Install WINE

Wine (Microsoft Windows Compatibility layer) is one of the most loved softwares on Ubuntu. What it does is allows you to run Windows files on Ubuntu. Say you want to play a game which doesnt have a Linux counterpart, or say a software whose windows versions are popular, what do you do? Simple, install Wine and play the game exactly as you would on Windows!

So how do you install Wine? Well thankfully its in the Ubuntu repositories.

First up go to Ubuntu Software Center and type "Wine", you'll get the following search results:



Next select the Wine beta option (its better to select beta since it has loads of bug fixes compared to the stable version, ironically! :) ) as shown in the previous pic and install it:



Thats it! Now whenever you come across a .exe file or any Windows supported file, just right click on it and select the option to open the file with Wine. It will then run exactly as it would on Windows.

Extra Tips:

Here's some really useful info. Wine actually modifies your Firefox tahoma font and unfortunately that will make all your firefox fonts look really really weird! Eg. bold fonts would look like regular fonts etc. There's a way to undo the damage without affecting Wine at all. What you need to do is go to System > Administration > Synaptic Package Manager. From there, search "ttf-tahoma-replacement" in the search bar. It will obviously be installed on your system (considering you've already installed Wine).

So what you do is basically select the package and mark for complete removal of it (just the "ttf-tahoma-replacement" package, nothing else). Click on "Apply" to remove the pack.



And once you have removed the font pack, your synaptic should look like this once you search for "ttf-tahoma-replacement" again in the search bar (the pack should be deactivated/unselected):



I had to figure this thing out by myself. I havent found any other tutorial which explains this Firefox font problem solution.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed finding it out!

Install Ubuntu

This the tutorial for the installation perhaps the most user-friendly Linux OS in history, Ubuntu!

To get Ubuntu click here. Download the .iso file, and burn it to a CD/DVD.

One more thing, the installation instructions here are for Ubuntu 9.10 (Karmic Koala release), currently the latest version.

Step 1: BIOS Changes - Make sure your first boot device is set to your CD/DVD ROM. Save your settings and exit BIOS.

Step 2: When you boot, this is the first screen you will get:



Step 3: Select your language and then select the "Install Ubuntu" option and press enter.



The images below are in sequence of the screens you will see. You will enter your details as per your preference and click on "Forward" after that.



Select your language and click "Forward" (image below).




Ubuntu will now configure the installation. (Nothing for you do here)



You will have to select your region here (basically where you're from) and click "Forward". Image given below:



Select your keyboard layout (best keep it to the default one as shown here if you're not sure).



If you want to install Ubuntu on your hard drive as the only OS, then click on the first option "Erase and use the entire disk" as shown here. (If you want to set partitions, click on the "Specify Partitions Manually (advanced)"and set your partition size and specification) Its better to select the first option as shown here if you're not sure.



Enter your name and username, password etc. If you dont want Ubuntu to ask you for passwords everytime you boot, select the "Log in automatically"



Click on Install. And wait... (as some weirdos say "Patience is a virtue" :P)



The installation progress bar, will stay on your screen for 10-15 mins. Patience is a virtue, remember? :)



After the installation is over/the bar reaches 100%, you will get this image on your screen. Click on "Restart Now":



As directed simply remove the CD from the tray and press Enter.



Ubuntu will now restart and you will see the following screens:



And the really cool "Loading" bar (technically called the "Usplash screen")



And then finally you get the Ubuntu desktop:



Thats it! Congrats on your new Ubuntu! :)

Ubuntu 9.10 Review

Finally I had to give in to my immense curiosity. I couldnt wait for the stable release and I downloaded the beta version (Release Candidate) of Ubuntu 9.10 aka Karmic Koala.

Installation:

Proceeded without a hitch, however this edition of Ubuntu is special simply because its using some really cool stuff this time around. The default file system has been changed from ext3 to the new and supposedly faster ext4 filesystem. The GRUB is now GRUB 2! So that means booting time is reduced. And it indeed has been although to what extent might be a matter of debate.

(For those who are using 9.04 and want to upgrade to 9.10, here's a sincere suggestion: BACKUP YOUR DATA. I tried upgrading from 9.04 to 9.10, and things didnt work out as expected. This maybe because of the new GRUB etc. but frankly speaking I wouldnt recommend "upgrading". If you want to use 9.10, format your drive/disk and install 9.10 afresh. And of course, backup all data)

The installation process is pretty fast, takes about 15 minutes (on an AMD X2 240 - 2.8 GHz processor with 2GB of DDR2 RAM) and proceeds smoothly. The best part about the installation is the new Windows styled know-about-your-OS sort of messages while Ubuntu installs. This is a refreshing change and reiterates the fact that Ubuntu is moving towards a far more professional approach.

The First Boot:

This is very important in my opinion, the first impression of an OS is where the real liking starts. And Ubuntu 9.10 does it with unparalleled grace! Erm...not exactly. On booting I found a notification informing me that my hard disk has multiple bad sectors. Quite shocking really coz my hard disk isnt really that old and to be frank, I never had such errors with 9.04 or with Windows (when I used to have it). Now if this is a bug of ext4, then its really a shame since from now on Ubuntu will be using ext4 as the default filesystem.
(BTW the boot splash is really good looking!)


Hits and misses

Ubuntu introduces the all new "Ubuntu Software Center" with 9.10. Now you can download multiple softwares all from the same Software Center window without having to wait for one software to complete installing. Novel idea but I still dont think it has matured enough to replace synaptic. Anyway, its moving in the right direction and thats whats important.

Personally speaking, I dont really like the icons of the default theme, although the wallpaper and the rest of the theme looks great. I might actually download another icon set.

To my utter disappointment Pidgin has been replaced my Empathy. I never really was a fan of Empathy and I dont think I will ever be. Pidgin is simply much more mature than Empathy right now.

Firefox now has a new version the all new 3.5.3 (thank god!). I was seriously missing this Firefox version, 3.1 of 9.04 was so passe!

The rest of the things are more or less the same compared to 9.04.


Conclusion:

This is an important step forward for Ubuntu. In a month where we saw Microsoft come out with Windows 7 and Mac with Snow Leopard, how could Ubuntu stay behind? Kudos to the entire open-source fraternity for creating such an awesome OS and as always kudos for keeping it open-source and most importantly...free!