This is to solve the true problem of users on the Unity and Gnome 3 interfaces, which is commonly described as "Digging-in" to open programs, when using the mouse. Personally, I find the Unity and its dashboard as a great step in interface technology, which is very useful for Tablet PCs, Touch Screen Monitors and upcoming hardware technologies. Unfortunately, for those who still uses mouse in Ubuntu, like myself, the Unity/Gnome 3 Dashboard was found to be quite gruelling. As the present design of Unity, requires long movements of the mouse when opening program, which became quite unpopular to users with small space on their table/desks to do so. One with a standard mouse (w/o wheel/s) will have to drag scrollbars and click several times before he could open an app. To open Gimp for example (The quickest): right-click Dash button and select Applications; move pointer to the upper right corner and click Filter results; move pointer about a hundred pixels down and click Graphics; move pointer to the center screen (if Gimp doesn't show, you will click "Show more", and if you still couldn't see Gimp you drag the scrollbar down to look for Gimp) and click Gimp.

Of course, it can be argued that HUD is the quickest and solves this problem. But here's the picture: sometimes (this happens to me, and I'm sure it happens to many) that you're a bit tired and you need to look for an app or util that you seldomly use, and you just can't remember what it is. Now to get it, you will have to rely on the "Filter results" and how the icon looks like in the glimpse of your mind. This was easily accomplished with the old Gnome 2 tri-menu of Ubuntu which only involved three mouse clicks and a couple of short pointing to open Gimp...the reason why many misses it.

Hopefully, the following solutions will make Ubuntu easier again for mouse users, and help bring back Ubuntu (along with its loyal fans, like me :) ) to its former glory (such as the top place in DistroWatch).