Chapter 5. The panel

5.1. How do I add applications to the KDE panel (Kicker)?
5.2. Is it possible to change the K button of the panel to another picture?
5.3. After an upgrade my K menu appears to be empty! How can I get my menu back?
5.4. My desktop panel has disappeared. How can I get it back?
5.5. Where did the Icon Zooming option that used to be in Kicker go?
5.6. How can I start an application minimized to the system tray?
5.7. How do I use the Windows key to open the K menu?

5.1.	How do I add applications to the KDE panel (Kicker)?
	There are several ways to add an application to the panel, of which the easiest is to right-click on the panel, and from the context menu which appears, select Panel Menu->Add to Panel->Application Button and then the application for which you want to add a link. For more ways of adding buttons to the panel, refer to the Kicker Handbook.
5.2.	Is it possible to change the K button of the panel to another picture?
	The simplest way is to download a new icon theme with a K menu icon you prefer from http://www.kde-look.org and install it using the KDE Control Center. In order to change only the K menu icon you can overwrite the `kmenu.png` image for every size in an icon theme set. So, for KDE default icons this would be `$KDEDIR/share/icons/default.kde/size/apps/kmenu.png`, where `size` is one of the sizes included in the KDE icon theme. To see your new icon, either log out of KDE and back in again, or run the command dcop`kicker kicker restart` to restart the panel.
5.3.	After an upgrade my K menu appears to be empty! How can I get my menu back?
	In KDE 3.2 and later local modifications to the K menu are stored in `$HOME/.config/menus/applications-kmenuedit.menu`. Try moving this file out of the way and then issuing the command `kbuildsycoca4 --noincremental`. This should restore you to the default system menus.
5.4.	My desktop panel has disappeared. How can I get it back?
	The panel disappearing is usually due to it crashing. This is most often caused by loading an applet that has a fatal bug or due to a bad installation of KDE and/or the panel. The easiest way to get the panel back is to launch the Run Command window by pressing Alt+F2 and entering `kicker` and then pressing the OK button. If the panel continues to disappear, you may wish to either remove or edit by hand your `$KDEHOME/share/config/kickerrc` file, where `$KDEHOME` is usually `~/.kde`. If you choose to edit it by hand, start by removing the applet entry groups.
5.5.	Where did the Icon Zooming option that used to be in Kicker go?
	Icon zooming was not actively maintained and had caused severe bugs and usability issues. It was replaced in KDE 3.4 by the new mouse over effects, which combine esthetics with useful information.
5.6.	How can I start an application minimized to the system tray?
	Use ksystraycmd. For example, to start a Konsole hidden in the system tray, run `ksystraycmd --hidden konsole`. For more information about ksystraycmd, see the section “Advanced Window Management” in the KDE User Guide.
5.7.	How do I use the Windows® key to open the K menu?
	Previous versions of KDE provided a trick to allow you to use the Windows® key both as a modifier (so you could have shortcuts like Win+R), and as a regular key (so that pressing Win on its own could open the K menu). This feature was removed for reasons of usability and accessibility, as well as keeping the code clean. For current versions of KDE, you have two options: either use a different shortcut to open the K menu (the default is Alt+F1), or remap the Win key to be a regular key, rather than a modifier. If you choose to do the second, here's one way: Find the keycode for your Win key using xev: Run the command `xev` in a Konsole, and press the Win key. Look in the output of xev for `keycode n`, where `n` is the keycode of the Win key. Use xmodmap to remap the Win key. An appropriate command is `xmodmap -e 'keycode n=Menu'`. In the KDE Control Center, go to Regional & Accessibility->Keyboard Shortcuts and set the shortcut for Popup Launch Menu to the Win key. You should now be able to popup the K menu by pressing the Win key. One more step is required to save the changes across settings: Create a file `~/.kde/env/win-key.sh` (create the directory if it doesn't exist), and add the xmodmap command you used previously to it. The change should now be applied every time you start KDE.