Essential files
It is important to make sure that the system is up-to-date before trying to install new packages.
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade
sudo
apt-get install ubuntu-restricted-extras xchat gftp vlc wine
gimp p7zip-full ntfs-config gparted
openjdk-6-jre icedtea-netx icedtea6-plugin kolourpaint4 cheese ktorrent -y
Recommended Games
sudo apt-get install frozen-bubble nexuiz supertuxkart freedink-engine neverball fillets-ng tmw -y
Nvidia - Getting the graphic card to work
There have been some problems with the proprietary nvidia driver, to make it work you should install the following, unless you are using a Optimus enabled card, then use the guide below.
sudo apt-get install linux-source
sudo apt-get install linux-headers-generic
sudo apt-get install nvidia-current-updates
Nvidia - Getting the graphic card to work (Optimus)
There have been some problems with the nvidia driver for
Optimus enabled graphic cards. To get your card up and running you should install the following:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:bumblebee/stable
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install bumblebee bumblebee-nvidia
To test if your intel card is running like it should, then you should install glxgears:
sudo apt-get install mesa-utils
glxgears
And then compare the frames per second of the intel card with with the performance of the bumblebee (nvidia) optirun mode:
optirun glxgears
If glxgears not working
If it is not working then it is most likely due to a bug with the BusID in your bumblebee xorg config file or you have perhaps forgotten to install the mesa-utils.
Open the terminal and write
lspci | grep VGA
You should see something like
02:00.0 VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation"
Take a note of the first part as that is your BusID:
02:00.0.
Then add it to your config file:
sudo gedit /etc/bumblebee/xorg.conf.nvidia
Go find
# BusID "PCI:02:00:0 and make the code active by removing the comment symbol, also known as a hashtag: #
and remember to change the BusID so it fits with your card.
Then restart your pc or reload bumblebee and test glxgears again.
Recommended applications
Dropbox - It is a cloud storage with 2GB free space.
NOTE: It is recommended to install Dropbox through the ubuntu software center to avoid the "connecting..."-bug
Skype - Allows the user to make voice and video calls and chat over the internet,
if you have installed the proprietary Nvidia driver, then you might have a segfault error. To fix the error, then you should do the following:
sudo mv /usr/bin/skype /usr/bin/skype-bin
sudo apt-get install gksu
gksu gedit /usr/bin/skype
and then paste the following
#!/bin/sh
export LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1
exec skype-bin "$@"
And then fix the perms.
sudo chmod 0755 /usr/bin/skype
Desura - A linux alternative to the windows based Steam client.
I can recommend the open source version called Desurium
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:makson96/desurium-stable
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install desurium
Steam - The official steam client is now working nativly on Linux and offers a ton of great games, it is easier to download from the homepage if you don't have a ubuntu account.
DVD codecs
Some DVDs come with landcode restrictions, to make sure you can play all of your DVDs, then you should do the following:
sudo
wget http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/$(lsb_release -cs).list
--output-document=/etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get --yes --allow-unauthenticated install medibuntu-keyring
For 32-bit
sudo apt-get install w32codecs libdvdcss2
For 64-bit
sudo apt-get install w64codecs libdvdcss2
Get Netflix
There is not yet a native Netflix client but it might come to the Linux platform sometime soon as they have decided to make the switch from Microsoft Silverlight to HTML5, but till then you can use this solution.
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:ehoover/compholio
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install netflix-desktop
Get Texmaker
When installing texmaker, then you will need to install texlive-full as well to get all of the dependencies installed
:
sudo apt-get install texlive-full texmaker
Backspace action in Nautilus
If you want to enable Nautilus backspace action, then you need to open the nautilus accels file and manually add the line, like this:
sudo gedit ~/.config/nautilus/accels
(gtk_accel_path "/ShellActions/Up" "BackSpace")
