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I know what you're thinking, but don't worry. This article isn't 'Yet Another Red Hat 8.0 Review'. This article is primarily about using Red Hat 8.0 if you happen to be a newbie, but it's also about using Red Hat 8.0 if you happen to be a KDE user. Why? I happen to be a KDE user, so it makes sense I'd focus more on what I know the most about. Plus, I still remember the frustration of staring with something akin to terror at a blank command line with lots of ideas about what I'd like to do and very little knowledge of how to do it.

Again, KDE is the desktop environment I know the most about and feel most comfortable with: my focusing on it is not an attempt to pour gasoline on the Red Hat & GNOME vs KDE debates. If you are a newbie who prefers the GNOME desktop, Red Hat's default, then you might still come away from this article having learned something since several of the topics discussed apply to users of both desktops.

At the end of this article, after the good stuff, I offer my opinion on the state of KDE (among other things) in Psyche. Feel free to skip it or not, as you see fit. That being said, let's get started. This article will show you, among other things, how to add the following to Red Hat 8.0:

• Official nVidia Reference Drivers

• Your Windows (or other) fonts for use with OpenOffice.org and KDE

• XMMS MP3 Functionality

• DVD decoding / viewing functionality

• APT4RPM and SynAPTic, the excellent GUI frontend to apt

• Installing Java and Flash plugins for Mozilla

A general discussion on using KDE with Psyche is included after the topics mentioned above. This section includes tips for undoing certain Red Hat changes to the way KDE behaves and for customizing KDE using tools provided by Red Hat as well as those freely available on the Internet. This section also includes information on theming GDM, the default and wonderfully configurable login manager.

1. "Introduction"
2. "Nvidia Drivers"
3. "Fonts"
4. "APT, Mp3 and DVD Playback - Part I"
5. "APT, Mp3 and DVD Playback - Part II"
6. "Yes, it is still KDE - Part I"
7. "Yes, it is still KDE - Part II"
8. "Red Hat Ambition, Modified KDE"