I recently installed the latest release of Ubuntu, version 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon). So far, I have to say that I am pretty impressed with it. I hadn’t upgraded since Dapper (6.06), which means alot of my apps were out of date (I was using Firefox 1.5, Gaim 1.5, Azureus 2.5, Amarok 1.4.3, etc) and it feels pretty good to finally be up to speed with FF2, Pidgin, Deluge, etc. To the right you can see my current desktop setup; I change my window themes and icon sets on a regular basis, and I’ve decided to start keeping track of them in a single location with a sample screenshot and all the files necessary for installation and setup of the theme.
Unfortunately for me, in order to watch video without any screen-tearing, I need to enable the XvOverlay option for the ATI proprietary video driver. This enables hardware acceleration for XVideo, but also disables the OpenGlOverlay, which is needed for 3D acceleration. So, I get to pick one or the other.
In addition to this, the proprietary ATI driver does not support AIGLX, compositing support that is required for Compiz 3D desktop effects. There are rumours floating around that the 8.42 release of ATI’s proprietary fglrx driver will include support for AIGLX, meaning I should be able to get both my video acceleration and my 3D effects working at the same time =D








i got my 3d desktop is working fine i used this.
This is the guide everyone has been waiting for, this not only works for the Dell Inspiron 1501 but works for any computer running an ATI card using Xgl.
Check ATI Driver
In a terminal type:
fglrxinfo
You should see this output in your terminal window:
display: :0.0 screen: 0
OpenGL vendor string: ATI Technologies Inc.
OpenGL renderer string: RADEON XPRESS Series
OpenGL version string: 2.0.6334 (8.34.8)
If you get something different make sure you enable the proprietary ATI driver via the Restricted Driver Manager. You can find it in the top left menu bar under System>Administration>Restricted Drivers.
(This is what you get when using the Dell Inspiron 1501, other users can check for enabled 3D by using the command glxgears, you should see spinning gears)
Install Xgl
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install xserver-xgl
Setting Up XGL
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /usr/local/bin/startxgl.sh
and this to the file:
#!/bin/sh
Xgl :1 -fullscreen -ac -accel xv:pbuffer -accel glx:pbuffer &
DISPLAY=:1
cookie=”$(xauth -i nextract - :0 | cut -d ‘ ‘ -f 9)”
xauth -i add :1 . “$cookie”
exec dbus-launch –exit-with-session gnome-session
save and close file
Then make the xgl script executable by entering this into a terminal:
sudo chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/startxgl.sh
Creating a XGL Login
Make the script, by typing this into a terminal:
sudo gedit /usr/share/xsessions/xgl.desktop
add this text to the file:
[Desktop Entry]
Encoding=UTF-8
Name=Xgl
Comment=Start an Xgl Session
Exec=/usr/local/bin/startxgl.sh
Icon=
Type=Application
save and close file
Remove Compiz & Desktop Effects
sudo apt-get remove compiz-core desktop-effects
If you have Beryl Installed Remove Beryl Too
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get remove beryl-ubuntu beryl-manager emerald
If you want to use emerald as your decorator for Compiz Fusion do not remove the emerald package.
Add the Compiz Fusion Repository
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list
Add this to the end of your your source list:
deb http://download.tuxfamily.org/3v1deb feisty eyecandy
deb-src http://download.tuxfamily.org/3v1deb feisty eyecandy
save and close file
Add the tuxfamily Repository Key
In a terminal type:
sudo wget http://download.tuxfamily.org/3v1deb/DD800CD9.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add -
Update Your System
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get update
Install Compiz Fusion
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install compiz compizconfig-settings-manager compiz-plugins compiz-gnome compiz-fusion-plugins-extra compiz-fusion-plugins-unofficial libcompizconfig-backend-gconf
Now you just have to log off, log into your Xgl session and run Compiz Fusion.
To run Compiz Fusion:
compiz –replace
To run the Compiz Setting Manager:
ccsm
I find Compiz Fusion to be faster and more responsive then Beryl. I don’t use Beryl’s window manger, Emerald. If you want to use Emerald with Compiz Fusion, it’s as easy as sudo apt-get emerald and to launch it’s emerald –replace. I didn’t mention it in my guide because I prefer Compiz’s gtk-window-decorator, and don’t want to put up with the hassle of people asking my questions about software I don’t use.
Troubleshooting
Q: Compiz Fusion doesn’t load/work?
A: Make sure you are you logged onto your Xgl session. Select it at startup from sessions.
Q: I don’t have windows decorations.
A: Did you run ccsm (compiz setting manager) and enable Window Decorations
Q: I don’t have a cube.
A: Did you run ccsm (compiz setting manager) and enable 3D cube
Q: I get error: E: Couldn’t find package ******, can you help?
A: You have to add the repository correctly and then update it. Do those steps over again.
Q: How do I get Compiz Fusion to load when I log in?
A: You have to add compiz –replace to your startup session. First, go to System>Preferences>Session. Then click on the New button on the right hand side of the menu. Add compiz –replace to your startup.
Hope you guys like the guide.
redDEADresolve