Translations by jarin

Click the icon at the very right of the panel and select <gui>System Settings</gui>.

Make the icons in the launcher larger or smaller to suit your preferences.

Change the size of icons in the launcher

The size of the icons in the <gui>launcher</gui> cannot be changed by default, but you can install software that will allow you to change the size of the icons. To install the necessary software and change the size of the icons, complete these steps:

Install the <link href="apt:compizconfig-settings-manager">CompizConfig Settings Manager (ccsm)</link> application from the <app>Software Center</app>.

Use the Launcher to start applications

Launcher icons

If an application that you want to start using is present in the Launcher, you can click on that application's icon, and it will start up, ready for you to use.

Opening the Launcher

You may notice that the Launcher will hide when it comes into contact with an open application. You can make the launcher reappear in a number of different ways. Experiment and try each of the following ways of opening the Launcher:

Move your mouse pointer to the left side of the screen and <em>push</em> the pointer against the edge of the screen. The Launcher will appear after a brief delay.

Move your mouse pointer to the top-left corner of the screen. The Launcher will appear immediately.

Tap the <key>meta</key> key twice. The Launcher will appear briefly, but will disappear unless you hover your mouse over the Launcher.

Press and hold the <key>meta</key> key. The Launcher will appear, and numbers will appear on top of the Launcher icons. This allows you to press any one of the numbers to start that application.

Which approach do you like the most? What approach do you think will help you work most efficiently?

To learn more about the Launcher, explore any of the Launcher help topics below.

Launcher Basics

Customizing the Launcher

<link xref="user-add">Add user</link> or <link xref="shell-guest-session">guest user</link>, <link xref="user-changepassword">change password</link>, <link xref="user-admin-change">administrators</link>...

User accounts

Each person that uses the computer should have a different user account. This allows them to keep their files separate from yours and to choose their own settings. It's also more secure. You can only access a different user account if you know the password.

Manage user accounts

Add new users so that other people can log in to the computer.

Add a new user account

You can add multiple user accounts to your computer. Give one account to each person in your household or company. Every user has their own home folder, documents, and settings.

You can change which users are allowed to make changes to the system by giving them administrative privileges.

Change who has administrative privileges

Administrative privileges are a way of deciding who can make changes to important parts of the system. You can change which users have administrative privileges and which ones don't. They are a good way of keeping your system secure and preventing potentially damaging unauthorized changes.

Choose <gui>Administrator</gui> if you want the user to be able to perform administrative tasks, like installing new applications.

Close the User Accounts window. The user's privileges will be changed when they next log in.

The first user account on the system has administrative privileges. This is the user account that was created when you first installed the system.

You need admin privileges to change important parts of your system.

How do administrative privileges work?

As well as the files that <em>you</em> create, your computer also has a number of files which are needed by the system for it to work properly. If these important <em>system files</em> are changed improperly they can cause various things to break, so they are protected from changes by default. Certain applications also modify important parts of the system, and so are also protected.

The way that they are protected is by only allowing users with <em>administrative privileges</em> to change the files or use the applications. In day-to-day use, you won't need to change any system files or use these applications, so by default you do not have admin privileges.

Sometimes you need to use these applications, so you can temporarily get admin privileges to allow you to make the changes. If an application needs admin privileges, it will ask for your password. For example, if you want to install some new software, the software installer (package manager) will ask for your admin password so it can add the new application to the system. Once it has finished, your admin privileges will be taken away again.

In summary, admin privileges allow you to change important parts of your system when you need to, but prevent you from doing it accidentally.

What does "super user" mean?

A user with admin privileges is sometimes called a <em>super user</em>. This is simply because that user has more privileges than normal users. You might see people discussing things like <cmd>su</cmd> and <cmd>sudo</cmd>; these are programs for temporarily giving you "super user" (admin) privileges.

Why are admin privileges useful?

Requiring users to have admin privileges before important system changes are made is useful because it helps to prevent your system from being broken, intentionally or unintentionally.

If you had admin privileges all of the time, you might accidentally change an important file, or run an application which changes something important by mistake. Only getting admin privileges temporarily, when you need them, reduces the risk of these mistakes happening.

Only certain, trusted users should be allowed to have admin privileges. This prevents other users from messing with the computer and doing things like uninstalling applications that you need, installing applications that you don't want, or changing important files. This is useful from a security standpoint.

You can only do some things, like installing applications, if you have admin privileges.

Problems caused by administrative restrictions

There are a few problems that you might experience because you don't have <link xref="user-admin-explain">administrative privileges</link>. Some things require you to have admin privileges in order to work, such as:

Connecting to some networks/wireless networks

Installing new applications

You can <link xref="user-admin-change">change who has admin privileges</link>.

Keep your account secure by changing your password often in your account settings.