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KDE 2 for Linux

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PCQ Bureau
New Update

KDE is a popular desktop environment for Linux and looksand feels like

Microsoft Windows.

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K Desktop Environment 2 (KDE 2) is the latest version of this desktop

environment. We’ve included the RPMs of KDE 2 on this month’s CD and here we

take you through the features of this new version.

To install KDE 2, login as root. (We assume that you’re running Red Hat 6.2

from the PC Quest June 2000 CD). Mount this month’s CD and change to the

directory /cdrom/linux/kde2. Issue the following command:

rpm -Uvh * –nodeps

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This will install KDE 2. Now edit or create a file .xinitrc in your home

directory (/root if you use root login) using any Linux text editor like Vi or

Joe, and add a line as:

startkde

Save the file and type ‘startx’ from the shell prompt to

launch the KDE 2 desktop. Its entire look and feel has changed with version 2

and Windows users will feel right at home with it. Let’s go through the major

add-ons.

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The earlier KDE had Kfm as the default file manager and

limited Web browsing support. KDE 2 comes bundled with a powerful file explorer

and Web browser called Konqueror. This lets you peek into compressed archives

like ZIP, TAR, GZ and BZ2. Konqueror has a list of default applications

associated to files that can be directly launched on a mouse click. You can also

access SMB shares (shared Windows folders) using Konqueror.

As a web browser, Konqueror supports Java, JavaScript, HTML

4, CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), SSL (Secure Socket Layer for secure

communications) and Netscape Communicator plug-ins like Flash, RealAudio,

RealVideo. It can import Netscape bookmarks. It can access POP based e-mail, for

which you need to type in the URL as pop3://

KDE2 also has an office suite called KOffice, which includes

a word-processor, Kword; a presentation program, Kpresenter; a spreadsheet

application, KSpread; a vector drawing application, KIllustrator; and a graph

plotting application, KChart. However, it doesn’t have a database application

yet.

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As in any powerful word processor application, KWord supports

spell check, macros, and printing. It can also open and edit Word files. By

default, documents are saved in KWD format, which produces a compressed XML

file. You can’t save these files as Word documents.

KPresenter lets you design slides for your presentations. It

can import PowerPoint 97 presentations. It also supports scripting, which can be

used to precisely control the flow of a presentation. You can also import files

from other KOffice applications.

KSpread is the spreadsheet program and includes numerous

formatting options. You can import data like graphics and text from other KDE

applications and place them inline. You can also import and use Excel 97 files

and Lotus spreadsheets.

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KIllustrator is a vector graphics application to draw

graphics using lines and curves. It can be used for designing blueprints,

frameworks, layouts etc. You can export the vector drawing in EPS (Encapsulated

PostScript), XPM (XPM image format), SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics), and PPM

(PPM Image Format).

KChart is exclusively for drawing graphs. It can display

statistical data using a variety of graphs like Line, Pie, Bar, Area and 3D

graphs.

Arts Multimedia Architecture

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Arts stands for Analog RealTime Synthesizer. This multimedia

architecture, which is now part of KDE 2, enables playback of multiple audio and

video streams simultaneously. This architecture uses an Arts sound server, which

automatically starts with KDE, and all audio applications make use of it. Arts

includes a modular analog synthesizer and a mixer, with which you can create

sounds and music using different modules. The resulting music can be played on

various output devices.

These are just some of the enhancements made to the new KDE 2

GUI environment. A good tutorial is available at

www.linux-mandrake.com/en/demos/Tutorial/KDE2desktop/.

You can also keep track of the latest development and add-ons from www.kde.org.

Shekhar Govindarajan

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