Ubuntu Photo and Xubuntu Photo - New Versions based on 14.04 LTS

Its time for some updates to my Ubuntu Photo and Xubuntu Photo customization of the respective Ubuntu versions. And they are not insignificant. The new versions (that can be downloaded here and here) are now based on the 14.04 LTS code branch.

These are completely new/fresh installs with all applicable updates and a few core applications installed from PPAs to ensure being up to date beyond the official repositories.

New for the Xubuntu Photo includes an XFCE Ambiance theme set as default that brings about a look more similar to the mainline Ubuntu release. There are also additional plug-ins and scripts loaded into The Gimp program (which also loads into single window mode by default). These changes to the base systems my customizations are based on are detailed in the short README file I have created. This can be seen when viewing the file lists on my Sourceforge page or via direct download link here.

Going forward, this is likely my last update to Ubuntu Photo based on the mainline Ubuntu LTS. I have switched to the XFCE based Xubuntu on my own laptop and while I really like the five year support cycle and with the mainline Ubuntu, I don't like all the feature removal and elimination of the ability to configure that seems to be coming more and more to the GNOME core.

I plan on continuing to update the Xubuntu Photo with each new LTS release of Xubuntu. While the five years of support would be nice, some of the core applications I use the most typically only support the current LTS, so getting 2-3 years without having to upgrade the OS version and have everything else current is plenty tolerable.

Blessings,

Jesse

Xubuntu Photo Listed on Softpedia

My customized version of Xubuntu that mirrors my mainline Ubuntu customization has now also been included on Softpedia. You can check out the write up and download link here.

Their editor's even gave it a 4 Star rating, not bad I say! The Xubuntu version doesn't have as many downloads, but its nice to have a second option. The plethora of choices is one of the best parts of Linux land - just doing my part!

Blessings,

Jesse

Updates to Ubuntu Photo

I have uploaded updated ISO images of my 64bit version of Ubuntu Photo and the 64bit version of Xubuntu Photo. You can get the new ISO images at my SourceForge page.

New updates include: A Calendar Maker script for the GIMP, RawTherapee PPA for those who wish to install the latest version, UF Raw Gimp Plugin, all Ubuntu Updates as of 2/24/2014 and for Xubuntu an Ambiance Theme is available (but not default).

Blessings,

Jesse

Customizing Xubuntu with Remastersys

As I did with the base Ubuntu 12.04, I wanted to create a customized version of Xubuntu 12.04. The first step was similar to my Ubuntu customization with a removal of unwanted default software and installation of my custom set.

While Xubuntu by default comes with some lighter weight programs such as Abiword and Gnumeric, I am more interested in the more feature rich LibreOffice Suite. Along with Abiword and Gnumeric: Pidgin, Transmission, Xchat, Gmusicbrowser and Parole get the ax for my application set.

The new applications include the aforementioned LibreOffice as well as Quadrapassel,  GIMP 2.8 (From PPA), Hugin, Darktable (From PPA), Openshot Video Editor (From PPA), Banshee, RipperX, DVD Styler, gLabels, Audacity, Lucky Backup, WinFF and Shotwell. This rounds out the same software set installed on the Ubuntu Photo customization.

After customizing the XFCE environment, I had run the Remastersys program (as detailed in previous posts on Customizing Ubuntu) and when I went to test the ISO none of my customizations stuck - the default Xubuntu desktop and panel structure was back. After some research and trial and error I did the following to get my configurations to stick:

I copied my user configuration files located at ~./config/xfce4/ to /etc/xdg/xfce4/ & /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce4.  After a reboot of the VM I created everything, I lost some the color theme and icon set settings. Changed those back and all was good. Next I copied  ~./config/xfce4/xfconf/xfce4-panel.xml to /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce4/panel/default.xml (overwriting the existing default.xml file). Lastly I copied the contents of ~./config/ to /etc/skel and the final ISO tested and booted as expected with all customizations in place. Below is a screen shot of my customized setup.

Customized Xubuntu 12.04 LTS

I have uploaded my custom Xubuntu ISO to my Sourceforge project page (link)  to go with my Ubuntu customizations. This version includes all Ubuntu system updates as of 11/22/13 and is 64Bit only.

Next steps for my photography geared Ubuntu/Xubuntu customizations include custom wallpapers, splash screens and maybe even a few icons. Don't know when that will be a reality at this point though, but that is what I would like to do next.

Blessings,

Jesse

My Customized Ubuntu Listed on Softpedia

My Photography geared customization of Ubuntu, which I so creatively called Ubuntu Photo, has been listed on Softpedia.  A bit of an unexpected, albeit pleasant surprise! You can find the link here and see their brief write up.

I originally had a base system geared toward general users, but have since decided to scrap that and focus solely on my photography geared version. Long term I would like to further my customization beyond the default fall-back mode and extra set of applications.

I would also like to do a customized Xubuntu version, but it will take a bit more research on the customizations with XFCE as Remastersys does not keep all the user customizations and the desktop stays the same as the default Xubuntu (that I am not wild about).

Blessings,

Jesse

64 Bit Version of My Custom Ubuntu Available

I now have a 64bit version of my customized Ubuntu completed and uploaded to SourceForge. This is only the photography geared version and I am done with my 'base' version and will only be maintaining the Photo version.

In this version, Skype is out and Audacity is in (for editing audio to possibly use with a DVD).  It also has Shotwell .14.1 and the 3.5 Kernel from Ubuntu 12.10 as opposed to the 3.2 series originally released with 12.04.

You can check out the download link here, enjoy!

Blessings,

Jesse