3
M A N A G I N G F I L E S
Konqueror is a program that allows you to view and organ-
ize your files. Think of it as a smart filing cabinet. It is cus-
tomizable to allow you to display your files in a variety of forms. It
also functions as a file-viewing application that displays files, such as
JPEG and PDF files and formatted documents, in a read- only format. It
can open helper programs to work with or display file types that it recognizes,
such as AVI files (the most common format for audio-video data on the
Internet).
Konqueror is also a web browser that allows you to browse and work with
files via the World Wide Web. In this section, we discuss Konqueror's use as a
file manager. Its other uses are discussed in Chapter 10, "Accessing the Web,"
and Chapter 11, "Customizing Your Desktop."
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Chapter 3
Making the Konqueror File Manager Your Friend
Launch the Konqueror file manager by clicking on the home directory icon on
the panel (the icon with the little house).
The Location Bar
Depending on what you have in your home directory, some icons appear in the
main display window, with various menus and a toolbar along the top. Below
the menus is the Location bar that displays the location of the files revealed in
the main window below.
Figure 3.1: The Home Directory Panel Icon
Figure 3.2: The Location Bar with a Home Directory Pathname
Before the "file:" portion of the Location bar is a small folder icon.
Together, these indicate that what is being displayed are files in a directory
rather than a web page (remember that Konqueror is also a web browser).
When displaying a web page, the icon changes, and "file:" becomes "http:".
Figure 3.3: The Konqueror File Manager Display
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At the far right side of the toolbar is a spinning KDE logo showing that
Konqueror is reading files. This animated logo is an activity indicator that lets
you know when Konqueror is busy and when it has completed a task.
The Location bar display "file:/home/username/" is an example of a path-
name because it shows the path to reach the final destination, in this case, the
home directory. The / symbol indicates directories. For instance, /home is the
parent directory in which /username resides. You may have a directory called
Mail in your /home/username directory. If you click it, you will notice that the
pathname in the Location bar changes to /home/username/Mail, because Mail
is a directory residing in /home/username.
If you place the mouse cursor in the Location bar by clicking in it and
remove the word Mail, you are left with file:/home/username again. You may
not have much there at this point, but this is probably the best place to save files
and directories that you deal with personally .
One time-saving feature of Konqueror is the arrow button at the far right of
the Location bar that provides a history of recently visited locations. Rather
than retype a recent location, scroll down to the desired address or pathname.
Also, the Location bar remembers addresses and pathnames previously entered
and, as soon as it thinks it recognizes your intention, provides a list of options
based on previous entries in a menu that appears immediately below the
Location bar. Use the up and down arrow keys to select the correct one and
press
ENTER
.
T I P
The text of the Location bar is draggable, meaning you can drag a directory or web page
from it to your desktop for quicker future access. Just click on the folder icon or the word
in the Location bar, or the word Location, drag it to the desktop, and select Copy from
the menu that appears. Once it's on your desktop, simply click it, and Konqueror opens
with the web page or directory contents displayed.
The Konqueror File Display
The Konqueror display has two sections: a narrow panel, or sidebar, on the left
and a larger main window on the right.
By default, Konqueror displays files in the main window with the filename
below a small icon that represents the file type. For instance, directories are dis-
played with folder icons, text files are shown with a pencil and piece of paper,
and image files are displayed with thumbnails of the image or with an image
icon (depending on how you have your file manager configured). Right- clicking
an icon displays a menu for manipulating the file in some way (more on this in
the section "Working with Files") and for obtaining information about the file.
Files on your computer are arranged in a hierarchical manner, much like a
tree with branches and subbranches. This structure is exemplified by the file dis-
play seen in the sidebar to the left of the main Konqueror window. The home
directory icon represents a directory, or folder, in which subdirectories can be
stored (within which further subdirectories can be stored) or files. This left side-
bar display offers an alternate method of accessing directories. Instead of entering
the pathname for a given directory into the Location bar, you can merely click its
icon in the sidebar to display the contents of that directory in the window on the
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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 with a minus (-)
sign) collapses the view of the inside of that directory. Alternatively, double-
clicking 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 means you cannot alter or manipulate the
file, only view it. This is one of the more significant features of Konqueror: it
can be used to view files of many different formats without launching another
program. In addition to selecting files and directories with the mouse, you can
use the arrow keys to move among the files displayed by Konqueror.
Accessing Files on Removable Media--CD-ROM and Floppy Disk Drives
CD-ROM and floppy disk drives constitute filesystems independent of the com-
puter's hard disk or other networked drives and need to be mounted to be read
by the computer. When you are finished with such a filesystem, it must be
unmounted before the disk or CD can be removed. KDE makes this process
very simple. Your desktop should have both a floppy and a CD-ROM icon.
Simply click on the icon, and the appropriate filesystem is mounted with its con-
tents displayed in Konqueror (don't forget to insert either a floppy or a CD
Figure 3.4: Viewing an Image File with Konqueror
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25
before trying this). A little green light appears next to the icon, indicating that
the directory is mounted and its files are accessible. After use, it is necessary to
unmount the directory in order to remove the disk. To unmount, right- click on
the icon and select unmount from the menu. The green light disappears, indi-
cating that no directory is mounted.
T I P
If you are unable to unmount a CD or floppy, it is probably because some program is
accessing it. Close that application and the unmount should work.
Menus and Toolbar Buttons
You can use the buttons in the toolbar near the top of the window to navigate
your files. For example, if you have a subdirectory in your home directory called
cutekitties that contains image files of kittens, and the contents of this directory
are displayed in the main Konqueror window, you only have to click the up but-
ton (the blue arrow pointing up) to go back to displaying the contents of your
home directory, rather than the contents of cutekitties.
The back button (the blue button pointing to the left) takes you to what-
ever the previous display was, regardless of where its pathname is in relation to
the current directory. For instance, if you were looking in your home directory
and then viewed a web page, the back button would return the display to your
home directory.
The button that looks like a house also takes you to your home directory,
regardless of your current location.
Use the magnifying glass buttons to increase or decrease the display size of
the icons. The two buttons to the right of these can be used to switch back and
forth between the Tree View display (see the "View Menu" section that follows)
and the Icon display of files.
T I P
The black X button to the left of the Location bar is a single-click erase feature. Click to
erase the current URL or pathname to enter a new one.
T I P
Pressing
CTRL
- O opens a dialog box where you can enter a location (as in the Location
bar). This allows you some navigation ability without taking your fingers from the
keyboard.
Some of the items in the Konqueror menus are related more to
Konqueror's use as a web browser than as a file manager, and some are relevant
to both uses. Those that function in file management are discussed here. See
Chapter 10 for more on using Konqueror as a web browser.
Location Menu
The Location menu contains six permanent items. Other items may appear if
Konqueror is being used to open a file for viewing. These items relate to work-
ing with the file and depend on the file type.
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Chapter 3
The six permanent menu items and their functions are:
·
New Window: adds another Konqueror window that opens displaying the
contents of your /home/username directory.
·
Duplicate Window: creates an exact copy of the window from which it is
opened, displaying the same contents rather than those of your
/home/username directory.
·
Open Location: opens an alternate Location bar.
·
Send Link: opens an email client (KMail by default), so you can email the
URL or web address displayed in the Location bar to someone; mostly used
with Konqueror as a web browser.
·
Send File: opens up an email client, KMail by default, to send the displayed file.
·
Quit: exits Konqueror.
The Print menu item is enabled if a printable file, such as a text document
or image file, is being displayed. Clicking the Print item opens a dialog box for
selecting print options, such as which printer to use, depending on the file and
printer.
Besides printing from the print menu, you also can print using the drag-
and- drop method by dragging the file icon to the printer icon on the desktop.
Figure 3.5: Location Menu
Figure 3.6: The Print Dialog Box
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T I P
There are two programs accessible from the K menu, on the Utilities submenu, that can
be used for viewing and for modifying the order of any jobs in the print queue: Klpq
(Print Job Administration) and KJobViewer (which may show up on the menu as simply
Print Jobs).

Also on the Location menu are options for opening a displayed file with
more advanced applications. Konqueror displays files in a read- only format. If
you want to modify a document, you must open it with another application.
This is covered in more detail in the "Opening Files" and "Right-Clicking Files"
sections of this chapter.

View Menu
The first item on the View menu is View Mode. This item allows you to alter the
way directory contents are displayed. Putting the mouse pointer on this item
reveals a submenu with display options.

Figure 3.7: View Menu
Figure 3.8: View Mode--File Manager Display Options
·
Icon View: the default view, with which you are already familiar.
·
MultiColumn View: displays the icons, but in vertical columns
(alphabetically) rather than horizontal rows.

·
Tree View: displays contents in a manner similar to the display in the
sidebar, but with additional information, such as file size, date last
modified, and file permissions. Permissions are discussed further in the
"Changing Permissions" section of this chapter and in Chapter 13.

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Chapter 3
·
Detailed List View: similar to Tree View but without the plus/minus (+/-)
boxes and their corresponding collapsible menus of subdirectories.
·
Text View: similar to Detailed List View but with simple text in place of
the icons.
The next item, Use Index.html, allows you to view a selected directory as a web
page if it contains an index.html file, rather than showing it as a text list of files.
Lock to Current Location locks the current display. In this mode, clicking
one of the displayed files does not replace the current display, but it does open
the item (if a file) in a separate window, or not open it at all (if a directory).
The Link View item causes the current view to be linked to others in a
multiple-view window.
The Reload and Stop items are discussed in Chapter 10, "Accessing the Web."
Some of the menu items change depending on the type of file display you
choose from the View Mode submenu. These items allow you to manipulate fur-
ther the way files are sorted and displayed.
The Show Hidden Files item reveals files whose names start with a dot (.).
These are typically configuration files that determine the way certain applications
behave.
The last two items, Background Color and Background Image, allow you to
customize the color behind your file display or to replace the color with an
image. Choosing a color is merely a matter of selecting Background Color and
clicking the color of your choice, and then clicking OK. To select an image, fol-
low the same process. You can choose one of the images provided, or you may
have an image file of your own for which you can browse. You'll learn much
more about customizing in Chapter 11.
Tools Menu
The first item on the Tools menu, Run Command, presents you with a dialog
box containing a line in which you can type the name of the program you want
to run or the web page you want to view. In some cases this may be a faster
method than searching through menus for the item. This same dialog box is
available in the main K menu as well.
Figure 3.9: Tools Menu
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The Open Terminal item opens a Konsole terminal window, which is a text-
based user interface. Almost everything that can be done by means of a mouse,
windows, and icons can be done from this simple little terminal-- and in many
cases done more quickly. The disadvantage is that it takes some time to learn
the necessary commands; that little blinking cursor isn't exactly intuitive. For
more information, see Chapter 13.
Find File allows you to search for files and directories. The Look In bar at
the bottom of the dialog box allows you to enter the directory in which you
want to search. If you don't know exactly which directory the file is in, you can
enable searching in subdirectories. To narrow your search, you can use the Date
Range tab or the Advanced tab. Enter the filename in the Named bar and the
directory (parent or subdirectory) that you expect the file to be in, or use the
Browse button.
The Find File utility works a little differently than similar programs in other
operating systems. You will notice an asterisk in the Named bar where you enter
text. The asterisk represents a wildcard for any character or even no character.
For instance, if you don't know the filename in its entirety, but remember that
its name begins with "report," you can enter
report*
in the Named bar, and the
files returned are all those starting with "report" and ending in anything. If you
want to search for all of the PDF files on your system (or in the specified direc-
tory), type
*.pdf
, and you get all files beginning with anything and ending with
the file extension .pdf. If you don't know the first or last characters of the file-
name, you can place an asterisk both before and after those for which you are
searching. For instance, typing
*report*
returns all files with "report" anywhere
in the filename.
Figure 3.10: Finding Files
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Chapter 3
The Create Image Gallery item allows you to create a web page of thumb-
nail images that link automatically to the full-size version. Open a display of
image files, select Create Image Gallery and any preferences from the dialog
box, and the page is created.
The last item, Execute Shell Command, is similar to the Run Command
item. Again, see Chapter 13 for more details on shell commands.
Settings Menu
The Settings menu contains items that give you a great deal of control over the
file manager, allowing you to customize the features of Konqueror. As with
other KDE menus that allow you to change settings with a single click, there is a
check mark next to the setting that is currently activated.
Figure 3.11: Create Image Gallery
Figure 3.12: Settings Menu
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The first item, Show Menubar, allows you to make the menubar itself disap-
pear, providing more space for the window displays. The keyboard shortcut
CTRL
-M returns the menubar. The rest of the Show menu items are self-explana-
tory.
T I P
The toolbars and the Location bar can be hidden to give your display window more space by
clicking on the vertical lines at the extreme right end of the toolbar. When the bar is hidden
these lines become horizontal. The bar can be returned by clicking the horizontal lines.
As discussed in the previous chapter in the "Navigating with the Keyboard"
section, the Configure Shortcuts option allows you to customize the action
Konqueror takes when certain keys are pressed. Certain functions correspond
to, or are bound to, certain keys on the keyboard. For instance, the display of the
Help contents is bound to the F1 key. With this menu item, you can change key
bindings and add new ones.
If you select Configure Toolbars, a window appears that allows you to add
or subtract buttons and their corresponding functions from the four toolbars:
Main, Extra, Location, and Iconview.
The Configure Konqueror item brings up the KDE Configuration module,
which allows customization of various aspects of Konqueror. In the left sidebar
are the elements of Konqueror that you can choose to modify. The first is File
Manager. From here you can change the font (size and type) and specify
whether to open directories in the same or separate windows.
The second item, File Associations, is covered in the "Dealing with Microsoft
Word Documents" later in this chapter and in Chapter 11. The other items relate
to Konqueror's web browser functionality and are covered in Chapter 10.
Figure 3.13: The Configure Konqueror Dialog Box
Window Menu
The Window menu offers further options for customization of Konqueror's file
displays.
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Chapter 3
In addition to options for dividing the main window into different views,
there are options for removing the sidebar, adding an x-terminal child window
at the bottom of the Konqueror window, and switching to full-screen mode.
Accessing Man Pages
Before moving on to "Working with Files," it may be useful to consider one other
handy feature of Konqueror: the display of man pages. Information on
UNIX/Linux system commands and tools are documented electronically in man, or
manual, pages. The man pages provide information on the use of commands such
as arguments, or specifications, that can be used to customize the behavior of com-
mands. This is primarily of value only to those who use terminal windows (such as
Konsole) to enter commands. Indeed, man pages are traditionally accessed from
the command line (see Chapter 13), but Konqueror allows quick access as well. In
the Location bar, simply type a pound sign before a given command. For example,
type
#lpr
to display the man page for the lpr print command.
Figure 3.14: Window Menu
Figure 3.15: The lpr Man Page
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As the Window menu demonstrates, Konqueror is highly customizable. As
soon as you've become familiar with the basics of using Konqueror file manage-
ment, try playing around with some of the configuration options available. You
can make the most of what's offered and do away with what you don't use or like.
Working with Files
Konqueror's graphical interface makes working with, managing, and accessing
your files very simple. Now that you have learned your way around the menus
and toolbars and customized your file manager, the next step is actually doing
something with these files.
Creating New Folders and Files
To begin, you may want to create new folders (subdirectories) and new files. In
Konqueror simply click Edit in the menubar at the top of the window, choose
Create New, and then choose what new entity you want to create. The two most
commonly used selections in a typical office are probably Directory (represented
by a folder icon), for storing files or subdirectories, and Text File (represented
by a paper-and-pencil icon).
T I P
You can also right-click anywhere on the background of the file manager screen and see a
menu with options such as Create New, Reload, New Window, Undo, and Paste.
After you make a choice of what to create, a box appears asking you to name
it. Type the name, and the directory or file appears on your file manager page.
Figure 3.16: Creating New Files
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Moving Files
The drag-and- drop method of moving files in KDE provides a very simple way
to get organized. All you need to know is how to drag your mouse. It helps sig-
nificantly if you have two windows open so you can easily see the original
location of the files or directories you want to move, as well as their final desti-
nation. To set this up, click Location in the top menu and choose Open
Duplicate Window if you are moving files within one particular directory. If you
are moving items between directories, you can use the Location menu to choose
a new directory to open.
Once you have both windows open, place your mouse over the item, hold
down the left mouse button, and while still holding the button down, move your
mouse to the new spot; the item moves across your screen to its intended desti-
nation. Once the item is where you want it, release the left mouse button. You
are then given three options: Copy Here, Move Here, and Link Here. Copy
Here makes a copy of the file or directory in the new location, but the original
also remains where it was. Move Here literally moves the item to the new loca-
tion and removes it from the old location. Link Here is similar to Copy Here, in
that linking the file allows access to it from the new location, but the actual file
remains only in its original space. The icon that appears in the new location is
merely a link. This saves disk space because you are not copying a new version
of the file.
Figure 3.17: Moving a File
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Opening Files
As discussed previously, you can open existing files in a read- only format by left-
clicking the icon or filename. This works for basic text documents, HTML docu-
ments, most types of images, and programs.
Once a file is opened, depending on the type of file, more choices are
added to the pull- down menus (as mentioned in the preceding "Location Bar"
section). For example, if you open a text document, the Location menu now
also has the option to open the file with a number of text editors or word
processors. Choose one of these programs to open your file, and you are able to
edit, print, save, or perform whatever task you want with the file. See Chapter 5,
"The OpenOffice Suite"; Chapter 6, "Alternative Office Software"; and Chapter
7, "Working with Graphics" for more detailed information on how to work with
specific types of files and applications.
Because different types of programs create files in different formats, it is
customary for files to have an extension appended to their name that indicates
the file type. This helps in deciding what application to use to open and manip-
ulate a file. File extensions are usually added automatically when a program cre-
ates or saves a file. For instance, if you write a letter to your secret admirer in
AbiWord, when you save the file (with perhaps the name "secret") AbiWord
appends the extension .abw, making the whole filename secret.abw.
Konqueror looks to the file extension to determine the file type and make
suggestions as to what program would be most appropriate to open it. If a file is
a type not recognized by Konqueror, it may not open simply by clicking it. If this
occurs, try right- clicking the file, choose Open With, and then choose an appro-
priate program from the list (or type one in) to open the file. This process is
discussed in more detail in Chapter 11. However, we cover the process for deal-
ing with Microsoft Word documents here as an example, because you may need
to make adjustments to your Konqueror configuration.
Figure 3.18: Choices for Moving a File
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Chapter 3
Dealing with Microsoft Word Documents
To configure Konqueror to recognize Microsoft Word documents and open
them with an appropriate application, first click the Settings pull- down menu,
choose Configure Konqueror, and then choose File Associations (located on the
left sidebar).
Figure 3.19: Opening a File with a Specific Application
Figure 3.20: File Associations
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Next, under the heading Known Types, click the little box (with the plus
sign) next to the word Application (this looks just like the tree structure that
appears in the left part of your file manager window, which was discussed ear-
lier). From the resulting menu, select "msword." At this point, a box opens to
the right of the tree that allows you to enter a filename pattern. It may already
have the typical MS Word filename extensions (.doc and .dot). If so, you don't
need to do anything. But if not, you can now click Add and type them in.
Below this box is a section called Applications Preference Order. This is
where you choose which programs should be used to open this particular type
of document automatically. You can select more than one program in case your
first choice doesn't work, and then when you try to open a file, Konqueror goes
down the list of programs you have entered to open the given file (depending
on the file type). In the case of MS Word documents, OpenOffice should do the
trick. So next click Add, and a box appears that allows you to choose a program.
Scroll down the list and click the program you want to use (OpenOffice in this
case), and then click OK. You are then back at the File Associations screen, and
you should see OpenOffice in the Applications Preference Order window. Click
Apply. Click OK. The next time you click a .doc file on your Konqueror file
manager screen, it should open with OpenOffice.
Right-Clicking Files
Another easy way to open or work with documents and images is to right-click a
file. This causes a menu to appear with the following list of options: Cut, Copy,
Paste, Rename, Move to Trash, Delete, Shred, Add to Bookmarks (this option
deals with Konqueror as a web browser and is covered in Chapter 10), Open With,
Preview in, Copy To, Move To, Edit File Type, and Properties. These options are
Figure 3.21: Adding Application Preferences
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Chapter 3
also available on the Edit pull-down menu at the top of the Konqueror screen.
Familiarize yourself with them to make working with files easier.
Using Cut, Copy, Paste, and Rename
The Cut, Copy, Paste, and Rename options are self-explanatory if you're used to
working with just about any word-processing program. You can highlight text
within a file, and then choose Cut or Copy (cutting removes it from the original
spot; copying makes a copy and leaves the original in the original location), and
finally click Paste to place your selection where you want (once you have a file
open, right- clicking anywhere on the page gives you these options). With
Konqueror, you can do this with files and directories also, easily moving or copy-
ing files or folders between directories and subdirectories. Simply right- click a
file or folder and choose cut or copy. Then place your mouse cursor on the des-
tination folder (by pointing there and clicking), click the folder to open it, right-
click somewhere on the background of your file manager window, and click
Paste; the folder or file appears in its new location.
T I P
There are two types of cursors on your computer: the text cursor, which appears inside of
an x-terminal, Konsole window, or word processor-type program and shows where the
next typed words will appear, and the mouse cursor, which relies on mouse movement for
its placement.
T I P
Another method that works both with highlighted text and with folders and files (with the
mouse cursor on them) is to use your keyboard. Pressing
CTRL
-X will cut,
CTRL
- C will
copy, and
CTRL
-V will paste.
To give a file a different name, simply right- click it and choose Rename; a
box pops up beneath the icon for the file or folder with the current name high-
lighted, allowing you to type over it and change the name of the file. If you want
to keep a file or folder with the old name as a reference, make sure you make a
copy of it before renaming it.
Figure 3.22: Edit Menu
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Managing Files
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Using Move to Trash, Delete, and Shred
These are all methods of removing unwanted files or folders. Move to Trash
moves the file or folder to your trash can. This option allows you to get rid of
files but also to restore them if you realize you've put them in the trash acciden-
tally--just as with a real trash can. If you need something you've tossed, you can
go to the trash can by clicking on it. A Konqueror window opens showing the
contents of the Trash directory. From there, you can do whatever you want with
the file, just as if it were still in its original location. If you decide that you really
and truly don't need it any longer, right- click anywhere on the Trash directory
screen, and you will see the option Empty Trash Bin. Clicking this causes your
file to be deleted for good. Make sure that when you click Empty Trash Bin there
is nothing else in the Trash directory you might want, because it is all gone at
this point-- as if you've just emptied your household trash into the compactor.
Figure 3.23: Renaming a File
T I P
You can move items to the trash by dragging them there with your mouse--exactly like you
move files or folders between directories, as explained earlier in the "Moving Files" section.
Figure 3.24: Trash Can
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The Delete and Shred options (Shred may only be available from the
Konqueror Edit menu) get rid of files more immediately, without the lingering-
in-the-Trash- directory phase. Choosing Shred removes the file in such a way that
it is almost completely irretrievable. Shredding removes the filename and per-
forms repeated writes over the entire file so that it is nearly impossible to
recover. If you are trying to get rid of sensitive data, this is obviously the more
secure option.
When you click either of these options, you still have one last chance to
change your mind, however; a small box appears asking if you really want to
delete (or shred). So decide how badly you want to be rid of the file, and then
click the appropriate button.
The dialog also features a check box that gives you the option of skipping
the confirmation regarding deletion and shredding of files in the future.
Using Open With
As mentioned earlier in the "Opening Files" section of this chapter, the Open
With option allows you to choose the program with which to open your file.
The default programs usually appear, depending on which type of file you are
working with, and you can choose the program with which you are most famil-
iar. For example, for a text file, you may be given a choice between OpenOffice,
KWrite, and a few other word processors and text editors. If there is something
you would rather use, simply click Other, and you will see a box with Known
Applications to choose from, or type your preference in the bar at the top.
Figure 3.25: Delete Confirmation
Figure 3.26: Open With Options
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For more on the relationships between programs and files, see Chapter 11.
Using Preview In
The Preview In option is similar to Open With; however, it allows you only to
look at the file in a chosen program. You won't be able to alter it in any way
(similar to when you simply click on a particular file).
Using Edit File Type
Edit File Type lets you configure the filename patterns (or filename extensions)
that Konqueror recognizes for a particular type of file. For example, a JPEG
image will be recognized if it has any of the following file extensions appended:
.jpeg, .jpg, or .JPG. If you want to add more possible extensions for a given file
type, click the Add button and type it in.
In the lower half of the window, you can configure the Application
Preference Order, which shows you the default programs used to open the file
and also allows you to add more programs or change the order in which the
programs are used.
If you click the Embedding tab, you can choose the left- click action for that
particular file, alter the Services preference order, or add more services.
Using Properties
Clicking Properties allows you to see information about the particular file,
including the type of file, where it is located, its size, the date and time that it
was last modified, and the date and time that it was last accessed.
Figure 3.27: Edit File Type
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Chapter 3
Changing Permissions
The other tab on the Properties screen (see the previous section) is Permissions.
Clicking this tab allows you to see who has which type of permissions for this
particular file. File permissions determine who can do what to a file. There are
three types of permissions: read, write, and execute. Read allows a file to be
viewed, but not altered; write allows alteration; and execute allows use of the file
if it is a program.
Each file has three classes of permissions: owner (user), group, and others.
The members of the group are set by the system administrator. The default
group is the group you belong to. For example, many companies' groups might
be set by department--with everyone in Accounting in the same group. Others is
everyone else and is sometimes referred to as world permission.
If you create a file, you are the file owner and can set the permissions for
the other categories. Place an X in the box for the permissions you want to
allow. You are probably able to change permissions only within your home direc-
tory. If you are unable to access a file you need because of a permissions prob-
lem, see your system administrator.
For further information on permissions, see the "File Attributes and
Permissions" section in Chapter 13.
Figure 3.28: File Properties
Figure 3.29: Permissions Settings
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Middle-Clicking
If your mouse has a middle button, try using that to click a file you want to work
with. It opens the file directly with the default program, allowing you to begin
working with it instantly, without having to go through the steps of choosing
which program to use. Middle- clicking is the quickest way to get right to work.
Using File Compression
If you have a compressed file, such as one with a .tgz extension, right- click it,
and you will see the option to open it with Ark, an archiving utility, added to the
usual list of options on the pop-up menu. Click this, and you will be able to see
all of the files within the compressed file, along with information about them
(the filename, permissions information, size, and timestamp). A typical menu at
the top of the Ark screen allows you to open the individual files, extract them,
and perform related tasks. See Chapter 12 for more details on using Ark.
Figure 3.30: Archiver
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