Everyone needs to tweak the default desktop environment before getting ready to work! And here are the top 10 things that I’ve done after installing Ubuntu 21.10 Impish Indri.

1. Install Media Codec:

If you didn’t enable ‘Install third-party software …‘ check-box during the installing process, you need to install the multimedia codecs for audio and video playback with built-in apps.

To do so, open terminal by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard and run command:

sudo apt install ubuntu-restricted-extras

As you see in terminal outputs, it will also install codecs for Chromium based browser, Microsoft TrueType core fonts, as well as non-free package to handle rar archive.

2. Enable ‘Click-to-minimize’ dock panel click action:

Clicking app icon on the dock panel will do nothing for the focused app window by default. Though I think most people want it act as minimize the current window.

Open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run the single command will do the trick:

gsettings set org.gnome.shell.extensions.dash-to-dock click-action minimize

3. Remove Default Firefox Snap, and install back the classic Deb package:

In the final release of Ubuntu 21.10, the default Firefox web browser has been switched to the Snap package runs in sandbox. However, it does not support for installing Gnome extensions!

So I have to remove it by running command in a terminal window:

sudo snap remove --purge firefox

And then install back the classic deb package via command:

sudo apt install firefox

4. Tweak the Dock Panel Appearance:

Also for the left dock panel, there are a few tips to tweak its appearance. Open terminal by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T key combination on keyboard, and run the command below:

• Move ‘Show Applications’ (9 dots icon) to the top:

  gsettings set org.gnome.shell.extensions.dash-to-dock show-apps-at-top true

• Shorten the panel to make it compact:

  gsettings set org.gnome.shell.extensions.dash-to-dock extend-height false

• Move dock to the bottom, though you may do it via System Settings:

  gsettings set org.gnome.shell.extensions.dash-to-dock dock-position BOTTOM

• Disable USB and other removable device icons from panel:

  gsettings set org.gnome.shell.extensions.dash-to-dock show-mounts false

For those prefer a graphical configuration tool, all the above commands can be done via Dconf Editor tool.

5. Enable Gnome Extensions Support:

The most extensions for Gnome is to be installed via web browser by visiting extensions.gnome.org, though you have to install something to enable it.

Open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command to install chrome-gnome-shell and Gnome Extensions app:

sudo apt install chrome-gnome-shell gnome-shell-extension-prefs

After that, you may visit the web site and install browser extension for the first time and install your prefer Gnome Extensions.

And by searching for ‘Gnome Extensions’ from activities overview, you can open the app to manage them.

6. Install Gnome Tweaks:

Besides the default system settings, Gnome Tweaks is the must have configuration tool for GNOME desktop, especially for changing themes and fonts.

To install the tool, open terminal and run command:

sudo apt install gnome-tweaks

7. Manage desktop icons:

Ubuntu 21.10 now defaults the trash icon into dock panel, though the Home icon present in the desktop out-of-the-box. User may choose to hide it or change the icon size via new settings menu.

Simply right-click blank area on the desktop and choose “Desktop Icons settings” will open the page to manage desktop icons.

8. Modern desktop appearance via blur effect:

The default top bar and overview screen is a little bit ugly. To make them look good, try “Blur my Shell” Gnome Shell Extension.

After doing step 5, you may click the link below to install it:

Ubuntu 21.10 with Blur effect

9. Enable Gnome Shell Theme Support:

To be able to switch between dark and light menus, notifications, etc, and try out different Gnome Shell themes, you have to install the User Themes extension.

After that, use Gnome Tweaks to change Shell themes under Appearance tab.

10. Switch back Xorg Session:

Ubuntu defaults to Wayland session since Ubuntu 21.04. However, some applications are still not working good with Wayland. If you’re sticking to those apps, you may choose to switch back “Ubuntu on Xorg” from the login screen via bottom right gear button.

That’s all. If you have more tips to improve the Ubuntu desktop appearance, please leave comment in the bottom!

Ubuntu 21.10 officially released! Here’s what’s new and how to upgrade from the previous Ubuntu 21.04.

Ubuntu 21.10, codenamed “Impish Indri”, is the new short-term release with 9 months support. It features Linux Kernel 5.13 with new hardware support. And it ships GNOME Desktop 40 with a redesigned activities overview screen. Workspaces are now arranged horizontally. Three-finger touchpad gestures are supported out-of-the-box to toggle overview and switch workspaces.

For Ubuntu Server 21.10, it integrates OpenStack Xena, QEMU 6.0, PHP8, libvirt 7.6, Kubernetes, and Ceph with advanced life-cycle management tools.

Other changes include:

• Wayland session available while using the Nvidia proprietary driver.
• PulseAudio 15 introduces support for Bluetooth LDAC and AptX codecs.
• Better audio quality with HFP Bluetooth profiles.
• Toolchain update: gcc 11.2.0, glibc 2.34, LLVM, golang 1.17.x.
• See more changes here.

Download / Upgrade to Ubuntu 21.10:

For those want to do a fresh install, download Ubuntu 21.10 from the official website.

How to Upgrade From Ubuntu 21.04 Desktop to Ubuntu 21.10:

Before getting started, it’s always recommended to backup important data and switch to open-source driver via “Additional Drivers” utility. Also, disable third-party PPAs via “Software & Updates -> Other Software”. And it’s better to purge Ubuntu PPAs that contains updated graphics & multi-media libraries, e.g, FFmpeg, Mesa.

1.) First, search for and open “Software Updater” utility and install all available updates. And restart your computer if required.

2.) Press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard, and run command to launch the Software Updater with checking system upgrade:

update-manager -c

It will open up ‘Software Updater’ and indicate that Ubuntu 21.10 is available for upgrade. Don’t see the prompt? Try opening “Software & Updates” and select notify me for any version under ‘Updates’ tab.

3.) After clicking on “Upgrade” button, it will bring up the ‘Impish Indri Release Note’ dialog.

4.) Click “Upgrade” again and it opens the “Distribution Upgrade” wizard indicates the process.

5.) After ‘Preparing to upgrade’ and ‘Setting new software channels’, it will ask for confirm again for upgrading the system.

Now, it starts downloading the new packages and installing the updates! And, it will ask for confirm to clean up obsolete packages. After all, restart computer when it indicates restart to complete upgrade.

How to Upgrade From Ubuntu 21.04 Server to Ubuntu 21.10:

To upgrade Ubuntu Server, firstly connect to command console, and install the update-manager-core package via command:

sudo apt install update-manager-core

Make sure the Prompt line in /etc/update-manager/release-upgrades is set to normal via command:

cat /etc/update-manager/release-upgrades |grep Prompt

If the value if not normal, you need to edit the file and change it.

Finally, start the upgrade tool and follow onscreen instructions via command:

sudo do-release-upgrade