Step 2. Need mobile broadband? Use the GNOME applet

 !! THIS POST  ALSO APPLIES FOR OPENSUSE 12.1 !!

Since I often need mobile broadband internet connection, I was hoping openSUSE 11.4/12.1 will provide the right tool to KDE4 users to connect. 

Unfortunatelly, openSUSE 11.4/12.1 comes with KNetworkManager (DVD version) or Plasmoid-Networkmanagement (KDE Live CD version). Although KNM worked for mob. broadb. in openSUSE 11.3, in the current version of the system it doesn't. At least I get some funny warnings "System policy does not allow mobile devices to gather information about account details" and I am prompted for root passwd. When I give the root passwd, the dialog appears again promting for root passwd - and again....

Now, what works perfectly for me is Networkmanager-GNOME. That's the name of the package. Sounds fantastic, but it doesn't work out of the box when installed and ran on KDE4.

I also pasted a CHATLOG on a separate page, showing that changing to the GNOME nm-applet solves MANY DIFFERENT WIFI ISSUES -> THE CHATLOG

How to make it work:

1. Run YaST Software Management and search the string networkmanagemer

2. Click to deinstall every package related to Networkmanager, that has got "kde4" in it's name. Don't run the installation yet. You can directly click to deinstall Networkmanager-kde4-libs and you receive this prompt:

Choose to delete the packages related to Networkmanager-kde4-libs

3. Click to install Networkmanager-GNOME (it might be already chosen automatically after choosing to deinstall all "kde4" packages related to Networkmanager), don't run the installation yet. You can optionally add Networkmanager-GNOME-lang for more languages to be supported.

4. Search the string qtcurve , choose to install qtcurve-gtk2 and qtcurve-kde4 
The installation summary tab should look like this (you might have less stuff in this list if installed some other programmes before that pulled along some of the libs):

  

5. Run the installation.

6. (just in case) Run konsole

7. Give the command su - , give you root password

8. Give the command killall knetworkmanager

9. Now you can quit the root console.
10. Deinstalling the NM kde4 libs might change the network handling to ifup! 
Run YaST -> Network Settings -> Global options -> switch from using ifup to using Networkmanager (if ifup is chosen):

11. Run KDE's System Settings

12. Appearance of Apps (or how's it called in English I don't know - where you set Style, Icons etc.) -> Gtk theme and settings

13. Choose qtcurve, screenshot:

14. Go to KDE's System Settings -> Autostart:

15. Add the program nm-applet to Autostart (write it manually, not from the menu):

16. Go to this program's advanced options (here you see the nm-applet's Properties window in Autostart settings, go Program -> Advanced options):

17. Tell it to be PUT IN SYSTEM TRAY and register with D-Bus with multiple instances:

17. Accept the changes.
18. Close KDE's System Settings and run it again, open the Autostart configuration again and check, if nm-applet changed it's name to kcmsystray, should look like this:

18. Log out and log in to KDE. Now the GNOME nm-applet should work and you can easily connect to mobile broadband or any kind of wired and wireless nework. If you need a special VPN or pptp connection, try adding in YaST Software Management the proper Networkmanager-* packages, but don't add the *kde* ones. I am not sure, but this might cause nm-applet not to work properly.

19. Just a cosmetic furher step to have the icons in the right order: 
Right click the system tray in this little triangle:

Go to Entries and set kcmsystray to Hidden. Also set Networkmanager Applet  to Always visible, like here:

Click OK, log out and log in. Now there will be no second redundant icon shown. (THX goes to Cymage of #suse for fixing the icons and testing :D )

It really works great, what many users confirmed.

Here's the nm-applet in action in my system:

And reproduced in Virtualbox machine on a fresh openSUSE 11.4 install from DVD, using this very tutorial:

That's it, have fun!