Archives For jimingkui

The open-source non-linear video editor, Pitivi 1.0, is finally near after thirteen years of development.

Pitivi 1.0 release candidate “Ocean Big Chair”, marked as version 0.99, has many bug-fixes and performance improvements. There are quite a few important fixes thanks to the students who contributed in Google Summer of Code.

The development is focused on bug fixing until Pitivi 1.0. A flatpak repository has been created so Ubuntu users can easily install the latest release of Pitivi via following steps.

How to Install Pitivi via Flatpak in Ubuntu:

1. For Ubuntu 16.04, first open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run following commands to install flatpak daemon while it’s not available by default:

  • Add the PPA repository for flatpak:
    sudo add-apt-repository ppa:alexlarsson/flatpak

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

  • Then install flatpak for Ubuntu 16.04 and derivatives:
    sudo apt update
    
    sudo apt install --install-recommends flatpak

2. Then run command to install Pitivi flatpak package:

flatpak install --user http://flatpak.pitivi.org/pitivi.flatpakref

Once installed, launch the video editor either from your application launcher or via command:

flatpak run org.pitivi.Pitivi

In addition, to update the Pitivi flatpak when a new release is available, run command:

flatpak --user update org.pitivi.Pitivi

And to uninstall the flatpak, run following command in terminal:

flatpak --user uninstall org.pitivi.Pitivi stable

The FlightGear flight simulator has reached the 2017.3 release earlier today with a huge list of changes.

Though it’s not official announced at the moment, FlightGear 2017.3 features following changes according to the changelog:

  • Aircraft: detailed Carrier USS Harry Truman and escort group, with many animated elements, using experimental wave motion
  • Multiple flightplans fixed and is now possible to be controlled from Nasal.
  • Starting on carriers fixed
  • Enabling of display lists for random vegetation provides a massive performance boost for random vegetation.
  • More than 1000 screenshots now allowed
  • Support for AI wake turbulence added.
  • new Mediterranean tree textures, new desert shrub textures
  • See more in the changelog.

How to Install FlightGear in Ubuntu:

The official website refers to the PPA repository, which contains FlightGear packages for Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 17.04, though the 2017.3 release is not made into PPA at the moment of writing.

1. Add the PPA by opening terminal, either via Ctrl+Alt+T or by searching it from app launcher, and running command:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:saiarcot895/flightgear

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

2. Then you can upgrade FlightGear via Software Updater once it’s published in the PPA repository.

Or install it for the first time via commands:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install flightgear

Uninstall:

To uninstall FlightGear, simply run following command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove flightgear

And remove the PPA by launching “Software & Updates” utility and navigating to Other Software tab.

HPLIP 3.17.9 Released with New HP Printers Support

Last updated: September 19, 2017

HPLIP, an open-source HP developed Linux drivers for HP printers, has reached the 3.17.9 release hours ago with many new printers support and new Distro’s support.

New Linux Distro’s supported in HPLIP 3.17.9:

  • openSuse 42.3 (64-bit)
  • LinuxMint-18.2 (32-bit and 64-bit)
  • Fedora-26 (32-bit and 64-bit)
  • RHEL -7.3 (64-bit)

New printers supported in the release:

  • HP OfficeJet Pro 7720 Wide Format All-in-One
  • HP DeskJet AMP All-in-One Printer
  • HP OfficeJet 5220, 5230, 5232 All-in-One Printer
  • HP ENVY Photo 6220, 6230, 6232, 6234, 7120, 7130, 7134, 7155, 7164, 7800, 7820,7855 All-in-One Printer
  • HP ENVY 5020, 5032 All-in-One Printer
  • HP DeskJet Ink Advantage 3735 All-in-One
  • HP AMP 130 All-in-One Printer
  • HP OfficeJet Pro 7730 Wide Format All-in-One
  • HP DeskJet Ink Advantage 5075 All-in-One Printer
  • HP PageWide Enterprise Color 765dn
  • HP PageWide Managed Color E75160dn
  • HP PageWide Enterprise Color MFP 780dn
  • HP PageWide Enterprise Color Flow MFP 785f, 785zs, 785z+
  • HP PageWide Managed Color MFP E77650dn, E77650dns, E77660dn
  • HP PageWide Managed Color Flow MFP E77650z, E77650zs, E77650z+, E77660z, E77660zs, E77660z+
  • HP ENVY Photo 5030 All-in-One Printer

Download / Install HPLIP 3.17.9:

To install the software, download the package “hplip-3.17.9.run” from the link below:

Then open terminal via Ctrl+Alt+T or search for “terminal” from app launcher. When it opens, run command:

cd ~/Downloads/ && chmod +x hplip-3.17.9.run && ./hplip-3.17.9.run

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

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

Pithos 1.4, an open-source Pandora radio client, was released more than one week ago. While it’s official PPA does not contain the 1.4 binaries so far, here’s how to install it via Flatpak in Ubuntu 16.04 and higher.

1. Install Flatpak via PPA in Ubuntu 16.04.

The Flatpak daemon is not included in Ubuntu 16.04 by default. You need to install it via the PPA repository.

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

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:alexlarsson/flatpak

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

Then check updates and install flatpak via commands:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install --install-recommends flatpak

2. Then install Pithos Flatpak package via following commands:

flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
flatpak install flathub io.github.Pithos

The commands will install Gnome platform and then Pithos package.

3. Once installed, launch it either from your application launcher or by running command:

flatpak run io.github.Pithos

For future releases, you can update Pithos flatpak package via command:

flatpak --user update io.github.Pithos

Uninstall:

To remove the flatpak, simply run command in terminal:

flatpak uninstall io.github.Pithos

Suru is an open-source icon theme intends to revive the now-defunct Ubuntu Mobile icon set by bringing the Suru design to a desktop icon set.

The Suru icon theme is only a few weeks old and still heavily in-development, as such there are plenty of icons that are “missing” or incomplete.

You can first take a look at the Suru icon on Gnome Desktop with Dash-to-Dock extension:

How to Install the Suru Icon in Ubuntu:

First download the source from the link below:

Then extract and open source folder in terminal from its context menu:

When the terminal opens, run make install to install the icon theme for your single user usage.

To apply the icon set, run following command in terminal:

gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface icon-theme Suru

Uninstall:

To remove the icon theme, open the source folder in terminal (see the previous picture), and run command:

make uninstall

Krop, a simple graphical tool to crop the pages for PDF files, now can be easily installed via Snap in Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 16.04, and higher.

Krop is a simple graphical tool to crop the pages of PDF files. It is written in Python and relies on PyQT, python-poppler-qt4 and pyPDF for its functionality.

A unique feature of krop is its ability to automatically split pages into subpages to fit the limited screen size of devices such as eReaders. This is particularly useful, if your eReader does not support convenient scrolling.

Krop is available as Snap app in Ubuntu for amd64 and armhf architectures, so you can easily installed it by opening terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command:

sudo snap install krop

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

Once installed, launch the tool form your application launcher and enjoy!

Tip for Ubuntu 14.04, install snapd daemon first if you don’t have it:

sudo apt-get install snapd snapd-xdg-open

Uninstall:

To remove Krop snap package, simply run command in terminal:

sudo snap remove krop

Install MKVToolNix 15.0.0 Easily via Snap in Ubuntu

Last updated: September 14, 2017

MKVToolNix now is available as Snap app. You can now run the latest 15.0.0 in all current Ubuntu releases, including Ubuntu 14.04, while the official MKVToolNix apt repository only provides packages for Ubuntu 16.04 and higher.

Open terminal via Ctrl+Alt+T or by searching for “terminal” from your application launcher. When it opens, simply run command:

sudo snap install mkvtoolnix-jz

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

The snap includes almost all required dependency libraries. Once you installed it, launch the software from your application launcher and enjoy.

For Ubuntu 14.04, you may first install the snapd daemon while it’s not installed by default:

sudo apt-get install snapd snapd-xdg-open

The snap application can co-exist with the traditional packages. If you installed both version of MKVToolNix, and can’t find out which is the snap app from your application launcher, launch the tools via command in terminal:

/snap/bin/mkvtoolnix-jz.gui

For mkv info, merge, extract, etc., see the picture:

Uninstall MKVToolNix snap:

To remove the snap package of MKVToolNix, run following command in terminal:

sudo snap remove mkvtoolnix-jz

Blender 2.79 was finally released a day ago after 2 release candidates. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 17.04, and derivatives.

Blender 2.79 release highlights:

  • OpenCL support has improved and should be closer to parity with Blender’s CUDA capabilities.
  • 10~20% faster performance for modern x86_64 CPUs with AVX2
  • automatic DPI support for determining HiDPI displays
  • an overhaul to Blender’s video output support
  • new denoiser, PBR shader, shadow catcher, filmic color management
  • and over 700 bug-fixes.

How to Install Blender 2.79 in Ubuntu:

The official Blender tarball (non-install) for Linux is available for download at:

Install Blender in Ubuntu via Snap:

Blender 2.79 is also available as snap package, which is large in file, but bundles almost all required libraries. Available for Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 16.04, and higher.

1. For Ubuntu 14.04 only, install snapd daemon if you don’t have it:

sudo apt-get install snapd xdg-open-snapd

2. If you have installed the snap package “blender-tpaw” (2.78c so far), first remove it via:

sudo snap remove blender-tpaw

3. Finally run command to install blender 2.79 snap maintained by another guy:

sudo snap install blender --classic

Install Blender 2.79 via PPA in Ubuntu:

Thomas Schiex’s PPA contains the Blender packages for Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 17.04.

NOTE that Blender 2.79 is not ready in the PPA at the moment of writing. Be patient, it will be there in a few days.

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:thomas-schiex/blender

2. Then upgrade Blender if you have a previous installed via Software Updater:

or run commands to check updates and install blender package:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install blender

How to Remove:

To remove Blender packages either use your system package manager or run commands:

To remove Blender snap app, run command:

sudo snap remove blender

To remove Blender installed from PPA, run command:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove blender

And to remove the PPA repository, launch “Software & Updates” utility and navigate to Other Software tab.

Gradio, an open-source GTK+ internet radio application, has reached the 6.0 release.

Now it’s available as snap app while the official PPA can no longer build it for Ubuntu 16.04 due to the old system GTK+3 library.

Gradio 6.0 release highlights:

  • Group your radio stations into collections
  • New sorting options.
  • export and import station library.
  • create and edit stations.
  • New details sidebar, selection system.
  • Gradio 6.0 requires GTK 3.22 or higher
  • and many more.

How to Install Gradio via Snap in Ubuntu:

Open terminal via Ctrl+Alt+T or by searching for “terminal” from app launcher. When it opens, do following steps:

1. For Ubuntu 14.04 only, you need to first install snapd daemon if you don’t have it:

sudo apt-get install snapd

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

2. Install Gradio snap app via command:

sudo snap install gradio

3. Install Gnome environment via commands:

sudo snap install gnome-3-24

sudo snap connect gradio:gnome-3-24-platform gnome-3-24:gnome-3-24-platform

Finally launch Gradio desktop radio app from your application launcher and enjoy!

How to Remove:

To remove the snap version of Gradio, simply run following command in terminal:

sudo snap remove gradio

Pithos, an open-source Pandora radio client, has reached the 1.4.0 release with new plugins support, performance improvements and more.

Pithos is a native Pandora Radio client for Linux. It’s much more lightweight than the Pandora.com web client, and integrates with desktop features such as media keys, notifications, and the sound menu.

Pithos 1.4.0 release highlights:

  • Add new plugin that inhibits screensaver/suspend during playback
  • Add new plugin adding a 10-band equalizer
  • Add new plugin that automatically normalizes volume between tracks
  • Add help entry (F1) that opens the wiki
  • Replace build system with Meson
  • Automatically detect if the user has Pandora One
  • Improve saving and restoring window position
  • Improve plugin loading performance and error reporting
  • Notification Icon: Improve detecting if a tray is available
  • Notification Icon: Add option to use symbolic icon

How to Install Pithos in Ubuntu:

The software has an official Ubuntu PPA that contains Pithos deb packages for Ubuntu 16.04 and Ubuntu 17.04.

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:pithos/ppa

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

2. Then check updates and install the Pandora radio client via command:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install --install-recommends pithos

Note that at the moment of writing, the PPA contains the last 1.3.1 release. It needs time for the developer building the software packages.

Uninstall Pithos:

To remove Pithos, run following command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove pithos

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

In addition, Pithos is also available as Gnome Platpak, see the wiki.