How To: Become a Linux Netbook Power User
Posted 01/06/09 at 12:00:00 PM by Alex Castle
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Getting Familiar
With operating systems, like pretty much everything else, the best way to get better is with practice. In that spirit, we’ll walk you through the process of installing a couple staple programs. We’ll show you how to install programs using the command line, as well as with the GUI package manager.
First, we’ll install a package that we already know the name of. It’s near impossible to surf the web these days without the flash plugin, so let’s download that now. Suppose you’ve heard from somebody (us, in this case) that the package you’re looking for is called “flashplugin-nonfree.” All you have to do is open a terminal and type sudo apt-get install flashplugin-nonfree and the computer will automatically find, download and install the plugin. It’s as simple as that.
What if you’ve got a good idea what you’re looking for, but want to find out the exact package name? It’s easy to do that from the command line, too. This time, we’ll use a program called “apt-cache,” which allows you to access the system’s cached package list. So say we want to download VLC, a versatile media player. If we type apt-cache search vlc into the command line, it’ll return a list of packages that contain the word “vlc.” We see that there’s a package is called simply “vlc,” which sounds like it’s what we’re looking for. To make sure, we can enter apt-cache show vlc, which returns the details about the package named “vlc.” Sure enough, that’s the one we want, so we’ll enter the usual sudo apt-get install vlc to download and install the package. Note that when using apt-cache we didn’t need to use the sudo command. This is because apt-cache doesn’t actually make any changes to the system, and therefore doesn’t require superuser permissions. There would be no difference if we did use sudo.
Finally, we can also install packages using the included graphical package manager. This is especially useful if you’re unsure of the exact name of the package you’re looking for, and want to be able to quickly browse through many package descriptions. To launch the manager, simply click Applications->Add/Remove. This manager presents you with a search bar, a results window, an info window and a list of categories. It’s all pretty self explanatory; just search for packages, check the box next to the ones you want and press the Apply Changes button. One thing to note: to search for most packages, you’ll need to select “All available applications" from the top drop-down menu.
What’s Next
Complete The Installation
If you’ve decided that Ubuntu Netbook Remix is compatible with you and your netbook, go ahead and perform the full install by selecting the “Install” icon from the Administration menu. A normal installation is as easy as following the instructions on the screen. If you want to try something fancy like dual-booting with Windows XP, you’ll need to create an extra partition, either by inserting the Windows recovery disk and reformatting your drive (which will wipe all your data out) or by following this guide.
Learn to Use the Terminal
We’ve tried to give you a little taste of the terminal in this article, but you’ll have to keep exploring for yourself if you want to become a master. Fortunately, Linux is extensively documented. If you want to know how to use a particular command, just type man followed by that command. This will display the manual page for that command in the terminal. Press h to see instructions for navigating through the text.
Expand Your Functionality
Owing to its open source philosophy, Ubuntu doesn’t come with any applications that rely on non-free software. As such, several very common formats aren’t immediately supported, including mp3, avi, and flash. If you download programs specifically to handle these formats, such as VLC, this won’t be a problem for you. However, if you simply want to enable these formats in Ubuntu’s included media players, you can do so in one fell swoop by installing the package ubuntu-restricted-extras.
There are plenty of other packages you’ll find useful as well. As for what those are exactly, that’s up to you. By playing around with the package manager, and exploring the massive Linux community, you’ll be able to find things you never knew you needed.
Tracking
Submitted by PhoneyVirus on Fri, 09/04/2009 - 7:58pm
I like this alot and for a netbook it's good. Trying it soon on my Acer Aspire One but the down side got to install Ubuntu from a USB or network I gues.
I’m really very excited to
Submitted by adampiter on Fri, 08/21/2009 - 10:46am
I’m really very excited to know about Windows 7.Adam I exactly agree with you. I’m not comfortable with Vista. Now I’m using Ubuntu because if I use xp, my pc got infected very rapidly.
Corporate Intranet
Submitted by adampiter on Fri, 08/21/2009 - 10:46am
Ubuntu is great. Do you know what the most positive think about ubuntu is? The viruses that normally attack windows can’t infect the Ubuntu. That was the primary reason for me to switching from Windows to Ubuntu.
Corporate Intranet
Submitted by adampiter on Thu, 08/20/2009 - 9:16pm
installing ubuntu came to me with a lot of problems. I failed to install it on my notebook. What can I do?
Submitted by enorbet1 on Fri, 04/03/2009 - 9:55pm
For netbooks, older laptops, or resource constrained desktop PCs you owe it to yourself to try Puppy Linux or Slax. Both are available as LiveCDs and lend themselved to thumbdrives so one can try them out before committing to an install. BTW if your only experience with bootable CDs is BartPE (sooo slooow) you really must try one of the above mentioned just to learn how flrxible and snappy Linux can be.
Thanks for the thumbdrive conversion links
Never mind
Submitted by Pokedex1010 on Thu, 02/12/2009 - 5:01pm
Yes! It worked! never mind the other comment
Submitted by Pokedex1010 on Tue, 02/10/2009 - 12:23pm
I tried to install it, but the thing froze before it even started. All 5 times!! Think I should just order a disk or try redownloading the ISO file?
Submitted by Bill the clown on Tue, 01/13/2009 - 2:11pm
I used this process - and it works and was easier setting up the flash drive. No need for CD and quick and easy - http://photoblogreview.blogspot.com/2009/01/project-eee-pc-remote-capture-part-3.html
Submitted by HeartBurnKid on Tue, 01/13/2009 - 2:08pm
To be quite frank, if you're reading Maximum PC, you have the skills required to install Ubuntu, even if you don't realize it. It's a quick and painless process, as OS installs go. If you've ever actually installed Windows XP from scratch, you're overqualified.
EDIT: Whoops, that was supposed to be a reply to stevemid
Submitted by jb_nc10ubuntu on Wed, 01/07/2009 - 1:40pm
Nice article… I would like to point out, however,
that I don’t think that running Ubuntu on the Samsung NC10 is
problematic. In fact it has been an enjoyable experience for many in
the NC10 community. Please see http://nc10ubuntu.wordpress.com/2008/11/16/a-positive-spin-on-this-blog/
Submitted by bbzzdd on Wed, 01/07/2009 - 6:34am
Nice article. Suprisingly, most of the late 2008 netbooks have the a GMA 950 which is more than capable of running the Compiz effect for Ubuntu Desktop without slowdown.
Submitted by stevemid on Tue, 01/06/2009 - 9:31pm
The person who received a netbook for Christmas should not mess around trying to install another operating system.
In your introductory paragraph you say the netbooks are not suited for more intensive applications like gaming or video editing. Agree. Then you go on to imply that this problem can be solved by installing a much more versatile linux distribution like Ubuntu. Disagree! This is like saying you can't pull a 20 ton trailer with a VW but you might be able to if you swapped in an automatic transmission! None of the low end netbooks are designed to do gaming or video. And they certainly are not targeted to people who like to fool around with linux distributions!
The basic netbooks (512 MB, 8GB SS drive) are very good at doing what they were designed to do: Web, Office Applications, email, etc. I got the Acer Aspire One for $399. for my 13 year old niece and it is perfect for her. I also got one for my wife to travel with, as she can drop it in her handbag and stop lugging around an extra laptop bag. I would suggest that these are the type of users for whom the netbook was designed. Both of them can go a long way with Limpus and in fact they could go a long way and never need to see much of the operating system. That's the whole idea!
Submitted by ubuwalker31 on Fri, 01/09/2009 - 9:53am
There is absolutely no harm for anyone, including linux n00bs, from trying to install another OS onto their netbook. Getting a distro like ubuntu-eee or plain ole' ubuntu to work is not usually an issue. In a worst case scenario, at least with an Asus Eee, the user can factory re-set the notebook back to its original settings.
I use ubuntu on my eee primarily because I want the flexibility of being able to use a modern distro that provides regular security updates. Not to mention, I find wireless support much better using wicd on Ubuntu, then on the default Xandros. Plus, the community support is so much better.
The only real disadvantage is that boot up times nearly triple with a vanella Ubuntu OS, rather than the customized OS.
No matter what
Submitted by Devo85x on Sat, 02/14/2009 - 6:03pm
No matter what its better to mess up a linux distro on a netbook vs a good pc, so i have to agree with ubuwalker31
Submitted by anonuser on Tue, 01/06/2009 - 9:03pm
You should definitelly recommend the unetbootin utility to create live usb's no matter whats your os
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNetbootin
Submitted by frumpsnake on Tue, 01/06/2009 - 6:16pm
With such limited screen real-estate on most netbooks, why wouldn't you want to use virtual desktops?
Submitted by Devo85x on Tue, 01/06/2009 - 2:28pm
Nice to see some stuff for us linux guys lol thanks for not forgetting us guys
Good guide, but you should
Submitted by Vadi on Tue, 01/06/2009 - 5:01pm
Good guide, but you should just use apturl for linking to install apps instead of making user type in 'sudo apt-get install' ;)
Submitted by ubuwalker31 on Fri, 01/09/2009 - 10:03am
...there is nothing wrong with using apt-get. New users should only being installing packages from trusted repositories anyhow, using add/remove programs or synaptic. If a new user really needs to download a program from off the internet, and clicks on a .deb file from firefox, ubuntu will automatically install it using debian package installer. I think apturl is a great program, but asking users to go to appnr.com or other lesser known websites is just asking for trouble.
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