These seven steps to locking down security on your Linux Desktop may be one of the smartest things you ever did.  Security increasingly becomes more important as we move to global network access.

Ubuntu, the leading desktop Linux distribution, has been looking at ways to add value to its offering for a while. The maturing Ubuntu One personal cloud service is just such an enhancement – but is it any good?

There are a number of ways to install applications on the Ubuntu desktop.  You can use the Ubuntu Software Center, apt-get from the command line or download applications from the Internet.

Learning some basic methods to navigate and customize the launcher can make it an efficient tool that is used to complete daily tasks. With several icons located in the launcher, reordering the applications may reduce your time searching for your desired program to execute.

Ubuntu 12.04 includes a desktop interface that is a strong departure from previous versions.  One of the most striking differences upon logging into the system is the launcher.  The launcher is a vertical bar that, by default, resides along the left side of the screen.  It is similar to the dock in Mac OS X and aims to make your user experience more efficient and intuitive.

Like many, I have been intrigued by the Ubuntu 12.04 Precise Pangolin release. While using Ubuntu 12.04 in Virtualbox on my Windows 7 host machine I noticed a few changes to the settings really made a difference.

The Ubuntu 12.04 LTS is a nice looking desktop, the icons are clean and powerful. There are a lot of nice desktops out there, this has to be one of the better looking ones. It is certainly worth a look.

Ubuntu 11.10 comes with a backup application, Deja Dup, installed by default. This tool allows you to backup your Ubuntu system incrementally and automatically. Users can use the same deja dup interface to restore previous backups. In this tutorial and video I'll walk through the process of a simple first backup and restoration on Ubuntu 11.10.

The Ubuntu system requires you to login as an administrative user to be able to execute commands that only root can execute. However, you can alter the system to allow root to login to perform hours of administration as root. This eliminates the requirement of typing the full path for commands.

Updating Ubuntu only takes a few minutes and can protect you against software bugs and security vulnerabilities that have surfaced on your desktop over time.

Creating a live USB and using it instead of a CD has many advantages. In this beginners tutorial I will review how to use UNetbootin to create live Ubuntu USBs.

Although it's not the only way to add software to your Ubuntu desktop, it is the tool your most likely to use if you're just getting started with the Ubuntu desktop. This Ubuntu video tutorial will explain how to install, remove and check software history from inside the Ubuntu Software Center.

Learning to use the Ubuntu terminal can be a daunting task for many Ubuntu beginners. I suggest starting out with a simple command that you'll use often such as apt-get. This tutorial and step-by-step video will explain the use of apt-get to install and remove software.

Customizing the Ubuntu main menu allows new users to access many parts of Ubuntu the normally wouldn't while also providing users with a more appealing custom main menu. A video is included at the end of this Ubuntu tutorial.

The first step for most new users coming to the Ubuntu desktop is creating the installation media used to install the operating system. This includes downloading Ubuntu and then burning it to a CD so that you can use it as a live CD or to install Ubuntu on your hard drive.

A quick tutorial and video for absolute beginners just getting used to the Ubuntu live CD and live desktop. This tutorial explains how to run Ubuntu 10.10 on a live CD over the top of Windows without changing the existing installation.

Okay, so you've got an Ubuntu installation CD, tried the Live CD. Ready to take the plunge and install Ubuntu? This Ubuntu installation tutorial includes a step-by-step video that will help new users install Ubuntu and configure options inside of the graphical installer.