After installation, how to you configure the Kickoff menu

[Snowhog]

There is interest in the developer/packaging community as to what "you do" to the kickoff menu (K menu) after installation, i.e., do you add/delete applications because they are/are not installed by default?

If you do modify the menu after installation, what modifications do you make; what do you remove; what do you add?

There is consideration being pondered as to what should be in the menu 'by default', and your input is being sought.

[dequire]

I guess the real question from a usability, and user standpoint, point-of-view, would be to define what the default differences are in Kickoff (if any) from what the list of default applications are? Are there any intentional differences? Also, wouldn't the fact that distributions (i.e. Kubuntu) might ship non-Plasma applications as part of their default releases? If so, how would that affect the questions being asked? I'm shooting from the hip here, so if I completely mis-understood the question please ignore.

[GreyGeek]

Just so we are on the same page: the Kickoff menu I use is decribed here.

I use EVERY feature listed and described in that URL. I have tried all the other menu options and I always come back to Kickoff. It occupies the left side of my panel and my panel is always showing. I don't need to minimize any apps showing on the display in order to open another app. It never gets in the way and doesn't need to be "helpfull" because it is easy to use. I do delete application I don't want or use, AND, I frequently add applications that I add which do not automatically add themselves when I install them. I also re-arrange apps and labels (but not those created by the install process).

I do not drag and drop applications from the menu to the desktop, although many folks that install Kubuntu/Neon on their laptops do ask me to do that.

My suggestion: Don't change for change sake. Kickoff is too good to mess up.

[acheron]

This was/is (at least initially) discussion about changing or enhancing the default favourites list.

i.e.



The default is set by kde by a key such as:

<entry name="favorites" type="StringList">
     <label>List of general favorites. Supported values are menu id's (usually .desktop file names), special URLs that expand into default applications (e.g. preferred://browser), document URLs and KPeople contact URIs.</label>
     <default>[B]preferred://browser,kontact.desktop,systemsettings.desktop,org.kde.dolphin.desktop,ktp-contactlist.desktop,org.kde.kate.desktop,org.kde.discover.desktop[/B]</default>
   </entry>

So mostly about additions or modifications to such a default list on a new install.

[clivejo]

As acheron points out we are interested in how users customise this default list of "favourite" apps. The current defaults are slightly broken due to upstream renames of desktop files. This means that Kontact (kontact.desktop) and Telepathy Contact list (ktp-contactlist.desktop) need to be fixed with their new names.

This menu has 10 slots for users to add their favourite applications, what we are asking is what users tend to add or remove from this menu/list. There have been requests to add apps such as Konsole and Muon Package Manager to this default list. So we wanted to see what users tend to add after install.

[dequire]

Although there are 10 slots, I would rather think that only the main ones representing a given category should be there by default - Therefore my list would be simply (& in no particular order):

• Firefox
• Kmail
• Libre Office
• Dolphin
• KMPlayer - Appears to be the only media player ported to KF5 so far
• System Settings
• Muon Package Manager (It should be Discover, IMHO, but alas Discover is still very much not usable in any real world user case...)
• a "How To Customize Kickoff" or "About Kickoff" menu entry at the bottom*

Anything else might clutter / muddle things for a new user. And as far as Konsole goes, while I always add Konsole to my menus, I don't think it belongs there by default. If you know what Konsole is, you certainly know how to launch it

* I would also like to see - at the bottom of the Kickoff menu - An icon linking to the KDE Userbase's Kickoff page. This would serve two purposes - To both inform a new user as to what Kickoff is and how to use / customize it, and to introduce them to Userbase, which, while in serious need of some love, is a great resource for a new user to KDE Plasma. I am aware that the Kickoff page in Userbase needs updated. I will look into doing this over the weekend.

[GreyGeek]

It is trivial to add or remove apps from the Favorites list, so I would limit the original to
System Settings
Dolphin
KSysGuard
Konsole
and let folks take it from there.

Personally, I added the QuickLaunch widget to the panel and use it to fire the apps I use the most. That makes me one click away from any of those apps. Changing the name of QuickLaunch to FavoritesLaunch suggests what I use it for.

[dequire]

I can see your point Jerry, and your thought process is certainly understood and your simplicity even applauded (man am I kissing butt here or what? lol), but I think the point of a 'default' menu should be strictly viewed from a new-users' perspective. And in doing so one would have to assume the user is new to Linux, or at least new to KDE Plasma. So what works from a workflow POV for you or me might not be the best for a Kubuntu neophyte.

[oshunluvr]

I'm using Application Dashboard now instead. But with Kicker, I was doing basically what GG says...