Since the announcement last week that Ubuntu 11.04 will be shipping with a desktop-orientated version of the Unity interface as default the OMG! Inbox! has been inundated by anxious readers.
We’ve directed a lot of you over to askubuntu.com where Ubuntu’s Jorge Castro, amongst others, has been diligently answering questions on the new Unity Desktop.
With so much confusion still rife over the controversial change – and with the OMG! Inbox! continuing to fill up with the confused – I’ve decided to highlight some of the most-oft asked questions we get about the Unity Desktop here in super-succinct form.
Brevity as the point here so for more information click the question title to view the full answer.
Will Unity Desktop use the Global Menu?
“Yes, the Desktop version of Unity will use the global menu by default. There might be some added intelligence for multi-monitor setups, but I’m not sure and there has been no design as yet.” ~ Jorge Castro
Will the Unity launcher auto-hide in 11.04?
Yes.
Will there be ALT+TAB functionality in Unity Desktop?
Yes.*
Will I be able to use GNOME Applets in Unity?
No (but then you can’t in GNOME-Shell either).
Will Unity be themeable?
Still not decided, but the intention is there.
Can I use something other than Unity/what if my hardware doesn’t support Unity?
The traditional GNOME desktop (2D) will be provided for users who either don’t want to or are unable to use the Unity (3D) interface.
I can’t see Network-Manager when in the Dash. Will Ubuntu 11.04 use an indicator-network?
“Not quite. The plan seems to be to enhance indicator-network / patch NM to use NM as a backend.”
Will the Unity file manager/Dash feature right-clicks?
“Yeah, it will. I’m not sure if it’s going to happen for 11.04, but 11.10 will see a lot of work on the dash and places. For 11.04 we’re going to bring nautilus back into the front so that working with files is easier until we flesh out the interaction details for the dash.” ~ Alex Launi
If your question isn’t listed check askubuntu.com/questions/tagged/unity as chances are it has already been answered.
Also if there’s a question/answer you think we should add here let us know via the contact form above.
*Christian Giordano confirmed there will be ALT+TAB functionality on the Ayatana mailing list.