How efficient are we while on Ubuntu

[ramnarayan]

Hi

Was curious to know how efficient we folk were while using Ubuntu. In other words how much time do we spend mucking about making Ubuntu work rather than getting on with what we set out to do.

[JillSwift]

I've installed Ubuntu on a total of 13 machines so far. Save for having to play the "WiFi Shuffle" on one notebook, they've all been ready to go immediately. So, for me it's very little time getting it going.

However... when it comes to my own machine I can't help but tinker :oops:
I'm inefficient. I'm so ashamed. ;)

[hyperdude111]

I don't have any problems with my system but still tweak things endlessly for the sake of it.

[CharmyBee]

I'm moving my mouse to click the "Back" button instead of pressing Mouse button #4 when going back a page like I do on Windows. That is not very efficient, nor very comfortable. But since "Linux isn't windows", no one cares.

[ramnarayan]

However... when it comes to my own machine I can't help but tinker :oops:
I'm inefficient. I'm so ashamed. ;)

was going to add this as an option but felt people like me would like to believe we are tinkering and tweaking rather than the real thing :-)

[RiceMonster]

I'm moving my mouse to click the "Back" button instead of pressing Mouse button #4 when going back a page like I do on Windows. That is not very efficient.

Alt-Left/Right

[newagelink]

Alt-Left/RightThanks for teaching me something new!

I tend to use Ubuntu without any signficant editing: I am an experienced computer novice. I'm trying to learn more, though, and have been trying to think of mini-projects: "What can I do to make this OS more enjoyable to me ...?" (since apparently with Linux I can have more control over it than in Windows.)

[koenn]

100% efficient (by your definition :))

Set up this computer 2 months after Dapper was out - worked flawlessly out of the box. Upgraded it to Hardy, but wasn't comfortable about the result, so I reinstalled, with Hardy. Other than that and occasionally clicking the software update notifications, I use it for "real work"

[Ewingo401]

After installing all codecs and dvd playback support I have to do some very minor hoop jumping to get wi-fi working them I'm good to go.

[Bölvaður]

I'm moving my mouse to click the "Back" button instead of pressing Mouse button #4 when going back a page like I do on Windows. That is not very efficient, nor very comfortable. But since "Linux isn't windows", no one cares.

why dont you bind it then?
works like magic for me.... even the forward button on the mouse o.0

[Ms_Angel_D]

After doing a fresh install, all that really left for me to do is codec & Software installation. Then I do some themes and such. But after that ubuntu just works for me :D

[koleoptero]

I just add/remove a lot of packages in the beginning and change themes. After that my system is good to go.

[MikeTheC]

Especially after 9.04, there's only a very few things I do for my system to be perfect for me.

I create a symlink from /usr/share/fonts to ~/.fonts (which according to the spec should be there already);

I add a folder called "opentype" to fonts;

I install both the traditional Windows TTFs as well as the new Windows Vista TTFs;

I install quite a number of themes and engines;

I install Java;

I install Flash;

I install all the restricted extras including all the stuff for DVD playback;

After that I just install the apps I want and extra libraries for some of the pre-installed stuff.

That's about it.

Oh, and I also tweak Nautilus to show all the traditional desktop icons (not sure why Canonical insists on going desktop icon-free).

[issih]

My main problem is that I like tinkering... so I break stuff, then I need to fix it..during which I break some other stuff, and so on.

If I left it alone, it'd be pretty stable, it only ever goes wrong when I am trying to do something I don't know how to do yet :)

Other than that my main productivity problem is that my laptop keyboard layout and my desktop one are too different, this leads to keyboard shortcut issues...grrrrrrrrr.

Left the poll alone, as none of the options suited me.

[Chilli Bob]

I've been using Ubuntu for a few years now, so I'm over the phase of trying, and breaking, everything in sight. So now after a fresh install I just install my codecs (sooooo easy thanks to this thread http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=766683), then the usual battle to get my non-supported printer working, then I'm working on a perfect system. Total time, about 2 hours, most of which is downloading time over my slow internet.

[ad_267]

I create a symlink from /usr/share/fonts to ~/.fonts (which according to the spec should be there already);

Umm what spec is this?

~/.fonts is for your personal user's fonts. /usr/share/fonts is for all users. Why would you ever want to symlink ~/.fonts to /usr/share/fonts?

[ankurwidguitar]

Ubuntu is great in every way. But on a few occasions I had to use my 'novice knowledge' in order to fix some minor issues. You know, 'nothing is perfect'. Also these hiccups help me learn a lot about Ubuntu. So, I love hiccups, I love Ubuntu. :)

[donatell0]

After the install, I just install codecs and media players and themes. Then, I'm off to do what I want. Very little mucking about!

But perhaps there should be an easier way to enable medibuntu in synaptic itself. New comers to the OS, don't have a clue about adding new repos for things like acrobat reader, etc. Though alternatives are available, I know many people who just like acroread.

[Mr. Picklesworth]

I'm moving my mouse to click the "Back" button instead of pressing Mouse button #4 when going back a page like I do on Windows. That is not very efficient, nor very comfortable. But since "Linux isn't windows", no one cares.

I've been lucky with that one, lately. Here's one to balance it out: I can expect horizontal scroll stuff (typically tilting the scroll wheel or rolling a scroll ball thing to the side) to work properly, 100% of the time. This is because GTK+ handles that function automatically (and I think Qt does as well), so any time you see a horizontal scrollbar you can trust the handy shortcuts to work.

In Windows land, by contrast, it isn't unusual that an app lacks vertical scroll wheel support, let alone horizontal stuff.

The mouse's Back button will work more consistently when GNOME can nicely support mapping mouse buttons like regular special keys (from the Keyboard Shortcuts interface), which if I recall correctly is somewhat close to happening. At that point, it'll be possible for a mouse button to be mapped to the Back shortcut. You can actually do that with a keyboard key right now, by the way.

[s3a]

My main problem is that I like tinkering... so I break stuff, then I need to fix it..during which I break some other stuff, and so on.

If I left it alone, it'd be pretty stable, it only ever goes wrong when I am trying to do something I don't know how to do yet :)

Other than that my main productivity problem is that my laptop keyboard layout and my desktop one are too different, this leads to keyboard shortcut issues...grrrrrrrrr.

Left the poll alone, as none of the options suited me.

It sounds like you would benefit a lot from a home partition if you aren't using one already.

[lisati]

I've used Ubuntu on three different machines. For the things that don't work properly immediately, there are usually fixes. Where there's no easy fix (or I'm to lazy to look for a fix), there's usually a workaround. Whatever troublesome things that are left are usually relatively unimportant.

[FuturePilot]

Ubuntu "just works" for me.

[SirBismuth]

Most it works for me, just have to do a few things, then it "just works" for me.

More so at home, than at work. I tend to customize more at home, and not so much at work.

B

[MikeTheC]

Umm what spec is this?

~/.fonts is for your personal user's fonts. /usr/share/fonts is for all users. Why would you ever want to symlink ~/.fonts to /usr/share/fonts?

Canonical does not provide a personal user fonts folder.

I'm simply killing two birds with one stone by creating the link instead of just putting a folder there. Not everything plays nicely the other way.

This, BTW, would be an example of why Linux is still not yet 100%.

[koleoptero]

Funny thing: I voted it just works, and now I am stuck with windows cause Ubuntu decided to start freezing at random times...

Back to tinkering to get things working I guess.

[Mornedhel]

Canonical does not provide a personal user fonts folder.

What ?

Just as an experiment, this is what I did :


mkdir ~/.fonts
cp /media/disk/Windows/Fonts/consola* ~/.fonts
oowriter

Hey whaddayaknow, I can use Consolas now. What exactly does not work for you ?

[Viva]

Virtual Desktops with expo alone multiplies my efficiency by numerous times compared to winblows.

[Ashrael]

Installing Ubuntu usually takes about 15 to 20 minutes (my mother in law did it, so it can't be that hard). Then the installing of codecs and programs takes about 5 mins.
The tweaking (just for the heck of it) takes FOR EVER! And I love it, THAT'S what I set out to do: tinker and tinker some more! :popcorn: And then I break the system.... And it all starts again! I LOVE IT! more :popcorn: :D

[toupeiro]

I can't even begin to tell you how much more work I can get done on linux over windows.. This, however, does have its pluses and minuses....

[the8thstar]

I format my hard drive everyday and reinstall everything from scratch. After 2 years of using Ubuntu, I've become very good at it!!!!!! Mwuuuhahahahaha!!!!!! :grin:

[tjwoosta]

Just having multiple desktops to work with and a quicker, more responsive environment is enough to make me at least 10 times more efficient then I was with vista. Of course there is the occasional minor set back but its usually a quick fix, and its really nothing compared to what I was experiencing with vista.

In vista If I start multitasking everythign slows right down to the point where I literally have to wait for the computer to catch up with me. No such trouble with Ubuntu, or any Linux.

[RandomJoe]

I picked the next-to-best "spend just a little time fixing" but then "fixing" may not be the right term. As far as having a functional machine, it's fine right from the start. But I rarely just want it functional! :) Perhaps "tweaking" is a better description of what I do.

Indeed, once I have it "tweaked" the way I want, I generally don't touch anything for a very long time. To the point when I go to upgrade, I have a heckuva time remembering what all I did. (Thus why I haven't upgraded my primary machine in a VERY long time - it Just Works so why mess with it, and has the most tweaking of any system.)

I haven't had to spend any considerable amount of time getting things running in many years - that would have been prior to Ubuntu, when I was running Slackware. And even then, it was usually just "fix and forget" unless I did something dumb that undid the fixes.

To be fair, I've been Linux-only for over a decade now so all my hardware is known to be Linux-friendly! I carefully review any purchases with that in mind beforehand. That makes a big difference, compared to someone freshly switching with a bunch of software-driven Windows-only hardware.

[ramnarayan]

Indeed, once I have it "tweaked" the way I want, I generally don't touch anything for a very long time. To the point when I go to upgrade, I have a heckuva time remembering what all I did. (Thus why I haven't upgraded my primary machine in a VERY long time - it Just Works so why mess with it, and has the most tweaking of any system.)


One of the things i do is (very often) break my system with some latest update or the other and quite a few times i just reinstall the system. But trying to remember what all i need to do go get not just a stable but system functional to my taste (like some stupid ttf hindi language fonts for legacy documents, or offline dictionary, or my wvdial - when it works)

So i have a spreasheet of software to install and a set of CLIcommand stored in one place from where i copy them one at a time after the new install to set my system it.

Ususally after a fresh install it takes me a couple of hours to reach a stable state.

But the trouble comes when some of my hardware / peripherals don't work
namely
Scanner,
ATI Graphics Card
CDMA data phone

of which the latter is the worst culprit

[hessiess]

With plain Ubuntu, I am not very efferent, though still more efficient than MS Windows thanks to the much better menu organisation and the package manager. Though with a good tiling WM (DWM/Xmonad), Vim, Vimperatior, and xbindkeys everything is extremely efferent as the mouse is *never* used, and stupid key bindings (ctrl + something) are not present.

Generally I use Arch as its much easer to configure how I want.