Ubuntu’s HUD: A New Way to Use Your Linux Computer

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Yesterday Ubuntu’s community manager, Jono Bacon put up a post calling for people to test their brand new idea for the Unity interface they currently use.  They call it HUD.  HUD will be included in the next relse of Ubuntu, version 12.04, code named “Precise Pangolin”.

With HUD, you can do many different things like post to Twitter, Search your web history or find a drop down menu in Firefox or any other app.  You can do some of this even if you don’t have that app loaded.  Above is a video that shows you just what you can do with the HUD.

To try the HUD, you have to install Ubuntu 11.10 and upgrade to Ubuntu 12.04 which is currently in early testing.  Then follow the steps on Nicholas Skaggs’s blog post on how to install HUD on your system.  Remember that 12.04 is not released as a stable release yet so don’t use this on a system that you need for your day to day use.  Ubuntu 12.04 due to be released as Ubuntu’s next Long Term Support release this April.

I’ve installed this in a VirtualBox Virtual Machine and will probably setup a netbook at home to do some further testing.  So far with my limited testing in a virtual machine it seem pretty interesting.  It’s definitely a new way to use your system and a refreshing look at how we can make our systems easier to use for everyone.

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About the Author

Joel McLaughlin
Joel is a consultant in the IT field and is located in Columbus, OH. While he loves Linux and tends to use it more than anything else, he will stoop to running closed source if it is the best tool for the job. His techno passions are Linux, Android, netbooks, GPS, podcasting and Amateur Radio.