FC6
Post-Installation Changes
Before a Linux distribution such as Fedora Core 6 is really ready for
general use, there are a number of important changes that need
to
first be made. Some of these, though trivial, provide
added measures of security, flexibility, and robustness to the system.
Others
are simply a matter of personal preference and taste. In
light of
this,
I have tried to break down the changes with respect to their
relative "Order of Importance." The steps in this subsection
of
the Installation
Notes should thus be
performed in order, because some of the later changes depend
upon ones earlier on.
Before any post-installation changes are made, one of the
first things
I typically like to do is quickly adjust various Gnome
settings before proceeding any further (even though I'll soon be using
Enlightenment as a replacement for Gnome). These
include:
gnome-terminal
Preferences
Open a gnome-terminal
(Applications -> Accessories -> Terminal), and click on Edit -> Profiles...
-> Edit -> Colors. Click on
the "Use colors
from system theme" box so that the option is no longer
set, and choose the White
on Black option from the drop-down menu. Much
better. Hit Close
twice.
Desktop
Background
The new Fedora theme and background is hideous, so click System ->
Preferences -> Desktop Background. I
currently prefer "GNOME
Curves", although my preference typically changes on a
semester basis. You may have choose the Fill Screen
option from the drop down box, depending upon your resolution. Hit Close when
finished.
Screensaver
The screensaver is an unnecessary drain on resources —
especially for my server.
Click on System
->
Preferences -> Screensaver. Choose the "Blank Screen"
option and unclick the "Lock screen when
screensaver is active" box. Hit Close when
finished.
Theme
I do not particularly care for the default Clearlooks theme, so click
on System
-> Preferences -> Theme -> Theme Details.
Choose the Bluecurve
option under Controls,
and then click on Window
Border. Choose Crux.
Then click on Icons
and make sure Clearlooks
is chosen. Hit Close
twice.
Windows
I am extremely preferential with respect to windows options.
Click on System
-> Preferences -> Windows, and make sure the
"Select windows
when the mouse moves over them" option is set under Window Selection,
but the "Raise
selected windows after an interval" is not.
Under Titlebar
Action, choose Roll
up from the drop-down box. Hit Close when
finished.
Display
I typically have to tell the system the exact monitor I am using, so
click on System
-> Administration -> Display. You
will be prompted for the root
password, and afterward, click on Hardware.
Under Monitor
Type, click on Configure...
. Select the proper monitor, and click OK.
Next verify that the Video Card is correct. If you have two monitors
(as I do for my server), click on the Dual Head
tab, and configure the second monitor and video card. You will
need to restart the X server and log back into Gnome (press and hold
down Ctrl - Alt -
Backspace to do so). Be careful when setting up a dual
head monitor system! If you make a mistake, you may need to edit /etc/X11/xorg.conf
by hand to fix it... If you do not have a second monitor, hit OK
once more
to close the window.
Gnome vs.
Enlightenment
Part of the reason for not
sticking with Gnome is that development of
its old windows manager, Sawfish (which was a thing of beauty), died
several years ago —
and the default
windows manager as of Fedora Core 3, Metacity,
is useless. Once we get to the Enlightenment
section in the HOWTOs,
I'll explain further. But for now, this will do.
3. Post-Installation
Changes
3.1 sudo
3.2 Shell
Environment (tcsh) & .tcshrc
Script
3.3 Secure Shell (ssh
& sshd)
3.4 Services
3.5 cpuspeed
3.6 Updating
the Database for mlocate
3.7 Boot Options
3.8 nautilus
3.9 LaTeX
Configuration
3.10 beep (curses bell)
