Linux in the Workplace Table of Contents Linux in the Workplace—How to Use Linux in Your Office 1 Introduction 3 Why This Book Is Different 3 Chapter 1: Learning About the Pieces 5 What Is Linux? 5 The Roots of Linux 5 Linux Performance 6 Linux Distributions 6 Ways of Communicating with Linux: Text and Graphical 6 What Is KDE? 7 What Else Is Included? 7 Chapter 2: Loggin in and Moving Around 8 Logging In and Out 8 Changing Passwords 9 Logging Out 9 A Word about Root 10 The Landscape of the KDE Desktop 10 Menus, Windows, and Toolbars 10 Other Mouse Uses: Moving and Copying 13 Navigating Your Desktop 13 The Panel 14 The Desktop 20 Navigating with the Keyboard 21 Chapter 3: Managing Files 24 Making the Konqueror File Manager Your Friend 24 The Location Bar 24 The Konqueror File Display 26 Accessing Files on Removable Media—CD−ROM and Floppy Disk Drives 27 Menus and Toolbar Buttons 27 Window Menu 34 Accessing Man Pages 34 Working with Files 35 Creating New Folders and Files 35 Moving Files 36 Opening Files 37 Right−Clicking Files 40 Changing Permissions 45 Middle−Clicking 46 Using File Compression 46 Chapter 4: Getting Organized 47 KOrganizer 47 Configuring KOrganizer 47 Menus and Toolbars 55 Printing from KOrganizer 56 Using the To−Do List 57 i Table of Contents Chapter 4: Getting Organized Scheduling Events 59 Importing, Exporting, and Archiving in KOrganizer 62 KPilot 64 Syncing with KPilot 64 KPilot Files 65 Configuring KPilot 66 KArm: Time Management 68 Working with Tasks 69 Configuring KArm 70 KNotes 70 Working with KNotes 71 Configuring KNotes 72 KJots 72 Using KJots 73 KCalc 73 Using KCalc 74 Configuring KCalc 74 Chapter 5: The Open Office Suite 75 Overview 75 Introduction to OpenOffice 76 Writer: Working with Text 77 Creating a New Document 77 Opening an Existing Document 78 Formatting Your Document 79 Inserting Graphics into Your Document 83 Saving Your Document 84 Creating Document Templates 85 Printing Your Document 85 OpenOffice Calc: Spreadsheets 85 Creating a New Spreadsheet 86 Deleting or Moving Data 87 Using Formulas and Functions 88 Formatting Your Spreadsheet 88 Making a Chart 89 Saving Your Spreadsheet 91 Working with Multiple Pages in One Spreadsheet 91 Printing Your Spreadsheet 92 OpenOffice Impress: Presentations and Slideshow 92 Fine−Tuning Your Presentation 94 Saving and Exporting Your Presentation 94 Exporting as a Web Presentation 94 Printing Your Presentation 95 Viewing Your Presentation 95 OpenOffice Draw for Graphics 96 A Sample Draw Document 96 Keyboard Shortcuts in the OpenOffice Suite 99 ii Table of Contents Chapter 6: Alternative Office Software 101 KOffice 101 Navigating KOffice 101 KWord 102 Creating a New KWord Document 102 Opening an Existing Document 104 Using Frames 104 Formatting Your Document 106 Inserting Graphics into Your Document 111 KSpread 112 Creating a New Spreadsheet 113 Opening an Existing Spreadsheet 113 Entering Data 114 Using Formulas and Functions 115 KWrite 116 AbiWord 117 Starting AbiWord 118 The AbiWord Screen 118 Working with Files 118 Setting View Options for Productivity 120 Formatting 120 Setting Tabs and Margins 120 Using Styles 121 Using SpellChecker 121 Adding Links 122 Setting Preferences 122 Chapter 7: Working with Graphics 123 KPaint 123 The Toolbar 123 Color 125 Document Information 126 Scanning 127 xscanimage 127 Scan Mode Options 129 Scanning Resolutions 132 Moire Patterns 133 Kontour 133 Getting Started with Kontour 133 Grab ‘n Go with KSnapshot 135 KView 136 Getting Started with KView 136 Playing with KView 137 gv 141 Chapter 8: More on Graphics: The Gimp 142 Overview 142 Getting Started 142 The Toolbar 143 File and Xtns 143 iii Table of Contents Chapter 8: More on Graphics: The Gimp Color Menu 143 Dialog Menu 144 Selection 146 Smart Selection 146 Move, View, and Crop 147 Transform, Flip, and Text 147 Color Picker, Bucket, and Gradient 148 Pencil, Paintbrush, Eraser, and Ink Tools 149 Airbrush, Clone, Convolver 149 Dodge and Burn and Smudge Tools 150 Finally, Let’s Work with The GIMP! 150 Layers 151 Retouching Photos 152 More Retouching 155 Filters 158 Script−Fu and You 158 Chapter 9: Communication: Working with Email, Usenet News, and Faxes 160 KMail 160 Configuring KMail 161 Using KMail 169 Using the KMail Address Book 178 Other Features of KMail 181 Email with Netscape 185 Other Email Agents 189 Usenet 189 KNode 190 Usenet News with Netscape 193 Faxing 195 K Send a Fax 196 KFax 196 Chapter 10: Accessing the Web 198 Overview 198 Konqueror in Detail 198 The Basics of Getting Around 198 Getting to Know Your History 200 Searching the World Wide Web 200 Setting a New Home Page 203 Using Bookmarks 204 Using Plugins 212 Saving Web Pages and Images 213 Printing a Web Page 215 Other Options 216 Customizing Konqueror 216 Konqueror Browser Setup 216 Cookies 218 Crypto 221 User Agent 221 iv Table of Contents Chapter 10: Accessing the Web Other Applications 222 FTP and KBear 222 Netscape 223 Opera 223 Building Web Content 223 Using Save to Make HTML 224 Using Quanta Plus 224 Chapter 11: Customizing Your Desktop 227 Using the Control Center 227 File Browsing 228 File Associations 229 File Manager 230 Quick Copy & Move Plugin 231 Information 232 Look & Feel 233 Background 233 Color 235 Desktop 236 Fonts 239 Icons 240 Launch Feedback 242 Menu Settings 242 Panel 243 Screensaver 246 Shortcuts 247 Style 250 Taskbar 250 Theme Manager 251 Window Behavior 252 Window Decoration 255 Network 255 Email 255 News Ticker 256 Peripherals 258 Mouse 258 Personalization 260 Accessibility 260 Country & Language 260 Crypto 261 Konsole 261 Passwords 261 Session Manager 261 Spell Checking 262 Power Control 262 Sound 262 System Notifications 264 System 265 Adding Icons 266 v Table of Contents Chapter 11: Customizing Your Desktop Panel Buttons 266 Desktop Icons 267 Adding Items to the K Menu 269 Chapter 12: Making Job Backups 272 Overview 272 The Ark Archiver Backup Utility 272 Burning Data to CDs with KOnCD 274 Preparation 274 Starting Up 275 Backing Up Files 277 Chapter 13: Using the Command Line 281 Overview 281 Terminal Windows 281 Konsole 281 xterm 284 The Shell 284 Shell Choices 285 Shell Prompt 285 Control Characters 286 Pipes and Redirection 286 Command−Line Format 288 Command−Line Editing and Shell History 289 Command Completion 289 Shell Expansions 290 Quoting 290 Conventions 291 File Hierarchy 291 Naming the Pieces 291 Moving About 292 File Manipulation Utilities 292 ls—Listing Directory Contents 292 cp—Copy Files 292 mv—Rename or Move Files 293 rm—Remove Files 294 mkdir—Create a Directory 294 rmdir—Remove a Directory 295 Text Editors 296 Emacs 296 Joe 296 vi 296 lpr—Send File to a Printer 296 File Attributes and Permissions 296 How Permissions Work 297 chmod—Change File Permissions 297 chgrp—Change File Group 298 Information 298 file—Guess File Type 298 vi Table of Contents Chapter 13: Using the Command Line man—Online Documentation 299 Sorting and Searching 299 grep—Searching for Strings in Files 300 find—Locating a File 300 locate—Locating a File 301 System−Related Commands 302 ps—Process Status 302 top—Ongoing Process Status 302 df—Display Free Disk Space 303 du—Display Disk Space Usage 303 Conclusion 303 Appendix A: Openoffice Default Key Binding/Keyboard Shortcuts 304 OpenOffice Writer 304 OpenOffice Calc 305 OpenOffice Impress 307 OpenOffice Draw 308 Appendix B: What Does What: Matching Your Task with the Appropriate Program 310 Appendix C: Creating and Maintaining a GPG Key for Kmail 312 Generating Your Key 312 Posting Your Key to a Keyserver 313 Signing Other People’s Keys 313 Keysigning Events 313 OpenPGP and GPG Documentation 313 List of Figures 314 Chapter 2: Loggin in and Moving Around 314 Chapter 3: Managing Files 314 Chapter 4: Getting Organized 315 Chapter 5: The Open Office Suite 315 Chapter 6: Alternative Office Software 316 Chapter 7: Working with Graphics 316 Chapter 8: More on Graphics: The Gimp 317 Chapter 9: Communication: Working with Email, Usenet News, and Faxes 318 Chapter 10: Accessing the Web 318 Chapter 11: Customizing Your Desktop 319 Chapter 12: Making Job Backups 320 Chapter 13: Using the Command Line 321 vii Linux in the Workplace—How to Use Linux in Your Office SSC, Publishers of Linux Journal An imprint of No Starch Press, Inc. San Francisco LINUX IN THE WORKPLACE. Copyright ©2002 by Specialized Systems Consultants, Inc. (SSC) All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner and the publisher. No Starch Press and the No Starch Press logo are registered trademarks of No Starch Press, Inc. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. Rather than use a trademark symbol with every occurrence of a trademarked name, we are using the names only in an editorial fashion and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of infringement of the trademark. 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For information on translations or book distributors outside the United States, please see our distributors list in the back of this book or contact No Starch Press, Inc. directly: No Starch Press, Inc. 555 De Haro Street, Suite 250, San Francisco, CA 94107 phone: 415− 863− 9900; fax: 415− 863− 9950; info@nostarch.com; http://www.nostarch.com/ The information in this book is distributed on an “As Is” basis, without warranty. While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this work, neither the author nor No Starch Press, Inc. shall have any liability to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the information contained in it. Library of Congress Cataloguing− in−Publication Data Linux in the Workplace / SSC. p. cm. ISBN 1−886411−86−7 1 1. Linux. 2. Operating systems (Computers) I. Specialized Systems Consultants. QA76.76.O63L5455 2002 005.4'32−−dc21 2002001102 2 [...]... box again (now with a minus (−) sign) collapses the view of the inside of that directory Alternatively, doubleclicking the folder icon, instead of single− clicking, has the same effect as clicking in the little box If you click a subdirectory in the sidebar, its contents are displayed in the main window Clicking any file icon in the main window opens that file within Konqueror in read− only format This... icon in the sidebar to display the contents of that directory in the window on the right Click the house icon, and you can see the contents of your home directory shown in the main window Next to each icon in the sidebar is a small box to the left with a plus (+) sign Clicking this box shows the subdirectories contained within the parent directory in a tree structure display Clicking the box again (now... to the printer icon to print it To move a window to another location on your screen, place your pointer in the window’s titlebar (the topmost section of the window) and then drag and drop the window to a new location Once the window is where you want it, release the mouse button To resize a window, move the mouse pointer along the window border When a double−headed arrow appears, click and drag the. .. the mouse pointer directly over it and click the left mouse button once— a single click A blinking mini− icon appears next to the mouse pointer indicating that your computer is opening the program or file The type of mini− icon will show which program is opening For instance, if you click on the globe icon in the panel to open the Konqueror web browser, a blinking globe will appear Menus, Windows, and... powerful, yet inexpensive, supercomputers by combining groups of lesser−powered Linux machines and having them all work together in clusters Linux Distributions Because Linux is freely available, any company (or individual) can take it, add software to it, and offer the resulting compilation (either free or for sale) as a Linux distribution The result is a range of available distributions Some of the companies... 1 and click the terminal icon (the icon showing a monitor and a seashell) to open a terminal window Now click on desktop 2 Does it look like the terminal window has disappeared? Return to desktop 1 and you’ll find it hasn’t If a window is open on one desktop, it can be moved to another by way of the little pushpin in the upper left corner of the window To move the window, click the pushpin so it looks... text placement into another window For example, you can use the mouse to copy text from a web page into a document or email message Simply highlight the text you want to copy by placing the mouse at the beginning, pressing the left button, and moving the pointer across the desired text ( doubleclick to highlight word by word rather than space by space) Clicking the middle mouse button (or the left and... Some of the companies producing these distributions also make small modifications to the Linux kernel and include their own software tools for managing and configuring Linux in an effort to simplify installation and management Although each distribution varies in minor ways, most differ merely in the software they include The good news is that even if your distribution doesn’t include a tool or application... currently in use Right− click any of the taskbar buttons to open a shortcut menu with even more options for managing the window Figure 2.13: The Window Menu The Window menu can also be accessed by right− clicking the window’s titlebar Tip In addition to using the Window menu, one way to minimize an open window is to click its taskbar button Click this button again, and your window will return to the forefront... menu altogether Pressing ALT−F2 calls up the Run Command window Pressing ALT−F3 calls up the Window menu 21 of the window currently in use The underlined letters in this menu’s entries are the letters you can use to access the menu options from your keyboard Figure 2.15: Using the Keyboard with the Window Menu Use the arrow keys to scroll down to the entry you want to use Press the down arrow key to . Linux in the Workplace Table of Contents Linux in the Workplace How to Use Linux in Your Office 1 Introduction 3 Why This Book. 3 Chapter 1: Learning About the Pieces 5 What Is Linux? 5 The Roots of Linux 5 Linux Performance 6 Linux Distributions 6 Ways of Communicating with Linux: Text