News | UbuntuHandbook

Archives For News

Free open-source software updates and Linux news

KeePass 2.47 Released! How to Install in Ubuntu 20.04, 20.10

Last updated: April 24, 2024

KeePass password manager 2.47 was released user interface and integration enhancements and minor new features and improvements.

KeePass 2.47 release highlights:

Save search parameters as profiles, access via menu ‘Find’->’Search Profiles’.
Add ‘XPath expression’ search mode.
Add ‘Histop’ option in Find dialog.
Add ‘Help’ button in Find dialog.
Add auto-type matching option ‘Consider similar dashes as identical’.
Add commands ‘Copy Group (Encrypted)’, ‘Copy Group (Unencrypted)’ and ‘Paste Group’.
Added {TIMEOTP} placeholder, generates a time-based one-time password.
Enhanced XML key file format.
Add command ‘Print Key File Backup’.
Add command ‘Create Key File’.
Add Argon2id key derivation function.
Add support for importing Dashlane 6.2039.0 JSON files.
Add a few more options in the import/export dialog.
Plugins can now disable/enable specific Mono workarounds.

How to Install KeePass 2.47 in Ubuntu via PPA:

Although there’s a Linux native community fork KeePassXC available, KeePass2 is still available to install via an Ubuntu PPA. So far, the PPA supports for Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, and Ubuntu 20.04.

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

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/keepass2

2.) Then refresh system package cache via command:

sudo apt update

3.) Finally install the mono based password safe package:

sudo apt install keepass2

Uninstall KeePass2:

To remove the software package, run command in terminal:

sudo apt remove --autoremove keepass2

And remove the Ubuntu PPA via command:

sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/keepass2

In Howtos, News KeePass2

Linux Mint 20.1 “Ulyssa” Officially Released [How to Upgrade]

Last updated: January 9, 2021

Linux Mint 20.1, code-name “Ulyssa”, was officially released. It includes Linux Kernel 5.4, based on Ubuntu 20.04, and features Xfce 4.14, Cinnamon 4.8, and MATE 1.24 for each desktop edition.

Linux Mint 20.1 is a long term support release which will be supported until 2025. New features in the release include:

Web App manager to turn any web page into desktop application.
A new IPTV Player, Hypnotix
Favorites support in Nemo file manager, Xed, Xreader, Xviewer, Pix and Warpinator.
Removed ippusbxd, printing and scanning work the same way as in Linux Mint 19.x.
Updated to HPLIP 3.20.11.
Hardware video acceleration enabled by default in Celluloid.
The driver manager was migrated to PackageKit.
Added Chromium browser package to the repository.
Clock format in the login screen is configurable.
A unified filesystem layout, superb collection of backgrounds, and more.

Linux Mint 20.1 system requirements:

1GB RAM (2GB recommended for a comfortable usage).
15GB of disk space (20GB recommended).
1024×768 resolution (on lower resolutions, press ALT to drag windows with the mouse if they don’t fit in the screen).

Download / Upgrade to Linux Mint 20.01:

For the official announcements as well as iso images download link, simply go to LinuxMint.com.

To upgrade from Linux Mint 20 to Linux Mint 20.1:

1. Use TimeShift to create a system snapshot, so you can easily restore your system if anything goes wrong.

2. Disable your screensaver, and upgrade installed Cinnamon spices (applets, desklets, extensions, themes) from System Settings.

3. Open Update Manager and click on the Refresh button. If there are updates for mintupdate or mint-upgrade-info, apply them.

Then go to menu “Edit->Upgrade to Linux Mint 20.1 Ulyssa” to launch system upgrade.

Follow the wizard and reboot once the upgrade is finished.

4. (optinal) To convert the system with usrmerge, simply run command:

sudo apt install usrmerge

In News Linux Mint

GTK+ Twitter Client ‘Cawbird’ 1.3 Released with Uploading Video Support

Last updated: January 1, 2021

Cawbird, free and open-source GTK+ Twitter Client for Linux, released version 1.3 with many new features, improvements, bug-fixes.

Cawbird 1.3 comes with improved DM (Direct Messages). It adds ability to send media in DMs, delete DMs, load older DMs, and fixes DM load order issue.

The new release includes new Vala implementation API allows to upload videos and larger animated GIFs.

Other changes in Cawbird 1.3 include:

Apply filtering across all feeds (including search)
Apply changes to filtering, muting, blocking and hiding RTs across all feeds instantly
Allow the filtering of mentioned @-handles
Load media in DMs and linkify users and hashtags
Use HTTPS avatars throughout
Allow Compose view to shrink to narrower screens (e.g. for PinePhone)
Design changes, stability improvements, and bug-fixes.

How to Install Cawbird in Ubuntu:

The software developer maintains OBS repository with the packages for CentOS, Debian, Fedora, Ubuntu, openSUSE. You can download the deb package directly from the link below:

Download Cawbird

To receive future updates via Software Updater, you can open terminal and run following commands one by one to add the OBS repository:

Run command to add the cawbird repository (you may replace xUbuntu_20.04 with xUbuntu_18.04 or xUbuntu_20.10 depends on your system edition):

echo 'deb http://download.opensuse.org/repositories/home:/IBBoard:/cawbird/xUbuntu_20.04/ /' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/home:IBBoard:cawbird.list

Then install the keyring via command (also replace xUbuntu_20.04 to your system edition):

curl -fsSL https://download.opensuse.org/repositories/home:IBBoard:cawbird/xUbuntu_20.04/Release.key | gpg --dearmor | sudo tee /etc/apt/trusted.gpg.d/home_IBBoard_cawbird.gpg > /dev/null

You can finally refresh package cache and install the twitter app via commands:
```
sudo apt update; sudo apt install cawbird
```

Uninstall Cawbird:

To remove the Twitter client, simply run command in terminal:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove cawbird

To remove the software repository, go to Software & Updates -> Other Software, and remove the relevant line.

In News twitter client

qBittorrent 4.3.2 Adds Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) Support

Last updated: December 29, 2020

qBittorrent

qBittorrent 4.3.2 was released a few days ago. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu via PPA.

The new release of the Bittorrent client features an option for Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) support, which enable people around the world to use domain names in local languages and scripts.

It now allows to add root folder to torrent content. And “HTTPS tracker validation” option is available on all platforms with latest libtorrent.

Bug-fixes in qBittorrent 4.3.2 include:

Fix broken sorting on some columns
Fix availability per file value
Fix status of torrents without metadata
Don’t try to remove folders for a torrent without metadata
Lift upper limit of “Max concurrent HTTP announces” option
Add links to libtorrent documentation
Move “embedded tracker” options to qbt section
Properly handle “Append extension” option changing
Correctly save paused torrent state
Fix bug of “move storage job” can be performed multiple times

There are also a few WEB UI changes, including ability to use ‘shift+delete’ to delete torrents, allow to attach tags while adding torrents.

How to Install qBittorrent via PPA:

The official qBittorrent PPA has built the new release packages for Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, and derivatives.

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 qbittorrent

TeXstudio 3.0.2 Released! How to Install in Ubuntu 20.04, 20.10

Last updated: December 28, 2020

TeXstudio, an open-source fully featured LaTeX editor, released version 3.0.2 a few hours ago. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu, Linux Mint.

Though it’s a bug-fix version, TeXstudio 3.0.2 was released after two beta test releases. It features:

Add large number of default dictionaries.
Handle \tabularnewline correctly
Fix text insertion on selected text
Change behavior for cut buffer and Ctrl+e (insert env).
Add texdoc as selectable command
Windows build now uses 64 bit and can handle larger documents

How to Install TeXstudio 3.0.2 in Ubuntu:

Non-install Appimage:

The editor offers official Appimage package, available to download at the link below:

TeXstudio Github Releases

Just grab the .appimage package, add “allow executing as program” in file’s Properties -> Permissions dialog, and finally run it to launch TeXstudio.

Install the LaTeX editor via PPA:

The official TeXstudio PPA maintains the software packages for Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10.

While the PPA is not updated for the new release at the moment, you may grab the .deb binary from OBS repository (official).

Once the PPA is updated with the new release packages, you can do following steps one by one to install it:

1. Open terminal either by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard 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) when it asks and hit Enter to add the PPA.

2. If the stock version in Ubuntu main repository was installed, 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 it 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

GIMP 2.99.4 Released as New Development Version to GIMP 3.0

Last updated: December 27, 2020

GIMP image editor 2.99.4 was released a few days ago as the second development release for the next major GIMP 3.0.

Release highlights include:

Usability fixes across various parts of GIMP
New Paint Select tool in the playground
New generic dialog generation and metadata support API for export plug-ins
Multi-threaded JPEG2000 decoding
Initial documentation on porting plug-ins to 3.0

As Xmas present, there’s also a comic strip in the release note:

How to Install GIMP 2.99.4 in Ubuntu Linux

The new release has been made as Flatpak package available to install via flathub beta channel. Like the previous GIMP 2.99.2, you can follow this how to guide to install it in Ubuntu.

In News GIMP 3.0

Kdenlive 20.12 Released with New Subtitling Tool, Same Track Transitions

Last updated: December 22, 2020

Kdenlive video editor 20.12 was finally announced. Here’s what’s new and how to install it in Ubuntu.

The new release features the long requested same track transition function. It can be activated by selecting a clip and pressing “u” on keyboard or via the icon in the timeline toolbar.

Kdenlive 20.12 also features new subtitling tool allows to add and edit subtitles directly in the timeline or by using the new subtitle widget.

Other changes include:

Import (SRT/ASS) and export (SRT) subtitles.
An overhauled effects layout
Ability to rename and add/edit the description of custom effects
New Pillar Echo effect for vertical videos.
Crop by padding effect can now be keyframed.
New VR 360 and 3D effects
New Video Equalizer for adjusting image brightness, contrast, saturation and gamma.
Ability to enable/disable normalization of audio thumbnails from track header
Ability to delete multiple tracks at once
Online Resources tool was ported to qtwebengine

How to Install Kdenlive 20.12 in Ubuntu:

As KDE announced Kdenlive 20.12 as one of the December 2020 apps update more than a week ago, the Kdenlive stable PPA has made the packages for Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 20.10, Linux Mint 20. And I’ve written the how to install guide in this page.

In News Kdenlive

Linux Mint 20.1 “Ulyssa” BETA Released For Testing

Last updated: December 18, 2020

The beta of Linux Mint 20.1 “Ulyssa” Xfce, Cinnamon, and MATE editions were released for testing and to help the Linux Mint team fix issues prior to the stable release.

Linux Mint 20.1 is a long term support release which will be supported until 2025. It features Linux Kernel 5.4, Ubuntu 20.04 package base, and Xfce 4.14 / Cinnamon 4.8 / MATE 1.24 desktop environment.

In the new release, it also features a new Web App manager to turn any web page into desktop application. Like normal desktop applications, each web app has its own window, icon, and available in application menu.

The new IPTV Player, Hypnotix, is shipped with Linux Mint 20.1. It supports live TV, movies or even TV series if your playlist or IPTV provider also has a VOD section. The player comes with Free-IPTV as default IPTV provider.

Other changes include:

ippusbxd was removed so printing and scanning work the same way as in Linux Mint 19.x and prior releases.
Updated to HPLIP 3.20.11.
Hardware video acceleration enabled by default in Celluloid.
The driver manager was migrated to PackageKit.
Added Chromium to the repository.
Clock format in the login screen is configurable.
Aunified filesystem layout, superb collection of backgrounds, and more.

Linux Mint 20.1 system requirements:

1GB RAM (2GB recommended for a comfortable usage).
15GB of disk space (20GB recommended).
1024×768 resolution (on lower resolutions, press ALT to drag windows with the mouse if they don’t fit in the screen).

The iso image is available to download at the link below:

Download Linux Mint

via: blog.linuxmint.com

In News Linux Mint

Ksnip Screenshot Tool 1.8.0 Released as Good Alternative to Shutter

Last updated: December 17, 2020

Ksnip screenshot tool released version 1.8.0 a few days ago with many great new features and improvements, making it more powerful.

Ksnip is a free open-source Qt based screenshot tool with editing features. It runs in Window, Mac OS, and Linux (both X and Wayland). As Shutter is not in active development, it’s getting more and more issues due to old Gnome dependency libraries. And Ksnip is a great alternative.

Ksnip 1.8.0 added ability to pin screenshots in frameless windows that stay in foreground. The feature was ported from Flameshot. Without saving a screenshot, the app “Options” menu offers “Pin” option to set it in foreground, and it will disappear with a double click on it.

The new release also added new and improved editing tools, including:

Add pixelate image area tool
Zoom in and out
Add window effects: Drop shawdow, Grayscale, Border
Add numeric pointer with arrow annotation item.
Add interface for adding custom tab context menu actions.
Add text pointer annotation item.
Add text pointer with arrow annotation item.
Add option to automatically switching to select tool after drawing item.
Edit Text box with double click.
Resize elements while keeping aspect ratio.

There are also improved screenshot tabs including:

Add save and save as options to context menu of a screenshot tab.
Add open directory, copy path to clipboard in saved tabs’ context menu.
Add option to delete saved images both from Edit menu or tab context menu.
Allow rename saved screenshot images both from Edit menu or tab context menu.

Other features include:

Add unity / integration tests.
Add brew cask package for Mac uses love homebrew.
Add image quality option in settings page.
Add support for cross-platform wayland screenshots using xdg-desktop-portal.
Add support for loading image from stdin.
Add screenshot options as application actions to desktop file. So that you can add Ksnip to desktop keyboard shortcuts to launch a screen, window, or area shot.
Make hiding main window during screenshot optional.
Open several files at once in tabs.
Allow modifying selected rectangle before making screenshot.
Option to keep main window hidden after a taking screenshot.
Add new options in system tray indicator menu.
Upload multiple stickers at once.
Allow removing imgur account.
Bug-fixes and other improvements.

Download / Install Ksnip:

The software offers official binary packages in the github releases page:

Download Ksnip

For Ubuntu Linux, you can grab the .appimage package, make it executable in file “Properties” window, and finally right-click and select run it to launch the tool.

You can also download the .deb package. And install it either via Gdebi package installer, or by running command in terminal:

sudo apt install ./Downloads/ksnip-1.8.0.deb

In News screenshot tool

Mozilla Firefox 84.0 Released with Native Apple Silicon Support

Last updated: December 16, 2020

Mozilla Firefox web browser 84.0 now is available to download.

Firefox 84 is a big release. It comes with WebRender enabled by default in Linux Gnome on X for faster page rendering. For Wayland session, you can manually enable the feature in about:config page, search and enable gfx.webrender.all.

The new browser release also includes native support for Apple Silicon hardware, the M1 processor in new versions of the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and Mac mini.

Other features in Firefox 84.0 include:

The final release to support Adobe Flash.
Search shortcuts in the address bar.
Security fixes and more.

How to Get Firefox 84.0 in Ubuntu:

Ubuntu keeps publishing the latest Firefox packages through the main Ubuntu security & updates repositories. Just wait and Firefox 84.0 will be available to update for all current Ubuntu releases in next a few days.

If you can’t wait, Mozilla offers official Linux portable packages, in which you can run the executable file to launch Firefox. And you can download it from the link below:

Firefox FTP Download Page

In News Firefox