A Guide to Ubuntu Linux. **New**

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  1. Finchwizard

    Finchwizard Don Apple

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    A Guide to Ubuntu Linux

    So your new to Linux, and don’t know anything, or very little about it.
    Hopefully by the end of this you’ll have a bit more of an idea.

    This guide is for Ubuntu Linux, there are many distro’s out there, each having different ways of doing things and for a different target audience.

    You can check out the great site Distrowatch (www.distrowatch.com)

    We will start off with some FAQ’s.
    (I’ll expand these as people ask.)

    Q: Can I dual boot Linux with Windows?
    A: Yes, most definitely.

    Q: Does Linux have a GUI, if so, which is best?
    A: Yes it does have a GUI, and there are many to choose from these days, the 2 mainstream and feature rich ones are KDE and Gnome.

    Q: Can I play games on Linux?
    A: Yes and No, you can play games on Linux with an Emulation program called WineX, which allows you to install Windows games. Remember DirectX games will be hard as DirectX is for Windows only, where as OpenGL games will have a much better chance of being played because OpenGL is Opensource.
    So if your sole purpose is gaming, I suggest you stick to Windows.


    Getting Started

    What you will need:

    - Internet Connection
    - Blank CD
    - CD Burner
    - Copy of the latest ISO from www.ubuntulinux.org (Currently 6.06LTS Desktop)

    Which ISO should you choose? Well, in most cases, the i386 version is fine.
    If you have an AMD64 you’ll want the amd64 version.

    After you have downloaded the ISO, burn it to a CD, place it in your CD drive and restart your computer.
    Making sure you have set your BIOS to boot off the CD first.

    If all go’s well, Linux will start to load and present you with a GUI desktop as shown in following screenshot.
    Take note that this does not change anything on your computer and is running completely off the CD.

    Feel free to test out the programs and see if it’s something you want to continue playing with.

    [​IMG]


    Installation:

    So you’ve decided to install Ubuntu?
    Great stuff, all you need to do is double click on the “Install” Icon on the Desktop and it will start the installation process.

    Below are the screenshots of each step, I am not installing this on a machine that already has Windows, if you are, it will have some extra steps when it comes to partitioning and allow you to make room for Ubuntu.
    Please remember you should have a current working backup of Windows beforehand if you decided you want to Dual Boot.


    Step 1 it asks for your language, English is the default language, you can choose from a wide range.

    [​IMG]

    Step 2 asks your location, choose the closes place by clicking on the map or the City Drop down menu.
    Also change the time if it is incorrect.

    [​IMG]

    Step 3 you choose the layout of your keyboard, most people will be choosing American English here.

    [​IMG]

    Step 4 asks for a Username and Password to use, as well as what you want to call your computer.

    [​IMG]

    Step 5 is where you choose where you want to install Ubuntu, yours may look different if you are installing this as a Dual Boot system.

    Mine I will be erasing the entire disk.

    [​IMG]

    Step 6 is just a summary of what you have chosen, make sure you haven’t made any mistakes here, as it’s the last time you will have to correct something.

    [​IMG]

    Ubuntu will now install itself to the hard drive and install the Boot record etc, total install time will be around 15-20min. (Depends on computer)

    When installation is completed, you will be given the option to continue using the LiveCD or to restart into your new system.
    Choose Restart Now unless you are planning on doing something else.
     
    Last edited: Jun 29, 2006
  2. Finchwizard

    Finchwizard Don Apple

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    Configuration

    After starting your new install, you will be presented with the Login screen.
    Continue to login with the details you provided in Step 4 in the Installation section above.

    [​IMG]


    First things you will need to configure is Network settings.

    If you are unsure how to configure a network, I suggest you jump over to the networking section and take a look at the diagrams I've made on setting up a Simple Network.

    Steps for setting IP address:

    - Click System
    - Hover your mouse over Administration
    - Click Networking

    You will be prompted for a Password, put in your password.
    (This is something that is very different to Windows. To perform system tasks you will need to supply passwords, this stops accidental changes by someone or a malicious script etc)

    [​IMG]

    Click on the Properties of your Ethernet card and assign an IP address, as well as the DNS settings in the DNS tab.

    Now that you have a network connection up and running, it's time to make sure your Ubuntu is up to date.
    You can either wait for Ubuntu to check for updates automatically, or do it manually by going to the Update Manager under System > Administration > Update Manager

    [​IMG]


    Proceed to update all the packages needing to be updated, these are either Security updates or program updates, it's a good idea to always keep them updated.

    After all your updates have been applied.
    It's now time to install all the good stuff, and this has been made extremely easy with the Automatix script.

    This will download and install (Upon your selection) things like Adobe Acrobat Reader, Java, DVD Playback, Mp3 codecs, Video players, Audio players, all the Flash codecs in Firefox.
    All the things that used to be a bit of a pain to get, are now installed very easy.

    Open a Terminal by going to Applications > Accessories > Terminal

    Type the following.

    Code:
    sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list
    Add the following line to the bottom of the document.

    Code:
    deb http://www.beerorkid.com/automatix/apt dapper main
    Save and close Gedit.

    You will now have to obtain the GPG encryption keys and import them.
    You can do this by executing the following in the open terminal.

    Code:
    wget http://www.beerorkid.com/automatix/apt/key.gpg.asc
    gpg --import key.gpg.asc
    gpg --export --armor 521A9C7C | sudo apt-key add -
    
    If you don't see any errors, you can now update your sources list by executing the following in Terminal.

    Code:
    sudo apt-get update
    sudo apt-get install automatix
    
    You can now find your Automatix program under Applications > System Tools > Automatix

    Take note of the Legal section as Automatix starts up, if you do live in the USA you are taking full responsibility for your actions as it is illegal to install some proprietary plugins and codecs. This is why they are not included in most Linux distributions, and is totally your responsibility if you decide to install them.

    That said, select what things you think you will need, Acrobat Reader, Ctrl Alt Delete, DVD Codecs etc. And then click Ok, it will proceed to download all the packages and dependencies.

    [​IMG]

    That is the major part of configuration and what people will struggle with.


    Video Acceleration and Drivers:

    One of the other biggest challenges is when it comes ti Videocard drivers and enabling 3D acceleration.
    Because I don't have a machine with a decent videocard in it, I can not test and show the steps.

    The following Links provide HowTos on the subject.

    Nvidia
    http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=139264

    ATI
    http://www.compiz.net/viewtopic.php?id=389

    The ATI one includes using XGL etc.
     
    Last edited: Jun 29, 2006
  3. Finchwizard

    Finchwizard Don Apple

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    Visual Changes:

    Now that you've got your system up to date, and you've got all the codecs to play all the common files and formats, you can adjust your computer to look good.

    This is really a preference on the user, but the main quick changes can be found under System > Preferences

    There are a lot of different preferences you can set, be it screen res, themes, sound.

    [​IMG]

    One of the better sites to adjust the look of your new Ubuntu install is http://www.gnome-look.org/

    You can get new Loading screens, Window themes, Icons, you name it, it's in there.

    If for some reason you got KUbuntu, you can find the KDE site at http://www.kde-look.org

    Have fun with your new install and feel free to ask questions in the OS Section of Guru3D.

    If you want quick answers by very knowledgeable and friendly people.
    http://www.ubuntuforums.org is the place to be.

    I will try to get some other updates about Ubuntu into this thread, but I'm usually pretty busy.
     
    Last edited: Jun 29, 2006
  4. Finchwizard

    Finchwizard Don Apple

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  5. Finchwizard

    Finchwizard Don Apple

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