I’m in the process of installing 12.1 for my nephew, on a new laptop (while I still
have 11.4). I’m deeply disappointed about KDE — it works even worse then with 11.4.
But I have to install it today, and I don’t know any other desktop (yet; KDE needs to
be abolished, it is just a shame; a pity that Suse does not support Trinity), so
I need to get it to work.
KNetworkmanager has become now completely dysfunctional, as well as KWallet,
but I got rid off them.
But the destruction of virtual desktops seems fully on the way, and this is my question
about, whether perhaps there is a switch which I overlooked (and I’m now trying
for, say, 12h do get something reasonable out of KDE, to fix some minimum functionality
which my nephew could actually use; yet it doesn’t look as if I could succeed):
The starters at least for core functions like “dolphin” etc. in the bottom part, perhaps the
“panel” (or one of its various parts) are important for efficient working. This should
be a triviality, but apparently it isn’t. So now (different from 11.4 with KDE 4.6), when
clicking now on the Dolphin (starter)-icon, a window opens AND THE ICON DISAPPEARS
(of course the icons on the desktop themselves are useless, since you always needed to
clear the desktop to access them).
This is likely due to the windows-stupidity, which is so characteristic of KDE4, that thou
shall not have open more than one window at a time (only garbage is allowed, that is, these
“mini-programs”). However, “of course” I need to add cynically, they forgot in KDE that
there are still virtual desktops, and so once you opened one dolphin window in one
virtual desktops, you can’t open any one anymore in any other virtual desktops (without
going to the starter-menu — which is only usable in itself in its “classical incarnation”).
The same of course for all other applications (I guess it counts as a crime to attempt to
have more than one firefox-window open?).
Has anybody figured out how to keep the starter-icons in the panel once you clicked on it
(which is the case with KDE4.6 under Suse 11.4)?
Now I’ve read your message a few times and I’m still not clear what your problem is and how anyone could help you, except that it’s obvious that you’ve produced some unholy mess on that laptop. The way you write about it doesn’t help as you tend to rant rather than describe what you’ve done and what the problem is. Here’s a few pointers, hoping they’ll get you to pause and think and maybe post something that will allow us to help you:
You imply that you’re familiar with 11.4/KDE4.6 but 12.1/KDE4.7 hasn’t really changed in any significant respects that are relevant to your apparent problems. Panels and launchers/icons work the same way, as do virtual desktops etc.
There is no problem with having multiple windows open in KDE, of course.
Launcher icons on the panel, for Dolphin or anything else, do not disappear when clicked on.
It is easy to have desktop icons and make KDE4 look like KDE3/Trinity.
All these issue are trivial to resolve but only if you describe what you’ve done, what happens, and cut out the silly rants.
Launcher icons on the panel, for Dolphin or anything else, do not disappear when clicked on.
They do. Why do you think they don’t? Is there a specification?
Now how can we communicate about this behaviour of the desktop?
Obviously the easiest possibility, just looking, is not given.
Is there an application which can easily make a video from the desktop?
A single desktop photo is likely not enough for this form of communication.
OK
Unlock the widgets
Open up the panel with the panel cashew
Right click the tasks manager area and delete it.
(All your icons etc will move about but don’t worry)
Now add widgets and search for task and double click task manager
You need to drag it right back over to the left to get all the clock and tray to move back in place
Now go to Kicker and find dolphin and firefox, right click and you should see add to panel
Then drag them in place
I just did it on mine. Here it is SUSE Paste
What makes you say that? The task manager shows open applications. The OP is talking about launcher icons on the panel which disappear once clicked upon, no?
In the earlier milestone releases, there were two sets of icons - one was the larger firefox and dolphin icons as in 11.4, and the other were smaller icons as in 12.1.
The smaller icons disappear when the application is open. The larger icons stayed there.
I think the OP is looking for how to put the older larger icons back, and possibly remove the newer ones. I’m pretty sure that’s possible, though I don’t know the details of how. For myself, I have not been troubled by the change because I mostly start firefox at the command line, and I rarely use dolphin (the unix shell is my preferred file manager).
I know they don’t because they never have for me, or anyone else I know of. But I do not doubt that yours disappear, so no need for videos. The issue is WHY yours disappear, and to figure that out is difficult because you provide little informations other than an indication that you’ve already got rid of things like Knetworkmanager and Kwallet, and don’t seem to know how the panel (or what you call “the bottom part”, “perhaps the panel”) works. Now I’m sure we can get to the bottom of this, but not with silly rants about KDE needing to be “abolished”, not allowing multiple windows, and so on). I suspect what you call “mini-programs” are KDE widgets, and your terminology alone suggests to me that you’ve got little or no experience with KDE, not even 4.6. That’s ok too, we all started somewhere, but then don’t go on these rants if you really don’t know what you’re talking about.
I think the OP is looking for how to put the older larger icons back, and possibly remove the newer ones. I’m pretty sure that’s possible
And I explained how
What makes you say that? The task manager shows open applications.
Try deleting your task manager, or just move it around and watch the icons move with it
Never encountered that with 12.1 release version. But then again, I use a custom-made side panel. If it is true that the Dolphin and Firefox icons as supplied with the release version show this strange behaviour, the answer should be as simple as delete the icons and place new ones on the panel.
As I said in my reply to nrickert, I have a DIY panel so no point in trying. But I’m still puzzled by the Task Manager showing launcher icons, allegedly? Thought its whole point was to manage tasks, as the name suggests, which presupposes something having been launched…
in what sense “should”? With 11.4 Knetworkmanager removed only from time to time some configuration data, now
it does it consistently (after restarting the machine it no longer works). And KWallet under 11.4 only once per session
asked for the password, now it does it permanently. And this is just the default Suse installation.
Fortunately one doesn’t need these faulty applications.
Why do you say that “the firefox and dolphin icons do not appear”, where I said they do?
Computers in general have state, and given that nothing exists which is just remotely related
to a (loose) specification, all what one can do is experiment with the desktop, and register
the results. Additionally we have the problem, that KDE apparently constantly adds to the
complexity of the (over)complex system (all these effects), and they have weak testing
operational (while very strong testing would be needed for the enormous amount of
interaction with all these options). So it could well be an interaction with all these
effects (given that one can not find out how it should be).
Apparently here it is not the case:
You speak of “normal icons”. Okay, I’ll try it.
I go to a new virtual desktop 2. No dolphin launcher in the panel, since we have already
a dolphin window open in the other virtual desktop.
I go to the other virtual desktop (1) and remove the dolphin window.
Back to virtual desktop 2, and there we have the dolphin launcher in the panel.
Via right-click (“bitte diesen Starter entfernen” – please remove this starter)
I remove it.
Then via that menu accessible via the button left-button I find dolphin, and say “add to Kontrolleiste”
(control panel).
Okay, now a bigger icon appears, different from the first icon.
And, this icon now stays, after opening a window with it and on
different virtual desktops.
But seriously, how do you display launcher icons in the bog standard, KDE 4.7 Task Manager??? I’m sure you know what you’re talking about, but would you mind sharing your knowledge?
If you install 12.1 kde with a clean formatted /home
(In a min I’ll just check a new user, to see what I get there)
You’ll find a icon for each: firefox and dolphin, but they are part of the task manager.
Try right clicking one of the icons and it will prompt task manager settings
Or delete the task manager and watch the icons disappear.
Thing is though, when you put the task manager back, it doesn’t have the icons. Which is what I was suggesting the OP to do. You can add icons to the panel as in the traditional sense as the OP was expecting.
OK, thanks for that - that clarifies it. In other words, 12.1 comes with a non-standard Task manager: non-standard in the sense that it has additional functionality built in which wasn’t in previous TMs and isn’t in the standard TM available from “Add widgets”. Is that right? I vaguely remember reading about another widget called “Task Icon” or something which was to be eventually merged into the Task Manager, maybe that’s what was done experimentally in the 12.1 panel? Anyway, as I always get rid of the standard panel first thing after installation and then roll my own, complete with standard TM, I’d never have seen that.
With the OP talking about panel launchers disappearing, you talking about the Task Manager, and nobody about the existence of a non-standard TM in the freshly installed 12.1 panel, no wonder this has been such a confusing thread…
