Unity 5.0 hit Ubuntu 12.04 last night, but Ubuntu 11.10 users don’t need to miss out: Unity 5.0 is also available to install in Oneiric.
The packages are housed in the Unity Team Staging PPA. As this is not a ‘Stable releases’ PPA you should expect things to break after upgrading – as such only those who feel confident enough in handling any bugs should upgrade.
Two apps that won’t work under Unity 5.0 on Ubuntu 11.10 are the Marlin file browser and the stable release of Nuvola Player. Nor will many of the third-party Lenses and Scopes we’ve featured over the last month.
On to the good stuff. Unity 5.0 feels every bit as snappy under Ubuntu 11.10 as it does under 12.04. All of the options and features we’ve previously mentioned are available including the menu discovery fading, support for custom Dash colouring, force-quit action, and the Bfb ‘Lenses Quicklist’.
And yes – you can also disable the ‘Apps for Download’ section using Unity 5.0.
Install Unity 5.0 in Ubuntu 11.10
Add the following PPA to your Software Sources per these instructions:
- ppa:unity-team/staging
After adding, pen the Update Manager, click ‘Check for Updates’, and proceed to install those you’re prompted to do.
This can also be achieved via the Terminal by running: –
- sudo add-apt-repository ppa:unity-team/staging
- sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
All done? Restart your computer then begin enjoying Unity 5.0.
Downgrade Unity 5.0
“It’s all gone wrong! Halp!”
Open a terminal and enter the following commands: –
- sudo apt-get install ppa-purge
- sudo ppa-purge ppa:unity-team/staging