This Tool Adds More Display Scaling Levels for Ubuntu Gnome on X

Last updated: January 11, 2022

As you may know, Gnome control center (aka settings) has “Fractional Scaling” option since Ubuntu 20.04, allows to change scaling level for HiDPI displays.

By default, user may scale up to 125%, 150%, 175% and 200% to make Ubuntu (or other GNOME based Linux, such as Fedora) to be read easily. In this tutorial, I’m going to introduce “BetterScale”, a command line tool gives more scaling levels.

GNOME by default has 125%, 150%, 175%, 200% scaling levels

BetterScale:

BetterScale is a group of bash scripts that helps Gnome & Budgie x11 users perfectly scale their desktop. With it, user may scaling via 110%, 120%, 130%, 140%, 150%, 160% … 200% levels.

BetterScale uses a similar concept for scaling as macs do by enabling Gnomes experimental scaling support & increasing the graphics framebuffer. It makes your system easily readable while remaining fully clear, crisp and sharp.

BetterScale with more scaling levels

The tool uses xrandr to scale the framebuffer. Which means, it only works for GNOME / Budgie on Xorg. Ubuntu 21.10+ needs to switch to Xorg session at Login Screen for using the tool.

Install & Use BetterScale:

The tool is hosted on Github page. Ubuntu user may press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal, and run command to grab the source:

git clone https://github.com/rbreaves/betterScale.git

Install git via sudo apt install git for those don’t have it.

Next, run cd command to navigate to the source folder:

cd betterScale

Finally, start the script via command:

./setup.sh

Grab and start BetterScale

When it starts, read the description and warning before hitting Enter.

And, it will ask if to install the fix for tearing & mouse flickering for intel GPU. Type “n” to skip it if you don’t have this issue, or answer “Y” and type user password to install the fix.

If you answered ‘Y’ to fix tearing and flicker, log out and back in. Then, re-run the script to get the scaling level selection screen and type number to choose your favorite scaling factor.

BetterScale with more scaling levels

How to Restore:

The tool is in quite earlier stage. It might not work sometimes. I tested it in Ubuntu 21.10 with normal HD display without system’s ‘Fractional Scaling’ enabled. It works mostly but NOT occasionally.

To restore the changes, simply re-run the script and select 10 to set scaling to 100%. Do it twice if it does not work properly!

And remove the “20-intel.conf” file via the command below if you’ve installed the fix for tearing and mouse flickering:

sudo rm -rf /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/20-intel.conf

That’s all. Enjoy!

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qBitTorrent 4.4.0 Adds Torrent v2, Libtorrent 2.0 & Qt6 Support

Last updated: October 14, 2024

After more than half a year of development, the qBitTorrent app released version 4.4.0 with many new features and various bug-fixes.

qBitTorrent 4.4.0 added Qt6 support. It offers better HiDPI compatibility for Windows 10+ and Linux using AppImage package. Though, it has known issue about text display on the progress bar. The Qt5 build is still the primary packages, though the next major release will probably drop Qt5 support.

The new release also supports BitTorrent v2 protocol and libtorrent 2.0.x, that use SHA-256 to provide a safer cryptographic hash function.

There are also some other new features, including announce to all trackers if IP changed, “Checking” filter in side pane, “Forced metadata downloading” state, “Skip hash check” option, double-click to show torrent options, temp folder per torrent/category, folder based UI themes, and more.

Other changes in qBitTorrent 4.4.0 include:

  • Remember last viewed page in options.
  • Add ‘Notification timeout’ option.
  • Add context menu to toggle content tab columns.
  • Add windows-clang support and update python installer URL for Windows.
  • Prolong wait time for shutdown for qbittorrent-nox for Linux.
  • Install vector program icon for Linux.
  • Add detection for OpenBSD, Haiku in configure script
  • Update Mac icons for Big Sur
  • Stick Unread row to top in RSS feed list
  • Setting to store/load fastresume/torrent files in an SQLite database
  • More tool-tips, web UI updates, and bug-fixes.

How to Install qBitTorrent 4.4.0:

For Windows, MacOS, Linux AppImage, and source tarball, go to the official download page:

Download qBittorrent

For Linux, the AppImage package is the only way to get the Qt6 build. Just grab it from the link above, make executable in file “Properties” dialog under ‘Permissions’ tab. Finally, click run the package to launch the torrent client.

qBitTorrent is also available as native .deb package for Ubuntu based system via its official Ubuntu PPA. The package will be available in next few days. However, Ubuntu 20.04 is no longer supported because its system Qt5 library does not meet the minimum requirement.

It’s also available to install as universal Flatpak package. Though it takes more disk space due to run-time libraries, the Flatpak was built with GUI lock support.

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Linux Mint 20.3 is Out! Full Dark Mode, Theme & XApps Updates

Last updated: January 8, 2022

The third point release of Linux Mint 20 is out! Unlike Ubuntu, it has different code names for each point releases. And, Linux Mint 20.3 codenamed ‘Una’.

The release still has Kernel 5.4 though user may install updated Ubuntu patched Kernels using ‘Update Manager’. And, it features Cinnamon 5.2, MATE 1.26, and XFCE 4.16 for each desktop editions.

XApp Updates:

Linux Mint now has a new Xapp “Thingy“. It’s a Document Manager for user to quick access to favorite and recently opened documents and keeps track of the reading progress.

New Document Manager
‘Thingy’

Hypnotix IPTV Player now defauts to dark mode. And, it features a new search function, and Xtream AIP support.

The Sticky Notes also has a new search function and adds option to control the text size.

Theme updates:

Linux Mint 20.3 features full dark mode support. And some apps including Hypnotix, Celluloid, Pix, Xviewer and Gnome Terminal now default to dark.

The default “Mint-Y” theme now has rounded tittle bar corners and bigger buttons. Accents and feature colors removed on some widgets, and now only left on sliders, checkboxes, radios and the close button.

For those prefer the old look, the original Mint-Y theme is available as “mint-themes-legacy” package in the repositories.

Cinnamon 5.2:

The Cinnamon desktop has been updated to v5.2. It’s calendar applet features multi-calendar events, and online calendars and applications sync with evolution-data-server.

Calendar multi events support

There are also simplified animations, new radial shader effect added to clutter dialogs, new configuration options for windows list, notification and workspace switcher applets, and other improvements.

Other changes in Linux Mint 20.3 include:

  • Proper manga support for Xreader PDF reader.
  • Ctrl-Tab and Ctrl-Shift-Tab to navigate through tabs in Xed text editor.
  • Option to hide the menubar for Xed, Xreader.
  • xreader no longer shows toolbar in full-screen mode.
  • system reports run once a day instead of every hour.
  • WebApp manager shows which browser is used for each app.
  • Turn on/off bluetooth from its tray menu.
  • Sperb collection of new backgrounds.
  • Linux-firmware 1.187 and Flatpak 1.12.
  • HPLIP 3.21.8 and latest versions of ipp-usb and sane-airscan.

Download Linux Mint 20.3:

Linux Mint 20.3 is available to download in the official website below:

Download Linux Mint

User may also upgrade to Linux Mint 20.3 by following this guide.

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LibreOffice 7.2.5 Released! Available to Install via PPA in Ubuntu / Linux Mint

Last updated: January 6, 2022

Ubuntu’s default LibreOffice office suite 7.2.5 was released today. User may install it from the official PPA in Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 21.04, Ubuntu 21.10 and Linux Mint 20.x

LibreOffice 7.2.5 comes with 90 bug-fixes, including many crashes when recent files are not accessible, inserting hidden field over input field, one click and three TAB presses, saving a calc file after delete some columns, and more. See the release note for details.

How to Install the Latest LibreOffice in Ubuntu:

The software is available to install as Snap, Flatpak, and AppImage. Though, I recommend the classic .deb package via its official PPA repository.

1. Add LibreOffice PPA:

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

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:libreoffice/ppa

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

2. Update package cache:

For Ubuntu 18.04 and some Ubuntu based systems, user needs to manually update system package cache by running command:

sudo apt upgrade

3. Install/Upgrade Libreoffice:

Finally install the office suite via command:

sudo apt install libreoffice

Or upgrade the software package using Software Updater utility:

How to Restore:

To revert back the original office version, run command in terminal to install ppa-purge tool and purge the PPA repository.

sudo apt install ppa-purge && sudo ppa-purge ppa:libreoffice/ppa
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The Extension Displays GNOME Dash as Top Dock When Mouse Hover Top-bar

Last updated: January 5, 2022

There are a few extensions (e.g., Dash-to-dock and Dash-to-panel) to change the Gnome Shell ‘Dash’ appearance and behavior. Here I’m going to introduce the new extension called “Dash from Panel“.

GNOME Shell Dash:

The ‘Dash’ is the bottom bar in GNOME Activities overview screen, that shows favorite apps and running applications. Ubuntu by default uses ‘Dash-to-dock’ extension to bring the Dash out of overview screen as a left panel. And, there’s a ‘Dash-to-panel’ extension for choice to combine it with top-bar into single Microsoft Windows style bottom panel.



Dash from Panel

This is a new gnome shell extension. It does not change the default ‘Dash’, but only let it appear as dock at top when moving the cursor over top bar. So, user may access favorite and running app icons quickly without triggering ‘Activities’ overview.

The extension uses native GNOME Shell Dash to display as “dock”. And, it’s very light. As a new project, Dash from Panel so far lack options to configure the position, dock size and padding etc.

Install Dash from Panel:

The extensions so far support GNOME 40+. Users of Ubuntu 21.10+, Fedora 34+, and Arch Linux may install it via following steps.

1.) For Ubuntu user, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. And run command to install the ‘chrome-gnome-shell‘ package first:

sudo apt install chrome-gnome-shell

2.) Go the extension page in your web browser via the link below and turn on the toggle icon to install it.

Dash from Panel Extension

NOTE for Ubuntu 21.10+, the preinstalled Firefox is a Snap package that so far does not support installing Gnome Extensions. Use another browser or Firefox as Deb.

If you don’t see the toggle icon, install the browser extension and refresh the web page.

The extension works immediately after installation. User may manage the extensions later via ‘Gnome Extensions‘ app, which can be installed via:

sudo apt install gnome-shell-extension-prefs

And other systems may install it from Gnome Software.

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UbuntuDDE Remix 21.10 – Ubuntu with Beautiful Deepin Desktop is Out!

Last updated: January 3, 2022

For those looking for a best looking Linux system, I would recommend Deepin and Zorin OS 16. And, I personally prefer the former one a bit more for the desktop appearance.

Deepin is based on Debian. It’s great, but for those stick to most recent NVIDIA drivers, Ubuntu PPAs, and/or the Ubuntu communities, then UbuntuDDE Remix is a good choice.

UbuntuDDE Remix is a Ubuntu flavor that uses the Deepin Desktop Environment. It includes all the goodies from Ubuntu while having the beautiful desktop appearance.

UbuntuDDE 21.10

The desktop has a blurred panel and start menu, while allowing to adjust the background transparency. Core apps has GTK4 style rounded corners. And it’s has lots of configure options, including ability to toggle between full dark and light mode, and choose an accent color.

DDE Settings

UbuntuDDE Remix 21.10 was released with Ubuntu 21.10 package base, Linux Kernel 5.13, along with the latest DDE desktop and software packages. And, there’s new beautiful impish wallpapers. See the release note for details.

Download UbuntuDDE Remix:

The Ubuntu flavor requires 4GB RAM, 20GB disk space, and 2 GHz processor or better. The ISO image is available to download for 64-bit personal PC or laptop at the link below:

Download UbuntuDDE Remix
In Howtos
 

Pinta 2.0 Released with UI Changes (GTK3 Port & .NET6), Improved HiDPI Support

Last updated: January 2, 2022

The Paint.NET inspired bitmap image drawing and editing software Pinta 2.0 was released a few days ago.

Pinta is finally ported to GTK3, though GNOME now is shifting to GTK4. Along with .NET6 the UI now looks more native in Ubuntu:

  • The tab bar looks more native in GNOME.
  • Use the standard GTK font chooser (pop up dialog) instead of drop-down selection for Text tool.
  • Change several tools to use spin buttons rather than editable combo boxes.
  • The position / selection information, zoom, and the color palette now moved to bottom status bar.
  • The tool palette displays in a single column with “>” button in the bottom to reach more tools.
  • The “Open Recent menu” is gone. And, “Add-ins” has been removed.
  • The color palette now remember recently used colors.
  • The primary and secondary palette colors are now saved in the application settings
  • And the canvas can now be panned by clicking and dragging with the middle mouse button

How to Install Pinta 2.0 in Ubuntu Linux:

Pinta is available to install as 3 different package formats: native DEB, universal Flatpak and Snap. You may choose one to install or install all of them side by side (will cause duplicated app icons).

Option 1: Snap

The Pinta snap package is available to install from Ubuntu Software. And, if you already install the package before, it should now update to v2.0 automatically.

Option 2: Flatpak

Like Snap, Flatpak is another universal package format runs in sandbox. It installs updates automatically but takes more disk space.

Ubuntu user may install Pinta as Flatpak by running the commands below one by one:

  • Install Flatpak daemon: 
    sudo apt install flatpak
  • Install Pinta from flathub repository: 
    flatpak install https://dl.flathub.org/repo/appstream/com.github.PintaProject.Pinta.flatpakref

Option 3: Classic Deb package:

For those prefer the native deb packages, Pinta has a stable PPA though NOT updated at the moment.

User may press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal, and run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:pinta-maintainers/pinta-stable

Once the PPA is updated, Pinta 2.0 will be available to upgrade along with other system packages in Software Updater.

Uninstall Pinta:

To remove Pinta Snap and Deb packages, use Ubuntu Software or run one of the commands below:

sudo snap remove --purge pinta
sudo apt remove --autoremove pinta

And remove the PPA using “Software & Updates” tool under “Other Software” tab.

For the Flatpak package, use command:

flatpak uninstall --delete-data com.github.PintaProject.Pinta

And clear useless run-time libraries via flatpak uninstall --unused.

In Howtos
 

Hugin 2021 Released! How to Install via PPA in Ubuntu 20.04, 21.10

Last updated: December 31, 2021

Hugin panorama stitcher finally released version 2021. Here’s how to install it via PPA in Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 21.04, Ubuntu 21.10, and Linux Mint 20.

Changes in Hugin 2021 include:

  • Fast preview window can be panned in zoomed state with middle mouse button.
  • New overview mode: inside panorama sphere (similar to a interactive panorama viewer)
  • Updated build system for OpenEXR3.
  • Several bug fixes.

Install Hugin 2021 in Ubuntu:

I’ve upload the package into the unofficial PPA for all current Ubuntu releases and their based systems. It seems working good though still missing ‘COPYING.txt’ file when opening about dialog.

1. Add the PPA:

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

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/apps

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

2. Update package cache:

For Ubuntu 18.04 and some Ubuntu based systems, user may need to manually update the system package cache via command:

sudo apt update

3. Install / Upgrade Hugin:

After adding the PPA, either install the package via command:

sudo apt install hugin

Or upgrade the package using “Software Updater” utility.

How to Remove or Downgrade Hugin:

For any issue, user may purge the PPA repository which also downgrade the package to the stock version in Ubuntu repository:

sudo apt install ppa-purge && sudo ppa-purge ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/apps

Or, remove the panorama stitcher directly by running command in terminal:

sudo apt remove --autoremove hugin

And, user may remove the PPA instead of purging it via “Software & Updates” utility.

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How to Install Side-Scroller SuperTux 0.6.3 via PPA in Ubuntu 20.04/18.04/21.10

Last updated: December 31, 2021

Many free open-source apps got new releases before new year 2022. The side-scrolling game SuperTux 0.6.3 is one of them!

The Super Mario Bros look like game added many exciting new features in v0.6.3, including:

  • WASM compilation to play in browser.
  • Swimming
  • Wall jumping
  • Autotiles
  • New snow tiles, objects
  • Add-on creator
  • Optional integration with Discord
  • Official binaries for FreeBSD, Linux 32-bit and Ubuntu Touch
  • Custom particles, in-game progress statistics, skippable cutscenes.
  • Updated animations, rework of the Revenge in Redmond worldmap.

How to Install SuperTux via PPA in Ubuntu:

The game offers official Linux packages via universal Flatpak, non-install AppImage, and 32-bit portable tarball. They are available to download at the link below:

Download SuperTux

For those prefer the native DEB package for Ubuntu based systems. I’ve uploaded the packages into this unofficial PPA for Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 21.04, Ubuntu 21.10, and Linux Mint 20, etc.

Besides 64-bit package for modern PC and 32-bit for old PC (Ubuntu 18.04 only), there are also armhf/arm64 packages for devices such as Apple Silicon and Raspberry Pi.

1. Add the Ubuntu PPA:

To add the PPA, firstly press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal (or search from start menu). When it opens, run command:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/supertux

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

SuperTux also has an official daily PPA which builds the game packages almost every day. You may use the PPA instead for the bleeding edge version:

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

2. Update package cache:

For Ubuntu 18.04 and some Ubuntu based systems, user may need to manually update the system package cache via command:

sudo apt update

3. Install / Upgrade SuperTux:

The package in PPAs is a little bit different. The stock versions in Ubuntu repository built the package into supertux and supertux-data. Apology for being lazy, the PPA packages built into single supertux.

Which means, upgrading from the stock Supertux version to v0.6.3 using “Software Updater” may not work. Instead, user need to run the command in terminal to install or upgrade the game package:

sudo apt install supertux

How to Remove or Downgrade SuperTux:

For any issue, user may purge the PPA repository which also downgrade the game package to the stock version in Ubuntu repository (change PPA name depends which one you use):

sudo apt install ppa-purge && sudo ppa-purge ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/supertux

Or, remove the game package directly by running command in terminal:

sudo apt remove --autoremove supertux

And, user may remove the PPA instead of purging it via “Software & Updates” utility.

In Howtos
 

Install Avidemux 2.8.1 via PPA in Ubuntu 24.04, 22.04 & 20.04

Last updated: April 22, 2024

The Avidemux video editor released version 2.8.1 few days ago. Here’s what’s new and how to install in Ubuntu via PPA.

The new Avidemux 2.8.1 release improved HiDPI displays support by updating the icon set, and using OpenGL for rendering on-the-fly preview in video filter dialog.

It also introduced new filters: 3D LUT, Decimate, and Arbitrary Rotate, new video encoder: VideoToolbox HEVC for macOS users, and support for decoding 8-bit VP9 on Windows using DXVA2 and Linux using VDPAU with graphics card that features a VP9 decoder.

There are other features, such as temporarily disable active filters in Video Filter Manager and reverse video by exporting selection as JPEG images and loading in reverse order.

Avidemux video editor

Other changes in Avidemux 2.8.0 include:

  • ‘Peek Original’ button to quickly compare filtered and unfiltered inputs.
  • Add blend and motion interpolation options to ‘Resample FPS’ filter.
  • Mark cut points on navigation slider.
  • “Resample FPS” and “Change FPS” filters can handle up to 1000 fps.
  • Translucent green masking for “Crop” filter’s preview
  • “Resize” filter output up to 8192×8192 resolution.
  • Improved HiDPI scaling in previews.
  • x264 video encoder plugin allows to specify color properties.
  • Replace PulseAudioSimple with PulseAudio in Linux.

How to Install Avidemux 2.8 in Ubuntu:

The “xtradeb packaging” team is maintaining some apps and games, including Avidemux, in its PPA repositories. The maintainer comes from the old GetDEB team. And, Avidemux website refers to the PPA for Ubuntu users in the download page.

1. Remove old Avidemux package:

If you’ve installed Avidemux 2.7 packages from my unofficial PPA, remove it first!! The name now changes from avidemux2.7 to avidemux. No version number in package name anymore.

Firstly, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. When it opens, paste the command below to remove it:

sudo apt remove --autoremove avidemux2.7-*

2. Add the new ‘official’ PPA

The xtradeb apps PPA contains Avidemux along with many other app packages for Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 21.04, and Ubuntu 21.10 so far.

Open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command below to add it to your system:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:xtradeb/apps

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

For those still using Ubuntu 18.04, my unofficial PPA is available for choice:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuhandbook1/avidemux

3. Update package cache:

While adding Ubuntu PPA, it updates system cache automatically since Ubuntu 20.04. However, Ubuntu 18.04 and some Ubuntu based systems need to run the command to do it manually:

sudo apt update

4. Install Avidemux 2.8:

Finally, install the video editor as well as its dependencies via command:

sudo apt install avidemux-qt avidemux-jobs-qt

After installation, open the video editor by searching from ‘Activities’ overview screen and enjoy!

How to Remove Avidemux video editor:

To remove the video editor, simply run command:

sudo apt remove --autoremove avidemux-qt avidemux-jobs-qt

It removes all the packages and useless dependency libraries, though personal data left in ‘.avidemux6‘ folder (hidden folder, press Ctrl+H to display) in user home directory.

To remove the Ubuntu PPA, open ‘Software & Updates‘ and remove the relevant line under Other Software tab.

In Howtos