InformIT: Red Hat Linux 7 Unleashed > Configuring KDE with the KDE Control Center

Configuring KDE with the KDE Control Center

The KDE Control Center is the main dialog box through which you can change numerous settings of your desktop, get system information (such as the currently mounted devices and capacities), or (if logged in as the root operator) configure and control KDE's appearance, background, fonts, and sessions for all users.

Click the Application Starter button on your desktop's panel, and then click KDE Control Center to display the Control Center dialog box. The main dialog box appears, as shown in Figure 5.14.

Figure 5.14 The KDE Control Center dialog box provides access to many different controls of your system's KDE sessions.

Using Display Manager Options

Use the Modules menu's Applications group login menu item in the Control Center to change the appearance or contents of the kdm login dialog box. You must be logged in as the root operator to access this portion of the Control Center, but you can get around this limitation without logging out of the current KDE session. Open a terminal window and type the su command, followed by the kcontrol client, on the command line:


   # su -c kcontrol &

The Login Manager dialog box, shown in Figure 5.15, enables you to change how the kdm login dialog box appears when you set Linux to boot directly to X. You can change the greeting strings, the type of logo used, and even the language used for your KDE sessions. By clicking different tabs at the top of the dialog box, you can change the fonts, background, icons for users (perhaps using a scanned image of a person's face), and sessions using other window managers. After you make your changes, click Apply.

Figure 5.15 Use the Login Manager tab to change the appearance of kdm's login screen.

You can also control which users are permitted to log in. Click the Users tab in the Login Manager dialog box. The Users dialog box appears, as shown in Figure 5.16. To selectively control user logins, click the Show Only Selected Users button and then click and add users to the Selected Users section of the dialog box using the >> button.

To control reboot or shutdown through the kdm login screen, click the Sessions tab of the Login Manager dialog box and then click the Allow to Shutdown drop-down menu. Select None, All, Root Only, or Console Only. When finished, click the Apply button.

Changing Your Desktop's Wallpaper

KDE comes with nearly 150 different wallpapers to fill the root display or to fill your desktop's background. To configure the current desktop's wallpaper, again use the Control Center, then choose Look & Feel, Desktop, then Background from the Modules menus. You can also click a blank area of the desktop and select the Configure Background menu item. Additionally, you can click the Application Starter button on the desktop panel and select Preferences, Look & Feel, Desktop, then Background.

Figure 5.16 The Users tab can control who is per mitted to log in to Linux through kdm.

NOTE

KDE wallpapers are in JPEG format and are stored under the /usr/share/ wallpapers directory. Many of these wallpapers look best when used with a display using thousands of colors. Although the default KDE wallpapers are in JPEG format, other graphics formats may be used. Look under the /usr/share/ pixmaps/backgrounds/tiles directory for nearly two dozen images suitable in tiled format as a background. You'll find six directories of 230 swirling, colorful images under the /usr/share/pixmaps/backgrounds/Propaganda directory. You'll also find an excellent selection of stunning NASA photos under the /usr/share/pixmaps/backgrounds/space directory.

The Background dialog box, shown in Figure 5.17, enables you to set the name of each desktop, each desktop's colors, and whether the desktop uses a wallpaper. To set a different wallpaper, click the Wallpaper pop-up menu in the Wallpaper section of the dialog box and then click Apply. A random setting may be used to show wallpapers on the desktop from different directories in different order and at specified intervals.

Figure 5.17 Use the Background dialog box to set your desktop's name, colors, and wallpaper.

Changing Your Screensaver

KDE comes with 20 different screensavers. To configure a screensaver for your KDE desktop, click Preferences, Look & Feel, then the Screensaver menu item on the Panel menu. You can also use KDE's Control Center.

The Screensaver dialog box, shown in Figure 5.18, has a number of settings, such as the type of screensaver, the time delay before activating the screensaver, a random setting to cycle through installed screensavers, and whether you want to require a password to go back to work. After you make your changes, click Apply; click OK to close the dialog box.

Figure 5.18 The Screensaver dialog box has different settings you can use to test a screensaver, set a time delay, or require a password.

Changing Keyboard and Mouse Settings

Click Keyboard from the Peripherals menu in the Control Center's Modules menu to toggle keyboard character repeat (repeated printing of a character when a key is held down), and whether each key-press generates a key-click sound. Click Apply (shown in Figure 5.19) when you finish with your selection.

Figure 5.19 The Keyboard dialog box toggles Keyboard repeat and key-click sounds.

You can also access keyboard and mouse settings through the panel's Preferences menu or KDE's Control Center. The Mouse dialog's Advanced tab lets you change how fast your mouse cursor moves across the screen. To change the sequence of mouse buttons for right- or left-handed users, use the General tab (shown in Figure 5.20). These functions are similar to using the xset and xmodmap commands from the command line.

Figure 5.20 Left-handed mouse users can benefit from KDE's flexible mouse configuration!

Changing Windows Actions

Click the Look & Feel, Windows Behavior, Actions menu item under the Control Center's Modules menu. The dialog (shown in Figure 5.21) is used to set how windows are placed and to determine focus policy.

Figure 5.21 Use the Windows dialog box to change how windows act during your KDE sessions.

The Focus Policy section tells KDE how to make a window active. The default action is that you must click a window to activate it or enable it to receive keyboard input; other policies make a window active when your mouse pointer is over the window.

Controlling the Cursor with the Keyboard

A new feature for KDE is the Accessibility dialog (shown in Figure 5.22). This feature allows you to use your computer's keyboard to move the mouse using the numeric keypad (laptop users may find this a trifle inconvenient, but it works). Select the Module menu's Personalization menu, then click the Accessibility menu item. Next, click the Mouse tab in the dialog and click the Move Mouse with Keyboard (Using the Num Pad) check box.

Figure 5.22 KDE now features accessibility using the keyboard to move the mouse during your KDE sessions.

Other accessibility options include a visual bell, and sticky, slow, and bounce keys (useful to help people enter keys one-handed when two or more keys are required simultaneously).

Controlling KDE Desktop Borders

The Borders dialog box, accessed through the Control Center's Modules menu, then Look & Feel, Desktop and Borders menu item, is used to control cursor movement between virtual desktops. By default, you'll have to click a virtual desktop button on your desktop's panel to move between desktops. If you click the Enable Active Desktop Borders item in the Borders dialog box (shown in Figure 5.23) and then click the Apply button, you can move to a different desktop by moving your mouse cursor to the edge of the current desktop.

You can also drag the different sliders to set the time delay for desktop switching and the width of the sensitive edge of each desktop.

Figure 5.23 The Borders dialog box is used to tell KDE whether to use the mouse to move between desktops, how fast to make the switch, and when to make the change.

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