Is there a way to stop 100% CPU usage?

[cinematography]

Sometimes Firefox or the file manager will use 100% of my CPU, causing the fan inside of my computer to turn on. Is there a way to cap or limit the CPU usage so that no program is allowed to go over a certain percentage?

Your help would be appreciated.

[CyanideSyntax]

i know in JJ 9.04, the CPU monitoring applet for in the GNOME panels can limit it to some extent.

does that help at all?

[cinematography]

i know in JJ 9.04, the CPU monitoring applet for in the GNOME panels can limit it to some extent.

does that help at all?

I'm sorry, but I made a mistake in my thread title. I'm actually using Kubuntu 9.04 right now.

Is there a similar feature under KDE?

Thank you for your reply thus far.