# GNOME Panel User Guide

2002
Sun Microsystems
GNOME Documentation Project
&LEGAL;

Sun
Microsystems
GNOME Documentation Project

    gdocteam@sun.com

GNOME Desktop Panel User Guide &manrevision;
&date;

Sun Microsystems gdocteam@sun.com

GNOME Documentation Project

This manual describes version &gnomeversion; of the GNOME Panel

## Feedback

To report a bug or make a suggestion regarding the GNOME desktop or this manual, follow the directions in the GNOME Feedback Page.

## Introducing Panels

A panel is an area on your desktop from which you can run applications and applets, and perform other tasks. When you start a session for the first time, the desktop contains the following panels:

- GNOME Panel

- Menu Panel

The following sections describe these panels.

### GNOME Panel

The GNOME Panel is the default panel for working in a session. The GNOME Panel stretches the full length of the bottom edge of the desktop.

shows a typical GNOME Panel. Your system administrator might have set your default GNOME Panel according to your local requirements, so you might see a slightly different GNOME Panel.

#### Typical GNOME Panel

Screenshot of a typical GNOME Panel

#### Contents of the GNOME Panel

describes the objects on the default GNOME Panel.

##### Default GNOME Panel Objects

Object | Name | Description
--- | --- | ---
Screenshot of Global Menu icon | Global Menu button | Click on this button to open the Global Menu. From the Global Menu , you can start applications and applets, open more menus, and perform other tasks.
Screenshot of Log Out icon | Log Out button | Click on this button to log out of your GNOME session.
Screenshot of Lock Screen icon | Lock Screen button | Click on this button to lock your screen.
Screenshot of GNOME Help Browser icon | GNOME Help Browser launcher | Click on this button to start the GNOME Help Browser.
Screenshot of GNOME Terminal icon | GNOME Terminal launcher | Click on this button to start a GNOME Terminal. GNOME Terminal provides access to a UNIX command line.
Screenshot of Control Center icon | Control Center launcher | Click to configure various parts of your system.
Screenshot of Netscape icon | Netscape launcher | Click on this button to start Netscape .
Screenshot of Tasklist applet | Tasklist applet | Displays a button for each window that is open. You can use the tasklist buttons to minimize and restore windows.
Screenshot of status dock | Status dock | Displays status information for some applications and applets.

You can change the behavior and appearance of your GNOME Panel to suit your requirements. You can also add or remove objects from the GNOME Panel.

You can create multiple panels, and choose different properties, objects, and backgrounds for each panel. You can also hide panels.

### Menu Panel

The desktop also includes a Menu Panel, which is different in appearance from the GNOME Panel, but provides similar functions. The Menu Panel stretches the full length of the top edge of your screen. The Menu Panel includes textual rather than graphical menus.

shows the Menu Panel. Your system administrator might have set your default Menu Panel according to your local requirements, so you might see a slightly different Menu Panel.

#### Typical Menu Panel

Screenshot of typical Menu Panel

The Menu Panel contains the following objects:

Object | Description
--- | ---
Applications menu | The Applications menu contains the standard GNOME applications.
Actions menu | The Actions menu contains menu items to configure and customize your desktop.
Desktop menu | The Desktop menu provides menu contans commonly performed actions, including Log Out.
Mailcheck applet | The Mailcheck applet shows whether you have new email messages.
Calendar icon | The calendar icon normally shows the current time. Click on the time readout to display a menu of calendar commands. You can also use this menu to change the format of the time readout.

Unlike other types of panel, you can only have one Menu Panel at a time on your desktop.

## Managing Your Panels

The following sections describe how to manage your panels.

### To Create a Panel

You can create different types of panels to customize your desktop. lists the types of panel that you can create, and their characteristics.

#### Types of Panel

Panel Type | Snap Behavior | Size
--- | --- | ---
Corner panel | Snaps to one of the edges of the screen, but can only snap to the center or the corner of the edge. | Stretches as much as required to display the objects on the panel.
Edge panel | Snaps to one of the edges of the screen. The GNOME Panel is an example of an edge panel. | Stretches the full length of the edge that the panel snaps to.
Floating panel | Does not snap to anything. You can place a floating panel anywhere on your desktop. | Stretches as much as required to display the objects on the panel.
Menu Panel | Snaps to the top edge of the screen. You can not move the Menu Panel. | Stretches the full length of the top edge of the screen. You can only have one Menu Panel on your desktop.
Sliding panel | Snaps to one of the edges of the screen, can snap to any point on the edge. | Stretches as much as required to display the objects on the panel.

To create a panel perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on any part of a panel to open the Global Menu.

2. Choose Create panel .

3. Choose the type of panel that you want to create. The new panel is added to the desktop. The new panel contains no objects.

   You can customize the new panel to suit your preferences.

### Interacting With a Panel

To interact with a panel, you must left-click, middle-click, or right-click on a vacant space on the panel. If there is no vacant space on the panel, you can middle-click or right-click on one of the hide buttons to select the panel.

You use the mouse buttons to interact with a panel in the following ways:

Middle-click | Enables you to grab a panel, then drag the panel to a new location.
Right-click | Opens the Global Menu.

### To Move a Panel

You can move panels to different locations on your desktop. To move a panel, middle-click and hold on any vacant space on the panel, then drag the panel to the new location.

When you drag a floating panel, the panel follows the mouse pointer. The panel does not snap to any part of the desktop. When you drag an edge panel, a corner panel, or a sliding panel, the panel snaps to the edge of the screen.

You can not move the Menu Panel.

### To Hide a Panel

You can hide or show a panel on your desktop, except for the Menu Panel. Each panel has hide buttons at either end. The hide buttons contain an arrow icon. The following illustration shows hide buttons.

Screenshot of hide buttons

To hide a panel, click on one of the hide buttons. The panel reduces in the direction of the arrow on the hide button. The hide button at the other end of the panel remains visible.

To show a hidden panel again, click on the visible hide button. The panel expands in the direction of the arrow on the hide button. Both hide buttons are now visible.

You can modify the properties of a panel so that the hide buttons are not visible. You can also specify that the arrows on hide buttons are not visible.

You can set a panel to autohide. When you set autohide, the panel hides automatically when the mouse is not pointing to the panel. The panel reappears when you point to the part of the screen where the panel resides. To set your panel to autohide, modify the properties of the panel.

On an corner panel, the behavior of the hide buttons is slightly different. If the panel is aligned with one of the corners of the screen, you can use the hide buttons as follows:

- To hide the panel, click the hide button that is closest to the edge of the screen, as normal.

- To move the panel to the opposite corner of the screen, click the hide button that is farthest from the edge of the screen.

### To Modify the Properties of a Panel

You can configure global preferences for all panels in the Control Center. For example, you can specify various settings related to the appearance and behavior of panel objects.

You can also modify properties for each individual panel. You can change the features for each panel, such as the type of the panel, the hide behavior, and the visual appearance.

You cannot modify properties for the Menu Panel.

The following sections describe how to modify the properties of a panel.

#### To Modify a Panel With the Panel Properties Menu

You can use the panel properties menu to configure the properties of a panel. To modify the properties of a panel perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on any part of the panel to open the Global Menu.

2. Choose Panel Properties to open the panel properties menu. The following table describes the menu items on the panel properties menu:

   Menu Item | Description
   --- | ---
   All properties | For more information see .

   Hiding policy

   Select whether to enable autohide. Select from the following options:

   - Enable Auto-hide: Select this option if you want to enable autohide and use the hide buttons to hide the panel.

   - Show hide buttons

   - Show arrows on hide buttons

   Size | Select the size of the panel.
   Orientation | Floating panel only. Select whether to display the panel horizontally or vertically.
   Background type | Select the type of background for the panel. You can choose a standard background, a color background, or an image background. Use the Panel Properties dialog to specify the color and image. For more information see .

#### To Modify a Panel With the Panel Properties Dialog

You can use the Panel Properties dialog to modify panel properties. To modify the properties of a panel perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on any part of the panel to open the Global Menu.

2. Choose Panel Properties All properties to display the Panel Properties dialog. The following figure shows the Panel Properties dialog for the GNOME Panel. The GNOME Panel is an edge panel that resides at the bottom edge of your desktop.

   Screenshot of Panel Properties dialog

   The Panel Properties dialog contains the following tabbed sections:

   - Panel

   - Background

3. To modify panel size, position, and hiding properties, click on the Panel tab. The Panel tabbed section contains the following options:

   Option | Description
   --- | ---
   Size and Position | Choose the size of the panel.
   Enable Auto-hide | Select this option to enable autohide.
   Show hide buttons | Select this option to display hide buttons on your panel.
   Show arrows on hide button | Select this option to display arrows on the hide buttons, if the hide button is enabled.

4. To modify the panel background, click on the Background tab. The Background tabbed section contains the following elements:

   Dialog Element | Description
   --- | ---

   Background Type

   Choose the type of background for the panel. The choices are as follows:

   - Standard: The standard background type. The standard background depends on the settings in the Theme Selector capplet.

   - Color: Enables you to choose a color for the panel background.

   - Pixmap: Enables you to choose an image for the panel background.

   Color | If Background Type is Color, click on the Color to use button to display the color selector dialog. Choose the color you require from the color selector dialog.
   Image | If Background Type is Pixmap, choose the image to use on the background of the panel. Specify the following settings for the image background:
   Don't scale image to fit | Select this option to tile the background image to fit the panel background.
   Scale image | Select this option to scale the background image to fit the panel background. The width-to-height ratio of the image is retained.
   Stretch image | Select this option to stretch the background image to fit the panel background. The width-to-height ratio of the image is not retained.
   Rotate image for vertical panels | Select this option to rotate the background image on a vertical panel.

### To Delete a Panel

To delete a panel perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on the panel you want to delete.

2. Choose Remove this panel to remove the panel from the desktop.

You must always have at least one panel on your desktop. If you have only one panel on your desktop, you can not delete that panel.

## Panel Objects

You can add the following types of object to a panel:

- Launchers

- Menus

- Applets

- Drawers

- Special Objects

This section describes the objects that you can use on your panels.

### Interacting With Panel Objects

You use the mouse buttons to interact with a panel object in the following ways:

Left-click | Launches the panel object.
Middle-click | Enables you to grab an object, then drag the object to a new location.
Right-click | Opens the panel object popup menu.

You interact with applet panel objects in a different way. For more information see .

### To Add an Object to a Panel

You can add an object to a panel in several ways, as follows:

- From the Global Menu

  The Global Menu contains a Panel menu. The Panel menu contains an Add to panel submenu. The Add to panel submenu enables you to add the following objects to your panels:

  - Launchers

  - Menus

  - Applets

  - Drawers

  - Special objects

- From any menu

  When you right-click on the title of an item in a menu, the popup menu for the menu, launcher, or applet opens. You can use this popup menu to add the menu, launcher, or applet to a panel.

  You can also drag menus, launchers, and applets from menus to panels.

- From the file manager

  Each launcher and applet corresponds to a `.desktop` file. You can drag the `.desktop` file on to your panels to add the launcher or applet to the panel.

  Each menu corresponds to a directory. You can drag the directory on to your panels to add the directory to the panel as a menu object.

### To Move a Panel Object

You can move panel objects within a panel, and from one panel to another. You can also move objects between panels and drawers.

To move a panel object, middle-click and hold on the object and drag the object to a new location. When you release the middle mouse button, the object anchors at the new location.

Alternatively, you can use the panel object popup menu to move an object, as follows:

1. Right-click on the object to open the panel object popup menu.

2. Choose Move.

3. Point to the new location for the object, then click any mouse button to anchor the object to the new location. This location can be on any panel that is currently on your desktop.

Movement of a panel object affects the position of other objects on the panel. The movement behavior of the object is determined by the default movement mode for the panel. You can specify the default movement mode in the Panel capplet.

To override the default movement mode, press one of the following keys as you move the panel object:

Key | Movement Mode | Description
--- | --- | ---
Alt key | Free movement | The object jumps over other panel objects into the next vacant space on the panel.
Shift key | Push movement | The object pushes other panel objects further along the panel.
Ctrl key | Switched movement | The object swaps places with other panel objects.

### To Remove a Panel Object

To remove an object from a panel right-click on the object to open the panel object popup menu, then choose Remove from panel.

## Launchers

When you click on a launcher, you initiate one of the following actions:

- Start a particular application.

- Execute a command.

- Open a folder in a file manager window.

- Start a particular applet.

- Open an Internet browser at a particular URL.

You can find launchers in the following places on the desktop:

- Panels: On panels, launchers are represented by icons.

- Menus: On menus, launchers are represented by menu items with an icon.

You can modify the properties of a launcher. For example the properties of a launcher include the name of the launcher, the icon that represents the launcher, and how the launcher runs.

### To Add a Launcher to a Panel

You can add a launcher to a panel in one of the following ways:

- From the Global Menu

  To create a new launcher, right-click on any vacant space on the panel to open the Global Menu. Choose Panel Add to panel Launcher . A Launcher Properties dialog is displayed. For more information on how to complete this dialog, see .

  Alternatively, to add an existing launcher to the panel, choose

  Panel Add to panel Launcher from menu . Choose the launcher that you want to add from the menu.

- From any menu

  To add a launcher to a panel from any menu, perform one of the following steps:

  - From the panel where you want the launcher to reside, open the menu that contains the launcher. Right-click on the title of the launcher. Choose Add this launcher to panel.

  - Open a menu that contains the launcher. Drag the launcher on to the panel.

- From the file manager

  To add a launcher to a panel from the file manager, find the `.desktop` file for the launcher in your file system. To add the launcher drag the `.desktop` file to the panel.

#### To Create a Launcher With the Launcher Properties Dialog

To create a launcher with the Launcher Properties dialog perform the following steps:

1. Display the Launcher Properties dialog. You can display the Launcher Properties dialog in one of the following ways:

   - To add the launcher to a panel: Right-click on any part of a panel to open the Global Menu. Choose Panel Add to panel Launcher .

   - To add the launcher to a menu: Start the Menu Editor. In the menu tree, select the menu to which you want to add the item. Choose File New Item . The Launcher Properties dialog is displayed in the dialog pane.

   The dialog displays the Basic tabbed section, as shown in the following figure:

   Screenshot of Basic tabbed section on Launcher Properties dialog

2. Enter the properties of the launcher in the dialog. The following table describes the dialog elements on the Basic tabbed section:

   Dialog Element | Description
   --- | ---
   Name | Use this text box to specify the name of the launcher. You can use the Advanced tab to add translations of the name. This name is the name that appears when you add the launcher to a menu or to the desktop.
   Comment | Use this text box to specify a short description of the launcher. The comment is displayed as a tooltip when you point to the launcher icon on the panel. You can use the Advanced tabbed section to add translations of the comment.
   Command | Use this text box to specify a command to execute when you click on the launcher. If the launcher type is URL, use this text box to specify a URL to access when you choose the launcher.

   Type

   Use this drop-down combination box to specify the type of launcher. Choose from the following:

   - Application: Choose this list item to create a launcher that starts an application.

   - PanelApplet: Choose this list item to create a launcher that starts an applet.

   - URL: Choose this list item to create a launcher that opens an Internet browser at a particular URL.

   Icon | Choose an icon to represent the launcher. To choose an icon, click on the No Icon button. An icon selector dialog is displayed. Choose an icon from the dialog. Alternatively, to choose an icon from another directory, click Browse. When you choose an icon, click OK.
   Run in Terminal | Select this option to run the application or command in a terminal window. Choose this option for an application or command that does not create a window in which to run.

3. To set advanced properties for the launcher, click on the Advanced tab. The Launcher Properties dialog displays the Advanced tabbed section, as shown in the following figure.

   Screenshot of Advanced tabbed section on Launcher Properties dialog

4. Enter the advanced properties of the launcher in the dialog. The following table describes the dialog elements on the top part of the Advanced tabbed section:

   Dialog Element | Description
   --- | ---
   Try this before using | Enter a command here to check before starting the launcher. If the command is executable and is in your path, the launcher appears on the panel.
   Documentation | This field is not currently in use.

5. You can also add a translation of the Name and Comment fields from the Basic tabbed section. To add a translation, enter the details of the translation in the Name/Comment translations table as follows:

   Field | Description
   --- | ---
   First field | Enter the two-letter code for the language for which you want to add a translation.
   Second field | Enter the translation of the Name of the launcher.
   Third field | Enter the translation for the Comment for the launcher.

   Then click on the Add/Set button.

   To edit a translation, select the translation. The translated text appears in the lower part of this dialog. Edit the fields as required, then click on the Add/Set button.

   To remove a translation, select the translation, then click on the Remove button.

6. To create the launcher and close the Launcher Properties dialog, click OK.

### To Modify the Properties of a Launcher

To modify the properties of a launcher perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on the launcher to open the panel object popup menu.

2. Choose Properties. Use the Launcher Properties dialog to modify the properties as required. For more information on the Launcher Properties dialog see .

3. Click OK to apply the changes you made and close the Launcher Properties dialog.

## Menus

You can add the following types of menu to your panels:

- Global Menu: The Global Menu is your primary menu. You can access almost all of the applications, commands, and configuration options on your desktop from the Global Menu. You can customize the Global Menu to help you work more efficiently. You can modify what menus are displayed on the Global Menu, and how the menus are displayed on the Global Menu . You can add as many Global Menu objects to your panels as you want. By default, the Global Menu is represented on panels by a stylized footprint icon, as follows:

  Screenshot of Global Menu icon

- Main Menu: The Main Menu provides the same menus and functions as the Global Menu. You can add as many Main Menu objects as you want to your panels. You can modify the properties of each Main Menu. On each Main Menu, you can perform the following actions:

  - Select what menus are on the Main Menu.

  - Specify whether the menus are in a submenu on the Main Menu.

  - Choose the icon that represents each Main Menu.

  By default, the Main Menu is represented on panels as a stylized footprint icon.

- System menu: System menus contain the standard applications and standard applets that you can use on your desktop. The Programs menu and Applets menus are system menus.

- Favorites menu: You can use your Favorites menu to help you work more efficiently. You can add items that you frequently use to your Favorites menu, and organize the items into submenus. You can add items that you frequently use to your Favorites menu, and organize the items into submenus.

- Custom menu: A custom menu is a menu that you create.

Menus that you add to your panels are represented by an icon with an arrow. The arrow indicates that the icon represents a menu or drawer. shows how menus typically appear on panels.

### Typical Menu Objects on a Panel

Screenshot of typical menu objects on a panel

For information on adding menus to panels, see . For more information on menus, see Working with Menus.

### To Add a Menu to a Panel

You can add a menu to a panel in the following ways:

- From the Global Menu

  Right-click on any vacant space on the panel to open the Global Menu. Choose Panel Add to panel Menu . Choose the menu that you want to add to the panel. You can add a Global Menu, Main Menu, Programs menu, or Favorites menu to the panel.

- From any menu

  Open the Global Menu from the panel where you want the new menu launcher to reside, then perform one of the following steps:

  - Right-click on the title of the menu, then choose Add this as menu to panel.

  - Click-and-hold on the menu title and drag the menu to the panel. Note that you do not need to open the menu from any particular panel before you drag a menu on to a panel.

## Applets

An applet is a small application whose user interface resides within a panel. You use the applet panel object to interact with the applet. For example, the following figure shows the following applets, from left to right:

- Window list: Displays the windows currently open on your system.

- Mini-commander: Allows you to type in commands.

Screenshot of sample applets

### To Add an Applet to a Panel

You can add an applet to a panel in the following ways:

- From the Global Menu

  Right-click on any vacant space on the panel to open the Global Menu. Perform one of the following steps:

  - Choose Applets, then choose the applet that you want to add from the Applets menu.

  - Choose Panel Add to panel Applet . Choose the applet that you want to add from the Applets menu.

- From any menu

  Perform one of the following steps:

  - From the panel to which you want to add the applet, open the menu that contains the applet. Click on the applet to add the applet to the panel.

  - Open a menu that contains the applet, then drag the applet on to the panel.

### To Add an Applet as a Launcher to a Panel

You can add an applet to a panel as a launcher. When you add an applet to a panel as a launcher, a launcher object is added to the panel. When you click on the launcher for the applet, the user interface for the applet is added to the panel.

You can add an applet to a panel as a launcher in the following ways:

- From any menu

  To add an applet as a launcher to a panel, open the menu that contains the applet from the panel. Right-click on the title of the applet, then choose Add this applet as a launcher to panel.

- From the file manager

  To add an applet as a launcher to a panel from the file manager, find the `.desktop` file for the applet in your file system. Drag the `.desktop` file to the panel to add the applet to the panel.

### To Select an Applet

To modify the properties of an applet, you must first right-click on the applet to display the panel object popup menu. To move an applet, you must middle-click on the applet. Some restrictions apply on where you can click on an applet in order to display the panel object popup menu or to move the applet, as follows:

- Some applets have popup menus of applet-specific commands that open when you right-click on particular parts of the applet. For example, the Tasklist applet has a vertical handle on the left side, and buttons that represent your windows on the right side. To open the panel object popup menu for the Tasklist applet, you must right-click on the handle. If you right-click on a button on the right side, a task menu opens.

- Some applets have areas that you cannot use to select the applet. For example, the Mini-Commander applet has a field in which you enter commands. You can not middle-click or right-click on this field to select the applet. Instead, middle-click or right-click on another part of the applet.

### To Modify the Properties of an Applet

To modify the properties of an applet perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on the applet to open the panel object popup menu.

2. Choose Properties. Use the Properties dialog to modify the properties as required. The properties for panel applets vary depending on the applet.

3. Click OK to apply the changes you made and close the Properties dialog.

## Drawers

A drawer is an extension of a panel. You can open and close a drawer in the same way that you can show and hide a panel. A drawer can contain all panel objects including launchers, menus, applets, special objects, and other drawers. When you open a drawer, you can use the objects in exactly the same way that you use objects on a panel.

The following figure shows an open drawer that contains two panel objects.

Screenshot of an open drawer

The arrow on the drawer icon indicates that the icon represents a drawer or menu.

You can add, move, and remove objects from drawers in exactly the same way that you add, move, and remove objects from panels.

### To Open and Close a Drawer

To open a drawer, click on the drawer object in a panel. You can close a drawer in the following ways:

- Click on the drawer.

- Click on the drawer hide button.

### To Add a Drawer to a Panel

You can add a drawer to a panel in the following ways:

- From the Global Menu

  Right-click on any vacant space on the panel to open the Global Menu. Choose Add to panel Drawer .

- From any menu

  You can add a menu as a drawer object to a panel.

  To add a menu as a drawer to a panel, open the menu from the panel. Right-click on the title of the menu, then choose Add this as drawer to panel.

### To Add an Object to a Drawer

You add an object to a drawer in the same way that you add objects to panels. For more information, see .

### To Modify the Properties of a Drawer

You can choose global preferences for all panels and drawers in the Panel capplet. For example, you can select various options related to the appearance and behavior of objects on panels and drawers. You can also select options that relate to drawers only. For example, you can select an option to close your drawers when you click on a launcher in the drawer.

You can also modify other properties for each individual drawer. You can change features for each drawer, such as the visual appearance of the drawer and whether the drawer has hide buttons.

#### To Modify a Drawer With the Panel Properties Menu

You can use the panel properties menu to modify the properties of a panel. For more information see .

#### To Modify a Drawer With the Panel Properties Dialog

You can use the Panel Properties dialog to modify the properties of a drawer. To modify the properties of a panel perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on the drawer to open the panel object popup menu.

2. Choose Properties to display the Panel Properties dialog. The dialog displays the Drawer tabbed section, as shown in the following figure.

   Screenshot of Panel Properties dialog

3. Enter the properties of the drawer in the dialog. The following table describes the elements on the Drawer tabbed section:

   Dialog Element | Description
   --- | ---
   Panel size | Select the size of the drawer.

   Panel window level

   Select the level or layer at which you want the drawer to appear. Select from one of the following options:

   - Default (from global preferences): Select this option to use the default setting that is specified in the Panel capplet.

   - Below other windows: Select this option if you want the panel to appear below windows.

   - Normal: Select this option if you want the panel to appear at the same level as windows.

   - Above other windows: Select this option if you want the panel to appear above windows.

   Tooltip/Name | Use this text box to specify a name for the drawer. The name appears as a tooltip when you point at the drawer on the panel.
   Icon | Choose an icon to represent the drawer. Click on the Icon button to display an icon selector dialog. Choose an icon from the dialog. Alternatively, click Browse to choose an icon from another directory. When you choose an icon, click OK.
   Enable hide button | Select this option to display a hide button when the drawer opens.
   Enable hide button arrow | Select this option to display an arrow on the hide button if the hide button is enabled.

4. You can also use the Background tabbed section to set the background for the drawer. For information on how to complete the Background tabbed section, see the step on this topic in .

5. Click OK to apply the changes you made and close the Panel Properties dialog.

#### To Drag a Color or Image to the Background of a Drawer

You can drag a color or image on to a drawer to set the color or image as the background of the drawer.

## Special Panel Objects

The GNOME Panel includes a number of special panel objects that you can use to perform special tasks.

You can add special panel objects to your panels from the Global Menu. To add a special panel object to a panel perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on any vacant space on the panel to open the Global Menu.

2. Choose Panel Add to panel .

3. Choose the special panel object to add to the panel. The special object is added to the panel.

This section describes special panel objects.

### Log Out Button

Screenshot of Log Out icon

The Log Out button begins the process to log out of a GNOME session.

To log out of your session or shut down your system, click on the Log Out button.

### Lock Screen Button

Screenshot of Lock Screen icon

The Lock Screen button starts a screensaver that locks your screen. To access your session again, you must enter your password.

You can configure your screensaver in the Screensaver capplet.

For the Lock Screen button to work correctly, you must have a screensaver enabled.

### Status Dock

A status dock is a panel object that displays status information. This information is contained in status docklets. A status docklet is a small window where an application can display status information. The following figure shows a status dock with a CD player status docklet. The status docklet indicates that a CD is currently playing.

Screenshot of status docklet

You can also use some status docklets to control applications. In this respect, status docklets are similar to applets.

You can only have one status dock on your desktop. That is, you can only have one status dock on one panel.

### Run Button

Screenshot of Run icon

The Run button opens the Run Program dialog.

The Run Program dialog gives you access to the command line. You can run a command from the command line. When you run a command in the Run Program dialog, you cannot receive output from the command.

To run a command from the command line perform the following steps:

1. Display the Run Program dialog. You can display the Run Program dialog in any of the following ways:

   - From a panel: If the Run button is present on a panel, click on the Run button.

   - From the Global Menu: Right-click on any vacant space on the panel to open the Global Menu. Choose Run.

   - Use a shortcut key: The default shortcut key to display the Run Program dialog is ModifierF2. The default modifier key is the meta key. You can change the shortcut key that displays the Run Program dialog in the Panel capplet.

   The Run Program dialog is displayed as follows:

   Screenshot of Run Program dialog

2. Enter the command that you want to run in the blank field. Alternatively, to choose a command that you ran previously, click the down arrow button, then choose the command to run.

   You can use the Browse button to choose a command to run. You can also use the Browse button to choose a file to append to the command line. For example, you can enter emacs on the command line, then choose a file to edit.

   Select the Run in terminal option to run the application or command in a terminal window. Choose this option for an application or command that does not create a window in which to run.

3. Click on the Run button on the Run Program dialog.

### Swallowed Applications

A swallowed application is an application that is not a panel applet, but runs inside a panel.

Applications must be small enough so that they can fit on the panel. You can specify to shrink the application to fit into the panel. In most cases, if the application does not fit in the panel, the panel expands to accommodate the application.

You must know the title of the application window before you can add the application as a swallowed application.

The following figure shows a swallowed CD Player application.

Screenshot of swallowed application

#### To Add a Swallowed Application to a Panel

To add a swallowed application to a panel perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on any part of a panel to open the Global Menu.

2. Choose Panel Add to Panel Swallowed app to display the Create Swallow Applet dialog. The following figure shows the Create Swallow Applet dialog.

   Screenshot of Create Swallow Applet dialog

3. Enter the properties of the swallowed application in the dialog. The following table describes the elements on the Create Swallow Applet dialog:

   Dialog Element | Description
   --- | ---
   Title of application to swallow | Enter the title on the window of the application window that you want the panel to swallow.

   Command

   If you leave this field blank, an empty window appears in the panel. When you start an application whose title matches the title entered in the Title of application to swallow field, the panel swallows the application.

   If you enter a command in this field, the command executes before the panel attempts to swallow the application. The command also executes when GNOME starts and displays the panel on your desktop. You can use this feature to start an application that you want the panel to swallow.

   Width | Specify the width of the swallowed application window in the panel, in pixels.
   Height | Specify the height of the swallowed application window in the panel, in pixels.

4. Click OK to add the swallowed application to the panel.