Some Computer Hints


Initial Ubuntu Configurations

Additional Installations

After installing Ubuntu Desktop on a new computer it is a good idea to install some extra packages. Below I give a list of Ubuntu packages that I have installed to my new Ubuntu Desktop computer:

netcat  socat  traceroute  whois  nmap  vnstat  curl  links
htop  hardinfo
thunar  thunar-archive-plugin  xarchiver  searchmonkey
nautilus-gtkhash
trash-cli
boomaga  printer-driver-cups-pdf  simple-scan
vlc  sox  pavucontrol  alsamixergui
openssh-server
mtp-tools  go-mtpfs
p7zip-full  pixz
acpitool  fwts
mailutils
gnome-calculator  gnome-clocks  gnome-tweaks
xserver-xorg-input-synaptics  xsel
wmctrl
dconf-editor
downtimed
apache2
php8.0-mbstring
sqlite3  php-sqlite3  jq
wapua
iftop  ifstat  sysstat
fail2ban
s3cmd
brasero  xfburn  k3b  mp3info
wine64
dos2unix  rhash
unifont
ubuntu-restricted-extras
font-manager
rclone
dar
cryptsetup-bin
ecryptfs-utils
exfat-utils
dosbox
gimp  imagemagick  gpick
clamav
groff
tnef  convmv
subtitleeditor
testdisk  gddrescue  gparted
baobab
hexer  ghex  mc
ntpdate
sysbench
rename  tree  ncal
debsums
photoflare
mtools
geany  geany-plugin-miniscript  geany-plugin-addons
mkvtoolnix-gui
kinit  konsole
gnome-sushi
libimage-exiftool-perl
remmina

You can install these packages from a terminal using the following command:

$ sudo apt install package_name

Besides the standard Ubuntu packages, you can install some other add-ons and third-party software tools, like:

Please note that the above list is only a sample. A more extensive list is given in the next section.

Configurations

Detailed explanation of how to configure an Ubuntu Desktop is beyond the scope of this section and it depends on how an experienced computer user (and administrator) you are. In this section only some hints about some typical configurations that need to be done on an Ubuntu Desktop are given.

Most initial desktop configuration will be done using the Settings or Gnome Control Center application. This can be accessed by clicking the gear (⚙) icon from the Gnome menu (typically at the far top right of the screen) or from command line using gnome-control-center. Spend some time by navigating and checking all sections.

Gnome Tweaks (command line using gnome-tweaks) is also an important tool for changing the look and feel of your Gnome Desktop.

For a general initial Ubuntu Desktop configuration a good checklist can be found here. Please, do not follow it very closely and if there is something that you do not understand or like, do not do it!

Operating system configuration is a never ending process. So, you will continuously make changes to your desktop configuration as you use it, install new applications, and gain more experience. For example, the Dconf Editor (command line using dconf-editor) is a tool to make modifications to hidden options.

If you are in trouble, you can ask for help from Ubuntu community in places like Ask Ubuntu or Ubuntu Forums. See also Ubuntu Web Site.

The next section lists some of the most important applications I have been using in my Ubuntu Desktop.