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Ubuntu — and all Debian-based distros — includes the Advanced Packaging Tool (APT), which can be used to easily download and install software for the operating system. This article looks at...
aMSN is a chat client, available for Linux/Ubuntu. It's not installed by default, but can be easily added in the Add/Remove Applications utility. The potential advantage of using aMSN over Pidgin,...
By default, when you enter a command at the command prompt — which, you will remember, is simply an instruction for Linux to execute a particular application — the command prompt won't return...
Beryl has become obsolete, and has been replaced by Compiz.
See the Compiz page for more info.
GRUB's settings are controlled by the /boot/grub/menu.lst file. You can make changes to that file, to control how GRUB presents its boot-up options.
Setup
Before you begin, you should make a...
If you're used to Windows, and want to get used to Ubuntu, you might find this page useful.
This page isn't intended to compare “good vs. bad,” it's just intended to get you used to the...
This page introduces the Compiz window manager1, provides installation instructions, and also provides some handy things you can do with it.
Introduction
Compiz introduces visual effects to the...
I haven't yet put up my contact info, but I will at some point. In the meantime, you can see my Wikidot profile page at the following link:
sernaferna
And I guess you also can go to my blog.
This page covers the steps I had to take to install Ubuntu on my Dell Latitude C640, which is the first computer I ever installed Ubuntu on. (The pictures on this site aren't of my physical unit;...
This was another work laptop. Unfortunately, at the time I was using this laptop, I didn't actively update this page, so it's all from memory. Fortunately, there weren't many issues.
The only issue...
There are a lot of core files and components needed to run the Linux operating system. Some of these components are system-specific, such as the drivers for various hardware components the system...
From the command line, everything is done from the keyboard. You type in a “command,” and Linux does what you tell it. For example, want to know the date? Type in date, and press Enter. Linux...
This page is devoted to command line tools you can use for working with files and directories.
TODO This page is still under construction — I just started it.
Listing Files
You list files...
Gaim is the former name of the all-purpose instant message client that comes with Ubuntu. It has now been renamed Pidgin.
gedit is the default text editor used in Ubuntu. If you're used to Notepad in Windows — or WordPad, if you need a bit more advanced capabilities, or even TextPad if you've downloaded that —...
This section of the site covers general issues, including information about the site itself.
It includes the following sections:
Nerds / Geeks — a discussion of the terms “nerd” and...
This article discusses how Linux provides a Graphical User Interface (GUI). If you’re very new to computers, you might find the whole article interesting; otherwise, you will probably want to use...
This section of the site covers hardware issues.
More than any other part of the site, there will be parts in here which are specific to my machine(s), but I'll try to flag that.
The following...
If you are allowed to edit pages in this Site, simply click on edit button at the bottom of the page. This will open an editor with a toolbar pallette with options.
To...
This page will walk you through the installation process. For the purposes of this page, I'm assuming that you've already made the decision to install Ubuntu.
I don't have any screenshots on this...
Yet again, another work laptop.
Issues
Here is what I've discovered so far, for this laptop:
The built-in wireless card worked out of the box, and so did the bluetooth hardware. (I didn't have to...
This page will cover the steps I have to take to install Ubuntu on my HP Pavilion Laptop.
There's nothing to read yet, though, because I haven't yet done it. (Sorry to get your hopes up…)
This section of the site deals with issues I've had with installing Ubuntu on my various computers. I had thought about putting this in the Software section, but then, on further consideration,...
Since I don't know what I'm doing, and keep messing up my system, I install Ubuntu on a fairly regular basis. This is a checklist I put together, of common things I install or configure right away,...
My name is David Hunter — sernaferna, when I'm online — and I'm a self-professed nerd. I have various blogs online, including sernaferna and the serna Bible Blog. I'm in the computer field,...
This page explains how to get Java up and running on Ubuntu.
JDK vs. JRE
Depending on whether you'll be doing Java development, or if you're just a regular user who wants to be able to run...
Thanks for your interest, but unfortunately this site isn't currently open for membership. There are, however, various other Ubuntu forums and wikis around, that you might be able to...
Before we can start talking about Ubuntu, we'll have to talk about Linux.
What is an Operating System?
An operating system (usually appreviated to OS, pronounced “oh-ess”) is a very...
By far the most common command used in Linux — or Unix, for that matter — is the ls command, which lists the contents of a directory (files and sub-directories).
The Basics
In its simplest...
This section of the site has information that didn't fit in elsewhere.
The main page that will probably be useful is Using the Command Line, which has some common and/or helpful commands that you...
Here is a perfect example of where users who are new to Ubuntu will get frustrated with Linux. I have a Microsoft IntelliMouse, with Back and Forward buttons, and a scrollwheel. Unfortunately, the...
For the most part, Ubuntu works pretty much “out of the box” — run the installation program, boot into Ubuntu, and you're up and running. From what I can understand, computers with multiple...
I haven't installed Ubuntu on a lot of computers, but I've had a few. And, to date, they've all been laptops, since I've only installed Ubuntu on my work computers, and not [yet] my home...
As you're working with the command line, you always have a working directory — that is, the directory you're currently in. By default, when you open a command line, you're in your home directory,...
On this site I'll be using the terms “nerd” and “geek” quite a bit, so I should be clear what I mean. For someone who really is a nerd/geek, these terms are not insults,...
This page talks about OpenOffice.org — the word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation manager1 — and any issues I had with it, and/or extra steps needed to get it up and running.
Any time...
module "wiki/pagestagcloud/PagesListByTagModule"
Ubuntu comes bundled with an instant messaging client, called Pidgin.
About Pidgin
Pidgin is a general-purpose client, which can connect to any of the following...
This article explains how to chain various commands together, so that the output of one becomes the input of another — called piping — as well as how to direct output to and from files, instead...
This page includes instructions for using a simple utility for recording desktop sessions.
Note that there are two ways to record your desktop session: the “hard” (command-line) way, or the...
This page will definitely need editing, in the future, because I'm not an expert on Unix/Linux security.
If you'd like, you can skip right down to the discussion of the sudo command.
This page...
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font-size: 16px;
margin-top: 0px;
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#page-title {
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h1, h2, h3, h4, h5, h6 {...
Unfortunately, for various reasons — mostly having to do with copyright laws, and other such nonsense — a lot of audio and video won't work “out of the box” with Ubuntu, or most Linux...
Welcome page
Introduction
General
Nerds / Geeks
Linux
Ubuntu
Comparing Windows And Ubuntu
Security
Installation
Installation Checklist
Tweaks
My Hardware
Setting Up Audo/Video Codecs
Advanced...
Members:
Moderators
Admins
This section of the site is concerned with Ubuntu Software — either software which comes bundled with the system, or other software that can be downloaded.
I only have a few sections in here, but...
Installation
Checklist
Tweaks
Dell Laptop
Setting Up Audo/Video Codecs
Advanced Packaging Tool
Software
Pidgin
aMSN
Java
OpenOffice.org
Compiz
gedit
GIMP
vi
man
Hardware
X Window...
Totem is a multimedia player that comes with Ubuntu. By default, Ubuntu will use Totem if you try to play a video file, or a DVD.
Installation
There isn't anything to install, by default. Totem...
This page lists some optimizations you can make to Ubuntu, to get it running as fast as possible.
TODO: This page isn't done.
Services
A service is a special type of program that runs in the...
Ubuntu is the Linux Distro this site is most concerned with. This page gives an overview of what Ubuntu is, but with very little detail on other available distros.
Linux Distros
As mentioned on...
This page gives some of the most common and/or useful commands that you might use when using the command line. In some cases, I'll talk a bit about some of the options or extra parameters you can...
This page gives some basics for using the Terminal in Ubuntu, and the BASH shell. There isn't much in the way of specific commands, but the information in here will be useful as you move on to...
VLC is a cross-platform media player — and, maybe even better, video streamer.
This page is just started.
Introduction
VLC is a media player available from an organization called VideoLAN....
This page explores my use of Ubuntu, including any tips/tricks I might discover.
This site isn't intended to replace other blogs and wikis to do with Ubuntu. Any other source of information out...
This page will walk you through the installation of Wifi drivers — assuming that it didn't work out of the box.
One area where Linux is still lagging behind Windows is in wireless networking —...
Like any modern operating system, Ubuntu comes pre-loaded with tools for working with CD/DVD drives, including tools for working with re-writable discs.
This article covers some useful topics for...
There are, obviously, a lot of things you can do with files. And there are many types of files, but in their essence, they really boil down to two kinds: text and binary. When it comes to text...
This article describes how to make certain configuration changes to the X Window System. For more general information on X, see the Graphics on Linux article.
Before you Begin
Since this article...