Advice: Upgrade from Ubuntu 12.04 ONLY after backup

If you are planning to upgrade from Ubuntu 12.04 to 12.10, please first perform a full-system backup. At least back up all your data. The upgrade might not work.

Today, 11-27-2012, after attempting to update my main PC from Ubuntu 12.04 to 12.10, I could not make Ubuntu 12.10 work correctly. Despite using the recommended "proprietary, tested" Nvidia display driver, I could not stabilize my display:

• The Unity launcher would not unhide smoothly.
• YouTube videos played in stop motion.

Fortunately, before attempting the upgrade, I performed a full-system backup through Clonezilla. I was therefore able to restore my main PC to Ubuntu 12.04.

This failure to upgrade surprised me because I had successfully installed Ubuntu 12.10 (through a live disc) onto my standby PC. I needed only fix the frozen-Dash problem and disable the unwanted Amazon ads. For more information, please see: Fixing and customizing Ubuntu 12.10, Repairing frozen Dash in Ubuntu 12.10, and Disabling Amazon shopping results in Ubuntu 12.10.

Personally, I do not plan to upgrade from Ubuntu 12.04 until the next long-term-support release is available. Although this is unfortunate, I am still an Ubuntu fan. In my opinion, its 12.04 release is superior to all other Linux distributions.

Installing Chromium on Xubuntu 12.10

Chromium is the open-source browser on which Google bases its Chrome browser. Therefore, these browsers are nearly identical, and you can use Chromium in place of Chrome. In fact, you should do so on Xubuntu 12.10 (a community-developed Linux distribution based on Ubuntu core components and Xfce Linux desktop environment). If you try to install Chrome on a PC running Xubuntu 12.10, the installation halts and displays "The package is of bad quality" as shown in Figure 1 below.

Figure 1 - A warning against installing Google Chrome on Xubuntu 12.10. You should instead install Chromium.

This document explains how to remove Google Chrome (if installed), install Chromium, and then configure it.

Removing Google Chrome
In case you have installed Google Chrome on Xubuntu 12.10, you should remove it and then install Chromium according to the next section. To remove (uninstall) Google Chrome, do the following:

1. Open a terminal, type sudo apt-get install synaptic, type your password and then wait for Synaptic to install.
2. Type sudo synaptic to display the Synaptic Package Manager window.
3. Type google-chrome into the Quick filter search field.
4. Right-click google-chrome-stable, click Mark for Complete Removal, click Apply to display a Summary window, and then click Apply.
5. Close both the Synaptic Package Manager window and the terminal.

Installing Chromium
To install Chromium on Xubuntu 12.10, do the following:

1. As shown in Figure 2 below, click the Applications Menu (white mouse, upper left on screen) and then click Ubuntu Software Center to display its window.
2. As shown in Figure 3 below, type chromium into the search field, select Chromium Web Browser and then click Install.
3. After Chromium installs, close the Ubuntu Software Center.
4. Configure Chromium according to the next section.

Figure 2 - Opening the Ubuntu Software Center.

Figure 3 - Installing the Chromium Web Browser.

Configuring Chromium

To configure Chromium on Xubuntu 12.10, do the following:

1. Click the Applications Menu (white mouse), click Internet and then click Chromium Web Browser as shown in Figure 4 below.
2. Click sign in (at the upper right of your first Chromium window) to display the Sign in to Chromium window as shown in Figure 5 below.
3. Type your email address, and then click either Sign in or Create a Google Account. If you already have a Google account, Chromium can synchronize your bookmarks, history, and settings.
4. Click the three bars at the upper right, click Settings to display its window.
5. Select Open a specific page or set of pages, click Set pages, select https//www.google.com/ and then click OK.
6. As shown in Figure 6 below, scroll to Default browser, click Make Chromium my default browser and then close the Settings - Chromium window.

Figure 4 - Selecting and opening Chromium. 

Figure 5 - Signing into Chromium, and syncing to your Google account.

Figure 6 - Making Chromium your default browser.

Installing Chromium on Ubuntu 12.10

Chromium is the open-source browser on which Google bases its Chrome browser. Therefore, these browsers are nearly identical, and you can use Chromium in place of Chrome. In fact, you should do so on Ubuntu 12.10. If you try to install Chrome on a PC running Ubuntu 12.10, the installation halts and displays "The package is of bad quality" as shown in Figure 1 below.

Figure 1 - A warning against installing Google Chrome on Ubuntu 12.10. You should instead install Chromium.

This document explains how to remove Google Chrome (if installed), install Chromium, and then configure it.

Removing Google Chrome
In case you have installed Google Chrome on Ubuntu 12.10, you should remove it and then install Chromium according to the next section. To remove (uninstall) Google Chrome, do the following:

1. Open a terminal, type sudo apt-get install synaptic, type your password and then wait for Synaptic to install.
2. Type sudo synaptic to display the Synaptic Package Manager window.
3. Type google-chrome into the Quick filter search field.
4. Right-click google-chrome-stable, click Mark for Complete Removal, click Apply to display a Summary window and then click Apply.
5. Close both the Synaptic Package Manager window and the terminal.

Installing Chromium
To install Chromium on Ubuntu 12.10, do the following:

1. As shown in Figure 2 below; in the Unity launcher, click the Ubuntu Software Center icon to display its window.
2. As shown in Figure 3 below, type chromium into the search field, select Chromium Web Browser and then click Install.
3. Type your password and then click Authenticate to start the installation.
4. After Chromium installs, close the Ubuntu Software Center.
5. Configure Chromium according to the next section.

Figure 2 - Opening the Ubuntu Software Center. 

Figure 3 - Installing the Chromium Web Browser.

Configuring Chromium
To configure Chromium on Ubuntu 12.10, do the following:

1. Click Dash Home (at top of the launcher) and then click Chromium Web Browser as shown in Figure 4 below.
2. Minimize the Chromium window; in the Unity launcher, right-click the Chromium icon; and then click Lock to Launcher as shown in Figure 5 below.
3. Maximize the Chromium window, click sign in (at the upper right) to display the Sign in to Chromium window as shown in Figure 6 below.
4. Type your email address, and then click either Sign in or Create a Google Account. If you already have a Google account, Chromium can synchronize your bookmarks, history, and settings.
5. Click the three bars at the upper right, and then click Settings to display its window.
6. Select Open a specific page or set of pages, click Set pages, select https//www.google.com/ and then click OK.
7. As shown in Figure 7 below, scroll to Default browser, click Make Chromium my default browser and then close the Settings - Chromium window.

Figure 4 - Opening Chromium through Dash.

Figure 5 - Locking the Chromium icon to the Unity launcher. 

Figure 6 - Signing into Chromium, and syncing to your Google account.

Figure 7 - Making Chromium your default browser.

Creating a cumulative status report through MS Word

Word is the word-processor application in the Microsoft Office productivity suite. You can use Word to generate a cumulative status report that lets you continually update your assigned tasks and cover your assets (CYA). This document explains how to:

1. Create your cumulative status report, which is a simple Word table that lets you track the status of your projects, assignments and tasks.
2. Format your status-report table.
3. Enter task data into your status report table.
4. Create a PDF status report.
5. Cover your assets (CYA).

Creating a status-report table
To create a simple table for your cumulative status report, do the following:

1. Open a new MS Word file, and then save it with a meaningful name, such as Cumulative_Status_Report.docx.
2. As shown in Figure 1 below, click the Page Layout tab to display its ribbon, click Margins, and then select Narrow.
3. As shown in Figure 2 below, click Orientation, and then select Landscape.
4. As shown in Figure 3 below, click Insert, click Table, and then click Insert Table to display its window.
5. As shown in Figure 4 below, select seven columns and two rows, and then click OK to create your table.

Figure 1 - Selecting Narrow page margins.

Figure 2 - Setting page orientation to Landscape.

Figure 3 - This is the Insert Table window.

Figure 4 - Inserting a table with seven columns and two rows.

Formating your table
To format your status-report table, do the following:

1. Select the Layout tab to display its ribbon, click Select (at the left), click Select Table, and then click Cell Margins (in the Alignment section) to display a Table Options window. Note: For more information about tables and ribbons, please see Using Word 2007 ribbons for tables.
2. As shown in Figure 5 below, set all four Default cell margins to 0.05 inches, and then click OK. Author's Note: In my opinion, these cell margins make the table easier to read.
3. Place the insertion point (blinking cursor) in any cell in the first row, select the Layout tab, and then click Properties to display its window.
4. As shown in Figure 6 below, select the Row tab, deselect (uncheck) Allow row to break across pages, select (check) Repeat as header row at the top of each page, and then click OK.
5. Select the entire first row, click the Home tab to display its ribbon, and then click B to make the first row (the header row) bold.
6. Leaving the header row selected, click the Layout tab to display its ribbon, and then (in the Alignment section) click the Align Center icon to align header text both horizontally and vertically.
7. As shown in Figure 7 below, type appropriate text into the header row, and then adjust column widths.
8. Select the entire second row. In the Alignment section, click the Align Center Left icon to align task text to the left and vertically, and then use Align Center to align each Date cell both horizontally and vertically.

Figure 5 - Set all four cell margins to 0.05 inches.

Figure 6 - Repeat the table header on each page.

Figure 7 - Type text into the header row.

Entering task data
To enter task data into your status-report table, do the following:

1. As shown in Figure 8 below, enter data for your initial task into the second row.
2. As shown in Figure 9 below, click the Layout tab to display its ribbon, place the insertion point (blinking cursor) anywhere in the second row, and then (in the Rows & Columns section) click Insert Above to insert a new row.
3. As shown in Figure 10 below, enter data for your next assigned task into the second row, which is your new blank row.
4. For each other in-process task on which you have worked, revise its Date of latest activity.
5. Repeat steps 2 through 4 for each new task that any manager assigns to you. Figure 11 below contains additional example tasks.

Figure 8 - This is an example initial task.

Figure 9 - A new second row for the next task.

Figure 10 - An example new task.

Figure 11 - Multiple example tasks.

Creating a PDF status report
To create a PDF cumulative status report, do the following:

1. Open your Word cumulative status report.
2. Click the Office Button (at the upper left), to display its menu.
3. Select Save As, click PDF or XPS, and select the PDF file type.
4. Click Publish to generate your PDF cumulative status report, such as
   2012-11-23_Your_Name_Status_Report.pdf.

Covering your assets (CYA)
Your cumulative status report can help you practice prudent CYA. For example, at the end of each day, you can:

1. Create a PDF cumulative status report according to the section above.
2. Create a PDF daily activity log according to Creating daily activity logs through MS Excel.
3. Send an email to all your managers, and attach both PDFs.
4. Make personal backup copies of both PDFs, and file them in private storage.

Repairing frozen Dash in Ubuntu 12.10

Ubuntu 12.10 is the newest Ubuntu distribution of the Linux operating system. After you install or upgrade to Ubuntu 12.10, its Dash search window might not work correctly. Intermittently, Dash can freeze (hang up) after you type only a few characters into its search field. This document can probably help you repair Dash by installing a proprietary video driver.

Authors Note: I experienced this problem on my medium-powered (AMD dual-core, 2 GB memory), rebuilt PC, into which I had installed a new motherboard. I use this machine as my standby and experimental PC, on which I ran Ubuntu 12.04 with no Dash problems.

To repair frozen dash by installing a proprietary video driver, do the following:

1. In the launcher, click System Settings to display its window, click Software Sources to display its window, and then click the Additional Drivers tab to display its page.
2. Select an appropriate driver, such as the NVIDIA binary Xorg - - (proprietary, tested) driver shown below, and then click Apply Changes.
3. When prompted, type your password, and then click Authenticate.
4. Close the Software Sources window.
5. Reboot your PC.

Disabling Amazon shopping results in Ubuntu 12.10 Dash

If you use Dash, the internal search tool in Ubuntu 12.10, to find and display a file, folder, or application, Dash also displays Amazon shopping results (as "More suggestions"). For example, as shown in Figure 1 below, if you search for Python in Dash, it displays not only the IDLE (using Python-3.3) application, but also Amazon shopping results. This document can help you easily disable Amazon shopping results, allowing your search to display only what it finds internally, as shown in Figure 2 below.

Figure 1 - Amazon shopping results enabled

Figure 2 - Amazon shopping results disabled

Author's Note: Amazon shopping results in Dash annoy me. If I am searching for something on my computer, I want only that item; I care not whether Amazon (or any other merchant) can sell me related items. I need not be distracted by eye clutter. If I wish to buy something online, I will search for it through a browser.

You can very easily disable Amazon shopping results, as follows:

1. As shown in Figure 3 below, in the launcher, click System Settings to display its window.
2. As shown in Figure 4 below, click Privacy to display its window.
3. As shown in Figure 5 below, find the switch at the right of When searching in the Dash: Include online search results, and then click the switch to toggle it to OFF.

Figure 3 - Selecting system settings

Figure 4 - Selecting privacy

Figure 5 - Disabling Amazon shopping results

Using Word 2007 ribbons for tables

If you only occasionally use Word 2007 (the word processor in Microsoft Office 2007), you might find its ribbons less intuitive than were the menus in earlier versions of Word. This can be especially frustrating while creating and maintaining tables. This document can help you remember where to find, and how to use, various Word 2007 table tools, including its:

• Table icon
• Design ribbon
• Layout ribbon
• Borders and Shading window

Creating a new table - The easiest-to-find Word 2007 table tool is the Table icon that lets you create new tables. To create a new Word 2007 table, do the following:

1. Click the Insert tab to display its ribbon as shown in Figure 1 below.
2. Double-click the Table icon, and then click Insert Table to display its window as shown in Figure 2 below.
3. Select your numbers of columns and rows, and then click OK. For example, as shown in Figure 3 below, you might choose four columns and seven rows.

Figure 1 - The Insert ribbon contains this Table icon.

Figure 2 - The Insert Table window lets you choose your numbers of columns and rows.

Figure 3 - This sample new table contains four columns and seven rows.

Accessing table ribbons - The relatively-easy-to-find Word 2007 Design and Layout table ribbons contain table tools. Placing the text-insertion point (flashing cursor) anywhere within a table displays the yellow Table Tools label and the Design and Layout tabs as shown in Figure 4 below. You can then do either of the following:

• Click the Design tab to display its ribbon as shown in Figure 5 below. The Design ribbon contains tools for formatting the overall table.
• Click the Layout tab to display its ribbon as shown in Figure 6 below. The Layout ribbon contains tools for manipulating columns, rows, and cells.

Figure 4 -The yellow Table Tools label highlights the table ribbon tabs, Design and Layout.

Figure 5 - The Design table ribbon contains tools for formatting the overall table.

Figure 6 - The Layout table ribbon contains tools for manipulating columns, rows, and  cells.

Note: For another table example table created through ribbons, please see Creating a cumulative status report through MS Word.

Applying borders and shading - The not-so-easy-to-find Word 2007 Borders and Shading window contains traditional, intuitive tools for applying borders, grids, and shading to your selected cells. To access the Borders and Shading window, do the following:

1. Place the text-insertion point anywhere within the table you wish to edit.
2. Click the Design tab to display its ribbon.
3. At the lower-right corner of the Design ribbon, click the small arrow (at the right of Draw Borders) to display the Borders and Shading window as shown in Figure 7 below.

Figure 7 - The Borders and Shading window contains traditional, intuitive tools
for applying borders and shading to your selected cells.