Complete Idiot's Guide to Linux:The First Login on the KDE Desktop function GetCookie (name) { var arg = name + "="; var alen = arg.length; var clen = document.cookie.length; var i = 0; while (i < clen) { var j = i + alen; if (document.cookie.substring(i, j) == arg) { var end = document.cookie.indexOf (";", j); if (end == -1) end = document.cookie.length; return unescape(document.cookie.substring(j, end)); } i = document.cookie.indexOf(" ", i) + 1; if (i == 0) break; } return null; } var m1=''; var gifstr=GetCookie("UsrType"); if((gifstr!=0 ) && (gifstr!=null)) { m2=gifstr; } document.write(m1+m2+m3);            Keyword Title Author ISBN Publisher Imprint Brief Full  Advanced      Search  Search Tips Please Select ----------- Components Content Mgt Certification Databases Enterprise Mgt Fun/Games Groupware Hardware IBM Redbooks Intranet Dev Middleware Multimedia Networks OS Prod Apps Programming Security UI Web Services Webmaster Y2K ----------- New Titles ----------- Free Archive To access the contents, click the chapter and section titles. Complete Idiot's Guide to Linux (Publisher: Macmillan Computer Publishing) Author(s): Manuel Ricart ISBN: 078971826x Publication Date: 12/22/98 function isIE4() { return( navigator.appName.indexOf("Microsoft") != -1 && (navigator.appVersion.charAt(0)=='4') ); } function bookMarkit() { var url="../../../../../www.itknowledge.com/PSUser/EWBookMarks.html@url="+window.location+"&isbn=0"; parent.location.href=url; //var win = window.open(url,"myitk"); //if(!isIE4()) // win.focus(); } Search this book:   Previous Table of Contents Next Lists and Menus You tell an application what to do using commands. Commands typically are in menus. Applications have menus right under their window’s title bar. Working with menus is similar to working with buttons. If you click a menu button (also called menu item), the menu opens, and you can then click one of its commands. You can also click and drag on a menu. The option under your cursor when you release the mouse becomes the selected command. If the menu displays an arrow, the command offers submenus. You can treat submenus in much the same way as menus. In a hierarchical menu, clicking a menu item displaying an arrow opens a submenu with additional commands or submenus. An ellipsis (…) marks a command that opens a window or dialog box. Never be afraid to explore menu commands with an ellipsis, because you can always cancel the dialog box with no adverse effect. Commands can also be invoked by typing a keyboard accelerator. For example, you can invoke the Open Terminal command by typing Ctrl+T while the K File Manager (or KFM) window displayed in the previous figure active. A different application might use Ctrl+T for a different purpose. Menus that display an underscore (_) under a letter can be opened with the keyboard by pressing Alt+letter. Dimmed commands are currently unavailable and cannot be selected. Choice lists are similar to menus. They open a drop-down list of options from which you can choose. While still holding the mouse button, drag your mouse until the cursor points to the option you want. Release the mouse to select the option. Choice lists that sport a text field (described next) are called “Combo Boxes,” because they allow you to select from a menu or type a new choice and they are a combination of controls. The choice list looks like this before it is activated… …like this while you’re making a selection… …and like this after you release the mouse. Text Fields When an application requires additional information in the form of text, you enter that information into a text field or its larger cousin, the text area. A label typically indicates the purpose of the text field. This dialog box requires text input. When working with a text field, an I-beam cursor is displayed, indicating that you can type text there. To move to another field or to give a field focus, click on it. To select a portion of the text, click the mouse button where you want to begin the selection and drag to where you want to end it. (In some applications, you can also click and then Shift+click the selection’s end.) To select text, click the mouse where you want to begin a selection… …and then drag to where you want the selection to end. The selected text is highlighted, and typing replaces the current selection. Manipulating Controls with the Keyboard You can move around controls and forms (a collection of controls) by pressing the Tab key. The currently active control will display a black outline to indicate that it is selected. You can then use your keyboard to change its current setting, type data if the control is a text field, or select it if it’s some sort of button. You can use your keyboard’s arrow keys to change the setting of a slider. If the control can be clicked, you can probably also activate it by pressing the Spacebar while the control is selected. To move backward, you can press Shift+Tab. Ending the Work Session At the end of your work session, you can log out. If you don’t expect to use your computer for a day or two, you should turn it off. Remember to save your work before you do any of these things. The procedure of shutting down your system is critical to the health of your disk, so don’t just switch off the power button! Check This Out:  Don’t turn off the power to your computer until the computer says that the system has been halted. Otherwise, you can damage your computer. To log out, choose Logout from the application starter (the X icon) or click the logout icon in the KDE panel. If you have applications open, you will get a “Session prepared for logout” dialog showing what data you are likely to lose. You can then change your mind at this point if you need to go back and save information. To turn off your computer, first log out and then choose Shutdown on the login panel. On the panel that appears choose Shutdown again. After your computer has been halted, you can power it off. To restart your computerinstead of simply halting it, logout and then, on the login panel, choose Shutdown. In the resulting dialog box, chose Restart. If for some strange reason your desktop ever stops responding, you can force an exit by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Backspace. Doing so will terminate the X server (KDE) and take you back to the console. Here again is one of the benefits of Linux: You can exit a locked-up GUI without having to reboot your machine. Previous Table of Contents Next Products |  Contact Us |  About Us |  Privacy  |  Ad Info  |  Home Use of this site is subject to certain Terms & Conditions, Copyright © 1996-2000 EarthWeb Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of EarthWeb is prohibited.