Contributor smitlik

Archives are opening in applications like File Roller. Why? When you thing about you realize that archive is nothing less than special type of folder (and folder is special type of file with defined structure dependent on filesystem). But archives can be presented as compressed folders and opens in same windows as regular folders. Why do we need to confuse user with different windows?

Working with archives will be easy as in Midnight Commander or in Total Commander or in Windows XP. And if it will be implemented like VFS (zip://path/archive.zip/subdirectory/file) or as kernel driver it will be easier due to be transparent to any application.

Update: If gvfs is not possible, mounting the archive could be another possible way to implement this.

Archive managers should be used only for creating archives with non common attributes, e.g. encrypted, splitted to multiple volumes (to fit DVD, CD, ZIP drive, Floppy)...

Note: When you try to drag big file out from the archive from File Roller you need to wait to fully uncompress file before releasing mouse button (once it started to uncompress it). It's bad and very annoying.

(Idea copied from: http://chabada.sk/better-desktop/)

While it seems to be so easy to create a Slax bootable pendrive from a .iso file, doing the same about an Ubuntu live-cd is a complete headache.

Would be interesting if were there easier ways to create a bootable pendrive from an Ubuntu .iso live-cd.

This would surelly make much more easier the process of installing Ubuntu into netbooks like Asus-EEEPC and Acer-AspireOne. (which information online about is painful as well)

I think also a .sh script or a gui-based tool would be very helpful for all the process, specially for newbies.

This would be other way to present Ubuntu between Windows users, and allows them to try it easily.
And allows to use Ubuntu also to Ubuntu fans which are locked on Windows on workstations in employment/schools/libraries/net-cafees .

Damn Small Linux offers something similar - DSL Embedded:
http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/usb-qemu.html
http://distro.ibiblio.org/pub/linux/distributions/damnsmall/archive/dsl-4.4.4-e mbedded.zip

Possible disadvantages: big hardware requirements, slow work

On low resolution screens often comes problem with large dialog/window, which is over display range, so there is no possible to reach buttons placed on bottom of window (no visible - no clickable).

This problem concerns about FailSafe mode (640x480), and also about normal working on new small laptops (Asus EEE, HP mini, Dell 910, Acer one... screen height 600px or 480px!) and eventually old computers.

I think, there should be possibility to switch to fit more into small screen. Ideally to make it by one button:
reduce fonts, window decorations, ribbons/panels, icons, space between rows... I know, there is possible to set "pixels per inch", but this don't apply on all elements (buttons...) and looks ugly. Better is special theme.

Apropos... the MS-Windoze is more thrifty than Gnome Ubuntu to fit contents on screen, and additional - the XP offers switch to very thrifty Win2000/Win95 mode.

It makes me angry especially when trying to select higher resolution in nvidia-settings during 640x480 failsafe -> it's impossible !!

Some producers of motherboards & laptops are preparing new models with onboard FLASH chip 512MB, containing Linux mini-distribution Splashtop. http://www.splashtop.com
It will be able to boot small Linux just from board, independently external medium (HDD), utilization is for HW examination, dividing HDD partitions and emergency internet acces (browsing web, im).

Example: ASUS Express Gate
http://www.techworld.com/opsys/news/index.cfm?newsid=101513

Let's build similar alternative from UBUNTU - modify and reduce classic LiveCD to "LiveFLASH" 512MB, and moreover to Splashtop Linux, retain a possibility to make full installation of Ubuntu to HDD from onboard FLASH (same way as from LiveCD)!

Let's offer this system to producers (DELL, ASUS, ...).

(Maybe also 1GB onboard Flash chip => full LiveCD ... heureka! )

Vote also here: http://www.ideastorm.com/article/show/74820/Dell_Dude_Youre_getting_Dell_Instan t_On_OS

I read about a motherboard from Asus (but I think there are more manufacturers doing this) that boot in 5 seconds to have Internet / messenger and nothing else (I think).

Don't you find interesting to have a boot choice in Grub that only performs this tasks?; I think that, sometimes, I want to turn on my computer only to see a forum, blog or messenger... I think it's possibly to do this in few seconds...

New Boot Option that performs:

Ethernet / Wifi
Firefox
Pidgin(?)

I think is a very interesting idea!!

Dell seems to be ignoring this in Ideastorm.
http://www.ideastorm.com/article/show/62549/coreboot_formerly_LinuxBIOS_instead _of_proprietary_BIOS

Maybe Canonical could bring it up at their next meeting or something.

Benefits:
# 100% Free Software (GPL), no royalties, no license fees!
# Fast boot times (3 seconds from power-on to Linux console)
# Runs in 32-Bit protected mode almost from the start

Coreboot link:
http://www.coreboot.org/Welcome_to_coreboot

Idea for common Ubuntu LiveCD: to add in an ability to generate (clone) new LiveDVD (4.7GB) image, which would contain full ubuntu LiveCD (0.7GB) and rest of space (4.0GB) are user's photos or movies, music, documents...
The only innovation of clonned system: after start of LiveDVD, some autostart function will open window of relevant application (F-Spot, gThumb, Player, Impress, etc.) and showing first photo of album (contained in DVD). Or any multimedial presentation by index.
Moreover, second window opened on background and showing a presentation of Ubuntu, with offer to install it to computer HDD.

The clonner would be as standalone application or as Brasero/K3B burner option. In the best, included in basic Ubuntu LiveCD.
There also should be offer to use LightScribe, to print a logo of Ubuntu + photoalbum title + label as "Insert CD to your computer and reboot it from CD to browse photos".

Maybe would be better to use instantly some hardware-compatibility boot options like NOAPIC , ACPI=OFF etc.. to make it easy for BFUs.

This would be nice tool to smuggle and present "incidentally" nice&working Linux system, against background of photos. And to help spread Ubuntu between next segment of potential users.

(I remember, some years ago existed one similar project - eMovix, designed to play movies using MPlayer, generated by K3B plugin. But this was adding only dumb minimalistic linux distribution - simply to run MPlayer, and now is outdated.)

Hi,

I would like to precharge the next and previous photo in F-SPOT to avoid the blurred image.

At this moment, when you browse your photos woth the "next" button, it takes nearly one second to load completely the image.

It will be a really improve if F-SPOT could pre-load 1 (or more) images to avoid this delay.

Thanks

Pytube is a neat little program that allows you to search, download and convert videos from you tube. It also lets you easily convert video file formats for your own movies.

When booting from the Live CD fails, there are troubleshooting options available but they don't mean much to beginners.

In addition to the "Safe graphics mode" (or as a replacement), I would like to see a "Safe mode" which enables most failsafe settings (ie. those which solve most problems, for instance noapic nolapic acpi=off).

If necessary, several "levels" could be added with more or less debug options (more options would mean safer boot but decreased functionality).

Currently, there is no way for users or developers to select their default sudo command, because they all have different command names. For KDE, there is a command like: KDE-sudo. Not sure what gnome uses, but its probably another random command, and for terminal, its "sudo"

By creating a symlink from /bin/sudo-gui to the preferred sudo program (terminal or GUI), developers can easily take advantage of the preferred sudo program by running "sudo-gui". Otherwise its kinda brute force for developers. ie, Try KDE-sudo, if it fails try gnome-sudo, if it fails try bsudo, else, do via terminal based sudo. The user should be able to choose the sudo shell they want to use by default! Some gui based sudo's have security advantages over terminal based, or otherwise (ie, the gui ones may disable keyboard hooks and VNC whilst logging in so keyboard sniffers wont work, and you cant do that to the terminal sudo command or SSH becomes worthless for admins),

It just helps standardise commands for developers, and makes customisation easier for users. It may also provide future security advantages.



If this is already being done, please comment and let me know, and I'll mark this idea to be deleted. I've only used sudo from command line, none of the programs I have written have ever needed to escalate their privileges, so if this wont work, let me know too.

When someone wants to unmount a volume and the mount point is used, he gets a message telling him that the volume can't be unmounted because an application uses it. The user has no idea which application is actually using it and can't remove the device.

I propose that the popup tells him which application(s) is(are) using the device and propose to terminate them (that list should be kept up to date when the app. dies).

Provide an area that will show all pertinent system info in one place. Like in windows with my computer properties. Should show the flavor of ubuntu, the release, ram, swap, cpuinfo, battery (if any), kernel version, disk usage, etc.

New users coming from Windows are often disoriented and don't really know the real advantages of Ubuntu or even how to use some of its basic functions (Add/Remove instead of setup.exe). An orientation would help them.

A couple of ideas for how to help them have come up, including an idea about having pop-ups for every new application that's open. The pop-up idea has a few downsides, of course, not the least of which being that pop-ups are annoying to many users, both new and experienced.

One relatively unobtrusive way to introduce new users to the basic functions of Ubuntu is to show a slideshow during the installation process. New users would probably watch the slideshow (they're waiting for the installation to finish--what else are they going to do?), while experienced users might have the option to turn off the slideshow... or they may just get up and leave, knowing that the installation won't take more than fifteen minutes.

Whenever the kernel is updated, remember options such as noapic so the system will boot up after a reboot.

Today the usage of a GPS-Device isn't easy in Ubuntu. There should be an auto-detection for GPS-Devices ..like Printers and Bluetooth-Devices. It would be very cool to track myself with tools from the standard-installation. Only the basic GPS-information are needed: positions, altitude, speed and tracking (positions-with-time). Thanks.

its kinda cool having those "powered by ubuntu" stickers and take that "powered by windows" sticker off. what you guys think?

As of now, if one wants to add/edit a menu item, one has to right-click on the gnome menu title bar, select to edit the menu, and then navigate through another hierarchy. It would be much simpler to add an option to "edit this item" or "add a new menu item" through right-click when you are navigating the menu normally.

edit: Also moving items in menu just by drag and drop.

If Ubuntu wants to be a serious operating system they need to fix video playing on sites like Youtube and such. My browser always crashes and it is very annoying having to force quit all the time.