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Changing the Ubuntu look

This article will detail how to mold the Ubuntu Gnome desktop into anything you want it to be

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Follow along and watch while I take a stock Ubuntu desktop and transform it something really slick!

Introduction

Window borders, icons, splash images and other graphical user interface (GUI) preferences are largely a subjective thing. Still, it’s nice to have the tools available to transform the GUI into something that is more pleasing to your eye. Fortunately, GNU/Linux makes it relatively easy to mould your desktop environment into whatever suits your taste, and Ubuntu is no exception.

For the purposes of this discussion, I’ll stick to Ubuntu’s default Gnome desktop, but Ubuntu’s KDE desktop (Kubuntu) is every bit as flexible.

How it works

Ubuntu’s Gnome desktop comes with a number of pre-installed themes, and a built-in theme manager. You can access the “Theme Preferences” by selecting System → Preferences → Theme from the Ubuntu menu (as shown in figure 1a). You will then be presented with the Theme Preferences window (as shown in figure 1b).

Figure 1a: Finding the Theme Preferences in Ubuntu's menus
Figure 1a: Finding the Theme Preferences in Ubuntu’s menus
Figure 1b: Theme Preferences window
Figure 1b: Theme Preferences window

By selecting one of the other themes listed in the Theme Preferences window, it will change the following three components:

  • Controls: including such things as buttons, colours, and check boxes
  • Window borders: including the type of border as well as buttons for minimizing, maximizing, and restoring windows
  • Icons: complete icon themes (some are more complete than others)

You can also mix and match these components by selecting “Theme Details” (figure 1c).

Figure 1c: Theme Details
Figure 1c: Theme Details

For example, you might select the “Clearlooks” Controls, “Atlanta” Window Border, and “Sandy” Icons. Once satisfied with your selections, a custom theme such as this can be saved from within the main Theme Preferences window.

A closer look

There are a few additional parts of the Gnome desktop that can be modified in order to better customize the overall look and feel. They are:

  • Backgrounds: also known as “wallpaper”
  • Login Manager: where you enter user name and password
  • Splash Screen: a graphical image displaying logon progress

Fortunately, there is another tool known as “Art Manager” (also known as “Gnome Art”) that will allow you to manage all six of these components. I will focus primarily on this tool to help change Ubuntu’s look.

Unfortunately, Art Manager is not installed in the default Gnome desktop. In order to install it, you will have to ensure that all Ubuntu repositories are enabled in the Synaptic Package Manager (figures 1d, 1e, and 1f).

Figure 1d: Synaptic Package Manager
Figure 1d: Synaptic Package Manager
Figure 1e: Repositories
Figure 1e: Repositories
Figure 1f: Edit Repository
Figure 1f: Edit Repository
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Copyright information

Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is available at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html.

Biography

Richard Fennimore: Richard G. Fennimore is a Linux/Networking/Security consultant located in Charlottetown, Canada.

Anonymous visitor's picture

Blubuntu

Submitted by Anonymous visitor on Tue, 2006-08-08 16:48.

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You screenshots look great! I have compiled a montage about Blubuntu, if you would be interested in seeing it. I have provided easy instructions, so that anyone can easily have a blue desktop for their Ubuntu system.

Cheers

curlyspell's picture

Thanks i will tke u up on

Submitted by curlyspell on Sat, 2007-01-13 10:21.

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0

Thanks i will tke u up on that. I promised myself that i would conquor this world I have avoided too long so, here I go

Thanks Again

Anonymous visitor's picture

FYI

Submitted by Anonymous visitor on Sun, 2006-12-10 12:07.

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0

Just in case anyone is following this (as we just have had here:- https://answers.launchpad.net/distros/ubuntu/+ticket/2673 ) in later versions of Ubuntu the "Login Screen Setup" menu option is now called "Login Window".

Anonymous visitor's picture

Brown

Submitted by Anonymous visitor on Tue, 2006-12-12 22:21.

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And watch magically when future upgrades restore some of the ugly brown bits.

Anonymous visitor's picture

backgrounds directory

Submitted by Anonymous visitor on Wed, 2007-03-14 14:05.

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0

is it possible to know in wich directory Art Manager saves the backgrounds downloaded?

Anonymous visitor's picture

Backgrounds

Submitted by Anonymous visitor on Wed, 2007-03-14 14:03.

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Is it possible to know in wich directory Art-Manager saves the backgrounds I install from it? I would like to modify a few of them but I can't find where are located. thanks :)

Anonymous visitor's picture

Backgrounds

Submitted by Anonymous visitor on Wed, 2007-03-14 14:04.

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Is it possible to know in wich directory Art-Manager saves the backgrounds I install from it? I would like to modify a few of them but I can't find where are located. thanks :)

Luka Manser's picture

Ubuntu look

Submitted by Luka Manser on Wed, 2007-04-25 15:16.

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Personally I don't like Ubuntu's default brown theme or it's icons (Update: dapper has beautiful icons). They are just not for me. The good thing with Ubuntu (and linux in general) is that it's possible to modify everything you want. Now I know where to find other themes (gnome-look.org). I have done everything ok but Firefix.
Can you tell me if this is the right way to make firefox look like those themes:
sudo apt-get install firefox-themes-ubuntu?
Thanks,
Luka Manser

Anonymous visitor's picture

So what now?

Submitted by Anonymous visitor (not verified) on Sun, 2007-07-01 17:38.

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So what now?

Anonymous visitor's picture

I'm with you, I can't find the files either!

Submitted by Anonymous visitor (not verified) on Sun, 2007-09-09 19:46.

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I used the art manager to download some new login screen themes and cannot find them anywhere on my computer. I used the terminal to search for them but cannot access them still. Anyone know where my downloads went? Many thanks my friends...

Dave Guard's picture

Does this help?

Submitted by Dave Guard on Tue, 2007-09-11 03:19.

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By default art manager seems to save everything to your home folder. However, when you try to download a file, it does ask you where you want to download it to. Perhaps if you go back in there and try to download something else you will find where you saved it last time.

Anonymous visitor's picture

I installed the ubuntu 7.10

Submitted by Anonymous visitor (not verified) on Thu, 2007-11-08 19:43.

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I installed the ubuntu 7.10 but i cant find the themes option in system-preferences, does any one help me how to get the themes option to change my desktop look.

Dave Guard's picture

They've changed things around in 7.10

Submitted by Dave Guard on Sun, 2007-11-11 21:25.

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You will find themes in System -> Preferences -> Appearance now.

arielsegal's picture

A Very useful article

Submitted by arielsegal on Mon, 2007-11-12 02:41.

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I'm new to Linux, and have installed Ubuntu to an old PC. I don't like the default theme at all, so I changed the background to an image I downloaded from the Internet, and other appearance items.
Thank you for this article, now my desktop will really look the way I wanted it to look.

anonymouse's picture

about ubuntu

Submitted by anonymouse (not verified) on Mon, 2007-11-19 12:55.

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hello im just a new user of the ubuntu and i dont know more about it... just wanna ask some questions so please give me some replies on it... 1.how will i install ubuntu to my windows XP as a partition?
2.how will i change my themes to make it more lively just like the kubuntu (well kubuntu looks like a vista but more than a mac)
3.how you make my desktop more presentable coz, the default theme is so boring and i dont like to use it..

so any ideas ???

ill wait for your answers please e-mail me at;
phrizvince@yahoo.com

please help i really need it.. thank you..

by the way I'm an Information Technology Student in the Philippines so i want to know more about Linux and other OS.


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