Welcome to your new Ubuntu desktop! The aim of this section is to give you a brief overview of your new system, and a tour of Ubuntu's unique user interface. We'll outline where you can find and launch applications, give an overview of the Ubuntu launcher, get online, how to logout, reboot, shutdown, and change the basic settings. This is meant to be a basic overview of your new desktop environment. We'll go into greater detail in the next section.
At first glance, you'll notice that the desktop environment in Ubuntu is different from what you might be used to. While that may be the case, I assure you the Ubuntu desktop environment is very user friendly, intuitive, and very customizable. Ubuntu has always focused on usability in their desktop environment, and the unique interface included in the Ubuntu desktop reflects that.
In the following pages, we'll explore the launcher, included applications, and status bar.
The first thing you'll notice is that Ubuntu provides a launcher along the left side of the desktop. This launcher includes the most popular applications by default, and can be customized to include (or not include) just about anything you like. Feel free to explore the Ubuntu launcher by hovering your mouse over or right-clicking on any of the included icons. The following section will outline the default launcher applications, and their role in the Ubuntu desktop:
The first icon you'll encounter is the Ubuntu Dashboard launcher. This will launch the Ubuntu Dashboard, and allow quick searching of all your applications, files and folders, music, and videos. If you know the name of the application you're looking for, you can simply launch the Dashboard, type the application's name in the Search Applications field, and the Dashboard will find it for you. It also displays your recent applications, files, and downloads all on the main Dashboard screen.
If you look toward the bottom side of the Dashboard display, you'll notice five icons. These icons represent the Dashboard home, Applications, Files and Folders, Music, and Videos. You can easily limit your searching and navigation, by filtering using these topics. In addition, each of the main sections within the Dashboard allows you to Filter Results, by clicking on the drop-down in the top-right corner of the Dashboard. This allows you to additionally filter results by a number of different categories. The results filter is also smart enough to filter based on different attributes depending on what tab you've selected. If you're on the Music tab, it will allow filtering by decade or genre. The Files & Folders tab will allow filtering by last modified date, type, or size. Select options as needed to narrow down your search results to find just the right match.
The Dashboard truly is a central place to quickly search for everything on your machine. You'll also notice that if you right-click on the Dash icon, it provides you with shortcuts to each of the key sections of the Dashboard: Dashboard Home, Applications, Files and Folders, Music, and Videos.
In addition to launching the Dashboard by selecting the icon, the Dashboard can also be launched using the Windows key on your keyboard, most modern systems now include a key with the Microsoft Windows logo, known as the Windows key. This is usually found to the left of the Space Bar key.
Second on the list of icons in the launcher is the Home Folder icon. This is a shortcut to your Documents, Downloads, Music, Pictures, and Videos. Home folder is the place for you to store and organize all of your files. Each user on an Ubuntu system will have their own Home folder to privately secure their files. Clicking on the Home Folder icon will launch Nautilus, the Ubuntu file browser, and default to home.
From here, you can explore your file system inside and outside of your Home Folder window. Just as we discovered with the Ubuntu Dashboard icon, right-clicking on the Home Folder icon will give you a shortcut list to each major section within your Home Folder window. It should be noted that while exploring files within Nautilus, you will only be able to edit files within your home folder, so feel free to look around. You won't be able to break anything, so don't worry.
You may recognize the next item in the launcher. Ubuntu comes out of the box with the hugely popular web browser, Firefox. Firefox is a fast, secure way to get online, and visit your favorite websites. Use Firefox to connect with friends and family, update your status online, and even safely play web-based games. In our modern Internet-connected era, a great web browser is a must-have, and Ubuntu provides one of the most popular in the base installation.
The next few applications in the launcher come from the highly-acclaimed productivity suite, LibreOffice. This Office suite provides you with a free word processor for writing and editing documents. LibreOffice Writer is intuitive, packed with features, and compatible with Microsoft Office formats. I'm even using LibreOffice right now to write this book! I'm sure you'll find LibreOffice Writer a perfect replacement for Microsoft Word.
We'll explore the LibreOffice productivity suite in more detail in the following section:
Ever need to work with spreadsheets? Ubuntu also provides the popular LibreOffice Calc application for managing spreadsheet data. This is another great replacement for the Microsoft Office suite that comes with Ubuntu out of the box, completely free. LibreOffice Calc provides you with all the powerful functionality of any standard spreadsheet application, and always standard in every Ubuntu installation.
If you ever need to give presentations, LibreOffice Impress is the tool you'll want to use, a powerful presentation application designed to be compatible with the popular PowerPoint software. This tool will allow you to design amazing presentations for use at work or school.
Next on the list is the Ubuntu Software Center. The Ubuntu Software Center is akin to an App Store, and includes tens of thousands of packages available for your Ubuntu system. If you'd like to install additional software on your system, simply launch the Ubuntu Software Center, search for your software, and click on Install. It's as easy as that!
The Ubuntu Software Center makes it easy to discover new applications as well. With a What's New and Top Rated section, the Ubuntu Software Center will give you an idea of the most popular applications available.
Most of the applications within the Ubuntu Software Center are free, and any that are not free are clearly marked. The Software Center is a centralized repository of free software applications allowing you to install any number of great applications with just a few clicks. This application will also handle all security updates and errata available for your system. You'll be notified of any available updates, and the Software Center will download and install them with your approval.
Ubuntu One is Ubuntu's free cloud storage offering. You can use Ubuntu One to safely store your files off-site, and automatically sync them between any machines tied to your Ubuntu One account. You can also get access to these files through your web browser from any machine connected to the Internet. Ubuntu One offers 5 GB of storage for free, and additional storage at affordable rates. This is a great place to safely archive important files. I use Ubuntu One cloud storage to store important documents and photos. I'm using Ubuntu One right now to store drafts of this book while I am writing it.
Nearing the end of the list we have the System Settings application, which is a central place to customize all of your machine settings. This includes a wide range of available customization options for your machine, including Appearance, Language Support, Keyboard Layout, and Privacy settings. Also available are hardware support settings and system management tools, such as automatic backup utilities, accessibility, and user management. The System Settings application allows you to manage and customize a wide range of settings for your machine, all in one central place.
Ubuntu provides a very useful interface for managing multiple workspaces. This feature might be new to you, but I find it very helpful when managing multiple windows and applications. The workspaces interface allows you to manage multiple virtual workspaces, essentially allowing you to spread your applications out across multiple virtual desktop screens. I use this feature daily, and regularly switch between these virtual desktops to manage different applications.
Admittedly, it may take a little bit of getting used to, but once you've got the hang of it, I'm sure you'll really appreciate the flexibility it gives you when running multiple applications at a time. Clicking on the Workspaces icon will zoom out of your current desktop workspace and give you a grid overview of four total workspaces. Simply double-clicking within any of these workspaces will zoom you back into that virtual desktop. This provides a very simple way to organize multiple windows and applications. For example, my common daily usage of my computer requires a Terminal console, a web browser, and an e-mail client. It is common to place each of these on their own workspace and dedicate full screen to each application. You'll then be able to run applications in full screen, and simply switch between these workspaces to interact with each application. Switching workspaces can also be done using the keyboard shortcuts of Ctrl + Alt + arrow keys.
At the very bottom of the launcher bar, you'll discover an icon representing Trash. Any files you delete from your Ubuntu desktop will be placed in Trash, before they are permanently deleted. If you accidentally delete something, you'll also be able to recover it here.
The Ubuntu desktop provides a global menu bar across the top of the screen. This also includes a status area and a number of icons representing different aspects of your machine. A battery icon is included on laptops, network connection icon, sound and volume, clock, user status, and a shortcut to System Settings, and also a menu to allow you to logout, shutdown, or reboot your system. In the following screenshot, we see shortcuts to System Settings..., Displays..., and Startup Applications.... There is also a notice letting you know that all software is up-to-date. This notice will change as security and other updates are made available. It will also notify you, if a system reboot is required.
You'll also notice the Lock Screen, Log Out..., and Shut Down... buttons. As a tip, if you want to reboot your machine, you can click on the Shut Down... button, and it will give you an option to restart.
One last thing I'd like to cover before we wrap up this section is getting online. I'm sure you're ready to connect to the Internet and connect with friends on your favorite websites. The Ubuntu status bar provides an application to help you manage your network connectivity. This application is called Network Manager, and is a central place to manage wired and wireless networks. You'll notice headings for Wired Network and Wireless Networks as well as additional options for configuration and even VPN connections.
All you should need to do is select your preferred network from the available list and you'll be connected. If you're connecting to a wired network, Ubuntu should automatically connect during startup, and you'll see an icon that looks like an up and down arrow. This represents a connected wired network.
If you have specific network setting requirements you can select the Edit Connections option, and configure your network as needed. It includes the wired, wireless, mobile broadband, VPN, and DSL connection options.
You should now have a good idea of how to interact with your new Ubuntu desktop, where to find and launch applications, get online, and logout of your new system. In the following section, we'll cover these applications in more detail, go over the desktop customization, and install other popular software.