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Sigil Epub Editor Now Is Based on Qt 5.4.0+

Last updated: February 4, 2015

Sigil EPUB editor

Sigil, a free and open-source EPUB e-books editor, gets a big update recently by releasing version 0.8.3 and 0.8.4 one day after.

One of the big changes is that now Qt 5.4.0 is the minimum required version for building Sigil. Since Qt 5.4.0 fixed the macdeployqt application and even integrated code signing, Mac OS X (>= 10.9.5) users no longer need to disable gatekeeper.

But for Ubuntu, this may not be good news since Ubuntu repositories still provide Qt 5.2 for 14.04 and Qt 5.3 for 14.10 (and 15.04). Users need to manually download & install Qt 5.4.0+ and compile Sigil from the source tarball.

Sigil release notes, binary packages for Windows & Mac, and source code are available at github.com.

For Ubuntu user, besides building the latest Sigil 0.8.4 source code as well as Qt 5.4.0 manually, the old 0.8.2 release can be easily installed from a third-party PPA (run below commands one by one or grab the .deb from link page).

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:i2p.packages/i2p

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install sigil

Mozilla Firefox has reached the 35 release which brings improved “Hello” video chat tool, built-in support for H.264 on OS X via native APIs, improved high quality image resizing performance, support for the CSS Font Loading API, updated PDF.js, and numerous other changes.

Here’s the full list of changes (via the official release note):

  • Firefox Hello with new rooms-based conversations model
  • New search UI improved and enabled for more locales
  • Access the Firefox Marketplace from the Tools menu and optional toolbar button
  • Built-in support for H264 (MP4) on Mac OS X Snow Leopard (10.6) and newer through native APIs
  • Use tiled rendering on OS X
  • Improved high quality image resizing performance
  • Improved handling of dynamic styling changes to increase responsiveness
  • Implemented HTTP Public Key Pinning Extension (for enhanced authentication of encrypted connections)
  • Added support for the CSS Font Loading API
  • Resource Timing API implemented
  • CSS filters enabled by default
  • Changed JavaScript ‘let’ semantics to match the ES6 specification
  • Support for inspecting ::before and ::after pseudo elements
  • Computed view: Nodes matching the hovered selector are now highlighted
  • Network Monitor: New request/response headers view (more info)
  • Added support for the EXT_blend_minmax WebGL extension
  • Show DOM Properties context menu item in inspector
  • Reduced resource usage for scaled images
  • PDF.js updated to version 1.0.907
  • Non-HTTP(S) XHR now returns correct status code
  • Various security fixes

Upgrade Firefox in Ubuntu:

For Ubuntu 12.04, Ubuntu 14.04, and Ubuntu 14.10, Firefox 35 will be soon made into the official Ubuntu repositories, available for upgrade through the Software Updater:

Linux Mint 17.1 KDE Available For Download

Last updated: January 9, 2015

The Mint Team finally announced the KDE release of Linux Mint 17.1 Rebecca. The XFCE release should follow shortly in the coming days.

Linux Mint 17.1 is Long-Term Support release features KDE 4.14, MDM 1.8, a Linux kernel 3.13 and an Ubuntu 14.04 package base.

  • KDE wallet is fully integrated with Linux Mint.
  • Redesigned Update Manager
  • Redesigned Login Window Preferences
  • System, artwork, and other improvements.

Upgrade to Linux Mint 17.1 KDE:

For Linux Mint 17.1 RC users, launch Update Manager and install any Level 1 update available.
For Linux Mint 17 users, please wait for a few days while the Mint Team release a new version of the Update Manager to you.

Download Linux Mint 17.1:

The Linux Mint 17.1 KDE as well as other editions are available for download at the official download page:

And the release note is here.

The final release of Deepin 2014.2, an Ubuntu 14.04 based Linux Distro, is out today!

Deepin is a Chinese Linux Distro that officially supports over 20 languages, it uses its own Deepin Desktop Environment developed based on HTML5 technology, with Deepin Music, Deepin Movie, Deepin Store and other Deepin system software. In addition, deepin comes with media codecs, Adobe Flash Player, Google Chrome, and other software pre-installed under license by the relevant manufacturers.

A great new feature in this release is that a deepin special version of CrossOver is pre-installed, allows to run Windows applications with CrossOver for free.

For Chinese users, the 2014.2 release brings QQ6.7, 360 security guard for Linux, and the latest versions of WPS, Google Chrome, and more.

System Requirements:

  • minimum system requirements: Intel Pentium IV 2.0GHz CPU, 1GB RAM, 10GB Hard Drive.
  • recommended requirements: Intel Core 2 2.0Ghz CPU, 2GB RAM, 20 GB Hard Drive.

NOTE: It’s not recommended to run Deepin OS as a guest OS since Compiz Window Manager has poor performance in virtual machines.

Download Deepin Linux:

Deepin 2014.2 32-bit and 64-bit ISOs are available for download in SourceForge

Install:

See the Youtube Video:

The first alpha of the next Ubuntu 15.04 Vivid Vervet has been released today. It features images for Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Ubuntu GNOME, UbuntuKylin and the Ubuntu Cloud images.

NOTE Pre-releases of the Vivid Vervet are *not* encouraged for anyone needing a stable system or anyone who is not comfortable running into occasional, even frequent breakage. They are, however, recommended for Ubuntu flavor developers and those who want to help in testing, reporting and fixing bugs as we work towards getting this release ready.

Alpha 1 includes a number of software updates that are ready for wider testing. This is quite an early set of images, so you should expect some bugs.

  • Kubuntu 15.04: The Plasma 5 is now the default.
  • Ubuntu Gnome 15.04:
    • Gnome-shell is still 3.12 for now (hopefully by Alpha 2, we shall have 3.14).
    • Few applications have been updated to 3.14 (hopefully by Alpha 2, most of the applications will be 3.14).
    • gnome-terminal has transparency again.
    • Window control Button layouts have been reverted to upstream default (only close); use gnome-tweak-tool if you want to get back the other controls.

Download Ubuntu 15.04 Flavors:

  • Kubuntu 15.04: cdimage.ubuntu.com/kubuntu/releases/vivid/
  • Lubunuu 15.04: cdimage.ubuntu.com/lubuntu/releases/vivid/
  • Ubuntu Gnome 15.04: cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntu-gnome/releases/vivid/
  • UbuntuKylin 15.04: cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntukylin/releases/vivid/
  • Ubuntu Cloud 15.04: cloud-images.ubuntu.com/releases/vivid/

via: fridge.ubuntu.com

Linux Mint Team finally announced the release of 17.1 “Rebecca” Cinnamon and MATE editions, which is a long term support release based on Ubuntu 14.04 that will be supported until 2019.

According to the release note, the Linux Mint 17.1 “Rebecca” comes with updated software and brings refinements and many new features to make your desktop even more comfortable to use.

Linux Mint 17.1 features:

  • Cinnamon 2.4 / MATE 1.8
  • MDM 1.8
  • Out of the box support for Compiz (MATE edition)
  • Linux kernel 3.13
  • Ubuntu 14.04 package base
  • Update Manager now groups packages together according to their source package.
  • Redesigned UI of Language Settings.
  • Redesigned Login Window Preferences.
  • System, Artwork, and Other Improvements.

Both the Linux Mint 17 and 17.1 RC can upgrade to the new release through Updater Manager. For the 17.1 RC release just install any level 1 update you haven’t installed already.

ISO download link: www.linuxmint.com/download.php
Release notes: blog.linuxmint.com/

The Midori Browser 0.5.9 “Ballet” was released recently with various important bug fixes. The developer announced in the blog post:

Seven months of sweat and tears… oh well, not quite so dramatic. In any event Midori 0.5.9 is out!

We’re already scheming… I mean planning for the next cycle. We want to go WebKit2 and GTK+3 only now and do away with the fourfold compatibility setup. Anyone who finds this thrilling is more than welcome to join in; the fun is going to start soon.

According to the changelog, the 0.5.9 release brings below changes:

  • Fix the problem that Downloads do not work with WebKit2
  • about:new in urlbar for new tabs has been fixed.
  • Fix visibility of SpeedDial, Toolbar, Bookmarkbar context menu items
  • Fix crash right-clicking forms on local pages
  • Fix crash when activating the edit menu
  • Fix “open all in tabs” for bookmarks
  • Fix crash when saving with associated resources
  • Fixes tab history undo
  • Fix a few simple leaks
  • Show search menu upon left icon click in location bar
  • Connect bookmarks-db singleton correctly to fix menus
  • Make middle clicking reload button duplicate the current tab, similar to other browsers

For the detailed changes, read the ChangeLog file from the Source Code page.

How to Install / Upgrade to Midori 0.5.9:

The 0.5.9 release is not yet now available in the official PPA. If you really want to install or upgrade to the new release, use the Development PPA. Ubuntu 14.10 and Ubuntu 14.04 are supported so far.

1. Press Ctrl+Alt+T to open terminal. When it opens, run commands below to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository -y ppa:midori/ppa && sudo apt-get update

2. After added the PPA, install the package via below command:

To install the GTK+2 version:

sudo apt-get install midori

To install the GTK+3 version:

sudo apt-get install midori-gtk3

3. (Optional) To remove the PPA as well as midori:

sudo add-apt-repository -r ppa:midori/ppa

sudo apt-get remove midori

Ubuntu 14.10 And Its Flavors Officially Released

Last updated: October 24, 2014

Ubuntu 14.10 Utopic Unicorn and its flavors including the newest Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Ubuntu Gnome, Xubuntu, Ubuntu Kylin, and Ubuntu Studio were officially released today.

According to the release note, there have been updates to many core packages, including a new 3.16-based kernel, a new AppArmor with fine-grained socket control, and more.

Ubuntu Desktop has seen incremental improvements, with newer versions of GTK and Qt, updates to major packages like Firefox and LibreOffice, and improvements to Unity, including improved High-DPI display support.

Ubuntu Server 14.10 includes the Juno release of OpenStack, alongside deployment and management tools that save devops teams time when deploying distributed applications – whether on private clouds, public clouds, x86 or ARM servers, or on developer laptops. Several key server technologies, from MAAS to Ceph, have been updated to new upstream versions with a variety of new features.

Kubuntu 14.10:

Kubuntu 14.10 comes in two flavours, the stable Plasma 4 running the desktop we know from previous releases, and a tech preview of the next generation Plasma 5 for early adopters.

See: www.kubuntu.org/news/kubuntu-14.10.

Lubuntu 14.10:

Lubuntu 14.10 mainly features:

  • General bug fix release as we prepare for LXQt.
  • Many LXDE components have been updated with bug fix releases.
  • An update of the artwork (more icons, theme update, more compatibilities …).

See: wiki.ubuntu.com/UtopicUnicorn/ReleaseNotes/Lubuntu

Xubuntu 14.10:

Xubuntu 14.10 features new Xfce Power Manager plugin in panel and ittems in the newly themed alt-tab dialog can now be clicked with the mouse.

See: wiki.ubuntu.com/UtopicUnicorn/ReleaseNotes/Xubuntu.

Other Flavors:

Ubuntu Gnome 14.10: wiki.ubuntu.com/UtopicUnicorn/ReleaseNotes/UbuntuGNOME

UbuntuKylin 14.10: wiki.ubuntu.com/UtopicUnicorn/ReleaseNotes/UbuntuKylin

UbuntuStudio 14.10: wiki.ubuntu.com/UtopicUnicorn/ReleaseNotes/UbuntuStudio

LXQt 0.8.0 Released with Full Qt 5 Compatibility

Last updated: October 20, 2014

LXQt, the next generation of LXDE, has just reached release 0.8.0, which brings full Qt 5 compatibility, two beautiful new themes, and a lot of new features.

LXQt is the Qt port and the upcoming version of LXDE, the Lightweight Desktop Environment. It is the product of the merge between the LXDE-Qt and the Razor-qt projects.

According to the release note, LXQt 0.8.0 brings below changes:

  • Full Qt 5 support. Run cmake with -DUSE_QT5 to enable it.
  • New component: lxqt-admin. This brings an optional set of basic admin tools such as configuration for date & time as well as users and groups.
  • New theme: Plasma Next. Based on KDE Plasma Next theme.
  • New theme: Dark Alpha, by Inti Alonso.
  • Much improved support for multiple displays.
  • Support for RGBA transparency if compositing is available.
  • lxqt-config-randr has been removed. It has been replaced by lxqt-config-monitor.
  • pcmanfm-qt: Support single-click to activate items
  • pcmanfm-qt: Support drag & drop on the desktop
  • pcmanfm-qt: Implement integration with the ark archive manager
  • pcmanfm-qt: Improve readability in icon view
  • lxqt-panel: Support reordering of taskbar buttons
  • lxqt-panel: Support “urgency” hint
  • lxqt-panel: Add support for OSS in volume control, if available
  • lxqt-powermanagement: Improved compatibility with systemd/logind
  • Integrate with compton if available (disabled by default)
  • Add support for setting a default UI font
  • Lots of performances improvements.
  • Lots and lots of bugfixes.
How to install LXQt in Ubuntu:

A daily build PPA is available in ppa:lubuntu-dev/lubuntu-daily, so far it supports Ubuntu 14.10, Ubuntu 14.04 and derivatives.

Press Ctrl+Alt+T to open terminal and run below commands one by one to add the PPA and install LXQt session:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:lubuntu-dev/lubuntu-daily

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get upgrade

sudo apt-get install lxqt-metapackage lxqt-session lxsession

Once installed, log out or restart. When you’re at the Unity Greeter choose log in with a LXQt session.

(Optional) To remove this Desktop Environment, run below command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove lxqt-metapackage lxqt-session && sudo apt-get autoremove

Ubuntu 14.10 Utopic Unicorn Beta 2 and its official flavors are now available for download.

This Beta features images for Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Ubuntu Gnome, UbuntuKylin, Ubuntu Studio, Xubuntu, and Ubuntu Cloud.

The Ubuntu team is pleased to announce the final beta release of Ubuntu 14.10 Desktop, Server, Cloud, and Core products.

Codenamed “Utopic Unicorn”, 14.10 continues Ubuntu’s proud tradition of integrating the latest and greatest open source technologies into a high-quality, easy-to-use Linux distribution. The team has been hard at work through this cycle, introducing new features and fixing bugs.

This beta release includes images from not only the Ubuntu Desktop, Server, Cloud, and Core products, but also the Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Ubuntu GNOME, Ubuntu Kylin, Ubuntu Studio and Xubuntu flavours.

The beta images are known to be reasonably free of showstopper CD build or installer bugs, while representing a very recent snapshot of 14.10 that should be representative of the features intended to ship with the final release expected on October 23rd, 2014.

see the official release note.

According to Ubuntu 14.10’s release schedule, there will be:

  • Kernel Freeze on October 9th
  • Final Freeze and Release Candidate on October 16th
  • Final Release of Ubuntu 14.10 (Stable) on October 23rd

What to expect in the Ubuntu 14.10 Final:

  • Both Unity 8 (Mir) and Unity 7 (X.org) available.
  • Ubuntu 14.10 will bring better 3G mobile modems.
  • Kubuntu 14.10 will be using KDE Plasma 5.

Download Ubuntu 14.10 Beta 2:

For Unity: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/releases/14.10/
For Kubuntu: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/kubuntu/releases/14.10/
For Lubuntu: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/lubuntu/releases/14.10/
For Ubuntu Gnome: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntu-gnome/releases/14.10/
For UbuntuKylin: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntukylin/releases/14.10/
For UbuntuStudio: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntustudio/releases/14.10/
For Xubuntu: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/xubuntu/releases/14.10/
For Ubuntu Cloud: http://cloud-images.ubuntu.com/releases/utopic/