OK, actually c&p from my eMail to the dev-list
(Msg-ID:<20031206102733.35c6e23d.daniel@ciaglia.de>;):

Logging in with remote X (X -query orwell) into my default desktop with an
different display size (800x600 vs. 1280x1024), doing some work, shutting
down the laptop and using the workstation as usual the next day gives me
this position of the panel:
http://www.ciaglia.de/tmp/desktop.jpg

When working remote, the panel sets itself to the lower border of the
screen, but not centered. Back to normal, it's a little bit lazy and stays
at its position in the center of the screen.

Well, I haven't looked at the code but wouldn't it be the cleaner solution
to use the set preferences (center at the bottom) at every startup then
waitinig for the final *click* in the settings menu?