General KDE Software FAQs: Difference between revisions

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=End User FAQ for KDE systems=


This page with frequently asked questions (FAQ) has been gathered from questions in the #kde IRC channel. This list isn't comprehensive and may grow.
This page with frequently asked questions (FAQ) has been gathered from questions in the #kde IRC channel. This list isn't comprehensive and may grow.


Since this list might become quite long in the future, feel free to browse the table of contents below or use your browser's Find feature to search for a certain topic.
==What about KDE 3?==
 


==What about KDE 3?==
===Is KDE 3 going to be abandoned?===
===Is KDE 3 going to be abandoned?===


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===Is it necessary to upgrade to KDE 4?===
===Is it necessary to upgrade to KDE 4?===


KDE 3 will continue to exist and be used for a long time. But whether you will have to upgrade will mostly be dependent on your distribution's setup. Please consult with your distribution for more information.
KDE 3 will continue to exist and be used for a long time. But whether you will have to upgrade will mostly be dependent on your distribution's setup. In general terms, Enterprise distros (ultimate stability but not having the newer applications) use KDE 3.5.  Examples of such distros are CentOS, White Box or Scientific Linux.  End-user distros are by now usually using 4.4 or even 4.5. 
 
===Is there any help for me to get used to KDE 4?===
 
Yes, indeed.  UserBase can help a great deal.  Some pages to get you started are
[[Special:myLanguage:/Finding_Your_Application|Finding your Application]] which deals with applications that have changed their name or location, and [[Special:myLanguage/Common_Tasks|Common Tasks]] which aims to get you productive quickly.


If you wish to stay with KDE 3 and your distro moves on, there are still distros that use KDE 3.5.  With time, of course, the number of these is diminishing.  By now the most likely place to find KDE 3.5 is in the Enterprise Linux distros, such as CentOS, White Box or Scientific Linux.
Don't forget that you can use the ''Search bar'' to find other pages related to any problem you meet, and clicking on the ''Category|Getting Started'' link at the bottom of this page will show you other helpful pages.


===Will I be able to keep using KDE 3 or KDE 3 apps?===
===Will I be able to keep using KDE 3 or KDE 3 apps?===
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How KDE 4 and KDE are set up depends on your distribution. Please consult with your distribution for more information. Some distributions allow both KDE3 and KDE 4 SC to be installed on the same system.  However, since the release of KDE 4.3 that is less frequently found.
How KDE 4 and KDE are set up depends on your distribution. Please consult with your distribution for more information. Some distributions allow both KDE3 and KDE 4 SC to be installed on the same system.  However, since the release of KDE 4.3 that is less frequently found.


===Some Common Questions===
==General Troubleshooting techniques==


====Will KDE browsers be using WebKit? How can I use WebKit in Konqueror?====
There are a few basic steps that can help in troubleshooting problems with KDE software. You should try these steps before asking on #kde or the kde general mailing list, since you'll probably be told to try them anyway :-)


Currently, there are no plans on replacing KHTML in Konqueror. KHTML continues to be developed actively. As Qt, since version 4.4 also offers webkit, KDE applications can make use of Webkit. A KPart that can be used in Konqueror instead of the KHTML KPart is being developed currently, but not ready for production use yet. KHTML is unlikely to be removed in the lifespan of the KDE SC 4.x series, due to compatibility policies, for one reason. It will be possible to use WebKit as an alternative viewer in Konqueror with the webkitkde project. The source code is available in KDE SVN [http://websvn.kde.org/trunk/playground/libs/webkitkde/ Playground]. Web browsers using webkit are being developed.
* Try creating a new user and running your KDE software with that user. If the problem doesn't occur with the new user, there's probably a problem with a file in your .kde directory. You should then try:
**Rename the file causing the problem. To find an appropriate file, look in .kde/share/apps/<application-name> or in .kde/share/config/application-name.rc where application-name is the name of the application you are having problems with.
**Log out, then log in afresh.  New default files will replace your renamed ones.
* Clean out /tmp and /var/tmp. KDE stores some temporary files which can sometimes cause problems. You will need to be root to do this. You might also like to try removing the following files. Make sure you exit KDE first though!  (The easiest safe way is to choose Failsafe at bootup.):
** ~/.DCOPserver-* (on KDE3 systems there are usually two of these; one is a symlink to the other)
** ~/.kde/socket-<hostname>
** ~/.kde/tmp-<hostname> which is normally a symlink to the next file:
** /tmp/tmp-kde-<USER>
** ~/.kde/socket-<hostname> which is also normally a symlink to:
** /tmp/ksocket-<USER>
* If you're running an old release from KDE, try updating to the latest version - many bugs are fixed with each new version, so your problem might already be fixed.
* Try searching the Bugzilla at http://bugs.kde.org . Many common problems have been reported and discussed there.
* If your problem is more general than just one KDE application (eg, "sound stops working when I start my KDE desktop"), try starting X with a different window manager. Even if you haven't installed another WM, 'twm' will be available, as it ships by default with X.
** If you start X with the 'startx' command, just put the appropriate command in the file .xinitrc in your home directory. (If it doesn't exist, create it)
** If you start your desktop from kdm, this will not work.


====Why was the old style menu replaced by Kickoff?====


The traditional application starting menu from KDE3 had various usability issues. First and foremost, people tend to use no more than 6-10 applications regularly. Having those applications buried in deep menu structures makes it a lot of effort to start them. Those favourite applications can with Kickoff be moved into their own tab so they're easilly accessible. Kickoff might, for new users be more complicated to use since the "browsing applications" usecase has a less central position. For mid- to long-term users, Kickoff will increase productivity for the most common cases.
If your problem is with sound in KDE software, you could try looking at [[Sound_Problems]]


For users who prefer the traditional application launcher menu, it can easily be changed by right-clicking on the Kickoff button and choosing "Switch to Classic Menu Style".  However, doing that loses the Search facility that is in the new menus now available.


If you don't like Kickoff's click-on-everything style, try [[Lancelot]]
==Some Common Questions==


====Why a new desktop implementation? The old one isn't broken.====


The code in kicker, kdesktop and the minicli (The "Run Command" dialogue you get when you press ALT+F2) has been around for a long time. As user needs and technical capabilities shift, the code became unmaintainable and wasn't flexible enough to move KDE forward at a reasonable pace. Moreover, few people dared diving into kicker to extend it. When someone wanted to create a new panel implementation, it has happened multiple times that kicker was just copied and changed. This lead to various forks of kicker and additional maintainance burden for developers. While kicker and kdesktop used to look fine to casual users, they're pretty much a dead-end street in terms of feature development and long-standing, hard to fix bugs.


While Plasma has been rewritten from scratch, and therefore might not yet be able to fully replace kdesktop and kicker for some users, it offers a route to innovation, better collaboration between developers, designers and usability experts. Plasma technology is also built with different formfactors in mind, so it might run on your mobile phone, media center, internet tablet or whatever you can imagine in the future.
==Helping the KDE Community==


==Helping the KDE Community==
===How can I help in development? Do I need to learn how to code?===
===How can I help in development? Do I need to learn how to code?===


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Some other ways to help include
Some other ways to help include


:* End-user support - if you are experienced, consider joining a mailing list or [http://forum.kde.org the Forum] to help support newer users.
* End-user support - if you are experienced, consider joining a mailing list or [http://forum.kde.org the Forum] to help support newer users.


:* If you are able to help with translation, consult [https://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/ this list] to find a contact point.
* If you are able to help with translation as part of the official team, consult [https://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/ this list] to find a contact point.  If you would like to help with UserBase translation, use the sidebar link to get a translator account, then read [[Tasks_and_Tools|the Tasks and Tools page]].


:* English documentation is also needed, and here on Userbase is a good place to start.
* English documentation is also needed, and here on Userbase is a good place to start.


[[Category:Getting_Started]]
[[Category:Desktop]]
[[Category:Desktop]]
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Revision as of 19:45, 30 September 2010

This page with frequently asked questions (FAQ) has been gathered from questions in the #kde IRC channel. This list isn't comprehensive and may grow.

What about KDE 3?

Is KDE 3 going to be abandoned?

No. There is no EOL (end of life) planned for KDE 3. It will continue to exist and be used as long as there are people using it. However, there is no guarantee of bug fixes and maintenance for KDE 3.5 other than that given by your vendor and possible support contracts. Further development is not planned.

Is it necessary to upgrade to KDE 4?

KDE 3 will continue to exist and be used for a long time. But whether you will have to upgrade will mostly be dependent on your distribution's setup. In general terms, Enterprise distros (ultimate stability but not having the newer applications) use KDE 3.5. Examples of such distros are CentOS, White Box or Scientific Linux. End-user distros are by now usually using 4.4 or even 4.5.

Is there any help for me to get used to KDE 4?

Yes, indeed. UserBase can help a great deal. Some pages to get you started are Finding your Application which deals with applications that have changed their name or location, and Common Tasks which aims to get you productive quickly.

Don't forget that you can use the Search bar to find other pages related to any problem you meet, and clicking on the Category|Getting Started link at the bottom of this page will show you other helpful pages.

Will I be able to keep using KDE 3 or KDE 3 apps?

Yes, you will be able to continue using KDE 3 or KDE 3 apps as long as the necessary dependencies are installed. As the changeover to KDE 4 software progresses some of those dependencies will be missing. However, at the same time, most applications are either getting new versions to run with the more up to date dependencies, or similar, new packages are being written.

How KDE 4 and KDE are set up depends on your distribution. Please consult with your distribution for more information. Some distributions allow both KDE3 and KDE 4 SC to be installed on the same system. However, since the release of KDE 4.3 that is less frequently found.

General Troubleshooting techniques

There are a few basic steps that can help in troubleshooting problems with KDE software. You should try these steps before asking on #kde or the kde general mailing list, since you'll probably be told to try them anyway :-)

  • Try creating a new user and running your KDE software with that user. If the problem doesn't occur with the new user, there's probably a problem with a file in your .kde directory. You should then try:
    • Rename the file causing the problem. To find an appropriate file, look in .kde/share/apps/<application-name> or in .kde/share/config/application-name.rc where application-name is the name of the application you are having problems with.
    • Log out, then log in afresh. New default files will replace your renamed ones.
  • Clean out /tmp and /var/tmp. KDE stores some temporary files which can sometimes cause problems. You will need to be root to do this. You might also like to try removing the following files. Make sure you exit KDE first though! (The easiest safe way is to choose Failsafe at bootup.):
    • ~/.DCOPserver-* (on KDE3 systems there are usually two of these; one is a symlink to the other)
    • ~/.kde/socket-<hostname>
    • ~/.kde/tmp-<hostname> which is normally a symlink to the next file:
    • /tmp/tmp-kde-<USER>
    • ~/.kde/socket-<hostname> which is also normally a symlink to:
    • /tmp/ksocket-<USER>
  • If you're running an old release from KDE, try updating to the latest version - many bugs are fixed with each new version, so your problem might already be fixed.
  • Try searching the Bugzilla at http://bugs.kde.org . Many common problems have been reported and discussed there.
  • If your problem is more general than just one KDE application (eg, "sound stops working when I start my KDE desktop"), try starting X with a different window manager. Even if you haven't installed another WM, 'twm' will be available, as it ships by default with X.
    • If you start X with the 'startx' command, just put the appropriate command in the file .xinitrc in your home directory. (If it doesn't exist, create it)
    • If you start your desktop from kdm, this will not work.


If your problem is with sound in KDE software, you could try looking at Sound_Problems


Some Common Questions

Helping the KDE Community

How can I help in development? Do I need to learn how to code?

There are many ways to help the KDE community, not only through programming. There are other areas of contribution that need talent of other kinds. All that's necessary is the desire to help and some commitment. Of course, if you want learn how to program in order contribute, we will be more than willing to get you started as well.

Some other ways to help include

  • End-user support - if you are experienced, consider joining a mailing list or the Forum to help support newer users.
  • If you are able to help with translation as part of the official team, consult this list to find a contact point. If you would like to help with UserBase translation, use the sidebar link to get a translator account, then read the Tasks and Tools page.
  • English documentation is also needed, and here on Userbase is a good place to start.