Quick Tour

Your Starting Point

When you log in to Ubuntu, you are greeted by the GNOME Shell desktop. At the top of the screen is the Top Bar, which contains three areas:

• Activities button (top-left) — opens the Activities Overview.
• Clock & calendar (centre) — click to see notifications and the calendar.
• System tray (top-right) — quick access to network, volume, battery, and system settings.

The desktop itself is clean and uncluttered by default — application windows appear here when you open them.

Your Mission Control

Press the Super key (the Windows key on most keyboards) or click Activities in the top-left corner to open the Activities Overview. This is the central hub of the GNOME desktop.

From here you can:

• Search for applications, files, and settings by typing immediately after opening the overview.
• See all open windows tiled across the screen.
• Switch workspaces using the workspace strip on the right side.
• Launch pinned apps from the Dash on the left.

Launching Applications

The Dash is the vertical bar of icons visible on the left in the Activities Overview (and on the desktop if you use the Ubuntu Dock extension). It shows your favourite and currently running applications.

Click the grid icon at the bottom of the Dash to open the App Grid — a scrollable view of all installed applications. You can search within it or browse by category.

To pin an app to the Dash, right-click its icon in the App Grid and select Add to Favourites. Drag icons in the Dash to reorder them.

Managing Your Files

The Files application (also known as Nautilus) is Ubuntu's default file manager. Open it from the Dash or by pressing Super and typing "Files".

Key features of the Files app:

• Sidebar — quick access to Home, Downloads, Documents, Pictures, and connected drives.
• Search — press Ctrl + F to search for files by name or content.
• Tabs — open multiple locations in one window with Ctrl + T.
• View toggle — switch between grid and list view with Ctrl + 1 / Ctrl + 2.
• Hidden files — toggle with Ctrl + H.
• Network shares — access Windows/Samba shares via Other Locations in the sidebar.

Ubuntu organises your home folder into standard directories: Desktop, Documents, Downloads, Music, Pictures, Videos.

Installing New Applications

Ubuntu Software is the graphical application store. Open it from the Dash (it looks like an orange shopping bag). From here you can browse, search, install, and remove applications with a single click — no command line required.

Applications are organised into categories: Productivity, Graphics, Games, Science & Education, and more. Each listing shows screenshots, a description, user reviews, and the software licence.

Ubuntu Software handles both traditional APT packages and Snap packages. Snaps update automatically in the background.

Configuring Your System

Open Settings from the system tray (top-right) or by searching in the Activities Overview. The Settings app provides a single, organised location for all system configuration:

• Wi-Fi & Network — manage connections and VPNs.
• Bluetooth — pair keyboards, mice, headphones, and other devices.
• Background — change your wallpaper and lock screen image.
• Appearance — switch between light and dark mode, adjust icon sizes.
• Notifications — control which apps can send notifications.
• Privacy & Security — manage screen lock, location, file history.
• Users — add and manage user accounts.
• System — check storage, installed OS version, and hardware details.
• Additional Drivers — install proprietary hardware drivers.

The Power User's Tool

The Terminal (GNOME Terminal) gives you direct access to the Linux command line. Open it with Ctrl + Alt + T.

Essential terminal commands:

ls            # List files in current directory
cd folder     # Change directory
pwd           # Show current directory path
cp src dest   # Copy a file
mv src dest   # Move or rename a file
rm file       # Delete a file
mkdir name    # Create a directory
man command   # Show the manual for a command

For package management, apt is the main tool:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade   # Update system
sudo apt install package-name         # Install software
sudo apt remove package-name          # Remove software

Getting Work Done

Ubuntu ships with LibreOffice, a full-featured, free office suite compatible with Microsoft Office file formats (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx):

• LibreOffice Writer — word processor (equivalent to Microsoft Word)
• LibreOffice Calc — spreadsheet (equivalent to Microsoft Excel)
• LibreOffice Impress — presentation software (equivalent to PowerPoint)

For collaborative online work, access Google Docs, Microsoft 365, or Nextcloud Office through the Firefox web browser.

Music, Video, and Photos

Ubuntu includes several media applications out of the box:

• Rhythmbox — music player and library manager. Supports MP3, FLAC, OGG, and more.
• Videos (Totem) — video player supporting common formats.
• Shotwell — photo organiser and basic photo editor.
• GNOME Photos — simple photo viewer integrated with online accounts.

To play proprietary media formats (MP3, H.264 video, etc.), install the ubuntu-restricted-extras package:

sudo apt install ubuntu-restricted-extras

For more advanced needs, VLC (plays almost any format), GIMP (image editing), and Kdenlive (video editing) are available in Ubuntu Software.

Browsing the Web

Ubuntu ships with Firefox as the default web browser. It is a fast, privacy-respecting browser with a rich ecosystem of extensions.

Other popular browsers available for Ubuntu:

• Chromium — the open-source base of Google Chrome: sudo apt install chromium-browser
• Google Chrome — download the .deb from the Google website.
• Brave — privacy-focused Chromium-based browser, available as a snap.
• Opera — available as a .deb from the Opera website.