My Ubuntu Blog

I have previously used XFCE with Xubuntu. But then I replaced it with Debian Etch and Gnome. But Gnome was becoming a little too heavy for me. I was bored and needed some change. So I decided to install a complete Gnome free system. First I downloaded latest Debian net-install cd. Installing Debian this way is much more easier. You get a chance to select your own packages during the installation or go ahead with some preselected packages. You even have a choice to install only the minimal system. So I installed the minimal base system and then logged in.

I am using Linux for more than a year now so I am comfortable with commands. Since I was going to install new things so it was wise to log in with super user priviledges.

nom@debian:~$ su
Password:
debian:/home/nom#


Once logged in, I had to tell apt to use network proxy. I did that by running the command:


export http_proxy=http://[proxy.address]:[port]


This command is temporary solution and you will have to repeat it with each new session. There is a workaround to set this up permenantly.

I installed XFCE4 by running the command:

apt-get install xfce4

I was foolish, I thought I would be able to log in a nice GUI world by simply downloading XFCE4. I forgot that I should also download gdm and xorg.

apt-get install gdm, xorg

Even then I was unable to log in to the gdm. So I ran:

dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg


This command runs a nice little wizard which helps you solve issues with your xserver settings. It could be difficult sometimes if you don’t know what hardware you are using and what it is called. Like once I had this trouble and I had no other computer to connect to the internet and ask for help on the internet. At that time I learnt about lynx a text mode web browser and bitchx the IRC chat client.

After configuring xserver I logged in with GDM and entered into the brand new world of XFCE. May be its just me but XFCE in Debian is faster and prettier than Xubuntu. I still had to install iceweasel web browser, xchat, ttf-nafees font and gimp. Working in this new environment, limited set of tools and applications, I learnt that I need to download more packages. Like for example I didn’t install alsa-base package. I also didn’t have xfce4-mixer package which is required to add a volume indicator icon on panel. I also learnt that I can’t live without Synaptic package manager.

I am much happier now and satisfied for a few months at least. Basic applications are still the same. I was already using Mousepad, Iceweasel, Gimp and Xchat with Gnome. But the most notable difference is in performance. My computer is much faster now, start up time is improved and it feels so neat.

Xubuntu (Ubuntu Linux’s XFCE based flavor) does not come with any graphical utility to switch keyboard layouts. There is a little XKB plugin that you can add to your XFCE panel but it only shows the layout in use. It does not provide an interface to add keyboard layouts neither it allows you to set keyboard shortcuts for switching between layouts. It doesn’t mean that you can not use different keyboard layouts in Xubuntu; the functionality is there waiting for someone to build a tool around it. Untill then, we will have to manually set our keyboard layouts and here is how to do this.

Create a file in /usr/bin/

gksudo "mousepad /usr/bin/fixkeyboard"

Add following lines in this file. I am using US and PK layouts in this example, please change it to the keyboard layouts you want to use. Also note that this example sets xkb option to change groups when both alt keys are pressed together.

#!/bin/bash
setxkbmap -option grp:switch,grp:alts_toggle us,pk

Save the file and exit.

Go to Applications > Settings > Autostarted Applications and click the Add button. In the Name feild type fixkeyboard and in the Command feild type /usr/bin/fixkeyboard press OK and then Close.

You are done. Now whenever you log on to your XFCE session you will be able to switch keyboard layouts by pressing both Alt keys together. If you don’t like the both Alt keys combination then you can try other group switch combinations. Replace alts_toggle in fixkeyboard file with one of the following options:

alt_shift_toggle
ctrl_shift_toggle
ctrls_toggle

Country flags for XFCE xkb plugin are located in /usr/share/xfce4/xkb/flags/. If your country’s flag is missing you can add it there, the file should be in png format and 60 x 40 pixels.