Hack Karmic's GDM Login Part 2

Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala included an rewrite of the GDM, the graphic login manager. The GDM was rewritten to speed up boot times, but in the process removed all the customization users were accustomed to. The first hack the Karmic GDM article  showed you how to access the gnome-control-center in order to configuring the theme, color, font and background. This article will address the two other major flaws with the new GDM; displaying a user lists and the loud drum sound.

The new GDM's default behavior displays user's login information, compromising the basic security of the system by giving away half the login information. To remove the user list from the GDM,

in a terminal type:

sudo gconftool-2 --direct --config-source xml:readwrite:/etc/gconf/gconf.xml.mandatory --type Boolean --set /apps/gdm/simple-greeter/disable_user_list True

- The GDM menu without the user list

The second issue is with the GDM login sound. The the system-ready.ogg drum sound is loud and annoying.

In previous releases you could easily disable login sounds by unchecking a box, 9.10's GDM does not offer a reprieve from the audio assault on everyone in close proximity. If you don't want the drum sound played,

in a terminal type:

cd /usr/share/sounds/ubuntu/stereo

- this takes you to the folder where the sound files are stored

sudo rm system-ready.ogg

- this will remove the system-ready.ogg

The ability to skin your GDM in future Ubuntu editions may never return but at least we can take back some of our freedom from the draconian system implemented in Karmic.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Improve Flash Player 10 Performance

I found this hack via http://blogs.adobe.com/penguin.swf, the Adobe Linux blog.

This guide will force the flash player to bypass its GPU validity checks, improving performance.

In a terminal type:

sudo mkdir /etc/adobe
echo "OverrideGPUValidation=true" > /tmp/mms.cfg
sudo mv /tmp/mms.cfg /etc/adobe/

Don't expect the hack to be a magical speed boost option but it does help with tearing and choppiness. Hopefully Adobe will one day fix flash in Linux instead of giving us workarounds.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Hack Karmic's GDM Login Screen

One of my favorite things about Linux is the ability to customize everything. The Gnome Display Manager (GDM) is an excellent example. A quick look at gnome-look.org illustrates the diversity and choice Linux users have for a screen they might only see for 5 seconds.

Changing your GDM was once a simple processes with an excellent GUI behind it. With Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala the GDM has been rewritten to properly take advantage of xsplash, Ubuntu's new X based boot. While these changes will significantly improve boot time, customizable GDMs are going to suffer. Ubuntu developers have already stated that a level of customization once offered with the old GDM will not be available for Karmic.

Until then we can hack the GDM to change the background, theme, fonts and some minor features. While not as robust as before, it's better then the ugly brown sand option that Karmic testers are stuck with.


- This is th old GDM configuration screen. notice the options and themes you can choose from.


- This is the new GDM screen. Not many options.

1. Logout of your current session and return to the GDM
2. Switch to the tty command line prompt using Ctrl-Alt-F1
3. Login using your normal login/password
4. at the command line prompt type: export DISPLAY=:0.0
5. then type: sudo -u gdm gnome-control-center
6. Switch back to the gdm screen using ALT-F7
7. The gnome-control-center should be loaded. Use it to configure your GDM.
8. Click on the Appearances icon, in appearances you can change your GDM's font, theme and background image.
9. Close the gnome-control-center and login normally.

For more GDM hacks check out part two of this article.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Hack The Ubuntu Netbook Remix UI

With a little bit of work you can really change the look and feel of Ubuntu Netbook Remix's user interface.

- This only took me 2 minutes. It removes almost all of UNR's user interface and lets me show off my desktop wallpaper.


- The default Ubuntu Remix User Interface

The Netbook Remix user interface files are stored in:

/usr/share/netbook-launcher

To edit the files
In a terminal type:

sudo nautilus

- then navigate to /usr/share/netbook-launcher

The files are saved as Scalable Vector Graphics. To edit them, I recommend Inkscape, a free and open source vector graphics editor. It is a powerful graphic editing tool that is fully compliant with the XML, SVG, and CSS standards.

To install Inkscape
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install inkscape

After editing the files, Log Out and back in for the changes to take effect.

My Inkscape skills are sub-par at best. My hack just erased the background. I would really like to see what the community comes up with. Feel free to take a screenshot (FN+Prnt Scrn) of your custom UNR interface and link to them in the comments. If you want, I can host your pictures and files and share them with everyone. Email me at redDEADresolve [at] gmail and I will put them in the article.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.