So, what is compiz? Seeing is believing:

I’ve succeeded in installing compiz. It’s very amazing and convenient. I’m sure that compiz is a must see killer app. But installation is PAIN!!! You need a couple of all nights especially if you have ATI. (And I do have ATI. Sad.)

Compiz should be installed in the following order:

1. Enable 3D accleration: Use fglrxinfo to check 3D accleration.

mkseo@mkseo:~$ fglrxinfo
display: :0.0  screen: 0
OpenGL vendor string: ATI Technologies Inc.
OpenGL renderer string: RADEON 9000 PRO DDR Generic
OpenGL version string: 1.3.1091 (X4.3.0-8.27.6)

mkseo@mkseo:~$

If the output is different from this one, consult this ATI 3D accleration tutorial. I recommend save-as repository method described in the doc.

2. Install compiz: There are many tutorials and how-tos. I recommend this one and this one. Read thoroughly before doing anything. Read all the replies and the answers.

Caveat: Many tutorials regarding compiz are out of date. So before reading them, examine the date when they were written.