There didn't seem to be much interest in this, but I found the solution. I happened to find based on "Last Modified..." times that /home/knoppix/.kde/share/config/kickerrc is where the layout for the panel is stored, including applets. It actually *is* saved when you do a "Save Configuration File", but when you add applets to the panel beyond what's there in a default install, it is listed under "UntrustedApplets=" while the default applets are (surprise) under "TrustedApplets=" in the kickerrc file. If you leave it this way, when Knoppix next loads up, it won't have saved any of the settings for those applets and your /ramdisk copy of the file won't have them listed under "Applets2=". I'm not sure what the difference between Applets2 (which is the one that shows the true order of the buttons/applications/applets on the panel) and Applets is. I guess maybe Applets is the list that's referenced if you hit a "Restore to defaults" button somewhere. Anyway, editing kickerrc so that the desired apps are under "TrustedApplets=" and replacing that file in configs.tbz will fix it. Useful if your HD is NTFS or you just don't want to use it or you don't want to prematurely age your flash drive.