Archives For November 30, 2017

Pragha music player 1.3.91 was released earlier today as the second beta of the next Pragha 1.4.

The 1.3.91 release of the lightweight music player (formerly known as Consonance) features:

  • New Koel plugin that allow play music from this service.
  • Implements cache purge limited by size. 1GB by default.
  • Add option to “Add and Play” from library view.
  • Allows reordering the columns of the playlists.
  • New panel on info plugin that show recomendations from Lastfm.
  • Use custom name for the panel icons.
  • Add a symbolic icon for panel. Not used by default.
  • Add “Search” hint to search entry.
  • And various bug-fixes. See here for details.

How to Install Pragha 1.3.91 in Ubuntu 18.04, 16.04, 17.10:

While the project page provides only source tarball, you can easily install Pragha music player via an unofficial PPA in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, and Ubuntu 17.10.

1. Open terminal via Ctrl+Alt+T or from app launcher. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/pragha

Input your password (no visual feedback while typing due to security reason) and hit Enter.

2. Then install the music player either via Synaptic Package Manager or by running commands:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install pragha

Remove Pragha:

To remove the music player, either use Synaptic Package Manager or by running command:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove pragha

And you can remove the PPA via Software & Updates utility under ‘Other Software’ tab.

Music notation software MuseScore 2.2.1 was released a day ago with some fixes to the last 2.2 release.

MuseScore 2.2.1 release highlights:

  • Fix messed playback in the score
  • Fix a regression playback slow to engage, when starting playback too quickly after load score
  • Fix a regression MIDI fixup for overlapping note shouldn’t kick in for different midi tracks
  • Fix that 2.0.x score gives synthesizer output artifact with new soundfont

How to Install MuseScore 2.2.1 in Ubuntu:

The single executable Appimage files to run MuseScore in Linux are available for download:

32-bit Appimage

64-bit Appimage

ARM-architectures

Download the appimage, make it executable and run the file to launch the free scorewriter:

MuseScore is also available as Snap, version 2.2.1 is not available at the moment, which can be easily installed via Ubuntu Software Center.

GnuCash, free and open-source accounting software, reached the 3.0 stable release series a few days ago.

GnuCash 3.0 now uses the Gtk+-3.0 toolkit and the WebKit2Gtk API. It also features:

  • New editors to remove outdated or incorrect match data from the import maps.
  • New user interface for managing files associated with transactions
  • Improved facility for removing old prices from the price database
  • Ability to remove deleted files from the history list in the file menu.
  • A new CSV importer largely rewritten in C++, adding new features including the ability to re-import CSV files exported from GnuCash, along with a separate CSV price importer.
  • A new preference panel for the Alphavantage API key
  • A Reconciliation Report based on the Transaction Report,a Income GST Report, and a Cashflow Barchart report.
  • And more and more other changes, see news page for details.

Download / Install GnuCash 3.0 in Ubuntu:

There’s no PPA repository contains GnuCash 3.0 package or updated snap package at the moment of writing, other than building it from the source tarball:

Linux Kernel 4.16 was released yesterday. Linus Torvalds announced in lkml.org:

So the take from final week of the 4.16 release looks a lot like rc7, in that about half of it is networking. If it wasn’t for that, it would all be very small and calm.

We had a number of fixes and cleanups elsewhere, but none of it made me go “uhhuh, better let this soak for another week”. And davem didn’t think the networking was a reason to delay the release, so I’m not.

End result: 4.16 is out, and the merge window for 4.17 is open and I’ll start doing pull requests tomorrow.

Outside of networking, most of the last week was various arch fixlets (powerpc, arm, x86, arm64), some driver fixes (mainly scsi and rdma) and misc other noise (documentation, vm, perf).

The appended shortlog gives an overview of the details (again, this is only the small stuff in the last week, if you want the full 4.16 changelog you’d better get the git tree and filter by your area of interest).

Linux Kernel 4.16 release highlights:

  • Spectre / Meltdown mitigation & other security updates.
  • L2 CDP support for L2 cache partitioning on Intel CPUs
  • Correct AMD Zen temperature reporting for the Ryzen Threadripper 1900X processor.
  • P-State driver support for Skylake X servers.
  • POWER memory protection keys support
  • Oracle DAX driver for SPARC co-processor
  • Jailhouse guest support for non-root users

How to Install Kernel 4.16 in Ubuntu:

Other than using a graphical tool UKUU to install the latest mainline kernel packages, following steps will tell you how to manually download and install it in all current Ubuntu releases.

The mainline kernel PPA has made the new kernel binaries for Ubuntu, available for download at the link below:

Depends on your OS type, download and install the packages in turns:

  1. linux-headers-4.16.0-xxxxxx_all.deb
  2. linux-headers-4.16.0-xxx-generic(/lowlatency)_xxx_amd64(/i386).deb
  3. linux-image-4.16.0-xxx-generic(/lowlatency)_xxx_amd64(/i386).deb

Select generic for common system, and lowlatency for a low latency system (e.g. for recording audio), amd64 for 64bit system, i386 for 32bit system, or armhf, arm64, etc for other OS types.

To get the Kernel 4.16 from the command console, run the commands below one by one:

For 64-bit OS:

cd /tmp/

wget -c http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.16/linux-headers-4.16.0-041600_4.16.0-041600.201804012230_all.deb

wget -c http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.16/linux-headers-4.16.0-041600-generic_4.16.0-041600.201804012230_amd64.deb

wget -c http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.16/linux-image-4.16.0-041600-generic_4.16.0-041600.201804012230_amd64.deb

sudo dpkg -i *.deb

for 32-bit OS:

cd /tmp/

wget -c http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.16/linux-headers-4.16.0-041600_4.16.0-041600.201804012230_all.deb

wget -c http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.16/linux-headers-4.16.0-041600-generic_4.16.0-041600.201804012230_i386.deb

wget -c http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.16/linux-image-4.16.0-041600-generic_4.16.0-041600.201804012230_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i *.deb

After installed these .debs, restart and enjoy!

Uninstall Linux Kernel 4.16:

Start/restart your machine and select boot with the previous kernel in Grub2 -> Advanced menu. Then use Ubuntu Tweak, or other system tool to remove the Kernel 4.16, or you may see this how to remove old kernels tutorial.

This quick tutorial is going to show you how to install the latest TeXstudio, a full featured LaTeX editor, in Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 17.10, Ubuntu 18.04 via PPA.

The latest release so far is TeXstudio 2.12.8. It’s the first release after moved the development to Github.

The developer offers a PPA repository with the latest packages for all current Ubuntu releases. You can do following steps to add the repository and install the latest TeXstudio.

1. Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T or by searching for “terminal” from app launcher. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:sunderme/texstudio

Input your password (no visual feedback while typing due to security reason) when it prompts and hit enter.

2. Then you can upgrade the LaTeX editor via Software Updater if an old version was installed.

or run commands one by one in terminal to install (or upgrade) the software:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install texstudio

Uninstall:

To remove the editor, run command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove texstudio

And launch Software & Updates and navigate to Other Software tab to remove PPAs.

Android Studio IDE 3.1 was released a few days ago. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 17.10, Ubuntu 18.04 easily via Snap package.

Android Studio 3.1 introduced a C++ performance profiler for trying to analyze CPU bottlenecks in application code. It also adds lint checks for the Kotlin programming language, SQL code completion support, D8 is now the default Dex compiler, a new build output window, and other enhancements.

The community has built the IDE into snap, the universal Linux package format, that can be easily installed on all current Ubuntu releases.

1. For Ubuntu 14.04 and Ubuntu 16.04 users never installed a snap package, you need to install the snapd daemon while it’s not shipped by default in the two LTS.

Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T or by searching ‘terminal’ from app launcher. When it opens, run command:

sudo apt-get install snapd snapd-xdg-open

2. Then launch Ubuntu Software, search for and install Android Studio.

For those who prefer command console, run command in terminal to install the snap:

snap install android-studio --classic

Once installed, launch the Android IDE from your application launcher (log out and log in back if you don’t see the app icon) and enjoy!

The first major update of Jetbrains’ Java IDE in 2018, IntelliJ IDEA 2018.1, was released a day ago.

IntelliJ IDEA 2018.1 brings with it significant improvements to supported languages, frameworks, version control tools, debugger, compiler, and editor. See the announcement for details.

Install IntelliJ IDEA 2018.1 in Ubuntu:

Jetbrains offers official snap packages for Ubuntu Linux users. You can install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 17.10, Ubuntu 18.04 via following steps.

1. (Ubuntu 16.04 only) For those who never installed a snap package, open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command to install snapd daemon:

sudo apt-get install snapd snapd-xdg-open

No visual feedback while typing your password due to security reason.

2. Then you can search for and install PyCharm via Ubuntu Software:

Or run command in terminal instead to install the IDE:

snap install intellij-idea-community --classic

For the ultimate edition, replace intellij-idea-community with intellij-idea-ultimate in the code.

The first release of PyCharm python IDE 2018 was announced earlier today with great new features.

PyCharm 2018.1 release highlights:

  • Data scientists can now define code cells in their files, and choose exactly which parts to execute. No more need to re-import your data every time you finetune your analysis!
  • Do you run Python code on remote machines? Configuring an SSH remote Python interpreter is now easier than ever.
  • Even though Python 3.7 isn’t out yet, PyCharm 2018.1 already fully supports developing Python 3.7 code.
  • Those of you who take pride in having precise commits will be pleased to hear that you can now choose which chunks of files to include in your git commits.
  • PyCharm is the Python IDE that knows your code, and PyCharm 2018.1 knows Python code better than ever with new code intelligence features.
  • Docker Compose file format 3.3 and later are now supported. Also, performance of Docker Compose interpreters has improved significantly.

How to Install PyCharm 2018.1 in Ubuntu:

Jetbrains offers official snap packages for Ubuntu Linux users. You can install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 17.10, Ubuntu 18.04 via following steps.

1. (Ubuntu 16.04 only) For those who never installed a snap package, open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command to install snapd daemon:

sudo apt-get install snapd snapd-xdg-open

No visual feedback while typing your password due to security reason.

2. Then you can search for and install PyCharm via Ubuntu Software:

Or run command in terminal instead to install the IDE:

snap install pycharm-community --classic

For professional, replace pycharm-community with pycharm-professional in the code.

Free and open source music composition and notation software, MuseScore 2.2.0, was released earlier today.

MuseScore 2.2.0 comes with new features and tons of bug fixes:

  • New MuseScore_General.sf3 soundfont
  • Option to select the MIDI Output
  • Built-in MP3 support for Windows (finding and installing third-party DLL no longer necessary)
  • Add search field to template chooser in New Score Wizard
  • Option to select whether to “Play repeats” for jump elements (D.S. al Coda, etc.)
  • Selected notes are highlighted on the piano keyboard
  • Select / More: ability to distinguish same pitch on a specific string in tablature
  • All elements are now selectable by voice
  • Copy and paste of multiple fretboards
  • Fretboards can be added to chord symbols
  • See release note for more details.

How to Install MuseScore 2.2.0 in Ubuntu:

The single executable Appimage files to run MuseScore in Linux are available for download:

32-bit Appimage

64-bit Appimage

ARM-architectures

Download the appimage, make it executable and run the file to launch the free scorewriter:

MuseScore is also available as Snap, version 2.2 will be available in a few days, which can be easily installed via Ubuntu Software Center (See HERE for details).

Free and open-source planetarium software Stellarium 0.18.0 was released last night. The new release added support for Hierarchical Progressive Surveys (HiPS).

Changes in Stellarium 0.18.0 include:

  • Added support Hierarchical Progressive Surveys [HiPS] (Hello visualization of multiwavelength universe in the Stellarium)
  • Added patches for TeXLive
  • Added Dnoces star name
  • Added computation of solar eclipse magnitude and solar eclipse obscuration on Earth (special case)
  • Added option to allow adding some sky background color
  • Added Moon age computation
  • Added “Western (O.Hlad)” sky culture
  • Added support common names of pulsars
  • Added some DSO images
  • Added calculation of synodic period
  • Added AstroCalc/Monthly Elevation tool
  • Added optional Sun, Moon, Astronomical Twilight and Nautical Twilight lines for AstroCalc/AltVsTime tool
  • Added Battlesteads Observatory into locations list
  • Added a special case of computations (lunar eclipse) into AstroCalc/Phenomena tool
  • Added two new signals to manage wide dates changes with various steps – by months and years
  • Added tools for select color of planetary labels and trails
  • Added option to suppress drawing large halo around bright stars.
  • Added Tesla Roadster orbital elements
  • Added config options for font size of cardinal points
  • Added visualization of civil twilight line in AstroCalc/AltVsTime tool
  • Added ‘Artificial objects’ into Search/Lists tool
  • Added feature to store and retrieve selected HiPS
  • Added bottom bar GUI button for HiPS display
  • Updated and extended AstroCalc tool
  • Added support a Hickson Compact Group collection
  • Updated code and data, and fixed various bugs.

How to Install Stellarium 0.18.0 in Ubuntu:

The developers maintain a stable PPA repository that contains the latest Stellarium packages for Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 17.10, Ubuntu 18.04.

1. Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T or by searching ‘terminal’ from app launcher. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:stellarium/stellarium-releases

Input your password (no visual feedback while typing) when it prompts and hit Enter.

2. Then upgrade Stellarium from an existing release with Software Updater utility:

Or run following commands to install the software for the first time:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install stellarium

Uninstall:

To remove the software, either use your system package manager or run command:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove stellarium

And remove the PPA via “Software & Updates” utility under Other Software tab.