Frustrating - issues with installed software on Ubuntu not working

Today I downloaded parallels on my macbook pro and created a Ubuntu virtual OS. I am however having major issues with the software I try to install. Admittedly I am totally new to Linux but nearly everything I have tried to install so far either crashes with errors or just won't work at all. GPA opens with an error message and even if I just close those it will not generate a key. Vidalia just does nothing which judging by the feedback is not unique to me.
I have also downloaded Synaptic package manager and checked everything is as it should be. Tried changing the software sources too.
Am I missing a trick here or something??

 

Hi Peter, please let us know the version of Ubuntu OS that you have installed.