Konqueror is a web browser and file manager that provides file viewer functionality for file systems such as local files, files on a remote FTP server and files in a disk image. It is a core part of the KDE Software Compilation. Konqueror is developed by volunteers and can run on most Unix-like operating systems and on Windows systems. Konqueror is licensed and distributed under the GNU General Public License version 2.
The name "Konqueror" is a reference to the two primary competitors at the time of the browser's first release: "first comes the Navigator, then Explorer, and then the Konqueror". It also follows the KDE naming convention: the names of most KDE programs begin with the letter K.[5]
Konqueror was released with version 2 of KDE on October 23, 2000.[6] It replaces its predecessor, KFM (KDE file manager).[7] With the release of KDE4, Konqueror was replaced as the default file manager by Dolphin.
Major supported protocols
- FTP and SFTP/SSH browser
- SAMBA (Microsoft file-sharing) browser
- HTTP browser
- IMAP mail client
- ISO (CD image) viewer
- VNC viewer
A complete list is available in the KDE Info Center's Protocols section.
User interface
Konqueror's user interface is somewhat reminiscent of Microsoft's Internet Explorer (in turn designed after Netscape Navigator and NCSA Mosaic), though it is more customizable. It works extensively with "panels", which can be rearranged or added. For example, one could have an Internet bookmarks panel on the left side of the browser window, and by clicking a bookmark, the respective web page would be viewed in the larger panel to the right. Alternatively, one could display a hierarchical list of folders in one panel and the content of the selected folder in another. Panels are quite flexible and can even include, among other KParts, components, a console window, a text editor, a media player. Panel configurations can be saved, and there are some default configurations. (For example, "Midnight Commander" displays a screen split into two panels, where each one contains a folder, Web site, or file view.)
Navigation functions (back, forward, history, etc.) are available during all operations. Most keyboard shortcuts can be remapped using a graphical configuration, and navigation can be conducted through an assignment of letters to nodes on the active file by pressing the control key. The address bar has extensive autocompletion support for local directories, past URLs, and past search terms.
The application uses a tabbed document interface, wherein a window can contain multiple documents in tabs. Multiple document interfaces are not supported, however it is possible to recursively divide a window to view multiple documents simultaneously, or simply open another window.
Web browser
Konqueror displaying the Wikipedia Main page
Konqueror has been developed as an autonomous web browser project. It uses KHTML as its layout engine, which is compliant with HTML and supports JavaScript, Java applets, CSS, SSL, and other relevant open standards. An alternative layout engine, kwebkitpart, is available from the Extragear.[8]
While KHTML is the default web-rendering engine, Konqueror is a modular application and other rendering engines are and have been available. Especially the WebKitPart that uses the KHTML-derived WebKit engine has seen a lot of support in the KDE 4 series.
Konqueror integrates several customizable search services which can be accessed by entering the service's abbreviation code (for example, gg: for Google) followed by the search term(s). One can add their own search service; for instance, to retrieve Wikipedia articles, a shortcut may be added with the URL http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special: Search?search=\{@}&go=Go. Alternatively, you can right-click on any search field and click, "Create Web Shortcut" in the context menu, which will fill in the above URL automatically and prompt you for a shortcut or shortcuts.
KHTML's rendering speed is on par with that of competing browsers, but sites with customized JavaScript are often problematic due to KHTML's much smaller mind- and market-share.
As of version 10.10, Kubuntu's default browser switched from Konqueror to rekonq.[9]
File manager
Konqueror's file manager profile
Konqueror displaying the contents of an audio CD
Konqueror also allows browsing the local directory hierarchy—either by entering locations in the address bar, or by selecting items in the file browser window. It allows browsing in different views, which differ in their usage of icons and layout. Files can also be executed, viewed, copied, moved, and deleted.
The user can also open an embedded version of Konsole in which they can directly execute shell commands.
Although this functionality is not removed from it, in KDE 4 Konqueror is replaced by Dolphin as the default file manager. Dolphin can - like Konqueror - divide each window or tab into multiple panes. Konqueror makes more powerful use of this feature, allowing as many vertically and horizontally divided panes as desired. Each can link to different content or even remote locations, so that Konqueror is a powerful graphical tool to manage content on multiple servers all in one window, "drag and dropping" files between locations.
In order to make folders open in Konqueror by default, open System Settings, then navigate to, "Default Applications". Here is a section called, "File Manager", where you can choose Konqueror, Dolphin or another file manager of your choice.
File viewer
Using the KParts object model, Konqueror executes components that are capable of viewing (and sometimes editing) specific filetypes and embeds their client area directly into the Konqueror panel in which the respective files have been opened. This makes it possible to, for example, view an OpenDocument (via KOffice) or PDF document directly from within Konqueror. Any application that implements the KParts model correctly can be embedded in this fashion.
KParts can also be used to embed certain types of multimedia content into HTML pages; for example, KMPlayer's KPart enables Konqueror to show embedded video on web pages.
KIO
For more details on this topic, see
KIO.
In addition to browsing files and web sites, Konqueror utilizes KIO plugins to extend its capabilities well beyond those of other browsers and file managers. It uses components of KIO, the Konqueror I/O plugin system, to access different protocols such as HTTP and FTP (support for these is built-in).
Similarly, Konqueror can use KIO plugins (called IOslaves) to access ZIP files and other archives, smb (Windows) shares, to process ed2k links (edonkey/emule), or even to browse audio CDs, ("audiocd:/") and rip them via drag-and-drop. The FISH ("fish://user@host") IOslave allows Konqueror up to and including version 4.2.x to manage files on remote secure shell servers; this is replaced in Konqueror 4.3.x and later by the SFTP ("sftp://user@host") IOslave.[10] Likewise, the "man:" and "info:" IOslaves are handy for fetching nicely formatted documentation.
See also
References
External links
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