Chapter 4 Customizing the Appearance of the Desktop

This chapter describes the methods you can use to change the appearance of the Java Desktop System to enhance the accessibility of the desktop for users with visual impairments.

4.1 Customization Options

There are a number of methods to enable you to customize the appearance of the Java Desktop System to suit your specific needs, as follows:

Themes

Themes are the most effective way to change the appearance of the desktop in a consistent manner. See 4.2 Using Themes to Customize the Desktop for more information about themes and how to use themes to achieve the type of desktop environment that you require.

Desktop and application-specific configuration settings

You can customize different components of the desktop individually to achieve the display settings that you require. You can configure the desktop and applications in addition to using themes or as an alternative to using themes. See 4.3 Customizing Specific Components of the Desktop for more information.

The following table summarizes the changes that you can make to the Java Desktop System and where you can make the changes. This guide does not provide detailed instructions about how to customize the desktop. For detailed instructions about how to use the customization tools that the desktop provides, refer to the Help for each tool or to the Java Desktop System Release 3 User Guide.

Table 4–1 Quick Reference to Customizing the Appearance of the Desktop

To change the...	Use...
Overall appearance of the desktop to use high contrast colors, low contrast colors, or large print.	The Theme preference tool.
Appearance of the desktop background only.	The Desktop Background preference tool and the file manager Backgrounds and Emblems menu item.
Font displayed on the desktop background and in all desktop applications.	The Font preference tool.
Default font settings of the Text Editor or Terminal application. By default, these applications use the default application font that is specified in the Font preference tool.	The Preferences dialog for the application.

4.2 Using Themes to Customize the Desktop

This section describes how to use themes to customize the appearance of the Java Desktop System.

4.2.1 Introduction to Themes

A theme is a group of coordinated settings that specifies how a desktop component or a group of desktop components appears. You can use themes to modify and control the appearance of the desktop in a consistent manner. 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.

A theme contains settings that affect different parts of the desktop as follows:

Controls

The controls setting for a theme determines the visual appearance of all windows, applications, panels, and panel applications. The controls setting also determines the visual appearance of the GNOME-compliant interface items that appear on windows, applications, panels, and panel applications, such as menus, icons, and buttons. Some of the controls options that are available in the desktop are designed for special accessibility needs.

Window frame

The window frame setting determines the appearance of the frames around windows only.

Icon

The icon setting determines the appearance of icons on panels and on the desktop background.

4.2.2 To Choose a Theme

To open the Theme preference tool and view the themes that are available, click Launch, then choose Preferences -> Desktop Preferences -> Display -> Theme. The Theme Preferences dialog is displayed.

The themes are listed on the left side of the Theme Preferences dialog. To choose a new theme, click on a theme in the list box. The system automatically applies the theme to the desktop. There are several themes available that suit different accessibility needs. These themes are described in the following table:

Table 4–2 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.
LargePrint	Increases the font size to 18pt. The background and foreground colors are the same as those specified by the Default desktop theme.

To view the controls, window frame, and icon settings that are associated with a theme, select a theme in the Theme Preferences dialog, then click on the Theme Details button. The Theme Details dialog contains a tabbed section for each setting category. Each tabbed section lists the options that are available and the current setting for the theme is highlighted.

4.2.3 To Modify the Controls Setting for a Theme

To modify the controls setting that is associated with a theme, perform the following steps:

1. In the Theme Preferences dialog, select the theme that you want to modify.

2. Click on the Theme Details button. The Theme Details dialog is displayed.

3. Click on the Controls tab to display the controls options that are available.

4. Select the controls option that you want to associate with the current theme from the list box, then click Close. The following table lists the controls options that are suitable for accessibility needs.

Table 4–3 Controls Options Designed for Accessibility Requirements

Control Option	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.

4.2.4 To Modify the Window Frame Setting for a Theme

To modify the window frame setting that is associated with a theme, perform the following steps:

1. In the Theme Preferences dialog, select the theme that you want to modify.

2. Click on the Theme Details button. The Theme Details dialog is displayed.

3. Click on the Window Border tab to display the window frame options that are available.

4. Select the window frame option that you want to associate with the current theme from the list box, then click Close. The Atlanta option is an accessible option.

4.2.5 To Modify the Icon Setting for a Theme

To modify the icon setting that is associated with a theme, perform the following steps:

1. In the Theme Preferences dialog, select the theme that you want to modify.

2. Click on the Theme Details button. The Theme Details dialog is displayed.

3. Click on the Icons tab to display the icon options that are available.

4. Select the icon option that you want to associate with the theme from the list box, then click Close. The following table lists the icon options that are suitable for accessibility needs.

Table 4–4 Icon Options Designed for Accessibility Requirements

Icon Option	Description
HighContrast	Provides dark on light icons using high contrast colors.
HighContrastInverse	Provides light on dark icons 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.

4.2.6 To Create Your Own Themes

For information about how to create your own themes, see the Java Desktop System Release 3 Administration Guide.

4.3 Customizing Specific Components of the Desktop

This section describes how to customize specific components of the desktop individually.

4.3.1 To Customize the Desktop Background

The themes do not affect the desktop background. Therefore to modify the desktop background to complement your desktop, you must customize the desktop background separately using the Desktop Background preference tool. To start the Desktop Background preference tool, click Launch, then choose Preferences -> Desktop Preferences -> Display -> Desktop Background.

4.3.2 To Customize Desktop Background Objects

The size of the icons that are displayed on the desktop background is controlled by the File Management preference tool. To change the size of the icons, perform the following steps:

1. Click Launch, then choose Preferences -> Desktop Preferences -> Folders.

2. Select the Views tabbed section.

3. In the Icon View Defaults group, select the zoom level that you require in the Default zoom level drop-down list.

4.3.3 To Customize Fonts

This section describes how to customize the font settings for the desktop and frequently-used applications.

If you have difficulty with the default font type and font size that is used on the desktop and desktop background, you can customize the font settings to suit your needs.

You can specify individual font settings for the following desktop components and applications:

• Entire desktop excluding the desktop background

• Desktop background only

• Terminal

• Text editor

• File manager

4.3.3.1 To Customize the Desktop Fonts

The Font preference tool allows you to specify the default fonts for the desktop.

To start the Font preference tool, click Launch, then choose Preferences -> Desktop Preferences -> Display -> Fonts. The Font Preferences dialog contains the following options:

Application font

Click on this button to select a default font to use for the text that is displayed on the desktop, including the text displayed on the windows and dialogs associated with GNOME-compliant applications and panel applications.

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Note –

If you use the Theme preference tool to select a theme and you click on the Apply Font button, the font that is associated with the theme overrides the font that you select using the Font preference tool.

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Desktop font

Click on this button to select a font to use for the text that is displayed on the desktop background only.

Window title font

Click on this button to select a font to use for the text that is displayed in titlebars of your windows.

Terminal font

Click on this button to select a font to use in the Terminal application.

Font rendering

To specify how to render fonts on the desktop, select one of the following options:

• Monochrome

• Best shapes

• Best contrast

• Subpixel smoothing

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Note –

If you use large fonts, you may need to change the size of panes in applications that use panes such as, the file manager and the Help browser.

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For more information about the Font preference tool, see the Java Desktop System Release 3 User Guide.

4.3.3.2 To Customize the Text Editor Font

By default, the gedit text editor application uses the default font settings that are specified in the Font preference tool to display the text in the gedit window components such as the menubar, toolbar, and application dialogs. However, you can customize the font that gedit uses to display the text editor window contents. To customize the font settings for the gedit window contents, perform the following steps:

1. In the gedit application, choose Edit -> Preferences.

2. In the Preferences dialog, select the Fonts & Colors category.

3. Perform one of the following steps:

   • To use the default application font that is specified in the Font preference tool, select the Use default theme font option.

   • To specify a font, deselect the Use default theme font option, then click on the Font used by the editor button to display the font selector dialog.

4.3.3.3 To Customize the File Manager Font

By default, the file manager uses the default font settings that are specified in the Font preference tool to display the text in the file manager window. However, you can further customize the font that is used in the file manager view pane. To customize the font that is used in the view pane, click on the View menu in the file manager, then select one of the following menu items:

• To enlarge the text, select Zoom In.

• To reduce the text, select Zoom Out.

• To reset the text to the default font setting, select Normal Size.

4.4 Meeting Specific Accessibility Needs

The following sections summarize the steps you need to take to improve the accessibility of the desktop in a particular area.

4.4.1 To Achieve a High or Low Contrast Desktop

To achieve a high or low contrast desktop, perform the following steps:

1. Use the Theme preference tool to select the high contrast or low contrast desktop theme that you require.

2. Use the Desktop Background preference tool to customize your desktop background as follows:

   • Set the Desktop Wallpaper to No Wallpaper.

   • Set the Desktop Colors to Solid Color.

   • Select a background color that suits your needs.

3. In the Terminal application, ensure that the Use colors from system theme option is selected in the Colors tabbed section of the Editing Profile dialog.

4. In the gedit application, ensure that the Use default theme colors option is selected in the Fonts & Colors tabbed section of the Preferences dialog.

4.4.2 To Achieve a Large Print Desktop

To achieve a large print desktop, perform the following steps:

1. Use the Theme preference tool to select the Large Print theme.

2. Click on the Apply Font button to increase the size of the font that is used on the desktop and on window frames.

3. Use the Desktop font option in the Font preference tool to increase the font that is displayed on desktop background objects.

4. Increase the font size that is used to display the contents of the Terminal application window.

5. If the Use default theme font option is selected in the gedit Preferences dialog, gedit uses the font size that is specified in the large print theme that you selected. However, if the Use default theme font option is not selected, increase the font size that is used to display the contents of the gedit text editor window. See 4.3.3.2 To Customize the Text Editor Font for more information.

6. If you use applications that use panes, such as the file manager and the Help browser, you may need to change the size of panes to accommodate the large print. See the online help for the appropriate application for more information.