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<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1"><title>Chapter 1. Getting Started with the KDE Desktop</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="susebooks.css" type="text/css"><meta name="generator" content="DocBook XSL Stylesheets V1.75.2"><link rel="home" href="index.html" title="Documentation"><link rel="up" href="part.kde.desktop.html" title="Part I. Introduction"><link rel="prev" href="part.kde.desktop.html" title="Part I. Introduction"><link rel="next" href="cha.kde.use.html" title="Chapter 2. Working with Your Desktop"></head><body bgcolor="white" text="black" link="#0000FF" vlink="#840084" alink="#0000FF"><div class="navheader"><table width="100%" summary="Navigation header" border="0" class="bctable"><tr><td width="80%"><div class="breadcrumbs"><p><a href="index.html"> Documentation</a><span class="breadcrumbs-sep"> > </span><a href="book.kdeuser.html">KDE User Guide</a><span class="breadcrumbs-sep"> > </span><a href="part.kde.desktop.html">Introduction</a><span class="breadcrumbs-sep"> > </span><strong><a accesskey="p" title="Part I. Introduction" href="part.kde.desktop.html"><span>◀</span></a> <a accesskey="n" title="Chapter 2. Working with Your Desktop" href="cha.kde.use.html"><span>▶</span></a></strong></p></div></td></tr></table></div><div class="chapter" title="Chapter 1. Getting Started with the KDE Desktop"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title"><a name="cha.kde.start"></a>Chapter 1. Getting Started with the KDE Desktop<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#cha.kde.start">¶</a></span></h2></div></div></div><div class="toc"><p><b>Contents</b></p><dl><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="cha.kde.start.html#sec.kde.start.login">1.1. Logging In</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="cha.kde.start.html#sec.kde.start.comp">1.2. Exploring the Desktop Components</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="cha.kde.start.html#sec.kde.start.leave">1.3. Leaving Your System</a></span></dt><dt><span class="sect1"><a href="cha.kde.start.html#sec.kde.start.switchdesk">1.4. Switching Desktops</a></span></dt></dl></div><p>
This chapter assists you in becoming familiar with the KDE desktop of your
openSUSE®. <span>If you have not yet installed your
system, refer to Chapter <i>Installation with YaST</i> (↑Start-Up).</span>
</p><p>
KDE stands for <span class="emphasis"><em>K Desktop Environment</em></span> and is an
easy-to-use graphical user interface that communicates with the underlying
Linux system to access and manage files, folders, and programs. It 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 configuring your desktop in
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html" title="Chapter 3. Customizing Your Settings">Chapter 3, <i>Customizing Your Settings</i></a>.
</p><p>
The following description is based on the default configuration of the KDE
4 desktop shipped with your product. If you or your system administrator
has modified the defaults, some aspects may be different, such as
appearance or keyboard shortcuts.
</p><div class="sect1" title="1.1. Logging In"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="sec.kde.start.login"></a>1.1. Logging In<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.login">¶</a></span></h2></div></div></div><a class="indexterm" name="id327526"></a><p>
If more than one user account is configured on your computer, usually all
users must authenticate—unless <span class="emphasis"><em>Auto Login</em></span> is
configured for a certain user. Auto login logs the user in to the desktop
environment automatically on boot. This feature can be enabled or
disabled during installation or at any time using the YaST user
management module. For more information, see
Chapter <i>Managing Users with YaST</i> (↑Reference). If your computer is run in a network
environment and you are not the only person using the machine, you are
usually prompted to enter your username and password when you start your
system. If you did not set up your system and your user account yourself,
check with your system administrator for your username and password.
</p><p>
The appearance of the login screen depends on the product you use and on
the desktop environment installed on your system. The login process is
managed by an application. For KDE, it is KDM. If the GNOME desktop is
additionally installed on your system, it may be GDM.
</p><p>
<a class="indexterm" name="id384125"></a> To start a normal login, enter your username and password.
If desktops other than KDE are installed, you can select which desktop
environment to start by clicking the <span class="guimenu">Session Typing</span>
menu item at the bottom of the login screen. Press
<span class="keycap">Enter</span> to proceed. For information on how to log
out or switch to another desktop, see
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.start.html#sec.kde.start.leave" title="1.3. Leaving Your System">Section 1.3, “Leaving Your System”</a> and
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.start.html#sec.kde.start.switchdesk" title="1.4. Switching Desktops">Section 1.4, “Switching Desktops”</a>.
</p><div class="figure"><a name="id386737"></a><p class="title"><b>Figure 1.1. A KDM Login Screen</b></p><div class="figure-contents"><div class="mediaobject"><table border="0" summary="manufactured viewport for HTML img" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="70%"><tr><td><img src="images/kdm_screenshot.png" width="100%" alt="A KDM Login Screen"></td></tr></table></div></div></div><br class="figure-break"><p>
If your system administrator has created an encrypted home directory for
you (which is useful as a protection against theft or unauthorized
removal of the hard disk), your home directory is mounted on login. After
login, you can directly access the data as usual—without entering
another password.
</p><div class="note"><table border="0" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" width="100%" summary="Note: Connecting to an Active Directory Server"><tr class="head"><td width="32"><img alt="[Note]" src="admon/note.png"></td><th align="left">Connecting to an Active Directory Server</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" align="left" valign="top"><p>
To access shared network resources, you can also authenticate a KDE
client machine against an Active Directory server. For further details,
refer to <a class="xref" href="cha.network.html" title="Chapter 5. Accessing Network Resources">Chapter 5, <i>Accessing Network Resources</i></a>. If your machine is configured
for this kind of authentication, the login screen also provides an
additional field. In this case, proceed as follows during login:
</p><div class="orderedlist"><ol class="orderedlist" type="1"><li><p>
Select the domain from the list.
</p></li><li><p>
Enter your Windows* username.
</p></li><li><p>
Enter your Windows password and press
<span class="keycap">Enter</span>.
</p></li></ol></div></td></tr></table></div></div><div class="sect1" title="1.2. Exploring the Desktop Components"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="sec.kde.start.comp"></a>1.2. Exploring the Desktop Components<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.comp">¶</a></span></h2></div></div></div><p>
After logging in to KDE for the first time, you see the KDE desktop. It
consists of the following basic elements:
</p><div class="figure"><a name="id395042"></a><p class="title"><b>Figure 1.2. Example KDE Desktop</b></p><div class="figure-contents"><div class="mediaobject"><table border="0" summary="manufactured viewport for HTML img" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="60%"><tr><td><img src="images/kde_desktop_menus.png" width="100%" alt="Example KDE Desktop"></td></tr></table></div></div></div><br class="figure-break"><p title="Desktop Icons and Desktop Folder"><b>Desktop Icons and Desktop Folder. </b>
Desktop icons represent files, directories, applications, functions, and
removable media, like CDs or DVDs. Click an icon on the desktop to
access its associated program or application. By default, your desktop
icons are shown in a <span class="guimenu">Desktop Folder</span>, a transparent
region of the screen showing the contents of the
<code class="filename">Desktop</code> folder of your home directory. If you drag
an icon from the <span class="guimenu">Desktop Folder</span> and drop it on
another part of the desktop, it appears as widget that you can tilt,
enlarge or minimize. Widgets are small applications that can be
integrated into your desktop. Right-click to open a context menu to
access the icon properties, or to remove the icon. For more information,
see <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html#proc.kde.cust.conf.widgets" title="Procedure 3.3. Configuring Widgets">Procedure 3.3, “Configuring Widgets”</a>.
</p><p title="Desktop Context Menu:"><b>Desktop Context Menu: </b>
Right-click an empty area on the desktop to access the context menu for
configuring the appearance of the desktop, adding panels or widgets to
the desktop, locking the widgets in their current position, or for
leaving the current session or locking the screen.
</p><p title="KDE Panel:"><b>KDE Panel: </b>
<a class="indexterm" name="id323033"></a> The panel (in KDE also called <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">Kicker</span>”</span>) is a
bar, typically located at the top or the bottom of the screen. By
default, the panel of your KDE desktop consists of the following areas
(from left to right): quick launcher with the main menu icon on the left
and further program icons, pager (desktop previewer), taskbar, and
system tray. You can add or remove icons in the panel and customize the
appearance of the panel as well as its location on the desktop. If you
hold your mouse pointer over an icon in the panel, a short description
is displayed.
</p><p title="Quick Launcher:"><b>Quick Launcher: </b>
The quick launcher contains the main menu button and some larger icons
that are shortcuts to frequently used programs, folders, and functions.
</p><p title="Main Menu Button:"><b>Main Menu Button: </b>
Use the icon at the far left of the panel to open a menu holding a
search function at the top and several tabs at the bottom. The
<span class="guimenu">Applications</span> tab shows all installed programs in a
function-oriented menu structure which makes it easy to find the right
application for your purpose, even if you do not know the application
names yet. For more information, refer to
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.use.html#sec.kde.use.startprogr.menu" title="2.1.1. Using the Main Menu">Section 2.1.1, “Using the Main Menu”</a> .
</p><p title="Pager (Desktop Previewer):"><b>Pager (Desktop Previewer): </b>
Between the quick launcher and the taskbar, find a miniature preview
that shows your virtual desktops (if not configured otherwise, they are
numbered). openSUSE allows you to organize your programs and tasks
on several desktops, which minimizes the number of windows to arrange on
the screen. To switch between the virtual desktops, click one of the
symbols in the pager. For more information, refer to
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.use.html#sec.kde.use.virtdesk" title="2.6. Using Virtual Desktops">Section 2.6, “Using Virtual Desktops”</a>.
</p><p title="Taskbar:"><b>Taskbar: </b>
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. Click to open the application. Right-click
to see options for moving, restoring, or minimizing the window.
</p><p title="System Tray:"><b>System Tray: </b>
This rightmost part of the panel usually holds some smaller icons,
including the system clock displaying time and date, the volume control,
and several other helper applications.
</p><p>
The integration and handling of desktop objects has changed from KDE 3.x
to KDE 4, which now uses a new desktop and panel interface tool called
Plasma. Plasma supports desktop widgets (also called
<span class="quote">“<span class="quote">plasmoids</span>”</span>), similar to Apple’s dashboard widgets. Learn
more about the key desktop objects in the following sections.
</p><div class="sect2" title="1.2.1. Locking and Unlocking Desktop Objects"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="sec.kde.start.lock"></a>1.2.1. Locking and Unlocking Desktop Objects<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.lock">¶</a></span></h3></div></div></div><p>
With KDE 4, desktop elements can be locked in their current position to
prevent them from being moved around on the desktop. As long as the
desktop elements are locked, you cannot add, move, or remove any objects
to and from your desktop.
</p><p>
To lock or unlock the desktop elements, right-click an empty space on
the desktop and select <span class="guimenu">Lock Widgets</span> or
<span class="guimenu">Unlock Widgets</span>.
</p><div class="figure"><a name="id311164"></a><p class="title"><b>Figure 1.3. Unlocking Desktop Objects</b></p><div class="figure-contents"><div class="mediaobject"><table border="0" summary="manufactured viewport for HTML img" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%"><tr><td><img src="images/kde_unlock_widgets.png" width="100%" alt="Unlocking Desktop Objects"></td></tr></table></div></div></div><br class="figure-break"><p>
Find how to add, remove and configure widgets and change numerous
desktop elements in <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html" title="Chapter 3. Customizing Your Settings">Chapter 3, <i>Customizing Your Settings</i></a>.
</p></div><div class="sect2" title="1.2.2. Desktop Icons"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="sec.kde.start.comp.desk"></a>1.2.2. Desktop Icons<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.comp.desk">¶</a></span></h3></div></div></div><p>
By default the <span class="guimenu">Desktop Folder</span>, showing the contents
of the <code class="filename">~/Desktop</code> folder, displays the following
icons:
</p><div class="figure"><a name="id330233"></a><p class="title"><b>Figure 1.4. KDE Desktop Folder</b></p><div class="figure-contents"><div class="mediaobject"><table border="0" summary="manufactured viewport for HTML img" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="50%"><tr><td><img src="images/kde_desktop_folder.png" width="100%" alt="KDE Desktop Folder"></td></tr></table></div></div></div><br class="figure-break"><div class="variablelist"><dl><dt><span class="term"><a class="indexterm" name="id312502"></a><span class="guimenu">My Computer</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
The <span class="guimenu">My Computer</span> icon is very useful for viewing
the most important information about your hardware, network status,
disks (hard disks, removable media, and external devices), operating
system, and some common folders at one glance. For example, find
processor type and speed listed there, information about your RAM and
the current swap status, or your graphics card. <span class="guimenu">OS
Information</span> lists the most important information about your
operating system, such as the Kernel version included, the current
user, version number and type of the operating system, as well as the
KDE version number. openSUSE ships with a number of further
tools (either graphical or command line tools) that you can use to
get more detailed information about your system. If you need detailed
hardware information about your system, use the YaST hardware
probing, described in Section “Hardware Information” (Chapter 2, <i>Setting Up Hardware Components with YaST</i>, ↑Start-Up).
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Firefox</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Opens the Firefox Web browser. For more information, refer to
Chapter <i>Browsing with Firefox</i> (↑Application Guide).
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Office</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Opens OpenOffice.org. For an introduction to the office suite, refer to
Chapter <i>The OpenOffice.org Office Suite</i> (↑Application Guide).
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">openSUSE</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Opens the SUSEgreeter which holds introductory information and links
to various information sources on openSUSE.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Online Help</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Starts the default Web browser and takes you to
<a class="ulink" href="http://help.opensuse.org" target="_top">the help page of the openSUSE
community</a> from where you can access various documentation
resources, mailing lists, Web forums or chats with members of the
openSUSE community. Find more information about accessing and using
help resources (integrated with your system or on the Web) in
Chapter <i>Help and Documentation</i> (↑Start-Up).
</p></dd></dl></div></div><div class="sect2" title="1.2.3. Panel Icons"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a name="sec.kde.start.comp.panel"></a>1.2.3. Panel Icons<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.comp.panel">¶</a></span></h3></div></div></div><p>
<a class="indexterm" name="id301142"></a>The panel can be subdivided into three main areas holding
icons: the quick launch area at the left, the taskbar in the middle and
the system tray at the right. The taskbar has dynamic contents, showing
the currently started applications and windows with their icons, whereas
quick launcher and system tray are more static.
</p><div class="sect3" title="1.2.3.1. Quick Launch Area"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h4 class="title"><a name="sec.kde.start.comp.panel.quicklaunch"></a>1.2.3.1. Quick Launch Area<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.comp.panel.quicklaunch">¶</a></span></h4></div></div></div><p>
The quick launch area of your panel as shipped with openSUSE,
includes the following icons by default:
</p><div class="figure"><a name="id396067"></a><p class="title"><b>Figure 1.5. Panel: Quick Launch Area</b></p><div class="figure-contents"><div class="mediaobject"><table border="0" summary="manufactured viewport for HTML img" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%"><tr><td><img src="images/kde_panel_quicklaunch.png" width="100%" alt="Panel: Quick Launch Area"></td></tr></table></div></div></div><br class="figure-break"><div class="variablelist"><dl><dt><span class="term">Main Menu Icon</span></dt><dd><p>
Opens the main menu, similar to the Microsoft* Windows start menu.
For more information, refer to
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.use.html#sec.kde.use.startprogr.menu" title="2.1.1. Using the Main Menu">Section 2.1.1, “Using the Main Menu”</a> .
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Show Dashboard Icon</span></dt><dd><p>
Hides all open windows and puts the widgets in front of them. Shows
the cashew icon in the right upper corner of the desktop from which
you can access a menu to configure your plasma workspace. For more
information, refer to
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html#pro.kde.cust.desk.activities" title="Procedure 3.6. Using Different Options for Each Virtual Desktop">Procedure 3.6, “Using Different Options for Each Virtual Desktop”</a>.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Firefox Icon</span></dt><dd><p>
Starts the Firefox Web browser. For more information, refer to
Chapter <i>Browsing with Firefox</i> (↑Application Guide).
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Dolphin Icon</span></dt><dd><p>
Opens Dolphin, the default file manager. For more information, refer
to <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.use.html#sec.kde.dolphin" title="2.2. Using Dolphin File Manager">Section 2.2, “Using Dolphin File Manager”</a>.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Device Notifier Icon</span></dt><dd><p>
Informs you about recently plugged or inserted devices such as USB
sticks, external hard disks, cameras, CDs, and DVDs. For more
information, refer to <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.use.html#sec.kde.use.media" title="2.5. Accessing Removable Media and External Devices">Section 2.5, “Accessing Removable Media and External Devices”</a>.
</p></dd></dl></div></div><div class="sect3" title="1.2.3.2. System Tray"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h4 class="title"><a name="sec.kde.start.comp.panel.tray"></a>1.2.3.2. System Tray<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.comp.panel.tray">¶</a></span></h4></div></div></div><p>
Apart from the larger icons in the quick launcher, the panel also holds
a number of smaller icons in the system tray area on the right:
</p><div class="figure"><a name="id322385"></a><p class="title"><b>Figure 1.6. Panel: System Tray</b></p><div class="figure-contents"><div class="mediaobject"><table border="0" summary="manufactured viewport for HTML img" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%"><tr><td><img src="images/kde_panel_systemtray.png" width="100%" alt="Panel: System Tray"></td></tr></table></div></div></div><br class="figure-break"><div class="variablelist"><dl><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Klipper</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
KDE's clipboard tool that <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">remembers</span>”</span> the last entries
you have moved to the clipboard. To view the clipboard contents,
click the Klipper icon or press <span class="keycap">Ctrl</span>+<span class="keycap">Alt</span>+<span class="keycap">V</span>. The most recent entry is listed on
top and is marked as active with a black check mark. To insert the
active clipboard entry again, move the mouse pointer to the target
application, then middle-click. For more information on using
Klipper, see <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.use.html#sec.kde.use.klipper" title="2.3. Moving Text between Applications">Section 2.3, “Moving Text between Applications”</a>.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">openSUSE Updater</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Helps you keep your system up-to-date. When you connect to the
Internet, openSUSE Updater automatically checks whether software updates
for your system are available. The applet icon changes color and
appearance depending on the availability of updates for your system.
For detailed information on how to install software updates with
openSUSE Updater and how to configure openSUSE Updater, refer to
Chapter <i>YaST Online Update</i> (↑Reference).
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">KMix</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Your desktop's default mixer (KMix) helps you to control sound on
your desktop after your sound card has been detected and configured
with YaST. By default, clicking the KMix icon in the system tray
shows the master controller with which to increase or decrease the
overall volume. For more information, refer to
Section “Mixers” (Chapter 19, <i>Playing Music and Movies: Amarok, Kaffeine and More</i>, ↑Application Guide).
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">NetworkManager</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
If you manage your network connection with NetworkManager and have enabled the
use of NetworkManager in YaST, the NetworkManager icon also appears in your system
tray be default. Use it to change and configure network connections.
For detailed information, refer to Chapter <i>Using NetworkManager</i> (↑Start-Up).
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Job & Notifications</span></span></dt><dd><p>
This icons shows running jobs on your desktop (for example, if you
are copying files) and notifies you about system events. Jobs are
grouped to prevent the popup of too many dialogs and are
automatically hidden after a few seconds. Animations signify that
jobs are still running. Usually, the entries are automatically
destroyed after some time, but in case you do not use your desktop
during that time, they are retained, so you can safely stay away
from your computer for a couple of hours, and when you come back,
you will still be able to see which jobs have been finished during
your absence. To configure which information to show or to disable
auto-hiding, right-click the Job & Notifications icon and select
<span class="guimenu">System-Tray Settings</span>.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Clock</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
For information about the current date and time, click the clock in
the system tray or move your mouse pointer over the clock. You can
change the clock settings (such as appearance and additional data to
be displayed) from the context menu available upon right-click. If
you need to update the system time, start YaST and select
<span class="guimenu">System</span>+<span class="guimenu">Date and
Time</span>. Refer to
Section “Clock and Time Zone” (Chapter 1, <i>Installation with YaST</i>, ↑Start-Up) for more information.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Lock Screen</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Locks your screen and starts the screen saver. Access to the session
can only be regained with a password.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Log Out</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Logs you out and ends your current KDE session. If not configured
otherwise in the KDE 4 Personal Settings (see
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html#pro.kde.cust.system.session" title="Procedure 3.16. Adjusting the Session Handling">Procedure 3.16, “Adjusting the Session Handling”</a>, the session manager
will restore the currently open windows by default next time you log
in to KDE.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Cashew Icon</span></dt><dd><p>
Give access to panel configuration options. For more information,
see <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html#proc.kde.cust.conf.panel" title="Procedure 3.8. Customizing the Panel">Procedure 3.8, “Customizing the Panel”</a>.
</p></dd></dl></div><p>
You can change the way your KDE desktop looks and behaves to suit your
own personal tastes and needs. To learn how to configure individual
desktop elements or how change the overall appearance and behavior of
your desktop, refer to <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html#sec.kde.cust.kcontrol" title="3.1. Personal Settings - Overview">Section 3.1, “Personal Settings - Overview”</a>.
</p><p>
If you would like to start working with your desktop now, continue
reading at <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.use.html" title="Chapter 2. Working with Your Desktop">Chapter 2, <i>Working with Your Desktop</i></a>. Otherwise you can leave
your system with one of the possibilities described below.
</p></div></div></div><div class="sect1" title="1.3. Leaving Your System"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="sec.kde.start.leave"></a>1.3. Leaving Your System<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.leave">¶</a></span></h2></div></div></div><p>
<a class="indexterm" name="id323004"></a> When you have finished using the computer, there are several
options for leaving your system. Some of them will leave the system
running, others will shutdown the computer. If your system provides power
management, you can also choose to <code class="literal">suspend</code> your
computer. In this state, it will consume considerably less power than
usual and will start much faster than after a complete shutdown and
reboot. For more information, refer to
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.kpowersave.html" title="Chapter 9. Controlling Your Desktop’s Power Management">Chapter 9, <i>Controlling Your Desktop’s Power Management</i></a>.
</p><p>
You can access all the options to leave your system from the main menu.
Click the main menu icon on the left and switch to the
<span class="guimenu">Leave</span> tab. Select one of the following options:
</p><div class="variablelist"><dl><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Logout</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Ends your current session and leaves your system running. If not
configured otherwise in the KDE 4 Personal Settings, the session
manager will restore the currently open windows by default the next
time you log in to KDE 4. Find more information about the session
manager and configuration options at
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html#pro.kde.cust.system.session" title="Procedure 3.16. Adjusting the Session Handling">Procedure 3.16, “Adjusting the Session Handling”</a>.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Lock</span><a class="indexterm" name="id323434"></a><a class="indexterm" name="id332257"></a>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Prevents unauthorized access by others by locking your screen and
starting a screen saver. Access to the session can only be regained
with a password. To unlock, enter your normal login password. For
information about configuring your screen saver, see
<a class="xref" href="cha.kde.cust.html#pro.kde.cust.desk.ssaver" title="Procedure 3.7. Configuring the Screen Saver">Procedure 3.7, “Configuring the Screen Saver”</a>.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Switch User</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Starts a second session with a graphical user interface on your
machine. Your current session remains active while you are taken to
the login screen where you can log in as a different user. You can
access the first session again by pressing <span class="keycap">Ctrl</span>+<span class="keycap">Alt</span>+<span class="keycap">F7</span>. To access a new session, press
<span class="keycap">F8</span> instead of <span class="keycap">F7</span>. Additional
sessions can be accessed by pressing <span class="keycap">Ctrl</span>+<span class="keycap">Alt</span>+<span class="keycap">F9</span> to <span class="keycap">F12</span>.
</p><p>
If more than one desktop environment is installed on your system, you
can also choose to switch to another desktop for the new session as
described in <a class="xref" href="cha.kde.start.html#sec.kde.start.switchdesk" title="1.4. Switching Desktops">Section 1.4, “Switching Desktops”</a>.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Hibernate</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
This menu item is only available if your computer provides power
management functionality. Pauses your computer without logging you
out. All your data and the session data is saved to disk before the
system is laid to rest. It is thus protected against data loss should
you lose power in the meantime. Waking the system up again is much
faster than with a fresh boot.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Sleep</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
This menu item is only available if your computer provides power
management functionality. Pauses your computer without logging you
out. All your data and the session data is saved to RAM. Bringing the
system up again is faster than restoring a session from disk.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Shutdown Computer</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Logs you out and turns your computer off.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term"><span class="guimenu">Restart Computer</span>
</span></dt><dd><p>
Initiates the shutdown process and reboots your computer. Instead of
selecting the desired boot option in the boot manager, you can also
select the desired option directly—just click one of the options
below <span class="guimenu">Restart Computer</span>.
</p></dd></dl></div><p>
Alternatively, you can also use the desktop context menu or the icons in
the system tray to leave your system.
</p><p>
If you have already logged out, you can still access shutdown and restart
option from the login screen by clicking <span class="guimenu">Menu</span> and
selecting the relevant menu items.
</p></div><div class="sect1" title="1.4. Switching Desktops"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" style="clear: both"><a name="sec.kde.start.switchdesk"></a>1.4. Switching Desktops<span class="permalink"><a alt="Permalink" title="Copy Permalink" href="#sec.kde.start.switchdesk">¶</a></span></h2></div></div></div><a class="indexterm" name="id385246"></a><p>
If more than one desktop environment is installed on your system (for
example, KDE and GNOME, or KDE 3.5.<em class="replaceable"><code>x</code></em> and KDE
4), you can choose to switch to another desktop when logging in again (or
when logging in as a different user). To do so, proceed as follows:
</p><div class="procedure"><a name="pro.kde.start.switchdesk"></a><ol class="procedure" type="1"><li><p>
On the login screen, click <span class="guimenu">Session Type</span> and select
the desktop environment to start.
</p></li><li><p>
Enter a valid username and password. A new session on the selected
desktop environment starts.
</p></li><li><p>
To switch back again, log out from the current desktop and select a
different <span class="guimenu">Session Type</span> on the login screen. If you
do not select a new session type, your next session will be of the same
type as the session before.
</p></li></ol></div></div></div><div class="navfooter"><table width="100%" summary="Navigation footer" border="0" class="bctable"><tr><td width="80%"><div class="breadcrumbs"><p><a href="index.html"> Documentation</a><span class="breadcrumbs-sep"> > </span><a href="book.kdeuser.html">KDE User Guide</a><span class="breadcrumbs-sep"> > </span><a href="part.kde.desktop.html">Introduction</a><span class="breadcrumbs-sep"> > </span><strong><a accesskey="p" title="Part I. Introduction" href="part.kde.desktop.html"><span>◀</span></a> <a accesskey="n" title="Chapter 2. Working with Your Desktop" href="cha.kde.use.html"><span>▶</span></a></strong></p></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>
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