Ubuntu Extra Wallpaper Package

Karmic includes a set of freely licensed high quality desktop backgrounds. A lot of beautiful backgrounds from the "contest" didn't make it onto the CD, but last week Kenneth Wimer pushed the extra wallpapers from the flickr contest to his PPA.

Hi all,
 
I've just pushed the extra wallpapers from the flickr contest to my ppa.

Direct link:
https://launchpad.net/~kwwii/+archive/ppa

Instructions on getting that setup on your machine:
https://launchpad.net/+help/soyuz/ppa-sources-list.html

The package to install is desktop-backgrounds-extra

Ken

You can click here to download the desktop-backgrounds-extra_0.2_all.deb

Although the Ubuntu 10.04 contest haven't yet started, the planning has. For each release, there will be a start and end date where you can submit pictures for the current development release. The pictures won't be considered for more than one release (but you can re-submit). Currently the plan is to have the end date set three months before release day, with a first package in Beta 1.

Let's hope Lucid will see as many beautiful submissions as Karmic did.

All over the internet

My heart always skips a beat when I see my own work on other sites. When I see that, I’ll know I did something good or something really bad. A lot of sites posted my Ubuntu 8.04 DVD cover and my release party posters.

Today I came across a mockup I created some time ago on Stefano Forenza’s blog for the AppCenter. What surprised me even more was to discover the same mockup was posted on Softpedia. Below the image they wrote: “Ubuntu AppCenter mockup made by MadsRH - Image courtesy of Canonical”


Yesterday I listen to the UbuntuPodcast (Episode #29) and they were taking about my post on podcasts. I wrote:

“The Ubuntu Podcast (not to be mistaken for the Ubuntu UK podcast) seems a bit too casual for me (some might even say unprofessional), sitting in their couch drinking beer.”

They seemed to take it more personally than it was intended. Some people might like the casual style rather than the kind of news/talkshow-like podcasts – personally I don’t. Don’t get me wrong, I love listening to the show.

While we’re on the topic of getting your stuff all over the internet, I should mention I’ve submitted yet another wallpaper on the Karmic Koala backgrounds wiki. It posted under abstract and you can find it here.

Sources:
- http://www.stefanoforenza.com/ubuntu-appstore-in-the-workings/
- http://news.softpedia.com/news/Ubuntu-AppCenter-112572.shtml
- http://ubuntupodcast.net/
- https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Artwork/Incoming/Karmic/Backgrounds

Ubuntu Wallpaper Photo Pack

You might remember Kenneth Wimer published some background guidelines for Jaunty back in February. This was a great move because of the lack of organized effort in the artwork. I know that Canonical will be publishing more artwork guidelines within the next cycle, which I'm looking forward to and which I really think will help shape the look and feel of Ubuntu.
This is all fine and dandy, however I don't agree with all the guidelines published back in February. In the .PDF it says:

Design:
- Abstract imagery
- No strong logo usage (recommended)
- No other recognizable/readable text
- No mascots preferred (prove me wrong)
- Avoid parallel lines due to moire problems when scaling
- Be aware of how shapes relate within the whole desktop layout with panels, icons on the desktop, etc.
- No photography, unless heavily edited, stylized. No pictures of recognizable people/places/popular items

I would say that with both Hardy and Intrepid the way mascots was included in the artwork was truly art and worked out fantastic.
As for no strong logo usage I do agree, but I remember seeing some beautiful 3D Ubuntu logo images that worked very well as wallpaper.

Anyway... The last one is the one I actually want to talk about; "No photography, unless heavily edited, stylized. No pictures of recognizable people/places/popular items". I would love to see this included in Ubuntu. I've actually been using some of the Vista photos on my Intrepid desktop (don't tell anyone!) and loved the absence of abstract brown imagery. That's why I've created the "Ubuntu Wallpaper Photo Pack"

In my Easter holiday, I've taken some pictures that I would use as desktop wallpaper on my new Samsung SyncMaster 2343NW 23" (2048x1152 px). I decided to make a small collection which others might also enjoy.
The pack is titled "Ubuntu Wallpaper Photo Pack" and I've included ten photos (of varying quality).

The photos was taken with a PENTAX K10D camera and haven't been edited or manipulated in any way. Some photos are a little blurry, but I think they all make good (some even great) desktop backgrounds. I should mention that the images are mostly flowers and plants (no landscapes or similar included - yet).

You can download the files here (22 MB):
http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/175241/wanted/Ubuntu_wallpaper_photo_pack.tar.gz


Ubuntu wallpaper photo pack is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.

Create a wallpaper for Ubuntu 9.04

Today Kenneth Wimer posted a message to the ubuntu-art mailinglist about the lack of organized effort for Jaunty. He also announced that the current status for Jaunty is as follows:

a) a decision concerning an alpha wallpaper using some form of one of the
mascot pics from the wiki is coming soon.

b) we need your help with a wallpaper.

More information can be found in the this .PDF. A lot of great information was used from the Kyudo project (https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Artwork/KyudoGuidelines).

The goal is to create a wide variety of wallpaper designs for Ubuntu 9.04 which express a message to the target audience and follow the design framework defined in this document.

Submission deadline March 1st, 2009.

Grab the Create a wallpaper for Ubuntu 9.04.PDF

Tiled wallpaper

I had to create a tiled wallpaper to use on my new layout for the Ubuntu Wanted site. I've added a very small Ubuntu logo. You can see the current site layout here...

I thought I would share my work with you. So if you are looking for a new background for your website or desktop grab the images below:


Here you can see what it looks like on the desktop, though it works better on websites.

Gnome Adds Fading Between Backgrounds

In Nautilus, gnome-desktop and gnome-settings-daemon, patches from Ray Strode landed, adding support for fading between backgrounds.

Kurros uploaded a video of the fade effect: http://ezri.org/nautilusfade.ogv (1360x768 Ogg Theora, 3.6 MB)

Wallpaper slideshow mockup

There's a lot of focus on usability, accessibility and user experience going on. I recently wrote about the clutted Nautilus sidebar and how categorize items displayed with headings would make it easier to navigate, providing a better user experience.

I also wrote about the new notification feature in the upcoming Ubuntu 9.04 and how, the new plasmoid, the KNetworkManager component recived a very slick and refreshed look for KDE 4.
It seems there's a lot of good stuff coming, that will make many tasks easier.

Today I created a Ubuntu Brainstorm idea and added the mockup you see below:

As you can see above, a new option has been added to the Appearance Preferences menu. You can choose between different background as you always could, but now you can multi-select pictures. Multi-select works by CTRL-clicking each item you wish to include. Multi-selecting pictures will create a slideshow on your desktop background. I hope this will provide a better user experience, though this feature is something most of us can live without. I have no idea how this can be combined with my expanded wallpaper for multiple desktops idea.

The idea is awaiting moderator approval before going to the popular ideas area, but when it does, cast a vote here: