Xubuntu Geek

Blender is a free and open source 3D animation suite. It supports the entirety of the 3D pipeline—modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing and motion tracking, even video editing and game creation. In this article we'll add a PPA so that Blender gets automatically updated to the latest version. Blender 2.69 running on Xubuntu 13.10. Install Open a terminal window and run: sudo add-apt-repository ppa:irie/blender -y && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install blender -y If you are using NVidia graphic card with CUDA you might want to install Blender's CUDA support. This will allow you to render using the GPU instead of the CPU. Run the following command on a terminal window: sudo apt-get install nvidia-cuda-toolkit -y After installing the CUDA toolkit you need to enable it. Open Blender's User Preferences > System and on Compute Device , select CUDA . Enabling CUDA on Blender...

In its essence Krita is a software for drawing (you can see some examples at the top of this site's right sidebar). Krita development is on constant motion and the official Ubuntu packaging can keep up. If you would like to try the latest Krita enhancements without the hassle of compiling it yourself from source, see below how to. Install from Krita Lime PPA Open a terminal window and run: sudo add-apt-repository ppa:dimula73/krita -y && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install krita-testing krita-testing-dbg -y After installing you should restart your computer. Usage Krita can be accessed via Applications Menu > Graphics >Krita or typing the following command: krita . References Krita got a PPA : Krita Lime

Viber is a cross-platform application (iPhone, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, Windows, Mac, Symbian, Nokia and Bada devices), that allows users to send text messages and make calls to other Viber users, all for free. Viber delivers its services over 3G or Wi-Fi networks and offers voice call with better quality than carrier networks. Unfortunately it is still not available for 32 bit systems. In this article we'll learn how to install Viber in 64 bit systems. Install (64 bits) Open a terminal window and run: wget -O viber64.deb http://goo.gl/zQWg4R && sudo dpkg -i viber64.deb && rm viber64.deb Usage Viber can be accessed via Applications Menu > Internet > viber or typing the following command: /opt/viber/Viber . When run for the first time, Viber will ask for your phone number and after you input it, Viber will send a confirmation code to your mobile phone. Use that code to finalize configuration. References Viber available for Lin...

This article shows how to install the latest version of the productivity suite, LibreOffice. When I say "latest" I'm referring to alphas and betas, so I'll quote the "LibreOffice Packaging" team: Only for the most brave and courageous! If you're running Xubuntu 12.04, LibreOffice 3.6 RC will be installed. And LibreOffice 4.0 alpha will be installed for the Xubuntu 12.10 users. Install Open a terminal window and run: sudo apt-get purge libreoffice-core -y && sudo add-apt-repository ppa:libreoffice/ppa -y && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install libreoffice -y Usage LibreOffice can be accessed via Applications Menu > Office > LibreOffice . References LibreOffice Pre-Releases | PPA

Updated: 10 June 2015 I-Nex is a hardware information gatherer with graphical interface. It displays detailed hardware information and some software information about the Operating System, Kernel and packages. I-Nex is quick gathering the information. The interface is well organized and easy to understand. I-Nex also provides the possibility of generating a detailed report and create a screenshot directly from the application. I-Nex running on Xubuntu Install I-Nex requires a up-to-date Gambas 3 (used for the graphical interface), so we need to add the Gambas 3 PPA. To install them both, open a terminal window and run: sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gambas-team/gambas3 -y && sudo add-apt-repository ppa:i-nex-development-team/stable -y && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install i-nex -y Usage I-Nex can be accessed via Applications Menu > System > I-Nex or typing the following command: i-nex . Uninstall If you wish ...

To be able to open/extract 7-Zip files ( 7z extension) in Xubuntu we need the p7zip-full package. Check bellow for instructions on how to install it. Install Open a terminal window and run: sudo apt-get install p7zip-full -y

Exaile is a music manager and player for GTK+ written in Python. It incorporates automatic fetching of album art, lyrics fetching, Last.fm scrobbling, support for many portable media players, internet radio such as shoutcast, and tabbed playlists. Here's how to install it in Xubuntu using two methods: from Ubuntu repositories and from source. The version in the repositories is always a little behind so to get the latest version choose the source method. The highlights of the newer versions are described on Exaile's website . Exaile Running on Xubuntu Install from Ubuntu Repositories Open a terminal window and run: sudo apt-get install exaile python-mmkeys -y Note: The command above also installs python-mmkeys . This package is needed to activate the "XKeys" plugin (support for keyboard multimedia keys). You'll get this error otherwise: mmkeys.so is not available Install from Source Navigate to Exaile's download page and...

Plank is a lightweight dock that provides simple functionality: launch applications and alternate between running applications. Here's how to install it in Xubuntu via PPA. Install Open a terminal window and run: sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ricotz/docky -y && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install plank -y Usage Plank can be accessed via Applications Menu > Accessories > Plank or typing the following command: plank . Configure Plank doesn't have a graphical configuration interface, you need to edit the text file: ~/.config/plank/dock1/settings . The configuration file has comments that explain how to configure it. Add launchers to Plank Right-click on a running application and select "Keep in dock". Remove launchers from Plank Drag-and-drop the launcher outside plank. References Plank – The Most Lightweight Dock For Ubuntu Plank: Introduction

Some time ago I wrote about installing Tilda in Xubuntu . Now I gave Guake a try (another terminal that slides in from the top of the screen). Guake running on Xubuntu There are some reasons for liking Guake better: The width is set to 100% (Tilda has some problems when changing monitors). The height can be adjusted with the mouse. All key bindings can be customized. The tab bar is quite useful and it's easy to rename tabs. Tilda is still a good program, though, so if you're undecided give them both a try and see which suits you best. Install Open a terminal window and run: sudo apt-get install guake -y Usage Guake can be accessed via Applications Menu > Accessories > Guake Terminal or typing the following command: guake . Guake's preferences editor can be directly accessed using the command: guake-prefs or you can right-click on Guake and select Preferences .

In this article we'll see how to install Dropbox and Thunar integration in Xubuntu. Thunar Dropbox plugin running on Xubuntu I've tested this procedure in Xubuntu 12.04 and Xubuntu 12.10 (32 and 64 bits). It also works for the newer version of Thunar (1.5.2 at the time of this writing). Install Choose one of the alternatives and run the corresponding command on a terminal window: Alternative #1 - Install both Dropbox and Thunar plugin cd && plat=`uname -m`; if [ $plat != "x86_64" ]; then plat="x86"; deb="i386"; else deb="amd64"; fi; wget -O - "http://www.dropbox.com/download?plat=lnx.$plat" | tar xzf - && wget -O dropbox-thunar-plugin.deb http://packages.crunchbang.org/waldorf/pool/main/thunar-dropbox-plugin_0.2.0-1_$deb.deb && sudo dpkg -i dropbox-thunar-plugin.deb && rm dropbox-thunar-plugin.deb && ~/.dropbox-dist/dropboxd Alternative #2 - Install only t...

After running the system for a while the Linux kernel gets updated and the old versions are kept installed, even though that aren't needed any more. In this article I provide a way to remove automatically any kernel version that is older than the current being used. By the way, I was able to recover more than 1GB of free disk space by running this. Remove Open a terminal window and run: current=`uname -r` && uninstall="" && for version in `dpkg -l linux-image* | grep ii | awk '{ print $2}'`; do if [[ "$version" References Remove Old Kernels in Ubuntu 11.10 (Oneiric ocelot)

Avant Window Navigator (Awn) is a dock-like bar which sits at the bottom of the screen. It has support for launchers, task lists, and third party applets. Awn running on Xubuntu 12.04 Update 25/10/12: Awn is not available in Quantal (12.10). Install Open a terminal window and run the command below. It'll install Awn and all its applets. sudo apt-get install avant-window-navigator awn-applets-all -y Usage Awn can be accessed via Applications Menu > Accessories > Avant Window Navigator or typing the following command: avant-window-navigator . Awn settings (size, position, autohide, applets, ...) can be customized; right-click on Awn and select Dock Settings . Customizing Awn Settings References Awn in Launchpad

Opera is a web browser that runs on several operating systems including Linux, Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows and FreeBSD. There's also versions that run on mobile devices. Opera running on Xubuntu 12.04 Opera's features include: Tab stacking: Dragging one tab over another allows you to create groups of tabs. Now, you can keep dozens of webpages open, organized and under control. Mouse gestures: Perform common browser actions with a quick flick of your mouse. Hold down the right mouse button on a webpage to show a visual guide that indicates how to perform available gestures. Extensions: Extend Opera’s functionality by visiting the extensions catalog . Download videos, automatically translate languages and much more. Extensions can also show handy information in your Speed Dial. Opera Turbo: Boost your browsing speed on crowded Wi-Fi hotspots, tethered mobile phones or dial-up connections. One click turns it on. Speed Dial: Preview your favorite site...

Skype is a service and application that allows users to communicate with peers by voice, video, and instant messaging over the Internet. Skype also has features such as file transfer and videoconferencing. Skype 4.0 running on Xubuntu 12.04 Phone calls may be placed to recipients on the traditional telephone networks. Calls to other users within the Skype service are free of charge, while calls to landline telephones and mobile phones are charged via a debit-based user account system. Bellow are provided instructions for installing Skype on any Ubuntu based distribution, from version 12.10 all the way back to 9.10. Install Open a terminal window and run: sudo add-apt-repository "deb http://archive.canonical.com/ $(lsb_release -sc) partner" && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install skype -y Usage Skype can be accessed via Applications Menu > Internet > Skype or typing the following command: skype . Uninstall ...

Gespeaker is a GTK+ frontend for eSpeak and Mbrola. It allows to play atext in several languages providing settings for voice, pitch, volume, speed and word gap. There's also the possibility of recording the text played to a WAV file. Gespeaker running on Xubuntu 12.04 Even though Gespeaker latest version (0.8.1-1 at the time of this writing) is dated from June 2010, the version in Ubuntu repositories is still 0.7.3, so in this article we'll install the latest version the project's repository. Install Gespeaker Open a terminal window and run: wget http://goo.gl/kWDhe -O gespeaker.deb | sudo dpkg -i gespeaker.deb | rm gespeaker.deb Install Mbrola Gespeaker can use Mbrola to play text with a more realistic speech. The installation of Mbrola support is accomplished in two steps: First we need to install the mbrola package running this on a terminal window: sudo apt-get install mbrola -y Then the package for a particular language must...

The Java Development Kit (JDK) is mainly a set of tools for running, compiling and debugging Java applications. There are a few other JDK, but in this article we'll see how to manually install the Oracle's JDK in any distribution from the Ubuntu family. The process consists of downloading the binary package, extract it and update the system so that the new version is used. By the way, if you installed the JDK via PPA, as described in my previous article , both can work alongside. The command update-alternatives can be used to choose one between them. Download The first step is to download the latest binaries package from Oracle's website . On the downloads webpage choose the JDK download button. On the next page you'll see list of several files, but you should focus your attention on two: The file name ends with i586.tar.gz or x86_64.tar.gz . If your system is 32 bits you should select the first one and select the latter if it's 64 bit...

Wine 1.5.11 has been released with the following major changes: Multi-channel support in the ALSA driver. Removal of the big X11 lock. Support for pair positioning adjustments in Uniscribe. More I/O stream implementations in the C++ runtime. Various bug fixes. A total of 36 were fixed in applications such as "SIM City 4", "S.T.A.L.K.E.R.", "F.E.A.R.3", "Fallout 3", "Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands", etc, and GeForce GT 630M (with Bumblebee) is now properly recognized. Ubuntu repositories is still 1.4. Bellow instructions are provided to install the latest Wine version from the "Latest official WineHQ releases" PPA. Install Open a terminal window and run this line: sudo apt-add-repository ppa:ubuntu-wine/ppa -y && sudo apt-get update && if [ `uname -m` == "x86_64" ]; then wine="wine1.5-amd64"; else wine="wine1.5"; fi && echo $wine && sudo apt-get...

Shoes is a cross-platform toolkit for writing graphical apps easily and artfully using Ruby. Unlike most other GUI toolkits, Shoes is designed to be easy and straightforward without losing power. Figure 1. Shoes (Ruby GUI Toolkit) running on Xubuntu 12.04 Installing Shoes on Xubuntu (or any other Ubuntu distribution) is not as straight forward as it should be. There's a Shoes package in the Ubuntu repositories, however, it's buggy and using it will result in the following error: no such file to load -- rubygems From my experience building Shoes might result in errors during the process. The easiest and simplest way to install Shoes in Xubuntu were to download Shoes 2 (0.r1134), codenamed “Raisins” and use it to run the Shoes programs. It's a older version, but I'm just getting started with Shoes and for now it'll suffice. Install Open a terminal window and run: sudo wget -O /usr/local/bin/shoes http://goo.gl/3cigS && ...

nautilus-gksu is a extension for the Nautilus file manager. It allows to open a file/directory with root/administrator privileges. nautilus-gksu running on Xubuntu 12.04 Install First we need to install the nautilus-gksu package. This package is available on Ubuntu if [[ $(lsb_release -sr) == "12.04" ]]; then echo 'deb http://packages.linuxmint.com/ maya main upstream import' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/linuxmint.list && key=3EE67F3D0FF405B2 && gpg --keyserver subkeys.pgp.net --recv-keys $key && gpg --armor --export $key | sudo apt-key add - && sudo apt-get update; fi && sudo apt-get install nautilus-gksu -y && sudo sed -i 's/Thunar/nautilus/' /etc/xdg/xfce4/helpers.rc

Ruby is an interpreted, dynamic, open source scripting language for easy object-oriented programming. It a focus on simplicity and productivity. It has an elegant syntax that is natural to read and easy to write. In this article will learn how to install the Ruby interpreter and RubyGems in Xubuntu. Then we'll take a quick look at how to run a Ruby program and how to install a gem package. Install Open a terminal window and run: sudo apt-get install ruby rubygems -y Run a Ruby script ruby script.rb Run the interactive interpreter The irb is a tool to execute interactively ruby expressions read from stdin. Run the command irb and type the Ruby command. Examples: $ irb irb(main):001:0> 2**20 => 1048576 irb(main):002:0> name = gets XubuntuGeek => "XubuntuGeek\n" irb(main):003:0> name.chop! => "XubuntuGeek" irb(main):004:0> puts "Hello #{name}" + "!" * 3 Hello XubuntuGeek!!! => nil List remote instal...