Installation guide

Common Desktop Environment
The Solaris Common Desktop Environment (CDE) is an advanced Motif-based
desktop with an easy-to-use interface that provides a consistent look and feel across
UNIX platforms. SunSoft, Hewlett-Packard Company, IBM Corporation, and Novell,
Inc. each contributed technologies to establish a new cross-platform standard for user
and application interfaces based on the X Window System and Motif.
While maintaining compliance with the CDE standards, Solaris CDE offers additional
benefits to its users and developers, including performance improvements and
significant defect fixes, thus providing a higher quality product. Existing
OpenWindows utilities were integrated with CDE via a special folder in Application
Manager. New features include a spell checker and an image viewer to display,
rotate, scale, and convert graphic images and PostScript files.
With Solaris CDE you can run OpenWindows applications without modification,
with drag-and-drop interaction from OpenWindows applications to CDE
applications. All OpenWindows and OPEN LOOK applications run without any
need for modification, recompilation, or unwieldy compatibility libraries. If you are
used to the OpenWindows environment, you have access to the familiar backdrops,
color palettes, and pop-up Workspace menu.
CDE User Environment
The CDE user environment includes the following features:
Login Manager for logging into the desktop, which is available automatically as
your workstation is booted. Choose from the Remote Login menu item Options
menu to be able to run your desktop on any system on your network.
An Integrated Motif environment that contains a Front Panel from which you can
launch desktop applications. You can customize your desktop look by choosing
such things as font size, color, and backdrop.
The Workspace menu, which is a pop-up menu that contains items for managing
the desktop workspace.
An online Help information system that provides information on the various
desktop applications.
CDE Development Environment
The CDE 1.2 Development Environment is included in optional packages for users
who develop software in CDE. These packages contain:
Utility applications, man pages, libraries, and header files to help you develop
CDE applications
Widgets to ease porting OPEN LOOK
TM
and Microsoft Windows applications to
CDE, as well as terminal emulator, text editor, and file selection box widgets
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Information Library for Solaris 2.6 (Intel Platform Edition) August 1997