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15 Things to do after installing KDE Neon (2021)

In this post, we’ll explore 15 things to do after installing Plasma’s very own distro — KDE Neon in 2021. Let’s find out what’s possible!

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1. Double-click

Taking into account that most of the users come from other OSes, they are likely used to double-click. In my opinion, contrary to Neon’s single-click, double-click should be the default behavior.

Open System Settings → Workspace Behaviour → General Behaviour → Select Double-click to open file and folders.

2. Update Correctly

While KDE Neon is based on Ubuntu, we don’t update it in the same way.

In Ubuntu, we use the following command to update the system:

In KDE Neon, on the other hand, we use:

In fact, if you try to update KDE Neon using apt, it will warn you and suggest pkcon.

3. Install Synaptic

KDE Neon includes its software centre — Discover. Discover is more user-oriented and does not provide advanced features for working with packages. That’s why I use Synaptic.

You can install it from the CLI:

That’s right we can still use apt to install packages on KDE Neon, but don’t update the system with it!

UPDATE: I now recommend to install Muon instead of Synaptic. It is not much different from Synaptic functionally but it looks much better in Plasma 5.

4. Install Drivers

With the help of Synaptic, we can install drivers on KDE Neon.

Open Synaptic → Search for kubuntu-driver-manager → Mark for installation kubuntu-driver-manager → Install.

After the installation has finished, go to System Settings → Driver Manager. Wait a bit for KDE Neon to find the right drivers for your system and install them.

5. Install Apps

Unlike other distros, KDE Neon is a very clean/bloat-free distro. It only includes bare necessities.

I use the following command to install apps I use daily:

The command above installs the following:

• LibreOffice
• Smplayer (video player)
• Clementine (audio player)
• Kup (backup, check out our article on how to use Kup)
• Gwenview
• Kate (I prefer it over Kwrite)
• GIMP
• Speedcrunch (calculator)
• Chromium (web browser)
• KTorrent (torrent client)
• KFind (file search)
• Partition Manager
• kio-extras (preview PNG images in Dolphin)
• GUFW (firewall, we covered this one too)

6. Activate Night Color

Night colour reduces the amount of blue light at night. This is better for your eyes and helps you to fall asleep easier.

Open System Settings → Display and Monitor → Night Color → Enable Activate Night Color.

The default settings are fine, but feel free to adjust them.

7. Disable KDE Wallet

While I do use KDE Wallet, I know that it is annoying to many users. For those of you new to Plasma, KDE Wallet is a credentials management app.

Fortunately, we can easily disable it:

Open System Settings → KDE Wallet → Disable Enable the KDE Wallet subsystem → Apply.

8. Restore Previous Session

KDE Neon launches the last saved session each time you boot up your system. For example, if you had shut down your system with the terminal app open, the next time you boot it will start with terminal open again.

This slows down the system and I prefer to have it disabled.

Open System Settings → Startup and Shutdown → Desktop Session → Enable Start with an empty session → Apply.

9. Automatic Spell Checking

KDE Neon has a spell-checking system built-in which will check every word you type in any app.

Open System Settings → Regional Settings → Spell Check → Enable Automatic spell checking enabled by default → Apply.

10. Index File Content

KDE Neon is pre-configured to index everything that’s available on your system. It’s not only the locations of files but their content as well. Many users have experienced a slowdown of their system due to this heavy indexing.

I prefer to disable this feature because most of us tend to search for files by their names, not by their content.

Open System Settings → Search → File Search → Disable Also index file content → Apply.

11. Configure Dolphin

Dolphin is my favourite file manager for Linux and it is the best in my opinion. In addition to the already rich interface, you can configure every aspect of it.

For example, you can place your own frequently used folders in the Places panel just by dragging them.

The next feature is related to the style view of folders. By default, Dolphin uses the same style view for every folder. If you are like me and would like to have different style view (icons, lists etc.) depending on the folder, you can do that. There are many other things you can configure.

Dolphin → Hamburger menu (the top right corner) → Configure Dolphin → Enable Remember display style for each folder.

12. Change Apps Menu

The default apps menu on KDE Neon is not very easy to navigate. It does require many steps if you are using categories for your navigation.

Fortunately, we have an alternative Application Menu. It allows you to navigate categories just by hovering your mouse.

Right-click on apps menu → Show Alternatives → Select Application Menu → Switch.

13. Firefox Settings

Similarly to other distros, KDE Neon includes Firefox as a default web browser. The default settings leave us with a room for improvement though.

Firefox has a useful feature that restores tabs from the previous session, each time you launch it. Open Firefox → Options (hamburger menu) → Preferences → Enable Restore previous session.

Another useful feature is to enable DRM content. You may find yourself unable to play some videos (e.g. Netflix) or audio because of DRM restriction. To enable DRM content, Open Firefox → Options (hamburger menu) → Preferences → Enable Play DRM-controlled content

The next improvement is related to Firefox’s search bar behaviour. Let’s say you search for the particular email address. Firefox will open your default email client, instead of performing a web search. This functionality can certainly be annoying.

To change the search bar, Open Firefox → Options (hamburger menu) → Preferences → Search tab → Select Add search bar in toolbar

Lastly, for better browser-OS integration install Plasma Integration.

14. Decrease Swap Use

One of the ways to boost your system performance is decreasing swappiness value. This feature forces your Linux system to use your RAM, instead of your hard drive. If you are not familiar with Linux swap, check out our article to learn more.

Check the current swappiness value by executing:

The default value is 60.

To reduce the swap usage, set the swappiness value to 10:

1. Open it in the nano editor:

Use arrow key to do down to the very end.

Press the keys Ctrl + O to write the changes, and Ctrl + X to exit nano .

Now reboot your system and check the swappiness value:

You should see the value of 10.

15. Enable Firewall

While there are not many viruses for Linux, it’s advisable to enable a firewall which protects against network intrusions. We’ve installed the firewall at the beginning of this post and now we only need to enable it.

Open Firewall Configuration → Enable Firewall.

The default settings are fine, but feel free to check out our article to learn more advanced features.

Conclusion

In this post, we have explored 15 essential things to do after installing KDE Neon to make it so much better. Plasma 5 offers much more, but I’ll leave that to you to explore. Let me know what else you do in you KDE Neon after installing it. The comments section is below. 👇

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Introducing KDE neon

The latest and greatest of KDE community software packaged on a rock-solid base.

Solid Core, Latest Features

More than ever people expect a stable desktop with cutting-edge features, all in a package which is easy to use and ready to make their own.

KDE neon is the intersection of these needs using a stable Ubuntu long-term release as its core, packaging the hottest software fresh from the KDE Community ovens. Compute knowing you have a solid foundation and enjoy the features you experience in the world’s most customisable desktop.

You should use KDE neon if you want the latest and greatest from the KDE community but the safety and stability of a Long Term Support release. When you don’t want to worry about strange core mechanics and just get things done with the latest features. When you want your computer as your tool, something that belongs to you, that you can trust and that delivers day after day, week after week, year after year. Here it is: now get stuff done.

Make Computing Your Own with Plasma Desktop

We think that your desktop is YOUR desktop. Make it unique with the option to dive into every minimal detail from visuals to work patterns.

Plasma Desktop from the KDE community is a smart, effective, and beautiful environment from the very first time you start it. Using KDE neon, Plasma and KDE applications will be continuously updated, so no more waiting, adding package archives or downloading source code if you want what’s new.

Shells

Get a powerful, secure desktop that you can take anywhere. Access your Shells on multiple devices from a smart TV to your smartphone. You can even breathe fresh life into that old computer. Make your next computer a computer in the cloud with Shells.

Transform any device into a powerful, secure desktop with Shells. Whether you want to code on your smartphone or produce a fresh new track on your TV, with Shells you can unlock the full performance and experience of a desktop computer on any device.

KDE earns a small commission when you use this link.

A Shells desktop running KDE neon in a web browser

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Live Images

Live images are ideal for people who want a clean installation. Use a live image to replace your existing system, install alongside existing operating systems, or simply try KDE neon without affecting their computer.

User Edition 64-bit

Featuring the latest officially released KDE software on a stable base. Ideal for everyday users.

Testing Edition 64-bit

Featuring pre-release KDE software built the same day from bugfix branches. Good for testing. There is no QA. Will contain bugs.

Unstable Edition 64-bit

Featuring pre-release KDE software built the same day from new feature branches. Good for testing. There is no QA. Will contain many bugs.

Developer Edition 64-bit

Unstable Editon plus development libraries pre-installed.

Install using ROSA Image Writer for

GPG signatures signed by KDE neon ISO Signing Key (0xDEACEA00075E1D76) are available alongside the ISOs for verification.

Shells

Get a powerful, secure desktop that you can take anywhere. Access your Shells on multiple devices from a smart TV to your smartphone. You can even breathe fresh life into that old computer. Make your next computer a computer in the cloud with Shells.

Transform any device into a powerful, secure desktop with Shells. Whether you want to code on your smartphone or produce a fresh new track on your TV, with Shells you can unlock the full performance and experience of a desktop computer on any device.

KDE earns a small commission when you use this link.

A Shells desktop running KDE neon in a web browser

Docker Images

Docker Images are great for testing or developing on KDE software without the need to re-install your operating system or a virtual machine. We build ours daily on Docker Hub.

Snap Packages

Many KDE apps now are available as Snap packages which can be installed on any Linux distro. Most of these are currently made from KDE neon packaging on the KDE neon servers.

First set up Snap on your system, you can then install packages from the Store or through Plasma Discover.

Builds from releases go into the Candidate channel and when confirmed good into the Release channel. Builds from Git master go into Edge channel and from Git beta branches into the Stable channel.

Special Case Editions:

• Korean Testing Edition Live/Install Image pre-configured with Korean locale.
• Pinebook Remix Images build with some non-free drivers for the ARM based Pinebook laptop.

Donate to KDE Why Donate?

Visit the KDE MetaStore

Show your love for KDE! Purchase books, mugs, apparel, and more to support KDE.

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