Revamp Your Ubuntu Experience with the Ultimate Guide to Installing Gnome 3 - Never Look Back!
If you’re an Ubuntu user looking to take your desktop experience to the next level, then look no further than Gnome 3. This sleek and modern desktop environment can breathe new life into your OS and give you a more enjoyable and efficient computing experience.
Gnome 3 is designed to be simple, intuitive, and customizable - everything you need to get the most out of your Ubuntu desktop. With its streamlined user interface and powerful tools, you’ll find that using your computer becomes a more enjoyable experience.
But how do you install Gnome 3 on Ubuntu? It’s actually quite simple, and in this ultimate guide, we’ll walk you through every step of the process.
Step 1: Backup Your Data
Before you start any major system update or installation, it’s essential to first backup any important data. This will save you from potential data loss or corruption during installation. You can use cloud storage, an external hard drive, or an online backup service to store your files securely.
Step 2: Update Your System
The next step is to ensure that your system is up to date. Open up the terminal and run the following commands:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade
This process may take a while to complete depending on the size of the update.
Step 3: Install Gnome 3
Now it’s time to install Gnome 3. The following command will do all of the necessary installation work for you:
sudo apt-get install gnome-shell
During the installation process, you may be prompted to choose between GDM3 and LightDM. Pick whichever one you prefer.
Step 4: Restart Your Computer
Once Gnome 3 is installed, you’ll need to restart your computer to activate it. After restarting, you’ll see the Gnome login screen. Enter your login credentials, and Gnome 3 will be activated.
Step 5: Customize Your Gnome 3 Desktop
Gnome 3 is designed to be highly customizable, so you can make it work exactly how you want it to. You can add and remove shortcuts, move around the taskbar, rearrange app icons, and more. Spend some time customizing your desktop to your liking, and enjoy your new computing experience.
Step 6: Enjoy Your New Desktop
Congratulations, you’ve successfully installed Gnome 3 on your Ubuntu desktop! With its sleek user interface, customizable tools, and powerful features, you’ll never look back to your old desktop.
With the steps outlined in this guide, you’ll be able to take full advantage of Gnome 3 and make the most of your Ubuntu desktop. Enjoy!
Even though Gnome 3 (aka Gnome shell) is still in beta, it has sure garnered a lot of attention from both Linux enthusiasts and power users. Most of us who are not happy with Ubuntu unity tend to install Gnome 3 and see how it fares against the Unity desktop. If you are one of those who wanted to try out Gnome 3 on your Ubuntu, but don’t want to deal with the compilation of code, here’s how you can install it easily via a PPA.
Installing Gnome Shell in Ubuntu Natty 11.04
Open a terminal and type the following command:(only applicable for Ubuntu Natty 11.04.)
Restart your computer. At the login screen, select Gnome as the desktop session.
What will change
If you are using the Unity desktop, some of the stuff might break.
The font will change.
Additional software to install
If you plan to use Gnome Shell as your main desktop manager, the following applications will be useful for you.
1. Gnome Tweak Tool
To install, you can use the following command:
2. Gnome-shell-frippery
This application is a Gnome 3 extension and it allows you to disable automatic workspace and several other tweaks.
To install, download the Gnome-shell-frippery tar file and extract it to the “~/.local/share/gnome-shell/extensions” folder.
Restart Gnome-shell.
3. Gnome Shell extensions
There are several other Gnome-shell extensions that you might be interested. You can open your Ubuntu Software Center (or synaptic Package Manager) and search for “gnome-shell-extension“
Uninstalling Gnome-shell
If you decided that Gnome 3 (or Gnome shell) is not for you, here’s the way to remove it from your system.
Conclusion
Gnome 3 is radically different from Gnome 2 and Unity. If you are using it for the first time, be prepared to unlearn what you know about Gnome and pick up from scratch again. There is a high probability that you will hate it the first time you use it, because it doesn’t come with most of the stuff that you are familiar with. Try it out for a few days and I am sure you will appreciate some of its features.
Damien Oh started writing tech articles since 2007 and has over 10 years of experience in the tech industry. He is proficient in Windows, Linux, Mac, Android and iOS, and worked as a part time WordPress Developer. He is currently the owner and Editor-in-Chief of Make Tech Easier.
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