Using Themes to Customize the Desktop

This section describes how to use themes to customize the appearance of the desktop.

Introduction to Themes

You can use themes to modify and control the appearance of the desktop in a consistent manner. A theme is a group of coordinated settings that specifies how a desktop component or a group of desktop components appears. When you apply a theme, the system modifies many desktop components simultaneously to achieve the desired effect. For example, if you apply a theme that increases the font size across the desktop, the theme also modifies the size of panels and icons on the desktop for optimum compatibility with the font size.

The following types of themes affect different parts of the desktop:

Desktop themes

Desktop themes determine the visual appearance of all windows, applications, dialogs, panels, and applets. Desktop themes also determine the visual appearance of the GNOME-compliant interface items that appear on windows, panels, and applets, such as menus, icons, and buttons. Some of the desktop themes that are available in the desktop are designed for special accessibility needs.

Window frame themes

Window frame themes determine the appearance of the frames around windows only.

Nautilus file manager themes

Nautilus file manager themes determine the appearance of desktop background objects, Nautilus icons, and the font used on tabs in the Nautilus side pane.

To Choose a Desktop Theme

To open the Theme preference tool and view the desktop themes that are available, choose Applications -> Desktop Preferences -> Theme. The Theme Preferences dialog is displayed. Click on the Widget Theme tab to display the desktop themes that are available. To choose a new theme for the desktop, click on a theme in the Widget Theme list box. The system automatically applies the theme to the desktop.

There are several desktop themes available that suit different accessibility needs. These themes are described in the following table:

Table 4–2 Desktop Themes Designed for Accessibility Requirements

Theme Name	Description
HighContrast	Provides dark text on a light background using high contrast colors.
HighContrastInverse	Provides light text on a dark background using high contrast colors.
LowContrast	Uses low contrast colors for the background and foreground text.
LargePrint	Increases the font size to 18pt. The background and foreground colors are the same as those specified by the Default desktop theme.
HighContrastLargePrint	Provides dark text on a light background using high contrast colors and increases the font size to 18pt.
HighContrastLargePrintInverse	Provides light text on a dark background using high contrast colors and increases the font size to 18pt.
LowContrastLargePrint	Uses low contrast colors for the background and foreground text and increases the font size to 18pt.

To Choose a Window Frame Theme

To open the Theme preference tool and view the window frame themes that are available, choose Applications -> Desktop Preferences -> Theme. The Theme Preferences dialog is displayed. Click on the Window Frames tab to display the window frame themes that are available. The Atlanta theme is an accessible theme.

To Choose a Nautilus Theme

Nautilus file manager themes determine the appearance of desktop background objects, Nautilus icons, and the font used on tabs in the Nautilus side pane. To select a Nautilus theme, perform the following steps:

1. Start the Nautilus file manager.

2. Choose Edit -> Preferences to display the Preferences dialog.

3. Click on the Appearance category to display the Nautilus themes that are available. The accessible Nautilus themes correspond to the accessible desktop themes that are listed in Table 4–2.

4. Select the theme that matches the desktop theme that you selected.

To Create Your Own Themes

For information about how to create your own desktop themes and window frame themes, see the GNOME 2.0 Desktop for the Solaris Operating Environment System Administration Guide.