Translations by Rice

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Your computer consists of a number of connected devices, which are collectively known as computer <emphasis>hardware</emphasis>.

Ubuntu normally configures your hardware automatically, but there may be occasions when you need to make changes to hardware settings yourself. This section provides information on tools which can be used to configure your hardware.

Checking how much disk space is available

Click <menuchoice><guimenu>System</guimenu><guisubmenu>Administration</guisubmenu><guimenuitem>System Monitor</guimenuitem></menuchoice> and select the <guilabel>File Systems</guilabel> tab to see how much hard disk space is available on your computer.

Alternatively, click <menuchoice><guimenu>Places</guimenu><guimenuitem>Computer</guimenuitem></menuchoice>, right-click a hard disk, click <guilabel>Properties</guilabel> and select the <guilabel>Basic</guilabel> tab to see a summary of the disk space currently available on that disk.

Advanced disk-usage analysis

For a more accurate analysis of your filesystem, press <menuchoice><guimenu>Applications</guimenu><guimenuitem>Accessories</guimenuitem><guimenuitem>Disk Usage Analyzer</guimenuitem></menuchoice> to start the <application>Disk Usage Analyzer</application>.

How can I free-up some disk space?

There are several simple ways of making more disk space available:

Delete the old uncompressed files to free some disk space.

Partitioning a device

Be careful when altering disk partitions, as it is possible to lose your data if you delete or change the wrong partition.

A list of partitions will appear. Select the desired partition and choose <menuchoice><guimenu>Partition</guimenu><guimenuitem>Unmount</guimenuitem></menuchoice>.

To resize the partition choose <guilabel>Resize/Move</guilabel>. The dialog <guilabel>Resize/Move</guilabel> will be shown. You can use the <guilabel>Free Space Following (MiB)</guilabel> box to choose how much space to free after this partition, or <guilabel>Free Space Preceding (MiB)</guilabel> to free space before this partition. Alternatively you can use the slider to adjust the partition size.

To create a new partition inside an already partitioned device, you must first resize an existing partition. If you already have free space, skip to <xref linkend="creating-new-partition"/>; otherwise, follow the instructions below: <placeholder-1/>

A list of partitions will appear. Select the one called <guilabel>unallocated</guilabel> and click <guibutton>New</guibutton>.

Pressing <guibutton>Apply</guibutton> will cause all of the files on the partition to be permanently deleted.

There are different types of filesystem. The most common are: <placeholder-1/>

To install different operating systems

Suspending and hibernating your computer

In order to save power, you can put your computer into one of a number of power-saving modes when you are not using it:

<emphasis role="strong">Suspending</emphasis> a computer is like putting the computer to sleep. The computer will still be turned on and all of your work will be left open, but it will use much less power. You can wake the computer by pressing a key or clicking the mouse.

<emphasis role="strong">Hibernating</emphasis> is turning the computer off completely while saving the current state of the computer (such as keeping all of your open documents). When you turn the computer back on after hibernating, all of your work should be restored as it was before hibernation. No power is used when the computer is hibernating.

<emphasis role="strong">Shutting down</emphasis> is turning the computer off completely, without saving the current state of the computer. No power is used when the computer is shut down.

Some computers may have problems going into certain power saving modes. The best way of checking if your computer can handle a power-saving mode is to try to switch to that mode and see if it behaves as you expected. Always make sure you save important documents before suspending or hibernating.

My computer does not suspend or hibernate correctly

Some computers are unable to suspend or hibernate correctly with Ubuntu. If this is the case for your computer, you may notice some of the following symptoms:

The computer does not turn off after you click to hibernate it.

When you turn the computer on after hibernating it, your previously open programs are not restored.

The computer will not wake up after you have suspended it.

Certain programs or hardware devices stop working correctly after resuming from hibernation or waking-up from being suspended.

If your hardware does not work properly after suspending or hibernating your computer, restart your computer and it should return to normal. If a program does not work properly, try closing the program and then starting it again.

Make sure that you save all of your open documents before testing for suspend and hibernate problems.

Why do I get a strange pattern on the screen when I hibernate my computer?

Your screen may show a black and white pattern just after you click to hibernate your computer. This is usually nothing to worry about and is just how the graphics cards of some computers respond to the initial stages of the hibernation process.

If the computer displays the pattern for a prolonged period of time without turning itself off then you may have a problem with hibernation. See <link linkend="pm-suspend-hibernate-fails">My computer does not suspend or hibernate correctly</link> for more information.

This section provides instructions on using and configuring mice, keyboards and other input devices to make them more comfortable for you to use.

Using the Keyboard to Navigate the Desktop

A guide on how to navigate the desktop using only a keyboard.

Keyboard Accessibility Monitor