1. Home/
    2. Archives / Ji m

Archives For November 30, 1999

Automatically Set Bing’s Daily Image as Wallpaper in Ubuntu 20.04

Last updated: March 26, 2021

Want to automatically set the background & lock screen wallpaper once per day to Microsoft Bing image of the day? It’s easy to do this in Ubuntu via an Extension.

For Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10, and all other Linux with Gnome Desktop, a lightweight Gnome Shell Extension “Bing Wallpaper” make it possible to set Microsoft Bing image as background and/or lock screen wallpaper.

The extension downloads Bing image and refreshes your wallpaper once per day. By providing system tray indicator menu, you can copy image to clipboard and change the extension preferences.

How to Install Bing Wallpaper Extension:

1.) Firstly open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command to install the chrome-gnome-shell package, which will add Gnome Shell extensions integration for web browsers, if you don’t have it.

sudo apt install chrome-gnome-shell

2.) Then go to the extension web page, turn on the toggle icon to install it.

Don’t see the toggle icon? Follow the link to install the browser extension and refresh the web page.

Once installed the extension, an indicator applet should appear in the top-right corner. You can either click “Refresh Now” or wait till it refreshes wallpaper automatically.

For Bing locale, download folder, screen resolution, and other settings, just go to indicator menu ‘Settings’ option.

Uninstall the Exension:

To remove the extension, either turn off the toggle icon in the previous link page, or use Extensions tool (install it via sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-prefs command).

In Howtos
 permalink

qBittorrent 4.3.4 Released! New Sorting Logic, Drop Ubuntu 18.04 Support

Last updated: March 25, 2021

qBittorrent

The free and open-source BitTorrent client qBittorrent 4.3.4 was released. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10 via PPA.

qBittorrent 4.3.4 reworked the sorting logic. To get the old sorting order for the “queue number” column, first sort on the “Completed On” column and then sort on the “#”(queue number) column.

The new release now requires Qt >= 5.12. Ubuntu 18.04 is no longer supported via the official PPA due to outdated system libraries. You can however get it via the flatpak package since it gets most run time libraries bundled.

Changes in qBittorrent 4.3.4 include:

  • Add ability to prioritize selected items by shown file order.
  • Allow tab to escape the text box in “Edit trackers” dialog.
  • Support sub-sorting in Transferlist.
  • Expose ToS setting from libtorrent.
  • Improve tracker entries handling.
  • Enlarge “speed limit” icon slightly.
  • Don’t prevent system sleep due to errored torrents.
  • Use stable sorting in transfer list.
  • Apply “Hide zero/infinity values” to “Time Active”, “Down/Up Limit” and ETA columns.
  • Fix potential out-of-bounds access.
  • Add a 3-Hour graph.
  • Add option to disable icons in menus.
  • Improve detection of filename extension of audio/video files.
  • Various drawing improvements of progress bar.
  • Raise minimum libtorrent version to 1.2.12, Qt version to 5.12.

How to Install qBittorrent 4.3.4 via PPA:

The official qBittorrent PPA has built the new release packages for Ubuntu 20.04 and Ubuntu 20.10.

1. To add the PPA, open terminal by either pressing Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard or searching for “Terminal” from application menu. When it opens, run command:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:qbittorrent-team/qbittorrent-stable

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it prompts and hit Enter to continue.

2. If an old version was installed on your system, upgrade it via Software Updater,

upgrade qBittorrent

or run following commands to install /upgrade qBittorrent in terminal:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install qbittorrent

Uninstall:

To remove qBittorrent PPA, either go to Software & Updates -> Other Software, or run command in terminal:

sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:qbittorrent-team/qbittorrent-stable

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

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove qbittorrent
In News
 permalink

How to Install Audacity 3.0.0 in Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 18.04 via Flatpak

Last updated: July 4, 2021

The Audacity audio editor 3.0.0 was released a week ago as the new major release. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu / Linux Mint via Flatpak package.

Audacity 3.0.0 features new all-in-one-file aup3 project file format, improved ‘Noise Gate’ effect, new ‘Label Sounds’ analyzer, and over 160 bug-fixes.

According to the Privacy Notice, Audacity may COLLECT personal data necessary for law enforcement, litigation and authorities. And it dissuade those under 13 years old from using the App.

It is incompatible with the GPL license. USE IT AT YOUR OWN RISK!

Why Flatpak?

Ubuntu PPA has updated via the 3.0.x built against wxWidgets 3.1.3. As well, you can install the Snap package from Ubuntu Software.

The distribution’s build and Ubuntu PPAs are mostly “incorrectly built packages” as they are built against the wrong wxWidgets (3.0.x), however Audacity 3.0.0 requires wxWidgets 3.1.3.

Though I’m not a fan of the containerized Flatpak package, it’s so far the only ‘correctly’ build binary package since the Snap is still under testing.

Install Audacity 3.0.0 via Flatpak:

Firstly open terminal from system app launcher. When it opens, run following commands one by one.

1.) For Ubuntu 18.04, add the PPA for updated version of Flatpak framework:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:alexlarsson/flatpak && sudo apt update

2.) Install flatpak via command:

sudo apt install flatpak

3.) Add flathub repository that hosts the software packages:

flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo

4.) Finally install Audacity flatpak package:

flatpak install flathub org.audacityteam.Audacity

The flatpak package won’t replace the classic deb package. If you have more than one app icon in launcher, either remove Audacity installed via apt, or launch Audacity Flatpak via command in terminal:

flatpak run org.audacityteam.Audacity

Remove Audacity Flatpak package:

To remove the software installed via flatpak, simply run command:

flatpak uninstall org.audacityteam.Audacity
In Howtos
 permalink

Firefox 87 Released with SmartBlock to Less Breakage in Private Browsing

Last updated: March 23, 2021

Firefox 55

Mozilla Firefox 87.0 was released today with further efforts on improving user privacy.

Firefox 87 introduced SmartBlock, a new intelligent tracker blocking mechanism for Private Browsing and Strict Tracking Protection Mode. By providing local stand-ins for blocked third-party tracking scripts, you’ll encounter less website breakage while fully protected from trackers.

As today’s web is on the way to becoming https-only and browsers are taking steps to improve user privacy, the 87 browser release introduced new default HTTP Referrer policy instead of ‘no-referrer-when-downgrade’.

It’s ‘strict-origin-when-cross-origin‘ which will trim user sensitive information like path and query string in the URL to protect privacy.

Other changes in Firefox 87 include:

  • New locale: Silesian (szl)
  • Improved “Highlight All” feature on Find in page.
  • Full support for macOS built-in screen reader, VoiceOver.
  • Disable the Backspace key for browsing back.
  • Various security fixes.

How to get Firefox 87 in Ubuntu:

For all current Ubuntu releases, the new Firefox package will be published in Ubuntu security & updates repositories in the next few days.

At that time, you can easily update the web browser through Software Updater (Update Manager)

For those who can’t wait, go to the release page which also includes a download button:

Firefox 87 Release Note

In News
 permalink

How to Install ClipGrab Video Downloader via PPA in Ubuntu 20.04

Last updated: March 22, 2021

Want to install the ClipGrab YouTube video downloader via classic deb package? Here’s a PPA available for Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10, and Linux Mint 20.

ClipGrab is a free and open-source downloading and converting application for YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, and many other video sites.

Thanks to Youtube-DL and Qt framework, it provides a simple UI with ability to search videos via keywords. By clicking a video from the search result, it automatically inputs the video URL to “Downloads” tab.

You can also copy & paste the video URL directly from YouTube web page, and then select downloads format, MPEG4, MP3, etc, and choose the quality.

Finally click on “Grab this clip!” to start downloading process.

Install ClipGrab via Ubuntu PPA:

The software offers official Linux binary via non-install Appimage package in its website.

If you prefer the classic .deb package with better integration, the “xtradeb packaging” team maintains the software package in an unofficial PPA, which so far supports for Ubuntu 20.04 and Ubuntu 20.10.

1.) Open terminal from system app launcher. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:xtradeb/apps

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it asks and hit Enter to continue.

2.) After adding the PPA, run command to install the tool:

sudo apt install clipgrab

And it will install the most recent YouTube-DL package, if you don’t have it or have an older version, from the PPA repository.

Uninstall ClipGrab:

To remove the Ubuntu PPA, either go to Software & Updates -> Other Software or run command in terminal:

sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:xtradeb/apps

To remove the video downloader software, run command:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove clipgrab
In Howtos
 permalink

Kid3 Audio Tagger 3.8.6 Released with Qt 6 Support [PPA]

Last updated: March 21, 2021

Kid3 audio tag editor 3.8.6 was released a few days ago with new features and important bug-fixes. PPA has updated for Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, and Ubuntu 20.10.

Kid3 3.8.6 adds support for building with Qt 6. And it now provides a nicer default style for Windows users.

The new release features:

  • adds sub tracks support in Discogs import
  • Integration test for Amazon import
  • Removed TrackType.org import.
  • Fix crash when using id3lib in 64-bit Windows.

How to Install Kid3 3.8.6 in Ubuntu via PPA:

The official Kid3 PPA has made the new packages for Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10, and Linux Mint 20.

1. Open terminal either from application launcher or by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ufleisch/kid3

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it prompts and hit Enter to continue.

2. If an old version was installed, upgrade Kid3 using Software Updater:

upgrade kid3 via software updater

or run commands one by one in terminal to install or upgrade to the latest tag editor:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install kid3-qt

You may replace kid3-qt with kid3 in the code for KDE integration, and/or with kid3-cli for the command-line interface.

Uninstall

To remove the PPA repository, either open Software & Updates -> Other Software tab and remove the relevant line, or run command:

sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:ufleisch/kid3

To remove the audio tag editor, either use your system package manager or run command:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove kid3 kid3-*
In Howtos
 permalink

Vivaldi 3.7 Released with Native Apple M1 Support & Speed Boost

Last updated: March 19, 2021

The Vivaldi web browser 3.7 was released a few days ago. Features performance improvements and Apple M1 machines support.

Vivaldi 3.7 gets a series speed boost. By testing on Ubuntu 18.04 PC with 2 GHz Intel Core i3 CPU and 4 GB RAM, the browser tabs open twice as fast, and new windows open 26% faster compare to the previous version.

The new release also adds native support for Apple computers using the new ARM-based M1 processors.

Besides, there are more new features including:

  • Add support for Kabyle
  • Add support for configurable document menus
  • Support Periodic Reload in web panels
  • Periodic Reload in Web Panels
  • Declutter a crowded Tab Bar in two clicks
  • Search highlight priority options
  • Silent update support for Windows.
  • Import bookmarks for Chromium Edge

How to Install Vivaldi 3.7 in Ubuntu:

The official Ubuntu .DEB package is available to download at the link below:

Download Vivaldi (DEB)

Grab the deb matches your OS, then install it via either Ubuntu Software install or Gdebi package installer. Or run command in terminal:

sudo apt install ./Downloads/vivaldi-stable*.deb

Vivaldi also has an official apt repository, with it you can install the browser and get future updates through Software Updater utility.

Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T keyboard shortcut or by searching for terminal from application menu. When it opens, run following commands one by one:

1. Download and install the repository key:

wget -qO- https://repo.vivaldi.com/archive/linux_signing_key.pub | sudo apt-key add -

Typer user password when it prompts and hit Enter to continue.

2. Add Vivaldi repository via command:

sudo add-apt-repository 'deb https://repo.vivaldi.com/archive/deb/ stable main'

3. Finally check updates and install the web browser via command:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install vivaldi-stable

Or upgrade from an old version via Software Updater utility.

(Optional): To remove Vivaldi apt repository from you system, launch Software & Updates and navigate to Other Software tab.

In News
 permalink

Audacity 3.0.0 Released! Now Save Project into Single .aup3 File

Last updated: July 4, 2021

The Audacity audio editor 3.0.0 was release as a new major update a day ago.

Audacity 3.0.0 features .aup3 project format. The audio project was previously saved as large number of small data files, with an ‘.aup’ file to coordinate the lot. Now it saves project as the new all-in-one-file aup3 file format.

According to the Privacy Notice, Audacity may COLLECT personal data necessary for law enforcement, litigation and authorities. And it dissuade those under 13 years old from using the App.

It is incompatible with the GPL license. USE IT AT YOUR OWN RISK!

Working with the new .aup3 projects editing audio should be a little faster than before, however, finishing and closing a project at the end can be quite a lot slower.

You can open your older .aup projects in the new version, where they will be converted to the new .aup3 format.

Other changes in the Audacity 3.0.0 include:

  • Improved ‘Noise Gate’ effect
  • Add new analyzer ‘Label Sounds’ to label sounds and silences.
  • Import and export macros
  • New commands for using the last used tool or analyzer
  • Over 160 bug-fixes since version 2.4.2.

Download Audacity 3.0.0 for Linux:

No binary package for Ubuntu at the moment of writing, only the source tarball is available to download at the link:

Download Audacity Source

And you can follow this guide to build it on Linux.

In News
 permalink

Oracle Java 16 Released, How to Install it in Ubuntu 20.04, 18.04, 20.10

Last updated: September 15, 2021

Oracle Java 16 was announced as a short release with 6-month support. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10 via PPA.

UPDATE: Oracle Java 17 has been released as the new LTS (Long Term Support Release). This tutorial also works for the new release!

New features in the release include:

  • Vector API (Incubator)
  • Enable C++14 Language Features
  • Migrate from Mercurial to Git
  • Migrate to GitHub
  • ZGC: Concurrent Thread-Stack Processing
  • Unix-Domain Socket Channels
  • Alpine Linux Port
  • Elastic Metaspace
  • Windows/AArch64 Port
  • Foreign Linker API (Incubator)
  • Warnings for Value-Based Classes
  • Packaging Tool
  • Foreign-Memory Access API (Third Incubator)
  • Pattern Matching for instanceof
  • Records
  • Strongly Encapsulate JDK Internals by Default
  • Sealed Classes (Second Preview)

The “Linux Uprising” team ppa has made the installer script, which automatically downloads and installs Oracle JDK 16 package, and sets Java 16 as the default Java version (setting JAVA_HOME, etc.) on 64-bit Ubuntu based system.

1.) Open terminal and run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:linuxuprising/java

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it asks and hit Enter to continue.

2.) After adding PPA, refresh system package cache and install the script:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install oracle-java16-installer

For Java JDK 17, replace the package name so the command will be:

udo apt install oracle-java17-installer

Once the package is installed, you have to accept the license (press Tab to highlight) before starting the download process.

And after installed Oracle Java 16, check via java --version command:

(Optional) To uninstall the PPA repository, run command in terminal:

sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:linuxuprising/java

And remove Oracle Java 16 if you want by running command:

sudo apt-get remove oracle-java16-installer
In Howtos
 permalink

How to Install 0 A.D. Alpha 24 via Another PPA in Ubuntu 20.04, 20.10

Last updated: March 16, 2021

0 A.D. PPA

0 A.D., a free open-source real-time strategy video game, released Alpha 24 “Xšayāršā” a few weeks ago. Here’s how to install the game in Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10 via PPA.

0 A.D. Alpha 24 new features in breaf:

  • Balancing adjustments
  • Building snapping
  • Renderer improvements
  • Hotkey editor
  • Formation improvements
  • Status effects (and modifiers)
  • World population setting
  • Lobby improvements
  • In-game user interface (GUI) improvements
  • Unit behaviour improvements
  • Reinforcement-learning interface
  • Art: new models
  • New Skirmish maps

How to Install 0 A.D. Alpha 24 in Ubuntu:

The game has an official PPA, which is however not updated for the new release almost a month after the release date.

For choice, xtradeb games PPA has made the package for Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10, Linux Mint 20.

1.) Open terminal from system application menu. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:xtradeb/play

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it asks and hit Enter to continue.

2.) Then either install the game package via command:

sudo apt install 0ad

or update from an old release via Software Updater.

How to Remove 0 A.D.

As the PPA also contains many other game packages (e.g., openra, speed dreams, warzone2100, etc), you may remove it via Software & Updates tool under Other Software tab.

To remove 0 A.D. package, just run command:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove 0ad 0ad-data
In Howtos
 permalink