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SuperTuxKart 1.0 Released! How to Install it in Ubuntu

Last updated: April 21, 2019

The final release of the open source kart racing game, SuperTuxKart 1.0, was announced. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, Ubuntu 19.04

SuperTuxKart 1.0 is a major release that features:

  • Play online with up to 10 other players.
  • Multiple game mode: normal race, time trial, soccer mode, battle mode and the new Capture-The-Flag mode
  • Create your own server, or join a public server.
  • Replace the old mansion track with the new upgraded Ravenbridge Mansion track.
  • Add the Black forest add-on to the official STK track set!
  • And numerous bug-fixes, performance improvements, and more.

How to install SuperTuxKart 1.0 in Ubuntu:

The dev PPA now is building the packages at the moment for all current Ubuntu releases. You’ll be able to install the package via following steps in a few hours.

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

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:stk/dev

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

2. For Ubuntu 16.04 and Linux Mint, you need to run command to refreah system package cache:

sudo apt update

3. Finally install the game via command:

sudo apt install supertuxkart

Once installed, open the game from your system application launcher and enjoy!

Uninstall:

To remove SuperTuxKart, open terminal and run command:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove supertuxkart supertuxkart-data

To remove the PPA, open Software & Updates -> Other Software, and remove the repository line:

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Gnu Emacs 26.2 Released, How to Install in Ubuntu 18.04

Last updated: April 14, 2019

Gnu Emacs text editor 26.2 was released yesterday with a wide variety of new features. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, Ubuntu 19.04, and derivatives.

New features in Gnu Emacs 26.2 include:

  • Emacs modules can now be built outside of the Emacs tree source.
  • Compliant with the latest 11.0 of the Unicode Standard.
  • In Dired, the ‘Z’ command on a directory name compresses all of its files.
  • New toggle ‘ibuffer-do-toggle-lock’, bound to ‘L’.
  • The value for ‘imenu-auto-rescan-maxout’ increased to 600000.
  • Supports 24-bit colors on capable text terminals.
  • VC support for Mercurial was improved
  • And many other changes, see the changelog.

How to Install Emacs 26.2 in Ubuntu:

1. Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T keyboard shortcut or by searching for “Terminal” from start menu. When it opens, run command to add the PPA repository:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:kelleyk/emacs

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

2. Then install Emacs26 either via Synaptic package manager, or by running following commands one by one in terminal:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install emacs26

For text-only interface, replace emacs26 with emacs26-nox in the last command. And Ubuntu 18.04 and higher can skip apt update command.

Once installed, open emacs from your system application launcher and enjoy!

How to Remove:

To remove Emacs26, open terminal and run commands:

sudo apt remove --autoremove emacs26 emacs26-nox

The PPA can be removed by going to Software & Updates -> Other Software tab.

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Clipboard Manager ‘CopyQ’ 3.8 Released (Ubuntu PPA)

Last updated: April 11, 2019

CopyQ, advanced clipboard manager with editing & scripting feature, released version 3.8.0 with new script functions and performance improvements.

CopyQ 3.8.0 release highlights:

  • Custom settings from scripts now saved in “copyq-scripts.ini”.
  • New script functions onStart and onExit
  • New script functions pointerPosition and setPointerPosition
  • New script callback onClipboardUnchanged
  • Detect encoding for other text formats.
  • Clipboard dialog opens much faster and retrieves clipboard data only when
    needed.
  • Faster app start, smaller memory footprint.
  • FakeVim improvements and many bug-fixes.

How to Install Copyq 3.8.0 in Ubuntu:

The official PPA repository has made the latest packages for Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, and Linux Mint 18.x, 19.x.

1. To add the PPA, open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) from application launcher and run command:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:hluk/copyq

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

2. After added the PPA repository, install CopyQ either via Synaptic package manager or by running commands in terminal:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install copyq

Once installed, start the clipboard manager from application launcher and you’ll see the icon in system tray area.

Uninstall:

To remove the software, either use Synaptic package manager or run command:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove copyq

To remove PPA repositories, launch Software & Updates and navigate to Other Software tab.

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How to Configure Your Razer Peripherals in Ubuntu 16.04, 18.04

Last updated: April 10, 2019

For Ubuntu users with Razer peripherals, here’s how to install the Linux driver and configure Razer peripherals in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, and higher.

OpenRazer is an open source driver and user-space daemon that allows you to manage your Razer peripherals on GNU/Linux. See the list of supported devices.

With Polychromatic GUI front-end, you can configure your Razer peripherals with a graphical tool and system tray applet.

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

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:openrazer/stable

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

2. Also add Polychromatic PPA by running command:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:polychromatic/stable

3. Finally refresh your system package cache and install the drivers and GUI tool via commands:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install openrazer-meta polychromatic

Once installed, open polychromatic from your system application launcher and enjoy!

Uninstall:

To remove the drivers as well as the configuration tool, run command:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove openrazer-meta polychromatic

And open Software & Updates, navigate to Other Software tab to remove the PPAs.

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DeaDBeeF Music Player 1.8.0 Released with Opus Support (Ubuntu PPA)

Last updated: July 2, 2019

DeaDBeeF music player 1.8.0 was released a few days ago. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, Ubuntu 19.04, and derivatives.

It’s been almost 3 years since the last 0.7.2 release. DeaDBeeF is considered mature enough and stops using version 0. DeaDBeeF 1.8.0 features:

  • add Opus support
  • add ReplayGain Scanner
  • add proper tracks+cue support
  • add/improve MP4 tag reading and writing
  • load embedded album art from MP4 files
  • add File Copy and File Move converter presets
  • add GBS, SGC support to Game_Music_Emu
  • improve detecting GTK theme colors for custom widgets
  • add Copy & Paste in playlist
  • add localization support for plugin UI
  • add Drag’n’drop support from deadbeef to other applications
  • add --volume command line option
  • and a large list of other improvements and bug-fixes (See the previous link).

How to Install DeaDBeeF 1.8.0 in Ubuntu:

Besides using the official portable package, the new release is available to install in all current Ubuntu releases via PPA repository.

1. Open terminal either from app launcher or by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:spvkgn/deadbeef

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

2. Then refresh system package cache and install deadbeef via following 2 commands:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install deadbeef

If you wouldl like to install GTK2 interface, replace deadbeef with deadbeef-gtk2 in the code.

Uninstall:

To remove the music player, open terminal and run command:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove deadbeef

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

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GIMP Image Editor 2.10.10 Released! (How to Install)

Last updated: April 8, 2019

GIMP image editor 2.10.10 was released on Sunday with new features, optimizations, and stability fixes.

GIMP 2.10.10 release highlights:

  • Line art detection in the Bucket Fill tool for comic artists
  • Various usability improvements in transformation tools
  • Sample Merged option added to the Heal tool and fixed in the Clone tool
  • Parametric brushes now have 32-bit per channel precision
  • Easier brush and pattern creation workflow
  • On-canvas layer selection
  • Faster saving/exporting and layer groups rendering
  • Initial DDS support
  • Many improvements in GEGL, the image processing engine

How to Install the latest GIMP in Ubuntu:

GIMP 2.10.10 packages will be available in both PPA repository and Snap store (CHECK the links before getting started) in a few days.

Install GIMP via Snap in Ubuntu:

For Ubuntu 18.04 and higher, simply install the snap package from Ubuntu Software (See picture above).

For Ubuntu 16.04, open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run following 2 commands one by one:

sudo apt-get install snapd

sudo snap install gimp

The snap co-exists with native Ubuntu package, you’ll have two GIMP icons in app launcher if both were installed.

Install GIMP via PPA in Ubuntu:

For Ubuntu 18.04 and Ubuntu 18.10, you can upgrade the native Ubuntu package using PPA repository.

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

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

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) for sudo prompt and hit Enter to continue.

2. After that, launch Software Updater (Update Mananger) and upgrade GIMP after checking for updates:

Uninstall:

To remove the GIMP snap packge, either use Ubuntu Softwrae or open terminal and run command

sudo snap remove gimp

To purge the PPA repository as well as downgrade GIMP to its stock version, run command:

sudo apt install ppa-purge && sudo ppa-purge ppa:otto-kesselgulasch/gimp
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Install Visual Studio Code via Official Snap in Ubuntu 18.04

Last updated: April 8, 2019

MicroSoft and Canonical (the company behind Ubuntu) finally announced the official Snap package of Visual Studio Code IDE.

Which means you can install VS Code easily from Ubuntu Software and keep it always up-to-date automatically, though the old Snap package maintained by an independent developer was available for nearly two years.

4th April 2019, London, UK – As of today, Microsoft Visual Studio Code is available for Linux as a snap, providing seamless auto-updates for its users. Visual Studio Code, a free, lightweight code editor, has redefined editors for building modern web and cloud applications, with built-in support for debugging, task running, and version control for a variety of languages and frameworks.

Snaps are containerised software packages designed to work across cloud, desktop, and IoT devices. They work natively on most popular Linux distributions and feature automatic updates and rollback functionality, enhanced security, and greater flexibility for developers working within Linux environments.

Install VS Code via Snap in Ubuntu 18.04 / Higher:

Simply open Ubuntu Software, search for and install visual studio code:

Install VS Code via Snap in Ubuntu 16.04:

For Ubuntu 16.04, the snap packages are not integrated in Ubuntu Software.

Open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command to install snapd first:

sudo apt-get install snapd

Then install the VS Code IDE via command:

sudo snap install code --classic

Uninstall:

Depends on your system edition, remove VS Code either via Software Center or run command in terminal:

sudo snap remove code
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Hugin 2019 Released! How to Install it in Ubuntu 18.04/16.04

Last updated: April 6, 2019

Hugin panorama stitcher 2019.0.0 was released today. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, Ubuntu 19.04.

Changes in Hugin 2019.0.0 include:

  • Added raw import: It converts the RAW images to TIFF using a raw converter.
  • Fixes for align_image_stack with EXR images.
  • Added option for range compression.
  • New hotkeys for mask editor (change zoom level with 0, 1 and 2).
  • Expression parser can now read also all image variables.
  • line_find: Ignore lines with low distance to each other to get better coverage.
  • pano_modify: Added new switch --projection-parameter to set projection parameters.
  • Store program settings according to XDG base dir specification (Linux only, needs wxWidgets >= 3.1.1).

How to Install Hugin 2019 in Ubuntu:

For all current Ubuntu releases, do following steps to install the panorama stitcher via an unofficial PPA.

1. Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T or by searching for ‘terminal’ from app launcher. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/apps

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

2. Then run commands to check updates and install Hugin 2019:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install hugin

or upgrade it via Software Updater if a previous release was installed.

Uninstall:

To remove Hugin panorama stitcher, run command in terminal:

sudo apt-get remove --autoremove hugin hugin-tools

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

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How to Install SuperTuxKart 0.10 RC1 in Ubuntu 18.04, 16.04

Last updated: April 5, 2019

The first release candidate of the open-source kart racing game, SuperTuxKart 0.10 RC1, was released today.

Since the last beta, SuperTuxKart rc1 features:

  • Networked multiplayer (over LAN or the net) is now ready for general use
  • Replace the old mansion track with the new upgraded Ravenbridge Mansion track.
  • Add the Black forest add-on to the official STK track set!
  • Also numerous bugs have been fixed.

How to Install SuperTuxKart 0.10 in Ubuntu:

The followings steps will install the RC1 release at the moment for Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 18.10, Ubuntu 19.04.

This also works for the final SuperTuxKart 0.10 once it’s released.

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

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:stk/dev

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

2. For Ubuntu 16.04 and Linux Mint, you need to run command to refreah system package cache:

sudo apt update

3. Finally install the game via command:

sudo apt install supertuxkart

Once installed, open the game from your system application launcher and enjoy!

Uninstall:

To remove SuperTuxKart, open terminal and run command:

sudo apt remove –auto-remove supertuxkart supertuxkart-data

To remove the PPA, open Software & Updates -> Other Software, and remove the repository line:

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WPS Office 2019 For Linux Released with Improved HiDPI Support

Last updated: April 3, 2019

WPS office for Linux 2019 was released with numerous new features and performance improvements. Here’s how to install it in Ubuntu 18.04.

WPS Office is developed by Zhuhai-based Chinese software developer Kingsoft. The office suite is made up of WPS Writer, WPS Presentation, and WPS Spreadsheet. The latest 2019 release features:

  • New skin style, icons, control points, Supports high resolution screen and custom appearance.
  • New pages, integration of recently opened documents, local templates, document templates, online templates, etc.
  • Document area supports preview effect when setting font size.
  • New built-in browser.
  • Support Home Page, Collection Document Search, Common Location, Cloud Documents, etc.
  • Support personal center, displaying account details and modifying account information.
  • Support for inserting SVG format pictures.
  • Support insertion of QR Code and bar code.
  • Support multi-window, multi-label free splitting and combination, and free management of labels.
  • Support setting areas for dates/times in charts.
  • Support Uygur typesetting.
  • Optimize skin and appearance settings to support custom appearance.
  • And many other new features and bug-fixes.

Download / Install WPS 2019 in Ubuntu:

Go to official WPS Linux download page, scroll down and select download amd64.deb for 64-bit OS, or i386.deb for 32-bit OS.

Then open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and install the package via command:

sudo dpkg -i ~/Downloads/wps-office*.deb

Uninstall:

To remove the office suite, run command in terminal:

sudo apt remove --auto-remove wps-office
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