lies behind all other visible items on your screen. The desktop

is an active component of the way you use your computer.</para>

<para>Every user has a Home Folder. The Home Folder contains all user's files. The desktop is another folder. The desktop contains special icons allowing easy access to the users Home Folder, Trash, and also removable media such as floppy disks, CDs and USB flash drives.</para>

<para>In MATE many things are files, such as word processor documents, spreadsheets, photos, movies, and music.</para>

</section>

<listitem><para>Double-click the folder's icon on the desktop or an existing window</para></listitem>

<listitem><para>Select the folder, and press <keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>O</keycap></keycombo>.</para></listitem>

<listitem><para>Select the folder, and press <keycombo><keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>down arrow</keycap></keycombo></para></listitem>

</itemizedlist>

<para>To close the current folder while opening the new one, hold down <keycap>Shift</keycap> when double-clicking, or press <keycombo><keycap>Shift</keycap><keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>down arrow</keycap></keycombo>.</para>

<para>The file manager checks the contents of a file to determine the type

of a file. If the first lines do not determine the type of the file, then

the file manager checks the <glossterm>file extension</glossterm>.</para>

<section xml:id="goscaja-29"><info><title>Executing the Default Action</title></info>

<indexterm>

<para>Select the folder that you want to change. </para>

</listitem>

<listitem>

</listitem>

<listitem>

<para>Click on the <guilabel>Permissions</guilabel> tab.</para>

<para>Select the file or folder to which you want to add a note. </para>

</listitem>

<listitem>

</listitem>

<listitem>

<para>Click on the <guilabel>Notes</guilabel> tab. In the <guilabel>Notes</guilabel> tabbed section, type the note.</para>

<para>Select the item to which you want to add an emblem.</para>

</listitem>

<listitem>

</listitem>

<listitem>

<para>Click on the <guilabel>Emblems</guilabel> tab to display the <guilabel>Emblems</guilabel> tabbed section.</para>

<variablelist>

<varlistentry><term>Desktop</term>

</varlistentry>

<varlistentry><term>Sound</term>

<listitem><para>Shortcuts for controlling your music player and the system volume.</para></listitem>

<primary>backgrounds</primary>

<secondary>customizing desktop background</secondary>

</indexterm>

desktop. You can open <guilabel>Background</guilabel> tabbed section in the <application>Appearance</application> preference tool by right-clicking on the desktop and choosing <guimenuitem>Change Desktop Background</guimenuitem>, as well as from the <menuchoice><guimenu>System</guimenu><guisubmenu>Preferences</guisubmenu></menuchoice> menu.</para>

<para>You can customize the desktop background in the following ways:</para>

<itemizedlist>

is a visual effect where one color blends gradually into another color. </para>

</listitem>

</itemizedlist>

<para><xref linkend="goscustdesk-TBL-14"/> lists the background preferences

that you can modify.</para>

<table frame="topbot" xml:id="goscustdesk-TBL-14"><info><title>Desktop Background Preferences</title></info>

</listitem>

</itemizedlist>

-->

<section xml:id="goscustdesk-40"><info><title>Keyboard Preferences</title></info>

<para>Use the <guilabel>General</guilabel> tabbed section to set general

<para>As you work with your computer, the desktop becomes obscured by the windows you are working with. To quickly reveal the desktop by minimizing all windows, you can do one of the following:</para>

<itemizedlist>

<listitem><para>Press <keycombo><keycap>Ctrl</keycap><keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>D</keycap></keycombo>.</para></listitem>

</itemizedlist>

<varlistentry>

<term>Resize the window</term>

<listitem>

<para>You can also choose Resize from the Window Menu, or press <keycombo>

<keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>F8</keycap></keycombo>. The resize pointer appears. Move the mouse in the direction of the edge you want to resize, or press one of the keyboard arrows keys. The pointer changes to indicate the chosen edge. Now you can use the mouse or the arrow keys to move this edge of the window. Click the mouse or press <keycap>Return</keycap> to accept the change. Press <keycap>Escape</keycap> to cancel the resize action and return the window to its original size and shape.</para>

<varlistentry>

<term>Minimize the window</term>

<listitem>

<para>You can also choose Minimize from the Window Menu, or press <keycombo>

<keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>F9</keycap>

With the keyboard, hold the <keycap>Alt</keycap> key and press the <keycap>Tab</keycap> key. A pop-up window appears with a list of icons representing each window. While still holding <keycap>Alt</keycap>, press <keycap>Tab</keycap> to move the selection along the list: a black rectangle frames the selected icon and the position of the window it corresponds to is highlighted with a black border. When the window you want to see is selected, release the <keycap>Alt</keycap> key. Using <keycombo><keycap>Shift</keycap><keycap>Tab</keycap></keycombo> instead of just <keycap>Tab</keycap> cycles through the icons in reverse order.

</para>

<note><para>

</para></note>

</listitem>

</itemizedlist>

</indexterm>

<para>Workspaces allow you to manage which windows are on your screen. You can imagine workspaces as being virtual screens, which you can switch between at any time. Every workspace contains the same desktop, the same panels, and the same menus. However, you can run different applications, and open different windows in each workspace. The applications in each workspace will remain there when you switch to other workspaces.</para>

<figure xml:id="gosoverview-FIG-42"><info><title>Workspaces Displayed in Workspace Switcher</title></info>

<screenshot>

<listitem><para><link xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="help:mate-dictionary" type="help"><application>Dictionary</application></link> allows you to look up definitions of a word. </para></listitem>

<listitem><para><link xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="help:eom" type="help"><application>Image Viewer</application></link> can display single image files, as well as large image collections.</para></listitem>

<listitem><para><link xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="help:gucharmap" type="help"><application>Character Map</application></link> lets you choose letters and symbols from the <firstterm>Unicode</firstterm> character set and paste them into any application. If you are writing in several languages, not all the characters you need will be on your keyboard.</para></listitem>

<listitem><para><link xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="help:mate-terminal" type="help"><application>Terminal</application></link> gives you access to the system command line.</para></listitem>

</itemizedlist>

<itemizedlist>

<listitem>

<para>Consistent look-and-feel</para>

</listitem>

<listitem>

<para>Menubars, toolbars, and statusbars</para>

<para>To change the location shown in the right-hand pane, do one of the following:</para>

<itemizedlist>

<listitem><para>Open a folder that is listed in the current location.</para></listitem>

<listitem><para>Click one of the buttons in the path bar above the file listing pane. This shows the hierarchy of folders that contain your current location. Use the arrow buttons to either side of the button bar if the list of folders is too long to fit.</para></listitem>

</itemizedlist>

<section xml:id="filechooser-save-expanded"><info><title>Saving in another location</title></info>

<para>To save the file in a location not listed in the drop-down list, click the <guilabel>Browse for other folders</guilabel> expansion label. This shows a file browser similar to the one in the <guilabel>Open File</guilabel> dialog.</para>

</section>

<section xml:id="filechooser-save-overwrite"><info><title>Replacing an existing file</title></info>

</para>

</entry>

<entry valign="top">

</entry>

</row>

<row>

<para>You can drag an image file from the <application>Caja</application> file manager to set it as the background of the panel.</para>

</listitem>

<listitem>

</listitem>

</itemizedlist>

<para>Click <guibutton>Close</guibutton> to close the <guilabel>Panel Properties</guilabel> dialog.</para>

<para>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

</section>

<section xml:id="gospanel-10"><info><title>Adding a New Panel</title></info>

<listitem>

<para>Some applets have popup menus of applet-specific commands

that open when you right-click on particular parts of the applet. For example,

the left side, and buttons that represent your windows on the right side.

To open the panel object popup menu for the <application>Window List</application>

applet, you must right-click on the handle. If you right-click on a button

</para></listitem>

<listitem><para>

Choose <guisubmenu>Add to Panel</guisubmenu>.</para>

<tip><para>You can type a part of the name or description of an object in the <guilabel>find</guilabel> box. This will narrow the list to those objects that match what you type.</para>

<para>To restore the full list, delete the text in the <guilabel>find</guilabel> box.</para>

</tip>

<listitem>

<para>From the panel popup menu</para>

<para>Right-click on any vacant space on the panel,

<para>To create a new launcher, select <guilabel>Custom Application Launcher</guilabel> from the list. A <guilabel>Create Launcher</guilabel>

dialog is displayed. For more information on the properties in this dialog,

see <xref linkend="launchers-properties"/>.</para>

</para>

</entry>

<entry valign="top">

</entry>

</row>

</tbody>

<para>When you end a session, applications with unsaved work will warn you. You can choose to save your work, or cancel the command to log out or shut down.</para>

<para>Before you end a session, you might want to save your current

save your current settings.</para>

</section>

</chapter> \ No newline at end of file

<para>

Press <keycombo><keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>F2</keycap></keycombo>. You can change

the shortcut keys that display the <guilabel>Run Application</guilabel> dialog

</listitem>

</varlistentry>

</variablelist>

</tbody>

</tgroup>

</informaltable>

</listitem>

<listitem>

<para>From the Menubar</para>