I’ve thoroughly tinkered with Ubuntu and spent quite a deal of time on tweaking and setting up my desktop. I now know a lot more about Ubuntu and how it works (completely differently from Windows obviously). I’ve also got a list of applications I’ve tried out and decided worthy of keeping for Ubuntu.
10 of my killer Ubuntu apps:
- Konsole
The terminal in Linux is like the command console in Windows but a zillion times more useful (IMO, but I never really used the command console very much anyway). Sadly, the native terminal that comes with the install is mostly wea. With Konsole, you’ve got a lot more options (the difference is sort of like Windows Explorer vs. Xplorer2), such as tabbed shells which comes in pretty handy when you’re waiting for software package downloads and need to tinker elsewhere via the terminal. Everything else can essentially be done from here. - Deskbar
Deskbar is sort of like Mac OS X’s Spotlight. A quick/hot key you assign (for me it’s Alt + Q) focuses the Deskbar box. Once you start typing, it suggests possible actions to perform with your strings (depending on which applets you’ve turned). This means you can do stuff like launch web pages, run applications, execute terminal commands, and quickly do most anything with a few key strokes. Deskbar comes within the Ubuntu Live CD (i.e. native) and is fast and easy. - Beagle
Beagle is like the file indexing component of Launchy’s well… file indexing. Basically, I’ve set it up to integrate within Deskbar so I can look up files, folders, and the like within Deskbar. If there’s something I like, it’s how Ubuntu lets you mash pretty much all your applications. If you think apps might work well together, they are probably designed so they can. - AmaroK
This is one app that truly leaves me astounded. Amarok plays MP3s, great. It also finds missing album artwork. And it lets you find lyrics to songs too. Not to mention stealing Wikipedia feeds on artists for you. That, and it comes with hotkey support. Not converted yet? It searches and manages your files like iTunes, but faster. Hell, one of my favourite things about it is its tray icon. It’s a wolf–wolves are always awesome in my books–AND it doubles as a progress bar. That’s right. Super awesome. Best MP3 management application I’ve ever used, hands down. - Specto
Specto serves as my RSS/website monitoring software. You can list a bunch of websites (or other things to monitor) and individually set how often to check for changes. It even has the option of marking something as “updated” only if the files have been changed by X% (meaning it won’t register posts that have been republished for spelling mistakes or something more than once). Now I can know whenever my favourite blogs are updated and choose to investigate or not. - CheckGmail
This little app sits tidily in the taskbar and notifies me of new mail. Simple and effective. It also gives an email excerpt if I hover. I can also set my own icons for yes mail, no mail, and checking mail. I’ve been waiting for something like this (that is as discrete and bug free) for Windows, but to no avail. - Avant Window Navigator
This is a work in progress but essentially this is apiece of desktop eyecandy designed to be like OS X’s dock or like the Windoze imitations. There’s nothing too revolutionary, therefore, with this piece of software, except that it works real nice with the multiple workspaces of Ubuntu (something not found in Windows or OS X). It’s got an elegant look and sleek finishings (like rounded icon outlines for the focused window). I really do enjoy this little piece of action because it completely replaces my taskbar and it’s really easy to customize. The prefabricated themes are ugly IMO but tweaking it to look just right isn’t hard at all with the inherent preference menus. I could use it as a launcher dock, but I don’t really need to since I’ve got Deskbar. For now, it’s my pretty little piece of taskbar a–! App. - GIMP
GIMP is Linux’s version of an image editing software. I’ve yet to use it as extensively as Adobe Photoshop (which I have still not had to reinstall since my Vista format for lack of need just yet) but so far, it’s been quite handy and not at all too hard to use. I suppose that would be due to my previous experiences with Photoshop. Much of the same tools are around and they’re all about the same. It’s definitely not as powerful as Photoshop (read: “I haven’t bothered to find out how to use filters and effects yet.”) but it’s a lot faster. It’s also not as comparatively crippled (IMO) as Paint or even Paint.NET. It’s sort of like the best happy medium between the beefy but hefty Photoshop and the lightweight but somewhat lacking Paint.NET. - Desktop Effects
I’m not sure this is an “app” in the strictest meaning since it’s a part of the Gnome desktop environment (GDE). It’s got extra functionality for the users with more RAM (I finally got that second GB or RAM today, BTW) and have performance graphics cards, but I’m guessing it wouldn’t perform badly at all even on wussier machines. It’s sort of like Aero effects on Vista. It’s not really an extra application, but it can be switched on and off. I won’t explain what it does except that it makes everything more beautiful. Windows jiggle (and jiggle is nearly always good) as well as rotate on a cube. - Automatix
For Ubuntu (and I’m assuming the rest of the Linux distros), installing is sort of a hassle (but not really after you get the hang of it. Usually you’ve got to manually configure set ups (and even make your own install files sometimes) to install stuff (and this is generally the most fail proof but messiest way). The more simple (and n00b friendly) method would be to use some sort of software database manager/updater/handler. Automatix (along with the native Synaptic Package Manager) are just such apps. I’ve installed loads of stuff (well, installed and then uninstalled when a better alternative was discovered) through Konsole but Automatix and SPM are definitely really handy. I search up the app I want in these databases first before configuring/installing them by hand since it makes everything much easier. One of the best things about them is that they can automatically scan online databases (sources that you can add, change, and update as you please) for software updates and upgrades. This means you can keep your system 100% updated with just a few clicks. Imagine never having those annoying “CCleaner has a new version! Click here to download!” notifications bossing you around again! Definitely hot. I spend less time updating and more time hot dating… I mean, using my software.
So between my first attempt at Ubuntu and now, I’ve probably reinstalled Ubuntu from the disk at least three times. I’ve also reinstalled Vista twice and chkdsk’d all my drives (some twice). I have had to even format one of my external hard drives (only because Vista borked it and not because of Ubuntu at all). This was the worst hit I took (~75% of my music collection is now gone). I’m not too antsy about it though, since I can always re-borrow disks from my music-investing friends for ripping–I need to remember to ask Amy for Mae. If all else fails, I can torrent the stragglers up since I’m Canadian and it’s not a big deal to my government. Thankfully, my school work and photographs were backed up properly before the drive tanked.
Through all this, I’ve learned two main things. Firstly, Ubuntu is reliable (although it comes with a somewhat steep learning curve for a long-time Windoze-only user), beautiful, and has lots of “Umph!” It plays nice with my HP 1012 Laser printer (which is the one peripheral I actually need) and my iPod Nano. My Pentium 4 + 2.00 GB RAM also seems to like Ubuntu’s hot looks too. The second thing I’ve learned is Windows’/Vista’s unreliability, bloated physique, and sluggishness. It’s just not as good once you’ve had better.
Sure, my system can plow through it and it’ll look good and be relatively fast, but throw in a few extra simultaneous windows doing file copying, web browsing, MP3 playing, and whatever else people do, and I’ll almost guarantee something will lag or explode. Windows (XP and Vista now) has always had a way of getting bogged down by crap (from uninstalls or just normal application use) and the only way of fixing those problems permanently had been to format the drive, and then reinstall Windows. I can’t speak for Ubuntu (as I’ve yet to look into what happens with an aging install) but for sure Windows isn’t going to be my day-to-day anymore. I’ll use it for Windows exclusives like MediaMonkey and, so far, Photoshop, but I’ll stick with my Ubuntu, thank you very much, for everything else I can manage to imitate (read: “own Windows at”).
Note: I’ll upload a video of my Ubuntu desktop in action once I make one with recordMyDesktop. It’s pretty neat. I wish I could show you in person.