Placing icons on desktop instead of taskbar in gnome (CDE look alike)
 

I recently have been upgraded from an aix box running Common Desktop Environment (CDE) to a linux redhat 5.6 x86_64 box running gnome (or KDE is also available). I'm ok with gnome other that I really need to be able to placing running program icons anywhere on the desktop instead of the taskbar. For example ve sessions, xterm windows, etc. Also when editing a file in ve and iconing it the icon description says ve. I need that to say the name of the file that is being edited instead of ve. These two items were available in CDE. Is there a way to do these two items in gnome or KDE? If not is there a different window manager that allows these features? Been searching the web to no avail. Thanks all!

It's been years now since I last ran a KDE, but I remember there was a way of "creating" and "naming" shortcuts on the desktop rather than the taskbar. Try right click the "file" or the binary of the program at /usr/bin/*program* and "SendTo-- Desktop" and when the link is created you can go to the desktop and rename the link in whatever name you like. If Rename is not available from the mouse right click you may highlight the link and hit F2 and rename it.

In the Xfce4 there are great ways of doing this task. You can create, place or name anything anywhere you like. The speed Xfce offers is just too convincing to an old man.

Good luck.

m.m.