Ubuntu Productivity

This is a simple, yet effective tip to get the fastest/closest repository server automatically using Synaptic. It amounts to simply selecting a new “Download from:” server and choosing “Other” Then click the “Select Best Server” button. Go here for a quick overview with screenshots.

I upgraded my 13″ MacBook and 24″ iMac from Ubuntu 8.04 to Ubuntu 8.10 (still in beta) this past week. My favorite part of Ubuntu 8.10: the tabbed file browser! The upgrade to 8.10 is remarkably simple just open your terminal and type:

update-manager -d

There should now be an “Upgrade” button in the Update Manager window. Press it and let it run…the process was long, but painless.

On my 13″ MacBook everything upgraded well and it works better than before. On my 24″ iMac I was pleasantly surprised to find its wireless internet now works (it never did in Ubuntu 8.04). But the sound is now off and I cannot figure out how to get it working again.

I like dark themes, so I tried the new dark theme that came with 8.10. It works well, but I am really liking the Intrepid Ibex theme based on Willwill’s mockup. Here is a screenshot of my 24″ iMac and 23″ Cinema Display running Ubuntu 8.10 and willwill’s dark theme.

Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex with willwill100's custom theme running on a dual-head 24" iMac and 23" Cinema Display

This is a response to an article asking why people switch from Windows to the Mac OS instead of Ubuntu. The author concludes “So why are people not going over to Ubuntu? Beats me.” He even resorts to calling these switchers stupid: “Is it the snob value or stupidity that make people consider a Mac over Windows and not Ubuntu?”

I started this blog in July as a public exploration of my experimentation with Ubuntu. In that time I have tried to use Ubuntu as my default OS in replacement of the Mac OS because I wanted to see how feasible it was. While the simple answer to “can if be done?” is “yes,” it’s really not very easy. So my comments below come from someone who truly enjoys using Ubuntu Linux (I still use it daily) but who has come to appreciate the finer nuances of the Mac OS.

While the author of the aforementioned article does make a few good points about how far Ubuntu Linux has come he fails to recognize a few very basic advantages of the Mac platform that I have come to appreciate during my experiment:

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