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As it stands, reconfiguring the KDE panel is a vastly overcomplicated process that doesn't even work well when you actually know how it is supposed to work. I've been using Linux since '96 and KDE since it very beginning (although admittedly I was MIA for 4.0 to 4.6 whilst KDE4 matured a bit) yet I was at a loss when I first tried to re-arrange my panel. A simple task such as this should not require people to go hunt down instructions like I, and I'm sure many others, had too - thats for sure!

For a start, I really don't see the need for the cashews which then brings up an oversized, mostly unneeded extra set of controls just to edit your existing panel. Most of the features that have been separated out into the 'cashew menu' as you could refer to it aka the 'panel config area' should really be integrated into the panel and its icons context menus which is how people coming from and used to GNOME, Windows and OSX would expect this to work.

If the KDE community loves the cashew menu too much to totally get rid of it, may I suggest we aim to rid of at least its bottom half. Its this bottom half that I really do find totally 'wrong' as it only serves the purpose of moving existing items in the panel but it does so in a very peculiar, unreliable and confusing manner. You should be able to move panel items without opening the cashew menu hence obscuring the lower part of your desktop with a config panel for your panel.

I'd like to see the bottom half of the cashew menu rid of totally and instead 'Move' should be a default option contained within the context menu of panel items. When you choose 'Move', the panel items icon sticks to your pointer (but stays within the panel area of course) so you can relocate the item and all you have to do is left click to place the item in any empty space within the panel with none of this 'watch for the panel going dark' before you click and hope for the best! Middle-clicking and dragging on a panel item would be another nice way to be able to rearrange items. You can already remove items from the panel via their context menus so why not move them too?

Whats currently under 'More Settings' in this panel config panel is what I would expect to see by right clicking within an empty bit of the panel then choosing Panel Options -> Panel Settings and so thats where it could go if the cashew menu dies or goes on a diet. Screen edge and height could be moved to become config options under the panel settings so then the cashew menu, if it stays, could just be used to add widgets to the panel.

If nothing else - please just add the ability to move panel items in a sane, easy and logical manner!