Kubuntu & KDE 4 desktop interface: concepts, terms
For new Kubuntu users ... how to understand the “what”
This is not the “How”
See the Kubuntu forum for “how” to use KDE 4.
This is the “What”:
What is Kubuntu & What is the new change with the KDE 4 desktop interface?
DISCLAIMER: This is in progress. Not much documentation out there yet (as of 12/03/08). I've seen questions raised in the developer blogs about what terminology to use (e.g., widgets, applets, plasmoids)--lots of unsettled issues remain as the Plasma product is fully developed, is tested, and matures. The intent here is to introduce a few key concepts and terms and to give you links for further reading. I am not the expert (a fact that will be apparent to those who are). Others are invited to add posts to the thread that they feel would further clarify things and help new users better understand what's up with Plasma/KDE 4 technologies. Note is made of the How-To's by Rog131 referenced at the end of this post.
Contents (top down):
Linux, Distros, Kubuntu
GUI and CLI: interfaces for communicating with Kubuntu
X Window System: The GUI implementation in Kubuntu (and Linux in general)
KDE (K, mascot, logos, release history, KDE 3 vs KDE 4, KDE 4: a major change)
Plasma
Widget (Plasmoid), widget toolkit (Qt), widget engine (Plasma)
Plasmoids
The old Desktop, the new Folder View, comparison
Links to help you get started
Linux OS, Distros, Kubuntu
An operating system (OS) is the software that makes it possible for you to use your computer to get things done. It communicates with the hardware, communicates with you, and makes it possible for you to run your applications. Examples of OSs are Linux, Mac OS, Solaris, and Microsoft Windows.
Basing it on the Unix OS, Linus Torvalds (University of Helsinki Finland, 1991) developed Linux (and a “kernel”--the core of an OS). It's pronounced “lee-nix” and here's Linus Torvalds saying it for you:
http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/SillySounds/
Richard Stallman founded the GNU Project (1984), and by 1989 the Free Software Foundation and the GNU General Public License, and by the 1990's developed programs used by Linux OSs. You will often see Linux referred to as GNU/Linux.
Reference for all this:
http://www.kernel.org/
A distribution (called a distro) of Linux, is a complete Linux operating system--a kernel (the core of the OS) and a collection of software. There are many Linux distros. For a list, see: http://distrowatch.com/
By setting up a dual-booting arrangement, you can have more than one OS on your computer.
The Kubuntu distribution is an official part (a derivative) of the Ubuntu distro; Kubuntu uses the same underlying system or base as Ubuntu. All the software packages are in the same archives (they share the same “repositories”). They differ in the graphical desktop environment, the Graphical User Interface (GUI): Kubuntu uses the K Desktop Environment (KDE); Ubuntu uses GNOME. (Xubuntu is also an official derivative of Ubuntu, and uses the Xtce (graphical) desktop environment. Thus, the Ubuntu family of distributions is Ubuntu, Kubuntu, and Xubuntu.)
If you wish to know about repositories, see this:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Repositories/Kubuntu
Kubuntu FAQ: http://www.kubuntu.org/faq
The releases of Kubuntu
Specified by year and month. For example, 8.10 is 2008, the 10th month (November).
Hoary Hedgehog 5.04; Breezy Badger 5.10; Dapper Drake 6.06; Edgy Eft 6.10; Feisty Fawn 7.04; Gutsy Gibbon 7.10; Hardy Heron 8.04; Intrepid Ibex 8.10; Jaunty Jackalope 9.04;
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kubuntu
http://www.kubuntu.org/
GUI and CLI
You have two ways to communicate with Kubuntu to get it to do what you want it to do:
-- The Graphical User Interface (GUI)--use the mouse to point and click on the Desktop; manage your files and folders in GUI using a file manager (Konqueror or Dolphin).
-- The Command Line Interface (CLI), where you use your keyboard to type commands at a terminal.
X: The implementation of the GUI in Linux
Think in terms of layers.
-- The user mode layers (the stuff you can see and interact with):
Application (e.g., your word processor)
Desktop Environment (KDE for Kubuntu)
Display Manager (KDM for Kubuntu)
Window Manager (KWin for Kubuntu)
X (or properly called the X Window System)
-- Then, at the lowest level, the “kernel mode” layer:
Devices and Device Drivers
Here's the same thing, explained in more detail:
X
> Applications. Example: word processor in Kubuntu, OOo Writer; which uses graphics and text that you see on the screen.
> KDE, your K Desktop Environment.. It controls what things look like on the screen--your desktop--and what's available, such as icons, toolbars, and graphical file managers.
> KDM, the K Display Manager, is part of KDE and controls your graphical log-in screen (user name and password), and it starts the Window Manager Kwin.
> KWin, the K Window Manager, default window manager for KDE, controls where windows are on your screen and what they look like (color, geometric shape, design), how mouse clicks work to open, close, minimize, and re-size windows, and the multiple [virtual] desktops.
> X, or more properly X Window System, is responsible for making the graphical environment (Graphical User Interface, GUI) available in Kubuntu. X is the main graphical program. Without X, you'd only have the command line interface (CLI) for running Kubuntu.
> At the lowest level, your devices and device drivers: the mechanical stuff; the devices that can draw; the software device drivers that make it possible to use each device.
=> X (or, X Window System) provides the basic graphical show. It makes it possible to use graphical programs (applications) and windows (controlled by the window manager), and X makes it possible for your hardware and Kubuntu to communicate and get things done.
KDE, the K Desktop Environment
Each distro decides which desktop environments to use and to make available to its users. The primary desktop Kubuntu is known for is called KDE—the K Desktop Environment. (You can also put other desktops environments on Kubuntu). KDE is in charge of your user experience; it controls what you see on your desktop screen.
KDE Homepage:
http://www.kde.org/
The “K” (you'll see a lot of K's in Kubuntu/KDE)
The desktop environment for Kubuntu was created in 1996 and named KDE, the K Desktop Environment. (The “K” was used to distinguish it from CDE, the Unix Common Desktop Environment.) Some say the “K” stood for Kool for awhile. Today, it doesn't stand for anything. You will see the K used in different ways. For example, Konqueror is a file manager/browser for KDE. KOffice is an office suite (word processor, etc.). Some words are formed by changing Q to a K, like Kuickshow. Or, changing a C to a K: Konsole. In some words, the K is not capitalized: kynaptic. In some, it is at the end: Amarok. And some KDE applications have no K in their name: Gwenview (a KDE image viewer).
Mascot and logos for KDE
The green dragon, Konqi, is the KDE mascot.
Official logos, Konqui, and clipart for KDE:
http://www.kde.org/stuff/clipart.php
KDE Releases -- History
KDE was founded in October 1996.
With each new version came new technologies, changes, and applications:
KDE 1.0, 7/12/1998
KDE 2 (10/23/2000, with DCOP, KIO, KHTML, and other new applications/ and technologies)
KDE 3, (4/3/2002), Built on Qt3.
KDE 4, (1/11/2008) Built on Qt4, introduced major changes, new technologies and applications.
The K Desktop Environment major changes with KDE 4, released with Intrepid 8.10
Up through version KDE 3, the “look and feel” of the K Desktop Environment was based on a familiar “desktop”--the familiar view most of us have of a desktop where you can keep various icons and files and folders handy. That metaphor is described here:
Desktop metaphor, Paper Paradigm: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desktop_metaphor
KDE 3, included with Hardy Heron 8.04 and before
The main components of the KDE 3 desktop are the following (which you can see if you open Kubuntu 8.04 or previous versions):
> The Desktop itself, KDesktop, where you might put icons (used to start applications or to open files and folders). The Desktop is actually a folder in your personal home directory: /home/your_name/Desktop. Anything you put in the Desktop folder will appear visually on the Desktop screen.
> KDE Panel (also called Kicker), the “bar” along the bottom of your Desktop screen. It contains the K-Menu button (on the left), various icons, the Task Bar (showing the applications, folders, and files you have open), and the System Tray on the right (containing the waste bin, clock/date, sound volume, Klipper clipboard, Adept notifier icon, and anything else you might have put there).
> SuperKaramba the widget engine for KDE 3. This is explained below; it provides the software infrastructure for creating the desktop (and its components) you see as a user. In KDE 4, it was replaced by Plasma (though Plasma has support for SuperKaramba).
KDE 4, included with Intrepid 8.10
... included with Kubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex), KDE 4 has many new technologies and changes. The main new component controlling the desktop is called Plasma and it replaces all three KDE 3 components: Kicker, KDesktop, and the SuperKaramba widget engine (more about “widgets” below). The two main components of a Plasma default desktop are the Panel and the desktop itself. Think of the Panel as the bar across the bottom of your screen (although, you can change it). The Panel contains the K logo button (to start applications by opening the Kickoff menu), the Task Bar (showing the applications, folders, and files you have open), and the System Tray (containing the Pager (showing your virtual desktops), clock/date, sound volume, Klipper clipboard, Adept notifier icon, the connected device notifier, the trash can, and anything else you might have put there).
KDE 4 Wiki (in progress)
http://wiki.kde.org/tiki-index.php?page=KDE4
The K button on the Panel
In KDE 3, the K-menu button (the KDE logo) on the left of the Panel opens a “start menu” from which you select applications to launch.
In KDE 4, the K-menu button (the KDE logo) on the left of the Panel opens Kickoff which is the new KDE applications launcher (corresponding to the “start menu” in KDE 3).
Important Point
In KDE 3, the desktop provides the user with a static, fixed folder view of his/her computing world. The contents of the user's /home/user_name/Desktop folder appear on the Desktop.
In KDE 4, thanks to Plasma, the desktop view provides the user with a dynamic mode of interacting with the system, with various desktop views are configurable depending on the task you are working on.
Quote: “... emphasis is being placed on clarity and workflow sensitive design in the interface.”
Quote: “...By offering the same applets [widgets] and icons for both the desktop and the panel, including seamless drag and drop between them, Plasma will break the barrier between the these two desktop elements. If the user wants to move the clock from a panel to the desktop, they (sic) should be able to. Anything that works on the desktop should work the same on the panels, and vice versa.”
The vision, Plasma: http://plasma.kde.org/cms/1029
See also the section below (toward the end) titled The old desktop, the new Folder View, differences.
Plasma – A key component of KDE 4
Plasma is a component of KDE 4 and includes components that control what you see on your Kubuntu screen. Think of Plasma as a desktop “shell”--a software interface--your main KDE user interface, and as such, it provides you with ways to start applications and interact with your desktop environment.
Plasma homepage/logo:
http://plasma.kde.org/
Some terms you will see often: widget, widget toolkit, widget engine, Plasmoids
Widgets (sometimes called applets) – they are called Plasmoids in Plasma
Think of a widget as a tool you can use to get something done or to get some information while you are in your desktop environment. Widgets are used to show you the time, date, calendar, calculator, the weather, a notepad on your desktop, and so on. A widget is an element of a GUI, a tool you can use and interact with to get, display, or change information/data. Examples of widgets include widgets that support interaction with the user: buttons, check boxes, drop-down lists, menus, menu bar, a toolbar, sliders, icons, views (e.g., tree view), a text box (e.g., for indicating an edit); widgets may also provide information or data to the user: a tooltip, a help balloon that pops up, a status/progress bar; widgets also provide various containers: windows, panels, tabs, dialog box.
Definition: In Plasma, the widgets are called Plasmoids.
Widget toolkit -- Qt 4 for KDE 4
A widget toolkit is used by programmers and is not visible to you the end-user. It's a piece of software used in designing GUI applications, and it provides programs with an application programming interface (API), thus allowing them to use the available widgets.
KDE is based on the widget toolkit called Qt, the latest KDE 4 is based on Qt 4.
(Qt is also used in Opera, Skype, Photoshop, VirtualBox, and Google Earth, and many more software programs.) Qt (pronounce “cute”) is produced by Qt Software (Trolltech).
Qt homepage:
http://trolltech.com/products/
Widget engine -- Plasma
A widget engine is a software package that uses desktop widgets and provides desktop services to end-users like yourself. Plasma is a widget engine. (The main developer of Plasma is Aaron Seigo.)
For a table of different, popular widget engines see this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compari...widget_engines
Wikipedia, excellent brief introduction:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widget_toolkit
Widget engine:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widget_engine
List of common generic widgets:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GUI_widget
Plasmoids
The components of Plasma--its widgets--are given the special term Plasmoid (plural: Plasmoids). Plasmoids are applications that reside on the desktop. (Actually, in Plasma, the desktop is also a Plasmoid.) Plasmoids can be grouped together in containers called “containments.” For example, the Panel (which is also a Plasmoid) is a containment; the desktop (which is also a Plasmoid) is a containment. Plasmoids serve many functions: to display your desktop and wallpaper, to display various information (date/time, Internet connection status), to show connected USB devices, to display (or draw) the Task Bar, and many other functions. Plasma is the sum of its Plasmoids.
The Panel
The Panel is a special Plasmoid called a containment and it contains the following Plasmoids: the main K-menu button (which opens the Kickoff menu); the Task Bar, and the system tray (which in turn contains these Plasmoids: the Pager Plasmoid (showing your virtual desktops), the clock/date, sound volume, Klipper clipboard, Adept notifier icon, the connected device notifier, the trash can, and anything other Plasmoids you might have put there).
A good example of the power of Plasma: Plasmoids interact with the user to enhance the user's desktop experience. Also, Plasmoids, in a sense, interact with each other, as when a Plasmoid in the Panel (containment) is dragged onto the desktop (containment) and the Plasmoid fits and works in either place. Furthermore, in a certain technical sense, the Panel and the desktop are created the same way as Plasmoids.
An application (e.g., a music player) may have a containment Plasmoid embedded in it that in turn contains individual Plasmoids that provide various useful data to the user (e.g., information about the music, play lists, tracks, etc.), and all the individual Plasmoids (in the containment) taken as a group would then constitute the user interface for that application.
Description of how Plasma works (KDE 4 intro, Phenon, Solid, D-BUS, Dolphin, Oxygen theme, Scalable Vector Graphics (SVGs). Zooming User Interface (ZUI), The Folder View, Cashews):
http://arstechnica.com/reviews/os/kde-40-review.ars/2
KDE 4.0 Visual Guide: Desktop
http://www.kde.org/announcements/4.0/desktop.php
(Includes: Plasma, KRunner, Kickoff, The Panel, dashboard view, KWin, Desktop Effects, Sweet Spots, Dolphin, Okular, Gwenview, System Settings, Konsole, Educational Applications, Games)
Plasma FAQ
http://techbase.kde.org/Projects/Plasma/FAQ
Oxygen theme (the default Plasma theme for your Plasma desktop/GUI):
http://www.oxygen-icons.org/
Plasma Vision Document:
http://plasma.kde.org/cms/1029
Data engines, visualizations, Application Programming Interface (API):
http://aseigo.blogspot.com/2006/04/p...a-engines.html
The old desktop, the new Folder View, differences
Quote from:
http://techbase.kde.org/Projects/Plasma/FAQ
Q: I heard there are no more icons on the desktop in KDE 4.1.
A: That is not entirely correct. You can have icons and launchers (shortcuts) by dragging them from Dolphin or the K-menu. What has changed is that the desktop will no longer display the contents of the [/home/user_name/] Desktop folder. However, you can show an arbitrary number of folders (local or remote) on your desktop view, instead of being forced to display only the contents of the "Desktop" folder. To do so, a new applet has been introduced, the Folder View applet.
In KDE 4.2 you will be also able to use the Folder View as your desktop, replicating the "old style" paradigm. [End quote]
KDE Applications--a few examples & links
Amarok (audio player), Ark (archiving tool), DigiKam, Dolphin (file manager), Dragon Player (multimedia), Gwenview (image viewer), Kaffeine (multimedia), Kcalc (calculator), K3b (CD/DVD burner), Kate (text editor), Kmail, KMPlayer (video for Konqueror), Konsole (terminal emulator), Kontact (a PIM, including email client), Kopote (IM client), Konqueror (my favorite file manager), KOffice (suite), KPDF (PDF viewer), Kplayer (multimedia), KWrite (text editor)
More KDE apps (applications):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_KDE_applications
http://kde-apps.org/
Kubuntu sites
Unofficial Kubuntu site:
http://kudos.berlios.de/kf/kf1.html
Official:
http://www.kubuntu.org/
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Kubuntu
Dual booting to set up more than one OS on your computer
Bigpond, home: http://users.bigpond.net.au/hermanzone/
Psychocats: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/index.php
Dual boot Vista, XP, and/or Linux – The Definitive Guide:
http://apcmag.com/dualboot
How To GRUB Methods - Toolkit
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3081671.0
KDE 4.2 [Beta] Rog131
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3099595.0
KDE 4.1 – Now, Rog131:
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3094578.0
Kubuntu Forums > Kubuntu Discussion > Desktop Support > KDE Support:
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/index.php?board=89.0
Comparison of X Window System desktop environments
Nice summary tables of KDE, GNOME, Xtce features/build:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compari...p_environments
For new Kubuntu users ... how to understand the “what”
This is not the “How”
See the Kubuntu forum for “how” to use KDE 4.
This is the “What”:
What is Kubuntu & What is the new change with the KDE 4 desktop interface?
DISCLAIMER: This is in progress. Not much documentation out there yet (as of 12/03/08). I've seen questions raised in the developer blogs about what terminology to use (e.g., widgets, applets, plasmoids)--lots of unsettled issues remain as the Plasma product is fully developed, is tested, and matures. The intent here is to introduce a few key concepts and terms and to give you links for further reading. I am not the expert (a fact that will be apparent to those who are). Others are invited to add posts to the thread that they feel would further clarify things and help new users better understand what's up with Plasma/KDE 4 technologies. Note is made of the How-To's by Rog131 referenced at the end of this post.
Contents (top down):
Linux, Distros, Kubuntu
GUI and CLI: interfaces for communicating with Kubuntu
X Window System: The GUI implementation in Kubuntu (and Linux in general)
KDE (K, mascot, logos, release history, KDE 3 vs KDE 4, KDE 4: a major change)
Plasma
Widget (Plasmoid), widget toolkit (Qt), widget engine (Plasma)
Plasmoids
The old Desktop, the new Folder View, comparison
Links to help you get started
Linux OS, Distros, Kubuntu
An operating system (OS) is the software that makes it possible for you to use your computer to get things done. It communicates with the hardware, communicates with you, and makes it possible for you to run your applications. Examples of OSs are Linux, Mac OS, Solaris, and Microsoft Windows.
Basing it on the Unix OS, Linus Torvalds (University of Helsinki Finland, 1991) developed Linux (and a “kernel”--the core of an OS). It's pronounced “lee-nix” and here's Linus Torvalds saying it for you:
http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/SillySounds/
Richard Stallman founded the GNU Project (1984), and by 1989 the Free Software Foundation and the GNU General Public License, and by the 1990's developed programs used by Linux OSs. You will often see Linux referred to as GNU/Linux.
Reference for all this:
http://www.kernel.org/
A distribution (called a distro) of Linux, is a complete Linux operating system--a kernel (the core of the OS) and a collection of software. There are many Linux distros. For a list, see: http://distrowatch.com/
By setting up a dual-booting arrangement, you can have more than one OS on your computer.
The Kubuntu distribution is an official part (a derivative) of the Ubuntu distro; Kubuntu uses the same underlying system or base as Ubuntu. All the software packages are in the same archives (they share the same “repositories”). They differ in the graphical desktop environment, the Graphical User Interface (GUI): Kubuntu uses the K Desktop Environment (KDE); Ubuntu uses GNOME. (Xubuntu is also an official derivative of Ubuntu, and uses the Xtce (graphical) desktop environment. Thus, the Ubuntu family of distributions is Ubuntu, Kubuntu, and Xubuntu.)
If you wish to know about repositories, see this:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Repositories/Kubuntu
Kubuntu FAQ: http://www.kubuntu.org/faq
The releases of Kubuntu
Specified by year and month. For example, 8.10 is 2008, the 10th month (November).
Hoary Hedgehog 5.04; Breezy Badger 5.10; Dapper Drake 6.06; Edgy Eft 6.10; Feisty Fawn 7.04; Gutsy Gibbon 7.10; Hardy Heron 8.04; Intrepid Ibex 8.10; Jaunty Jackalope 9.04;
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kubuntu
http://www.kubuntu.org/
GUI and CLI
You have two ways to communicate with Kubuntu to get it to do what you want it to do:
-- The Graphical User Interface (GUI)--use the mouse to point and click on the Desktop; manage your files and folders in GUI using a file manager (Konqueror or Dolphin).
-- The Command Line Interface (CLI), where you use your keyboard to type commands at a terminal.
X: The implementation of the GUI in Linux
Think in terms of layers.
-- The user mode layers (the stuff you can see and interact with):
Application (e.g., your word processor)
Desktop Environment (KDE for Kubuntu)
Display Manager (KDM for Kubuntu)
Window Manager (KWin for Kubuntu)
X (or properly called the X Window System)
-- Then, at the lowest level, the “kernel mode” layer:
Devices and Device Drivers
Here's the same thing, explained in more detail:
X
> Applications. Example: word processor in Kubuntu, OOo Writer; which uses graphics and text that you see on the screen.
> KDE, your K Desktop Environment.. It controls what things look like on the screen--your desktop--and what's available, such as icons, toolbars, and graphical file managers.
> KDM, the K Display Manager, is part of KDE and controls your graphical log-in screen (user name and password), and it starts the Window Manager Kwin.
> KWin, the K Window Manager, default window manager for KDE, controls where windows are on your screen and what they look like (color, geometric shape, design), how mouse clicks work to open, close, minimize, and re-size windows, and the multiple [virtual] desktops.
> X, or more properly X Window System, is responsible for making the graphical environment (Graphical User Interface, GUI) available in Kubuntu. X is the main graphical program. Without X, you'd only have the command line interface (CLI) for running Kubuntu.
> At the lowest level, your devices and device drivers: the mechanical stuff; the devices that can draw; the software device drivers that make it possible to use each device.
=> X (or, X Window System) provides the basic graphical show. It makes it possible to use graphical programs (applications) and windows (controlled by the window manager), and X makes it possible for your hardware and Kubuntu to communicate and get things done.
KDE, the K Desktop Environment
Each distro decides which desktop environments to use and to make available to its users. The primary desktop Kubuntu is known for is called KDE—the K Desktop Environment. (You can also put other desktops environments on Kubuntu). KDE is in charge of your user experience; it controls what you see on your desktop screen.
KDE Homepage:
http://www.kde.org/
The “K” (you'll see a lot of K's in Kubuntu/KDE)
The desktop environment for Kubuntu was created in 1996 and named KDE, the K Desktop Environment. (The “K” was used to distinguish it from CDE, the Unix Common Desktop Environment.) Some say the “K” stood for Kool for awhile. Today, it doesn't stand for anything. You will see the K used in different ways. For example, Konqueror is a file manager/browser for KDE. KOffice is an office suite (word processor, etc.). Some words are formed by changing Q to a K, like Kuickshow. Or, changing a C to a K: Konsole. In some words, the K is not capitalized: kynaptic. In some, it is at the end: Amarok. And some KDE applications have no K in their name: Gwenview (a KDE image viewer).
Mascot and logos for KDE
The green dragon, Konqi, is the KDE mascot.
Official logos, Konqui, and clipart for KDE:
http://www.kde.org/stuff/clipart.php
KDE Releases -- History
KDE was founded in October 1996.
With each new version came new technologies, changes, and applications:
KDE 1.0, 7/12/1998
KDE 2 (10/23/2000, with DCOP, KIO, KHTML, and other new applications/ and technologies)
KDE 3, (4/3/2002), Built on Qt3.
KDE 4, (1/11/2008) Built on Qt4, introduced major changes, new technologies and applications.
The K Desktop Environment major changes with KDE 4, released with Intrepid 8.10
Up through version KDE 3, the “look and feel” of the K Desktop Environment was based on a familiar “desktop”--the familiar view most of us have of a desktop where you can keep various icons and files and folders handy. That metaphor is described here:
Desktop metaphor, Paper Paradigm: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desktop_metaphor
KDE 3, included with Hardy Heron 8.04 and before
The main components of the KDE 3 desktop are the following (which you can see if you open Kubuntu 8.04 or previous versions):
> The Desktop itself, KDesktop, where you might put icons (used to start applications or to open files and folders). The Desktop is actually a folder in your personal home directory: /home/your_name/Desktop. Anything you put in the Desktop folder will appear visually on the Desktop screen.
> KDE Panel (also called Kicker), the “bar” along the bottom of your Desktop screen. It contains the K-Menu button (on the left), various icons, the Task Bar (showing the applications, folders, and files you have open), and the System Tray on the right (containing the waste bin, clock/date, sound volume, Klipper clipboard, Adept notifier icon, and anything else you might have put there).
> SuperKaramba the widget engine for KDE 3. This is explained below; it provides the software infrastructure for creating the desktop (and its components) you see as a user. In KDE 4, it was replaced by Plasma (though Plasma has support for SuperKaramba).
KDE 4, included with Intrepid 8.10
... included with Kubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex), KDE 4 has many new technologies and changes. The main new component controlling the desktop is called Plasma and it replaces all three KDE 3 components: Kicker, KDesktop, and the SuperKaramba widget engine (more about “widgets” below). The two main components of a Plasma default desktop are the Panel and the desktop itself. Think of the Panel as the bar across the bottom of your screen (although, you can change it). The Panel contains the K logo button (to start applications by opening the Kickoff menu), the Task Bar (showing the applications, folders, and files you have open), and the System Tray (containing the Pager (showing your virtual desktops), clock/date, sound volume, Klipper clipboard, Adept notifier icon, the connected device notifier, the trash can, and anything else you might have put there).
KDE 4 Wiki (in progress)
http://wiki.kde.org/tiki-index.php?page=KDE4
The K button on the Panel
In KDE 3, the K-menu button (the KDE logo) on the left of the Panel opens a “start menu” from which you select applications to launch.
In KDE 4, the K-menu button (the KDE logo) on the left of the Panel opens Kickoff which is the new KDE applications launcher (corresponding to the “start menu” in KDE 3).
Important Point
In KDE 3, the desktop provides the user with a static, fixed folder view of his/her computing world. The contents of the user's /home/user_name/Desktop folder appear on the Desktop.
In KDE 4, thanks to Plasma, the desktop view provides the user with a dynamic mode of interacting with the system, with various desktop views are configurable depending on the task you are working on.
Quote: “... emphasis is being placed on clarity and workflow sensitive design in the interface.”
Quote: “...By offering the same applets [widgets] and icons for both the desktop and the panel, including seamless drag and drop between them, Plasma will break the barrier between the these two desktop elements. If the user wants to move the clock from a panel to the desktop, they (sic) should be able to. Anything that works on the desktop should work the same on the panels, and vice versa.”
The vision, Plasma: http://plasma.kde.org/cms/1029
See also the section below (toward the end) titled The old desktop, the new Folder View, differences.
Plasma – A key component of KDE 4
Plasma is a component of KDE 4 and includes components that control what you see on your Kubuntu screen. Think of Plasma as a desktop “shell”--a software interface--your main KDE user interface, and as such, it provides you with ways to start applications and interact with your desktop environment.
Plasma homepage/logo:
http://plasma.kde.org/
Some terms you will see often: widget, widget toolkit, widget engine, Plasmoids
Widgets (sometimes called applets) – they are called Plasmoids in Plasma
Think of a widget as a tool you can use to get something done or to get some information while you are in your desktop environment. Widgets are used to show you the time, date, calendar, calculator, the weather, a notepad on your desktop, and so on. A widget is an element of a GUI, a tool you can use and interact with to get, display, or change information/data. Examples of widgets include widgets that support interaction with the user: buttons, check boxes, drop-down lists, menus, menu bar, a toolbar, sliders, icons, views (e.g., tree view), a text box (e.g., for indicating an edit); widgets may also provide information or data to the user: a tooltip, a help balloon that pops up, a status/progress bar; widgets also provide various containers: windows, panels, tabs, dialog box.
Definition: In Plasma, the widgets are called Plasmoids.
Widget toolkit -- Qt 4 for KDE 4
A widget toolkit is used by programmers and is not visible to you the end-user. It's a piece of software used in designing GUI applications, and it provides programs with an application programming interface (API), thus allowing them to use the available widgets.
KDE is based on the widget toolkit called Qt, the latest KDE 4 is based on Qt 4.
(Qt is also used in Opera, Skype, Photoshop, VirtualBox, and Google Earth, and many more software programs.) Qt (pronounce “cute”) is produced by Qt Software (Trolltech).
Qt homepage:
http://trolltech.com/products/
Widget engine -- Plasma
A widget engine is a software package that uses desktop widgets and provides desktop services to end-users like yourself. Plasma is a widget engine. (The main developer of Plasma is Aaron Seigo.)
For a table of different, popular widget engines see this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compari...widget_engines
Wikipedia, excellent brief introduction:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widget_toolkit
Widget engine:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widget_engine
List of common generic widgets:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GUI_widget
Plasmoids
The components of Plasma--its widgets--are given the special term Plasmoid (plural: Plasmoids). Plasmoids are applications that reside on the desktop. (Actually, in Plasma, the desktop is also a Plasmoid.) Plasmoids can be grouped together in containers called “containments.” For example, the Panel (which is also a Plasmoid) is a containment; the desktop (which is also a Plasmoid) is a containment. Plasmoids serve many functions: to display your desktop and wallpaper, to display various information (date/time, Internet connection status), to show connected USB devices, to display (or draw) the Task Bar, and many other functions. Plasma is the sum of its Plasmoids.
The Panel
The Panel is a special Plasmoid called a containment and it contains the following Plasmoids: the main K-menu button (which opens the Kickoff menu); the Task Bar, and the system tray (which in turn contains these Plasmoids: the Pager Plasmoid (showing your virtual desktops), the clock/date, sound volume, Klipper clipboard, Adept notifier icon, the connected device notifier, the trash can, and anything other Plasmoids you might have put there).
A good example of the power of Plasma: Plasmoids interact with the user to enhance the user's desktop experience. Also, Plasmoids, in a sense, interact with each other, as when a Plasmoid in the Panel (containment) is dragged onto the desktop (containment) and the Plasmoid fits and works in either place. Furthermore, in a certain technical sense, the Panel and the desktop are created the same way as Plasmoids.
An application (e.g., a music player) may have a containment Plasmoid embedded in it that in turn contains individual Plasmoids that provide various useful data to the user (e.g., information about the music, play lists, tracks, etc.), and all the individual Plasmoids (in the containment) taken as a group would then constitute the user interface for that application.
Description of how Plasma works (KDE 4 intro, Phenon, Solid, D-BUS, Dolphin, Oxygen theme, Scalable Vector Graphics (SVGs). Zooming User Interface (ZUI), The Folder View, Cashews):
http://arstechnica.com/reviews/os/kde-40-review.ars/2
KDE 4.0 Visual Guide: Desktop
http://www.kde.org/announcements/4.0/desktop.php
(Includes: Plasma, KRunner, Kickoff, The Panel, dashboard view, KWin, Desktop Effects, Sweet Spots, Dolphin, Okular, Gwenview, System Settings, Konsole, Educational Applications, Games)
Plasma FAQ
http://techbase.kde.org/Projects/Plasma/FAQ
Oxygen theme (the default Plasma theme for your Plasma desktop/GUI):
http://www.oxygen-icons.org/
Plasma Vision Document:
http://plasma.kde.org/cms/1029
Data engines, visualizations, Application Programming Interface (API):
http://aseigo.blogspot.com/2006/04/p...a-engines.html
The old desktop, the new Folder View, differences
Quote from:
http://techbase.kde.org/Projects/Plasma/FAQ
Q: I heard there are no more icons on the desktop in KDE 4.1.
A: That is not entirely correct. You can have icons and launchers (shortcuts) by dragging them from Dolphin or the K-menu. What has changed is that the desktop will no longer display the contents of the [/home/user_name/] Desktop folder. However, you can show an arbitrary number of folders (local or remote) on your desktop view, instead of being forced to display only the contents of the "Desktop" folder. To do so, a new applet has been introduced, the Folder View applet.
In KDE 4.2 you will be also able to use the Folder View as your desktop, replicating the "old style" paradigm. [End quote]
KDE Applications--a few examples & links
Amarok (audio player), Ark (archiving tool), DigiKam, Dolphin (file manager), Dragon Player (multimedia), Gwenview (image viewer), Kaffeine (multimedia), Kcalc (calculator), K3b (CD/DVD burner), Kate (text editor), Kmail, KMPlayer (video for Konqueror), Konsole (terminal emulator), Kontact (a PIM, including email client), Kopote (IM client), Konqueror (my favorite file manager), KOffice (suite), KPDF (PDF viewer), Kplayer (multimedia), KWrite (text editor)
More KDE apps (applications):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_KDE_applications
http://kde-apps.org/
Kubuntu sites
Unofficial Kubuntu site:
http://kudos.berlios.de/kf/kf1.html
Official:
http://www.kubuntu.org/
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Kubuntu
Dual booting to set up more than one OS on your computer
Bigpond, home: http://users.bigpond.net.au/hermanzone/
Psychocats: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/index.php
Dual boot Vista, XP, and/or Linux – The Definitive Guide:
http://apcmag.com/dualboot
How To GRUB Methods - Toolkit
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3081671.0
KDE 4.2 [Beta] Rog131
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3099595.0
KDE 4.1 – Now, Rog131:
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3094578.0
Kubuntu Forums > Kubuntu Discussion > Desktop Support > KDE Support:
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/index.php?board=89.0
Comparison of X Window System desktop environments
Nice summary tables of KDE, GNOME, Xtce features/build:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compari...p_environments
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