Disable the Ubuntu 11.10 Guest Session

I am a bit of a security wonk and strongly dislike guest accounts so one of the things I have researched since loading up Ubuntu 11.10 is how to disable the guest account available on the login screen. In the past, with GDM, all that had to be done is an uninstall of gdm-guest-session. With Ubuntu 11.10 switching to lightDM this has changed. To remove the guest login option you have to modify /etc/lightdm/lightdm.conf.
original

[SeatDefaults]
greeter-session=unity-greeter
user-session=ubuntu

modified

[SeatDefaults]
greeter-session=unity-greeter
user-session=ubuntu
allow-guest=false

You can either reboot or restart the service.

sudo restart lightdm

Please note that restarting lightdm will end your session so do not do this with applications running. This will now remove the guest login as an option from the login screen. I hope this helps out anyone, who like me, is concerned about restricting access to their computer.

How to run windows games on Linux?

So, you just started using Linux, but found out that your favorite Windows games and applications do not have a Linux edition. What should you do then? Set up a separate computer just for Windows, or abandon Linux and go back to Windows. If you have the means, you can opt for the former, but the second option is not necessary.
Why? Well, you see, you can run many Windows games and applications directly in your favorite Linux distribution, without installing Windows. That magic is made possible by an application called Wine. (The name is recursive for Wine Is Not an Emulator.)
Running Wine is very simple. Because it is already in your distribution’s repository, all you need to do is install it using your distribution’s package manager. But installing it is just the beginning. You have to configure it.
But even that is easy because most people running Wine configure and manage it using a graphical frontend, of which there is just a few in active development. In this article, I will list the graphical interfaces that are still in active development.
Note that not all Windows programs will run on Wine, and even some that run will not do so without one or more minor or major issues that will need fixing.

There are four graphical interface still in active development. They are: Winetricks, PlayonLinux, WineGame, and Q4wine.

1. Winetricks – This is the best of the frontends. It was a lot more fun to use than the others. Its most important feature is that it makes it easy to install trial or demo applications without you actually having the applications or games. It does that by downloading and installing selected applications from the program’s website. This is its startup interface.
   
   And this is a partial list of available applications. Those that show “download” in the “Media” column are automatically downloaded and installed.
   
   That was how I installed World of Warcraft (WoW). This is a screenshot from a test installation.
   
2. PlayonLinux – Offers a simple to use interface, but does not have the automatic download-and-install feature of Winetricks. What it does have, however, is a very active community.
   
3. WineGame – This will probably not be in your distribution’s repository, but you may install it by following the instructions here. I did not have much success working with WineGame, but that should not stop you from trying it. The image below shows the main interface.
   
4. Q4wine – This a Qt4 interface for Wine, and runs on Linux and FreeBSD, which likely means that it will also run on PC-BSD. Like PlayonLinux and WineGame, Q4wine did not work as well as Winetricks. A few of its features are:
   • Can work with different versions of wine simultaneously
   • Makes it easy to extract icons from PE files (.exe .dll)
   • Autostart icons support
   This image shows the startup view of Q4wine.
   
   And this, shows the Programs tab. You may view more screenshots here.
   

Ubuntu 11.10 (Oneiric Ocelot) tweaks

Some of those tweaks still work but since this is a new version, there are new things that need tweaking so I've decided to make a new post with some popular old tweaks as well as some new ones.

Read on!

General tweaks (for both GNOME Shell and Unity)

Change themes, fonts and more with GNOME Tweak Tool

In Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot you can only switch between the default GTK themes by default. Also, there's no built-in GUI to easily change fonts or icon themes. But you can do this using GNOME Tweak Tool:

sudo apt-get install gnome-tweak-tool

Once installed, GNOME Tweak Tool should show up as "Advanced Settings" in the menu. Besides changing fonts or themes, GNOME Tweak Tool can also be used to enable/disable GNOME Shell extensions, tweak the desktop, various windows behavior or GNOME Shell.

No screensaver in GNOME 3.2

GNOME 3 doesn't have a screensaver, just a black screen. If you want to use a screensaver, you can use Xscreensaver - install it using the following commands (this will also remove gnome-screensaver):

sudo apt-get remove gnome-screensaver
sudo apt-get install xscreensaver xscreensaver-gl-extra xscreensaver-data-extra

Then search for "Screensaver" in the menu and tweak its settings to your needs.

To add Xscreensaver to startup, open Startup Applications and add "xscreensaver -nosplash".


Let's also make the lock screen work (CTRL + ALT + L):

sudo ln -s /usr/bin/xscreensaver-command /usr/bin/gnome-screensaver-command

To be able to watch a movie properly, also install Caffeine:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:caffeine-developers/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install caffeine python-glade2

To revert the changes (go back to the black GNOME Screensaver screen):

sudo apt-get remove xscreensaver xscreensaver-gl-extra xscreensaver-data-extra
sudo rm /usr/bin/gnome-screensaver-command
sudo apt-get install gnome-screensaver

Nautilus search

Partially fix annoying Nautilus behavior that doesn't let you properly search by typing when there are a lot of files/folders: in Nautilus, select View > Statusbar.

Install Syanptic

Synaptic is not installed by default in Ubuntu 11.10 and while Ubuntu Software Center got many new features, it still can't do everything Synaptic can. Install Synaptic back using the following command:

sudo apt-get install synaptic

Disable Overlay Scrollbars

If you don't like the overlay scrollbars, you can remove them using the following command:

sudo apt-get remove overlay-scrollbar liboverlay-scrollbar3-0.2-0 liboverlay-scrollbar-0.2-0

Then, restart your computer (performing a logout only may not be enough).

To revert this change, install the packages back:

sudo apt-get install overlay-scrollbar liboverlay-scrollbar3-0.2-0 liboverlay-scrollbar-0.2-0

And restart your computer.

Missing features: web apps and file previewer

Two missing GNOME 3.2 features in Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot (for both Unity and GNOME Shell) are the web applications and Sushi quick previewer.

The first requires Epiphany 3.2.0 which is available in the WebUpd8 GNOME 3 PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/gnome3
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install epiphany-browser

And the second - Sushi file previewer -, is available in the official Ubuntu repositories:

sudo apt-get install gnome-sushi

Longer battery life

I don't know if the kernel power bug is real or not, but many users have reported that using Jupiter or a tweak we've posted a while back, their laptop/netbook battery life increased. Install Jupiter using the following commands:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/jupiter
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install jupiter

If you have an EeePC, also install the following package for SHE support:

sudo apt-get install jupiter-support-eee

As for the other tweak, see this post: Linux Kernel Power Issue / Overheat Workaround.

No more Sun/Oracle Java

The "sun-java6" package is no longer available in the official Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot repositories due to the removal of the JDL license. Java 7 won't be in Oneiric either, but you still have 3 options:

- Install OpenJDK:

sudo apt-get install openjdk-7-jre

- Or Oracle (previously Sun) Java 6 from the LFFL PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ferramroberto/java
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install sun-java6-jdk sun-java6-plugin

- Or manually install Java 7 (JDK) in Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot.

GNOME Shell tweaks

Fix ALT + F2

ALT + F2 doesn't work by default in GNOME Shell under Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot. To fix it, open "System Settings" and under Keyboard > Shortcuts > System, click "Disabled" next to "Show the run command prompt" and press ALT + F2 - this should set ALT + F2 for running the command prompt.

Easily change GNOME Shell themes

To be able to easily change the GNOME Shell theme, besides GNOME Tweak Tool you'll also need the User Theme extension, available in the WebUpd8 GNOME3 PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/gnome3
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install gnome-shell-extensions-user-theme

Then use GNOME Tweak Tool to activate the theme.

For more extensions, see: Official GNOME Shell Extensions Available In The WebUpd8 GNOME 3 PPA For Ubuntu 11.10.

Move icons from Message tray (bottom tray) to the Top Bar

Some might find the notification area icons showing up in the Message Tray (at the bottom of the screen, hidden by default) annoying or confusing. But you can move the icon on the Top Bar using an extension:

sudo apt-get install git-core
cd
git clone https://github.com/rcmorano/gnome-shell-gnome2-notifications.git
sudo cp -r gnome-shell-gnome2-notifications/gnome-shell-gnome2-notifications@emergya.com /usr/share/gnome-shell/extensions/

Then press ALT + F2 and enter "r" to restart GNOME Shell.

Important: this extension shows up as disabled in GNOME Tweak Tool because of an error in the extension code. Despite this, the extension still works!

No shutdown menu entry

By default, there's no shutdown entry in the status menu and you must press and hold ALT to be able to shutdown your computer when using GNOME Shell. But this can be changed by installing Alternative Status Menu extension which adds "Power off" and "Hibernate" to the status menu, visible at all time (and not just when pressing the ALT key). Install it:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/gnome3
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install gnome-shell-extensions-alternative-status-menu

Then use GNOME Tweak Tool to enable the extension.

Fix Nautilus menu being displayed under the GNOME Shell top bar when using transparent GNOME Shell themes

If you use a transparent GNOME Shell theme such as Zukitwo, the Nautilus menu shows up behind the top bar. You can fix this either by removing global menu (see below, under "Unity tweaks") or by disabling Nautilus from handling the desktop using GNOME Tweak Tool (under "Desktop", set "Have file manager handle the desktop" to off):

Disabling Nautilus from handling the desktop means you won't have any icons on the desktop anymore. If this is a big deal to you, remove AppMenu (Global Menu) - but you won't have a global menu in Unity anymore (though that shouldn't be a big issue if you don't use Unity anyway).

To install GNOME Tweak Tool, see the first tweak in this post.

Unity tweaks

Configure Unity (autohide, etc.)

Unity 3D can be configured through CompizConfig Settings Manager, but CCSM isn't installed by default so let's install it:

sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager

Using CCSM you can configure the Unity Launcher reavel mode and timeout, the Unity Launcher autohide (autohide, dodge windows, dodge active windows or disable autohide), various keyboard shortcuts, the new ALT + TAB switcher behavior, blacklight mode, panel and launcher opacity, launcher icon size and more.

A few quick stuff I for one always tweak using CCSM (open CompizConfig Settings Manager and click the "Ubuntu Unity Plugin"):

To disable launcher autohide: on the "Behavior tab" under "Hide Launcher", select "Never".

To disable mounted devices from showing up on the Unity Launcher: on the "Experimental" tab, under "Show Devices" select "Never".

By default, applications that usually take 75% of the screen are maximized automatically on start. To change this automaximize value, on the "Experimental" tab, look for "Automaximize value" - tweak this to whatever value you want.

Configure Unity 2D

Some Unity 2D settings as well as other tweaks can be performed using "dconf-editor", part of the "dconf-tools" package. Install it using the following command:

sudo apt-get install dconf-tools

Then press ALT + F2 and enter: "dconf-editor" to launch it. You can find the Unity 2D settings under com > canonical > unity-2d.

Re-enable the systray (notification area)

You no longer need to whitelist Qt applications but you may still need the systray for other applications such as Shutter, Jupiter, etc. You can whitelist the systray using the following command:

gsettings set com.canonical.Unity.Panel systray-whitelist "['all']"

Then log out and log back in.

Disable Global Menu (AppMenu)

Don't like the global menu? Get the menu back in the application window instead of using a global menu on the top panel:

sudo apt-get remove appmenu-gtk3 appmenu-gtk appmenu-qt

Then, restart your computer (performing a logout only may not be enough).

You can also disable the global menu without removing any package. See HERE.

To revert the changes, install these packages back:

sudo apt-get install appmenu-gtk3 appmenu-gtk appmenu-qt

And restart your computer.

Use a global menu for LibreOffice

By default, LibreOffice doesn't come with a Global Menu but you can manually install it:

sudo apt-get install lo-menubar

If you experience any issues with it, simply remove it:

sudo apt-get remove lo-menubar

Disable the user switcher indicator

The user switcher indicator (or Me-User-Indicator or whatever is called) can be useful if multiple users log in on your computer but if it's just one user, you can get more space by disabling it. Presuming you've already installed the "dconf-tools" package: press ALT + F2 or open a terminal and enter:

dconf-editor

Then navigate to apps > indicator-session and uncheck the box next to "user-show-menu", then restat Unity (ALT + F2 and enter "unity --replace") or log out and log back in.

Something went wrong! How do I reset Unity or Compiz?

You can easily reset Unity or Compiz using the following commands (be careful when using these commands and only use them if you really have to!):

- to reset the Unity launcher icons:

unity --reset-icons

- to reset Unity:

unity --reset

- to reset Compiz:

gconftool-2 --recursive-unset /apps/compiz-1
unity --reset

Using a different "shell"

By default, Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot uses Unity 3D (with Compiz). If you don't like it, you can try a different interface, while still using GNOME:

Unity 2D

Unity 2D is installed by default and is used as the fall-back mode for computers that can't run Unity 3D. To use Unity 2D, log out and select "Ubuntu 2D" in the login screen:

GNOME Shell

GNOME Shell is not installed by default but you can easily install it from the official Ubuntu repositories:

sudo apt-get install gnome-shell

Once installed, log out and select "GNOME" from the login screen:

Classic GNOME 3 session

You can also use the GNOME 3 classic session. Install it using the following command:

sudo apt-get install gnome-session-fallback

And select "GNOME Classic" from the login screen:

About Ubuntu 11.10(Oneiric Ocelot)

"There is nothing like a dream to create the future." - Victor Hugo

The Ubuntu team is pleased to announce Ubuntu 11.10, code-named
"Oneiric Ocelot". 11.10 continues Ubuntu's proud tradition of
integrating the latest and greatest open source technologies 
into a high-quality, easy-to-use Linux distribution.

For PC users, Ubuntu 11.10 supports laptops, desktops and netbooks 
with a unified look and feel based on an updated version of the 
desktop shell called "Unity", which introduces specialized "Lenses".
Finding and installing software using the Ubuntu Software Centre is 
now easier thanks to improvements in speed, search functionality
enhancements, and usability improvements. Aside from updates 
on the performance side, it's also more aesthetically appealing.

Ubuntu Server 11.10 has made it much easier to provision, deploy, 
host, manage, and orchestrate enterprise data centre infrastructure
services with the introduction of "Orchestra".  The Juju technical
preview allows service developers to describe the deployment and 
scaling requirements of their applications, in order to simplify 
and enhance the dialogue between developers and operations teams.
For those working on the ARM architecture, a technical preview is 
also provided for the ARM server.

Read more about the new features of Ubuntu 11.10 in the following 
press releases:

   http://www.canonical.com/content/transforming-home-pc-ubuntu-1110 
   http://www.canonical.com/content/client-cloud-ubuntu-1110-sets-pace-business-it 


Standard maintenance updates will be provided for Ubuntu 11.10 for 
18 months, through April 2013.

Thanks to the efforts of the global translation community, Ubuntu 
is now available in 38 languages.  For a list of available languages 
and detailed translation statistics for these and other languages, see:

   http://people.canonical.com/~dpm/stats/ubuntu-11.10-translation-stats.html 


Ubuntu 11.10 is the base for the newest 11.10 iterations of Kubuntu,
Xubuntu, Edubuntu, Mythbuntu, Ubuntu Studio, and our newest addition
to this release cycle, Lubuntu!

Kubuntu:       http://kubuntu.org/news/11.10-release  
Xubuntu:       http://xubuntu.org/news/11.10-release  
Edubuntu       http://edubuntu.org/news/11.10-release
Mythbuntu:     http://mythbuntu.org/11.10/release 
Ubuntu Studio: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuStudio/11.10release_notes
Lubuntu:       https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Lubuntu/Announcement/11.10


Ubuntu 11.10 is also now available on two new ARM community-supported
ports. 
AC100 (Toshiba Tegra 2 Netbook): https://wiki.ubuntu.com/ARM/TEGRA/AC100
MX5 (Freescale i.MX53 QuickStart): https://wiki.ubuntu.com/ARM/MX5


To get Ubuntu 11.10
-------------------

In order to download Ubuntu 11.10, visit:

  http://www.ubuntu.com/download/ubuntu/download


Users of Ubuntu 11.04 will be offered an automatic upgrade to 11.10
via Update Manager. For further information about upgrading, see:

  http://www.ubuntu.com/download/ubuntu/upgrade


As always, upgrades to the latest version of Ubuntu are entirely free of
charge.

We recommend that all users read the release notes, which document
caveats, workarounds for known issues, as well as more in-depth notes 
on the release itself. They are available at:

  http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/releasenotes


Find out what's new in this release with a graphical overview:

  http://www.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/whats-new
  http://www.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/features


If you have a question, or if you think you may have found a bug but
aren't sure, you can try asking in any of the following places:

  #ubuntu on irc.freenode.net
  http://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-users
  http://www.ubuntuforums.org/ 
  http://askubuntu.com/


Help Shape Ubuntu
--------------------

If you would like to help shape Ubuntu, take a look at the list 
of ways you can participate at:

  http://www.ubuntu.com/community/participate/


About Ubuntu
------------

Ubuntu is a full-featured Linux distribution for desktops, laptops,
netbooks and servers, with a fast and easy installation and regular
releases.  A tightly-integrated selection of excellent applications
is included, and an incredible variety of add-on software is just a
few clicks away.

Professional services including support are available from Canonical
and hundreds of other companies around the world.  For more information
about support, visit:

  http://www.ubuntu.com/support


More Information
----------------

You can learn more about Ubuntu and about this release on our website
listed below:

  http://www.ubuntu.com/


To sign up for future Ubuntu announcements, please subscribe to Ubuntu's
very low volume announcement list at:

  http://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-announce/

Photoshop (like programs) on Linux

Photoshop is without doubt the most well known piece of photo editing software. It is used by serious hobby photographers and professionals alike. However, although you can run Photoshop on a Linux machine by using a virtual box containing a Windows operating system, there are some good alternatives available on Linux. Unlike with the Windows or Apple operating systems, most Linux software is open source and so free to install and use. There is also a good reason why you should be wary of paying for some types of software on Linux. Here is our round-up of the best on offer.

GIMP - The GNU Image Manipulation Program
GIMP is certainly the most popular program for editing photos on Linux. It offers almost all the same features as Photoshop and is very user friendly. Making the transition from Photoshop to GIMP is a very easy process. GIMP provides all the standard photo editing options such as cropping, color enhancements, exposure and contrast corrections.
GIMP also provides some advanced features such as a perspective distortion fix and lens barrel distortion and vignetting can be fixed using the GIMP filters. GIMP makes it easier to backup and share photos as it has built in a virtual file system which allows you to save files to remote locations via FTP, SMB and SSH. GIMP comes equipped with powerful image compression to help you save on valuable storage space. Visit  http://www.gimp.org/ to download.

GIMPShop

GIMPShop is essentially the same as GIMP but it has been modified to be more like Photoshop. If you really do not want to learn something new then GIMPShop is for you. The menu structure has been changed so that the tools are in the same places as in Photoshop. If you are unsure about trying GIMP then try GIMPShop first. You can download Gimpshop here: http://www.gimpshop.com/download.shtml

Darktable

Darktable describes itself as a photography workflow application: a virtual lighttable and darkroom for photographers.
It processes RAW files and allows you to edit and export images. It is fully non-destructive, which means that they RAW files will not be altered in the processing, instead it just allows the edits to be held in cache before being exported into a new image format such as jpeg.
It deals with overexposed images very well and provides a channel mixer, color contrast, color correction and white balance adjustments. Overall it is a great image editor. To make photo editing easier it offers a fullscreen option. It also allows for exports to a range of image sharing sites such as Picasaweb and Flickr as well as simple file storage or email. The software also allows you to create simple web albums to share online. Learn more and download from http://darktable.sourceforge.net/ .

Krita

Krita is a great image editor which really focuses on images creation rather than photo editing. It provides various artistic tools such as the ability to stretch an image and to paint. It offers many blending and editing modes and the files are compatible with GIMP. You can learn more and download it here: http://krita.org/

Picasa 3 for Linux

Picasa 3 is currently in beta but proves to be a great free tool for photo editing in Linux. One of the best things about using Picasa is that you can automatically sync your edits to your Picasaweb album online. This provides an excellent backup of your photos. Download it here: http://picasa.google.com/linux/

Cautionary Tale: LightZone for Linux

One word of caution. It is important to choose your image editor carefully. One of the main advantages of open source is that they only commitment you have to make is time. Sometimes smaller companies abandon software leaving customers with nothing. LightZone is a classic example of this on Linux.
LightZone was a professional image editor for Linux by Light Crafts that retailed at around $150. It was more advanced than GIMP or Photoshop while still using some of the same principles such as layers for photo editing work. It came with a range of filters that offer one-click styles that allow you to quickly review and process images. LightZone could process RAW files too. However, they were forced to abandon the project and this left many users without support. So be a little wary about investing money into any Linux based software. The same principal really applies to any software. Small companies can be volatile.

Web editors

In addition to these programs there are now several web based tools which are great for making simple edits. Websites such as Picnik.com provide a great service. Also Photoshop Express available on http://www.photoshop.com/tools/expresseditor provides an excellent online editor which is capable of processing all basic photo edits.

GIMP is still the best alternative to Photoshop on Linux for many. It has the best support from a large and loyal community and the most features.

RPM on Ubuntu

Package managment can be a slight hassle if you are trying out many different types of Linux distributions with various package management systems. Deb packages (in Debian based systems) and Rpm packages (in Red Hat based systems) are the most popular. Still there is a way to install an rpm file in Ubuntu. Read on to find out more.

Many application files are available as both as deb packges as well as in .rpm format s but sometimes we may find that the aplication that we need to install is in amother format than what we actually need. So the only plausible way to install it would be to convert one package format to another.

The following procedure will explain about the conversion process:

Before starting the conversion we need to install  ALIEN which helps us to do the conversion.

FYI Alien is a program that converts the rpm, dpkg, stampede slp, and slackware tgz file formats into each other. If you want to use a package from another distribution than the one you have installed on your system, you can use alien to convert it to your preferred package format and install it.

1.Right click on the desktop and click on open terminal and execute the following command

sudo apt-get install alien

2.Now when we execute the above command it will prompt for the password so enter the password that is used for linux login.

3.Next it will display as shown in the screen below and at the end of the message it will ask you for yes(y) or no(n) then give y and hit enter.

4.Installation our last step:

5.First lets us do the conversion of .rpm to .deb :-

(Here the explanation is based upon the .rpm file of google voice and videochat plugin which is taken as our example)

1. Copy the downloaded .rpm file to desktop.

2. Right click on the desktop and open the terminal.

3. Execute the following command :-

sudo alien -k --scripts filename.rpm 

4. .deb file will be generated on the desktop and we can use it for installation

Now we will proceed with the conversion of .deb to .rpm:-

1.Copy the downloaded .deb file to desktop

2.Right click on the desktop and open the terminal

3.Execute the following command :-

sudo alien -r filename.deb

4. .rpm file will be generated on the desktop and we can use it for installation