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Archives For November 30, 1999

Arronax – Graphical Tool to Create Desktop Launcher for Your Apps in Ubuntu

Last updated: October 25, 2023

Many popular applications (e.g., PyCharm, Blender and even Firefox) provide Linux tarball that include executable files can be run directly to launch the apps.

However, we need to manually create app launcher, to make it possible to launch them by searching the apps from start menu (‘Activities‘ overview). And, ‘Arronax’ is the app to do the job easily.

The .desktop files

App launchers in Linux are handled by files via .desktop extension. Each app you can see in system start menu has an associated .desktop file in either ‘/usr/share/applications‘ or ‘.local/share/applications‘ directory.

For portable Linux tarball, or appimage that does not have an app launcher, user may manually create a .desktop file in either directory to link app into system start menu.

Arronax:

KDE, Cinnamon, and XFCE now have built-in utility to create desktop app launcher. But, GNOME does not!

Arronax is the simple tool started almost 10 years ago, with ability to create and edit .desktop file.

With it, user may either right-click on the executable file and select ‘Create a Starter’, or open the app by searching from start menu (‘Activities’ overview):

For basic function, just type name to display in start menu, select executable file for ‘Command’ box, and choose an icon! Save it to the right location, and that’s all!!

All other options are optional! Though, you may move cursor over an option to get tool-tip tells what it does, and enable it as need.

Finally, click on “Save” button. In the bottom of file save dialog, user may choose the standard location to save the .desktop file.

“User app folder” – stores app launcher files for current user only.
“System app folder” – stores app launcher files for all system user.
“User / System Autostart folder” – store app launchers start automatically on start up.

NOTE: save to system folder needs to run Arronax as root (run sudo arronax in terminal).

How to Install Arronax in Ubuntu:

The app is available to install via an official PPA for all current Ubuntu releases, including Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 21.10, and Ubuntu 22.04.

1. Firstly, open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command to add the software PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:diesch/stable

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

UPDATE for Ubuntu 23.10: the app seems to be no longer updated! If you do need it, run command to add this unofficial PPA instead of 23.10.

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/arronax

2. Then install the tool as well as file manager integration via command:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install arronax arronax-nautilus

You may replace arronax-nautilus with arronax-nemo, arronax-caja for other file manager integration.

Once installed, either launch Arronax via system application menu, or by right-clicking on executable file in file browser.

Uninstall:

To remove the software, open terminal and run command:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove arronax

And remove the PPA via Software & Updates -> Other Software tab.

In Howtos, News create desktop launcher

ICQ Messenger Available to Install via Snap in Ubuntu 18.04/Higher

Last updated: May 22, 2019

ICQ, the popular chat application, is available for Linux as an official Snap package.

ICQ is a cross-platform instant messaging and VoIP client that features:

securely encrypted calls
high-quality video calls
speech-to-text for voice messages
ability to create your own stickers
animated 3D masks and video calls
groups and channels
chat synchronization across all devices

Image via twitter.com/snapcraftio

To install ICQ Snap in Ubuntu 18.04 and higher:

Simply open Ubuntu Software, search for and install the ICQ package (it’s beta at the moment):

To install ICQ snap in Ubuntu 16.04:

Ubuntu 16.04 can install the snap package after installed the snapd daemon.

Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T keyboard shortcut or by searching for ‘terminal’ from application menu. When it opens, run command to install snapd:

sudo apt-get install snapd

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

Then install ICQ snap package via command:

sudo snap install icq-im --beta

(Optional) To uninstall the snap package, run command:

sudo snap remove icq-im

In News ICQ Snap, Install ICQ in Ubuntu 18.04

Firefox 67.0 Released, Upgrading to Dav1d AV1 Decoder

Last updated: May 21, 2019

Firefox 55

Mozilla Firefox 67.0 was released today with performance improvements and some new features.

Firefox 67.0 release highlights according to the release note:

Page load and start up improvements.
Suspend unused tabs when memory is running low (400M).
Toolbar and toolbar overflow menu are both fully keyboard accessible.
Ability to run different Firefox installs side by side by default
Usability and security improvements for private browsing.
Firefox will protect you against running older versions of the browser.
Upgrading to AV1 decoder known as ‘dav1d’
Enable FIDO U2F API, and permit registrations for Google Accounts

Upgrade to Firefox 67 in Ubuntu:

Firefox 67 will be made into Ubuntu universe repositories in 2 or 3 days. Check HERE, and do following to upgrade it once available.

For all current Ubuntu releases, simply open Software Updater and install the updates after checking for updates.

If you don’t see the Firefox updates, go to Software & Updates and make sure the security and updates repositories are enabled in Updates tab.

In News Firefox

TexStudio 2.12.16 Released, How to Install it in Ubuntu

Last updated: May 19, 2019

Full featured LaTeX editor TexStudio 2.12.16 was released a few hours ago. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, Ubuntu 19.04, and their derivatives.

TexStudio 2.12.16 is a small release with only bug-fixex, including some fixes for tool-tip preview by MeanSquaredError.

How to Install TexStudio 2.12.16 in Ubuntu:

There’s a PPA repository that contains the latest packages for all current Ubuntu releases and derivatives.

1. Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T keyboard shortcut or by searching for ‘terminal’ from software launcher. When it opens, run command:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:sunderme/texstudio

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) from sudo prompt and hit Enter to add the PPA.

2. If an old version was installed in your system, remove the texstudio-doc, texstudio-l10n (if any) package before upgrading the software:

sudo apt-get remove texstudio-doc texstudio-l10n

3. After adding the PPA, you can either upgrade the editor via Software Updater:

or run commands in terminal to install or upgrade the software:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install texstudio

Uninstall:

To remove the LaTeX editor, run command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove texstudio

And go to Software & Updates -> Other Software to remove PPA repositories.

In Howtos, News LaTeX editor, TeXstudio

Fix Slow Boot “A start job is running …” in Ubuntu 18.04

Last updated: May 19, 2019

Ubuntu 18.04 is quite slow to boot up in my laptop in the last few days. It was stuck at the purple screen with Ubuntu logo in center for more than 1 minute before booting into the login screen.

When it was booting into the purple screen, press F2 to show the white and black text screen. There it told me that it was stuck at:

“A start job is running for dev-disk-by\x2uuid …(35s \ 1min 30s)”

To fix the problem, do following steps one by one:

UPDATE: First make a back up of /etc/fstab before editing the file by running command:

sudo cp /etc/fstab /etc/fstab-backup

1. Open terminal from application menu or by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard. When it opens, run command:

sudo -H gedit /etc/fstab

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it prompts. It will open fstab (file system table) configuration file with gedit text editor.

2. When the file opens, you’ll see something look like this:

As the top picture shows, “UUID=1cdb9a5b-01a7-4b7b-a0ad-ce73676bb7c1”, mounting the Swap partition takes 1 minute and 30 seconds to boot up Ubuntu.

3. Launch Disks utility from application menu.

4. When it opens, check the Swap partition, and it obviously that the UUID value does not match the one in /etc/fstab.

5. So what I need to do here is to replace the UUID value with the correct one copied from Disks utility.

Finally, save the file and reboot.

In Howtos, News

HPLIP 3.19.5 Released with Ubuntu 19.04 64-bit Support

Last updated: May 17, 2019

HP Linux Imaging and Printing

HP developed open-source Linux drivers, HPLIP 3.19.5, was released with new printers and most recent Linux Distro’s support.

HPLIP 3.19.5 added support for 64-bit version of Ubuntu 19.04, Fedora 30, and Debian 9.8.

Also following new devices were supported in the release:

HP LaserJet Enterprise M507n, M507dn, M507x, M507dng
HP LaserJet Managed E50145dn, E50145x
HP LaserJet Enterprise MFP M528dn
HP LaserJet Enterprise MFP M528f
HP LaserJet Enterprise Flow MFP M528c
HP LaserJet Enterprise Flow MFP M528z
HP LaserJet Managed MFP E52645dn
HP LaserJet Managed Flow MFP E52645c
HP Color LaserJet Managed E75245dn
HP Color LaserJet Enterprise M751n, M751dn
HP PageWide XL 3900PS MFP
HP OfficeJet Pro 8030 and 8020 All-in-One Printer series
HP OfficeJet 8020 and 8010 All-in-One Printer Series

1. To install the software, download the package “hplip-3.19.5.run” from the link below:

HPLIP Download Page

2. Then make the downloaded file executable from its Properties dialog:

3. Finally open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T or search for “terminal” from app launcher. When it opens, run command to start installing it:

./Downloads/hplip-3.19.5.run

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

4. Then follow the terminal prompts, answer some questions to build and install HPLIP on your system. When everything is done, plug/re-plug your printers and enjoy!

NOTE: During hp-setup, automatic PPD selection path for some PS devices is wrong on Ubuntu 18.04. Work around is to select the PPD for the devices manually from “/usr/share/ppd/HP” path through browse option or reinstall cups.

Below are the commands to reinstall the cups filters.

sudo apt-get remove --purge cups

sudo apt-get install cups

sudo apt install --reinstall cups-filters.

In Howtos, News HP printer driver, HPLIP

Wine 4.0.1 Stable Released with Various Fixes (How to Install)

Last updated: May 16, 2019

Wine Stable

For those sticking to the Wine stable 4.0 series, the first bug-fix release Wine 4.0.1 was released a day ago with numerous bug-fixes.

Wine 4.0.1 brings a total of 44 bug-fixes, including fixes to Theatre of War 3, Windows Media Player, League of Legends, Warcraft 3, Visual Studio 2015, and more.

How to Install Wine 4.0.1 in Ubuntu:

The official apt repository has made the new release package for Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, Ubuntu 19.04, and their derivatives.

Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T or by searching ‘terminal’ from app launcher. When it opens, run following commands one by one to and the repository and install Wine:

1. Add the official wine apt repository for Ubuntu 19.04 via command:

sudo apt-add-repository 'deb https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/ubuntu/ disco main'

For other Ubuntu releases, replace disco in the code with

bionic for Ubuntu 18.04, Linux Mint 19.x
xenial for Ubuntu 16.04, Linux Mint 18.x
cosmic for Ubuntu 18.10.

2. Download and install the GPG keyring via command:

wget -nc https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/winehq.key && sudo apt-key add winehq.key

3. Finally refresh system package cache and install the latest Wine development package via commands:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install --install-recommends winehq-stable

Note that installing the stable release package will automatically remove the devel release package if any.

Uninstall:

To remove wine dev release, simply run command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove winehq-stable

And you can remove the repository via Software & Updates utility under Other Software tab.

In Howtos, News wine 4.0

SMPlayer 19.5.0 Released, How to Install it in Ubuntu

Last updated: May 15, 2019

SMPlayer media player 19.5.0 was released with a few fixes and enhancements. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, and Ubuntu 18.10.

SMPlayer 19.5.0 release highlights:

Fix for YouTube.
Fix YouTube live streams (works only with mpv).
New actions available for previous subtitle track, previous audio track, and previous video track.
New command line option -start.

How to Install SMPlayer 19.5.0 in Ubuntu:

The PPA repository has made the latest packages for all current Ubuntu releases excluding Ubuntu 19.04.

1. Search for and launch “terminal” from application menu. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:rvm/smplayer

Type your user password (no asterisks feedback while typing) when it asks and hit Enter.

Smplayer PPA

2. Then upgrade SMPlayer using Software Updater (or Update Manager):

upgrade smplayer

or run commands in terminal to install (or upgrade) the media player:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install smplayer smtube smplayer-themes

Uninstall:

To remove SMPlayer, run command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove smplayer smtube smplayer-*

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

In Howtos, News SMPlayer

Audacity 2.3.2 Released with Improvements / Fixes (How-to Install)

Last updated: May 14, 2019

Audacity audio editor and recorder released version 2.3.2 a day ago with some improvements and various bug-fixes. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, and higher.

Audacity 2.3.2 release highlights:

Include LAME mp3 encoder (though it’s there in PPA build for long time).
New ‘Select’ button in the track panel to select the whole track.
Audacity mod-script-pipe for driving Audacity from Python now comes with Audacity and can be enabled via preferences.
Type to Create a Label is now off by default.
A plug-in installer for Nyquist now provides a file browser for selecting ‘.NY’ files to install.
And over 20 bugs were fixed in the release.

How to Install Audacity 2.3.2 in Ubuntu:

The unofficial PPA has built the 2.3.2 packages for Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, Ubuntu 19.04, and their derivatives, e.g., Linux Mint 18.x and 19.x.

1. Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T keyboard shortcut or by searching for ‘terminal’ from application menu. When it opens, run command:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/audacity

Type user password (no asterisk feedback due to security reason) when it prompts and hit Enter to add the PPA.

2. If you have a previous version installed, you can upgrade Audacity via Software Updater after adding the PPA.

upgrade audacity

or run following commands one by one to check updates and install (or upgrade) audacity 2.3.2:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install audacity

Uninstall:

To remove the PPA repository, launch Software & Updates utility and navigate to ‘Other Software’ tab.

To remove Audacity audio software, either use system package manager or run command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove audacity audacity-data

In Howtos, News audacity, audio editor

[Quick Tip] How to Change Desktop Icons Size in Ubuntu 19.04

Last updated: May 13, 2019

In Ubuntu 19.04 Gnome 3.32, the desktop icons now are handled by a gnome shell extension. Though it causes many bugs, the size of the desktop icons is now configurable on the bright side.

1. Open Ubuntu Software, search for and install the Gnome desktop configuration tool gnome tweaks:

2. Launch Gnome Tweaks and navigate to Extensions in the left pane.

Click the gear button to bring up settings for “Desktop icons”. There you’ll be able to change the desktop icons size into 3 values:

Small (48 pixels)
Standard (64 pixels)
Large (96 pixels)

3. (Optional) If the default 3 option sizes do not meet your needs. You can change their default values by editing the extension prefs file.

Open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) from application menu, and run command to edit the extension file:

sudo gedit /usr/share/gnome-shell/extensions/desktop-icons@csoriano/prefs.js

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

When the file opens, scroll down and find out 3 lines look like:

const ICON_SIZE = { 'small': 48, 'standard': 64, 'large': 96 };
const ICON_WIDTH = { 'small': 120, 'standard': 128, 'large': 128 };
const ICON_HEIGHT = { 'small': 98, 'standard': 114, 'large': 149 };