Vlogcanic

As you probably already know, Ubuntu’s default desktop environment is GNOME. I like GNOME. It’s simple, intuitive, usable, things just work –when they work… this is Linux, anyway– and still retains quite a bit of versatility. And yet there’s stuff I like about KDE: its visually more impressive and some KDE applications (Amarok being probably the most obvious example) are simply better than their GNOME cousins.

Ubuntu’s Synaptic Package Manager makes it simple enough to install any KDE application you would want to use, but for those who like to walk an extra mile to have more choices (being able to run a KDE session in Ubuntu as well as GNOME in this case), here’s how to do it. How to make your GNOME-abled Ubuntu capable of running KDE sessions as well.

You’ll need to be connected to the internet or have a Kubuntu CD close at hand — unless you already have the CD I suggest you do it over the net… the download is about 193 MB which is much less than the CD’s 700MB download. You’ll also need 584MB of disk space.

So, open a terminal and type

sudo apt-get install kubuntu-desktop

type your password and then sit back and relax. You’ll be downloading almost 209 packages. Those are not exactly dependencies because kubuntu-desktop is not a package but a meta-package –something that calls for a bunch of other packages to be installed.

After the stuff is downloaded, apt-get is going to install and configure it automatically and at some point is going to ask you to choose a default desktop manager (gdm or kdm), go ahead and choose what you want. The thing will continue with the configuration task and once it’s done you can reboot. Just make sure you don’t interrupt the whole thing while it’s going on.

After reboot you’ll be able to choose between KDE or GNOME by clicking on “Options” at login and then clicking on KDE or GNOME.

Whatever desktop environment you want to use will give you all the default Ubuntu apps for both desktops and, also, future KDE application downloads will be much quicker as your dependencies will be much closer to being satisfied –or completely satisfied already.

The downside to all of this is the extra disk space you’ll need and longer, bigger updates, as you’ll have more packages installed.

Enjoy!

Hardy Heron’s fifth alpha release is scheduled for release today, but if you are running something like alpha 4 chances are you already noticed a kernel upgrade and of many packages in your system as well, including the new art for the desktop wallpaper which is really beautiful. It’s barely two months now before Hardy Heron’s final release is presented to the world so Mark Shuttleworth has notified the Ubuntu developing community that the time to think about the next step in Ubuntu’s history is now.

In a mail to the Ubuntu developers the distro’s founder unveiled the code name for version 8.10: Intrepid Ibex.

One of the goals for the Ibex will be to set it up to take advantage from the pervasive internet signals found almost everywhere these days so your roaming goat can get internet access using a variety of wireless technologies wherever you may find yourself.

This is interesting, specially taking into account the tumultuous relationship that Linux and WiFi have had over the years (let alone Bluetooth). So the Ubuntu enthusiasts all over the world have something to look forward to even if Hardy Heron hasn’t been properly released yet.

The development summit is planned for next May in Prague. Let’s see what transpires in the meantime.

The Debian Project announced the third update to their flagship stable distribution Debian GNU/Linux 4.0.

This is not a new distribution but rather the release of a series of new packages for updating Debian systems already in place through Debian’s package manager and there are no new .iso images available for download –but there could come up in the days ahead.

While this is relevant mainly for users who already are using this distro, it could end up being very important for other users as well, given Debian’s huge influence in the free software world and the amount of distros using it as a development base.

Some of the interesting changes are:

• Complete removal of the Adobe Flash Player. The reason given is that Debian cannot get or give security support for it since it’s not an open source piece of software. Chances are that the project’s interpretation of the GPL license played a roll there too.
• New packages with modules for newer kernel support. These include drivers for nvidia graphics cards.
• Lots of bugfixes and security fixes.

Debian is known for their quality control and strong emphasis on stability. Debian GNU/Linux 4.0 was released last april and the current update is the third one.