Use a solid color for the desktop background. Use of a solid color reduces the number of colors used by the desktop environment.
To set a solid color for the desktop background, run the following commands:
# gconftool-2 --type string --set /desktop/gnome/background/picture_options none
# gconftool-2 --type string --set /desktop/gnome/background/color_shading_type solid
# gconftool-2 --type string --set /desktop/gnome/background/primary_color \#hexadecimal-color
Alternatively, users can choose Applications -> Desktop Preferences -> Background, then choose a solid color for the desktop background.