Updates, Fixes, and a Re-Install

… Or, how I fixed my issues by shutting up and reinstalling.

Yes, you heard right.

I reinstalled Ubuntu the other day (not bad; I was back on my feet in less than 3 hours, updates and everything included).

I have figured out what is causing my sudo GLib error: my fingerprint reader software.  It’s interfering with the way sudo works in the terminal.  Or something.  I’m not sure how to fix this, but it might be fixed in the next update from the Fingerprint GUI folks.  For awhile, sudo worked, but it wasn’t til I added the Fingerpring GUI PPA and installed it that my issues started.

My graphics card is still kind of acting up, but I think that’s a problem with the drivers, and not anything related to my setup.  I’ve installed and enabled the nouveau drivers, so that’s a temperary fix right now.

I do an audit of the software I’m running/using every time I reinstall, and I usually find that I don’t need half of it.  It’s something that should be done every couple of months.  It’s nice to get rid of programs that I’m not using, as well as PPAs.

Anyway, it’s working much better now.

I’m not sure why things always work better with a fresh install (even using the same /home, which is what I do), but they do.  I guess for every upgrade, I should do a fresh install.

So, I recommend you download the .iso, burn a CD or make a bootable USB drive, and give this a spin if you haven’t upgraded or installed yet.  See how it works, try out Unity, and find out of you like Uinty or not.  Me?  I’ve established that I like it.  It’s different, and I think I like that.  I used a dock/launcher anyway, so it wasn’t that hard for me to get used to the new way of doing things.

I still would like some more flexability to change the theme and move the launcher around, but that might be coming in the next version of Unity.

Unity environment in good shape, on track for Ubuntu 11.04

via arstechnica.com

 

Please read the full article on Ars (linked under the picture).

I do think Unity is a neat way to work with the desktop, and most of the bugs I dealt with upon installation have been fixed. I will continue to report bugs when things crash. That’s one of the reasons I run the beta.

This is shaping up to be the most ambitious release yet. I hope it brings in some new users and impresses the old users. It’s impressed me with the way it’s changed since I installed it a couple weeks ago. And I’m seriously impressed in the changes since Maverick Netbook Edition.

Kudos!

More Thoughts on the Natty Beta

I just read this article from The Register.

The author brings up some important points about Unity, but he has to realize that this is a beta.  If it was full release, then harsh criticism would be warrented, but I don’t think it is right now.

I’ve run into some bugs.  Specifically; xorg seems to (randomly) take up 20 to 60 percent of my CPU, compiz likes to crash, and Empathy likes to crash (though it hasn’t today, knock on wood).  I’m not sure if these crashes are caused by issues with the actual programs, or if they are issues relating to the way the OS is working with those programs.

No, Unity is not completely polished, but I can hardly compare it to the KDE4 debacle.  KDE4 was beta software released as stable.  I tried it, and was wholly unimpressed, partly because Plasma crashed.  All the time.  I can actually use Unity; I could not use KDE4 when it came out.

I haven’t completely tested all of my software yet, but from what I’ve seen, things seem to work really well.  I like having everything from each workspace accessible from the launcher; I can click on that program and go right to it.

I wasn’t sure how I’d deal with searching for programs I want, but I’ve found that it’s faster than going to a menu and looking for something.  For instance, gpodder is in the “media” category in the menu system, but I tend to search for it in the “web” category, because it makes sense for me there.  I got tired of this, so I added gpodder to web, so it appears in both categories, but the user shouldn’t have to do that.  With Unity, I just search for “gpodder”, click on it, and I’ve launched the program.  Much faster than clicking on the menu, going to the right category, and then moving the mouse to where the program is that I want, then clicking.

This idea could also help with tech support.  Linux, by nature, allows you to customize your desktop.  This can make it difficult for someone to give tech support.  It’s easier to tell someone to “click on the Ubuntu logo in the left corner of your screen, then click in the search box and search for ‘x’”.

The author brings up adding programs to the launcher as difficult; if you’re using the program anyway, you can easily add the program with a right click.  I usually don’t add a bunch of stuff to the launcher without running it first anyway, but that’s just my use case.  

Regarding applets; I love them, so I’m not particularly unbiased.  I think I get more information from them, and there’s a lot of drive to make new ones that fit the new way the panel works.  Please see OMG!Ubuntu for evidence of this.

I was skeptical when I saw what Maverick offered as Unity, but I can safely say that the Maverick and Natty experiences are completely different.  I still would like to be able to move the launcher to the bottom and keep it’s auto-hiding goodness.

 

Ubuntu Lucid

I’ve upgraded to Ubuntu Lucid on both of my computers.

I’m still rocking the Starling and the Pangolian from System76 and it runs well on both.

I’m running Docky as my lower panel/dock, Gwibber (Pino on the netbook) for my status.net/twitter/facebook needs, Flock, Tomboy, and Pidgin.

Lucid desktop with Docky.

I’m using the Ambience theme with the moved close/max/min buttons.  I wasn’t sure I’d like them, but I think I do.  It’s different and I’ve gotten used to them.

Let’s see… what I like:

• The colors.  Wow, purple and black really suit Ubuntu.  I really like the rebranding.
• Gwibber is now “the” microblogging client for Ubuntu.  It’s neat to see a project/program start up then get accepted to a major Linux distro.
• The new icons.  I can’t stress enough how nice they look.  Wow.
• Bootup time is relatively quick.  I don’t see a major change from Karmic.
• The indicator applets are great.  Once you get used to having them, it’s difficult to go back to the old way.
• Speed, speed, speed!  I see faster application opening under Lucid than under Karmic.  Might just be my imagination though…

What don’t I like:

• The spacing of said indicator applets.  They could be closer together up there to save room.  I don’t see a huge issue here on my laptop, but on the netbook where there’s limited space, it’s a problem.
• I don’t have immediate change on my power applet when I plug in or unplug.  This is minor, and as long as it detects soon enough, I’m happy.
• Empathy.  No metacontacts.  I’d use Empathy if it had metacontacts; it’s really something I need.  This is more of a problem with Empathy, not Ubuntu Lucid, though the program is default for chat.
• The popups are still “down”.  I’d prefer if they were right under the clock, but you can’t always have what you want… Maybe just an option in gconf-editor for them to be moved around?  That’d be great.
• Some applications crash.  It really doesn’t seem to affect the application though, as they start right up after I dismiss the “X has crashed” window.  Strange.

Anyway, this version of Ubuntu is shaping up to be a really great release.  I’m hoping it’s really successful, especially for a LTS release.

The Ubuntu team has done some really nice work with this release.

Oh, my normal disclaimer… this is a beta release, and as such should be regarded as crashy.  Install/update at your own risk.

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