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Screenshot & Annotation Tool ‘HotShots’ 2.2.0 Released.

Last updated: September 4, 2014

HotShots, a screenshot and annotation tool, now is at version 2.2.0. PPA has updated for Ubuntu 14.10, Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 12.04 and derivatives.

Hotshots is a screenshot tool with some editing features. It is particularly suitable for writing documentation (as used in the following chapters) but you can use it to highlight some details on a map image or what ever you want.

Besides basic screen capturing and editing features, HotShots allows to send image directly to printer or to web services, such as FTP, imgur.com, imageshack.us, canardpc.com, freeimagehosting.net.

HotShots Main window and Unity indicator

HotShots Main window and Unity indicator

HotShots Editor

HotShots is a good and lightweight alternative to Shutter except:

  • Undo/Redo buttons are grayed out.
  • Does not support Dropbox.

Install HotShots 2.2.0:

Press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open the terminal. When it opens, paste the commands below and run one by one:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/apps

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install hotshots

If you don’t want to add the PPA, grab the .deb package directly from Launchpad Page.

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Firefox 32 Released, How to Upgrade it in Ubuntu 14.04 & 12.04

Last updated: September 3, 2014

Mozilla Firefox has just released version 32.0 with improved performances and a few fixes. Canonical has made this release into the updates & security repositories for Ubuntu 14.04 and Ubuntu 12.04.

The latest Firefox 32 brings was released on September 2, with faster HTTP caching and public key pinning support enabled.

Below are the detailed changes (via the official release note):

  • New HTTP cache provides improved performance including crash recovery
  • Integration of generational garbage collection
  • Public key pinning support enabled
  • Display the number of found items in the find toolbar
  • Easier back, forward, reload, and bookmarking through the context menu
  • View historical use information for logins stored in password manager
  • Lower Sorbian [dsb] locale added
  • Removed and turned off trust bit for some 1024-bit root certificates
  • Performance improvements to Password Manager and Add-on Manager
  • drawFocusIfNeeded enabled by default
  • CSS position:sticky enabled by default
  • mix-blend-mode enabled by default
  • Vibration API updated to latest W3C spec
  • box-decoration-break enabled by default
  • ECMAScript 6 built-in method Array#copyWithin implemented
  • New Array built-in: Array.from()
  • navigator.languages property and languagechange event implemented
  • CSS box-decoration-break replaces -moz-background-inline-policy
  • HiDPI support in Developer Tools UI
  • Inspector button moved to the top left
  • Hidden nodes displayed differently in the markup-view
  • New Web Audio Editor
  • Code completion and inline documentation added to Scratchpad
  • Mac OS X: fixed cmd-L does not open a new window when no window is available
  • Fixed text Rendering Issues on Windows 7 with Platform Update KB2670838 (MSIE 10 Prerequisite) or on Windows 8.1
  • Various security fixes

Upgrade to Firefox 32 in Ubuntu:

For Ubuntu, open Software Updater (or Update Manager for Ubuntu 12.04) from Unity dash. After checking for updates, you’ll see the latest Firefox available in the list.

You can also upgrade Firefox in Ubuntu and its derivatives using Synaptic Package Manager (available in Software Center) after clicked the Reload button.

That’s it. Enjoy!

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Get Back Normal Title Bars For Some Gnome Apps in Ubuntu 14.04

Last updated: September 2, 2014

In Ubuntu 14.04 and Ubuntu 14.10, some Gnome applications use client-side decorations which don’t work properly in the default Unity Desktop.

The applications with client-side decorations look broken in Unity and they are unresizable. Here are some examples:

Gnome Clock in Ubuntu 14.04

The Latest gthumb 3.3.2 (gthumb from Ubuntu repositories is old and does not use CSD)

gtk3-nocsd, a hack by one of the LXDE founders, is a small module used to disable the client side decoration of gtk+ 3. It works on most, but not all CSD applications.

After disabled client side decoration, above applications will look like:

Gnome Clock with CSD disabled (Picture was taken in Gnome-Shell)

gthumb with CSD disabled

How to Install & Use gtk3-nocsd

This module has been made into Webupd8 PPA, available for Ubuntu 14.10 and Ubuntu 14.04.

Press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open the terminal. When it opens, paste the commands below and run one by one:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:nilarimogard/webupd8

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install gtk3-nocsd

To disable client side decoration, for gnome clock as example:

First run command to edit the application shortcut file, .desktop file under /usr/share/applications or .local/share/applications.

gksudo gedit /usr/share/applications/gnome-clocks.desktop

When the file opens, add env LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib/gtk3-nocsd/gtk3-nocsd.so to the value of Exec as a parameter, so it looks like:

Save the file and done. Note that gtk3-nocsd does not work for gnome-tweak-tool, gnome-music, etc.

via: webupd8

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Batch Image Converter XnConvert Updates With 64-bit Linux Fixes

Last updated: September 1, 2014

XnConvert, an image batch converter developed by XnSoft, has released the new version 1.65 that finally fixed the issues relating to the 64-bit Linux.

XnConvert is a powerful and free cross-platform batch image processor, allowing you to combine over 80 actions. Compatible with 500 formats including RAW, WebP, OpenEXR, and many others. It uses the batch processing module of XnViewMP.

The latest XnConvert 1.6.5 was released a few days ago with many bugs fixed. For 64-bit Linux users, the non-installed version (pre-compiled binary) no longer needs lib32z1, lib32ncurses5, lib32bz2-1.0, and libqtwebkit4: i386 libraries.

Download & Install XnConvert:

For Ubuntu and derivatives, download and install (double-click to open with Software Center) the .deb package from the links below:

32-bit Deb | 64-bit Deb

You may check your OS type, 32-bit or 64-bit, by going to System Settings -> Details.

You can also (for all Linux users) download the non-installed version (Just run the executable from the extracted folder).

32-bit TGZ | 64-bit TGZ

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How to Remove The Login Sound in Ubuntu 14.04

Last updated: August 31, 2014

This short tutorial is going to show you how to disable / remove the login drumbeat sound in Ubuntu 14.04 LTS.

The easiest way to get rid of this annoying sound is mute the volume via the top-right indicator icon when you’re at the login screen. It won’t affect the system volume after you logged in.

If don’t want to log out right away, you can toggle the login sound via a graphical tool called Ubuntu Tweak.

Download the Ubuntu Tweak (.deb package) from the link below and double-click to open it with Ubuntu Software Center and finally install it.

https://launchpad.net/ubuntu-tweak/+download

Once installed, open Ubuntu Tweak and go to Tweaks -> Login Settings. You’ll see the switch to turn on/off ‘Play login sound’. (click the Unlock button before doing any changes)

In Howtos
 

How to Edit Right-Click Menu Of Unity Launcher Icons in Ubuntu 14.04

Last updated: August 30, 2014

Quicklist, right-click context menu of application shortcuts in left panel of Ubuntu Unity, allows to quick access common tasks for those applications.

This tutorial will show you how to edit the quicklist in Ubuntu 14.04 with Ubuntu Tweak, a popular Ubuntu configuration tool.

There will be two simple examples: add your folder to Files’ (Home icon) context menu, add a bookmark to the righ-click menu of Google Chrome icon.

1. Install Ubuntu Tweak

Download the Deb package from the link below and click the package to open it with Ubuntu Software Center and finally click the install button to install Ubuntu Tweak in your system.

https://launchpad.net/ubuntu-tweak/+download

You can also install it from the developer’s PPA by running below commands one by one in terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T):

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:tualatrix/ppa

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install ubuntu-tweak

Once installed, open Ubuntu Tweak and navigate to Admins tab, you’ll see an option called QuickLists Editor.

NOTE that an application need to be locked to launcher before it can be edited via QuickLists Editor.

2. Add A Folder In The Quicklist of Home Folder

Go into QuickLists Editor in Ubuntu Tweak, and do:

  1. Choose Files in the left.
  2. Click the plus icon to add a new entry.
  3. Type in name and command. nautilus Games will open the Games folder in root of my user home.
  4. Click the save button.

Result (may need a restart to take place):

3. Quick Access bookmarks in Context Menu of Google Chrome icon:

Also in Quicklists Editor of Ubuntu Tweak, do:

  1. Select Google Chrome in the left
  2. Click the plus icon to add an entry
  3. Type in name and command. google-chrome https://ubuntuhandbook.org will open my blog in new tab.
  4. Click the save button.

Result (may need a restart to take place):

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BitTorrent Sync 1.4 Released, How to Install it in Ubuntu

Last updated: August 29, 2014

BitTorrent Sync, a p2p file syncing service, now has been updated to version 1.4 with new simplified UI and other new features.

BitTorrent Sync is a simple tool that applies p2p protocol for direct live folder sync with maximum security, network speed and storage capacity. It has native versions for Mac, Windows and Linux, as well as native NAS integration.

New in the latest 1.4:

  • New simplified UI
    UI was fully revised and now looks similar on all platforms. Also, UI was simplified significantly to make Sync use faster, convenient, and easy to use.
  • HTTPS links support
    HTTPS links are generated by Sync and shared with a remote peer to exchange Keys securely, using X.509 certificates
  • Proxy server support added
    Direct connection between peers is possible as long as one of the two peers is not behind a proxy
  • Finder / Explorer integration added
    Right-clicking on the folder in Explorer / Finder exposes “Share with BitTorrent Sync” item, which ads the folder to Sync and automatically generates a Key (Secret).
  • Moved folder support
    Sync tracks if synced folders move and automatically adjusts paths to keep the folder synced.
  • Sync performance optimization
    Improves data transfer speed, CPU consumption, peer discovery.
  • Numerous bug fixes reported by users in 1.3

Install BitTorrent Sync in Ubuntu:

The official packages are available for download at the link below, check your OS type (32-bit or 64-bit), download the appropriate package under the Linux section, and finally run the executable from the extracted folder.

Finally, you can access the web client in your Web Browser by visiting “http://localhost:8888/gui/”

BitTorrent Sync Desktop App with Indicator Applet:

If you want an easy way to deploy BitTorrent Sync on Ubuntu, there’s a desktop GUI with Unity indicator created by community. At the moment of writing this tutorial, it is at version 1.3.1. The latest 1.4 should be available soon.

THE SOFTWARE AND THE PACKAGES BELOW ARE UNOFFICIAL AND NOT THE WORK OF BITTORRENT® INC.

via

To install this unofficial ready to use server and desktop packages, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open the terminal, when it opens paste the commands below and run one by one:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:tuxpoldo/btsync

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install btsync-gui

If you want to install the gtk version without the indicator, run below instead:

sudo apt-get install btsync-gui-gtk

Above commands work for Ubuntu 14.10, Ubuntu 14.04, and Ubuntu 12.04. Once you installed it, open the gui from Unity Dash and enjoy!

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GIMP 2.8.14 Fixed Broken Library Versioning in The Previous Release

Last updated: August 28, 2014

GIMP team just announced the release 2.8.14 the day after the previous release 2.8.12 with the broken library versioning fixed.

Yesterday’s 2.8.12 release had broken library versioning, so we had to roll out GIMP 2.8.14 today. The only change is the fixed libtool versioning. Please do not distribute any binaries of yesterday’s broken 2.8.12 release, and get GIMP 2.8.14 using the torrent: http://download.gimp.org/pub/gimp/v2.8/gimp-2.8.14.tar.bz2.torrent

via:gimp.org

Install / Upgrade to GIMP 2.8.14:

The GIMP PPA has been updated with the latest packages for Ubuntu 14.10, Ubuntu 14.04, and Ubuntu 12.04.

Press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open the terminal. When it opens, run the command below to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:otto-kesselgulasch/gimp

After that, receive GIMP updates via Software Updater or run the commands below instead:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install gimp
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Show / Hide Desktop Shortcuts in Ubuntu via Context Menu

Last updated: September 29, 2014

Want an option in your desktop’s context menu (right-click menu) that hides or un-hides all your desktop shortcuts in Ubuntu Unity or Gnome?

Ramvignesh, the guy sent me two simple scripts with this great idea. If you are interested, below will show you how to do it step by step.

1. How to Create Desktop Shortcuts in Ubuntu 14.04

Due to bug, you can’t drag and drop an application shortcut icon from Unity Dash result to desktop in Ubuntu 14.04 LTS.

But it’s still easy to create a desktop shortcut, all you need to do is:

  1. Open your file browser, navigate to Computer (from left sidebar)-> user -> share -> applications.
  2. Right click on a shortcut icon and select ‘Copy’
  3. Right-click on blank area of your desktop and select ‘Paste’

Finally you’re able to click the desktop shortcut to launch the application without worrying about user permission issue.

2. Create the scripts to show/hide desktop shortcuts

Thanks to Ramvignesh for the simple scripts.

  • Create a new folder called bin in user’s Home folder.
  • Go into bin folder and create 2 empty documents: show-desktop-shortcuts, hide-desktop-shortcuts
  • Edit 2 documents one by one and paste below contents into them. IMPORTANT: Replace handbook in red with your user name.
    • for show-desktop-shortcuts file: 
      #!/bin/bash
#
cd /home/handbook/Desktop
for f in .* ; do 
new=`echo "$f" | cut -c 2-`
mv "$f" "$new"
done
    • for hide-desktop-shortcuts file: 
      #!/bin/bash
#
cd /home/handbook/Desktop
for f in * ; do
mv "$f" ".${f#.}"
done

    • Finally make the 2 scripts executable by going to their context menu (right-click menu) -> Properties -> Permissions tab -> check the box where it says 'Allow executing file as program'.

    3. Add The 2 Scripts As Options Into Desktop's Context Menu

    Click the button below to bring up Ubuntu Software Center and install nautilus-actions, a graphical tool for configuring Nautilus' context menu.

    Now open nautilus-actions from Launcher and do:

    1. Create 2 new actions in Items list, name them to Show Desktop Shortcuts & Hide Desktop Shortcuts
    2. Under Action tab of both items, check the box says "Display item in location context menu"
    3. Type a name in Context label

    4. Under Command tab of both items, type in (browser) path to the two scripts in Path box.
    5. (Optional) Go the menu Edit -> Preferences, in first tab un-check the two boxes under Nautilus menu layout.

    Finally, your desktop's context menu will look like below after reboot.

    Enjoy!

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    How to Install / Upgrade to GIMP 2.8.12 in Ubuntu 14.04

    Last updated: August 26, 2014

    The popular GIMP image editor has been updated to version 2.8.12 with a lot of bug fixes. Here is how to install or upgrade it in Ubuntu 14.10, Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 12.04 and their derivatives.

    GIMP, GNU Image Manipulation Program, is a raster graphics editor[5] used for image retouching and editing, free-form drawing, resizing, cropping, photo-montages, converting between different image formats, and more specialized tasks.

    Changes in GIMP 2.8.12:

    Core:

    • OSX: Fix migration code for old GIMP directories
    • Fix brush sizes when used from plug-ins
    • Windows: Allow to Explorer-open files with UTF-8 characters in the filename
    • Make XCF loading more robust against broken files

    GUI:

    • Make sure the widget direction matches the GUI language
    • Remove the option to disable the warning when closing a modified image
    • Fix canvas overlay widgets (like the text options) for tablets
    • Make DND work between images in one dockable

    Libgimp:

    • Make gimp_image_get_name() return the string used for the image title

    Plug-ins:

    • Make script-fu-server more secure by listening to 127.0.0.1 by default and add a warning about changing that IP. This breaks the procedure’s API, but for security reasons.
    • Bring back proper script-fu translations

    General:

    • Massively clean up and fix the OSX build and bundle
    • Add Jenkins tutorial
    • Documentation updates
    • Bug fixes
    • Translation updates

    Install / Upgrade GIMP in Ubuntu:

    GIMP packages are available in PPA for all current support Ubuntu releases, Ubuntu 14.10, Ubuntu 14.04, and Uubntu 12.04.

    As the PPA description says, you can always install or upgrade to the latest GIMP in Ubuntu by running below commands one by one in terminal (press Ctrl+Alt+T to open terminal):

    sudo add-apt-repository ppa:otto-kesselgulasch/gimp

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install gimp

    After you added the PPA, you can receive updates using Software Updater

    That’s it. Enjoy!

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