kpf provides simple file sharing using HTTP (the Hyper Text Transfer Protocol,) which is the same protocol used by web sites to provide data to your web browser. kpf is strictly a public fileserver, which means that there are no access restrictions to shared files: whatever you select for sharing is available to anyone.

kpf is designed to be used for sharing files with friends, not to act like a fully-fledged web server such as Apache. kpf was primarily conceived as an easy way to share files with others while chatting on IRC (Internet Relay Chat, or “chat rooms”.)

kpf runs as an applet inside Kicker. This means that it takes up little space on your screen and its status is always visible. To start the kpf applet, right click on Kicker and choose Add Applet to Panel... to open the Add Applet dialog. Select Public File Server and click the Add to Panel button.

kpf employs the concept of shared folders. You may choose one or more folders to make public, and all files in that folder (and any subfolders) will be shared.

Once kpf is running, you will see a square applet with a thin sunken bevel and an icon depicting an hot air balloon. The balloon is visible when no folders are being shared.

To share a folder, right click on the balloon icon and a pop-up menu will appear, containing only one item, New Server.... Selecting this entry will cause a “wizard” to appear, which will ask you a few simple questions. Completing the questions will set up a folder for sharing.

There is an alternative to using the applet directly when you want to share a folder. kpf is integrated with Konqueror.

With Konqueror open and displaying a folder, right click on the background and bring up the “Properties” dialog. On install, kpf added a Sharing tab to this dialog. You will be offered the option of starting kpf if it is not running. Choosing Ok will send a signal to the kpf applet, asking it to add a new share.

For more detailed information, such as how to share different directories to different people, see the kpf handbook.