A Fresh Start, Part 1: Framework

So you've just installed Ubuntu 10.10 and completed all of your software updates (you did run the update manager, didn't you?),and you're not very impressed. I can tell. After all, this is what you're looking at:

Ubuntu 10.10

I felt the same way the first time I installed Ubuntu, but after spending a lot of time researching, digging in, and getting my hands dirty, I turned this seemingly ugly duckling into a powerful, intuitive, and beautiful swan of an OS.

I'm going to pool all of that research and all of those tips and tricks here, spanned across a few installments. This is a great way to learn how Ubuntu and Linux work, and hopefully by the time you're done here you'll be prepared to go out and build your own "pimped out" version of Ubuntu to suit your specific needs.

After the jump, building a framework.

Let's get started, shall we? For now we're going to leave the appearance of the desktop alone (don't worry, we'll get there), and focus on building a framework for a productive workflow environment. That way, when the time comes to beautify and start loading up on software, you'll have the tools you need to make it as easy and painless as possible.

Guake Terminal

Guake Terminal

We're going to be doing a lot of simple terminal work soon, and you're going to need a quick and easy way to move in and out of the terminal.  Obviously, you can always just go to Applications > Accessories > Terminal or press Ctrl+Alt+T to bring up a terminal window the old fashioned way and minimize or close it whenever you're done.  This is a little too tedious for my taste, so I suggest installing Guake as an easier way to access the terminal.  

Once installed and running, all you have to do is press F12 to toggle a drop-down terminal window on or off (see above).  Even better, you can run a command in the terminal, then press F12 to put it in the background while you move on to other things.  This will really come in handy later when we start installing large packages with long download times.  You can also open multiple terminal sessions by clicking the little button on the far right side, so you can run multiple terminal commands at once.

To install Guake, open up a terminal via one of the old fashioned ways mentioned above and type the following command (you can also copy and paste any command to the terminal using Ctrl+Shift+V):

sudo apt-get install guake

Once installed, you'll need to take an extra step to make it work correctly (this is a known bug, but luckily this simple command will fix it). Copy and paste the following command in the same terminal window:

gconftool-2 --install-schema-file=/usr/share/gconf/schemas/guake.schemas

Go to Applications > Accessories > Guake Terminal to launch the application.  You'll see an indicator in the top panel.  Press F12 to try it out.

Program Launchers

Docky

There are several different options for setting up program launchers in Ubuntu.  There are Mac-like docks, semantic keystroke launchers, and Windows 7 style panel launchers, among others.  I personally use a combination of a dock and a semantic launcher.

Docks

As docks go, the two most popular options are Docky and Avant Window Navigator.

I use Docky.  It's simple, lightweight, and does pretty much anything you'd need a dock to do.  It has a more Mac-like feel than Avant Window Navigator.  If you're interested in giving it a try, you can install it either from the Ubuntu Software Center, which can be found under the Applications menu, or via PPA.

Ubuntu Software Center

To install from the Software Center, simply perform a search for the name of the software you're trying to install, and a list of results will pop up automatically.  Highlight the appropriate software from the list and click the "Install" button.

I always prefer to install via PPA whenever possible, because adding the software's repository to your system will ensure that your Update Manager will automatically push any updates that come out for that particular piece of software (if you're not sure what a repository is, click here for more information).  To install via PPA, press F12 to open up a terminal and enter the following one line at a time.  Just as a reminder, you can copy and paste each command into the terminal using Ctrl+Shift+V.

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:docky-core/stable

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install docky

Avant Window Navigator is another dock application that offers quite a few customization options, but it's also not quite as lightweight as Docky.  I find a lot of these customization options to be extraneous, but they may come in handy later on when you start prettying up the place.  You'd be amazed at some of the things you can do with this app.  For the most up-to-date features, including a really slick visual style called Lucido (trust me, you'll want it), avoid installing from the Software Center and get the latest version from the AWN PPA.  Press F12 to open up the terminal and enter the following one line at a time:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:awn-testing/ppa

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install avant-window-navigator-trunk

Semantic Keystroke Launchers

For semantic launchers, there are several great options.  You can always use the trusty Alt+F2 run dialog, but it's not the most feature-rich alternative.  The most popular semantic launchers are Gnome-Do, Kupfer, and Synapse.  They all do pretty much the same thing, but I like the feel of Synapse the best.  Plus it has a smooth Ctrl+Space keyboard shortcut that allows for quick and painless access.  Observe (pardon the poor quality):

That's just a small demonstration of how powerful these launchers can be.  A semantic launcher like Synapse will allow you to quickly locate and open any program, document, folder, audio file, video, web page, etc. by simply typing in what you're trying to find.  As shown in the video, you can also do Google searches straight from the launcher.  You can also execute commands such as Log Out, Shut Down, Restart, killall gnome-panel (which restarts the panels), etc.  Feel free to try each of these semantic launchers and see which one feels right for you.  Install Gnome-Do from the Software Center.  Synapse and Kupfer can be installed via PPA.

To install Synapse, you'll first need to install Zeitgeist to unlock its full functionality:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:zeitgeist/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install zeitgeist

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:synapse-core/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install synapse

Note: for more information on increasing the functionality of Synapse, click here.

To install Kupfer:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:kupfer-team/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install kupfer

Once installed, activate the launcher by going to Applications > Accessories > [launcher name]. No matter which launcher you decide to install, using these simple tools will make navigating Ubuntu fast, easy, and enjoyable.  You'll really need the fast and easy parts when we get into installing and configuring software later on.

Compiz

CCSM

Here you see the dashboard of the Compiz Settings Manager. Compiz is a tool that allows you to activate and configure tons of desktop effects, window management tools, keyboard shortcuts, hot corners, etc. From here, you can make Ubuntu feel and behave almost any way you like. But first, we have to install a few things.

Open up the Ubuntu Software Center and search for "Compiz." You'll see 3 packages in the list that you'll need to install:

1. Advanced Desktop Effects Settings (ccsm)
2. Simple CompizConfig Settings Manager
3. Compiz Fusion Icon

Simply click each of these titles and choose "Install." Once the installation is complete, you can find the Compiz Settings Managers under System > Preferences.

Configuring Workspaces

Now let's open up CompizConfig Settings Manager (from now on, I will refer to this application as CCSM). The window that opens will look almost identical to the dashboard pictured above. For now, we're only going to focus on setting up easy-to-use workspaces.

If you're not sure what I mean by "workspace," try right-clicking on the title bar of CCSM. You'll see an option there that says "Move to Another Workspace" with a sub-menu that lists workspaces 1 through 4. Choose "Workspace 2." The window will seemingly vanish. Don't worry, it's not gone. You simply moved it to another workspace.

On the far right of the bottom panel, you should see four small squares (example below). The second square should have a small image inside of it. This serves as a sort of preview of whatever happens to be open and visible in that particular workspace. Click the second box. Your desktop should shift over to Workspace 2, and CCSM should be right there, waiting for you.

Workspace Switcher

I'll let you use your imagination here as to why workspaces are useful, but I will say that every time I use Windows now I find it to be a frustrating experience for this main reason - only one available workspace. And while workspaces are a handy feature in Ubuntu, they do seem a bit tedious to use and navigate, don't you think? So let's work on that.

Expo

In the left pane of the CCSM dashboard, you should see a list of Categories. Select "Desktop." Now click the "Expo" button. You should see a window that looks pretty much identical to this:

Expo Settings

First thing's first, if the checkbox next to "Enable Expo" is unchecked, go ahead and check it.  Now, under the "Bindings" tab, you'll notice that a keyboard shortcut ("Expo key") is already set to <Super>e by default.  The <Super> key is what you probably know as the Windows key if you're a PC user.  This key combination simply means that you will need to hold down the Windows key and then press "e."  Go ahead and give it a try.  You should now see a screen that looks like this:

Expo In Action 

Simply press <Super>e again or double-click the workspace where you see CCSM to go back to where you were.   

As a huge fan of workspaces I use Expo constantly, so for me the <Super>e key combination is a little cumbersome.  I prefer to use a hot corner instead.

A hot corner is simply a corner or edge of your screen that is setup to initiate an action when you move your mouse to that location.  My Expo hot corner is set so that when my mouse pointer hits the top right corner of my screen, Expo instantly activates.  Here's how to setup an Expo hot corner:

Expo Edge

On the "Bindings" tab, the third option down is "Expo edge".  Click the button to the right that says "None" and a small window will pop up with little red tabs lining the corners and edges of a monitor.  

Simply click any of these red tabs to make that edge or corner your Expo activator.  The red tab will turn green to indicate the change has been made.  Click OK and give it a try.  Move your mouse pointer to whatever edge or corner you selected, and Expo should instantly activate.  Hit that edge or corner again to deactivate.





Expo Button

CCSM also gives you the option to dedicate a mouse button for activating Expo.  If you simply have a two-button mouse, you'll want to ignore this option.  If you have three or more buttons, however, you may find this to be your most convenient choice.  Simply click the "Disabled" button to the right of "Expo button," then click the checkbox next to "Enable" in the small window that pops up.  On the next screen there will be a drop-down menu that's set to Button1 by default.  Click that dropdown menu to choose whatever button is more convenient for you, then click OK.  I choose my middle button for this (Button2), as I have a three-button mouse.

Note:  You may receive some warnings when choosing Button2.  You can go ahead and disable the plugin that is in conflict with Expo, as you more than likely won't be using it at all.  If you find later that you do need that plugin, you can always come back and edit these settings.

We're done with Expo for now, so go ahead and click the "Back" button to go back to the main CCSM dashboard.  Now we're going to setup some simple keyboard shortcuts to move windows from workspace to workspace without having to right-click the title bar and navigate those menus.

Using Put to Assign Workspaces

Click the "Window Management" category.

Window Management

Click the "Put" button.  For this portion of your workspace setup, I decided to make a video to demonstrate the process instead of taking a zillion screenshots and going step by step.  Try it out.  When you move the window to another workspace using the keyboard shortcuts you setup, your screen will follow the window automatically so you won't lose it.

Obviously, you can use whatever keyboard shortcuts you want as long as there are no conflicts with other keyboard shortcuts already in place.  We'll get into how I setup the 2x2 Expo screen a bit later.  For now, you have all you need to move windows to other workspaces and easily preview and switch between those workspaces.

Note: One thing I forgot to mention is that Ubuntu comes with preset keyboard shortcuts for navigating one workspace to the left or right.  Simply press and hold ctrl+alt and then press the left or right arrow to switch.  Simple as that.

And finally, we have a basic framework!   Now that you have these tools installed, you're ready to get started with the fun stuff.  Next time, we'll look at recommended software and software updates that will unlock Ubuntu's potential and help you get started with your daily computing tasks and activities.

Until then, do some basic experimenting with these tools and see what they can do.  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by how easily you can now navigate the OS.  Have fun!