Solaris Common Desktop Environment: User's Guide

Customizing System Behavior

You can adjust the following settings for system devices:

To Change Keyboard Behavior

Graphic
  1. Click the Style Manager Keyboard control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Auto Repeat: Sets characters to repeat when you hold down their keys

    • Click Volume: Determines the volume of key clicks (turned off at 0%)

  3. To save the changes, click OK. To return to the default settings, click Default.

To Change Mouse Behavior

Graphic
  1. Click the Style Manager Mouse control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Handedness: Reverses mouse buttons 1 and 3.

    • Button 2: Determines whether the middle mouse button is used to extend selections (Adjust) or drag-and-drop objects (Transfer). If Adjust is selected, transfer actions (drag) will require the use of mouse button 1.

    • Double-Click: Determines the maximum time between clicks of a double-click. (Test the speed by double-clicking in the mouse picture provided.) A new double-click speed does not take effect until the next time you log in.

    • Acceleration: Sets how fast the mouse pointer moves across the display.

    • Threshold: The distance in pixels the pointer moves at a slow speed before moving at the accelerated rate.

  3. To save the changes, click OK. To return to the default settings, click Default.


Note –

You can also set the edge Move Threshold (the minimum proximity of the mouse pointer to an object without the object becoming selectable) for the mouse. See the dtwm man page.


To Change Beep Settings

Graphic
  1. Click the Style Manager Beep control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Volume: Determines the volume of the beep (turned off at 0%)

    • Tone: Determines the pitch of the beep from 82 to 9000 Hertz

    • Duration: Determines the length of the beep

  3. To save the changes, click OK. To return to the default settings, click Default.

Screen without Lock Extensions

GraphicYou can customize the screen blanker or Front Panel lock, or return the settings to the default. If your system supports lock on timeout, see Screen with Lock Extensions.

If you have a color display, bright colors on the screen can burn into the picture tube. Setting the screen to go blank or be covered prevents this from happening.

Power Management

If you select a blank background screen, and your hardware is capable of turning the power off, it does so to save energy.

To disable power management when using Solaris CDE, change the Style Manager's screen saver default blank screen to a screen pattern. It can also be disabled by running the following command in a terminal emulator window:


% xset s noblank

To Change Screen Blanker Settings

  1. Click the Style Manager Screen control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Screen Blanker: Enables (On) or disables (Off) the screen blanker immediately, even before you click OK. When Screen Blanker is On the Start Blanker slider is active.

    • Start Blanker: Specifies the number of minutes from the last pointer movement or keystroke before the screen is blanked. When this value is changed, the new value goes into effect immediately, even before you click OK.

  3. To save the changes, click OK. To return to the default settings, click Default.

To Change Front Panel Lock Settings

  1. Click the Style Manager Screen control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Use Backgrounds For Lock: Enables the lock backgrounds.

    • Transparent Lock: Backgrounds are not used when the screen is locked.

    • Backgrounds List: Displays the available backgrounds in a multiple-select list. Select or deselect a background by clicking on the list item. The last background selected will be displayed to the right of the list.

    • Time Per Background: Specifies the number of minutes each selected background runs before the next one starts when the screen is being saved. The backgrounds are cycled through in the same sequence as they appear in the list. A setting of 0 (zero) results in only the last background (the one currently in the preview area) being used.

  3. To save the changes, click OK. To return to the default settings, click Default.

Screen with Lock Extensions

You can customize the screen saver or screen lock, or return the settings to the default. If your system does not support lock on timeout, see Screen without Lock Extensions.

If you have a color display, bright colors on the screen can burn into the picture tube. Setting the screen to go blank or be covered prevents this from happening.

Power Management

If you select a blank background screen, and your hardware is capable of turning the power off, it does so to save energy.

To disable power management when using Solaris CDE, change the Style Manager's screen saver default blank screen to a screen pattern. It can also be disabled by running the following command in a terminal emulator window:


% xset s noblank

To Change Screen Saver Settings

  1. Click the Style Manager Screen control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Screen Saver: Enables (On) or disables (Off) the screen saver immediately, even before you click OK. When Screen Saver is On the Start Saver slider is active.

    • Screen Saver List: Displays the available screen savers in a multiple-select list. Select or deselect a screen saver by clicking on the list item. The last screen saver selected will be displayed to the right of the list.

    • Start Saver: Sets the number of minutes from the last pointer movement or keystroke before the screen saver starts. When this value is changed, the new value goes into effect immediately, even before you click OK.

    • Time per Saver: Specifies the number of minutes each selected screen saver runs before the next one starts.

  3. To save the changes, click OK. To return to the default settings, click Default.

To Change Screen Lock Settings

If the screen saver and screen lock are both enabled (On) and the Start Lock value is smaller than the Start Saver value, when the screen lock times-out it replaces the contents of the screen with the currently selected screen savers. If Start Lock is greater than Start Screen, then the automatic screen lock simply continues the current screen saver.

If the screen saver is disabled (Off) and automatic screen lock is enabled (On), when the screen lock times-out the contents of the screen are not covered with a screen saver.

  1. Click the Style Manager Screen control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Screen Lock: Enables (On) or disables (Off) Screen Lock on a timeout. When this setting is changed, the new setting goes into effect immediately, even before the dialog box is closed.

    • Start Lock: Specifies the number of minutes from the last pointer move or keystroke before the screen lock starts. When this value is changed, the new value goes into effect immediately, even before you click OK.

  3. To save the changes, click OK. To return to the default settings, click Default.

Windows

GraphicYou can change the window focus policy, how active windows are displayed, and where window icons are displayed.

To Change Window Behavior

  1. Click the Style Manager Window control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Point In Window To Make Active: Makes a window active when the mouse pointer enters it

    • Click In Window To Make Active: Makes a window active when the mouse pointer enters it and you click mouse button 1

  3. To save your changes, click OK.

  4. Click OK when asked to Restart the Workspace Manager.

To Change How Active Windows Are Displayed

  1. Click the Style Manager Window control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Raise Window When Made Active: Select this if you want a partially concealed window to be brought to the top when it becomes active

    • Allow Primary Windows On Top: Select this if you want the main window to be displayed on top of secondary windows when you click the primary window

    • Show Contents During Move: Select this if you want to move the whole window during a window move instead of just moving the outline at first

  3. To save your changes, click OK.

  4. Click OK when asked to Restart the Workspace Manager.

To Change Where Window Icons Are Displayed

  1. Click the Style Manager Window control.

  2. Select the settings you want:

    • Use Icon Box: Displays your window icons in an icon box

    • Place On Workspace: Displays your window icons on the workspace backdrop

  3. To save your changes, click OK.

  4. Click OK when asked to Restart the Workspace Manager.