I Wish I'd Found This Hidden KDE Plasma Feature Sooner

Are you moving Kubuntu Linux oregon different distro that uses the KDE Plasma desktop environment? Then you're missing retired if you aren't taking vantage of a small hunt barroom called KRunner.

KDE Plasma is good known arsenic a productivity and powerfulness user-friendly desktop situation for Linux distros and FreeBSD. I've been utilizing it regularly for years. In fact, close present I'm daily-driving 2 antithetic versions of Plasma connected some my Kubuntu Focus laptop and my desktop machine moving Garuda. That's however I ended up discovering KRunner and utilizing it to optimize my regular workflow.

Meet KRunner, KDE's Answer to Spotlight

KRunner is simply a launcher hidden successful the KDE Plasma desktop situation that lets you hunt for each kinds of items, contented commands, and different power your computer. You tin bring it up astatine immoderate clip by hitting the Alt+Space keyboard shortcut. Start typing a hunt word oregon a command, and respective options volition appear. The results it lists volition see applications, files, bookmarks, adjacent browser tabs.

This volition consciousness acquainted if you cognize the Mac Spotlight feature, oregon adjacent Windows' PowerToys Command Palette tool. You besides whitethorn already cognize you tin bash these things successful Plasma's exertion launcher menu. I thought it was a small redundant successful that way, too, but I learned it's amended than the launcher paper successful respective tiny but important ways.

Besides its much minimalist appearance, KRunner includes a hunt past that you tin manipulate and usage for autocomplete of commands you often use. It besides much intelligibly organizes results into categories of applications, windows, files, and truthful on.

Even if that doesn't impressment you, and you're much comfy utilizing the exertion launcher menu, you should proceed speechmaking due to the fact that they stock hunt plugins, and you whitethorn observe immoderate present you didn't cognize about.

KRunner's Best Features

Each of KRunner's features is its ain plugin that you tin toggle disconnected and on, oregon sometimes customize for maximum usefulness. These are immoderate of my idiosyncratic favorites.

Launch (or Kill) Any App

Like the exertion launcher menu, KRunner tin besides find applications you privation to run. Just benignant its name, similar steam, oregon adjacent conscionable a word associated with it, similar games, and you'll spot it successful KRunner's hunt results. Use the arrow keys to scope the point you want, deed Enter, and it'll launch.

You tin besides bash the opposite. When an app freezes, oregon a work is moving that you privation stopped, conscionable benignant kill followed by the app oregon work name. KRunner volition database the processes that lucifer that word and fto you nonstop the awesome to terminate oregon termination the process.

Run CLI Commands

You aren't constricted to graphical applications with KRunner. You tin besides benignant immoderate ammunition bid you'd usually benignant successful the terminal and KRunner volition execute it.

Of course, KRunner isn't a afloat terminal emulator. Execution happens successful the background, truthful there's nary disposable output. Nothing volition look successful beforehand of you adjacent if you tally a bid that outputs a watercourse of text. You tin inactive pipe and redirect output to files and entree them later, though. For example, you could benignant lsblk > output.txt and you'll present person a substance record with a database of your connected artifact devices.

That said, I've recovered KRunner volition motorboat immoderate TUI programs similar the btop strategy show successful a caller terminal model for you.

Search the Web (Or Your Favorite Website)

KRunner besides has built-in shortcuts for searching the net with your favourite hunt engine. Type thing and prime the "Web Search Keywords" option, and KRunner volition bring up the hunt results successful your default web browser. It'll usage the hunt motor you prime successful Plasma Search settings—more connected that later.

You tin bring up circumstantial alternate hunt engines utilizing a cardinal phrase, similar d: for DuckDuckGo, g: for Google Search, oregon bing: for Microsoft Bing, followed by your hunt phrase. It goes beyond modular web hunt engines, though. You tin usage wp: to hunt Wikipedia, and you Linux gamers retired determination volition admit the proton: shortcut to hunt ProtonDB.

If you unfastened up the Web Search Keywords plugin settings, you tin spot a implicit database of searchable websites and their keywords, and you tin adjacent marque your own. I crafted a customized DuckDuckGo hunt for How-To Geek by inserting this URL:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=site%3Ahowtogeek.com+\{@}

Wherever successful a URL you enactment "\{@}", KRunner replaces with your hunt terms. I acceptable it to usage the shortcut "htg", and present I tin hunt How-To Geek's catalog conscionable by typing htg: into KRunner.

Run Quick Calculations

If you often bring up KCalc oregon different calculator app connected your PC for speedy calculations, you'll beryllium blessed to larn you tin astir apt skip the app immoderate of the clip acknowledgment to KRunner. Just benignant an equation utilizing modular arithmetic operators, similar 100/4 to spot the quotient of 100 divided by 4, and KRunner volition spit retired an answer.

The afloat grade of KRunner's calculating abilities are supra my mathematics acquisition level, but I cognize that you tin bash a batch by typing = to acceptable disconnected an equation and lick it. For example, typing =sqrt(64) volition get you 8, the quadrate basal of 64.

How I Customize KRunner to Fit My Workflow

I conscionable listed immoderate circumstantial features, and determination are adjacent much if you unfastened KDE's settings and spell to Workspace > Search > Plasma Search. You'll spot a implicit database of plugins, on with settings buttons for immoderate of them to bring up a configuration window. Those you tin configure, similar the web hunt 1 I discussed earlier, I urge adjusting for your purposes.

Chances are, though, you astir apt don't person a usage for each the Plasma Search plugins. You tin velocity KRunner up by disabling the functions you don't need. Just uncheck its container successful the list, and KRunner won't fuss putting your searches done their filters. If you're connected a newer mentation of Plasma, there's besides a prima strategy that lets you prioritize definite plugins implicit others, truthful the ones you usage astir ever look toward the apical of hunt results.

Plasma Search settings use to some KRunner and the exertion launcher menu. You tin further tweak KRunner itself by clicking the configuration icon to the near of the hunt field.

I learned from switching betwixt Plasma-enabled Linux distros that the options you spot volition alteration a batch depending connected which mentation of Plasma you're on. In wide though you're capable to alteration wherever KRunner appears, however it's activated, and however the past relation works.

These tweaks are what marque KRunner basal isolated from the exertion paper launcher, due to the fact that you tin marque it default to your past search, oregon smartly amusement suggestions based connected your history. You tin delete oregon disable your past wholly if you privation to support your KRunner enactment private.

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KRunner is conscionable 1 of the galore ways you tin maximize your productivity and take afloat vantage of the KDE Plasma environment. If you haven't already, you should larn however to commencement utilizing the Activities diagnostic connected Plasma.