I would love an animated splash screen, just for a bit of eye candy to replace the purple splash (with 4 dots) during the boot sequence. I know it will slow down boot time but I don't care I just want it to look good. When I show my friends how much better looking Ubuntu is than windows the splash really lets it down.
Any one know a good alternative to the existing Plymouth boot?
I could not get mine to change the splash screen (with terminal or gui apps), and it is now broken, it just shows a load of error messages at boot but still starts Ubuntu.
Best Answer
Ubuntu Sunrise (plymouth)
I use an old favorite "Ubuntu Sunrise" in 12.04 (In fact I have been using it since 10.04 LTS). It's easy to install (instructions below) and it has never caused me any issues. However you should note that changing your Plymouth may cause resolution issues depending on your own resolution.
INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
Step 1:
Download the Plymouth Sunrise deb file from here.
Step 2:
Open the Terminal (Ctrl-Alt-T) and type
Step 3
ubuntu-sunrise
folder to/lib/plymouth/themes
/etc/initramfs-tools/conf.d
(Optional, for better buffer)Step 4:
Type in the terminal
Step 5:
Choose the number associated with
ubuntu-sunrise
in the options that pop up.Step 6
Type in the terminal
Then
That's it.
Note: Some people have issues installing other Plymouth themes (I've never had any) and I would strongly advise you to take a look at these issues here at Ask Ubuntu to familiarise yourself.