7 Install and get conky up and running to get the geeky text information about RAM usage, processes etc

This step is the most geeky and perhaps the most difficult. But if you succeed you will have one of the coolest apps of them all. If you feel it might be too difficult, skip this one, or do it later when you have more time.

Open up synaptics and install conky. Conky is a program that display information and present it in the way you want it, and it can appear to be presented on the actual desktop. To start the program press alt+F2 and write conky. But the looks is not so good. To reconfigure the program you have to open .conkyrc which is in your home folder. If you want to have a good start you can copy my configuration file into your configuration file. My configuration can be downloaded here. However, since your system and my system is not exactly the same your information wont show up perfectly, so you still have to go in and change the file to fit to your computer and system. But the design will be same so you don’t need to worry about that part.

You want to autostart your conky program and if you simply autostart conky program it wont work well by some reason. But if it starts with a 30 second delay it works perfectly. Therefore, download this file, and make autostart to the file (same as autostart AWN in 5 above) in system- preference- sessions. It is a script which will start conky 30 seconds after you start the computer. This last step might not be necessary for some so try to logion and out and see if it works well for you without 30 seconds delay.

8 Change login theme

You should of course have a nice login screen as well. These can be downloaded at gnome-look as well and I will follow the Shiki recommendation and use Arc-Colors. Download the gdm theme and extract the tar.gz file you want to use.

Either you go System - Administration - Login window or if this choice doesn’t work you can open up a terminal and write “sudo gdmsetup”. Click on the tab “local” and install your theme. Then logout and voila!!

9 Change the ugly orange color which is between the login screen and your fully loaded desktop

Almost finished now and only one more step in order to get the ultimate desktop. After you logged in from your ultra cool gdm theme the color will briefly switch to a annoying orange color. Before it was a pain in the ass to change but since Hardy it is really easy actually.

System - Administration - Login window or if this choice doesn’t work you can open up a terminal and write “sudo gdmsetup”. Click local and change to the colour you prefer.

I hope you enjoyed it and that the result will impress your family and friends.

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