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[[Image:gnome_top_panel.jpg]]
The panel along the bottom of the desktop (shown below) contains button to hide and show the currently running applications, an area for switching between workspaces, a button to hide all currently viusible visible application windows and an icon to open the trash can.
[[Image:gnome_bottom_panel.jpg]]
Although only two panels are configured by default you can add as many panels you you need to the desktop (although obviously there are limits on the amount of space on the desktop to accomodate accommodate the panels).
In this chapter we will cover various ways to customize these toolbars.
The height of the panel may be adjusted using the ''Size'' property. Reduce the height of the panel to increase available desktop space.
By default the panel stretches to the width of the desktop. With the ''Expand'' property switched off the panel will appear only as wide as it needs to be to accomodate accommodate the items it contains.
''Autohide'' causes the panel to be hidden until the mouse pointer moves to the side of the desktop where the panel is located, at which point the panel will appear.
The ''Show Hide Buttons'' option contols controls whether buttons are displayed at either end of the panel to enable th epanel the panel to maually manually shown and hidden.
The ''Background'' tab of the ''Panel Properties'' dialog provides control over the background of the panel. The panel can be a specific color, the color dictated by the current theme, a user defined image or transparent to a specific degree:
== Adding Items to a GNOME Destop Panel ==
When Ubuntu Linux is installed a number of items are added to the two default panels. Additonal items, however, my may be added to any panel. To add items to a panel simply click with the right mouse button over the panel to be configured and select the ''Add to Panel'' menu option. The ''Add to Panel'' dialog will then appear:
[[Image:gnome_add_to_panel.jpg|GNOME Add to Panel Dialog]]
To add an item to the panel scroill scroll through the list, select the item you are interested in and press the ''Add'' button. The following screenshot shows a panel with the system monitor and weather items added:
[[Image:gnome_panel_with_items.jpg|Ubuntu Desktop Panel with items added]]
To edit the properties or preferences for a panel item move the mouse pointer over the item in the panel and click the right mouse button. Select either ''Properties'' or ''Preferences'' from the menu and the appropriate dialog will appear. For example, the ''Preferences'' panel for the Weather item allows various settings to be changed, such as the location and units for displaying temperature (celcius Celsius or farenheitFahrenheit). The system monitor can similarly be configured to also display system load, memory and network graphs.
To delete an item from a panel right click with the mouse on the item and select ''Remove from Panel''.
If you find there is an application you frequently launch from the desktop ''Applications'' or ''System'' menus, these may also be added to a panel. To do so , launch the ''Add to Panel'' dialog as outlined above and click on the ''Application Launcher''. The resulting dialog will list each menu item and all sub-menu items. If for example, you wanted to be able launch OpenOffice Word Processor from the panel simply click on the arrow next to ''Office'' in the ''Add to Panel'' dialog to unfold the list of Office applications. Select ''OpenOffice.org Word Processor'' and click on the ''Add'' button:
[[Image:gnome_add_application.jpg|Adding an application to a Ubuntu desktop panel]]
[[Image:gnome_menu_edit.jpg|Editing GNOME Desktop Menus]]
Selecting an item from the list of menus will display the menu options for that menu. To modify the entries in the menu use the check boxes to activate or deactivate specific options. For example clicking on ''Accessories'' displays the items in the ''Accessories'' menu. Add new items using the ''Add Item'' button and specifying a name, path to the exectuable executable and an icon.
To move an item select the item in the list and use the ''Move up'' and ''Move down'' to change the position of the item in the menu.
