This is my current Ubuntu Linux desktop. Much faster/easier /prettier than Windows. Free, too. This new version has much better support for my ATI graphics card. The special effects you're looking at can easily be implemented into Ubuntu, just paste this into the Terminal: sudo aptitude install compizconfig-settings-manager

Now your theme settings will have a new box loaded with special effect features. It's that easy. Ask me if you have any questions.

For my personal notes...
1. Install Ubuntu 7.10 from fresh and do all updates.
2. Whitelist the ATI driver. Not sure if this does anything but why not. Command? Now enable the ATI Restricted driver.
3. To get the spinning cube:
sudo aptitude install compizconfig-settings-manager
4. Don't use the water droplet or the reflective window, because they will bog down your ATI Radeon 9600 PC. The reflective window has some serious error with your ATI driver. Try it on the faster PC tho.





ZUME'S HOW-TO ON DOWNLOADING AND USING EMERALD THEMES IN UBUNTU GUTSY GIBBON 7.10:

1. You'll need to already have CCSM installed, that is to say CompizConfigSettingsManager. The command is listed above, and here it is again:
sudo aptitude install compizconfig-settings-manager
Once downloaded, open it here:
Launch System>ref>Advanced Desktop Effects Settings. Check 'Window Decorations'. This program is called the CompizConfig Settings Manager.
2. Install Emerald with this terminal command: sudo apt-get install emerald
3. Launch Emerald with this terminal command: emerald --replace
(Note that currently when I close terminal it closes emerald too..I'm looking into this..so I just reopen terminal when I acidentaly close it, and paste in the above terminal command once again.)
Here are some instruction pages for dealing with Emerald:
* [link]
* [link]
4. Now your window borders look different, because youre using Emerald. To change the window border to somethine more apealing... System>ref>EmeraldThemeManager. Now Import some cool looking themes, such as those at [link]
Double clicking a theme you downloaded should automatically import any Emerald theme.
End.

Note, I'm fairly new to all these modern ways of using Linux, and am still learning. Get to know Google and Linux becomes quite easy.






Troubblshooting: Ubuntu 7.10 running on an ATI Radeon 9600 graphics card. Error message apears when turning on Appearance>special effects. Sollution as follows.
When enabling the restricted ati driver, it disabled my System>refrences>Appearance special effects. after enabling ati restricted driver in the menu, the sollution is to type this in Terminal: "sudo apt-get install xserver-xgl" minus the quotes.
1- System>Admin>Restricted menu: Enable ati restricted driver.
2. In terminal type above sudo command.
2. You may need to whitelist your ati driver.
3. Install CompizConfig Settings Manager: "sudo aptitude install compizconfig-settings-manager".
4. DONT use 'water drops' or 'reflections' as those drag system to a crawl.
site: compiz stuff: [link]





add to bottom of linux screenshot in da:
QUICK DEFINITIONS. as far as i know. may be inacurate with plenty of typos...
* UBUNTU: Ubuntu 7.10 aka Gutsy, is a free and easy replacement for your Windows XP/Vista or Apple OSX operating systems. You can have Windows and Ubutnu run on the same computer if you like. Install windows first, then install ubuntu. ubuntu will create a menu for every time you start the computer, asking what operating system you wish to use. I'm sure you'll get more and more used to Ubuntu, and stop using Windows altogether.
* METACITY: the old style window decoration in Ubuntu, that was replaced by compbiz-fusion.
* COMPIZ-FUSION: The default window decoration on Ubuntu 7.10.
* BERYL: No longer in production. They develop Compbiz-Fusion now.
* CompizConfig aka AdvancedDesktopEffectsSettings: This lets you play with special graphics effects in Ubuntu.
* EMERALD: A theme that decorates your Ubuntu window. You'll need emerald manager to use emerald themes. To use emerald theme manager, you'll need to have special effects turned on in ubuntu, and in those special effects you'll need to have window decorations turned on.
* GTK 1&2: GimpToolKit. The toolkit for making graphic user interfaces. Gnome is based on GTK. Gnome programs use GTK for menus, buttons, input fields, etc. A program is written, given a GTK face, and then optiionaly CompizFusion(Which can use Emerald themes) does the decoration around the window. GTK themes are the window.