The Start Here screen was designed to hold all of the
tools and applications you need to access when using your system. From
your favorite applications to system configuration tools, the
Start Here window provides a central location.
You may access the Start Here page at any time by
clicking on the desktop icon labeled Start Here or by
selecting from the .
The Start Here screen includes icons that allow you
to access your favorite applications, desktop preferences,
items, server configuration tools, and
system settings.
You may want to add your own favorite applications to the
Favorites section off of the Start
Here area. To add an application to the
Favorites section, select the application from the
, click on it with your right mouse button,
and select the
item from the pop-up menu. You will see an icon for the application in
the Favorites section immediately.
Within the Start Here area you can select the
Preferences icon to configure your GNOME
desktop. Once selected, you will be presented with a wide selection of
options for configuring your desktop. Below you will find a list of a
few of the configuration options and tools in each area.
- Desktop
This contains items which are associated with the
appearance of your desktop. For example, you may configure
your background, panel, and screen saver.
- Multimedia
In this section you will be able to configure the system
sounds associated with various functions. For example, if
you would like to have a sound play when you log in to
GNOME, you will set that here.
- Peripherals
If you have any items plugged into your system that GNOME
understands or has associated applications, this area will
contain configuration tools for them. Keyboard and mice
will always be here, but you may also have a tool to help
you configure GNOME for a PDA as well.
- Sawfish window manager
By default, GNOME uses the Sawfish window manager. The
window manager determines when, where, and how windows are
placed on the screen, as well as how the borders for
windows are decorated. These tools allows you to change
the behavior and appearance of the Sawfish window manager.
The Start Here page in
Nautilus contains additional configuration
tools that help you with your new Red Hat Linux system and the server
applications included.
The System Settings icon includes tools
that help you set up your system for personal everyday
use. Below you will find a list of some of the tools included
in System Settings and what you can do
with them.
- Date/Time Properties
This tool allows you to set the date and time of your
machine. You will be able to set your time zone information as
well. Refer to the Official Red Hat Linux Customization Guide for details.
- Hardware Browser
The Hardware Browser probes your
machine for all available hardware, whether it is internal or
external. Each hardware device will bring up different
information depending on the device. For example, a hard drive
will display partitioning information as well as the amount of
available space. Refer to the Official Red Hat Linux Customization Guide
for details.
- Network Configuration
The Network Configuration tool
allows you to set up any type of network connection
whether it is a modem, a network card, a wireless card, or
broadband connection. Refer to the
Official Red Hat Linux Customization Guide for details.
- Printer Configuration Tool
The Printer Configuration tool
allows you to add a new printer to your system. The
printer may be connected to your machine or available on a
network. Refer to Chapter 8 and the
Official Red Hat Linux Customization Guide for details.
As mentioned before, you will also find server configuration tools in
the Start Here area. These tools help you
configure services and applications you are using on the local machine
to serve other machines. The server configuration tools are found by
clicking on the Server Configuration icon. A
couple of examples of the tools found in this area are the tools for
the Apache Web Server and a DNS/Bind tool. You must have those server
applications installed before these tools appear in this section.
Refer to the Official Red Hat Linux Customization Guide for details.
