By default on a Ubuntu system you have two panels, one at the top and one at the bottom.
This can get a little confusing especially if you are coming from a Windows pc. Here is how you customize them.
How to do it?
It is very simple and you can do a lot of things to them. First just right click on a panel you want to edit and go to Properties.
The Panel Properties will open and you can do a bunch of customization.
If you want to move the panel just click on the Orientation drop down and chose where you want it at.
If you want the panel to take up less resolution you can uncheck Expand and it will shrink down to size and vice versa.
You can also change the actual size of the panel by increasing or decreasing the size number. Bigger the number the bigger the panel.
You can even add some color or pictures to your panel by going to the Background tab on the Panel Properties window.
You can also add new items to the panel by right clicking on it and selecting Add to Panel.
The Add to Panel window will open where you can choose different items to add to your panel.
If you don’t want certain items just right click on the item and select Remove From Panel.
If you get tried of a panel then right click on it and select Delete This Panel.
Click Delete to remove the panel.
To add a new one just right click on a panel and select Add new. It will appear where ever their is a free spot on the desktop.
After 15 years of using Windows, I am just beginning to work with Ubuntu (the 9.10 Netbook Remix, this version has only one integrated panel at the top of the desktop). I would really like to move that default panel to the bottom of the screen, so the desktop would look more like what I’m used to. Problem is, in the default panel’s right-click menu, there is no “Properties” entry as described above.
After several days of searching, I’ve still found no solution. If someone has the expert knowledge to help me out, I would be v_e_r_y grateful!
There is a way to do it. On the panel you need to make sure you are right clicking on the panel, not one of the add on’s for the panel. Move as close as you can get to the Ubuntu symbol and right click to see the properties menu item. You can also follow this article How to Customize Ubuntu Remix Panels
Ryan, thanks for your willingness to help!.In my case clicking near the Ubuntu icon did not help (there seemed to be no empty margin between the icon and the applet next to it). But your suggestion certainly did put me on the right track: looking for an empty spot somewhere. It took many tries (if there are empty margins, they seem to be just one pixel wide) but in the end I happened to get the proper panel context menu from a spot near the clock. Great – thank you!
Your Welcome if you need some more help please go to our forums and ask a question there.