Help Desk Geek – Help Desk Tips For IT Pros

If you have installed the latest version of Ubuntu (10.04 – Lucid Lynx), there is a useful script available, called Ubuntu 10.04 Start, that speeds up the initial configuration of Ubuntu. The script installs some popular applications and tweaks, and fixes some annoyances.

You can install search for each application in Synaptic Package Manager or the Ubuntu Software Center and manually install it. However, Skype is only available on their website and no longer in the Medibuntu repository, so you will have to download that and install it manually. Google Chrome must also be downloaded from their site and installed manually.

With respect to the tweaks that the Ubuntu 10.04 Start script performs, not all of these tweaks are available in tweaking software such as Ubuntu Tweak, let alone in a single tweaking application. The Ubuntu 10.04 Start script decreases the time spend configuring Ubuntu 10.04 dramatically and should also help new Ubuntu users since the script configures a lot of things without input from the user.

The first thing you need to do is install a tool called Zenity. This allows the script to display dialog boxes as it runs. To do this, open a terminal window and enter the following command:

$ sudo apt-get install zenity

In our case, Zenity was already installed. However, it doesn’t hurt to issue the above command in case it is not installed.

Enter the following command to download the Ubuntu 10.04 Start script.

$ wget http://launchpad.net/ubuntustart/0.4.x/0.4.9/+download/ubuntu-10.04-start-0.4.9.8.tar.gz

NOTE: Be sure to check the URL to the current version of Ubuntu 10.04 Start script. Go to Ubuntu Start in Launchpad and check put your mouse cursor over the link to the .tar.gz file at the top of the Downloads list on the right side of the page.

If you are using Firefox, the full URL to the file displays in the status bar at the bottom of window. Use that URL in the wget command listed above.

Since you didn’t change the directory when you opened the terminal window, the Ubuntu 10.04 Start script is downloaded directly to your default directory, which is the Home directory.

Once the script is downloaded, enter the following command to untar (decompress) it.

$ tar –xvf ubuntu-10.04-start-0.4.9.8.tar.gz

Again, remember to use the name of the .tar.gz that you downloaded, depending on the current version.

The files are expanded into a directory called ubuntu-10.04-start. Enter the following command to switch to this directory.

$ cd ubuntu-10.04-start

Enter the following command to start the Ubuntu 10.04 Start script.

$ sudo ./ubuntu-10.04-script

The script starts with a dialog box asking you to select a language. Click the radio button for the desired language and click OK.

The Step 1: Tweaks, fixes and repositories dialog box displays.

NOTE: Be sure to read the Important items at the top of the dialog box before continuing.

Choose the items you want to apply or install by selecting the appropriate check boxes. Click OK to continue.

If you have selected to install the Sharp Fonts in Step 1, a dialog box displays warning you that it may take a few minutes depending on the your connection speed. Click OK.

The progress of the installation of the Sharp Fonts displays in the terminal window.

If you selected to change the Update Manager behavior to the one in Jaunty (a previous version of Ubuntu), you will see a read arrow added to the top panel. This indicates how many updates are available for your Ubuntu system. This prevents the Update Manager dialog box popping up every time you log in to your account.

Next, a dialog box displays informing you that the servers containing the repositories will be tested. Click OK.

NOTE: If you have installed the Sharp Fonts, your dialog boxes, menus and other text in Ubuntu will look like the text on the following dialog box.

The progress of getting the package sources displays in the terminal window.

Once the script is finished getting the package sources, a dialog box displays. Click OK to continue to Step 2.

The Step 2: Install packages dialog box displays. Choose the programs you want to install by selecting the appropriate check boxes. Click OK when you have finished making your selections.

A dialog box displays indicating that the download and installation of the selected packages will begin. You are warned not to restart your computer until this process is finished. Click OK.

NOTE: This process may take a while depending on the speed of your internet connection.

The progress of the download and installation process displays in the terminal window.

There is also a notification on the top panel (on the Update Manager arrow icon) indicating that a package manager is working.

At some point during the process, a dialog box displays asking you which dock(s) you want to install. Select one or more of the three check boxes to select the dock(s). Click OK.

The progress of the download and installation of the selected dock(s) displays in the terminal window.

A dialog box displays asking you to specify a screen resolution for Bisigi Themes, if these are being installed. Select one of the two choices, and click OK.

The download and installation process continues. When it is finished, a dialog box displays to inform you. Click OK.

In the terminal window, you are returned to a prompt. To close the terminal window, type exit and press Enter.

Now, you can use the applications you installed as part of the Ubuntu 10.04 Start script. The Chromium Web Browser is one of the applications we chose to install.

When you start the Chromium Web Browser, a dialog box displays allowing you to import settings from Firefox. You can also choose to make Chromium your default web browser. Click Start Chromium.

The Chromium Web Browser is similar to Google Chrome.

Some of the applications available in the Ubuntu 10.04 Start script require compositing to be turned on. Compositing permits advanced visual effects by using buffers and manipulating the images before they appear on the screen.

Metacity is one of the tools that provides these effects, which include window shadowing, smoother window movement, and thumbnail views when using Alt + Tab to switch between windows

To turn on the compositing manager in Metacity, open a terminal window and enter the following command at the prompt:

$ gconf-editor /apps/metacity

The Configuration Editor displays with the metacity item selected in the tree in the left pane. Select the general item and select the check box next to compositing_manager in the right pane.

To close the Configuration Editor, select Quit from the File menu.

The Ubuntu 10.04 Start script provides an easy, one-stop download and installation process to add some useful tweaks and applications to your fresh Ubuntu 10.04 installation. You can keep checking for updates to the script at Ubuntu Start in Launchpad. New tweaks and applications may be added over time.

by Lori Kaufman