Ubuntu

Fixing the Default Editor

Ubuntu defaults to using nano over Vi. To correct this sacrilegious behavior, use the following command:

sudo update-alternatives –config editor

Enabling DVD Playback

sudo apt-get install libdvdread3
sudo /usr/share/doc/libdvdread3/install-css.sh 

Rebuild X11 Configuration

sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

Building a Custom Kernel

See How To Compile A Kernel - The Ubuntu Way on HowtoForge for complete details.

Summary:

apt-get update
apt-get install linux_source kernel-package libncurses5-dev fakeroot wget bzip2
make-kpkg clean
fakeroot make-kpkg --initrd --append-to-version=-custom kernel_image kernel_headers

Installing Modules to an Alternate Path

make modules_install INSTALL_MOD_PATH=/home/denis/tmproot/