Chapter 4. An Introduction to the Raspbian Desktop

Now that you have got your Raspberry Pi set up and Raspbian configured, it is time to start using Raspbian on your Raspberry Pi! The Raspbian desktop is a simple, customizable, and easy-to-use desktop environment. This chapter will run you through how to customize it and some of the applications that are included with it.

We will cover the following topics in this chapter:

• The Raspbian desktop

• An introduction to the Linux filesystem

• A tour of the Raspbian desktop

• Virtual desktops

• Network management with Raspbian

• Customizing your Raspbian desktop

• Preinstalled software

• File management in Xfce

The Raspbian desktop

The Raspbian desktop is very similar to many other desktop environments, such as the Windows desktop. Raspbian is packed with heaps of educational and programming tools out of the box.

The Raspbian desktop

To be able to make the most of the desktop environment, you need to have a computer mouse connected to your Raspberry.

The Raspbian filesystem

Before we go any further, it is important to get a good understanding of how files and storage are organized on a Linux-based operating system such as Raspbian.

It won't take you long if you are used to using Windows to realize that all your files are organized differently. Gone are the drive letters that you used to access all the different storage attached to your computer. Linux, like its cousins Unix and Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD), from which Mac OS X is derived, organizes everything within a filesystem hierarchy.

This filesystem hierarchy starts from one place, the root directory: /. Every file and device in Linux is contained within this single hierarchy.

An example of how this works is the /media folder. By default, if you plug a USB drive into your Raspberry Pi, Raspbian will automatically create a folder inside /media. This folder will represent the contents of your USB drive. If you have more than one storage device attached, they will all appear...

A tour of the Raspbian desktop

There are several parts that make up the Raspbian desktop. These are the desktop, bottom panel, main menu, and panel items.

The desktop

The desktop is the main part of the screen that you see when you aren't running any programs. By default, the background image is the Raspberry Pi logo, but you will be able to change this to anything you want.

The desktop also contains all the desktop icons. The icons can be selected and dragged around the desktop. These icons start various programs when double-clicked and the icons can be moved around.

The Raspbian desktop

The bottom panel

At the bottom of the Xfce desktop, there is the taskbar. The taskbar displays all the open programs that you are running. It also contains the main menu and many panel items.

The bottom panel

On the left and right-hand sides of the bottom panel, there are several different panel items. The panel items perform various functions, such as opening a web browser or minimizing all Windows.

Some panel...

Virtual desktops

Virtual desktops are really interesting additions to Xfce that aren't available by default on Windows or Mac OS X.

Note

Mac OS X includes Spaces (multiple desktops), however it is disabled by default. You are able to get virtual desktops in Windows using third party software such as VirtualWin.

Virtual desktops are basically like other virtual screens where you can switch back and forth between your open programs. You are able to lay out all your open programs on different virtual desktops, and then go back and forth between these virtual desktops by clicking on the virtual desktop panel item. Each of these desktops can have different backgrounds and panels. You are able to move between Windows using the ALT + TAB keys on the keyboard.

Two Raspbian desktops

You can create as many virtual desktops as you want using the Openbox Configuration Manager. These desktops can have names so you can keep track of where all your applications are.

Network management with Raspbian

To make the most of your Raspberry Pi, it needs to be connected to the Internet. You can do this in two ways: using an Ethernet cable or by Wi-Fi. Raspbian does a good job of automatically configuring its network settings for you, but sometimes you need to give it a helping hand.

Unfortunately, Raspbian doesn't include a graphical interface that lets you configure your network connections. You are able to configure your network interfaces manually using a text editor, or you can install a graphical interface to do this.

Connecting your Raspberry Pi to an Ethernet network

The Raspberry Pi Model B and Model B+ have an onboard Ethernet port. By default, Raspbian is configured to automatically get an IP address from a DHCP server on your network.

Sometimes, you might want to manually assign an IP address to your Raspberry Pi. This is done by editing a file called interfaces. To edit this file, you need to open up a console. The exact steps to do this are given in...

Customizing your Raspbian desktop

Xfce can be customized in many different ways. This allows you to personalize the desktop environment to look the way you want it.

Changing your display resolution

The first thing that you should check when Raspbian boots to the desktop is whether the resolution your Raspberry Pi is using is suitable for your monitor. Raspbian attempts to select the correct resolution on your TV or monitor to make sure that everything looks like it should, but sometimes it is unable to do this correctly. You will be able to recognize that the resolution is wrong if the image on the screen looks blurry or doesn't fit properly.

You can change the resolution to suit your monitor using the Monitor Settings application in the preferences section.

Monitor settings

It might take a few goes to find the best resolution for your monitor or TV, but it is definitely worth it! You are also able to customize the refresh rate of your monitor if you still have problems getting the display looking...

Preinstalled software

There are hundreds of free pieces of software installed by default with Raspbian. These include a calculator, web browsers, programming tools, and serious scientific applications.

You will find all the applications either on your desktop or in the main menu.

Web browsers

There are three web browsers installed by default with Raspbian. These are Epiphany, Dillo, and Netsurf. Each of these web browsers are designed for different purposes. It is also possible to install a version of Firefox onto your Raspberry Pi called Ice Weasel. This will be covered in Chapter 6, The Console.

Epiphany

Epiphany (now called Web) is a free, easy-to-use web browser that has a clean and minimalistic user interface. It uses the WebkitGTK+ rendering engine, similar to what is used in many other web browsers such as Safari and Google Chrome.

It is a fast, fully-fledged web browser with support for JavaScript and all modern web standards. It is highly recommended as your first choice of web browser...

File management in Xfce

Xfce comes with a built-in file manager. You are able to use it to browse all the storage devices attached to your Raspberry Pi. You are also able to perform various different file management action, such as copying and moving files.

You can launch the file manager using either the file manager panel item or find it in the main menu.

The Xfce file manager

Any additional storage that you attach to your device will appear in the Places menu to the left for easy access. You can also use the file manager to let you access files stored on another server. This is done using the Network Drives menu in the Go section.

The desktop of your Raspberry Pi is just another folder on your Raspberry Pi. As such, you are able to customize the icons on it by deleting or removing them. You can also create new folders and files that are stored on the desktop for easy locating.

Summary

The Raspbian desktop is a simple, easy-to-use desktop environment. It is quite different from the typical Windows and Mac OS X desktop environments, but as you have discovered it is really powerful and easy to use.

The best way to learn about the Raspbian desktop is to start exploring. Remember that if you break something, all you have to do is re-image your card and you are ready to go again!