Konqueror the Browser
© Copyright Darrell Anderson.
(Winter 2004–2005)
I have been using Firefox in Windows for more than two years, dating to Phoenix 0.5 Beta. Because of this familiarity, I installed Firefox in my K Desktop Environment (KDE) 3.3.2/Slackware 10+ system. I can share with my Windows partition my cache, bookmarks, userContent.css, and userChrome.css, as well as cookies, history, and white lists. Unlike Firefox for Windows, however, I find Firefox-GTK frustrating. Although page rendering speed is excellent, the Firefox-GTK interface is sluggish on my system. Firefox-GTK menus open slowly, dialog boxes look strange and clumsy compared to the familiar and powerful KDialog, and loading times of the main program and the extensions interface are exasperating. This sluggishness tends to fatigue me mentally after surfing for a while. Additionally, I do not like the look-and-feel of GTK.
I’m sure the problem has much to do with KDE running GTK libraries. Nonetheless this sluggishness has removed much of my enthusiasm for Firefox-GTK although I happily continue using Firefox in Windows. Much noise was made several months ago about porting Gecko to KDE and I wait patiently for the results of that exercise. I’d like to see a Firefox-QT that can run natively in the KDE.
Naturally I responded by looking more closely at Konqueror as a web browser. However, as a web browser Konqueror frustrates me just as much as Firefox. Essentially, that leaves me without a dependable browser in GNU/Linux, which is a contributing reason why I do not migrate from Windows.
Like Firefox, Konqueror provides the basics. For many people this is sufficient, but for me Konqueror falls far short of its potential.
My concern is usability—the little things that tend to improve my browsing experience. Unlike Firefox, Konqueror provides no extension environment to remedy some of these weaknesses. Thus, even people who tinker are restricted in improving Konqueror.
Intuitive Tabbed Browsing
The hyperlink context menu should support three options: (1) Open the link in the current tab, (2) Open the link in a background tab, and (3) Open the link in an active foreground tab. For users preferring additional browser windows along with their tabbed browsing, a fourth menu option opens the link in another browser window.
Context menus are second nature in today’s computing world, yet Konqueror provides no context menu options to open new web pages in both the background or foreground. That is, web pages are intended to be opened in either the background or foreground, but not both. Probably more frustrating, however, is that within the past couple of years, Konqueror did provide this intuitive and natural tabbed browsing feature. The Konqueror Handbook still references these options. To the dismay of many users, somebody arbitrarily decided to remove those context menu options. Many people are not middle mouse button users and are now left with no natural avenue to exercise both options.
![[Image: Screen capture of the KDE Konqueror 3.1.3 context menu options.]](../images/context-menu-konq313.png)
(Konqueror 3.1.3 Context Menu)
Bring back this option!
Context Menus
Like Firefox, there is no easy way to modify Konqueror context menus. Like Firefox, Konqueror provides no way to close a tab using the web page context menu. Similarly, there is no print option. To my knowledge there is no intuitive way to edit or rearrange menu options. If I could edit menus more easily I could eliminate many options that I never use, such as Open in New Window.
Single Window Browsing
I have yet to discover a method to force Konqueror to use single window mode when web browsing. Perhaps this option exists and is simply unknown to me. I have been web browsing in single window mode for more than three years, going way back to earlier versions of Opera and beta Firefox. I can see where people might want to maintain the option to open several browser windows and use tabbed browsing within each window, but that is not my style. I want only one web browser session open.
Default Actions
Like Firefox, Konqueror provides no intuitive way to define default actions. Consider that Konqueror provides no intuitive way to open bookmarks in a new tab. I can open bookmarks in a new tab using a secondary context menu—and this is better than what Firefox provides, but I always open bookmarks in a new tab. Thus, I want to dispense with the secondary context menu when I open bookmarks. I have yet to find a way to do this.
Similarly, unless one discovers the keyboard shortcut of Ctrl-Enter, using the Location and Search boxes force all pages to open in the active tab instead of a new tab. Many people prefer to always open a new tab by default—this is the nature of tabbed browsing. Thus, pressing the Enter key should open a link in a new tab, not Ctrl-Enter. Why not allow users to configure default actions according to their style of browsing?
Hidden Preferences
Firefox is well-known for its many “hidden” preferences. Most are well documented. There probably are many “hidden” preferences for Konqueror, but I have yet to find a portal to learning more about them.
Consider some of the currently unchangeable preferences:
- Bookmarks and cache locations.
- Fine-tuning the search bar width.
- Fine-tuning search engine parameters.
- Toggling marquees and blinking text.
- Toggling favicons and site icons.
- Toggling image placeholders.
- Moving the location of the tab bar.
- Customizing tab colors, background, and appearance to improve usability.
- Toggling referrer headers.
- Toggling various embedded objects such as Flash and iFrames (important to dial-up users).
The Konqueror interface provides no intuitive way to explore and modify these preferences, although the Konqueror configuration dialog box is far superior to Firefox’s.
One of the more frustrating aspects about Konqueror is that the navigation sidebar is treated like a toolbar. Thus, when I use the sidebar in file management mode, I have tooltips continuously popping up when I move the mouse pointer down my directory tree. That’s silly because my directory tree is in text so why do I need a tooltip to say the same thing? I’d love to be able to disable tooltips there while keeping them enabled with normal toolbars.
Even more frustrating is I have yet to discover a way to show hidden directories in the directory tree.
Silent Browsing
The KDE supports various sound events, both system-wide and internally to specific applications. Yet oddly, the most widely used software in KDE—Konqueror, provides no sound support at all. Sound support for browser events is especially lacking. Audio feedback is annoying to some users, but is an indispensable feature for disabled people or dial-up users. I have no need for sound events in file management mode, but in web browsing mode I want a subtle sound for when pages finish loading—convenient on dial-up and loading pages in the background. I also prefer to have a subtle sound when a page initially begins loading as that tells me my awful dial-up connection is still working. Where are the Konqueror sound events?
Everybody Does Not Have Broadband
Although KGet is far more configurable than the Firefox download manager, I have yet to find an option to configure that tool to gracefully pause and yield bandwidth when concurrently loading new web pages. This is important to dial-up users. Downloading files should be a background task to allow users to surf.
As a dial-up user I often surf with images disabled. Konqueror provides a handy toolbar button to toggle images without having to reload the entire page, but the toggle is global. Thus, dial-up users must remember to toggle that button before loading another page.
On dial-up, concurrently opening more than one tab significantly slows loading times. A better method is an option to load tabs sequentially.
White Lists
Konqueror is ahead of Firefox with respect to white lists, proving such an option for JavaScript, and Java in addition to cookies. However, unlike Firefox, Konqueror provides no white list for images, something dial-up users need.
Like Firefox, Konqueror provides no way to prevent third-party cookies from loading despite providing a handy white list.
Dial-up users need these white lists because they do not possess the bandwidth to have these options enabled full-time.
Profile Nightmares
Trying to configure different Konqueror profiles has left me dumbfounded. Simply put, profiles don’t work—at least not the way I think. Profiles are supposed to help soften the blow of using a multi-purpose tool. I never have liked multi-purpose tools. I’m from the old school—one tool, one job. The Konqueror developers apparently disagree, but they also have failed to provide users the ability to uniquely customize Konqueror for the two different types of tasks. I realize that for some people web and file management tasks overlap, but I want a file manager that is a file manager and a browser that is a browser. Never the twain shall meet!
The first thing many people notice is the overwhelming number of toolbars and buttons. I certainly noticed this and after surfing discussion groups I noticed this is a regular complaint.
Because I am already using Firefox as a browser, I initially focused on customizing Konqueror as my file manager. I don’t need much in the way of file management. I’m not a member of the Jetson’s where I need every tool and need them now. I need only some basic toolbar buttons. So I deleted buttons from tool bars, selected which tool bars I want showing, rearranged the placement of those tool bars, and then saved my file management profile.
All seemed well. At least, until I decided to experiment with Konqueror as a web browser. Then all Hell broke loose.
Someone once quipped that insanity is repeating the same act but expecting different results. Such is the way of life of trying to configure Konqueror’s profiles.
In file management mode, I want the Main, Extras, and Location tool bars showing. In web browsing mode, I want the Main, Location, and Personal Bookmark tool bars showing. Within each profile, I configured the tool bars to show only the buttons I wanted. In web browsing mode I tried saving screen real estate by moving the Location bar to share the same level as the Main tool bar, much as I have Firefox configured. Looked great. I saved the web browser profile.
Everything seemed peachy until I opened Konqueror as a file manager. I end up with the browser profile! The only thing that worked is the windows size. In file manager mode I like a windowed appearance but in browser mode I prefer full screen.
I rearranged everything and again save the file management profile. I then open Konqueror using the web browser profile. I end up with the file manager profile but in full screen!
Repeat ad nauseum.
Confused and frustrated I look at the profile rc configuration files. Everything seems according to Hoyle. Those tool bars that should be hidden are hidden and vice-versa. Nonetheless, something is broken with the way Konqueror profiles work.
Another option that frustrates me is I cannot configure separate bookmarks for file management and web browsing mode. I can configure a unique bookmarks list for Konsole and I want this same feature in my Konqueror profiles. My file management sessions never relate to my web browsing sessions and vice-versa. Thus, separate bookmark lists make sense to me. One tool, one job.
Conclusion
Konqueror is a powerful software tool. I enjoy Konqueror as a file manager and I continue to discover various ways to improve my work environment. Yet, as a web browser I remain distant unless or until some basic usability issues are addressed.
The KDE community usually is open to change and eager to improve usability. KDE is my preferred GNU/Linux desktop—is my only GNU/Linux desktop. I hope developers receive this essay in the spirit written—as encouragement to remedy some issues.
Finis.