Working With MenusThis chapter describes how to use menus in the desktop.
Introduction to MenusmenusintroductionYou can access all desktop functions through menus. The default panels
contain menus, so you can use a combination of menus and panels to perform
your tasks. You can perform various actions on your menus, such as copy menu
items to panels.You can access the following menus from the desktop:Applications menu: You can access many
of the applications, commands, and configuration options on your desktop from
the Applications menu.Actions menu: You can access various desktop
commands from the Actions menu. For example, you can start
the Search Tool application, or log out from the
desktop. GNOME Menu: You can also access the items
in the Applications and Actions menus
from the GNOME Menu. You can have many GNOME Menu
buttons in your panels. You can also right-click on the desktop background to open the
Desktop Background menu. The Desktop Background
menu enables you to perform desktop background-related tasks. For information
on the Desktop Background menu, see .
All of these menus provide you with multiple ways to perform your tasks,
and enable you to work in the way that you prefer.Menu FeaturesmenusfeaturesMenus can contain the following items: SubmenusLaunchersAn arrow to the right of an item in a menu indicates that the item is
a submenu. When you point to the submenu, the submenu opens. You can choose
items from the submenu. When you choose a launcher, the launcher starts an application or runs
a command. You can also right-click on a launcher to open a popup menu. The
popup menu enables you to add the item to a panel, and perform other tasks.
For more information on the popup menu, see the next section. You can change the theme for your session to change how all your menus
look. To change the theme, choose Applications
Desktop Preferences
Theme.Launcher Popup Menumenuslauncher popup menulauncher popup menudescription
Launchers on menus have an associated popup
menu that enables you to perform tasks related to launchers. When you right-click
on a launcher in a menu, the popup menu for the launcher opens. The popup
menu also contains a submenu that allows you to perform menu-related tasks.
You can use the launcher popup menu to perform the following tasks:
Add launchers to panels. Remove launchers from menus. Open the Run Program dialog with the
launcher command in the dialog.Add menus to panels. You can add a menu as a menu object or
as a drawer object. Add new items to menus.Change the properties of submenus and launchers.Some items in the popup menu might not be available to you. Your user
privileges determine which items are available. For example, if you do not
have system administrator privileges, you can not modify the properties of
the Applications menu. shows the popup menu.launcher popup menuillustration describes the items on launcher
popup menus. launchersadding to panel
Items on Launcher Popup MenusItem
DescriptionAdd this launcher to panelAdds the launcher to the panel from which you open
the menu.Remove this itemRemoves the launcher from the menu.Put into run dialogDisplays the Run Program dialog
with the command from the Command field of the launcher
in the command field on the Run Program dialog. Help on application_name
Open the online help for the application.PropertiesDisplays a dialog that enables you to edit the properties
of the launcher.Entire
menuAdd this as drawer to panel
Adds the submenu as a drawer to the panel from which you open the menu.Entire
menuAdd this as menu to panel
Adds the submenu as a menu object to the panel from which you open the menu.
Entire
menuAdd new item to this menu
Enables you to add an item to the submenu.Entire
menuPropertiesDisplays a dialog that enables
you to edit the properties of the submenu.
menusadding to panelApplications MenumenusApplicationsThe Applications menu contains a hierarchy of submenus,
from which you can start the standard GNOME applications and preference tools.
The Applications menu also includes the file manager and
the help browser.The Applications menu resides in the following places:
Menu PanelStart Here location in
NautilusGNOME MenuActions MenumenusActionsThe Actions menu contains various desktop commands. describes the commands in the
Actions menu.
Actions Menu CommandsMenu Item
FunctionRun ProgramOpens the Run Program dialog.
Use the Run Program dialog to run commands. For more
information, see .Search for FilesStarts the Search Tool
application. For more information, see the Search Tool
manual.Take a Screen ShotOpens the Screenshot dialog.
Use the Screenshot to take screenshots of your desktop.
Lock DisplayLocks your screen. For more information, see .Log OutLogs you out of the current session. For more information,
see .
The Actions menu resides in the following places:
Menu Panel. GNOME Menu. The items in the
Actions menu are at the top level of the GNOME Menu.
Using the Run Program DialogRun Program dialog, usingThe Run Program dialog gives you access to 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:
Display the Run Program dialog. You can
display the Run Program dialog in any of the following
ways:From the Menu PanelChoose ActionsRun
Program.From the GNOME MenuOpen the GNOME Menu, then choose Run
Program.Use a shortcut keyThe default shortcut key to display the Run Program
dialog is AltF2. You can change the shortcut
key that displays the Run Program dialog in the
Desktop Preferences. To change the shortcut key, choose ApplicationsDesktop Preferences
Keyboard Shortcuts.From a launcher popup menuRight-click on a launcher in a menu, then choose Put into
run dialog from the popup menu. The Run Program
dialog opens with the command from the menu in the command field.The Run Program dialog is displayed as follows:
Shows Run Program dialog. Contains applications drop-down combination box, Run in terminal check box. Contains Append File, Help, Close, Run buttons. Contains Known Applications button.
Choose the command that you want to run from the applications
drop-down combination box.Alternatively, click on the Known Applications
button to display a list of available applications, as shown in the following
figure:Shows Run Program dialog, with advanced options. Contains applications drop-down combination box, Run in terminal check box. Contains Append File, Help, Close, Run buttons. Contains expanded Known Applications list.
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 also use the Append File button to choose
a file to append to the command line. For example, you can enter
emacs as the command, 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.Click on the Run button on the
Run Program dialog. GNOME MenumenusGNOME Menu
GNOME MenuGNOME Menu
introductionShows open GNOME Menu. Menu items: Programs, Favorites, Applets, Run, Panel, Lock Screen, Log Out.
You can access almost all of the standard applications, commands, and
configuration options on your desktop from the GNOME Menu.
The GNOME Menu provides the following top-level menus
and special menu items: Applications: Contains all applications
and preference tools. This menu also includes the file manager and help browser.
Actions: Contains desktop commands the
Lock screen and Log out menu items.
By default, the items in the Desktop menu are at the top
level of the GNOME Menu. Run launcher: Displays the
Run Program dialog. You can add GNOME Menu buttons to your panels. By
default, the GNOME Menu is represented on panels by a stylized
footprint icon, as follows:Shows GNOME Menu icon.To Open the GNOME MenuGNOME MenuopeningYou can open the GNOME Menu in the following ways:
From a panel with a GNOME MenuClick on the GNOME Menu. Use a shortcut keyYou can use a shortcut key to open the GNOME Menu.
When you use a shortcut key to open the GNOME Menu, the
GNOME Menu appears at the mouse pointer. The default shortcut key to open the GNOME Menu is AltF1. To change the shortcut key that opens
the GNOME Menu, choose Applications
Desktop Preferences
Keyboard Shortcuts.To Add a GNOME Menu to a PanelGNOME Menuadding to panelYou can add as many GNOME Menu buttons
as you want to your panels. To add a GNOME Menu to a panel,
right-click on any vacant space on the panel to open the panel popup menu.
Choose Add to panelGNOME
Menu.