Configure KDE for more than one user on a machine

ajohn · 04-27-2017, 07:13 AM

I've asked this 2 ways on the KDE forum and hope some one on here knows how some aspects work. The need is to get totally different application links in a users start button menu.

Looking at freedesktop.org's specifications relating to xdg settings this doesn't seem to be currently possible so I wondered if kde hadn't fully followed it. There doesn't seem to be a way of getting a menu for each user. Maybe some user local directories can over ride the system wide ones. I can't find any signs of any doc's on this subject.

The second time I asked just how to do this. KDE has allowed this in the past and it seems to be a pretty obvious thing to need to be able to do.

The other aspect relates to SDDM. When a user logs in it can select a desktop type, load the correct desktop graphics set up and load a user menu but only for differing desktop types so doesn't get round more than one user using the same type of desktop. Also if different user desktops are used both get the same menu entries. Say a mix of kde and lxde or what ever.

Anyone have any ideas? I have a feeling I am just missing something. Or at least hope I am.

John
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ondoho · 04-27-2017, 01:50 PM

menus:
it is possible to have a special menu in your user's home.
i don't know the exact process (and i don't think it's kde specific).
maybe this can help:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Xdg-menu

ajohn · 04-27-2017, 02:39 PM

Thanks for that - all is sort of clear now. This started for me when I installed lxde for fun rather than use. I did it as a different user and then found that the menu had a mix of apps in it. I also wanted to do the same with kde.

SDDM will load the qt or plasma etc so that work well in that respect. It will also load a menu for a particular desktop type. Your link is far more useful than the spec I have seen. One of my menus is as follows so looks to be the same

Code:

<!DOCTYPE Menu PUBLIC "-//freedesktop//DTD Menu 1.0//EN"
 "http://www.freedesktop.org/standards/menu-spec/1.0/menu.dtd">

<Menu>

	<Name>Applications</Name>
	<Directory>lxde-menu-applications.directory</Directory>

	<!-- Read standard .directory and .desktop file locations -->
	<DefaultAppDirs/>
	<DefaultDirectoryDirs/>

There is one for all off the main desktops. All that differs are the number of categories.

This still leaves transferring the dot desktop files from where they are normally stored - all in one place. Painful but can be done.

The only thing I need to know now is if there is any way of using sddm to tie a user to a specific desktop type? As supplied it just remembers the last one used by a user.

Forget that and kde can be bought up on an lxde desktop that needs double clicks to open a desktop folder and then changes to kde style below.

Maybe I need to start another question on that but you never know my luck.

Thanks again. I was convinced that there must be a way to do it but had only come across merged menu's which aren't suitable.

John
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John VV · 04-27-2017, 04:18 PM

besides the normal way of r-clicking the menu and "unlocking" the widgets

then edit them

then relock the widgets

ajohn · 04-27-2017, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John VV

besides the normal way of r-clicking the menu and "unlocking" the widgets

then edit them

then relock the widgets

As far as the start button menu is concerned that doesn't work unless the facility to create a separate menu for each user or a different desktop type is used by each user. Otherwise the same menu is being edited.

As my disto comes it gets messy if a different desktop is installed. Both finish up with the same items in the start button menus. That could be edited as the menus that will be used will be separate due to the way SDDM works. The menus just contain categories, settings, utilities etc not applications.

Try it with two users using the same desktop and on my distro both would see the same changes. I logged in as root just to check that. All the changes made to my usual user name menu where there as well. In the past KDE has been provided with a very reduced set of apps if a user logs in as root. None at all at one point.

In my case it makes more sense to make the application dot desktop files that are needed user local as the link that was posted suggests. That way if the apps are updated by the distro they should still be ok. There shouldn't be any need to change the menus. Those just get populated with what ever dot desktop files are available - usually everything in the lower level application directory mentioned in the link.

John
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ajohn · 05-02-2017, 06:00 AM

KDE doesn't seem to be much of a problem. If a menus directory is created off .~/config it appears to immediately copy the system wide menu into it. The start button menu edit can then be used to change what is shown. I used right click delete. Result the menu section gets a lot excludes added.

It may have also changed my freedesktop's xdg settings. Not sure on that point yet but the other kde user account still has all of the unwanted entries in the menu.

Tedious way of getting rid of unwanted entries as I had installed lxde on a separate user account so lots of them especially as I picked up some xfce stuff some how. Part of my aim was to get a completely clean independent lxde user account so had a play around with that. It's xdg settings look to be entirely different.

John
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ondoho · 05-03-2017, 12:29 AM

all i can say is that what you want should be possible and even provided for by the freedesktop menu standard.
it's probably tricky to get working just right.
edit: info on that is probably found on various places inside the freedesktop website, so best use their search function: https://www.freedesktop.org/wiki/

ajohn · 05-04-2017, 10:56 AM

Thanks for the link. If all fails I can ask on the mailing list.

Lxde seems to use a user local menu set up that just points to the system one. I did play with the 2 menu editors that are available for it but neither really functioned correctly - so need to delve into the xdg spec more.

It looks like there is going to be a change in desktop files. I now have some prefixed with kde.org, also gnome.org.

John
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