Fix TypeCatcher (Google Fonts Installer) does not launch in Ubuntu 22.04

Last updated: December 5, 2022 — Leave a comment

This simple tutorial shows how to fix the launching issue for TypeCatcher in Ubuntu 22.04 or other Linux with Python 3.9 & higher.

TypeCatcher is a simple GTK application to download and install Google webfonts for off-line use. The app is available to install in Ubuntu Software for all current Ubuntu releases. However, it does not launch in Ubuntu since 21.10.

TypeCatcher, download & install Google Fonts

When trying to launch it from command line, it outputs something like this:

Traceback (most recent call last):
File “/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/typecatcher_lib/Application.py”, line 30, in on_activate
self.window = TypeCatcherWindow.TypeCatcherWindow()
File “/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/typecatcher_lib/Window.py”, line 47, in __new__
builder = get_builder(‘TypeCatcherWindow’)
File “/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/typecatcher_lib/helpers.py”, line 44, in get_builder
builder.add_from_file(ui_filename)
File “/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/typecatcher_lib/Builder.py”, line 86, in add_from_file
ele_widgets = tree.getiterator(“object”)
AttributeError: ‘ElementTree’ object has no attribute ‘getiterator’

The issue is because of the removal of getiterator() methods from xml.etree.ElementTree module in Python 3.9, which was deprecated since Python 3.2.

As the announcement indicates, simply use iter() method instead will fix the issue.

Methods getchildren() and getiterator() of classes ElementTree and Element in the ElementTree module have been removed. They were deprecated in Python 3.2. Use iter(x) or list(x) instead of x.getchildren() and x.iter() or list(x.iter()) instead of x.getiterator().

1. First, search for and open a terminal window from either start menu or ‘Activities’ overview depends on your desktop environment.

2. When terminal opens, run command to edit the file that contains the ‘getiterator()’ method (see the first screenshot). In the case, it’s “/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/typecatcher_lib/Builder.py”.

sudo gedit /usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/typecatcher_lib/Builder.py

replace gedit to your favorite text editor, or use nano command line editor that works in most Linux.

3. When files opens, find out and replace tree.getiterator with tree.iter.

For Gedit text editor, just go to menu, click open ‘Find and Replace’ dialog. Finally, insert tree.getiterator as ‘Find’, and ‘tree.iter‘ as ‘Replace with’, then click on ‘Replace All’ button.

For nano text editor, press Alt+R when the file opens in terminal window. Then type tree.getiterator when it indicates ‘Search (to replace)’, hit Enter, and insert tree.iter when prompts ‘Replace with’. Finally, hit Enter and type y. Or, just use arrow keys to find and replace the keyword (there are 2) manually. And, press Ctrl+x, type y, and hit Enter to save changes.

After saving the file, try to launch it either from ‘Activities’ overview or command line, and enjoy!

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PyCharm 2022.3 Released! How to Install in Ubuntu 22.04 | 20.04

Last updated: December 4, 2022 — Leave a comment

PyCharm Python IDE 2022.3 was finally released a few days ago. Here are the new features and how to guide for installing it in Ubuntu Linux.

Changes in PyCharm 2022.3 include:

  • Ability to search, install, and delete Conda packages through the Python Packages tool window
  • New Settings Sync plugin
  • export DataFrames in various formats (for professional only)
  • The Quick Documentation popup now displays the Attributes section of the class docstrings
  • Support await keyword in the built-in Python Console.
  • Experimental asyncio support for the debugger.
  • Vitest support (for professional only)
  • New project templates for Next.js and Vite (for professional only)
  • Redis support (for professional only)

How to Install PyCharm 2022.3 in Ubuntu Linux

There are 3 ways to install the Python IDE in Ubuntu and other Linux: Snap, Flatpak, and portable tarball. Just choose the one that you prefer.

Option 1: PyCharm Snap package

The easiest way to get the IDE is using the official Snap package. It is a containerized software package that run in sandbox, and updates automatically.

For Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 22.04 and higher, simply search for ‘PyCharm’ then install either community or professional edition from Ubuntu Software.

Or, run command in terminal to install the Snap package:

sudo snap install pycharm-community --classic

Replace pycharm-community with pycharm-professional for the professional edition.

Option 2: PyCharm Portable package (tar.gz)

The website also provides official tar.gz package for downloading at the link below:

Download PyCharm

Then open the folder that stores the tarball (usually Downloads folder), right-click on blank area and select ‘Open in Terminal‘.

When terminal opens, run the commands below one by one to install it for all system users (replace community with professional accordingly):

  • First, create a folder under ‘/opt’ to store the source: 
    sudo mkdir -p /opt/pycharm-community
  • Then extract the tarball into that folder: 
    sudo tar -zxf pycharm-community-2022.3.tar.gz --strip-components=1 -C /opt/pycharm-community/
  • Finally, create & edit shortcut icon file for the IDE package: 
    sudo gedit /usr/share/applications/pycharm-community.desktop

    Replace gedit with nano for Ubuntu 22.10.

The last command should open an empty text editor window. There paste the lines below and save it.

[Desktop Entry]
Name=PyCharm Community Edition
Comment=Lightweight IDE for Python & Scientific development
Exec=/opt/pycharm-community/bin/pycharm.sh
Icon=/opt/pycharm-community/bin/pycharm.svg
Terminal=false
Type=Application
Categories=Development;IDE;
StartupWMClass=jetbrains-pycharm

After saving the file, you should be able to search for and launch PyCharm IDE from start menu or ‘Activities’ overview, depends on your desktop environment.

Option 3: PyCharm Flatpak

The open-source community also maintains the PyCharm packages as Flatpak package, which is also containerized package runs in sandbox.

First, open terminal by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T keys on keyboard. When it opens, run command to install the daemon package:

sudo apt install flatpak

Next, run command to install PyCharm Community as Flatpak:

flatpak install https://dl.flathub.org/repo/appstream/com.jetbrains.PyCharm-Community.flatpakref

Or, install the professional version as Flatpak via command:

flatpak install https://dl.flathub.org/repo/appstream/com.jetbrains.PyCharm-Professional.flatpakref

Uninstall PyCharm

For the Snap package, remove it either via Ubuntu Software or by running command in terminal:

sudo snap remove pycharm-community --classic

For the portable package, remove the source as well as shortcut file via command:

sudo rm -R /opt/pycharm-community
sudo rm /usr/share/applications/pycharm-community.desktop

And, remove the Flatpak package via command:

flatpak uninstall --delete-data com.jetbrains.PyCharm-Community

For the professional edition, remove pycharm-community in the commands above with pycharm-professional.

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The Lightweight Midori Browser Revived [official AppImage/Deb]

Last updated: December 2, 2022 — 1 Comment

Remember Midori? The lightweight web browser that was default in Elementary OS and Bodhi Linux revived!

Midori was a popular lightweight web browser used the WebKitGTK rendering engine and GTK UI toolkit. The development of the project was however discontinued more than 3 years ago. And, Ubuntu even removed it from system repository since Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.

According to the Wikipedia, the Midori project has been merged with the Astian Foundation in 2019. And, Astian announced a week ago that Midori browser is still alive!

It’s now Chromium based web browser that using Electron and React with both desktop edition for Linux, macOS, and Windows, and mobile edition for Android.

The browser still aims to be lightweight, fast and free. It’s still an open-source app, with the source code host in gitlab project page.

Midori web browser next generation

The new Midori browser so far features:

  • New logo.
  • Adblock integration, block ads out-of-the-box.
  • Incognito mode support.
  • Chromium based, without Google services and low resources usage
  • Fast and highly customizable UI.
  • Partial Chrome extensions support.
  • To use its own open-source AstianGO search engine. Though, it so far uses DuckDuckGo as default. While Google, Bing, and Ecosia available for choice.

How to Install New Midori web browser in Ubuntu & other Linux

Astian offers official Midori packages for Linux through AppImage and .deb package.

Option 1: AppImage

AppImage is a portable package format without installation required. Just select download it from its website:

Download Midori desktop

Then, right-click on AppImage in file manager. Open ‘Properties’ dialog and grant ‘execute as program’ permission. Finally, click run the package to launch the web browser.

Option 2: Deb package

It also provides official .deb packages for modern 64-bit computers, available to download via the link button below:

Download Midori desktop

NOTE: The Debian (.deb) package seems broken at the moment of writing. It won’t install in my case in Ubuntu 22.04, Debian 11 either via double-clicking or using apt install command. So please try AppImage until Astian fixed the issue.

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RawTherapee 5.9 is out! How to Install in Ubuntu 22.04 | 20.04

Last updated: December 1, 2022 — Leave a comment

RawTherapee, the free open-source raw image converter and digital photo processor, released version 5.9 recently after more than 2 years of development.

RawTherapee 5.9 features new “Spot Removing Tool” under Details tab for removing dust specks and small objects; Local Adjustments tool under Local tab for performing a wide range of operations on an area of the image determined by its geometry or color; Preprocess White Balance tool under Raw tab to specify whether channels should be balanced automatically or whether the white balance values recorded by the camera should be used instead; and a new Perspective Correction tool which includes an automated perspective correction feature.

Other changes include:

  • include CAM16 in Color Appearance & Lighting tool
  • new automatic white balance method “temperature correlation” for White Balance tool.
  • new waveform, vectorscope and RGB parade modes for the Main Histogram.
  • new dual-demosaicing methods in the Demosaicing tool
  • add saturation adjuster for Haze Removal tool

RawTherapee 5.9

There are as well many new and improved Cameras support, including Canon EOS 100D / Rebel SL1 / Kiss X7, Canon EOS 2000D / Rebel T7 / Kiss X90, Nikon D6, Nikon Z 6II, Nikon Z 7II, and more. See the release note for details.

How to Install RawTherapee:

Option 1: AppImage

The software provides official Linux package via AppImage, which is available for downloading at the link below:

Download RawTherapee (AppImage)

Once you got the package, right-click on it to open file ‘Properties’ dialog and add ‘executable as program’ permission. Finally, click the file to launch the photography processor.

NOTE: Ubuntu 22.04+ does not support AppImage out-of-the-box. In case it doesn’t work for you, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal and run command sudo apt install libfuse2 to enable it.

Option 2: Flatpak

RawTherapee is also available as Flatpak package that runs in sandbox and works in most Linux.

1. First, open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and make sure the daemon package is installed by running command in Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 22.04 and higher:

sudo apt install flatpak

Ubuntu 18.04 user can get the package from this PPA.

2. Then, install Rawtherapee as Flatpak by running command:

flatpak install https://dl.flathub.org/repo/appstream/com.rawtherapee.RawTherapee.flatpakref

Like normal package, you can search for and launch the flatpak app from either ‘Activities’ overview or system start menu depends on desktop environment.

(Optional) To remove the Flatpak package, use command:

flatpak uninstall --delete-data com.rawtherapee.RawTherapee

Option 3: Ubuntu PPA

The software does not has an official PPA for Ubuntu user. But you can keep an eye on this page for third-party PPAs.

Or leave comment here to request one. I don’t use RawTherapee, but if you prefer to install it as native .deb I can built it into my personal PPA.

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This Extension Tells Your App Startup Time in Ubuntu 22.04 | 20.04

Last updated: November 29, 2022 — Leave a comment

Want to measure your application launch time in Linux? There’s an extension can do the job for GNOME desktop.

Meaning Ubuntu, Fedora workstation, and other Linux with GNOME desktop can easily tell how much time it takes for launching an application, which is useful for benchmark and/or software developing purpose.

With the extension enabled, every time you launching an application, an on-screen display pops up shows the loading time in millisecond. Not only for native .deb/.rpm, but also for Snap and Flatpak applications.

How to Install the App Start Time Measure extension

For Ubuntu 22.04, first search for and install “Extension Manager” from Ubuntu Software.

Install Extension Manager in Ubuntu 22.04+

Then launch “Extension Manager” and use it to search & install ‘application start time measure’:

For Ubuntu 20.04, first press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. When it opens, run command to install the agent package:

sudo apt install chrome-gnome-shell

Then, go to extension page in the link below and use ON/OFF switch to install it:

Applications Startup Time Measure

Install the browser extension if prompted via link in that page and refresh if you don’t see the ON/OFF switch.

After installing the extension, it should be enable automatically (verify via ‘Gnome Extensions’ or ‘Extension Manager’). You can then launch something and see the magic!

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