I found the problem after exiting kde as I was reviewing the kde error log. the gnumeric directories were created with root umask permissions (700). This made that directory and all subdirectories inaccessible to world, so the menu-building routines invoked at gnumeric startup all failed. I chmodded that directory recursively to 755 and now gnumeric comes up with a full set of icons in the task bars :-).
This problem spotlights a problem I have seen before, namely that pkg_add (and various kde programs) do not always explicitly set appropriate permissions of files being installed. In my case, I have root permissions set to protect root files against access by non-root accounts. This problem could be solved by creating a pkg_install account with a umask of 022 which is more likely to be what is required for installing packages. Or the pkg_add program could explicitly set permissions of installed files to 755 so the umask setting of the installing user becomes moot. Dave Feustel -- Lose, v., experience a loss, get rid of, "lose the weight" Loose, adj., not tight, let go, free, "loose clothing"
