with Firefox (page 217) .
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1.9 E-Mail and Scheduling
KMail is an e-mail client that supports e-mail protocols like POP3 and IMAP. It also has multiple e-mail account support, powerful lters, PGP/GnuPG privacy, and online attachments. Start KMail from the main menu or press Alt + F2 and enter kmail.
Kontact is a personal information management (PIM) tool that combines well-known applications like KMail, KOrganizer, and KAddressBook into a single interface. This lets you have easy access to your e-mail, calendar, address book, and other PIM func­tionality. To start Kontact, press Alt + F2 and enter kontact. For detailed information about using Kontact, see Chapter 4, Kontact: E-Mailing and Calendaring (page 111).
1.10 Moving Text between Applications
To copy text to the clipboard and insert it again, former MS Windows users automati­cally try the shortcut keys Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V , which often work in Linux as well. Copying and inserting texts is even easier in Linux: to copy a text to the clipboard, just select the text with the mouse then move the mouse cursor to the position where you want the text copied. Click the middle button on the mouse to insert the text (on a two­button mouse, press both mouse buttons simultaneously).
With some applications, if a text is already selected in the application where you want to insert the text, this method does not work because the text in the clipboard is over­written by the other selected text. For such cases, the KDE application Klipper is very useful. Klipper “remembers” the last entries you have moved to the clipboard. By default, Klipper is started when KDE is loaded and appears as a clipboard icon in the panel. To view the clipboard contents, click the Klipper icon. The most recent entry is listed on top and is marked as active with a black check mark. If an extensive text was copied to Klipper, only the rst line of the text is displayed.
To copy an older text fragment from Klipper to an application, select it by clicking it, move the mouse pointer to the target application, then middle-click. For further infor­mation about Klipper, see the Klipper online help.
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1.11 Important Utilities
The following pages introduce a number of small KDE utilities intended to assist in daily work. These applications perform various tasks, such as managing your Internet connections and your passwords, creating data archives, and viewing PDF les.
1.11.1 Managing Internet Connections
To surf the Internet or send and receive e-mail messages, connect an ISDN or ethernet card or a modem to your machine and congure it. This can be done with the help of the YaST system assistant. You can establish Internet connections with NetworkMan­ager or KInternet. In YaST, select whether to use NetworkManager.
For further details, refer to Network Connectivity Guide. It includes a list of criteria that help you to decide whether to use NetworkManager or other applications and describes the usage of the applications.
1.11.2 Managing Passwords with KWallet Manager
Remembering all the passwords for protected resources to which you need to log in can be problematic. KWallet remembers them for you. It collects all passwords and stores them in an encrypted le. With a single master password, open your wallet to view, search, delete, or create entries. Normally you do not need to insert an entry manually. KDE recognizes if a resource requires authentication and KWallet starts au­tomatically.
IMPORTANT: Protect Your KWallet Password
If you forget your KWallet password, it cannot be recovered. Furthermore, anyone who knows your password can obtain all information contained in the wallet.
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Starting KWallet
When KWallet starts for the rst time (for example, when you access a Web site where you must enter a password to log in), a dialog appears with the welcome screen. Choose between Basic setup (recommended) and Advanced setup. If you choose Basic setup, in the next screen you can choose whether to store personal information. Some KDE applications, such as Konqueror or KMail, can use the wallet system to store Web form data and cookies. Select Yes, I wish to use the KDE wallet to store my personal infor- mation to activate KWallet and leave with Finish.
If you choose Advanced setup, you have an additional security level screen. The default settings are generally acceptable for most users, but others may wish to change them. Automatically close idle wallets closes wallets after a period of inactivity. To separate network passwords and local passwords, activate Store network passwords and local passwords in separate wallet les. Close with Finish.
You can alter the settings at any time by right-clicking the KWallet icon in the panel and selecting Congure Wallet. A dialog box opens where you can select several options. By default, all passwords are stored in one wallet, kdewallet, but you can also add new wallets. Once congured, KWallet appears in the panel.
The KWallet Manager
To store data in your wallet or view its contents, click the KWallet icon in the panel. A dialog box opens, showing the wallets that are accessible on your system. Click the wallet to open. A window prompts for your password.
After a successful login, the KWallet Manager window opens. It is divided into four different parts: the top left part displays a summary, the top right part displays subfolders, the lower left part shows a list with folder entries, and the lower right part shows the contents of a selected entry.
In the KWallet Manager, you can change your master password for KWallet at any time with File → Change Password.
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Figure 1.17
The KWallet Manager Window
You can add or delete folders. Selecting a folder updates the folder entry list and the summary display. Selecting a folder entry updates the entry contents pane and allows you to edit that entry. Entries can also be created or deleted using the context menu for the folder contents.
To insert a new entry, proceed as follows:
Procedure 1.2
Inserting New Entries in Your Wallet
1
In the top right part of the window, select the subfolder to which to add an entry.
The lower left part shows a list of entries belonging to the subfolder. You can add a new entry to Maps or Passwords. Use Maps if you have key and value pairs. Passwords can contain multiline entries.
2
To add a new password, right-click the Passwords entry then select New from the context menu.
3
Specify a name for the new entry then click OK. Your new entry is sorted under your folder entry.
4
Click the new entry to display it on the right side (the folder is initially empty).
5
Click Show Contents to open an input eld where you can enter your new pass­word.
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6
Type in your password and click Save. KWallet saves your password to the subfolder selected.
Copying Your Wallet to Another Computer
For the most part, KWallet resides silently in the panel and is automatically activated if needed. However, you can copy your wallet les to another computer (for example, your laptop). To simplify this task, wallets can be dragged from the manager window to a le browser window. This let you easily package a new wallet for transfer to another environment. For example, a new wallet could be created and copied onto a removable ash memory device. Important passwords could be transferred there, so you have them available in other locations.
1.11.3 Displaying, Decompressing, and Creating Archives
To save space on the hard disk, use a packer that compresses les and directories to a fraction of their original size. The application Ark can be used to manage such archives. It supports common formats, such as zip, tar.gz, tar.bz2, lha, and rar.
Start Ark from the main menu or from the command line with ark. If you already have some compressed les, move these from an open Konqueror window to the Ark window to view the contents of the archive. To view an integrated preview of the archive in Konqueror, right-click the archive in Konqueror and select Preview in Archiver. Alter- natively, select File → Open in Ark to open the le directly.
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Figure 1.18
Ark: File Archive Preview
Once you have opened an archive, perform various actions. Action offers options such as Add File, Add Folder, Delete, Extract, View, Edit With, and Open With.
To create a new archive, select File → New. Enter the name of the new archive in the dialog that opens and specify the format using Filter. After conrming with Save or by pressing Enter , Ark opens an empty window. You can drag and drop les and directories from the le manager into this window. As the nal step, Ark compresses everything into the previously selected archive format. For more information about Ark, select Help → Ark Handbook.
1.11.4 Taking Screen Shots
With KSnapshot, you can create snapshots of your screen or individual application windows. Start the program from the main menu or by pressing Alt + F2 and entering ksnapshot. The KSnapshot dialog consists of two parts. The upper area (Current Snapshot) contains a preview of the current screen and three buttons for creating and saving the screen shots. The lower area contains further options for the actual creation of the screen shot.
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Figure 1.19
KSnapshot
To take a screen shot, use Snapshot Delay to determine the time (in seconds) to wait between clicking New Snapshot and the actual creation of the screen shot. If Only Grab the Window Containing the Pointer is selected, only the window containing the pointer is saved. To save the screen shot, click Save Snapshot and designate the directory and lename for the image in the subsequent dialog. Click Print Snapshot to print the screen shot.
You can also use The GIMP to take screen shots. To open The GIMP, press Alt + F2 and enter gimp. When you run GIMP for the rst time, it installs some les in your home directory and displays dialogs that give you the opportunity to adapt it to your environment. For information about using The GIMP, refer to Chapter 17, Manipulating
Graphics with The GIMP (page 233) or see its help. You may need to install the help
with YaST (kdeutils3-extra).
1.11.5 Viewing PDF Files with KPDF
PDF is probably one of more important formats. KPDF is a KDE program that can view and print them.
Start KPDF by pressing Alt + F2 and entering kpdf. Load a PDF le with File → Open. KPDF displays it in its main window. On the left side, there is a sidebar with thumbnails and a contents view. Thumbnails give an overview of the page. The contents view contains bookmarks to navigate in your document. Sometimes it is empty, meaning bookmarks are not supported by this PDF.
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To view two pages in the main window, select View → Two Pages. The view depends on what last two options you activate in the View menu.
Another nice option is to select the area in which you are interested with the select tool from the toolbar. Draw a rectangle and choose from the pop-up menu whether you need the selected area as text or as a graphic. It is copied to the clipboard. You can even save the area to a le.
1.11.6 Font Administration with KFontinst
By default, SUSE® Linux Enterprise Desktop provides various fonts commonly available in different le formats (Bitmap, TrueType, etc.). These are known as system fonts. Users can additionally install their own fonts from various collections on CD­ROM. Such user-installed fonts are, however, only visible and available to the corre­sponding user.
The KDE control center provides a comfortable tool for administering system and user fonts. It is shown in Figure 1.20, “Font Administration from the Control Center” (page 51).
Figure 1.20
Font Administration from the Control Center
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To check which fonts are currently available, type the URL fonts:/ into the address eld of a Konqueror session. This displays two windows: Personal and System. User-installed fonts are installed to the folder Personal. Only root can install to the System folder.
To install fonts as a user, follow these steps:
1.
Start the Control Center and access the appropriate module with System Admin- istration → Font Installer.
2.
Choose Add Fonts from the toolbar or from the menu available when right­clicking the list.
3. In the dialog that opens, select one or more fonts for installation.
4. The marked fonts are then installed to your personal font folder. Selecting a font shows a preview.
To update system fonts, rst select Administrator mode and enter your root password. Then proceed as described for user font installation.
1.11.7 Controlling Sound with KMix
YaST identies and congures the sound cards of your computer automatically. Other­wise, start the YaST Hardware module and congure the sound card manually. When your sound card has been congured, you can control the volume and balance of the sound with a mixer.
TIP: Starting the Mixer
If the mixer icon (a loudspeaker symbol) is not visible in the panel of your desktop, press Alt + F2 and enter kmix or start the mixer from the main menu. You usually nd it under Volume Control.
By default, clicking the KMix icon in the system tray shows the master controller where you can increase or decrease the overall volume. To switch off the sound, click the green LED, which darkens when it is muted. Toggle this option by clicking the LED again. To ne-tune your sound settings for several channels, right-click the KMix icon and select Show Mixer Window. In the main window, you can congure Output, Input,
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and Switches. Each of the devices featured there has its own context menu that is opened by right-clicking the device icon. You can mute or hide each one of them separately. For further information about KMix, refer to the online help.
Figure 1.21
The KMix Mixer
1.12 Managing Software
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop comes with a set of small helper applications that assist you in managing your software collection. You can install, remove and update software packages with just a few clicks.
1.12.1 Obtaining Software Updates
Novell offers a continuous stream of software security updates for your product. Using the Software Updater applet in your desktop panel, you can easily apply security updates with just a few clicks. Whenever you connect to the Internet, Software Updater auto­matically checks whether updates for your system are available from the updated sources specied in the Software Updater conguration and those set up during installation.
The Software Updater resides in the notication area (GNOME) or the system tray (KDE) of your panel as an icon depicting a globe, which changes color depending on the availability of a network link and new updates.
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Left-click the panel icon to launch the updater window where you can select the software updates to be applied. Right-click the panel icon to access a menu with the following items:
Congure
Select and congure additional update services and subscribe to additional catalogs. See Section “Conguring Additional Packages Sources” (page 54) and Section
“Selecting Update Catalogs” (page 55).
Refresh
Poll the update server for pending updates.
TIP
For background information on the underlying rug command and its congu­ration options, see Section 7.12, “Update from the Command Line” (Chapter 7, System Conguration with YaST, ↑Deployment Guide) or refer to the rug man page.
Conguring Additional Packages Sources
Apart from the ofcial update source provided by Novell, you can congure Software Updater to check additional package sources for updates. Ask your system administrator for additional package sources that are available for your product and for connection details.
To add a new package source, proceed as follows:
1
Right-click the Software Updater icon and click Congure.
Figure 1.22
Adding an Additional Package Source
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2
Click Add Service.
Figure 1.23
Determining the Service Type
3
Select the type of update repository from the drop-down list. Software Updater currently supports YUM, RCE, ZENworks, and user-mounted sources.
4
Add the connection details for the source type you selected (server URI and registration key) and click Add.
The source is listed in the Services tab and is ready to be used and checked for available update packages.
Selecting Update Catalogs
The ofcially supported update catalogs were automatically selected when you registered at the Novell update server. However, if you have added any custom installation sources, you can select a set of catalogs from those sources to be checked in addition to the preselected ones. There may be, for example, a catalog containing all the software that came with the original release of the product and another one containing all the update packages released since.
To select additional update catalogs, proceed as follows:
1
Right-click Software Updater and select Congure.
2
Select the Catalogs tab.
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Figure 1.24
Selecting a Catalog
3
Select the catalogs you want or deselect those you do not need and close the conguration window by clicking the X in the upper right corner.
Selecting and Applying Updates
When updates are available, the panel icon changes color.
To review and apply updates, proceed as follows:
1
Click the panel icon.
2
Select from the list which updates you want to apply. Click Details for more in­formation about the selected update.
Figure 1.25
Selecting the Software Updates
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3
Click Update.
1.12.2 Installing Software
Software Installer lets you install software on your machine.
To install software, proceed as follows:
1
Select Install Software from the main menu.
Figure 1.26
Selecting the Packages to Install
2
Select the software from the list that you want to install or search for software by typing a search term in the search eld and clicking Search. Click Details for information about the selected software. You can select all available software by clicking All.
3
Click Install.
Conguring Additional Packages Sources
You can add package sources from which you can install software.
To add a package source, proceed as follows:
1
Select Install Software from the main menu.
2
Click Congure.
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Figure 1.27
Adding an Additional Package Source
3
Click Add Service.
Figure 1.28
Determining the Service Type
4
Select the type of the update repository from the drop-down list. Software Installer currently supports YUM, RCE, ZENworks, and user-mounted sources.
5
Add the connection details for the source type you selected (server URI and registration key) and click Add.
The source is listed in the Services tab and is ready to be used and checked for available packages.
Selecting Installation Catalogs
You can congure your Software Installer to accept additional catalogs.
To select additional installation catalogs, proceed as follows:
1
Select Install Software from the main menu.
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2
Click Congure.
3
Select the Catalogs tab.
Figure 1.29
Selecting a Catalog
4
Select the catalogs you want or deselect those you do not need and close the conguration window by clicking the X in the upper right corner.
1.12.3 Removing Software
Software Remover lets you remove software from your machine.
To remove software, proceed as follows:
1
Select Remove Software from the main menu.
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Figure 1.30
Selecting the Software Packages to Remove
2
Select the software you want to remove. You can click Details for more informa­tion about the selected software.
3
Click Remove.
1.13 For More Information
As well as the applications described here for getting started, KDE can run a lot of other applications. Find detailed information about many important applications in the other parts of this manual.
• To learn more about KDE and KDE applications, also refer to http://www.kde
.org/ and http://www.kde-apps.org/.
• To report bugs or add feature requests, go to http://bugs.kde.org/.
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2
Customizing Your Settings
You can change the way your KDE desktop looks and behaves to suit your own personal tastes and needs. If you only want to change the appearance of individual desktop objects, you can usually access a conguration dialog by right-clicking the object. For customiz­ing certain groups of desktops elements or changing the overall appearance of your KDE desktop, refer to Section 2.2, “Conguring Your Desktop with the Control Center” (page 64).
2.1 Changing Individual Desktop Elements
In the following, nd some examples of how to change individual desktops elements.
Procedure 2.1
Creating New Desktop Objects
To add a new desktop object, proceed as follows:
1
Right-click an empty space on the desktop and select Create New.
2
From the submenu, choose the type of object to create on the desktop: a folder or one of several types of les or links.
3
Enter the name of the new object when prompted to do so and click OK.
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4
To change the properties of the new object, right-click the new icon and select Properties. A dialog appears, showing four tabs where you can change the properties of the object, such as the permissions.
5
Apply your changes and leave the dialog with OK.
Procedure 2.2
Changing Panel Elements
Add new elements to the quick launch area and the system tray in the panel as follows:
1
Right-click an empty patch of the panel.
2
To add a new application to the panel:
a
From the context menu, select Add Application to Panel.
b
Select the application to add from one of the categories of the submenu. The application icon is inserted into the panel.
c
To change the icon for the application, right-click the button and select Congure Application Button. By clicking the application icon in the dialog box that appears, open a new window in which to select a different icon.
d
To remove the icon from the panel, right-click the icon and select Remove Button.
3
To add a new applet to the panel:
a
From the context menu select Add Applet to Panel.
b
In the dialog box that appears, you can restrict the number of applets shown by selecting a special type of applet in Show or by typing a part of the applet name in Search.
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Figure 2.1
Adding an Applet to the Panel
c
Select the applet to add and click Add to Panel. The applet is inserted into the panel.
d
To remove the applet from the panel, right-click the icon and select Quit. When the context menu of the applet does not provide a Quit menu item, hold the mouse pointer over the left-side boundary of the area and right­click the small black arrow displayed there. Select Remove.
4
To move an application icon to a different position in the panel, right-click the icon and select Move. The mouse pointer changes into a crosshair. Drag the pointer to the place in the panel where you want to insert the icon then press the left mouse button. The icon is inserted at the new position.
5
In the same way, you can also move areas of the panel, such as the desktop pre­viewer, the taskbar, and the system tray: Hold the mouse pointer over the boundary of the area and click the small black arrow displayed there. From the context menu, select Move. Click again to insert the area at the new position.
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2.2 Conguring Your Desktop with the Control Center
With KDE, you can personalize your desktop to a very high degree. You can change a variety of settings, such as the desktop background, screen saver, fonts, keyboard and mouse conguration, and sounds. Adjust these settings with the modules of the KDE Control Center. Start the Control Center from the main menu by selecting Personal Settings or press Alt + F2 and enter kcontrol.
Figure 2.2
KDE Control Center
The sidebar provides different categories with a subset of settings each. Just click a category icon and explore the possibilities provided there. You can always return to the higher-level category by clicking Back. For an overview of all categories, switch to a tree view. Change the view by selecting View → Mode → Tree View.
Clicking an item displays the corresponding settings on the right. Change the settings as desired. No changes take effect until you click Apply. If you have changed an option then decide that you want to leave the settings as they were, click Reset to discard the changes. Reset all items on the page to the default values by clicking Default. Changing some settings may require root permissions. Log in as root if prompted to do so.
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The following sections introduce the major categories and contain procedures for some common changes you may want to apply to your KDE desktop. Detailed information about the settings of each category is provided by the Help button on each page of set­tings or in the help center.
2.2.1 Appearance & Themes
This category lets you change the way your KDE desktop and applications look. You can access a number of settings.
Background holds options for the background of your desktop, such as colors, pictures, or slide shows. If you congured multiple virtual desktops, you can set different options for each. See Section 2.2.2, “Desktop” (page 67).
Colors lets you manage and edit color schemes for your desktop. There are a variety of color schemes installed by default, but you can also create your own color scheme using a predened scheme as starting point.
With Fonts, all fonts and font attributes used on the KDE desktop can be congured. You can also modify antialiasing settings. By default, antialiasing is activated for all fonts. Antialiasing is a software technique for diminishing jagged edges that should be smooth. Although it reduces the jagged appearance of the lines, it also makes them fuzzier. To deactivate or customize antialiasing, select the corresponding options.
In the Icons section, control the icon style for the entire KDE desktop. Icons are used on the desktop, panel, and toolbars of applications. You can choose icon themes, adjust icon sizes, assign effects to icons (for example, you can make them semitransparent or colorize them), and congure settings for each of the different places icons are used.
Launch Feedback allows you to modify what kind of cursor and taskbar feedback you want for starting applications. For example, instead of a bouncing cursor indicating that an application is loading, you can set a blinking cursor.
A screen saver automatically appears if you do not use your computer for a specic time. In the Screensaver section, change the screen saver or congure the time-out before it starts.
In the Splash Screen section, you can change the splash screen that displays on KDE start-up.
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Style holds options for user interface elements (called widgets) in KDE, such as buttons, menus, and scroll bars. You can choose a certain style and see a preview of it.
With Theme Manager, choose, install, or modify conguration sets (themes) for your KDE desktop.
Window Decorations provides options for the title bar of the windows and the style of the borders around windows.
Procedure 2.3
Changing Your Desktop Background
If you want to change your desktop background, for example, proceed as follows:
1
Start the Control Center from the main menu or press Alt + F2 and enter kcontrol.
2
Click Appearance & Themes → Background.
3
In Settings for Desktop select the virtual desktop to which the changes should apply.
Figure 2.3
Changing the Background Picture
4
If you want to change the picture on the background, click Picture and select one of the pictures provided by the list. To use a custom picture, click the folder button beneath the list and select an image le from the le system.
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5
Choose a certain Position for your picture in the Options group.
6
If you do not want a certain picture on the background, click No picture.
7
From the Options group, click the left button below Colors to select the color for your background. For a multicolor background, set Colors to an option other than Single Color and click the right button below to select a second color.
Figure 2.4
Setting a Background Color for your Desktop
8
When all options are set according to your wishes, click Apply.
2.2.2 Desktop
The Desktop settings congure the appearance and behavior of your KDE desktop.
In Behavior, congure options such as showing or hiding desktop icons, showing tool tips, and icon layout. You can also specify if you want to see previews of particular le types on the desktop and which devices have icons.
In Multiple Desktops, increase or reduce the number of virtual desktops to use and enter a name for each desktop. By default, two virtual desktops are congured on your system. You can switch between the desktops with the desktop previewer in the panel or by using the mouse wheel.
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Panels controls panel options such as size, position, length, and display. You can also change the appearance of the panel with transparency, background images, and icon zooming. Because the main menu is also part of the panel, also congure various menu options here, including the applications shown in your main menu.
In the Taskbar section, congure options such as whether to show windows from all desktops on the taskbar, grouping of similar tasks, and what action on the taskbar your mouse buttons trigger.
Window Behavior customizes the default KDE window manager, kwin. Here, control what happens when windows are moved, clicked, or resized. You can bind actions to certain keys and mouse events.
Window-Specic Settings lets you customize settings that only apply to some windows. It only takes effect if you use KWin as your window manager.
Procedure 2.4
Conguring the Main Menu
If you want to congure your main menu, proceed as follows:
1
Start the Control Center from the main menu or press Alt + F2 and enter kcontrol.
2
Click Desktop → Panels.
Figure 2.5
Editing the Main Menu
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3
Click the Menus tab.
4
You can dene whether you want to see the applications names or the descriptive text (or both) in the main menu. Select from Name only, Name (Description), Description only, and Description (name).
5
If you want to change a menu item, click Edit K Menu. The K Menu Editor shows a list of menu items on the left.
a
Click the item in the list and change its options on the right.
b
You can add new menu items, submenus, or separators with the File menu or the toolbar.
c
To cut, copy, paste, or delete objects in the main menu, use the Edit menu or the icons in the toolbar.
d
To apply your changes in the K Menu Editor, click File → Quit.
6
To apply all of your changes in the Menus tab and close the KDE Control Center, click Apply .
2.2.3 Internet & Network
The Internet & Network category helps you congure Internet and networking options.
Two sections deal with how to manage your Bluetooth devices and services: Paired Bluetooth Devices and Bluetooth Services. To learn more about Bluetooth, refer to Section 28.2, “Bluetooth” (Chapter 28, Wireless Communication, ↑Deployment Guide). In the Connection Preferences section, KDE lets you change the time-out values for different connections.
Desktop Sharing is useful if you want to invite other people to your desktops. Only let trustworthy users take part in your session.
File Sharing allows you to congure Samba (Windows) and NFS (UNIX) le sharing. The settings can only be changed if you are an administrator. If you log in as root, you can add, change, or remove folders to share with others.
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Use Local Network Browsing if you want to browse a local network. It is like “Network Neighborhood.” Take into account that you may need some additional software, espe­cially the LISa daemon (see package kdenetwork3-lisa).
In Proxy, you can customize proxy and SOCKS servers. Normally, if your administrator does not tell you to use this, it is probably not useful for you.
The settings in Samba should only be congured with YaST.
Web Browser offers settings for the default KDE browser, Konqueror. For example, you can customize fonts, manage cookies, and determine Web behavior, such Web shortcuts. For more information about how to use Web shortcuts, refer to Section 13.5.2,
“Using Web Shortcuts” (page 212).
2.2.4 KDE Components
This category holds advanced KDE options, such as the default application to open when clicking a link.
The Component Chooser module handles basic tasks. You can change the default e­mail client, text editor, messenger, terminal, and Web browser. Whenever a KDE appli­cation needs to start an application of these types, it always calls the default component set here.
KDE uses File Associations to identify a le type and start an appropriate application. Here, you can also choose which icon represents each le type and whether to show les of a certain type in an embedded or a separate viewer.
The File Manager module congures the behavior of Konqueror as a le manager. Here, dene which fonts and font sizes to use, the path to your home directory, if pre­views are allowed, and if quick copy and move actions are allowed.
In KDE Performance , you can optimize the performance of your KDE desktop.
An overview of all plug-ins of the KDE daemon is shown in Service Manager. This module shows two different types: services invoked on start-up and services called on demand. Normally, do not change the settings of this module, because it is vital for KDE.
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In Session Manager, dene how KDE handles sessions on login and shutdown. By default, KDE remembers your previous session and restores the applications you were using the next time you login. You can dene different options here, such as excluding individual applications from being restored.
Spell Checker lets you modify what spell checker to use, what types of errors to check for, and the default dictionary to use. The KDE spell checking system (KSpell) provides support for several spell checking utilities: the most commonly used are ASpell and ISpell. For more information, see also ASpell [http://aspell.sourceforge
.net] and ISpell [http://fmg-www.cs.ucla.edu/fmg-members/geoff/ ispell.html].
2.2.5 Peripherals
This category holds settings for various devices that can be plugged in to your computer, such as a digital camera, display, keyboard, and mouse.
Digital Camera lets you congure support for your digital camera. You can add your camera model and dene the type of port by which it is connected to your computer.
With Display, modify your display options, such as screen size and power control if supported by your display.
Joystick helps to check whether your joystick is working correctly. You can adjust the calibration.
The Keyboard section allows you to modify basic keyboard settings such as keyboard repeat delay.
You can also adjust many Mouse settings, such as actions to trigger by single or double clicking, cursor themes, and double-click intervals.
With OBEX Devices, congure OBEX connections for your devices, such as PDAs.
Remote Controls allows you to congure bindings between your remote controls and KDE applications.
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2.2.6 Regional & Accessibility
This category holds regional settings as well as options for handicapped users.
In Accessibility, congure functions that can help individuals with difculties in hearing or motor function. These include certain sound and keyboard options.
The Country/Region & Language section lets you congure options that are specic for your location, such as language, currency, and number and date format.
In Input Actions, congure mouse gestures and keyboard shortcuts for starting applica­tions and running commands.
In the Keyboard Layout section, nd multiple layouts for different languages. If Enable Keyboard Layouts is selected, you can add and activate several keyboard layouts, such as English and German, and switch between them. Fine-tune them in the Xkb Options tab.
In the Keyboard Shortcuts section, you can dene global KDE shortcuts. For an overview of the currently active shortcuts, refer to the list of Global Shortcuts. You can also choose a different, predened shortcut scheme, such as a Windows or Mac scheme.
2.2.7 Security & Privacy
This category holds settings for personal security certicates, KWallet, password treatment, and privacy settings.
To make KDE more secure, Crypto allows you to congure SSL (secure socket layer). This is used in most KDE applications as well as others. There is also a possibility to manage your personal certicates.
KDE Wallet allows you to congure the KDE Wallet system, KWallet. It saves sensitive information, such as passwords and form data, for several applications in a strongly encrypted le, protected with a master password that you dene. For information about using KWallet, see Section 1.11.2, “Managing Passwords with KWallet Manager” (page 45).
To change your personal settings, go to Password & User Account. Here, set a new name, organization, e-mail address, SMTP server, or password.
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The Privacy module manages personal Web browsing data. For example, use it to clear the cache, delete the history of visited Web sites, or remove unwanted cookies.
2.2.8 Sound & Multimedia
Use this category to perform all settings for the playback of audio CDs and for the sound system.
In Audio CDs, congure encoding and device settings.
With Sound System, congure aRts, KDE's sound server. This allows you to hear your system sound while simultaneously listening to a music CD.
With System Bell, switch from system notications (default) to a system bell and specify the volume, pitch, and duration of the bell.
The System Notications section denes how the system should inform you in the event of a problem, when a task is performed, or if an event requiring your immediate attention occurs. In the upper part of the dialog, select the application for which to congure the system notications. As soon as you select a program, all events the application can send to the user are listed in the lower window. Determine the notication type for each notication in the Actions dialog.
The default view of the system notication dialog only offers Play a sound for audible notication. Click More Options to access other action modes. You can log the noti­cation to a le, execute a program, or show the message in a pop-up window. In the lower part of the dialog under Quick Controls, globally activate or deactivate the actions for all programs.
2.2.9 System Administration
This category offers options for central system tasks. Most of the sections require root permission to make changes.
With Font Installer, you can install personal or systemwide fonts. To change system fonts, click Administrator Mode.
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The module Linux Kernel only takes effect if you have installed the source of your kernel. It is only useful if you are a developer compiling a new kernel and want to customize some options.
Login Manager congures the KDE login manager, KDM. You can change the appear­ance, fonts used, background shown, shutdown behavior, what users are displayed at login, and some convenience issues for the login screen.
The Path section denes the paths to some important directories for your data: desktop, autostart, and documents.
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Part II. Ofce and Collaboration
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3
The OpenOfce.org Ofce Suite
OpenOfce.org is a powerful open-source ofce suite that provides tools for all types of ofce tasks, such as writing texts, working with spreadsheets, or creating graphics and presentations. With OpenOfce.org, you can use the same data across different computing platforms. You can also open and edit les in other formats, including Mi­crosoft Ofce, then save them back to this format, if needed. This chapter covers infor­mation about the Novell® edition of OpenOfce.org and some of the key features you should be aware of when getting started with the suite.
OpenOfce.org consists of several application modules (subprograms), which are de­signed to interact with each other. They are listed in Table 3.1, “The OpenOfce.org
Application Modules” (page 77). A full description of each module is available in the
online help, described in Section 3.8, “Finding Help and Information About OpenOf-
ce.org” (page 108).
Table 3.1
The OpenOfce.org Application Modules
PurposeModule
Word processor application moduleWriter
Spreadsheet application moduleCalc
Presentation application moduleImpress
Database application moduleBase
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PurposeModule
Application module for drawing vector graphicsDraw
Application module for generating mathematical formulasMath
The appearance of the application varies depending on the desktop or window manager you use. Regardless of the appearance, the basic layout and functions are the same.
3.1 Understanding OpenOfce.org
This section contains information that applies to all of the application modules in OpenOfce.org. Module-specic information can be found in the sections relating to each module.
3.1.1 What’s New in OpenOfce.org 2.0
OpenOfce.org 2.0 contains many improvements and features that were not included in earlier versions. The biggest new feature is the Base database module. There have been many other changes since the previous version, such as enhanced PDF export and improved word count capabilities. For a complete list of features, xes, and enhance­ments, go to the OpenOfce.org Web site (http://www.openoffice.org/dev
_docs/features/2.0/).
3.1.2 Enhancements in the Novell Edition of
OpenOfce.org 2.0
The Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org included with SUSE® Linux Enterprise Desktop contains enhancements that are not available in the standard edition. These include:
3.1.2 Integration with SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop
The Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org features redesigned tool bar icons for maximum consistency with SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop, including support for desktop ap-
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pearance or theme changes. These features provide a consistent interface across the Linux desktop, which enhances overall usability and helps minimize enterprise training and support requirements.
3.1.2 Native Desktop Dialogs
The Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org uses your desktop’s native le dialogs rather than those in the standard edition. This provides the same look and feel of other appli­cations in your environment, giving you a consistent, familiar experience.
3.1.2 Enhanced Support for Microsoft Ofce File Formats
OpenOfce.org supports import and export of Microsoft Ofce le formats, even taking advantage of compatible fonts to match document length. Transparent document sharing makes OpenOfce.org the best choice if you are deploying Linux desktops in a mixed Linux/Windows environment.
3.1.2 E-Mail as Microsoft Ofce Document
The standard edition of OpenOfce.org supports e-mailing of les as PDF les from within the OpenOfce.org application. With the Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org, you can also e-mail any document as a Microsoft Ofce le. For example, you can e-mail a Writer le as a Microsoft Word le. If that option is selected, the le is automatically converted and attached to an e-mail in your default e-mail application.
3.1.2 Excel VBA Macro Interoperability
The Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org eases the migration of many macros from Mi­crosoft Excel. Although not all macros can be successfully migrated, this interoperabil­ity offers more than the standard edition, which does not support migration of macros.
3.1.2 Enhanced Fonts
For the Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org, Novell licensed fonts from AGFA that use the same or similar names as the fonts available in Microsoft Ofce. The fonts also look similar to those used by Microsoft. This allows OpenOfce.org to match fonts
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when opening documents originally composed in Microsoft Ofce, and very closely match pagination and page formatting.
3.1.2 Integration with Novell Evolution
The Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org is tightly integrated with Novell Evolution™, allowing users to send documents as e-mail and to perform mail merges using the Evolution address book as a datasource.
3.1.2 Improved File Access
Files are available from any source available to the computer. Network les open and save seamlessly.
3.1.2 Anti-aliased Presentation Graphics
With hardware acceleration enabled (the default), the Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org provides higher-quality graphics in Impress slide shows.
3.1.2 Faster Start-up Times
The Novell Edition of OpenOfce.org includes an improved built-in quickstarter that loads OpenOfce.org components at system startup and thus improves the application’s start-up time. Subsequent document load times have also been improved.
3.1.3 Using the Standard Edition of OpenOfce.org
The standard edition of OpenOfce.org also works with SLED. If you install the latest version of OpenOfce.org, all of your Novell Edition les remain compatible. However, the standard edition does not contain the Novell enhancements.
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3.1.4 Compatibility with Other Ofce Applications
OpenOfce.org can work with documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and databases in many other formats, including Microsoft Ofce. They can be seamlessly opened like other les and saved back to the original format. Because the Microsoft formats are proprietary and the specications are not available to other applications, there are occa­sionally formatting issues. If you have problems with your documents, consider opening them in the original application and resaving in an open format such as RTF for text documents or CSV for spreadsheets.
TIP
For good information about migrating from other ofce suites to OpenOf­ce.org, refer to the OpenOfce.org Migration Guide (http://
documentation.openoffice.org/manuals/oooauthors2/ 0600MG-MigrationGuide.pdf).
Converting Documents to the OpenOfce.org Format
OpenOfce.org can read, edit, and save documents in a number of formats. It is not necessary to convert les from those formats to the OpenOfce.org format to use those les. However, if you want to convert the les, you can do so. To convert a number of documents, such as when rst switching to OpenOfce.org, do the following:
1
Select File → Wizard → Document Converter.
2
Choose the le format from which to convert.
There are several StarOfce and Microsoft Ofce formats available.
3
Click Next.
4
Specify where OpenOfce.org should look for templates and documents to convert and in which directory the converted les should be placed.
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IMPORTANT
Documents from a Windows partition are usually in a subdirectory of /windows.
5
Make sure that all other settings are appropriate, then click Next.
6
Review the summary of the actions to perform, then start the conversion by clicking Convert.
The amount of time needed for the conversion depends on the number of les and their complexity. For most documents, conversion does not take very long.
Sharing Files with Users of Other Ofce Suites
OpenOfce.org is available for a number of operating systems. This makes it an excellent tool when a group of users frequently need to share les and do not use the same system on their computers.
When sharing documents with others, you have several options.
If the recipient needs to be able to edit the le: Save the document in the format the other user needs. For example, to save as a Microsoft Word le, click File → Save As, then select the Microsoft Word le type for the version of Word the other user needs.
If the recipient only needs to read the document: Export the document to a PDF le with File → Export as PDF. PDF les can be read on any platform using a viewer like Adobe Acrobat Reader. ,
If you want to share a document for editing: Use one of the standard document formats. The default formats comply with the OASIS standard XML format, making them compatible with a number of applications. TXT and RTF formats, although limited in formatting, might be a good option for text documents. CSV is useful for spreadsheets. OpenOfce.org might also offer your recipient's preferred format, especially Microsoft formats.
If you want to e-mail a document as a PDF: Click File → Send → Document as PDF Attachment.Your default e-mail program opens with the le attached.
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If you want to e-mail a document to a Microsoft Word user: Click File → Send → Document as MS-Doc Attachment. Your default e-mail program opens with the le attached.
3.1.5 Starting OpenOfce.org
1
Start the application in one of the following ways:
• On the menu bar, click .
This opens Writer. To open a different module, click File → New from the newly opened Writer document, then choose the module you want to open.
•
From the Computer menu, click Computer → More Applications → Ofce, then click the name of the OpenOfce.org module you want to start.
• In a terminal window, enter ooffice. The OpenOfce.org window opens. Click File → New, then choose the module you want to open.
2
Select the module you want to open.
If any OpenOfce.org application is open, you can open any of the other applications by clicking File → New → Name of Application.
3.1.6 Improving OpenOfce.org Load Time
To speed up the load time of OpenOfce.org by preloading the application at system startup:
1
Click Tools → Options → Memory.
2
Select Start at Startup.
The next time you restart your system, OpenOfce.org will preload. When you open an OpenOfce.org application module, it will open faster.
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3.1.7 Customizing OpenOfce.org
You can customize OpenOfce.org to best suit your needs and working style. Toolbars, menus, and keyboard shortcuts can all be recongured to help you more quickly access the features you use the most. You can also assign macros to application events if you want specic actions to occur when those events take place. For example, if you always work with a specic spreadsheet, you can create a macro that opens the spreadsheet and assign it to the Start Application event.
This section contains simple, generic instructions for customizing your environment. The changes you make are effective immediately, so you can see if the changes are what you wanted and go back and modify them if they weren’t. See the OpenOfce.org help les for detailed instructions.
Customizing Toolbars
Use the Customize dialog to modify OpenOfce.org toolbars.
1
Click the arrow icon at the end of any toolbar.
2
Click Customize Toolbar.
3
Select the toolbar you want to customize.
4
Select the check boxes next to the commands you want to appear on the toolbar, and deselect the check boxes next to the commands you don’t want to appear.
5
Select whether to save your customized toolbar in the OpenOfce.org module you are using or in the document.
• OpenOfce.org module
The customized toolbar is used whenever you open that module.
• Document lename
The customized toolbar is used whenever you open that document.
6
Repeat to customize additional toolbars.
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7
Click OK.
You can quickly choose the buttons that appear on a particular toolbar.
1
Click the arrow icon at the end of the toolbar you want to change.
2
Click Visible Buttons to display a list of buttons.
3
Select the buttons in the list that appears to enable (check) or disable (uncheck) them.
Customizing Menus
You can add or delete items from current menus, reorganize menus, and even create new menus.
1
Click Tools → Customize → Menu.
2
Select the menu you want to change, or click New to create a new menu.
Click Help for more information about the options in the Customize dialog.
3
Modify, add, or delete menu items as desired.
4
Click OK.
Customizing Keyboard Shortcuts
You can reassign currently assigned keyboard shortcuts and assign new shortcuts to frequently used functions.
1
Click Tools → Customize → Keyboard.
2
Select the keys you want to assign to a function, or select the function and assign the keys or key combinations.
Click Help for more information about the options in the Customize dialog.
3
Modify, add, or delete keyboard shortcuts as desired.
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4
Click OK.
Customizing Events
OpenOfce.org also provides ways to assign macros to events such as application startup or the saving of a document. The assigned macro runs automatically whenever the selected event occurs.
1
Click Tools → Customize → Events.
2
Select the event you want to change.
Click Help for more information about the options in the Customize dialog box.
3
Assign or remove macros for the selected event.
4
Click OK.
Changing the Global Settings
Global settings can be changed in any OpenOfce.org application by clicking Tools → Options on the menu bar. This opens the window shown in the gure below. A tree structure is used to display categories of settings.
Figure 3.1
The Options Window
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The following table lists the settings categories along with a brief description of each category:
Table 3.2
Global Setting Categories
DescriptionSettings Category
Various basic settings, including your user data (such as your address and e-mail), important paths, and settings for printers and external programs.
OpenOfce.org
Includes the settings related to the opening and saving of several le types. There is a dialog for general settings and
Load/Save
several special dialogs to dene how external formats should be handled.
Covers the various settings related to languages and writing aids, such as your locale and spell checker settings. This is also the place to enable support for Asian languages.
Language Settings
Includes the dialogs to congure any proxies and to change settings related to search engines.
Internet
Congures the global word processing options, such as the basic fonts and layout that Writer should use.
Text Document
Changes the settings related to the HTML authoring features of OpenOfce.org.
HTML Document
Changes the settings for Calc, such as those related to sort lists and grids.
Spreadsheet
Changes the settings that should apply to all presentations. For example, you can specify the measurement unit for the grid used to arrange elements.
Presentation
Includes the settings related to the vector drawing module, such as the drawing scale, grid properties, and some print options.
Drawing
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DescriptionSettings Category
Provides a single dialog to set special print options for formu­las.
Formula
Denes the default colors used for newly created charts.
Chart
Denes how external data sources should be accessed.
Data Sources
IMPORTANT
All settings listed in the table are applied globally. They are used as defaults for every new document you create.
3.1.8 Finding Templates
Templates greatly enhance the use of OpenOfce.org by simplifying formatting tasks for a variety of different types of documents. OpenOfce.org comes with a few tem­plates, and you can nd additional templates on the Internet. You can also create your own. Creating templates is beyond the scope of this guide, but detailed instructions are found in the OpenOfce.org help system and in other documents and tutorials available online.
In addition to templates, you can nd other extras and add-ins online. The following table lists a few of the prominent places where you can nd templates and other extras. (Because Web sites often close or their content changes, the information in the following table might not be current when you read it.)
Table 3.3
Where to Find OpenOfce.org Templates and Extras
What You Can FindLocation
Templates for Calc spreadsheets, CD cases, seed packets, fax cover sheets, and more
OpenOfce.org documentation Web site (http://documentation.openoffice
.org/Samples_Templates/User/ template_2_x/index.html)
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What You Can FindLocation
Templates for many types of labelsWorldlabel.com (http://www
.worldlabel.com/Pages/ openoffice-template.htm)
For more information about templates, see Section 3.2.4, “Using Templates to Format
Documents” (page 94) and Section 3.3.2, “Using Templates in Calc” (page 100).
3.2 Word Processing with Writer
OpenOfce.org Writer is a full-featured word processor with page and text formatting capabilities. Its interface is similar to interfaces for other major word processors, and it includes some features that are usually found only in expensive desktop publishing applications.
This section highlights a few key features of Writer. For more information about these features and for complete instructions for using Writer, look at the OpenOfce.org help or any of the sources listed in Section 3.8, “Finding Help and Information About
OpenOfce.org” (page 108).
NOTE
Much of the information in this section can also be applied to other OpenOf­ce.org modules. For example, other modules use styles similarly to how they are used in Writer.
3.2.1 Creating a New Document
There are two ways to create a new document:
To create a document from scratch, click File → New → Text Document.
To use a standard format and predened elements for your own documents, try a wizard. Wizards are small utilities that let you make some basic decisions then produce a ready­made document from a template. For example, to create a business letter, click File →
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Wizards → Letter. Using the wizard's dialogs, easily create a basic document using a standard format. A sample wizard dialog is shown in Figure 3.2, “An OpenOfce.org
Wizard” (page 90).
Figure 3.2
An OpenOfce.org Wizard
Enter text in the document window as desired. Use the Formatting toolbar or the Format menu to adjust the appearance of the document. Use the File menu or the relevant buttons in the toolbar to print and save your document. With the options under Insert, add extra items to your document, such as a table, picture, or chart.
3.2.2 Sharing Documents with Other Word Processors
You can use Writer to edit documents created in a variety of other word processors. For example, you can import a Microsoft Word document, edit it, and save it again as a Word document. Most Word documents can be imported into OpenOfce.org without any problem. Formatting, fonts, and all other aspects of the document remain intact. However, some very complex documents—such as documents containing complicated tables, Word macros, or unusual fonts or formatting—might require some editing after being imported. OpenOfce.org can also save in many popular word processing formats. Likewise, documents created in OpenOfce.org and saved as Word les can be opened in Microsoft Word without any trouble.
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So, if you use OpenOfce.org in an environment where you frequently share documents with Word users, you should have little or no trouble exchanging document les. Just open the les, edit them, and save them as Word les.
3.2.3 Formatting with Styles
OpenOfce.org uses styles for applying consistent formatting to various elements in a document. The following types of styles are available:
Table 3.4
About the Types of Styles
What it DoesType of
Style
Applies standardized formatting to the various types of paragraphs in your document. For example, apply a paragraph style to a rst-level
Paragraph
heading to set the font and font size, spacing above and below the heading, location of the heading, and other formatting specications.
Applies standardized formatting for types of text. For example, if you want emphasized text to appear in italics, you can create an emphasis style that italicizes selected text when you apply the style to it.
Character
Applies standardized formatting to frames. For example, if your doc­ument uses sidebars, you can create frames with specied graphics,
Frame
borders, location, and other formatting so that all of your sidebars have a consistent appearance.
Applies standardized formatting to a specied type of page. For exam­ple, if every page of your document contains a header and footer except
Page
for the rst page, you can use a rst page style that disables headers and footers. You can also use different page styles for left and right pages so that you have bigger margins on the insides of pages and your page numbers appear on an outside corner.
Applies standardized formatting to specied list types. For example, you can dene a checklist with with square check boxes and a bullet
List
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What it DoesType of
Style
list with round bullets, then easily apply the correct style when creating your lists.
Opening the Styles and Formatting Window
The Styles and Formatting window (called the Stylist in earlier versions of OpenOf­ce.org), is a versatile formatting tool for applying styles to text, paragraphs, pages, frames, and lists. To open this window, click Format Styles and Formatting. OpenOf­ce.org comes with several predened styles. You can use these styles as they are, modify them, or create new styles.
TIP
By default, the Styles and Formatting window is a oating window; that is, it opens in its own window that you can place anywhere on the screen. If you use styles extensively, you might nd it helpful to dock the window so that it always present in the same part of the Writer interface. To dock the Styles and Formatting window, press Control while you double-click on a gray area in the window. This tip applies to some other windows in OpenOfce.org as well, in­cluding the Navigator.
Applying a Style
To apply a style, select the element you want to apply the style to, and then double­click the style in the Styles and Formatting window. For example, to apply a style to a paragraph, place the cursor anywhere in that paragraph and double-click the desired style.
Using Styles Versus Using Formatting Buttons and Menu Options
Using styles rather than the Format menu options and buttons helps give your pages, paragraphs, texts, and lists a more consistent look and makes it easier to change your formatting. For example, if you emphasize text by selecting it and clicking the Bold
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button, then later decide you want emphasized text to be italicized, you need to nd all of your bolded text and manually change it to italics. If you use a character style, you only need to change the style from bold to italics and all text that has been formatted with that style automatically changes from bold to italics.
Text formatted with a menu option or button overrides any styles you have applied. If you use the Bold button to format some text and an emphasis style to format other text, then changing the style does not change the text that you formatted with the button, even if you later apply the style to the text you bolded with the button. You must man­ually unbold the text and then apply the style.
Likewise, if you manually format your paragraphs using Format → Paragraph, it is easy to end up with inconsistent paragraph formatting. This is especially true if you copy and paste paragraphs from other documents with different formatting.
Changing a Style
Styles are powerful because you can change formatting throughout a document by changing a style, rather than applying the change separately everywhere you want to apply the new formatting.
1
In the Styles and Formatting window, right-click the style you want to change.
2
Click Modify.
3
Change the settings for the selected style.
For information about the available settings, refer to the OpenOfce.org online help.
4
Click OK.
Creating a Style
OpenOfce.org comes with a collection of styles to suit many users’ needs. However, most users eventually need a style that does not yet exist. To create a new style:
1
Right-click in any empty space in the Styles and Formatting window.
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Make sure you are in the list of styles for the type of style you want to create. For example, if you are creating a character style, make sure you are in the character style list.
2
Click New.
3
Click OK.
4
Name your style and choose the settings you want applied with that style.
For details about the style options available in any tab, click that tab and then click Help.
3.2.4 Using Templates to Format Documents
Most word processor users create more than one kind of document. For example, you might write letters, memos, and reports, all of which look different and require different styles. If you create a template for each of your document types, the styles you need for each document are always readily available.
Creating a template requires a little bit of up-front planning. You need to determine what you want the document to look like so you can create the styles you need in that template. You can always change your template, but a little planning can save you a lot of time later.
NOTE
You can convert Microsft Word templates like you would any other Word document. See Section “Converting Documents to the OpenOfce.org Format” (page 81) for information.
A detailed explanation of templates is beyond the scope of this section. However, more information is found in the help system, and detailed how-tos are found at the OpenOfce.org Documentation page (http://documentation.openoffice
.org/HOW_TO/index.html).
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Creating a Template
A template is a text document containing only the styles and content that you want to appear in every document, such as your address information and letterhead on a letter. When a document is created or opened with the template, the styles are automatically applied to that document.
To create a template:
1
Click File → New → Text Document.
2
Create the styles and content that you want to use in any document that uses this template.
3
Click File → Templates → Save.
4
Specify a name for the template.
5
In the Categories box, click the category you want to place the template in.
The category is the folder where the template is stored.
6
Click OK.
3.2.5 Working with Large Documents
You can use Writer to work on large documents. Large documents can be either a single le or a collection of les assembled into a single document.
Navigating in Large Documents
The Navigator tool displays information about the contents of a document. It also lets you quickly jump to different elements. For example, you can use the Navigator to get a quick overview of all images included in the document.
To open the Navigator, click Edit → Navigator. The elements listed in the Navigator vary according to the document loaded in Writer.
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Figure 3.3
Navigator Tool in Writer
Click an item in the Navigator to jump to that item in the document.
Creating a Single Document from Multiple Documents
If you are working with a very large document, such as a book, you might nd it easier to manage the book with a master document, rather than keeping the book in a single le. A master document enables you to quickly apply formatting changes to a large document or to jump to each subdocument for editing.
A master document is a Writer document that serves as a container for individual Writer les. You can maintain chapters or other subdocuments as individual les col­lected in the master document. Master documents are also useful if multiple people are working on a document. You can separate each person’s portion of the document into subdocuments collected in a master document, allowing multiple writers to work on their subdocuments at the same time without fear of overwriting other people’s work.
NOTE
If you are coming to OpenOfce.org from Microsoft Word, you might be ner­vous about using master documents because the master document feature in Word has a reputation for corrupting documents. This problem does not exist in OpenOfce.org Writer, so you can safely use master documents to manage your projects.
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To create a master document:
1
Click New → Master Document.
or
Open an existing document and click File → Send → Create Master Document.
2
Insert subdocuments.
3
Click File → Save.
The OpenOfce.org help les contain more complete information about working with master documents. Look for the topic entitled “Using Master Documents and Subdoc­uments.”
TIP
The styles from all of your subdocuments are imported into the master docu­ment. To ensure that formatting is consistent throughout your master document, you should use the same template for each subdocument. Doing so is not mandatory; however, if subdocuments are formatted differently, you will probably need to do some reformatting to successfully bring subdocuments into the master document without creating inconsistencies. For example, if two documents imported into your master document include different styles with the same name, the master document will use the formatting specied for that style in the rst document you import.
3.2.6 Using Writer as an HTML Editor
In addition to being a full-featured word processor, Writer also functions as an HTML editor. Writer includes HTML tags that can be applied as you would any other style in a Writer document. You can view the document as it will appear online, or you can directly edit the HTML code.
Creating an HTML Document
1
Click File → New → HTML Document.
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2
Click the arrow at the bottom of the Formatting and Styles window.
3
Select HTML Styles.
4
Create your HTML document, using the styles to tag your text.
5
Click File → Save As.
6
Select the location where you want to save your le, name the le, and select HTML Document (.html) from the Filter list.
7
Click OK.
If you prefer to edit HTML code directly, or if you want to see the HTML code created when you edited the HTML le as a Writer document, click View → HTML Source. In HTML Source mode, the Formatting and Styles list is no longer available.
NOTE
The rst time you switch to HTML Source mode, you are prompted to save the le as HTML, if you have not already done so.
3.3 Using Spreadsheets with Calc
Calc is the OpenOfce.org spreadsheet application. Create a new spreadsheet with File → New → Spreadsheet or open one with File → Open. Calc can read and save in Mi­crosoft Excel's format, so it is easy to exchange spreadsheets with Excel users.
NOTE
Calc can process many VBA macros in Excel documents; however, support for VBA macros is not yet complete. When opening an Excel spreadsheet that makes heavy use of macros, you might discover that some do not work.
In the spreadsheet cells, enter xed data or formulas. A formula can manipulate data from other cells to generate a value for the cell in which it is inserted. You can also create charts from cell values.
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3.3.1 Using Formatting and Styles in Calc
Calc comes with a few built-in cell and page styles to improve the appearance of your spreadsheets and reports. Although these built-in styles are adequate for many uses, you will probably nd it useful to create styles for your own frequently used formatting preferences.
Creating a Style
1
Click Format → Styles and Formatting.
2
In the Formatting and Styles window, click either the Cell Styles or the Page Styles icon.
3
Right-click in the Formatting and Styles window, then click New.
4
Specify a name for your style and use the various tabs to set the desired formatting options.
5
Click OK.
Modifying a Style
1
Click Format → Styles and Formatting.
2
In the Formatting and Styles window, click either the Cell Styles or the Page Styles icon.
3
Right-click the name of the style you want to change, then click Modify.
4
Change the desired formatting options.
5
Click OK.
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3.3.2 Using Templates in Calc
If you use different styles for different types of spreadsheets, you can use templates to save your styles for each spreadsheet type. Then, when you create a particular type of spreadsheet, open the applicable template and the styles you need for that template are available in the Formatting and Styles window.
A detailed explanation of templates is beyond the scope of this section. However, more information is found in the help system and detailed how-tos are found at the OpenOf­ce.org Documentation page (http://documentation.openoffice.org/
HOW_TO/index.html).
Creating a Template
A Calc template is a spreadsheet that contains styles and content that you want to appear in every spreadsheet created with that template, such as headings or other cell styles. When a spreadsheet is created or opened with the template, the styles are automatically applied to that spreadsheet.
To create a template:
1
Click File → New → Spreadsheet.
2
Create the styles and content that you want to use in any spreadsheet that uses this template.
3
Click File → Templates → Save.
4
Specify a name for the template.
5
In the Categories box, click the category you want to place the template in.
The category is the folder where the template is stored.
6
Click OK.
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