Making Ubuntu feel more like Windows

Ubuntu has its own style and its own way of working, but there are ways of getting a Windows "look and feel" from within Ubuntu.

Taskbar panel settings

There are panels at the top and bottom of the screen, which we can adjust so that they are similar to the default Windows layout:

1. Right-click the two coloured blocks on the right of the bottom panel, click preferences, then set the Number of workspaces to 1.

2. Right-click the bottom panel, and select Delete this panel.

3. Click and drag the top panel to the bottom of the screen.

4. Drag applications from the Applications menu onto the panel to emulate a "quick launch" area

5. Add following applets by right-clicking the bottom panel, selecting Add to Panel, and picking them from the list. Here are some specific applets you might want to add:

   • Window List (a bar containing buttons for each open window)

   • Main Menu (similar to the start button)

   • Notification Area (similar to the system tray)

   • Clock

6. Right click on Applications, Places, and System, and select Remove from panel for each

By default, Ubuntu gives you two "workspaces" - effectively two desktops, side by side. You disabled this feature in step one, above. If you want to try using this feature (or you deleted the bottom bar before you could disable it), add the Workspace switcher applet just like the other applets described above.

Desktop view

Ubuntu's default desktop is empty, but you can add icons by following these steps:

1. Click Places and drag the Computer icon onto the desktop (equivalent to My Computer)

2. Click Places and drag the Home folder onto the desktop (equivalent to My Documents)

3. Press Alt+F2, then type gconftool-2 -s /apps/nautilus/desktop/trash_icon_visible --type=bool true and click Run (equivalent to Recycle Bin)

The final step deserves some explanation: Alt+F2 shows the "Run Application" window, which is similar to Start > Run in Windows. gconftool-2 alters the GConf configuration system, which is similar to the Windows registry.

Keyboard shortcuts

By default, Ubuntu uses Alt+F1 to open the start menu. To use the windows key:

1. click System > Preferences > Keyboard Shortcuts

2. Find "Show the panel's main menu" (in the "Desktop" section)
3. Click the area on the right that reads Alt+F1
4. Press the Windows Key

5. The area should now read "Super L" (left super key)

Windows Fonts

Ubuntu includes high-quality alternatives to common Windows fonts. However, these alternatives are not identical so your existing documents may not look exactly the same under Ubuntu. You can use the most common Windows fonts by installing the following package: msttcorefonts.

Making Firefox Autoselect Text in the Address Bar

Under Windows, clicking on the address bar in Firefox automatically selects the entire text. By default Firefox running under Ubuntu does not. To achieve the same functionality in Ubuntu follow these steps:

1. In the address bar, type about:config and press Return

2. In the filter text field, type browser.urlbar.clickSelectsAll

3. Double-click the value to set it to true

Running Windows applications in Ubuntu

It is possible to run Windows applications in Ubuntu, although it can take a lot of effort. The three main approaches are:

• Emulate Windows programs using Wine

• Run C# or VB.NET programs using Mono

• Emulate DOS using DOSBox

• Emulate a whole PC that you can install Windows on using Virtualisation

These options, especially the last, are not for the faint of heart.