A simple problem eluding me

[Bothersome]

OK, A very simple problem is eluding me that I could sure use your help with.

I put Knoppix on an 8GB USB flash drive. I was playing around with the desktop settings (right click on desktop for the menu). I turned off some option that allowed the menu for right clicking on the desktop. Now when I right click on the desktop, nothing comes up. So, I need to know where I can turn that option back on, so that right click on the desktop brinks up that menu.

Also, how can I add menu items to the application menu?

Also, how can I make a new Link to another file or directory on the desktop.

Also, where can I change default paper size to "letter size" in LibreOffice? The printer is already set, but every new document I create, defaults to A4. Very annoying.

Thanks for your time.

Edit: Oh, I'm on version 6.7.0.

[utu]

Greetings, Bothersome.

It would be helpful & preferable in the future if you'd not try to cover so many topics all in one post.

In regards the lxmenu, there's no current easy way to edit menus. There is a later version of lxde that has that feature, but Debian is about a year behind in getting it out to us.

Link question is unclear what you want.

LibreOffice answer is simple enough Format/Page.../Format; yup, A4 is default;
so change it.

The right-click problem is a classic, and someone has posted the solution.
Use the forum search function.

And good luck.

[utu]

LibreOffice answer is simple enough Format/Page.../Format; yup, A4 is default;
so change it.


In Writer, that is.

[Bothersome]

The link question might be a symlink question.

I'll give up on the idea of adding menu items at the moment.

Comment:
It's strange that the people that develop Linux/KDE/Gnome want users to use their systems. They make the systems look like windows and copy layouts and whatnot to help make things easier to the Windows users for transition. Yet, they don't include the simple things that make the system a bit more intuitive. This is exactly what frustrates the Windows user. Making the user think it all a big waste of time and that the systems the developers have put together is just not ready yet. Do you want the system to look and feel like Windows or not? If so, then get the interface to feel like it too. If not, tell us now so we can quit wasting our time on it.

I take it, re-enabling that context menu for the desktop is a difficult thing to do, else someone would have just posted the quick solution. The option of turning it off should have never been put in the system in first place.

Oh and I just tried that layout > Page and put it to letter size, yet when I close LibreOffice and start it up again, it is again on A4. It does not change the default to letter size. Or did miss something?

[utu]

Oh and I just tried that layout > Page and put it to letter size, yet when I close LibreOffice and start it up again, it is again on A4. It does not change the default to letter size. Or did miss something?

There are, I thought, three places to go wrong here:
ok your choice; save your document; and persistent store.
I understand your annoyance a little better now.
I'll see if 6.4.4 offers any clue.

[Werner P. Schulz]

It's strange that the people that develop Linux/KDE/Gnome want users to use their systems. They make the systems look like windows and copy layouts and whatnot to help make things easier to the Windows users for transition. Yet, they don't include the simple things that make the system a bit more intuitive.... you did a look at Knoppix and you damn Linux.
KNOPPIX is a bootable Live system on CD or DVD, consisting of a representative collection of GNU/Linux software, .. (http://www.knopper.net/knoppix/index-en.html)Knoppix is a "collection" of hundreds of tools and programs from KDE, Gnome, LXDE and so on. It isn't designed as a distribution with a uniform look and feel as perhaps Debian, openSUSE or (especially for newcomers from Windows) Ubuntu. If you for example have a look at Ubuntu, you will find all the "simple things that make the system a bit more intuitive".

Greetings Werner * http://www.wp-schulz.de/knoppix/summary.html
Own Rescue-CD with Knoppix (Knoppix V6.7.0 remaster)

[Werner P. Schulz]

Also, where can I change default paper size to "letter size" in LibreOffice? The printer is already set, but every new document I create, defaults to A4. Very annoying.
... change the entry of '/etc/papersize/' (as root) from "a4" to "letter".

[Werner P. Schulz]

Also, how can I add menu items to the application menu?
... what a menu item do you need. Most of the installed programs have a entry in '/usr/share/applications/'.

But you can edit existing entries or add new entries: http://wiki.lxde.org/en/Main_Menu

The mentioned LXDE-menu-editor I've never tried.

[utu]

There does seem to be some kind of first-time-use stickiness with my 6.7 LiveUSB.
If you save as 'untitled 2' there's no problem; moreover 'untitled 1' will also hold changes after
doing the 'untitled 2' thing. No such first-time-use thing with either 6.4.4 or 6.7 LiveCD's.

As Werner says, you probably want to change the DEFAULT anway.
That would have been the next question.

[Werner P. Schulz]

I was playing around with the desktop settings (right click on desktop for the menu). I turned off some option that allowed the menu for right clicking on the desktop. Now when I right click on the desktop, nothing comes up. ... oh, this old error!
Try this. (http://www.knoppix.net/forum/threads/29119-The-Stupidest-Thing-You-ll-Hear-Today?p=123237&viewfull=1#post123237)

[Werner P. Schulz]

Also, how can I make a new Link to another file or directory on the desktop.... as an example from my page: I created a file "kn-info.desktop"

[Desktop Entry]
Encoding=UTF-8
Name=Info for Rescue-CD
Name[de]=Info zur Rescue-CD
Comment=Display sample page Info-HTML
Comment[de]=Beispiel für eine Info-HTML-Seite
Exec=x-www-browser file:///home/knoppix/Documents/kn-info.html
Icon=notification-properties
Type=Application
Categories=Utility;in '/usr/share/applications' and a copy of it in '/home/knoppix/Desktop'

Greetings Werner * http://www.wp-schulz.de/knoppix/summary.html
Own Rescue-CD with Knoppix (Knoppix V6.7.0 remaster)

[Bothersome]

OK thanks a lot for all your info Werner and every one else.

That's gets me up running for most parts.

What I'm doing here is creating Knoppix on USB with persistant stores. For other people to use. They will want to go back to windows if it doesn't look and feel like what they're used to. They basically only need browsers, email clients, and general office programs. Knoppix handles 99% of what they need. And Knoppix is solid enough and quick enough to be used on generic computers. With Knoppix I don't have to hunt down drivers for every different computer and setup. If someone were to have a problem with booting, I'd do a USB drive exchange, copying their documents and whatnot to the new drive. The A4 thingy was the biggest hold back for them.

You guys should try to understand, that most companies don't tolerate a lot of trial and error from the IT guys. We gotta know how, and right now. Else I get the arguments that they want to go back to Windows.

I guess what I'm saying is,... I need an operating system that turns the hardware into a commodity. Knoppix most closely fits that from what I know of it so far.