Customizing Menus
The information in this chapter describes how the GNOME
Desktop implements menus and how you can customize menus.
Introduction to Menus
menus
introduction
The way in which the GNOME Desktop implements menus enables you to do
the following:
Customize the menu hierarchy easily. The menu hierarchy is
not based on the file system hierarchy. You can edit a small number of files
to customize the menu hierarchy. You do not need to modify your applications
or move files.
Install applications easily. You do not need to provide information
about the menu hierarchy to applications when you install the applications.
Configure menus so that users cannot modify the menus.
Menus in the GNOME Desktop use the following components:
File abstraction layer
Vfolders
Desktop entry files
Directory entry files
File Abstraction Layer
menus
file abstraction layer
file abstraction layer, and menus
The
gnome-vfs
file abstraction layer
provides a simplified and generalized way for applications to interact with
files. The file abstraction layer also provides
Uniform Resource
Identifier
(URI) locations that map to particular menu configuration
files. To add a menu or a menu item for all users, you must add the menu or
menu item to one of the URI locations.
lists the menus to which you can add items, and the URI locations that correspond
to the menus.
Menus and URI Locations
Menu
URI Locations
Applications
menu for all
users
applications-all-users:///
Desktop Preferences
menu for all users
preferences-all-users:///
Vfolders and Menus
menus
vfolders
vfolders
In general terms,
a
vfolder
is a virtual representation of items that
reside in a physical location or physical locations on your system. For example,
a vfolder might represent the contents of several directories. A vfolder is
an abstraction from one or more physical locations. In terms of menus in the
GNOME Desktop, a vfolder is a representation in a menu of items that might
be physically located in several directories.
menus
vfolder information files
vfolder information files
A
vfolder information file
is an XML file
that describes a vfolder. Vfolder information files specify the structure
of your menus. Vfolder information files specify the names of your menus,
and the order in which applications appear in your menus. Vfolder information
files have a
.vfolder-info
file extension.
The following is an excerpt from a vfolder information file:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<VFolderInfo>
.
.
.
<Folder>
<Name>Applications</Name>
<Desktop>Applications.directory</Desktop>
<Folder>
<Name>Accessories</Name>
<DontShowIfEmpty/>
<Desktop>Accessories.directory</Desktop>
<Query>
<And>
<Keyword>Application</Keyword>
<Keyword>Utility</Keyword>
</And>
</Query>
</Folder>
.
.
.
</Folder>
</VFolderInfo>
describes some of the elements
in vfolder information files.
Vfolder Information File Elements
Element
Description
<Folder>
Contains the elements that define
the name, content, and structure of the menu.
<Name>
Specifies the name of the menu.
<Desktop>
Specifies the name of the directory
entry file that specifies the name, comment, and icon for the menu.
<Query>
Specifies a query to run on desktop
entry files. If a desktop entry file matches the requirements in the query,
the menu item is displayed in the menu.
The query in the excerpt
searches for desktop entry files that contain the keywords
Application
and
Utility
in the
Categories
key. Desktop entry files that match are displayed in the
Applications
menu.
This element is optional.
<DontShowIfEmpty/>
If this
element is present, the menu is not displayed if the menu does not contain
any items.
This element is optional.
Desktop Entry Files
desktop entry files
.desktop files
desktop entry files
A
desktop entry file
is a data file that provides information about
an item in a menu. The desktop entry file specifies the details for the item
such as a name, a command to run, an icon, and so on. The desktop entry file
also contains keywords which determine the location of the item in the menu
hierarchy. Desktop entry files have a
.desktop
file extension.
The following is a sample desktop entry file:
[Desktop Entry]
Encoding=UTF-8
Name=Calculator
Comment=Perform calculations
Exec=gcalctool
Icon=gcalctool.png
Terminal=false
Type=Application
Categories=GNOME;Application;Utility;
X-GNOME-DocPath=gcalctool/gcalctool.xml
describes the most important keys
in desktop entry files.
Desktop Entry Keys
Desktop Entry Key
Description
Encoding
Specifies the encoding of the desktop entry file.
Name
Specifies the name of the item. This name is displayed
on the item in the menu.
Comment
Specifies a short description of the item. The comment
is displayed as a tooltip when you point to the item in the menu.
Exec
Specifies a command to execute when you choose the item
from the menu.
Icon
Specifies the filename of an
icon that represents the item. Does not specify the path to the filename,
or the file extension.
Terminal
Specifies whether the command
in the
Exec
key runs in a terminal window. If the value
is
true
the command runs in a terminal window.
If the command does not create a window in which to run, the value of this
key must be
true
.
Type
Specifies the type of item. This
value is one of the following:
Application
: Enter this option for  an
item that starts an application.
Link
:  Enter this option for an  item that
links to a file, folder, or FTP site.
Categories
Specifies the keywords that describe
the item. The keywords are separated with semicolons (;). To see a list of
the standard category keywords, see the desktop menu specification at the
following URL:
http://www.freedesktop.org
The vfolder information
files map the keywords to menus.
X-GNOME-DocPath
Specifies
the help file to display when you choose
Help on
application-name
from the menu item popup menu.
For more information on the keys in desktop entry files, see the desktop
entry specification at the following URL:
http://www.freedesktop.org
Panel launchers and desktop objects also use desktop entry files.
The desktop entry files for launchers and desktop objects provide the same
information as for items in a menu. For example, the desktop entry files provide
the command to run when a user chooses the launcher or object.
Directory Entry Files
directory entry files
.directory files
directory entry files
A
directory entry file
is a data file that provides
information about a menu. The directory entry file specifies the details for
the menu such as a name, a tooltip, and an icon. Directory entry files have
a
.directory
file extension.
The following is a sample directory entry file:
[Desktop Entry]
Name=Accessories
Comment=Accessories menu
Icon=gnome-util.png
Type=Directory
describes the most important keys
in directory entry files.
Directory Entry Keys
Directory Entry Key
Description
Name
Specifies the name of the menu.
This name is displayed on the menu.
Comment
Specifies a short description
of the menu. The comment is displayed as a tooltip when you point to the menu.
Icon
Specifies the filename of an
icon that represents the menu. Does not specify the path to the filename,
or the file extension.
Type
Specifies the type of menu. The value of this key is always
Directory
.
Editing Menus
menus
editing
You use the following GNOME Desktop components to edit menus:
Nautilus
file manager
Menus on panels
When you use the file manager to add menus or menu items for all users,
you must add the menu or menu item to a URI location.
lists the menus to which you can add items, and the URI locations that correspond
to the menus.
When you use panels to customize menus for all users, you use the menu
item popup menu. For more information, see
Working With Menus
in the
GNOME 2.6 Desktop User Guide
.
You can also use menu configuration files and menu data files to customize
menus.
Adding Menus
You can add menus for all users in the following ways:
Use the file manager.
Modify the menu configuration files and menu data files.
To Add a Menu Using the File Manager
menus
adding using file manager
file manager
adding menus
with
To add a menu for all users, perform the
following steps:
In a file manager window, access the location where you want
to add the menu. For example, to add a menu to the
Applications
menu, type
applications-all-users:///
in the
Location
field, then press
Return
.
Choose
File
New Folder
. An untitled folder is added to the
view pane. The name of the folder is selected.
Type a name for the folder, then press
Return
.
The vfolder information file for the location that you accessed in step 1
is automatically updated with the details of the new menu. The name of the
folder is displayed as the name of the menu.
The next time that users log in, the menu is in the assigned location.
To Add a Menu Using Menu Files
menus
adding using menu files
To add a menu for all users, perform the following steps:
Create a directory entry file for the item that you want to
add. Create the directory entry file in the
/usr/share/gnome/vfolders
directory. For more information on directory entry files, see
.
Locate the vfolder information file for the location where
you want to add the menu. For example, to add a menu to the
Applications
menu, locate the file
/etc/gnome-vfs-2.0/vfolders/applications-all-users.vfolder-info
.
In the vfolder information file, add a
<Folder>
element for the new menu. For more information on vfolder information
files, see
.
The next time that users log in, the menu is in the assigned location.
To Add an Item to a Menu
menus
adding items to
To add an item to a menu for all users, perform the following
steps:
Create a desktop entry file for the item that you want to
add. For more information on desktop entry files, see
.
Open a file manager window. Choose
File
New Window
to open a second
file manager window.
In one window, access the location where you want to add the
menu item. For example, to add a menu item to the
Preferences
menu, type
preferences-all-users:///
in the
Location
field, then press
Return
.
In the other window, select the desktop entry file that you
created for the menu item. Drag the desktop entry file to the location where
you want to add the menu item.
Alternatively, you can copy the desktop entry file, then paste the file
into the location where you want to add the menu item.
The next time that users log in, the menu item is in the assigned location.
To Edit the Properties of a Menu
menus
editing properties of
To edit the properties of a menu for all users, perform
the following steps:
From a panel, open the menu that you want to edit. Right-click
on any item in the menu.
Choose
Entire menu
Properties
. A
Launcher Properties
dialog is displayed.
Modify the properties of the menu in the
Launcher Properties
dialog. For more information on the elements in the
Launcher Properties
dialog, see
Working With Panels
in the
GNOME 2.6 Desktop User Guide
.
Click
OK
.
To Edit a Menu Item
menus
editing menu items
To edit a menu item, perform the following steps:
From a panel, open the menu that contains the item that you
want to edit. Right-click on the item that you want to edit.
Choose
Properties
. A
Launcher Properties
dialog is displayed.
Modify the properties of the menu item in the
Launcher Properties
dialog. For more information on the elements in the
Launcher Properties
dialog, see
Working With Panels
in the
GNOME 2.6 Desktop User Guide
.
Click
OK
.
To Delete an Item from a Menu
menus
deleting menu items
To delete an item from a menu, from a panel, open the menu
that contains the item that you want to delete. Right-click on the item that
you want to delete. Choose
Remove this item
.
The next time that users log in, the menu item is not displayed in the
menu.
To Configure Menus That Users Cannot Modify
menus
configuring menus that users
cannot modify
Users cannot modify a menu if the
following conditions are true:
A vfolder information file that corresponds to the menu is
present in the
/etc/gnome-vfs-2.0/vfolders
directory.
The vfolder information file has the same name as the URI
location that corresponds to the menu.
The user permissions for the vfolder information file are
set to read only.
To configure a menu so that users cannot modify the menu, perform the
following steps:
Create a vfolder information file for the menu that you want
to configure in the
/etc/gnome-vfs-2.0/vfolders
directory.
Give the vfolder information file the name of the URI location
that corresponds to the menu that you want to configure. For example, to configure
the
Applications
menu, create a vfolder information called
applications.vfolder-info
in the
/etc/gnome-vfs-2.0/vfolders
directory.
Set the permissions on the vfolder information file to read
only.
