The GNOME Configuration Editor is installed but not enabled by default. It is a powerful tool and should be used with caution only when needed. This was one of those times. To enable it, go to Applications>Preferences>Main Menu. In the left panel select System Tools. In the right panel check the box next to Configuration Editor. It is now enabled and obviously will appear under System Tools.

Start the Configuration Editor. Navigate the editor by clicking on the arrows next to the subsections. Click on the arrow next to apps. Then nautilus followed by preferences. Scroll down the options until you find the one called “show_desktop”. The box next to the option must be checked. To be sure, double click on the option and it should show a value of “True”. If it does not, recheck the box until it does.

The desktop icons on my machine reappeared. If you follow this procedure and you are not the sole user of the machine, you might want to go back and disable the editor for security.

KDE made a major version upgrade in 2008 from 3.5 to 4.0. Many KDE users were upset and were quite vocal about it. Indeed, the initial 4.0 release was quite buggy. The current release is version 4.2 which supposedly fixes many of the bugs. The fact remains, however, that the new KDE introduces some very new concepts on how a desktop functions. I needed to download a livecd with version 4.2 to see what all the fuss was about. Following this link, I downloaded OpenSUSE 11.1 and burned a CD.

I booted the CD and waited, and waited and waited some more. It took seven minutes from GRUB to a working desktop! Yes, no CD will boot as fast as a hard disk but seven minutes??? Really! Strike ONE. I quickly found a connectoid for networking and was pleased that I had found another distribution that recognized my Atheros AR242x chipset. The KDE “kicker” gave access to all the typical KDE applications you would expect. I used Konqueror to access my blog site (the site you are now reading). It did not render correctly and I could not edit my blog. Strike TWO. A right-click on the desktop produced an invitation to install a widget. I did not want a widget, had no idea what widgets were available, and besides I wanted to a create a document. There is no option to do that. Some googling on the internet showed me some “workarounds” to this problem. One involved the command line and another, believe it or not, a widget. Strike THREE.

OpenSUSE currently holds the number 2 spot on distrowatch.com following Ubuntu. It does come in a GNOME version and perhaps I will take a look at that soon if only to compare boot times. Meanwhile, I will not be wasting any more CD’s on KDE versions of any distributions.

Virtual Desktops

The taskbar can get crowded and unorganized. Virtual Desktops have the effect that you are sitting in front of several computers at one time. On one computer you’re watching your email, on another you’re web surfing and on another you’re using a terminal. Yes, you can do this on the taskbar but it’s more efficient to use three desktops. Most Linux distros enable at least two desktops by default easily extendable to more (I like three). Windows users can install a third party application. Microsoft offers a “power toy” that provides four desktops but better yet go to virtuawin for a free utility that will provide up to nine.

Docks

Apple invented this idea years ago and it’s included in every Apple OS release during the last nine years. Apple now holds a patent on it, but I doubt that you will get sued for using a third party dock in Windows or Linux. A dock is a graphical program launcher. It sits on your desktop with icons for the programs that you use the most. Forget the Windows “Start” menu, forget the Linux “Applications” menu, just click on the icon for your email, browser or whatever. Windows and Linux users have several docks to choose from. As a Linux user I like the Cairo-Dock , Windows users should take a look at the free  Rocket Dock. Do a Google search for others.

Speed Dial Firefox Extension

This is a dock specific for your Firefox browser. It puts a pair of icons on your navigation toolbar. One configures, the other launches. You add your moat visited web pages to the dock. The dock displays sample page thumbnails or images of your choice so it’s a breeze to go where you want without fumbling through bookmarks. A nice little timesaver.

There you have it! None of these goodies are things you can’t live without. But I guarantee that if you install any one of them you’ll wonder how would you live without it!