Linux Deepin: Ubuntu-Based Linux Distribution With A Beautiful GNOME Shell Setup

Linux Deepin is a Linux distribution based on Ubuntu that uses a highly customized GNOME Shell as the default desktop environment. It was initially created for Chinese users only, but there are now different ISO images for both Chinese and English languages.

The latest Linux Deepin 11.12.1 comes with GNOME Shell 3.2.1 and is based on Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot.

Linux Deepin video

Beautiful GNOME Shell setup

Linux Deepin comes with a cool, glassy GNOME Shell theme and many extensions, though only some are enabled by default, like the taskbar extension with window previews that you can see in the screenshot below:

Even though it uses a taskbar, the GNOME Shell overview is still available, but the workspaces and application categories are displayed on the left while Dash has been disabled:

If you want Dash, you can get it back by disabling the "Hide Dash" extension, but it will be displayed on the right.

Among the extensions installed by default are: Enhanced Dock, User Themes, Record Desktop Icon extension, Hide Dash, Hide Accessibility Button, Hide Username, No Click Navigation, Removable Drive Menu, Enhanced Search, System Monitor, Deepin Ehnanced Tab 3D Switcher, Window Overlay Icons, Window Navigator, Advanced Calculator and Classic Systray (so you get icons on the top GNOME Shell bar).

All the custom Linux Deepin GNOME Shell extensions are available on GitHub so you can use them in other Linux distribution if you want.

Linux Deepin uses Zukitwo with shades of green for the default GTK theme, a customized green Faenza icon theme and for the desktop font it uses Cantrell (the default GNOME Shell font) instead of going with the Ubuntu font.

Default applications

Linux Deepin comes with its own software center and while it doesn't integrate with the desktop, I must say that overall, the application comes with some very useful features.

Deepin Software Center not only lets you install applications from the Ubuntu repositories, but it comes with a build-in update manager, supports parallel downloading, downloads resuming, it lets you sort applications by ratings or number of downloads and more.

Besides the software center, Linux Deepin comes with applications such as LibreOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, GNOME Mplayer, Deadbeef as the default music player, Iptux (LAN messenger), uGet download manager, GNOME Tweak Tool, Empathy and the basic applications that you'll find in almost any GNOME-based Linux distribution like Gedit, etc. And, like most Ubuntu derivates, Linux Deepin comes with preinstalled codecs and Adobe Flash.

There aren't many applications installed by default in Linux Deepin, making the ISO fit on a CD but since it's based on Ubuntu, you can use the Ubuntu repositories and PPAs to install more applications.

Overall, all the GNOME Shell tweaks and extensions available in Linux Deepin give the desktop a fresh, stylish look without looking bloated. And since most modifications (you can't move the workspaces on the right though) are done through extensions, you can tweak if further by enabling / disabling or installing new GNOME Shell extensions.

Download Linux Deepin

Thanks to Hessel for the post suggestion!

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