Difference between revisions of "Ubuntu"
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| − | + | Below are some recommended steps to customizing Ubuntu to function at maximum efficiency, generally, and at Virginia Tech. | |
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| − | <pre>sudo cp /etc/apt/sources.list /etc/apt/sources.list.original | + | =Use Local Mirrors= |
| + | Virginia Tech has several [[Mirrors|local mirrors]] of Linux and other [[Free Software|Free and Open Source Software]]. Using Virginia Tech's mirrors has the main advantage of being fast. | ||
| + | |||
| + | You will need to alter your <code>/etc/apt/sources.list</code> file. First of all, make a backup of your original. Open a terminal emulator (Applications → Accessories → Terminal) and enter the command: | ||
| + | |||
| + | <pre> | ||
| + | $ sudo cp /etc/apt/sources.list /etc/apt/sources.list.original | ||
</pre> | </pre> | ||
Next, copy the commands below into a shell script. You can use a | Next, copy the commands below into a shell script. You can use a | ||
text editor like gedit; Applications → Accessories → Text Editor. | text editor like gedit; Applications → Accessories → Text Editor. | ||
Select the mirror you wish to remove by uncommenting (removing the | Select the mirror you wish to remove by uncommenting (removing the | ||
| − | beginning < | + | beginning <code>#</code> character from) one of the two lines with <tt>MIRROR=</tt>. Save it in your home directory as <tt>vtmirror.sh</tt>: |
| − | <pre>#!/bin/sh | + | <pre> |
| + | #!/bin/sh | ||
## Uncomment one of the two MIRROR lines below to choose your mirror | ## Uncomment one of the two MIRROR lines below to choose your mirror | ||
## | ## | ||
| Line 24: | Line 28: | ||
mv /etc/apt/sources.list.new /etc/apt/sources.list | mv /etc/apt/sources.list.new /etc/apt/sources.list | ||
</pre> | </pre> | ||
| − | '''IMPORTANT''': make sure that you have uncommented one of the < | + | |
| + | '''IMPORTANT''': make sure that you have uncommented one of the <code>MIRROR=</code> lines. | ||
Next, in your terminal window, change the permissions on this file to make it executable: | Next, in your terminal window, change the permissions on this file to make it executable: | ||
| − | <pre>chmod u+x vtmirror.sh | + | <pre> |
| + | $ chmod u+x vtmirror.sh | ||
</pre> | </pre> | ||
Finally, run the script from the terminal with | Finally, run the script from the terminal with | ||
| − | <pre>sudo ./vtmirror.sh | + | <pre> |
| + | $ sudo ./vtmirror.sh | ||
</pre> | </pre> | ||
Next, update your package information. You can do this in the terminal with | Next, update your package information. You can do this in the terminal with | ||
| − | <pre>sudo apt-get update | + | <pre> |
| + | $ sudo apt-get update | ||
</pre> | </pre> | ||
You can also do this with the Update Manager in System → Administration → Update Manager. | You can also do this with the Update Manager in System → Administration → Update Manager. | ||
You will now be downloading all standard Ubuntu packages from your local VT mirror. | You will now be downloading all standard Ubuntu packages from your local VT mirror. | ||
| + | |||
| + | =Install Terminal Menu Option= | ||
| + | A very handy plugin to the Gnome file manager, Nautilus, is the open terminal plugin. With it, you can right-click in any folder and choose to open a terminal in that directory. To install it, follow the steps below" | ||
| + | <pre> | ||
| + | $ sudo apt-get install nautilus-open-terminal | ||
| + | </pre> | ||
| + | |||
| + | =VT-Wireless= | ||
| + | Follow the instructions in the [[VT-Wireless]] article to get your wireless connection setup to automatically and securely connect to the campus wireless network. You'll either need to use OpenSSL from a terminal window to convert the certificate you obtain from [[CNS]] or switch from NetworkManager to Wicd, but the VT-Wireless article discusses the details of both options pretty thoroughly. | ||
| + | |||
| + | =Email= | ||
| + | See the [[email]] article for instructions on setting up your preferred email client to access your email both on and off campus. | ||
| + | |||
[[Category:Linux distributions]] | [[Category:Linux distributions]] | ||
[[Category:Howtos]] | [[Category:Howtos]] | ||
Revision as of 02:09, 14 December 2009
Below are some recommended steps to customizing Ubuntu to function at maximum efficiency, generally, and at Virginia Tech.
Use Local Mirrors
Virginia Tech has several local mirrors of Linux and other Free and Open Source Software. Using Virginia Tech's mirrors has the main advantage of being fast.
You will need to alter your /etc/apt/sources.list file. First of all, make a backup of your original. Open a terminal emulator (Applications → Accessories → Terminal) and enter the command:
$ sudo cp /etc/apt/sources.list /etc/apt/sources.list.original
Next, copy the commands below into a shell script. You can use a
text editor like gedit; Applications → Accessories → Text Editor.
Select the mirror you wish to remove by uncommenting (removing the
beginning # character from) one of the two lines with MIRROR=. Save it in your home directory as vtmirror.sh:
#!/bin/sh ## Uncomment one of the two MIRROR lines below to choose your mirror ## ## VT Campus Computing mirror #MIRROR="mirror.cc.vt.edu/pub/ubuntu" ## VBI Mirror (which also hosts PowerPC and SPARC repositories) #MIRROR="mirrors.vbi.vt.edu/mirrors/linux/ubuntu" sed "s,\(us\.\)\?archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu,$MIRROR," /etc/apt/sources.list.original |\ sed s,security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu,$MIRROR, > \ /etc/apt/sources.list.new mv /etc/apt/sources.list.new /etc/apt/sources.list
IMPORTANT: make sure that you have uncommented one of the MIRROR= lines.
Next, in your terminal window, change the permissions on this file to make it executable:
$ chmod u+x vtmirror.sh
Finally, run the script from the terminal with
$ sudo ./vtmirror.sh
Next, update your package information. You can do this in the terminal with
$ sudo apt-get update
You can also do this with the Update Manager in System → Administration → Update Manager. You will now be downloading all standard Ubuntu packages from your local VT mirror.
Install Terminal Menu Option
A very handy plugin to the Gnome file manager, Nautilus, is the open terminal plugin. With it, you can right-click in any folder and choose to open a terminal in that directory. To install it, follow the steps below"
$ sudo apt-get install nautilus-open-terminal
VT-Wireless
Follow the instructions in the VT-Wireless article to get your wireless connection setup to automatically and securely connect to the campus wireless network. You'll either need to use OpenSSL from a terminal window to convert the certificate you obtain from CNS or switch from NetworkManager to Wicd, but the VT-Wireless article discusses the details of both options pretty thoroughly.
See the email article for instructions on setting up your preferred email client to access your email both on and off campus.
