Use the Linux Desktop

SECTION 2

Use the Linux Desktop

This section gives an overview of the graphical user interfaces of SUSE Linux
Enterprise Server and explains how to access the command line.

Objectives
1.

Overview of the Linux Desktop

2.

Use the GNOME Desktop Environment

3.

Access the Command Line Interface from the Desktop

Introduction
You cannot install Windows without its graphical user interface (GUI). In Linux, the
GUI is a normal application that you can choose whether or not to install.
Most services in Linux can be configured by editing an ASCII text file, so you do not
need a GUI if you want your computer to act only as a server.
Not installing a graphical user interface has the following advantages:

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Stability. Every program contains errors that can make your system unstable.
The fewer programs are installed, the more stable your system will be. A
graphical user front end is a large program that might contain a large number of
undiscovered programming errors, even if the error ratio is low.

Performance. Every running program needs system resources. Fewer programs

running on your computer means increased performance.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 1

Overview of the Linux Desktop

The base of any graphical user interface is the X Window System (simply called X or
X11). It allows you to control the input and output of several applications in different
windows of a graphical interface.
You need to distinguish between graphical applications, which run in their own
windows, and text-based applications, which are carried out in a terminal window.
The X Window System was created in 1984 at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of
Technology). The aim of the development was to be able to use graphical
applications across a network, independent of hardware.
The X Window System allows graphical applications to be displayed and operated on
any monitor, without running the applications on the machines to which these
monitors are connected.
The basis for this is the separation into a server component (X server) and the
application itself (client application). The X server and client application
communicate with each other by way of various communication channels.

X server. The X server controls the graphical screen. This corresponds roughly
to what would be called a graphics driver on other systems. In addition, it
manages the input devices, such as keyboard and mouse, and transmits their
actions to the X client.
The X server, however, has nothing to do with the appearance of the window and
the desktop; this is the task of the window manager. XFree86 and XOrg are free
implementations of the X server. SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 defaults to
using XOrg.

Client application. The client application is a graphical application that uses the
services of the X server to receive keyboard and mouse actions and to have its
own output displayed on the screen.

The communication between X server and X client uses the network protocol TCP/IPeven if
the server and client run on the same computer.

Window managers are specialized client applications. A window manager works

together with the X server and provides additional functionality. The window
manager

Provides control elements

Manages virtual desktops

Provides functionality of window frames (for example, changing their size)

The X Window System is not linked to any specific window manager and thus it is
not linked to any particular look and feel.
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 is currently released with several window
managers, including Metacity (the GNOME window manager) and twm (Tab
Window Manager).

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Use the Linux Desktop

Desktop environments go far beyond the look and feel window managers provide for
desktops and manipulating windows. The aim is to provide clients with a unified look
and feel. GNOME is the standard graphical desktop for SUSE Linux Enterprise
Server 10, but you can install the KDE desktop instead.
As can be seen in the following figure, the X server is running on computer da5,
while the X applications are running on computers da1 and da2:
Figure 2-1

The display of the client applications, however, is performed by the X server on the
machine da5. All of these computers can be running different operating systems.

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Objective 2

Use the GNOME Desktop Environment

GNOME is a comfortable desktop environment. GNOME supports drag and drop.
Numerous programs are specifically designed for GNOME.
To use the GNOME desktop environment, you need to know the following:

Log in

Log out and Shut down

Identify GNOME Desktop Components

Manage Icons in GNOME

Use the GNOME File Manager (Nautilus)

Log in
If computer users want to work with a multiuser-capable operating system, they must
first identify themselves to the operating system. For this purpose, they need

A login string or username

A password (usually assigned by the system administrator when a new user is

added)

When the computer is booted and ready for work, the following login dialog appears:
Figure 2-2

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Use the Linux Desktop

After entering a username, press Enter. Then enter your password and press Enter
again. If the login is successful, the following GNOME desktop environment
appears:
Figure 2-3

Log out and Shut down

When you are ready to log out of the system, open the Computer menu (also called
main menu) in the bottom panel.
Figure 2-4

At the right side of the Computer menu, select the Log Out entry.

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After selecting Log Out, a confirmation dialog appears.

Figure 2-5

If you select Save Current setup, your current desktop environment settings are
saved and restored after your next login.
Select OK after selecting an action.
If you are at the login screen, there are four options availabe in the lower left corner:

Language. Select the language of the desktop environment.

Session. You can choose a window manager other than GNOME. In this student
manual, we cover only GNOME (the default window manager). Some basic
informations about the KDE environment you find in the appendix A.

Reboot. Reboots the system.

Only root is allowed to reboot the system. So you have to enter the root password.

Shut Down. Shuts down your computer.

Only root is allowed to shut down the system. So you have to enter the root password.

Older computers that do not have power management and cannot switch
themselves off can be switched off when the following message appears:
Master Resource Control: runlevel 0 has been

reached

If you switch the machine off too soon, this could possibly lead to loss of data.

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You should always shut down your computer before you turn it off.

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Use the Linux Desktop

Exercise 2-1

Log in to and Log out from the GNOME Desktop

In this exercise, you learn how to log in to and log out from your GNOME desktop.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

Identify GNOME Desktop Components

The GNOME desktop includes one panel at the bottom of the screen.
Figure 2-6

There is a menu at the left side of the panel. This menu is labeled Computer. It is
called the main menu.
The empty space in the middle of the panel includes the task manager. All opened
windows on the screen will be listed here.
At the right of the panel there are some more items. Which icons are available
depends from your hardware:

Globe. Searches for new updates.

Battery. Power management for laptops.

Speaker. Volume control.

Clock. Shows date and time.

Board. Minimizes all open windows or shows them again on the desktop.

You can start a programs with an icon on the desktop by double-clicking the icon.
But normally, programs are started from the main menu.
Figure 2-7

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

At the top of the left frame there is a pull-down menu showing three different filters:

Favorite Applications

Recently Used Applications

Recent Documents

In the left frame, there is also a button labeled More Applications. If you select this
button, the application browser appears.
Figure 2-8

The right frame of the application browser shows a list of the most important
installed applications. The applications are grouped and you can see a list of the
groups in the left frame. Select a group to see only the applications that belong to this
group.
The filter option adds even more flexibility. Enter a part of the name of the
application you want to start in the Filter textbox in the left frame. The filtered
applications are shown immediately in the right frame.
In the right frame of the main menu, there are five system options:

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Help. Starts the online help.

Control Center. Starts the GNOME Control Center where you can configure
your desktop with.

Install Software. Shows a list with the available software on your registered
installation media.

Lock Screen. Locks the screen. To unlock you have to enter your password.

Log Out. Must be selected to log out of the system.

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Use the Linux Desktop

At the bottom of the right frame you can see the status of your hard drives and
network.
To start an application select the icon in the main menu or the application browser
with a single mouse click.

Manage Icons in GNOME

You can manage icons on your desktop in different ways. For simplicity, we will
describe only the most important methods.
You can find icons in the following three areas on your desktop:

Desktop

Panel

Main Menu

Desktop

To create an icon for an application on your desktop, select the item in your
application menu, drag it to a free space on your desktop, and release the mouse
button.
Notice there is a small plus icon at the mouse pointer when moving the icon. This
indicates, that a copy of the icon will be created.
To create a new icon right-click a free space on your desktop. A menu pops up.
Figure 2-9

At the top of the pop-up menu there are three entries to create a new item:

Create Folder. Creates a new and empty folder icon.

When the icon appears you can enter the folders name.

Figure 2-10

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SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 Fundamentals

Create Launcher. Creates a new application launcher. A dialog appears:

Figure 2-11

Enter the following information:

Name. Name and label of the launcher.

Generic name. (Optional) You can enter a generic name here.

Comment. (Optional) This comment is shown as a tool tip when moving the
mouse pointer over the icon.

Command. Command that should be executed when double-clicking the

launcher icon.

Type. You can create launchers for different file types (e.g., application,
directory, link, device) using this dialog.

Icon. (Optional) Select an icon for the launcher.

Run in terminal. Select this option if the application does not have a
graphical user interface and runs in a terminal window.

Create Document. You can create an empty document by using this menu.
Depending on your installed software there are various document types available
in this menu. After a default installation there is only the possibility to create an
empty text file.
When the icon appears you can enter the text files name.

Figure 2-12

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Use the Linux Desktop

Panel

You can add new programs to the bottom panel by right-clicking a free area of the
panel and then selecting Add to Panel. From the dialog thar appears, select the
application you want to add.
Figure 2-13

You can remove a program from the control panel by right-clicking its icon in the
bottom panel and then selecting Remove From Panel.
You can move icons in the panel by holding down the right mouse button and
selecting Move from the Context menu.

Main Menu

Only the user root is allowed to add a new entry to a menu. Normal users are only
allowed to declare favorite applications. Therefore do the following:
1.

Open the main menu in the panel.

The menu appears.

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2.

Select More Applications.

3.

Select an application item in the right frame with the right mouse botton.

4.

Select Add to Favorites from the pop-up menu.

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Exercise 2-2

Work with Icons in GNOME

In this exercise, you add a new icon to your desktop. You also add and remove an
applet to and from the bottom panel.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

Use the GNOME File Manager (Nautilus)

GNOME provides its own file manager (called Nautilus):
Figure 2-14

You can start Nautilus by selecting the usernames Home icon on the desktop or by
selecting Nautilus from the main menu. By default Nautilus is marked as a favorite
application.
Normally Nautilus shows the content of the users home directory after starting.
The right frame of the Nautilus windows shows the content of the current directory.
You can see your current position in the location bar below the tool bar. All higher
directories are shown as buttons. Select one of these buttons to switch into the higher
directory.

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Use the Linux Desktop

The left frame is called Side Panel.

Figure 2-15

At the top of the side panel there is a menu where you can select the content of the
side panel:

Places. Shows the most important directories and devices to store files.

Information. Shows some information about the current directory.

Tree. Shows the file system tree and the tree of the home directory.

History. Shows a history of the last visited directories.

Notes. Enter notes for the current directory.

Emblems. Shows the list of emblems.

To add an emblem to an icon use drag and drop. Erase removes all emblems
from an icon.

Figure 2-16

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Exercise 2-3

Use the GNOME File Manager (Nautilus)

In this exercise, you explore your GNOME desktop and learn how to use the
GNOME File Manager Nautilus.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Use the Linux Desktop

Objective 3

Access the Command Line Interface from the Desktop

A classic multiuser environment can be implemented by connecting several terminals
(dialog stations)monitor and keyboard unitsto the serial interface of a single
computer.
You can also connect several terminals to the serial interface in a Linux system.
However, because more than one person often uses the same PC, virtual terminals
were created in Linux.
With virtual terminals, you can work in Linux as if you had several classic terminals
available at the same time.
You can have up to six virtual terminals (F1-F6) running on your computer. By
pressing Ctrl+Alt+Fx, you can switch between individual terminals. By pressing
Ctrl+Alt+F7, you can switch back to your graphical user interface.
You can determine the terminal currently being used from the tty number (tty1tty6).
tty is an abbreviation for teletype, which is another word for terminal.
When you switch to a virtual terminal, a login prompt appears:
Welcome to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 (i586) - Kernel
2.6.16.14-6-default (tty1).

da51 login:

From here you can enter your login name and password. To logout enter exit.
Besides using the virtual terminals, you can start a terminal emulation from your
GNOME desktop by selecting Gnome Terminal (shown in the following picture) or
X Terminal from the main menu. Both belong to the System application group.
Figure 2-17

The terminal appears inside a window with options you can select to modify the
display of the terminal (such as font and background color).

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Exercise 2-4

Access the Command Line Interface

In this exercise, you switch to virtual terminals and back to the graphical user
interface. You also log in and log out at a virtual terminal.
You will find this exercise in the workbook.
(End of Exercise)

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Use the Linux Desktop

Summary
Objective

Summary

1. Overview of the Linux Desktop

The X Window System consists of a server

component (X server) and client applications.

2. Use the GNOME Desktop

You learned how to log in and log out of the GNOME

system and how to navigate in the GNOME desktop
environment.

Environment

You learned how to manage icons at

The GNOME desktop

The bottom panel

The Applications menu

The file manager of GNOME is called Nautilus.

3. Access the Command Line
Interface from the Desktop

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server provides the user

with six virtual terminals.
You can use the key combinations Ctrl+Alt+F1 to
Ctrl+Alt+F6 to switch between the individual
terminals.
You can switch back to your graphical user interface
by pressing Ctrl+Alt+F7.
With Gnome Terminal you can access the command
line interface within an window.

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