Make your Ubuntu desktop more beautiful

August 20, 2007 · 27 comments

The default Ubuntu Human Theme has turned more ‘lighter’ after the Hoary days – much to my dislike. Nimbus is a Sun Microsystem’s Look & Feel which looks very professional and complete. The theme has been available for many Linux distributions and is very fast and agile.

I wanted Nimbus for my Ubuntu Feisty Fawn and out of luck as most of the mirrors were down. But Sandino Flores Moreno was kind enough to provide me with the following script to install Nimbus. Execute this script, and you will have your own packages in a few minutes.

Nimbus-Theme

#############################
sudo apt-get install fakeroot dpkg-dev devscripts debhelper libgtk2.0-dev icon-naming-utils intltool
wget -c http://dlc.sun.com/osol/jds/downloads/extras/nimbus-0.0.8.tar.bz2
wget -c http://zap.tartarus.org/~ds/debian/dists/sid/main/source/nimbus_0.0.6-1.diff.gz
tar xf nimbus-0.0.8.tar.bz2
cd nimbus-0.0.8
zcat ../nimbus_0.0.6-1.diff.gz | patch -p1
chmod +x debian/rules
debchange -v 0.0.8-1
sudo apt-get build-dep
fakeroot dpkg-buildpackage -us -uc
#####################

Install “gtk2-engines-nimbus_0.0.6-1_i386.deb” and “nimbus-icon-theme_0.0.6-1_all.deb” further. Finally go to System->Preferences->Theme and select ‘Nimbus’.
Enjoy your new Ubuntu Look!

Tagged as: beautiful, linux, nimbus, nimbus theme, script, theme, Ubuntu

  • http://blog.spocore.com capturesteve

    Looks nice, i might give this a try later. I am kind of reluctant though since i got so use too the default.

  • http://www.mpgcaps.cc Luis Medina

    Well, this is a great look to profesional destop just like you say. Now im workin on my Ubuntu Desktop whit this look and feesl too good and relax. ;)

  • http://islascruz.org/html markuz

    Not only ubuntu, I have already installed it on my Slackware 11.
    Just install (if not already)
    - XML::Simple
    - icon-naming-utils => 0.8.1 (remember to copy the icon-naming-utils.pc to /usr/lib/pkg-config/)

    and run configure && make && sudo make install (or with su).

  • http://www.ahorragasolina.biz/ Armando

    Cuando realizo la parte del comando
    sudo apt-get build-dep

    Me dice que debo indicar al menos un paquete para dependencias, alguien sabe que onda con esto?

    E: Debe especificar al menos un paquete para verificar sus
    dependencias de construcción

    Y nada. Alguna Pista?

  • http://luis.torresgomez.com.mx luis.torres.gomez

    para eso sudo apt-get install y las dependencias que te salen…

    regards

  • MKx

    Many errors due too many dependencies missing, when executing [[ fakeroot dpkg-buildpackage -us -uc ]]..
    Isn’t there any ready theme file to install like other themes?
    Or even more straight forward method instead of filling the system with dev packages and dependencies I won’t use but to build this them?

  • http://www.vinodlive.com Vinod Ponmanadiyil

    @MKx: Your problem seems weird. I was able to install without any issues on my feisty.

  • NamilaK

    Armando:

    Lo siguiente te ayudara:

    sudo apt-get build-dep gtk2-engines-clearlooks
    sudo apt-get install icon-naming-utils

    y para finalizar:

    fakeroot dpkg-buildpackage -us -uc -d

    Saludos

  • Richard

    NamilaK:

    I also had to:
    sudo apt-get install intltool

    After doing that plus the ones you mentioned every thing compiled and installed.

    Man am I happy I really like this look and feel. I actually got here while trying to get the Java Nimbus look and feel working on NetBeans 6. The Java version though still has considerable issues. But with the GTK look and feel every thing just works including Java which just picked it up and used it.

    Thanks

  • http://mahomedalidp.blogspot.com Mahomedalid

    En Mandriva x64 hay que ajustar el path para PKG_CONFIG.

    * set PKG_CONFIG_PATH /usr/lib64/pkgconfig/

    He instalar el paquete de icon-naming-utils

  • http://www.blackburncomputers.net Robert

    I also had to apt-get intltool as well as libgtk2.0-dev and icon-naming-utils.

    ‘debchange -v 0.0.8-1′ opened the changelog…then what?

    running ‘sudo apt-get build-dep’ complained that I had to specify at least one package.

    Once the build finished (after several minutes) I went to:
    Install “gtk2-engines-nimbus_0.0.6-1_i386.deb” and “nimbus-icon-theme_0.0.6-1_all.deb” using the GDebi Package Installer which complained:
    “Error: Dependency is not satisfiable:nimbus-icon-theme”

    Any suggestions?

    Edit: Ok I just tried to install the ‘nimbus-icon-theme_0.0.6-1_all.deb’ by itself and it worked. I now have The Nimbus theme in my Theme list.

    I wonder if there is a way to change the yellow ‘mouse-over’ help boxes on the Gnome Panels?

    Thanks for an entertaining morning :)

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  • quark

    This sucks!

    I can’t install the theme because:
    > sudo apt-get build-deb

    Needs a file!
    I am stuck at this line and I don’t know to make it work

    Come on people, write a good tutorial, give good explanations, not all of us are as smart as you are.

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  • kati

    I tried to install the deb version which I’ve download from http://rapidshare.com/files/57244722/gtk2-engines-nimbus_0.0.8-1_i386.zip.html , but a dependency problem occurred – libc6 is missing. I have installed libc6 from the repo, but still the prolem remains. Any advice is appreciated….

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  • NamilaK

    Kati:
    May be this,can help you…
    sudo apt-get install gtk2-engines-nimbus_0.0.8-1_i386.deb
    sudo apt-get install -f

    quark:
    Try this:
    sudo apt-get build-dep gtk2-engines-clearlooks
    sudo apt-get install icon-naming-utils
    fakeroot dpkg-buildpackage -us -uc -d

    Regards,

  • Buddy Stein

    Couldn’t get these scripts to work

    Download this and ran deb installer and Wala simple.

    http://dejonge.tv/download/nimbus-icon-theme_0.0.6-1_all.deb

  • AsphyX

    nimbus_0.0.6-1.diff contains a lot of unneeded changes.
    This package can be built in simpler way:

    1. Get only debian/* files from patch (apply patch and copy these files to directory with newest nimbus sources).
    2. autoreconf
    3. intltoolize –force
    4. autoreconf again (?)
    5. Like in instructions above:
    debchange -v 0.0.12-1
    fakeroot dpkg-buildpackage -us -uc

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  • nikhil

    Just applied this theme. It looks gorgeous!!

  • http://ibcaribe.com Danilo

    All Ok…. it’s great!

    when i was installing the line “sudo apt-get build-dep” does not work, but i continue to the next line and work ok with ubuntu 9.04

  • JoiJoi

    ¡Ay caramba! ¿Qué no existe otra forma más sencilla de instalar este tema?

  • Philip Petev

    Guys, there are compiled packages of the latest version of Numbus for both 32 and 64 bit versions of Ubuntu and Debian here:

    http://gnome-look.org/content/show.php/Nimbus?content=70212

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