Original ubuntu panel

…and after some weird magic…

Where is switch button and volume control?

At first, I tried to add missing components to the panel, but couldn’t find them in the list… Well, I didn’t even know their original names. So can Google help me to put me from my misery? After a few minutes on Internet I found out I’m not the only one with this problem, but offered solutions didn’t help. No matter how I tried – restarting panel, some tweak through terminal commands, restarting computer…

I told myself “but those are just components, add-ons and such can be added and removed to panel without a problem”. I tried again – and succeeded! The trick was to add “Indicator Applet” (volume control, email/chat control) and “Indicator Applet Session” (session, account control).

Here is the procedure on how did I manage to recreate the original Ubuntu panel finally:

1.

Unlock the Notification Area and Clock by right click on these items and unchecking “Lock To Panel” option. (With Notification Area you have to right click the left edge to bring up the context menu.)

Uncheck locking to panel

2.

Bring up the list of panel add-ons by right click on empty space of the panel and selecting “Add to Panel…”

Bringing up the panel add-ons list

3.

Add “Indicator Applet” and “Indicator Applet Session“.

Choose Indicator Applet and Indicator Applet Session

4.

Move the 2 newly added applets as you want them and lock the positions of all add-ons (right click on add-on and check “Lock To Panel” option).

You are done!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: There is much simpler and permanent solution to this problem available already. Thanks Nanina for tip.

If you have installed Ubuntu using procedure described in “Installing Ubuntu (almost) like a Windows application” article, it’s highly probable you have already stumbled upon a problem when you were stuck just with command line instead of booting up to Ubuntu Linux. This problem occurs mostly after updating the system, when it affects also Grub. The changes to Grub are not applied directly, so it doesn’t know what to do and defaults to command line. There the most of users (like me) get stuck wondering what has happened to their Ubuntu.

Before you start crying you’ve lost all the data, customization and everything you’ve kept in this Linux distribution, try following procedure. It should help you resolving the issue and restoring Ubuntu’s functionality or at least you should be able to get into Ubuntu and save your date before its reinstallation or complete uninstallation. This major problem is connected probably just with Wubi Ubuntu as I’ve never had such problem on standard system installation. To resolve, follow these 5 steps:

STEP 1.

First you have to find out the names of partitions on your disk and determine, where you put your Wubi Ubuntu installation. So into command line “sh:grub>” type in the command “ls -l” and press [ENTER] on your keyboard.

sh:grub> ls -l

The list of disk partitions will be displayed. Partitions are named like hd(0,1), hd(0,2), hd(1,1) or similarly. I believe “hd” stands for “harddrive”, first digit determines physical harddrive number (starting from 0) and second digit stands for partition number on that specific physical drive. You need to find out the partition name where Wubi stores Ubuntu folder. Unfortunately, I can’t see into your computer and can’t offer a good advice, but if you use disk labels like me, you should be able to determine the partition pretty quickly, because labels are also being displayed in the list.

When you have the name of the partition, lets take hd(0,1), you need to convert it into Grub terminology. Grub uses “sd” (SATA drive) instead of “hd”, “a, b, c…” instead of first  “0, 1, 2…” digit and last digit remains the same and is just repeated in the name, brackets and comma are not being included. So our hd(0,1) example would become sda1. Write down this name of Wubi installation partition, you will need it in next step.

STEP 2.

Start typing in the command bellow. After typing in the “linux /boot/vmlinuz-“, press [TAB] on your keyboard to display available Linux kernel versions list. Choose the most current one (with the highest number) and type it in. (Note: if the procedure fails to run Ubuntu with current kernel version, try older one…) Continue typing the command ” root=/dev/” and input the name of Wubi installation partition you’ve got from previous step (in our case it was “sda1“). Finish the command with ” loop=/ubuntu/disks/root.disk ro” and press [ENTER].

sh:grub> linux /boot/vmlinuz-(kernel version – press [TAB]) root=/dev/(Wubi installation partition) loop=/ubuntu/disks/root.disk ro

STEP 3.

Continue with new command “initrd /boot/initrd.img-” and again use the same kernel version as in step 2. Then press [ENTER].

sh:grub> initrd /boot/initrd.img-(kernel version)

STEP 4.

If everything worked fine, after inputting the command “boot” and pressing [ENTER], the Ubuntu should start. In case that nothing is happening, try to repeat the procedure with older Linux kernel. If nothing helps even then, unfortunately I think you better try Google or reinstall Wubi Ubuntu completely…

sh:grub> boot

STEP 5.

We are not finished yet! When you get finally into Ubuntu, open the Terminal (Applications → Accessories → Terminal). In Terminal type the command “sudo update-grub” and press [ENTER] (you will also need to type in your password confirmed with [ENTER] key). Now the Grub should be updated completely and shouldn’t cause any trouble.

So, after this procedure just try to restart the computer and see on your own whether Ubuntu works how it should (at least until next major system update ;)).

Any question? Use comments…

Linux offers countless possibilities of customizing how it looks and feels. Ubuntu is no exception and I am sure you will enjoy applying different themes and be amazed by the effects and animations.

As Windows user I always felt limited somehow in terms of watching still the same themes. Surely it is possible to customize Windows and even apply new themes, but the procedure is much more complicated, whereas in Ubuntu it is pure fun. When you get into it, you will be able even to create your very own themes like I did myself. Don’t hesitate and feel free to download and use the Emerald themes I’ve created.

In the video I’m explaining how to change preinstalled themes (also called Metacity themes) and customize panels. Then I move to more advanced customization replacing Ubuntu’s default theming manager with Emerald. You will also need to install CompizConfig Settings Manager (Compiz is Ubuntu’s compositing window managers that uses 3D graphics) to be able to apply new settings and you can play with it and change the effects and animations of windows or desktop.

You can download very nice Ubuntu theme packages from Bisigi Project

Simply enjoy and leave comments!

(The best you’ll enjoy the video in HD.)

Wubi (Windows-based Ubuntu Installer) is small program providing possibility to install and uninstall Ubuntu Linux in your Windows, like any other application. Actual installation creates a folder on your harddrive in chosen destination where Wubi puts Ubuntu system. This easy installation makes you start using Ubuntu immediately without risking any loss of information due to disk formatting or partitioning that occurs during standard installation. Your Windows system will be kept untouched.

Later, if you decide to uninstall Ubuntu for whatever reason (you plan to install it the standard way or you just don’t like it), the procedure is just as simple as removing any other application from Windows.

Many people ask if Wubi decreases the performance of Ubuntu somehow. Well, I’m using Wubi Ubuntu installation for over a year and haven’t experienced any significant slowdown in comparison to standard Ubuntu install. Wubi is simply the best way for Windows user to try Ubuntu (or its other derivate, like Kubuntu, Mythbuntu or Xubuntu).

For the procedure described below you will need to download current Wubi installer and Ubuntu ISO disk image file (or if you like, download other Ubuntu derivate from their websites).

Installation procedure

To install Ubuntu on your computer and use it besides your main Windows system follow these steps:

1. After downloading Wubi and Ubuntu ISO image, place both files into the same directory.
2. Run Wubi and choose installation drive, size of Ubuntu installation (I recommend at least 12GB), choose desktop environment (whether you’re installing Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Xubuntu or Mythbuntu, depending on what ISO image file you downloaded), set the language you want Ubuntu to speak in and type your username and password (will be used to log into the system or to perform administration (root) tasks). Press [Install] button to begin installation.
3. Wubi will start copying files.
   
4. To complete installation you need to reboot your computer.
   
5. After rebooting the computer choose “Ubuntu” in Windows Boot Manager using arrow keyboard keys and press [Enter]. Actual Ubuntu installation wizard will run and you just need to relax and wait for the end of installation process. There will be no questions asked and whole installation should take around 10 or 15 minutes.
   
6. When Ubuntu finishes the installation, computer reboots automatically. Again choose “Ubuntu” in Windows Boot Manager to have a look at your brand new Ubuntu system. GRUB, Ubuntu’s boot loader, will be displayed with list of different Ubuntu Linux kernels or operating systems, so just press [Enter] or wait a few seconds. Then log into system with username and password you typed in the 2nd step of this tutorial and enjoy and play with Ubuntu!

As you can see, this is very easy procedure and takes just few minutes. To use your Windows system again simply choose it in Windows Boot Manager when computer starts or just wait until it runs automatically. If you later want to uninstall Ubuntu, just double click on Wubi in Windows and choose to remove it or use Control Panel → Programs and Features to remove Ubuntu.

That’s it, next time I’ll show you how to customize the look of Ubuntu.

(Pictures were taken from Wubi’s homepage.)

Using the steps below (or in video) you will be able to install Ubuntu on at least 2GB flash drive and than boot to the system on computers or laptops supporting booting from USB drive. So first of all go and check if the computer you want to run Ubuntu on supports this feature (you will find it in documentation to your PC or you can have a look at BIOS or booting menu during the first few seconds of computer’s start up).

As you could see in video, it really is nothing complicated. For the ones who prefer reading manuals ;) here is the procedure written in steps (you can find simplified instructions also on Pendrivelinux.com). You will need to do this procedure on computer running Windows.

1. In first step I suggest to start with creating a folder (lets say on the Desktop) with name “Ubuntu on USB”. After this you need to download  ISO CD image of Ubuntu from Ubuntu’s website (this tutorial is for version 9.04 9.10 (both 32bit and 64bit) but will be updated as soon as new version is available) and installation file U904p.exe U910p.exe from the Pendrivelinux.com article and save both of them to the folder.
2. Open the folder “Ubuntu on USB” with downloaded files and run U904p.exe U910p.exe. File will decompress and create a folder of the same name.
3. Now move Ubuntu ISO file to “U904p” “U910p” folder.
4. Connect your USB flash drive (repeating: minimal capacity needs to be 2GB) to the computer and note the drive letter that Windows assign to it (you can check it in My Computer). As you can see in video, on my laptop it was drive “i”.
5. Now run file U904.bat U910.bat (or just U904 U910 when you can’t see the extention). Note that when you are on Windows Vista, you will need to run the file as administrator (right click on file and choose to run as administrator).
   
6. When installation starts it will ask you to enter the USB flash drive letter (in my case it is “i”, remember?) to process and copy files to the drive. So type in the letter (just one letter, and be careful to type in the right one!!!) and press [ENTER]. Quite long installation process will start so go and make yourself a coffee or something…
7. After installation is over the process will need to make the USB drive bootable. So just press any key when message appears on the screen.
8. By now your USB Ubuntu flash drive is ready to be used, although just in case you have large capacity drive (more than 2GB), you can increase the persistent space of Ubuntu. It will make possible to install more software and save more data than.If you want that, just go to Pendrivelinux.com website and scroll down to section “Persistent size” where you can download casper-rw loop files of 3 sizes (2, 3 and 4GB as original casper-rw file is 1GB large). You just need to unpack the file to your USB flash drive overwriting the old one.There is new simple procedure on how to resize the casper-rw file responsible for the size of persistent partition.
9. Now the last thing left is to test if your USB Ubuntu works. Leave the USB flash drive connected and restart your computer. During the start up go to boot menu or BIOS and choose the option to boot from USB.
10. If everything goes right, Ubuntu Install Boot Menu appears. Here just choose “Run Ubuntu Persistently” (should be the first option) and wait for Ubuntu to boot up. And now just enjoy and play with it!

You are ready to take your system and files virtually anywhere! Just plug it in the computer (supporting booting from USB…) and you can rock ;) All the settings you will edit in the system will be saved. Including appearance. This is also good way to have backup system in case something happened to your Windows for example. I dealt with a problem that Windows crashed totaly and its reinstallation was needed. The problem was that user wanted his data back. I used this USB system to boot and copied his data to connected external harddrive. So, don’t hesitate, try this and leave comments!

Software used in video: Opera web browser and FreeCommander file manager.

As long term Windows user I felt a temptation to try something new. Surely I wanted to go for Apple computer and operating system but the price made me turn to Linux. Basically because it is free and also I got a feeling it is more similar to Mac OS X than to Windows.

I tried several Linux distributions and some of them really impressed me (like gOS for example) although I choose the most popular one – Ubuntu. The decision was affected by the fact that there is huge community around Ubuntu and if I have a problem, I would have better chances to find a solution.

Alright, but which Ubuntu derivate to choose?

This was a bit of pain. I read all around the net that for Windows user it is easiest to try Kubuntu first… So I went for that and I was impressed with those effects, widgets and panels. I stayed with Kubuntu to the day when I became tired of windows look.

Kubuntu Linux

I wanted it to change (and I heard that Linux is great in customizing, that was one of the reasons why I wanted to try it) but found it more difficult than what I expected. Especially when I looked at some websites showing different beautiful Linux screenshots, I wanted something like that. To my surprise – Kubuntu is not the right way to go in the situation! These days it is probably getting better than when I tried it (a year ago) but I am already under magic spell of classic Ubuntu which is much more customizable. And the difference is in the desktop environment. Kubuntu uses KDE and Ubuntu Gnome, which was the right way to go for me and for anybody who wants highly customizable look.

My customized Ubuntu

To make list of Ubuntu derivates complete, there is also Xubuntu (lightweight derivate which is supposed to run on slower machines – not really usable these days), Ubuntu Netbook Remix (for netbooks of course ;)), school Edubuntu or Ubuntu Studio for multimedia production. Go and try whatever you want. Most of these derivates offer a “Live CD” which is the simplest and non-destructive way of trying one out. You just need to boot the system from this CD. But it is just as simple that you won’t be able to store any changes to the system, nor installing any software…

I want to try Ubuntu with full potential

If you want to try Ubuntu with its full potential, forget about Live CD! What you need is running the system the way that you could install new software, make system updates and saving all your settings including the look. You won’t get this with Live CD simply because the system won’t burn your changes into CD disk. There are several ways of achieving the right results, these are the easiest:

1. Install Ubuntu on USB flashdrive and run it from there (boot the computer to flasdrive)
2. Install Ubuntu on harddrive next to your Windows installation (or onto different partition of harddrive)
3. Final solution is completely new installation of Ubuntu system on your computer

Let me start with the last one as that’s what I started with when I get to Kubuntu. I didn’t know at the time that there was some other solution available and went on with normal installation to my laptop but onto separate drive partition to keep also my Windows and dual-boot with Kubuntu. Bad idea! Linux and Windows uses different system loaders and Linux’s loader overwrote my Vista’s one. It was fine until my Vista crashed completely that I needed to reinstall it (it happens on Windows from time to time ;)). After reinstallation I couldn’t get to Kubuntu as its loader was gone and replaced with Vista’s one again. Bla bla bla, I won’t tell you the whole story. Finally I managed to run both systems again but I told to myself that the nerves I lost during the procedure and possibility of doing it again in the future is not worth that! So I’d say, use the last solution really at last. When you are completely decided to use just Ubuntu, or you can use the solution when you have some spare computer around to sacrifice it as Ubuntu machine.

That’s all for now. In next episodes of this series I will show you how to manage installation with 2 solutions – Ubuntu on flashdrive and Ubuntu using Wubi. I use both.