Switching Desktop Environments in Ubuntu 22.04

(from the Don't you have better things to do? department)

Introduction:

Hi everyone,

Much like many tech sector workers, I spend a lot of time on a Linux desktop lately.  I tend to prefer Enterprise or Long Term Support (LTS) editions of Linux - like Ubuntu 22.04 LTS - as opposed to the rolling update Linux versions like Arch.  They tend to be very stable, with most bugs ironed out so I can concentrate on the software being tested and not worry about tracking issues in the distribution. 

Now - I'm always in search of the perfect desktop experience.  I enjoy trying the latest Linux GUIs - Gnome, KDE, Xfce, etc.  Ubuntu allows you to install these simultaneously - switching between them when you login.  It used to work flawlessly - but since the desktops are becoming more customized - extra steps are needed to switch between them. 

This document will contain my notes for switching between Ubuntu Gnome/Gnome, Unity, and Xfce on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.  I'll leave the installing of these into a stock Ubuntu installation as an exercise for the user. (Hint:  there are great online guides like this one: How to Switch from GNOME to Unity in Ubuntu 18.04 and 17.10).  I'll also assume this is a stock Ubuntu installation with Ubuntu Gnome as the default environment.

Xfce4:

• Switch the Display Manager from GDM to LightDM via the sudo dpkg-reconfigure gdm3 command, and selecting lightdm
• Change LightDM from the Unity greeter to lightdm-gtk greeter by editing /etc/lightdm/lightdm.conf and adding the line greeter-session=lightdm-gtk-greeter, commenting out the line greeter-session=unity-greeter
• If present, you'll have to uninstall gtk3-nocsd - it now interferes with Xfce4 menus, since they're starting to use client side decorations.  In Ubuntu the command is sudo apt remove gtk3-nocsd libgtk3-nocsd0
• If you have Unity installed - you may run into an issue where notifications are using the Unity handler instead of the Xfce handler.  The easiest way to make sure that Xfce notifications are used is to issue the following command, which just renames the Unity notifier and is easily undone: sudo mv /usr/share/dbus-1/services/org.freedesktop.Notifications.service /usr/share/dbus-1/services/org.freedesktop.Notifications.service.disabled
• You can test the default handler by using the notify-send command.  Xfce notifications should be clickable - they close you click on them.
• Once rebooted and logged into Xfce, you'll want to add an additional panel to the top bar - the "Indicator Plugin" - this will make sure Unity style notifications like Skype, Slack, etc. - are displayed in the top bar.  I put it next to the Status Tray Plugin for continuity.
• Don't forget to select Xfce Session from the LightDM login screen!
• UPDATE:  There may be an issue with XFCE panel notifications and something called ayatana-indicator-application.  Uninstalling this via apt made panel notifications work - however it looks like it's installed by default with Xubuntu.  Not sure what's going on - but I'm removing it for now.  See more information here: https://forum.xfce.org/viewtopic.php?id=16436

Unity:

• Switch the Display Manager from GDM to LightDM via the sudo dpkg-reconfigure gdm3 command, and selecting lightdm
• Make sure LightDM is set to the Unity greeter by editing /etc/lightdm/lightdm.conf and insuring that the line greeter-session=unity-greeter is set.
• Make sure gtk3-nocsd is installed via the command sudo apt install gtk3-nocsd
• Install additional yaru icons with the sudo apt install yaru-theme-unity
• If you have Xfce installed - you may run into an issue where notifications are using the Xfce handler instead of the Unity handler.  The easiest way to make sure that Unity notifications are used is to issue the following command, which just renames the Xfce notifier and is easily undone: sudo mv /usr/share/dbus-1/services/org.xfce.xfce4-notifyd.Notifications.service /usr/share/dbus-1/services/org.xfce.xfce4-notifyd.Notifications.service.disabled
• You can test the default handler by using the notify-send command.  Unity notifications should not be clickable - they should fade when you hover over them.
• Once rebooted and logged into Unity, you'll want to use Unity Tweak Tool to select the Yaru-dark Theme and Yaru-dark Icon to make it match the latest Unity builds.
• Don't forget to select Unity from the LightDM login screen!
• In addition, current Unity builds are using Nemo instead of Nautilus for default file handling. After locking Nemo to the Unity Launcher, you can switch to Nemo file handling by using the following command: xdg-mime default nemo.desktop inode/directory application/x-gnome-saved-search 
• You can revert back to Nautilus by using the following command: xdg-mime default nautilus.desktop inode/directory application/x-gnome-saved-search
• NOTE:  If you've been experimenting with KDE desktops, for some reason, this kind of trashes the ~/.config/gtk-3.0/settings.ini file.  This shows up as a messed-up right click Unity Desktop menu, among other things.  The quick fix is to edit the ~/.config/gtk-3.0/settings.ini file, and set gtk-menu-images=false.  Logging out and logging back in should now have fixed your right click Unity Desktop menu.
• NOTE:  Electron apps have issues with Ubuntu AppIndicator Tray Icons.  There's a fix here: https://askubuntu.com/questions/1469305/unity-desktop-tray-icons-of-some-apps-not-showing-anymore-ubuntu-22-04
• NOTE:  If Nemo menus no longer move to the top of the Unity desktop - but are stuck to the Nemo window - you may need to reload unity-gtk3-module.  I'm not sure what clobbers this.

Ubuntu Gnome/Gnome:

• Switch the Display Manager from LightDM to GDM via the sudo dpkg-reconfigure gdm3 command, and selecting gdm3
• Remove the additional yaru icons with the command sudo apt remove yaru-theme-unity
• If you switched to Nemo, be sure to switch back to Nautilus:  xdg-mime default nautilus.desktop inode/directory application/x-gnome-saved-search
• Once rebooted, and logged into Ubuntu Gnome or Gnome, you may need to reset your theme from Gnome Tweaks or the Settings control panel. 
• Don't forget to select Ubuntu or GNOME from the GDM login screen!
• I had an issue where GNOME was really slow after switching back - and the GTK windows ignored theme requests.  I fixed it by removing xdg-desktop-portal-gnome.  I don't think this is a good fix - but it got it working again.  Caveat emptor. 
  UPDATE: This was caused by potential bug fix for a Unity 90 second logout issue - as described here: Bug #2063383 “[SRU] Ubuntu Unity takes 90 seconds to log out” : Bugs : gnome-session package : Ubuntu Commenting out the line as indicated breaks xdg-desktop-portal-gnome. 

Cheers,

Paul

End of an Era: FFXI servers shut down for consoles: Xbox 360, PlayStation 2

(from the Adventures in Vana'diel department)

So - it finally had to happen. SquareEnix shut down the remaining servers for the console versions of Final Fantasy XI this morning, leaving it PC-only for now.

Full info here: http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/envi/win/winshift.html

I remember getting FFXI for my PlayStation 2 - it came with the Sony PlayStation 2 HDD and the promise of a whole new world of PlayStation features. Unfortunately, right after launch, Sony canceled their US plans, and the Japanese features like storing games on the hard drive, and the Sony Broadband Navigator never came to these shores. Still - it was a rock solid FFXI platform, and I spent many hours exploring the world of Vana'diel on my PS2.

When the Xbox 360 client came out, it was a blast to have an MMORPG on that platform. There were some odd issues with Xbox Live integration, and a couple of performance quirks, but the true widescreen and increased draw distance made it the FFXI platform of choice until the PC hardware and software options finally overtook it.

I played both console versions last night, archiving all of my screen shots and other ephemera. It was a bittersweet farewell. The servers were definitely overloaded - but it was still a lot of fun to run around Vana'diel and look at the sights one last time.

FFXI is going to continue on PC for the near future. Also - SquareEnix has announced plans for a full mobile version in the next year or so. This means adventurers will continue to fight the good fight, and explore the world of Vana'diel - but it's definitely the end of the console era for FFXI.

See you in Windurst!

Cheers,
Paul

Setting up Oracle Java JRE 8 on Ubuntu

(from the Java - But Not Coffee department)

Hi everyone,

(This is a quick post - these instructions are necessarily terse and mainly serve as a reminder to myself. If you do try this - you do so at your own risk - I can't provide any help if you mess anything up.)

I needed to set up Oracle Java JRE 8 on my Ubuntu 12.04 LTS 64-bit system.

For previous versions of Oracle Java, I followed the steps in "6. Installation from RPM package" on the web page here:
http://how-to.linuxcareer.com/oracle-java-jdk-7-on-ubuntu-linux-installation

These instructions worked fine for previous versions of Java but broke with JRE 8.

When I analyzed the failure, I saw it was breaking with the alternatives command.  Ubuntu uses update-alternatives instead of alternatives.

So - I decided to try something bold.  I created a symbolic link to alternatives from update-alternatives:

cd /usr/sbin
sudo ln -s update-alternatives alternatives

Then, I followed the steps in "6. Installation from RPM package".  The package installed properly.  Just for reference, here's the commands I used for the JRE 8u77 I installed today:

sudo alien --scripts jre-8u77-linux-x64.rpm
sudo dpkg -i jre1.8.0-77_1.8.077-1_amd64.deb

That left connecting up the Firefox Java plugin.  There's many ways to do that, but I like using alternatives.. er... I mean update-alternatives:

sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/libjavaplugin.so libjavaplugin.so /usr/java/default/lib/amd64/libnpjp2.so 20

Obviously - these are for a 64 bit system.  These won't work as written for a 32 bit system or a mixed 64/32 bit system.

Good luck!

Cheers,
Paul 

Quick Review: Rise of the Tomb Raider

tl;dr: If you have an Xbox One - or in a surprise port, an Xbox 360 - and you're a fan of the new gritty Tomb Raider - or survival action in general - consider picking this up.

The storyline isn't quite as compelling, and if you play it straight through, you might find it a little shorter, but it takes the open world elements of Tomb Raider and enlarges them. There are many little side quests and things to do in this game world. Plus - some actual tombs to raid this time.

It's rated mature, and although it's not quite as violent as Tomb Raider, Lara still does a lot of killing in this one.

They just released a Windows version as well - available via Steam or the Windows 10 store. 

Warning: if your rig is slightly older, this will push it pretty hard, due to the huge open world spaces and all their fine detail. Unlike Tomb Raider, which runs on my rig set to ultra, I had to turn down some of the graphic settings for Rise Of The Tomb Raider. There are basic presets you can use which you can optimize for your hardware.

The previous paragraph really makes me appreciate my consoles even more.

I did play (and finish) this on the 360, and although the graphics are definitely dialed down, the frame rate is rock solid and it's eminently playable. If you're still rocking the 360, you won't be disappointed by this one, even though it doesn't quite look as snazzy as its predecessor, due to the open world demands.

I rate it a solid headshot with a compound bow.

More reviews here:
http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/rise-of-the-tomb-raider

Cheers,
Paul

tsclient for Fedora 15

(from the RPM department)

Hi everyone,

As most folks know, I do like to dabble in Linux. Lately, I've been trying Fedora 15 on a virtual machine - just to see what a cutting edge Linux is like.

One thing I miss from previous versions of Fedora is the old rdesktop GUI front-end called tsclient. That package has been deprecated in favor of newer RDP clients. But - I miss it anyway.

Well - I was able to take the SRPM for tsclient from Fedora 13, and add patches to get it to build in Fedora 15.

(Side note: Normally, I run Yellow Dog Linux on my PS3.)

I don't think this will build on YDL per se - since it's based on RedHat Enterprise Linux - but the patch system is interesting. You basically unpack the SRPM, add your patches in the form of diff files to the SOURCE directory, edit the spec file to include them, and re-package and re-build the RPM and SRPM.

No muss - no fuss.

Unfortunately, Blogger doesn't allow me to add attachments, so I've posted the files on the Yellow Dog board: tsclient for Fedora 15

Cheers,
Paul

Five reasons why GS/OS beats Vista and OS X

(from the Sherman - set the wayback machine to 1987 department)

Saw this blog post, and had to share it with everyone:

Five reasons why GS/OS beats Vista and OS X

This made me smile - especially since I've still got an Apple IIgs around here somewhere...

Cheers,

Paul