Using Ubuntu: 4 Practical Steps You Should Execute On Your System Immediately

If you are an open source software ("OSS") enthusiast like me, then you have probably already skimmed a fair amount of additional software to install lists after having installed Ubuntu itself. While those suggestions are constructive, they are entirely subjective and based on the wants of the person who wrote the list, and, who, in all likelihood has not bothered to qualify exactly why the software was chosen. (Most likely because the writer is being paid by a corporate brand name to play the part of and publish feel-good pieces about being an OSS enthusiast rather than for the sheer joy of it, which, in my opinion, makes a vast world of difference for the average end user.)

Following are some of my own suggestions, based on the following criteria:

(1) You're a n00b;
(2) You know you need/want comfort/security/privacy, but you're just a n00b;
(3) You're a n00b.

One:  Disable Search

First and foremost, you need to know that Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu (and the biggest distributor) has pulled an interesting little end run around user privacy by enabling by default the sharing of both your hard drive searches as well as internet searches to a third party. I covered this cute little stunt previously. As a result, the very first recommendation I can suggest is to disable the web search from the Unity taskbar by going into System Settings > Privacy & Security by clicking the cog on the upper right hand side next to the date & time.  Select the Search tab then click the slider firmly into the OFF position.  This will stop your system from transmitting your search data to the Mother Ship that Canonical so thoughtfully enabled by default for you.

You can also go one step better by disconnecting your system from Ubuntu's ad servers just to make sure your searches aren't being collected in order to sell to a con artist's favorite resource, the Direct Marketing Association. The DMA would dearly love to hijack/clog up your system with viriii/malware and otherwise suck your bandwidth into a black hole all the while bloviating to you about how wonderful and useful it is.  Electronic Frontier Foundation attorney Micah Lee tells you how to disconnect here.

Two:  Enable UFW to Auto-Start

UFW stands for uncomplicated firewall.  Unless you're a security pro and/or work in I.T., all you really need to know as an end user about a firewall is that it slows down the bad guys from hacking your system. Sure, you could learn more about configuring rules and become an advanced user, but for our purposes here, all we want is to ensure that it is in use.

But wait, you may be asking - I thought Linux was secure?

Linux is more secure than Windows, that's for sure, however, an apt analogy to bear in mind is that even if you live in what you consider to be a safe neighborhood, you still lock your doors to keep out the neighbors.  Your computer is no different.  You don't want some random person rifling through your files simply because they can. (Note here that I advocate the use of the UFW even if you are using a router.  This will come into play later when you inevitably use public wifi, in which case you will want to enable ssh, but that is another segment.)

You can enable UFW by opening a terminal and typing the following command:

sudo ufw enable

Now we want to make sure UFW auto-starts when you boot into Ubuntu, so click on the search icon located at the top of the vertical Unity taskbar and type in startup applications then click on it when it appears.

Click on Add then type in UFW and the command listed above.

Now whenever you bootup into Ubuntu, the UFW will start automatically without having to manually enable it each time.

Three: Use TLP

As versatile as Linux is, the dirty little secret nobody likes to talk about is that it tends to overheat the hardware that houses it like a 1979 Ford Granada otherwise known as the grenade of its time.  Ubuntu (and Mint) are not exceptions.  Don't be surprised if you notice your laptop's battery seems to discharge a lot quicker than usual.

The reason? I suppose Linux can best be compared to the replicants in Blade Runner.

Supposedly, TLP is a utility that tweaks power consumption (among other power management activities) thereby preventing the CPU from overheating, which, happens frequently on my system to the extent where it locks it up.  After a time (usually ten minutes or so) it usually snaps out of it but the other half of the time it does not and I have to cold boot.

But does TLP actually have any substantive effect?

Well, actually, I haven't used it long enough to speak intelligently about it.  I have noticed that when booting into Ubuntu, I see random commands referencing battery power flash through the splash screen, but have not noticed, however, any cooling down inside of the case.  (You can install a utility called sensors to see what the inside temp is.) 

I use TLP in both Ubuntu (and Mint) and the system still locks up.  Now whether this is due to needing more RAM, the energy consumptive habits of Linux, a bug in LibreOffice and/or Chrome (v.35) or a combination of all of the above, I cannot attest.  All I know is that my system inexplicably locks up/experiences distorted graphics (especially in LibreOffice) and otherwise slows down my productivity.

I've browsed the system logs and spotted the lockups followed by a re-initiation of processes, but the jury is still out as to whether this is attributable to TLP or just the system self-correcting itself.  (Check back here for a followup by subscribing via email or hey, just follow my Twitter feed.)
 
You can install TLP by typing the following into a terminal:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:linrunner/tlp 

sudo apt-get update 

sudo apt-get install tlp tlp-rdw

Remember to let the system do its thing after each line.  

When it finishes, you will want to start TLP.  Supposedly typing the following ensures that TLP will auto-start at bootup, but I have my doubts.  So type the following into terminal and then put it in startup applications. (See step two detailed above.)

sudo tlp start

Four: Install a Bottom Taskbar

If you are a post traumatic stress disordered refugee fresh from the ever despairing trenches of Windows users, then Ubuntu can be a little confusing initially particularly if you are accustomed to having multiple windows opened at the same time and seeing them displayed in a taskbar.  Ubuntu's only native taskbar is Unity, but fret not as there is a fix for that.

Tint2 is a windows-like taskbar that can be added to Ubuntu.

Type the following into a terminal:

sudo apt-get install tint2

After it installs, put it in startup applications just as you did for the firewall and TLP.  Make sure you use the word tint2 as the command.

Lot out then log back in.  When the system intializes, you will see an opaque taskbar at the bottom of the screen.

Stay tuned for a future article detailing the installation of some completely subjective apps including a network monitor, weather and Google Drive shortcut.


©2014 Greensleeves and GreensleevesBikinIt.  Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.  Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is giving to Greensleevs and GreensleevesBikinIt with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Ubuntu: FOSS Trojan Horse?

When I installed Ubuntu 14.04 LTS as one-third of a triple OS boot on my beater laptop, I hadn't bothered to conduct any due diligence on it the way I would have for a Windows installation.  Since Ubuntu is a Linux distro, and, Linux is better known for security and privacy, I didn't see the need.  But a disturbing new discovery (more insidious than the Chrome browser gaffe)  has recently come to my attention that I feel compelled to warn you about should you be considering installing Ubuntu on your own system.

The Unity Dash is a vertical taskbar that has incorporated a hard drive search as well as a web search from the same location. It is a feature that makes Search convenient since you need not open a browser. The only problem is that Ubuntu has enabled by default its shopping lenses, which is a Canonical (the company behind Ubuntu) euphemism for spying on your search data in order to serve up third party advertisements to you. (As an aside here, I did find it strange that a shortcut to Amazon was placed in Unity by default, and, having noted this oddity, immediately disabled the www search feature from it following installation of the OS.)

Now you may be wondering what is all the hubbub, bub? Windows places shortcuts to third party software all over the desktop.  It has become standard operating procedure to fill the Start menu with trial offers and such, the likes of which when they expire, continue monitoring/tracking your every click of the mouse.  And that, dear audience, is exactly why Windows is a bloated, spyware/malware filled piece of crap OS that slows down substantively over time as you use it.  Prior to Canonical's little end run around user privacy & security, you didn't have to worry about Linux taking note of your internet searches (or anything else) and sharing that info with unknown third parties for unknown reasons.  That is exactly why informed users turn to Linux in the first place. But given Ubuntu's increasing popularity with the mainstream, Canonical's management evidently decided that it would slip into the OS a seemingly innocuous spying mechanism, and, when it was called out by Electronic Frontier Foundation attorney and CTO of Freedom of the Press Foundation, Micah Lee, Canonical resorted to behaving like a trademark bully over the use of its name and logo on Lee's site called Fix Ubuntu.

Since the usage of a trademarked name & logo is completely legal for the purpose Lee has used it, and, falls under Fair Use provisions of copyright and trademark law, Canonical has demonstrated itself willing to abuse the law in order to silence critics. And that makes it no better than Microsoft or any of the other for-profit Fortune 500 companies that own the US government.

Lee has since included the following disclaimer which may be the only time in history that the word idiot has been used to nicely remind a trademark bully like Canonical that Fair Use is in fact legal.

<Excerpt from Fix Ubuntu>

Disclaimer: In case you are either 1) a complete idiot; or 2) a lawyer; or 3) both, please be aware that this site is not affiliated with or approved by Canonical Limited. This site criticizes Canonical for certain privacy-invading features of Ubuntu and teaches users how to fix them. So, obviously, the site is not approved by Canonical. And our use of the trademarked term Ubuntu is plainly descriptive — it helps the public find this site and understand its message.

That the search can be disabled from within Ubuntu (Lee's site tells you how here) isn't noteworthy; The problem is that the most popular distributor of Linux has decided to spy on its users and compromise their security in the first place. This is the very antithesis of what free open source software is all about. But then again, that's what happens when a software company hires for the CEO position someone like Jane Silber, whose sole qualification for the job was writing spyware for military contractor General Dynamics C4 Division.  ZSmith.Co has more.

<Excerpt from the General Dynamics website>

General Dynamics C4 Systems is a trusted leader in the development of intelligence and information gathering systems for national defense and homeland security. These systems are designed to receive, process, exploit and disseminate information -- in different forms and often from different networks -- and distribute relevant information to operators, both in the field and at higher headquarters.

Canonical has long since issued what is tantamount to a public apology, but I won't be swayed by such an obviously calculated mea culpa and neither should you.  Now that it has fired its first shot across the bow, there is nothing stopping Canonical from issuing via future system updates some other piece of spyware integrated with the OS originating from the devious mind of its former spyware writing military contractor CEO.

Incidentally, if you're not using Duck Duck Go for your internet searches, then you should be.  Chrome extension found here.

©2014 Greensleeves and GreensleevesBikinIt.  Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.  Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is giving to Greensleevs and GreensleevesBikinIt with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.