If you ever used or seen some screenshots of Linux Mint (or openSUSE), I'm sure you noticed how amazing it's menu is. I don't know about you, but I've always wanted to install it in Ubuntu. Sure, you could install Gnome Main Menu ( sudo apt-get install gnome-main-menu ) but I don't find it to be nowhere near as useful as the Linux Mint main menu.

Even the seemingly simple right click menu in Ubuntu Gnome is getting designer's attention. Has anybody noticed that, there are already about 20 or so entries in the right click menu of a folder in Nautilus? Somebody has. Take a look at this 'right click menu alternative' mockup.

KDE 4 is barely eight months old, and already it has three options for a main menu. Until now, users have either used the default Kickoff, which makes for awkward navigation of the menu tree, or reverted to the familiar but unwieldy classic menu.

(Not yet a package, but still interesting enough to tell and hey: bleeding edge.) Circular Application Menu for Gnome is a Google Code hosted project providing a different access method to your Gnome menu. Actually all it does, is displaying the menu as circles:

The default menu application in Ubuntu is functional, but it is also down to earth basic. GnoMenu tries to replicate the looks and functionality of KDE's Menu application. And I have to say, it almost does. GnoMenu comes with a number of themes and a easy to use configuration menu.

GnoMenu - A consolidated menu for gnome that brings eye candy to the world of the Gnome menu’s. Fully functional menu , supports themes , for a composited or non composited desktop. It can emulate the look and feel of the most beautiful menus of most modern desktops, and it can also use custom menus, due to its powerful theme XML engine.

The gnome main menu applet was created as another effort for people to try and use awn and get rid of all their gnome bars. Well as another stride in this direction more has been added to this applet.

As controversial as it has been, i've been a supporter of KDE 3's Kickoff menu ( as introduced by openSUSE Linux ), and hence a supporter of the new KDE 4 default menu. There are some vocal protesters, but i feel that this sort of menu is a huge leap forward in general

Reseting Gnome Settings

If your gnome-panel corrupt , Application Menu, Places Menu and System Menu and some other menu items will disappear.
How to recover it

Boot the system upto Login Window. Press Ctrl + Alt+F1

Now You will get a Text based login screen

login with your username and password

now you will get a $ prompt.