Ubuntu Forums - Tutorials & Tips

HowTO: Comprehensive Guide to Customising GDM and XSplash

tinivole — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:17:58 GMT

Comprehensive Guide to Customising
GDM and XSplash

Preface
This guide is my statement to those people who think that the new GDM login screen is un-customisable.

At the beginning of this month, I started playing around with a Netbook I bought back in August. Installed Karmic UNR, and started playing about with it.

One thing I was looking for in the first place was a consistency across the UI. From Splash Screen, to Login Screen, to Desktop.
Once that was sorted, and I picked up a thing or two about how GDM actually functions now, I then had the mad idea of turning GDM into a minimal desktop for the most basic functions I use everyday - XChat, Empathy and Browsing - and if I need to get to anything else - just login and I have the usual full control to the system and applications again.

Before you run anything. I regard all material in this guide to be reasonably safe in terms of security. If you do find a hole or flaw, please contact me with an appropriate fix, if possible.

Changing XSplash Background
Unfortunately, xsplash has the location of where the background it uses hard coded into the application. So you cannot alter this via changing a setting in a config file.

Fortunately for us though, we use a Debian system, and such systems are capable of a certain administrative feature called "diverting".

Code:

sudo dpkg-divert --local --rename --add /usr/share/images/xsplash/bg_2560x1600.jpg

This renames the file 'bg_2560x1600.jpg' to 'bg_2560x1600.jpg.distrib', and sets the package manager config in such a way that if an update of xsplash were to come through, it will save the file as the diverted name (so the locally created file will not be overwritten).

So that sorted out, just copy the image you want to that location:

Code:

sudo cp /usr/share/backgrounds/TheRainbowisDead.jpg /usr/share/images/xsplash/bg_2560x1600.jpg

And logout/login to see your new xsplash.

To restore this setting.

Code:

sudo unlink /usr/share/images/xsplash/bg_2560x1600.jpg

sudo dpkg-divert --rename --remove /usr/share/images/xsplash/bg_2560x1600.jpg

Changing GDM Background and Theme
Now this could probably be done in a gconftool-2 command, but I prefer this method:

Code:

sudo cp /usr/share/applications/gnome-appearance-properties.desktop /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow

Then logout, and you'll see an appearance window pop up.
Change it to how you prefer it, then close and login as usual.

When you have logged in after finishing the customising. Just remove the file to prevent it starting up every time.

Code:

sudo unlink /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/gnome-appearance-properties.desktop

Hacking GDM
GDM still has configuration options that you can edit in gconf. You can get the list here.
To run through what I consider to be the "interesting" ones in brief:

Disable User List

Code:

sudo -u gdm gconftool-2 --set /apps/gdm/simple-greeter/disable_user_list --type bool true

Disables the name list in the login screen.
Valid values: true - false

Change Logo

Code:

sudo -u gdm gconftool-2 --set /apps/gdm/simple-greeter/logo_icon_name --type string "distributor-logo"

Changes the logo on the Login Window
Default value: "computer"

Use Compiz?

Code:

sudo -u gdm gconftool-2 --set /apps/gdm/simple-greeter/wm_use_compiz --type bool true

Change default window manager from Metacity to Compiz. Probably just me, but that doesn't seem to take effect?
Valid values: true - false

GDM and Compiz
If the above key change didn't make any difference to you (didn't to me). Don't worry, there is another way!

Now, to give a brief background, when gdm loads, it opens up all desktop applications inside the directory:
/usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/

So any .desktop file kept in that directory will run whenever gdm loads.

So! Using the same divert trick as earlier, divert the metacity.desktop file.

Code:

sudo dpkg-divert --local --rename --add /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/metacity.desktop

Then copy over the compiz.desktop file.

Code:

sudo cp /usr/share/app-install/desktop/compiz.desktop /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow

This should be doable with any window manager within reason. (ie: mutter). Although feel free to see if any other will work too.

GDM and Network Connectivity
Before we can connect to the Net, we need the Network Manager applet.

Simple to install:

Code:

sudo cp /usr/share/app-install/desktop/nm-applet.desktop /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow

Then to set it up, logout and enter in the passphrase/key for your network (presuming you are wireless). Then when asked for a password for a default keyring, leave it blank and just press 'Create'.
You will be prompted with the message: "Store passwords unencrypted?", just select "Use Unsafe Storage" and the password will be kept in clear text.

This is essential if you don't want to be bugged by entering in a keyring password every time - and it isn't quite as insecure as it seems. Although the password will be in clear text, permissions deny any user except 'root' and 'gdm' from reading the file.

GDM and Firefox, XChat, Empathy
This little trick in this guide is essentially turning GDM into a minimal desktop session, useful for doing quick web searches, or asking quick questions to friends without the need to login entirely!

First, we insert Firefox. Now, I prefer to put it into the taskbar using 'alltray'.

Code:

sudo apt-get install alltray

Then copy over the desktop icon.

Code:

sudo cp /usr/share/app-install/desktop/firefox.desktop /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/

And alter it so it open firefox with alltray:

Code:

sudo sed -i 's/^Exec=/Exec=alltray /' /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/firefox.desktop

Now, when you come to the login screen, Firefox will be in a tray icon.

The exact same procedure is used for XChat and Empathy too.

Code:

sudo cp /usr/share/app-install/desktop/xchat.desktop /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/

sudo sed -i 's/^Exec=/Exec=alltray /' /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/xchat.desktop

Although, in the case of Empathy, you will have two tray icons if you run the 'sed' command.

Code:

sudo cp /usr/share/app-install/desktop/empathy.desktop /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/

sudo sed -i 's/^Exec=/Exec=alltray /' /usr/share/gdm/autostart/LoginWindow/empathy.desktop

Of the above though - realistically you should only be needing firefox, as you can use it as both an IRC and IM client through either addons or web-based services.

GDM Hardening
This last section of this is all about hardening GDM and reducing as many security breaches as possible.

What is already restricted?
GDM itself already comes as pretty restrictive by default.

GDM's Home Directory has the permission 750.
URL Handlers are disabled.
Save to Disk is disabled.
Printer Setup and Printing is disabled.
Lock Screen is disabled.
Command Line is disabled. Terminal program is set to /bin/true
The Majority of Keybindings are disabled.
Desktop and File Browsing is disabled.

What else can be done?
If anyone has anything more to add, please comment.

Firefox Tweaking

Install security addons. I recommend No Script.
Open about:config and set 'browser.privatebrowsing.autostart' to True.

Disallow Root Logins
For reasons beyond me, GDM doesn't seem to deny root logins.
This can be fixed though.

Code:

gksu gedit /etc/pam.d/gdm

And put below the #%PAM-1.0

Code:

auth required pam_succeed_if.so user != root quiet

Alternatively, you could use what I believe to be the default behaviour of GDM 2.20

Code:

auth required pam_succeed_if.so uid >= 1000 quiet

auth required pam_succeed_if.so user != nobody quiet

Last Words
So, if you put your mind to it, you can make something out of nothing much. Hope you all enjoy the guide as much as I did creating it.

Thanks for reading.

Regards
Iain

TODO:

AppArmor :D
Firefox doesn't close cleanly by itself.
Rather than alltray - perhaps tray shortcuts instead?
Enable window switching.

How to install the Microsoft VX-1000 webcam

N_Nick — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 15:59:13 GMT

I recently bought a Microsoft VX-1000 webcam and spent a few hours trying to install it. Since i was successful (at least for the video part) i wanted to share the steps i followed with everyone:

1. Download the gspca driver from: linuxtv.org

Code:

# wget http://linuxtv.org/hg/v4l-dvb/archive/tip.tar.gz

2. Navigate to the directory where you saved the driver and extract it:

Code:

# tar zxvf tip.tar.gz

3. Enter the new directory and the v4l subfolder:

Code:

# cd v4l [tab]

# cd v4l

Code:

# make

If make returns errors edit the .config created in the same directory and change:

Code:

CONFIG_DVB_FIREDTV=m

Code:

CONFIG_DVB_FIREDTV=n

save and run �make� again.

5.

Code:

# sudo make install

6. Blacklist the sn9c102 module by editing /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-custom and adding:

Code:

blacklist sn9c102

Save and reboot.

Your webcam should work now. Test it with Cheese.

Skype

Here's what i did to make it work with Skype:

1. Create a file - i named it webcamSkype - with the following in it:

Code:

export LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib/libv4l/v4l1compat.so && skype

2. Make it executable:

Code:

# chmod +x webcamSkype

3. Create a launcher on your panel to launch that script.

Your webcam should work with Skype now.

Since the gspca driver supports a lot of webcams i am assuming this would work with other webcams as well.

I couldn't get the microphone to work yet, if someone got it to work please let us know how.

Thanks to Andr� and Danny for the help

HOWTO: AviSynth video processing with WINE

Bachstelze — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 14:06:54 GMT

===============
HOWTO: AviSynth video processing with WINE
===============

This guide has been tested with Ubuntu 9.10 "Karmic Koala" and AviSynth 2.6.0 Alpha 2 (090927), but should work in any supported Ubuntu release, with any 2.5+ version of AviSynth (and probably older ones too).

Unless otherwise noted, all Windows-like paths (e.g. c:\windows\system32) in this guide refer to the corresponding locations in your WINE virtual drive (by default, ~/.wine/drive_c).

This document is copyright 2009 Firas Kraiem. It can be redistributed in any form, for any purpose, with or without modification, provided that this copyright notice appears in the distribution.

AviSynth is a very powerful video processing tool for Windows. Since it uses Windows-only interfaces like VfW (Video for Windows), AviSynth scripts cannot be used directly as input for Linux video encoding tools. However, a solution exists: avs2yuv is an utility designed specifically for WINE, which takes an AviSynth script as input, and dumps its output as a yuv4mpeg stream to stdout or to a file, thus allowing further encoding using any encoding tool that supports yuv4mpeg input.

Usage

In order to use it, the AviSynth DLLs (avisynth.dll and devil.dll) must be present in your WINE library path. Just running the AviSynth installer in WINE will do the trick. I also recommend copying avs2yuv.exe to c:\windows\system32 so you can run it by typing just wine avs2yuv, instead of its full access path.

Finally, it is a good idea to have the latest x264 (see for example this guide about compiling it), since the build from the Karmic repositories is too old and lacks some options that make the process slightly easier.

The avs2yuv homepage shows some usage examples. Another handy one, using x264 for encoding, would be:

Code:

wine avs2yuv input.avs - | x264 --stdin y4m --output output.264 -

The --stdin y4m parameter is important: it tells x264 that what it gets on stdin is a yuv4mpeg stream. By default, x264 expects raw YUV data, which is not what you have.

If you kept the x264 version from the repos, you can use:

Code:

wine avs2yuv -raw input.avs - | x264 --crf 20 --fps 24000/1001 --output output.264 - 848x480

Since the x264 version from the repos does not support y4m on standard input, you have to pass raw YUV data instead, which means that you also have to specify the framerate and resolution of your video stream.

If you have a lot of similar encodings to do, you can use shell scripts to automate that, for example:

Code:

% cat encoding.sh

#!/bin/sh

#

# Usage:

#

# encoding.sh [input] [pass] [bitrate] [output]

#

# input:   input .avs script

# pass:    1 for first pass, 2 for second pass

# bitrate: bitrate :D

# output:  output file



if [ $2 = 1 ]; then

    output=NUL

else

    output=$4

fi



wine avs2yuv $1 - | x264 --preset slower --tune animation \

--pass $2 --bitrate $3 --stats "$4.pass" --bframes 4 --ref 8 \

--trellis 1 --colormatrix bt470bg --stdin y4m --output $output -



% ./encoding.sh input.avs 1 1500 output.264

[..]

% ./encoding.sh input.avs 2 1500 output.264

Bugs and caveats

I couldn't get the GPU AviSynth filters (e.g. fft3dgpu) to work correctly. If someone got them to work, please report in this thread.
RemoveGrain's dynamically linked builds (RemoveGrain.dll, RemoveGrainSSE2.dll, RemoveGrainSSE3.dll, et al.) require the Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 runtime libraries (vcrun2005 in winetricks). The statically linked builds (RemoveGrainS.dll, et al.) do not.
VSFilter will not work correctly with the WINE version from the official Ubuntu repositories, but will with the latest WINE beta (you can get it from the WINE repositories).

All other filters I've tested work out of the box. Of course, I can't test them all, so if you find one that doesn't, please report in this thread.

Speed up your Karmic PC Tip - 9.10 Karmic ONLY!!

gordong11 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:04:16 GMT

I forget where, but I came across this guide and tried it. Wow it makes a huge difference in speed. Please know what you are doing first, tis why I hate posting these tips, but this one really helped my pc.

THIS IS FOR 9.10 KARMIC USERS ONLY.

Important tips to make Ubuntu faster
Faster boot time:

Edit /etc/init.d/rc
$ sudo gedit /etc/init.d/rc

And change the line (line 33)
CONCURRENCY=none
to
CONCURRENCY=shell
----

Install preload daemon

Linux's preload daemon... monitors what programs you use most often and caches these programs and dependent libraries in (unused) memory to speed up application start time. If your system has 1GB or more memory then preload will have a positive effect. Install and start the preload process. Run command

$ sudo apt-get install -y preload

It will automatically load at boot.
----

Disable IPv6 in the kernel
It seems to me that the lookup of IP version 6 addresses takes a lot of time. Let's disable it.
$ echo 1 | sudo tee /proc/sys/net/ipv6/conf/all/disable_ipv6

Check its status
$ cat /proc/sys/net/ipv6/conf/all/disable_ipv6
0 = Enabled
1 = Disabled

$ sudo gedit /etc/rc.local
You can put the following blue line to /etc/rc.local (before the "exit 0" line) so it's set at boot up:

echo 1 > /proc/sys/net/ipv6/conf/all/disable_ipv6
----

Disable IPv6 in Firefox
Start Firefox and write about:config in the address (location) bar.

Then look for network.dns.disableIPv6 parameter.
Double click the line and set it to true. Restart your Firefox.
__________________________________________________ ________________________

I rebooted my system afterwards JIC, but I'm not sure if needed for full effect.

IMAP - Thunderbird v. 2 and Gmail working in Linux Ubuntu 9.10 & FETCHed Error fixed

specialk1st — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:29:31 GMT

OK, so after my day and a half long struggle to get Thunderbird (version 2.0.0.23) to work perfectly in Ubuntu 9.10 I figured I should share my knowledge and my references.

Sorry if this tutorial is really explanatory, but I want to try to help out all the beginners along with the more advanced crowd. (I'm somewhat more advanced, but the tutorials that I found were so non-explanatory that I'm gonna try to be different.) :D ;)

Anyway, here we go...

How To make Mozilla Thunderbird version 2.0 and Gmail work with IMAP in Linux Ubuntu 9.10 and fix the FETCHed Error Message

After downloading and installing Thunderbird via the "Ubuntu Software Center" in Ubuntu, launch Mozilla Thunderbird.
Log onto your Gmail account using your internet browser.
Then go to: http://mail.google.com/support/bin/a...y?answer=77662
- Note: Step 2 in the link above is wrong. To access the "Account Settings dialog box in Thunderbird version 2.0, you actually need to go to: Edit -> Account Settings
- Note: Skip step 21 for now and don't change to any "Recommended Client Settings" given by Gmail. (You can do this later, for now the basic settings to get this working are all that are needed.)
Follow the instructions there to set up your Gmail online web account and to set up Thunderbird to connect to Gmail online via IMAP.
- Note: That's 2 parts - first enable IMAP in your web account then set up IMAP in your Thunderbird application (in that order).
After you have set up your Thunderbird account it should automatically begin to download your mail messages. (Don't worry it is only downloading the subject line not the actual messages so you aren't eating up your hard drive space.)
- Note: If there is nothing being downloaded you may have to click the "Get Mail" button at the top left corner of your Thunderbird window.
If the download completes and you see all your message without an error message everything worked fine,
- But, if you get the following error message: "The current command did not succeed. The mail server responded: Some messages could not be FETCHed (Failure)." see the instructions to fix it below...

Problem:
Mozilla Thunderbird gives you this alert when you try to download your messages to the application.
Alert: "The current command did not succeed. The mail server responded: Some messages could not be FETCHed (Failure)."

The Fix:

Close Thunderbird and log out of Gmail online.
Go to: Applications -> Accessories -> Terminal
Enter: sudo cp -p /etc/profile /etc/profile_backup
- This will back up your profile, just in case you need to undo the changes below.
Next open the file in the gedit application by typing: gksudo gedit /etc/profile
- A gedit window should open up.
In the window that opens up, scroll down to the bottom of the text, hit the "Enter" button on your keyboard twice and type the following (on 2 separate lines in the order shown):
- NSPR_LOG_MODULES=imap:5
  NSPR_LOG_FILE=/tmp/imap.log
Hit the "Enter" button on your keyboard twice more.
Save the file and close it.
Go back to your Terminal window, which should still be open, and type (exactly):
- export NSPR_LOG_MODULES=imap:5
Hit the "Enter" key.
Then type (exactly):
- export NSPR_LOG_FILE="/tmp/imap.log"
Hit the "Enter" key again.
Then launch Mozilla Thunderbird from the Terminal by typing:
- mozilla-thunderbird
If you have your settings defined as described in Steps 2-5 above Thunderbird should start loading the message headers again. If not hit the "Get Mail" button as described in Step 5.
- Note: YOU WILL GET THE ERROR/ALERT FAILURE MESSAGE AGAIN! THIS IS OK. ;)
In the standard view settings of Thunderbird your message subject lines should be listed in a window at the top right of the Thunderbird window...
- It should read: | Subject | Sender | Date | [little button with picture of a table and a down arrow] |
- Click the little button on the far righthand side, and check "Order Received"
Then in Ubuntu go through the following menu options and open the "imap.log" file:
- Places -> Computer -> [Filesystem] -> tmp -> imap.log
- Note: If while you are in the "imap.log" file it loads a message saying that the file has changed on the disk and asks if you want to reload it answer NO/CANCEL!
Scroll to the bottom of the imap.log file.
Press the [Ctrl+F] keys and look for the following phrase (minus the quotes):
- "NO Some messages could not be FETCHed"
Search the ENTIRE file and write down or make a note somewhere of which UID numbers are generating the error message from Step 16.
- Here is a sample "imap.log" file to taken from here:
- "1344[3f74b68]: 42a5818:imap.gmail.com:S-[Gmail]/All Mail:CreateNewLineFromSocket: * 1 FETCH (UID 77 FLAGS (\Seen))
  1344[3f74b68]: ReadNextLine [stream=266f8f8 nb=37 needmore=0]
  1344[3f74b68]: 42a5818:imap.gmail.com:S-[Gmail]/All Mail:CreateNewLineFromSocket: * 2 FETCH (UID 69923 FLAGS (\Seen))
  1344[3f74b68]: ReadNextLine [stream=266f8f8 nb=37 needmore=0]
  ...
  1344[3f74b68]: 42a5818:imap.gmail.com:S-[Gmail]/All Mail:SendData: 9 UID fetch 77 (UID RFC822.SIZE FLAGS BODY.PEEK[HEADER.FIELDS (From To Cc Subject Date Message-ID Priority X-Priority References Newsgroups In-Reply-To Content-Type)])
  1344[3f74b68]: ReadNextLine [stream=266f8f8 nb=51 needmore=0]
  1344[3f74b68]: 42a5818:imap.gmail.com:S-[Gmail]/All Mail:CreateNewLineFromSocket: 9 NO Some messages could not be FETCHed (Failure)"
The number that you should be paying attention to and making note of is the "fetch 77" right before the "(UID RFC822.SIZE FLAGS BODY.PEEK[HEADER.FIELDS".
Without closing the "imap.log" file, go back into Thunderbird, which should be still open, and look for the number(s) that you noted from the "fetch ##" in Step 19 above.
Scroll through Thunderbird to find that number under the "Order Received" column from Step 14 above.
Write down the time and date of the message(s) that are causing the fetch error/alert. (THESE MESSAGES ARE THE PROBLEM!)
Repeat Steps 21 & 22 until you have found all the problematic messages.
Log back into Gmail web/online version (i.e. www.gmail.com) using your internet browser.
Search for the bad message(s) one-by-one.
Delete the bad message(s) one-by-one.
Logout of Gmail web/version.
Close the "imap.log" file.
Close Mozilla Thunderbird.
Close the Terminal.
Re-launch Mozilla Thunderbird and the problem should be fixed! :D :KS
- If the problem still persists, then you may need to find out the date an alternate way. See the techie way of doing it below...

An Alternate Way of Finding the Problem Messages:

These steps will replace Steps 21-23 in "The Fix" listed right above.

Open the Terminal window by going to: Applications -> Accessories -> Terminal
Enter:
- openssl s_client -host imap.gmail.com -port 993 -crlf
- ? login yourusername@gmail.com password
- ? select "[Gmail]/All Mail"
- ? fetch 77 fast
- Note: You should replace the "77" written in the command above with the number "##" from the "fetch ##" line in the imap.log file. (See Step 19 in "The Fix" for clarification.)
Repeat the "? fetch" command in Step 2 until you have all the date and times of the problem messages. (AGAIN, THESE ARE THE PROBLEM MESSAGES!)
Continue on from Step 24 in "The Fix" listed above.

You're done! :popcorn: Easy right...?? :D

TIP: Creative soundcard pop/click fix for Karmic Koala.

Shazaam — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:03:36 GMT

Note: this tip MAY affect other sound cards too. :)

To fix pops/clicks (and maybe the hissing bug too) while listening to audio on Karmic Koala try this...

Open /etc/pulse/default.pa for editing (as root)-
Go to (on your panel) Applications>Accessories>Terminal and in the box that opens enter this=

Code:

gksudo gedit /etc/pulse/default.pa

Terminal will ask you for your USER password (the one you log into Ubuntu with); while you enter it you will see NO input. Don't worry, the password will be there so go ahead and hit your enter key. Gedit will open default.pa for editing.
Scroll down until you find this-

Code:

### Automatically load driver modules depending on the hardware available

.ifexists module-udev-detect.so

load-module module-udev-detect 

.else

### Alternatively use the static hardware detection module (for systems that

### lack udev support)

load-module module-detect

.endif

This line is the one that you want to change-

Code:

load-module module-udev-detect

Add tsched=0 (that's a zero) to the end of it so it looks like this-

Code:

load-module module-udev-detect tsched=0

I also commented out (with a # in front of the line) bluetooth support as I don't use it-

Code:

### Automatically load driver modules for Bluetooth hardware

#.ifexists module-bluetooth-discover.so

#load-module module-bluetooth-discover

#.endif

Then go to File-Save (upper left). When the file is saved a copy of your old version is kept with a ~ (tilde) added to the end. I would recommend renaming the backup (~) file with a different name (default.pabak) so it doesn't get deleted.
Last but not least you can either reboot or kill and restart pulseaudio.
If you have problems/bugs after this edit it is a simple matter to delete the new file and then rename the old one back to default.pa
You can do this through the terminal or by opening nautilus as root-

Code:

gksudo nautilus

(CTRL+H to show hidden files)
Just be careful running nautilus as root as any changes you make are pretty much PERMANENT!

Disclaimer:
I have NOT tried running any other audio/sound apps besides Rythmbox after performing this fix. There is a chance it might affect other parts of your audio subsystem (movies, flash, games etc). If you do encounter any problems do the file rename fix stated above.

Links...
http://www.pulseaudio.org/wiki/Modules
Thanks marmuta (post #7) http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1005668
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+s...io/+bug/336965
and...
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&a...i=&safe=images

get your old microsoft serial mouse working on COM1 with 9.10

raygj — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:43:18 GMT

to get your old microsoft serial mouse working on COM1 with 9.10 you need to install the gpm package.so in a terminal enter
Quote:

Quote:

sudo apt-get install gpm

then ,after it is installed, you enter in terminal

Quote:

Quote:

sudo inputattach --microsoft /dev/ttyS0

now move your mouse around to see that your serial mouse is working ok.
OK?
now you need to set you computer to run it on startup.
so in a terminal enter
Quote:

Quote:

sudo gedit /etc/rc.local

an editer window opens with
Quote:

Quote:

#!/bin/sh -e
#
# rc.local
#
# This script is executed at the end of each multiuser runlevel.
# Make sure that the script will "exit 0" on success or any other
# value on error.
#
# In order to enable or disable this script just change the execution
# bits.
#
# By default this script does nothing.

exit 0

now enter

Quote:

Quote:

inputattach --microsoft /dev/ttyS0

so that the /etc/rc.local file contains
Quote:

Quote:

now save this file and close editer.
now ,when you re-boot, your serial mouse will work.

[SOLVED] Authenticating Windows to openLDAP server on Ubuntu 9.10

abishur — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:55:37 GMT

This is a quick guide to setting up LDAP on your server so that Linux/Windows users can join your domain. This was written specifically because I saw several people complaining that it could not be done on Ubuntu 9.10 and I figured, "Hey I've worked it out, so why not share it?"

I used the following two resources as a guide. They provided much of the information, but there was just a few key pieces missing in both of them since 9.10. I hope this helps you.

I have used the guide at least 4 times on a clean install of Ubuntu 9.10. It has worked 100% without so much as a hiccup. It should work for you too ;)

LDAP

At-a-Glance
1.Download necessary packages
2.Prepare the System
3.Configure slapd
4.Prepare LDAP for use with Samba

Download necessary packages

Quote:

apt-get --yes install slapd ldap-utils db4.2-util samba-doc

You can use Synaptic Package Manager if you want, just make sure the following four packages are installed (make sure to accept any dependencies as well)

slapd
ldap-utils
db4.2-util
samba-doc

I chose to use the terminal window because I�ve given you the entire command to just copy and paste. It�s a lot quicker than searching through Synaptic.

Prepare the System

Rather than having LDAP store every user we create in the home directory, we�re going to create a separate directory for LDAP to use. This is really more of a house keeping issue than anything else. It make keeping track of things a little easier (in my opinion).

1.Make the directory

Open a new terminal window and as a regular user enter

Quote:

mkdir /ldaphome

2.Make the directory available to everyone

Quote:

chmod 777 /ldaphome -R

Configure slapd

There is one important thing you should know before following this part of my guide. slapd�s latest build allows you to dynamically make changes to the directory structure without requiring a restart. This is a great feature but there is one small problem: It sucks. I�ve spent HOURS reading the official documentation trying to figure out how to use the stupid thing and it still makes no sense. It�s bulky, complicated, and requires way too much work to make changes. It needs some serious revision (like an easy to use GUI) before I make the transition (Or at least some better documentation, shesh).

However, using the old method is a temporary solution. It�s a known fact that at some point the people who release slapd will remove support for the older way of modifying slapd. So you have two choices.

1.Follow this guide to replace the new method (slapd.d directory structure) with the original method (slapd.conf file) and then be forced to upgrade at some point in the (distant, not so distant?) future.
2.Use this guide as a basis for what to do, but learn how to use the new method yourself.

Okay, with that out of the way...

1.The first step is to completely remove the slapd.d directory. To do so open a terminal window with root privileges and enter the following command.

Quote:

rm -r /etc/ldap/slapd.d

2.Next we need to edit the main slapd file.

Quote:

gedit /etc/default/slapd

Around the 6th line you should see

Quote:

SLAPD_CONF=

We�re going to change the line to

Quote:

SLAPD_CONF=/etc/ldap/slapd.conf

3.Add the samba schema for ldap

Enter the following two commands in a terminal window with root privileges

Quote:

gunzip /usr/share/doc/samba-doc/examples/LDAP/samba.schema.gz
cp -v /usr/share/doc/samba-doc/examples/LDAP/samba.schema /etc/ldap/schema

4.Decide on a LDAP administrator password and generate a SSHA hash key for it

Quote:

slappasswd -s YOUR-PASSWORD-GOES-HERE

It will return a line that looks something like this:

Quote:

{SSHA}LQFFfwELK3few56afcsdaDSADS135w

5.Create an init.lidf file

In just a minute we�re going to use this file to populate our LDAP server. Enter the command

Quote:

gedit /etc/ldap/init.ldif

Since there is no file by that name yet, gedit will automatically create it for you. Copy and paste the following into your empty init.ldif file. Remember to replace each dc=example, dc=local with your own domain information. Look below the box for a description of the main term in this file.

Quote:

dn: dc=example,dc=local
objectClass: dcObject
objectClass: organizationalUnit
dc: example
ou: My Example File

dn: cn=admin, dc=example,dc=local
objectClass: simpleSecurityObject
objectClass: organizationalRole
cn: admin
description: LDAP administratoruser
Password: {SSHA}paste-here-the-results-of-slappaswd

dn: ou=Users, dc=example,dc=local
objectClass: organizationalUnit
ou: Users

dn: ou=Groups, dc=example,dc=local
objectClass: organizationalUnit
ou: Groups

dn: ou=Computers, dc=example,dc=local
objectClass: organizationalUnit
ou: Computers

dn: ou=Idmap, dc=example,dc=localobject
Class: organizationalUnit
ou: Idmap

6.Create the slapd.conf file

Okay so we�ve told slapd to use the old method of configuration, but the slapd.conf file doesn�t actually exist yet.

To create it enter the following command

Quote:

gedit /etc/ldap/slapd.conf

Copy and paste the following then save and close it. Remember to replace example.local with your actual domain information.

Quote:

# Remember to replace suffix "dc=example,dc=local" with your domain name
# Change the rootpw entry with the results from slappaswd (Must match the same you pasted on init.ldif)

# /etc/ldap/slapd.conf
# This is the main slapd configuration file. See slapd.conf(5) for more
# info on the configuration options.

################################################## ######################

Global Directives:
# Features to permit
#allow bind_v2

# Schema and objectClass definitions
include /etc/ldap/schema/core.schema
include /etc/ldap/schema/cosine.schema
include /etc/ldap/schema/nis.schema
include /etc/ldap/schema/inetorgperson.schema
include /etc/ldap/schema/samba.schema
include /etc/ldap/schema/misc.schema

# Where the pid file is put. The init.d script
# will not stop the server if you change this.
pidfile /var/run/slapd/slapd.pid

# List of arguments that were passed to the server
argsfile /var/run/slapd/slapd.args

# Read slapd.conf(5) for possible valuesloglevel 0
# Where the dynamically loaded modules are stored
modulepath /usr/lib/ldap
moduleload back_bdb

# The maximum number of entries that is returned for a search
operationsizelimit 500

# The tool-threads parameter sets the actual amount of cpu's that is used
# for indexing.
tool-threads 1

################################################## #####################
# Specific Backend Directives for bdb:
# Backend specific directives apply to this backend until another
# 'backend' directive occurs
backend bdb
#checkpoint 512 30

################################################## #####################
# Specific Backend Directives for 'other':
# Backend specific directives apply to this backend until another
# 'backend' directive occurs
#backend

################################################## #####################
# Specific Directives for database #1, of type bdb:
# Database specific directives apply to this databasse until another
# 'database' directive occurs
database bdb

# The base of your directory in database #1
suffix "dc=example,dc=local"

# rootdn directive for specifying a superuser on the database. This is needed
# for syncrepl.
rootdn "cn=admin,dc=example,dc=local"
rootpw {SSHA}iPFTqrtwr3yT3XGQot2wxCuuljKA9vMU # REMEMBER! REPLACE THIS WITH THE RESULTS FROM SLAPPASSWD

# Where the database file are physically stored for database #1
directory "/var/lib/ldap"

# For the Debian package we use 2MB as default but be sure to update this
# value if you have plenty of RAM
dbconfig set_cachesize 0 2097152 0

# Sven Hartge reported that he had to set this value incredibly high
# to get slapd running at all. See http://bugs.debian.org/303057
# for more information.

# Number of objects that can be locked at the same time.
dbconfig set_lk_max_objects 1500
# Number of locks (both requested and granted)
dbconfig set_lk_max_locks 1500
# Number of lockers
dbconfig set_lk_max_lockers 1500

# Indexing options for database #1
#index objectClass eq, pres
index ou,cn,sn,mail,givenname eq,pres,sub
index uidNumber,gidNumber,memberUid eq,pres
index loginShell eq,pres
index uniqueMember eq,pres
index uid pres,sub,eq
index displayName pres,sub,eq
index sambaSID eq
index sambaPrimaryGroupSID eq
index sambaDomainName eq
index default sub
#index uid pres,eq,sub

# Save the time that the entry gets modified, for database #1
lastmod on

# Where to store the replica logs for database #1
# replogfile /var/lib/ldap/replog

# The userPassword by default can be changed
# by the entry owning it if they are authenticated.
# Others should not be able to see it, except the
# admin entry below
# These access lines apply to database #1 only
access to attrs=userPassword,shadowLastChange,sambaNTPasswor d,sambaLMPassword
by dn="cn=admin,dc=example,dc=local" write
by anonymous auth
by self write
by * none

# Ensure read access to the base for things like
# supportedSASLMechanisms. Without this you may
# have problems with SASL not knowing what
# mechanisms are available and the like.
# Note that this is covered by the 'access to *'
# ACL below too but if you change that as people
# are wont to do you'll still need this if you
# want SASL (and possible other things) to work
# happily.
access to dn.base="" by * read

# The admin dn has full write access, everyone else
# can read everything.
access to *
by dn="cn=admin,dc=example,dc=local" write
by * read

# For Netscape Roaming support, each user gets a roaming
# profile for which they have write access to
#access to dn=".*,ou=Roaming,o=morsnet"
# by dn="cn=admin,dc=example,dc=ch" write
# by dnattr=owner write

################################################## ####################
# Specific Directives for database #2, of type 'other' (can be bdb too):
# Database specific directives apply to this databasse until another
# 'database' directive occurs
#database

# The base of your directory for database #2
#suffix "dc=debian,dc=org"

7.Initialize the LDAP database

First stop the slapd service

Quote:

/etc/init.d/slapd stop

Ensure that the ldap folder is clean

Quote:

rm -rf /var/lib/ldap/*

Add the .ldif file you created

Quote:

slapadd -v -l /etc/ldap/init.ldif

If all goes well you should see a final line that looks like this:

Quote:

#################### 100.00% eta none elapsed none fast!

Make sure that LDAP has the correct privileges to access its own directory

Quote:

chown -R openldap:openldap /var/lib/ldap

Start the slapd service back up

Quote:

/etc/init.d/slapd start

If everything was done correctly it will say starting OpenLDAP: slapd
If you get an error message go back and make sure you�ve done everything correctly

8.Test to see if everything is working

Quote:

ldapsearch -xLLL -b "dc=example,dc=com"

If it�s working then it should list all the entries that we created in the init.ldif file.

Samba

At-a-Glance
1.Install Samba
2.Configure Samba
3.Configure smbldap-tools

Install Samba

Again, we have two options of installing Samba. For those who want to use a bash prompt:

Quote:

apt-get --yes install samba libpam-smbpass smbldap-tools

For the Synaptic fans make sure you install the following packages

samba (not samba 4. I imagine everything would work fine if you did install samba4, but the one I�m using (and thus proven to work) is samba. Additionally at the time of this writing samba 4 was still listed as �Experimental�)
libpam-smppass
smbldap-tools

Configure Samba for use with LDAP

1.Create Samba folders that have not been automatically created ..

Quote:

mkdir -v /var/lib/samba/profiles
chmod 777 /var/lib/samba/profiles
mkdir -v -p /var/lib/samba/netlogon

2.Edit the smb.conf file

Quote:

gedit /etc/samba/smb.conf

Delete EVERYTHING that is there and replace it with the following. Be sure to replace EXAMPLE with your information.

Quote:

[global]

# Domain name ..
workgroup = EXAMPLE
# Server name - as seen by Windows PCs ..
netbios name = SERVERNAME
# Be a PDC ..
domain logons = Yes
domain master = Yes
# Be a WINS server ..
wins support = true

obey pam restrictions = Yes
dns proxy = No
os level = 35
log file = /var/log/samba/log.%m
max log size = 1000
syslog = 0
panic action = /usr/share/samba/panic-action %d
pam password change = Yes

# Allows users on WinXP PCs to change their password when they press Ctrl-Alt-Del
unix password sync = no
ldap passwd sync = yes

# Printing from PCs will go via CUPS ..
load printers = yes
printing = cups
printcap name = cups

# Use LDAP for Samba user accounts and groups ..
passdb backend = ldapsam:ldap://localhost

# This must match init.ldif ..
ldap suffix = dc=example,dc=com
# The password for cn=admin MUST be stored in /etc/samba/secrets.tdb
# This is done by running 'sudo smbpasswd -w'.
ldap admin dn = cn=admin,dc=example,dc=com

# 4 OUs that Samba uses when creating user accounts, computer accounts, etc.
# (Because we are using smbldap-tools, call them 'Users', 'Computers', etc.)
ldap machine suffix = ou=Computers
ldap user suffix = ou=Users
ldap group suffix = ou=Groups
ldap idmap suffix = ou=Idmap
# Samba and LDAP server are on the same server in this example.
ldap ssl = no

# Scripts for Samba to use if it creates users, groups, etc.
add user script = /usr/sbin/smbldap-useradd -m '%u'
delete user script = /usr/sbin/smbldap-userdel %u
add group script = /usr/sbin/smbldap-groupadd -p '%g'
delete group script = /usr/sbin/smbldap-groupdel '%g'
add user to group script = /usr/sbin/smbldap-groupmod -m '%u' '%g'
delete user from group script = /usr/sbin/smbldap-groupmod -x '%u' '%g'
set primary group script = /usr/sbin/smbldap-usermod -g '%g' '%u'

# Script that Samba users when a PC joins the domain ..
# (when changing 'Computer Properties' on the PC)
add machine script = /usr/sbin/smbldap-useradd -w '%u'

# Values used when a new user is created ..
# (Note: '%L' does not work properly with smbldap-tools 0.9.4-1)
logon drive =
logon home =
logon path =
logon script =

# This is required for Windows XP client ..
server signing = auto
server schannel = Auto

[homes]

comment = Home Directories
valid users = %S
read only = No
browseable = No

[netlogon]

comment = Network Logon Service
path = /var/lib/samba/netlogon
admin users = root
guest ok = Yes
browseable = No

[Profiles]

comment = Roaming Profile Share
# would probably change this to elsewhere in a production system ..
path = /var/lib/samba/profiles r
ead only = No profile
acls = Yes
browsable = No

[printers]

comment = All Printers
path = /var/spool/samba
use client driver = Yes
create mask = 0600
guest ok = Yes
printable = Yes
browseable = No
public = yes
writable = yes
admin users = root
write list = root

[print$]

comment = Printer Drivers
Share path = /var/lib/samba/printers
write list = root
create mask = 0664
directory mask = 0775
admin users = root

3.Store LDAP password for Samba use

Quote:

smbpasswd -W

It will display the following

Quote:

Setting stored password for "cn=admin,dc=example,dc=com" in secrets.tdb
New SMB password:
Retype new SMB password:

Make sure that the password you type in is the same one you created with slappasswd -s

4.Restart Samba

Quote:

/etc/init.d/samba restart

Configure smbldap-tools

1.Getting smbldap-tools ready

Quote:

cd /usr/share/doc/smbldap-tools/examples/

Then execute the following commands

Quote:

cp smbldap_bind.conf /etc/smbldap-tools/
cp smbldap.conf.gz /etc/smbldap-tools/
gzip -d /etc/smbldap-tools/smbldap.conf.gz

Open up the smbldap-tools directory:

Quote:

cd /etc/smbldap-tools/

2.Get your netSID for your domain

Quote:

net getlocalsid

It will return something like:

Quote:

SID for domain SERVERNAME is: S-1-5-21-2899629268-4176875250-2352135513

Copy this number

3.Edit your smbldap.conf file

Quote:

gedit /etc/smbldap-tools/smbldap.conf

We need to make the following changes, but you cannot just copy and paste them into the file. You need to search for them and make the adjustments.

Quote:

SID="S-1-5-21-949328747-3404738746-3052206637" ## This line must have the same SID as when you ran "net getlocalsid"
sambaDomain="EXAMPLE"
ldapTLS="0"
suffix="dc=example,dc=local"
sambaUnixIdPooldn="sambaDomainName=EXAMPLE,${suffi x}" ## Be careful with this section!!
userHome="/ldaphome/%U" ## This is found in the UNIX section.
userSmbHome=
userProfile=
userHomeDrive=
userScript=
mailDomain="example.local"

4.Open the file /etc/smbldap-tools/smbldap_bind.conf file for editing:

Quote:

gedit /etc/smbldap-tools/smbldap_bind.conf

Edit the file so the following is correct according to your setup

Quote:

slaveDN="cn=admin,dc=example,dc=local"
slavePw="12345"
masterDN="cn=admin,dc=example,dc=local"
masterPw="12345"

5.Set the correct permission for the above two files

Quote:

chmod 0644 /etc/smbldap-tools/smbldap.conf
chmod 0600 /etc/smbldap-tools/smbldap_bind.conf

6.Populate the LDAP database with essential Samba entries.
This includes the creation of standard groups, such as Administrators and Domain Users.

Quote:

smbldap-populate

You will see an output like

Quote:

Populating LDAP directory for domain EXAMPLE(S-1-5-21-2899629268-4176875250-2352135513)

At the very end it will ask you to enter a password for samba. Go ahead and enter the same password you used when you used the command slappasswd �s

7.Stop the LDAP server, run slapindex, and restart the LDAP server.

Quote:

/etc/init.d/slapd stop
slapindex
chown openldap:openldap /var/lib/ldap/*
/etc/init.d/slapd start

Slapd should start with no problem. If it doesn�t retrace your steps in the config files and check for the following. Especially check smbladp_bind.conf and make sure you didn�t misspell your password. Otherwise check your smbldap.conf file and make sure you made all the appropriate changes.

You shouldn�t need to look anywhere else but those two files. The reason being that slapd was already running successfully up to this point. Any reason for its failure should be isolated to the changes you just made.

OpenLDAP

At-a-Glance
1.Add a User
2.Add LDAP authentication
3.Add a Windows computer to the domain

Add a User

Your directory is almost ready for use, but so far no one is in it! Let�s add a user. I�ll use the example of matthew, but you might as well change it to be whatever user name you plan on using yourself (we�ll be giving it root privileges). I suggest on making the name different from user name you set up during installation just to keep things clean.

1.Add the user

Quote:

smbldap-useradd -a -m -M matthewb -c �Matthew B� matthewb

Quote:

The -a sets up a Samba (and UNIX) account
The -m will create a home directory for the user if one does not yet exist
The -M sets their username as part of their e-mail
The -c sets their fully name
matthewb is the name of the user

Before we�re done setting up this user account, we need to add a password.

Quote:

smbldap-passwd matthewb

It will prompt you for a password.

2.Give it administrator privileges

Quote:

/usr/sbin/smbldap-groupmod -m 'matthewb' 'Administrators'
/usr/sbin/smbldap-groupmod -m 'root' 'Administrators'

Configure Authentication

1.Add LDAP Authentication on the Server

Quote:

apt-get --yes install ldap-auth-client

It will ask you a series of questions, here�s how to answer them.

Quote:

LDAP server Uniform Resource Identifier:ldap://127.0.0.1
Distinguished name of the search base:dc=example,dc=com
LDAP version to use: 3
Make local root Database admin:Yes
Does the LDAP database require login?No
LDAP account for root:cn=admin,dc=example,dc=com
LDAP root account password:< enter the LDAP admin password>>

2.Edit your ldap.conf file

Quote:

gedit /etc/ldap.conf

Find the following referenced lines and make the changes indicated (Make sure to uncomment them if they are commented out)

Quote:

host 127.0.0.1
base dc=example,dc=loca
luri ldap://127.0.0.1/
rootbinddn cn=admin,dc=example,dc=local
bind_policy soft

3.Copy your ldap.conf into the correct folder

Quote:

cp /etc/ldap.conf /etc/ldap/ldap.conf

4.Configure the authentication

Create a new file by running

Quote:

gedit /etc/auth-client-config/profile.d/open_ldap

Copy and paste the following into the new file

Quote:

[open_ldap]
nss_passwd=passwd: compat ldap
nss_group=group: compat ldap
nss_shadow=shadow: compat ldap
nss_netgroup=netgroup: nis
pam_auth=auth required pam_env.so
auth sufficient pam_unix.so likeauth nullok
auth sufficient pam_ldap.so use_first_pass
auth required pam_deny.so
pam_account=account sufficient pam_unix.so
account sufficient pam_ldap.so
account required pam_deny.so
pam_password=password sufficient pam_unix.so nullok md5 shadow use_authtok
password sufficient pam_ldap.so use_first_pass
password required pam_deny.so
pam_session=session required pam_limits.so
session required pam_mkhomedir.so skel=/etc/skel/ umask=0077
session required pam_unix.so
session optional pam_ldap.so

5.Enable the new profile

Quote:

auth-client-config -a -p open_ldap

If you receive the following error:

Quote:

Error in updating the file: 'nss_netgroup' not found

Then open your open_ldap file

Quote:

gedit /etc/auth-client-config/profile.d/open_ldap

Delete the line that says

Quote:

nss_netgroup=netgroup: nis

And replace it with

Quote:

nss_netgroup=netgroup: compat ldap

Finally, run the

Quote:

auth-client-config -a -p open_ldap

Command again, you�ll get server error messages about how a certain command already exists. As long as you do not see

Quote:

Error in updating the file: 'nss_netgroup' not found

Then everything installed correctly and you�re good to go!

6.Enable Samba in Firewall

All that's left to do is to allow Samba services through your firewall. This is necessary because we are using Samba as a stop-gap between LDAP and the windows machines.

7.Restart the server

You can now join a computer to your domain like normal. When it prompts you for a user name with administrative passwords, don't use root. Use the one you made. The reason is that Ubuntu disables root, so I don't think that username will work if you try to use it.

I really hope this guide helps you. Windows and openLDAP certainly aren't the easiest thing to get to work together (A direct authentication via Kerberos would be awesome), but it CAN be done! Good luck guys (and gals too I guess:P)!

HOWTO: Install extra deskop environments

Dullstar — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:41:55 GMT

I see this question pop up all the time, so here's a tutorial.
Note that these packages should be possible to get through Synaptic or another package manager, but the terminal is used in this tutorial. To search in a package manager, when it says

Code:

sudo apt-get install [insert package here]

you would put everything after the word install into your package manager search box, in this case it would be [insert package here].

GNOME (recommended command)

Code:

sudo apt-get install ubuntu-desktop

Alternate command to install GNOME

Code:

sudo apt-get install gnome

KDE (recommended command)

Code:

sudo apt-get install kubuntu-desktop

Alternate command to install KDE

Code:

sudo apt-get install kde

XFCE (recommended command)

Code:

sudo apt-get install xubuntu-desktop

Alternate command to install XFCE

Code:

sudo apt-get install xfce

LXDE
Currently, this is the command to use (read section for more details)

Code:

sudo apt-get install lxde

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lubuntu - The reason I have linked to this article is because "Lubuntu" will supposedly one day supposed to become an official deriative. If anyone is interested to see if this will happen, attempt running

Code:

sudo apt-get install lubuntu-desktop

My guess is it will be by 10.04. If anyone is interested, you can try running the command just to see if anything is detected. So far, though, the output is

Code:

E: Couldn't find package lubuntu-desktop

We will probably have to wait for 10.04 for another oppurtunity for it to pop up, though. Then again, I still use Jaunty, so this command might work in Karmic. If it works for you, report back with what version you are using (you don't have to let me know what variant).

IceWM

Code:

sudo apt-get install icewm

JWM

Code:

sudo apt-get install jwm

How to open the terminal
GNOME
Applications -> Accessories -> Terminal

KDE
Note: It doesn't make a difference were whether you are using the Kick-Off or the classic style menu.
System - Konsole Terminal
Note2: If you find something that just says "Terminal" or just "Konsole" that will work too.

For other DE's, I need to be using them to tell you what to do. Let me know if you can't find your terminal, and I will help you.

If you want some information about the desktop environments before installation, please refer to these Wikipeida articles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNOME
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KDE
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XFCE
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LXDE
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IceWM
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JWM

If you feel clarification is needed, or if there's a DE you know of that I forgot, let me know.

HOWTO: Install Adobe Flash 10.1 beta

WattoDaToydarian — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:14:10 GMT

The Adobe Flash player 10.1 beta was released.

First download the tarball from here.

Next close Firefox and uninstall your current flash player by removing "flashplugin-installer" ("sudo apt-get remove flashplugin-installer")

Then extract the tarball to an empty location. Either right click and choose "Extract Here" or use "tar xzf flashplayer10_1*" in your terminal.
For 32bit systems you should be able to run "flashplayer-installer" by doing "./flashplayer-installer" in your terminal.
For 64bit systems it is a little more tricky. You have to use a terminal, cd to the folder where the new flash player is extracted, and run these commands:

Code:

sudo mv libflashplayer.so /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/

sudo nspluginwrapper -i /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/libflashplayer.so

sudo ln -sf /usr/lib/nspluginwrapper/plugins/npwrapper.libflashplayer.so /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/

sudo ln -sf /usr/lib/nspluginwrapper/plugins/npwrapper.libflashplayer.so /usr/lib/firefox-addons/plugins/

To remove it on 64bit systems run these commands:

Code:

sudo rm /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/libflashplayer.so

sudo rm /usr/lib/nspluginwrapper/plugins/npwrapper.libflashplayer.so

sudo rm /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/npwrapper.libflashplayer.so

sudo rm /usr/lib/firefox-addons/plugins/npwrapper.libflashplayer.so

If you don't know what 64bit systems are then don't use the commands above...

Here is a link to the release notes.

Finally open Firefox, click Tools, choose Add-ons, click the plugins tab, and look for Shockwave Flash 10.1.
Once you see that you may enjoy your YouTube videos!:popcorn:

Ubuntu Desktop Computing Made Easy Karmic Koala 9.10

TrakerJon — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:03:03 GMT

This documentation is intended for folks that would like to add additional programs and applications to their Ubuntu Karmic Koala installation for a better overall experience. Please keep in mind older computers may have video performance issues due to high CPU usage and increased memory requirements.

Recommended: Pentium 4 or higher processor with 1Gb SDRAM, 256Mb graphics card, 10/100 Ethernet card and 20Gb hard disk.

The easiest way to perform most of these installs is to copy and paste from this post into a terminal window (found in Accessories). I strongly suggest installing a few things at a time, testing each along the way.

Start by going to System > select Administration > select Software Sources > Check the all the boxes under the Ubuntu Software, Third-Party Software and Updates tabs > Close and Reload

Get all the available Ubuntu updates at this point, look for the update notification icon on the task bar. Reboot after updating your system and then install as many of the following as you wish.

If you're having slowness issues with the default repository go to System > select Administration > select Software Sources > Ubuntu Software tab > Download from: drop down menu > select Other > click Select Best Server and when it finishes the query click Choose Server > Close and Reload.

Many of these installations require access to the Medibuntu Repository and enabling some additional software sources. Directions are on this site: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Medibuntu or if you have Ubuntu 9.10 "Karmic Koala" simply do the following from a terminal window:

sudo wget [url]sudo wget http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/karmic.list --output-document=/etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install medibuntu-keyring && sudo apt-get update

Media players, codecs, plug-ins and accessories are needed for playing various multimedia formats (this is the motherload).
sudo apt-get install gstreamer0.10-plugins-good gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly gstreamer0.10-ffmpeg gstreamer0.10-pitfdll gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse gstreamer0.10-fluendo-mp3 gstreamer0.10-gnonlin gstreamer0.10-sdl gstreamer-dbus-media-service gstreamer-tools freepats gstreamer0.10-gnomevfs liba52-0.7.4 libass3 libavcodec52 libavformat52 libavutil49 libcdaudio1 libcelt0 libdc1394-22 libdca0 libdirac0c2a libdvdnav4 libdvdread4 libenca0 libfaac0 libfaad0 libffado1 libfftw3-3 libfreebob0 libgsm1 libid3tag0 libiptcdata0 libjack0 libkate1 libmad0 libmimic0 libmjpegtools-1.9 libmms0 libmodplug0c2 libmp3lame0 libmpcdec3 libmpeg2-4 libofa0 libopenspc0 libpostproc51 libquicktime1 libschroedinger-1.0-0 libsidplay1 libsoundtouch1c2 libswscale0 libtwolame0 libwildmidi0 libx264-67 libxml++2.6-2 libxvidcore4 w32codecs libdvdcss2 libxine1-ffmpeg debhelper fakeroot libfftw3-dev jackd sidplay-base liblrdf0-dev xsidplay mplayer avifile-divx-plugin avifile-xvid-plugin dh-make g++-multilib g++-4.3-multilib gcc-4.3-doc libstdc++6-4.3-dbg cvs gettext-doc jack-tools libjackasyn0 avifile-mad-plugin avifile-mjpeg-plugin avifile-player avifile-utils avifile-vorbis-plugin avifile-win32-plugin libcurl3-dbg libgcrypt11-doc libggi-target-emu libggi-target-monotext libggimisc2 gnutls-doc gnutls-bin guile-gnutls krb5-doc libraptor1-doc libstdc++6-4.3-doc mplayer-doc diff-doc easytag-aac faac faad ffmpeg ffmpeg2theora flac gxine icedax id3tool id3v2 lame liba52-0.7.4-dev libavfilter0 libflac++6 libid3-3.8.3c2a libjpeg-progs libmozjs0d libmp4v2-0 libmpg123-0 libsox-fmt-alsa libsox-fmt-base libsox1a mpeg2dec mpeg3-utils mpegdemux mpg123 mpg321 libamrnb3 libamrwb3 sox tagtool twolame vorbis-tools gecko-mediaplayer build-essential comerr-dev cpp-4.3 dpkg-dev g++ g++-4.3 g++-4.4 g++-4.4-multilib gcc-4.3 gcc-4.3-base gcc-4.3-multilib gcc-4.4-multilib gcc-multilib gettext gnome-mplayer guile-1.8 html2text intltool-debian ladspa-sdk lib64gcc1 lib64gomp1 lib64stdc++6 libao2 libaudio2 libavdevice52 libavifile-0.7c2 libc6-amd64 libc6-dev-amd64 libcurl4-gnutls-dev libdiscid0 libgcc1-dbg libgcrypt11-dev libggi-target-terminfo libggi-target-x libggi2 libgii1 libgii1-target-x libgnutls-dev libgpg-error-dev libgssrpc4 libidn11-dev libkadm5srv6 libkdb5-4 libkrb5-dev libldap2-dev liblrdf0 liblzo2-2 libmail-sendmail-perl libmpeg3-1 libmusicbrainz3-6 libopenal1 libqt3-mt libqt4-xml libqtcore4 libqtgui4 libraptor1-dev libreadline5 libstdc++6-4.3-dev libstdc++6-4.4-dev libsvga1 libsys-hostname-long-perl libtasn1-3-dev libxcb-shape0 libxcb-shm0 libxcb-xv0 libxine1 libxine1-bin libxine1-console libxine1-misc-plugins libxine1-x libxml2-dev libxslt1-dev mplayer-nogui mplayer-skins patch po-debconf qjackctl zlib1g-dev libdvbpsi5 libebml0 libiso9660-5 liblua5.1-0 libmatroska0 libsdl-image1.2 vlc libtar libvcdinfo0 libvlc2 libvlccore2 vlc-data vlc-nox vlc-plugin-pulse

Install some fonts.
sudo apt-get install msttcorefonts mplayer-fonts ttf-xfree86-nonfree xfs cabextract ttf-liberation ttf-mscorefonts-installer

Adobe Flash too�
sudo apt-get install flashplugin-nonfree flashplugin-installer

Install the latest Sun Java JRE
sudo apt-get install gsfonts-x11 java-common odbcinst1debian1 sun-java6-bin sun-java6-fonts sun-java6-jre sun-java6-plugin unixodbc

Ardour, SoundKonverter, Jokosher and AcidRip for multimedia recording, editing, conversions, mixing, etc.
sudo apt-get install ardour soundkonverter jokosher lmms acidrip

K9Copy, K3b and DeVeDe when you need DVD, CD, VCD and VCD software (requires libdvdcss2)
sudo apt-get install k9copy k3b devede

Streamripper will allow you to download internet radio station broadcasts.
sudo apt-get install streamripper

Shoutcast is a good place to shop for internet radio stations. http://www.shoutcast.com/

P2P (peer to peer) clients

Gnutella is a lot like Limewire or Morpheus (see Firewalls and avast! sections below before using).
sudo apt-get install gtk-gnutella

Vuze can be handy for things not found with Gnutella (see Firewalls and avast! sections below before using).
sudo apt-get install vuze

Frostwire is similar to Gnutella (see Firewalls and avast! sections below before using).
http://www.frostwire.com/

Note: Your Java JRE is not broken and the Frostwire package is not corrupt but there is a known issue that causes the install to fail when using the Ubuntu GDebi Package Installer. The latest release of FrostWire requires that you install it from a terminal window sudo dpkg -i frostwire-4.18.3.i586.deb Be aware that the program installs as the root user, when the application launches complete the install process and then relaunch as the current user from Applications > Internet > FrostWire. You should have complete functionality now, customize as desired.

Various compression/extraction and encoding/decoding utilities...
sudo apt-get install unace rar unrar zip unzip p7zip-full p7zip-rar sharutils aish uudeview mpack lha arj cabextract file-roller

avast! makes a very good anti-virus product for Linux it can be downloaded free for home use from http://avast.com/eng/download-avast-...x-edition.html You'll need the home user free registration key (emailed to you from their site). The key can be pasted into a terminal window after you type avast at a terminal command prompt. The gui icon is located in Applications > Accessories. Update the program frequently and scan all questionable downloads.

Thunderbird, Sunbird and SpamAssassin for email and integrated calendar.
sudo apt-get install thunderbird sunbird lightning-extension spamassassin

Setup your Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail accounts in Thunderbird (use POP port 1024)
http://webmail.mozdev.org/index.html

Skype lets you talk and chat with friends all over the world.
sudo apt-get install skype

Note: You might have to configure your Options > Sound Devices > Sound In/Sound Out within Skype and test with the Echo/Sound test Service. I also had to enable and adjust my Ubuntu Volume Controls > Preferences > Mic and Mic Boost settings.

Fonts, fonts and more fonts...for use in a variety of word processing applications (pick and choose).
sudo apt-get install ttf-larabie-straight ttf-larabie-deco xfonts-terminus-dos xfonts-terminus xfonts-terminus-oblique xfonts-mona tv-fonts ttf-tuffy ttf-sjfonts ttf-georgewilliams ttf-fifthhorseman-dkg-handwriting ttf-essays1743 ttf-opensymbol ttf-mgopen ttf-freefont ttf-dustin ttf-dejavu-extra ttf-dejavu-core ttf-dejavu ttf-bpg-georgian-fonts ttf-bitstream-vera equivs ttf-sil-gentium gnome-specimen

Note: Postfix is related to some of these fonts, be careful not to modify your Postfix configurations if you're using it for email purposes, otherwise use no configuration setting if/when prompted.

I typically don�t use the Arabic and Asian fonts, to remove them from a terminal window type:
sudo apt-get remove ttf-kochi-mincho ttf-kochi-gothic ttf-arabeyes ttf-arphic-ukai ttf-arphic-uming ttf-baekmuk ttf-bengali-fonts ttf-devanagari-fonts ttf-gentium ttf-gujarati-fonts ttf-indic-fonts ttf-kannada-fonts ttf-kochi-gothic ttf-lao ttf-malayalam-fonts ttf-mgopen ttf-oriya-fonts ttf-punjabi-fonts ttf-tamil-fonts ttf-telugu-fonts ttf-thai-tlwg ttf-unfonts-core ttf-indic-fonts-core ttf-wqy-zenhei

Note: Add them by simply using install instead of remove.

HP printer driver issues? http://hplipopensource.com/hplip-web/downloads.html

Adobe still makes one of the best .pdf viewers.
sudo apt-get install acroread acroread-fonts

PDFedit is editor for manipulating PDF documents.
sudo apt-get install pdfedit

AbiWord is a fast and easy to use word processing program similar to Microsoft� Word.
sudo apt-get install abiword

gLabels is a program for creating labels and business cards for the GNOME desktop environment.
sudo apt-get install glabels

iSpell comes in handy when spell checking documents from a terminal window
sudo apt-get install ispell

Wordnet is a comprehensive word database maintained by Princeton University
sudo apt-get install wordnet

The web interface for Wordnet is http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

FBReader is an e-book reader for various platforms.
sudo apt-get install fbreader

Dia is similar to Microsoft� Visio.
sudo apt-get install dia

GanttProject is a tool for creating a project schedule with Gantt and resource load charts.
http://ganttproject.biz/download.php

Planner for Gant charts and project plans.
sudo apt-get install planner

Scribus is a desktop publishing application.
sudo apt-get install scribus

Inkscape for illustrations.
sudo apt-get install inkscape

Gimp is an incredible image editing application.
sudo apt-get install gimp gimp-data-extras gimp-gap gimp-plugin-registry

Xara Xtreme is a user friendly vector graphics drawing program.
sudo apt-get install xaralx

Blender is open source software for 3D modeling, animation, rendering, interactive creation and playback.
sudo apt-get install blender

webKam is simple webcam application http://code.google.com/p/webkam-kde4/downloads/list

Elltube is a YouTube downloader and converter http://elltube.sourceforge.net/download

A complete Web Authoring System for Linux desktop users to rival programs like FrontPage and Dreamweaver.
sudo apt-get install kompozer

If you program in C\C++ languages you�ll need Build-Essential packages.
sudo apt-get install build-essential

Geany is a fast and lightweight IDE (Integrated Development Environment) for programming in various languages.
sudo apt-get install geany

Vim, Gvim and Cream may come in handy for file editing (gedit works good too).
sudo apt-get install vim-doc cscope vim-gnome tcl8.4 vim-gui-common vim-runtime libruby1.8 tclreadline cbrowser cream

Gedit (Text Editor in Accessories) is installed by default but the plugins are not...
sudo apt-get install gedit-plugins

Note: Enable Gedit plugins in Edit > Preferences > Plugins.
The Gedit wiki is at http://live.gnome.org/Gedit

jEdit is a java based full featured editor (make sure you have Sun JRE installed).
sudo apt-get install jedit

Meld is a visual diff and merge tool.
sudo apt-get install meld

gFTP is a generic FTP client (port 21 is typical and consider file permissions when uploading).
sudo apt-get install gftp gftp-common gftp-gtk gftp-text

Convert .rpm files to .deb http://www.howtoforge.com/converting...deb_with_alien
sudo apt-get install alien

Htop, SysInfo and HardInfo for referencing system information and benchmarking.
sudo apt-get install htop sysinfo hardinfo

Byzanz records your desktop and saves it to animated GIF files (viewable in a web browser).
sudo apt-get install byzanz

Note: Byzanz is a panel applet and not listed in Applications, add it by right-clicking the panel and selecting Add to Panel > Desktop Recorder. Desktop effects have to be turned off to use Byzanz. More information is available by typing man byzanz-record from a terminal window.

Fish (the applet, not the shell) is a fun animated panel applet that tells fortunes.
sudo apt-get fortune-mod fortunes-min librecode0

Note: Add the panel applet by right-clicking the panel and selecting Add to Panel > Fish.

Wink creates advanced tutorials and presentations.
sudo apt-get install wink

Glipper is a clipboard manager for the GNOME panel.
sudo apt-get install glipper

Note: If Clipboard manager does not appear in the panel applet menu, in a terminal window cd /usr/lib/glipper then run ./glipper It should allow you to add it as a panel applet at this point. The keyboard shortcut is c

GNOME Commander is a "two-pane" graphical filemanager for the Gnome desktop environment.
sudo apt-get install gnome-commander

Add some useful features to nautilus...
sudo apt-get install nautilus-actions nautilus-gksu nautilus-image-converter nautilus-open-terminal nautilus-script-audio-convert nautilus-script-collection-svn nautilus-script-manager nautilus-sendto nautilus-share nautilus-wallpaper

NTFS Configuration Tool mounts NTFS drives (2000/XP/2003/Vista).
sudo apt-get install ntfs-config
gksudo ntfs-config

Note: Found in System > Administration.

luckyBackup...a powerful, fast and reliable backup & sync tool http://luckybackup.sourceforge.net/download.html

Partimage system backup, instructions can be found at: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/partimage
sudo apt-get install partimage

KDE Partition Manager allows you to manage your disks, partitions and file systems:
sudo apt-get install partitionmanager

GParted is the GNOME partition editor for creating, reorganizing and deleting disk partitions.
sudo apt-get install gparted

Note: Documentation can be found at http://gparted.sourceforge.net/

Reconstructor will help you create your own Ubuntu based distribution http://www.reconstructor.org/index.p...tpage&Itemid=1

Defrag (or fidefrag I should say)

sudo apt-get install bzr python-psyco
bzr branch lp:fidefrag
cd fidefrag/src
sudo python fidefrag.py -d /

Note: It's not a good idea to defrag your whole system, some directories won't react very well. I typically defrag /usr (this one takes a long time), /var, /lib, /home, /etc, /bin and /sbin

Google Earth install: http://tombuntu.com/index.php/2009/0...h-5-on-ubuntu/

Show wallpaper or background color while logging in to Ubuntu: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=753261

Rainy days or a lot of time to kill?
sudo apt-get install frozen-bubble

Kids in the house?
sudo apt-get install gcompris gcompris-sound-en tuxpaint gnucap

Firewalls

Internet security is important these days and firewalls can be quite complex, hopefully the following will help...use only one of these two applications and please read all of the documentation first. Most people are already behind a broadband router configured to give you "TruStealth" protection on the internet...check your current protection at the Sheilds Up! link below before being too concerned.

ufw ("uncomplicated firewall" included with Ubuntu), by default is set to "allow" all network traffic, the wiki instructions are at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Un...d_Firewall_ufw then sudo ufw enable the firewall at system startup.

Personally I would rather use the gui interface for ufw...
sudo apt-get install gufw

Firestarter is quite easy to configure https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Firestarter
sudo apt-get install firestarter menu

Load Firestarter at startup: http://www.ubuntugeek.com/firestarte...u-desktop.html
Note: In nano the ^ is the Ctrl key on most keyboards http://mintaka.sdsu.edu/reu/nano.html

Check your firewall protection at Sheilds Up! (click Proceed and use the All Service Ports option).
https://www.grc.com/x/ne.dll?bh0bkyd2

Wireshark is a full featured network protocol analyzer.
sudo apt-get install wireshark

Simple file encryption using GnuPG

From a terminal window in the directory where the file is stored:
gpg -c (encrypts, prompts twice for pass-phrase, creates )
gpg (decrypts, prompts for pass-phrase)

Notes: The source file can be deleted or moved after encryption. Sometimes when decrypting the pass-phrase prompt will pop-up behind the pinentry window. Type man gpg from a terminal window for more options. If you would like more advanced file encryption with keys and signatures visit http://www.gnupg.org/documentation/howtos.en.html for more information.

Advanced file encryption with GNU Privacy Assistant (use with caution and knowledge)
sudo apt-get install gpa

The Karmic wiki can be found here http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Ubuntu:Karmic

The Jaunty wiki can be found here http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Ubuntu:Jaunty

The UNR (Ubuntu Netbook Remix) wiki is here https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UNR

The Ubuntu Pocket Guide can be found at http://www.ubuntupocketguide.com/download_main.html

Ubuntu Desktop Essentials http://www.techotopia.com/index.php/...top_Essentials

Best 100 Open Source Applications http://ubuntulinuxhelp.com/top-100-o...-applications/

Best 50 Ubuntu Opensource Applications For Design And Developing http://www.emmaalvarez.com/2007/12/t...pensource.html

GetDeb software site for Ubuntu and Debian http://www.getdeb.net/

Gnome Desktop software site http://www.gnomefiles.org/

KDE-Apps.org http://www.kde-apps.org/

Ubuntu PPA Search https://edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+ppas

Ubuntu Games https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Games

Cool wallpaper and more http://www.kde-look.org/

Maximus Issues (windows always maximize when an application is launched)
If you have a Netbook and auto maximize windows is driving you crazy try this from a terminal window: type gconf-editor then go to Apps > Maximus > check no_maximize

If Firefox windows open off screen or are too large to use, you may need to reset Firefox's controls and toolbars.

1. Close down Firefox completely: On the Firefox window, click the File menu then select Exit.
2. From a terminal window type: firefox -safe-mode
3. Firefox should start up with a Firefox Safe Mode dialog with options.
4. Check mark Reset toolbars and controls.
5. Click Make Changes and Restart to restart Firefox

Get your Trash Can and other desktop icons back...

The default for new installed Ubuntu is clean desktop. So, for example, if you want to get your Trash Icon back you need to change the default setting.

Step 1. Run Desktop Configuration Editor

Open Application > Accessories > Terminal and type gconf-editor.

Step 2. Change the value for trash_icon_visible

After the Desktop configuration Editor is displayed, open apps > nautilus > desktop and click the value for trash_icon_visible. This also works for your computer, home and network icons.

Setup Samba peer-to-peer with Windows http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=202605

Install Samba stuff
sudo apt-get install samba samba-common samba-tools smbclient swat samba-doc samba-doc-pdf smbfs libpam-smbpass libsmbclient libsmbclient-dev winbind samba-dbg libwbclient0 smbldap-tools ldb-tools keyutils

Once Samba is installed you can setup a very basic shared folder as follows:

You�ll need to create Samba passwords with this command:

sudo smbpasswd -a USERNAME

Make a backup copy of the original smb.conf file, in case you make an error:

sudo cp /etc/samba/smb.conf ~

Add a share to the very end of the file:

sudo gedit /etc/samba/smb.conf

[mystuff]
path = /home/USERNAME/mystuff
available = yes
valid users = USERNAME
read only = no
browsable = yes
public = yes
writable = yes

(There should be no spaces between the lines, and note also that there should be a single space both before and after each of the equal signs.)

Save the file and restart samba with this command:

sudo /etc/init.d/samba restart

Use this command from a terminal window to check that your smb.conf doesn�t contain any syntax errors: testparm

Don't forget to create your shared folder and modify the permissions as needed. You may also have to allow specific IP address TCP/UDP access through your firewall as well. Keep in mind if security is an issue to read up a lot more on the topic.

How to setup remote access http://www.techotopia.com/index.php/..._Linux_Desktop

Web based workstation and application administration

webmin and usermin can be found at http://www.webmin.com/usermin.html

CommuniGate Pro

CommuniGate Systems' goal is to consolidate all forms of Internet Communications into one address space, making the single address for email, IM, VoIP and video calling, more productive, portable, and independent of tariffs and tolls of closed network topologies. https://www.communigate.com/forms/cg...re_you_buy.php

Editing /boot/grub/menu.lst to change the GRUB boot menu

The GRUB boot menu configuration is in the file
/boot/grub/menu.lst

1. backup menu.lst:
sudo cp /boot/grub/menu.lst /boot/grub/menu.lst-backup

2. edit menu.lst:
sudo gedit /boot/grub/menu.lst

Do not skip the first step (i.e. backing up the original menu.lst file).

If you completely hose up your or menu.lst file to the point that your machine won�t boot, you can fix it by booting in recovery mode (or from a live CD) and then copying your menu.lst-backup to menu.lst overwriting the existing one. In fact, try this method whenever you do something to your system making it unusable.

Alternative shells for Linux...

C, K, T, Z & Fish shells
sudo apt-get install csh ksh tcsh zsh fish

Bash Reference Manual http://www.gnu.org/software/bash/manual/bashref.html

chmod calculator http://www.javascriptkit.com/script/...chmodcal.shtml

Adding a Personal Package Archive (PPA) to your Ubuntu repositories

Adding a PPA to Ubuntu takes no more than a couple of minutes.

Step 1: Copy the lines from the apt sources.list entries section of the PPA overview page. For example:

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/ubuntu-wine/ppa/ubuntu karmic main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/ubuntu-wine/ppa/ubuntu karmic main

Step 2: On your Ubuntu computer, open System > Administration > Software Sources.

Step 3: Click the Third Party Software tab.

Step 4: Click the Add button.

Step 5: Paste the individual lines copied in step 1 by clicking the Add Source button.

When prompted, reload the software sources information. Don't worry if you see a warning about unverified software sources; we're going to fix that next.

Adding the PPA's key to Ubuntu

Now Ubuntu knows about the PPA. It also needs to know how to check the software hasn't changed since Launchpad built it.

Note: This is not an endorsement of any of the software in PPAs. You must make sure you trust the PPA owner before installing their software.

Step 1: On the PPA's overview page you'll see the PPA's OpenPGP key id. It'll look something like this: 1024/12345678. Copy it, or make a note of, the portion after the slash, e.g: 12345678.

Step 2: Open your terminal and enter:

sudo apt-key adv --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com --recv-keys 12345678

Replace 12345678 with the key id you copied in step 1.

Step 3: Finally, tell Ubuntu to re-load the details of each software archive it knows about:

sudo apt-get update

You're now ready to install software from the PPA, using a tool such as apt-get in the Terminal or Synaptic.

Collection of useful commands...
---------------------------------------------------------------
Searching for Packages: apt-cache search some_string
Show Package Info: apt-cache showpkg xxx
Show Package Dependencies: apt-cache depends xxx
Install: apt-get install xxx
Re-Install: apt-get --reinstall install xxx
Remove: apt-get remove xxx
Remove All (configs too): apt-get remove --purge xxx
Upgrade: apt-get -u upgrade
Show Upgrades: apt-show-versions -u
Show All Installed Packages: dpkg --list
Find Package by File Name: apt-file search /bin/ping
Find filenames in a Package: apt-file list xxx
Updating the apt-file Cache: apt-file update
Info on Installed Package aptitude show xxx
System Hardware Info sudo lshw > hardware.txt

Linux Command Directory http://www.oreillynet.com/linux/cmd/

Linux Commands - A practical reference http://www.pixelbeat.org/cmdline.html

Clean up your system and free up space with sudo apt-get clean and sudo apt-get autoremove

If you're curious (like me) or have the need to know uname -a && cat /etc/*release in a terminal window will tell you the kernel version and release date, the distro id/release/codename/description.

Ok, about wine...in most cases a free to use Linux program will work just as well as apps on that other well known operating system. I don't recommend it but for the folks that want to use wine this wiki should help https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Wine

Wine Application Database (AppDB) http://appdb.winehq.org/

-Traker

Dell GX270 3.2GHz Pentium 4 w/ 2Gb SDRAM using NVIDIA GeForce 6200 AGP video and MSI Wind Netbook U100 1.6GHz Intel Atom w/ 2Gb SDRAM using Intel Mobile 945GME Express video on Ubuntu 9.10

The simple & effective power management guide (how to save battery power)

Axx83 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:00:22 GMT

v 0.2 - This guide is written for Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala

This guide is focused on how to implement most common power management tips, taken from the community and powertop suggestions, in the simplest way. Its aim is to be rock stable and quite effective without putting notebooks at risks. It has been tested by me on a Lenovo Thinkpad X60s with almost exclusively Intel hardware.

Hard disks
In Karmic hard drives are managed by a script and gnome-power-manager (g-p-m). The settings are very safe and probably there could still be some power to save but I prefer to play on the safe side with my hard disk.

I decided not to enable laptop-mode and not to play with the values in /usr/lib/pm-utils/power.d/95hdparm-apm or the seconds2sleep in gnome-power-manager.

Probably buying a good solid state drive could get much better results, but they are still very expensive.

Screen brightness
In karmic it is handled again by g-p-m, the standard values can be played with though.
Press alt+F2 and type

Code:

gconf-editor

scroll the "apps" section and open gnome-power-manager. The related part is "backlight". The "brightness_dim_battery" key is defaulted at 50, that means 50% reduction.

Personally I'm fine with the lowest brightness on my screen. Double click on the key name and instead of 50 write 99. Try different values to see which one is better for you, of course higher value, lower brightness, lower power consumption.

link power management policy
This is a tip among the ones suggested by running the powertop program (software center > powertop).
Run gedit (applications>accessories) and paste the following text in the empty document

Code:

#!/bin/sh



path_host0="/sys/class/scsi_host/host0/link_power_management_policy"

path_host1="/sys/class/scsi_host/host1/link_power_management_policy"

path_host2="/sys/class/scsi_host/host2/link_power_management_policy"

path_host3="/sys/class/scsi_host/host3/link_power_management_policy"

val=max_performance



case "$1" in

        true)

                echo "**lpm policy powersave ON"

                val=min_power

                ;;

        false)

                echo "**lpm policy powersave OFF"

                val=max_performance

                ;;

esac



# max_performance on AC min_power on battery



if [ -w "$path_host0" ] ; then

        echo $val > $path_host0

fi



if [ -w "$path_host1" ] ; then

        echo $val > $path_host1

fi



if [ -w "$path_host2" ] ; then

        echo $val > $path_host2

fi



if [ -w "$path_host3" ] ; then

        echo $val > $path_host3

fi



exit 0

close and save (in your home directory) calling it

Code:

link_pm_policy

Run a terminal (applications>accessories) and paste the following lines one at a time pressing return after each one

Code:

chmod 755 link_pm_policy

sudo su

install link_pm_policy /usr/lib/pm-utils/power.d/

exit

you WILL be asked for your password, just type it in and press return.

virtual machine dirty writeback
Again as suggested by powertop.
Run gedit (applications>accessories) and paste the following text in the empty document

Code:

#!/bin/sh



path_dwc="/proc/sys/vm/dirty_writeback_centisecs"

val=500



case "$1" in

        true)

                echo "**VM dirty writeback 15 seconds"

                val=1500

                ;;

        false)

                echo "**VM dirty writeback 5 seconds"

                val=500

                ;;

esac



# 5 seconds on AC, 15 seconds on battery



if [ -w "$path_dwc" ] ; then

        echo $val > $path_dwc

fi



exit 0

close and save (in your home directory) calling it

Code:

vm_dirty_writeback

Run a terminal (applications>accessories) and paste the following lines one at a time pressing return after each one

Code:

chmod 755 vm_dirty_writeback

sudo su

install vm_dirty_writeback /usr/lib/pm-utils/power.d/

exit

you WILL be asked for your password, just type it in and press return.

Scheduling policy powersave
This is managed by a default script that comes with Karmic.

Usb auto suspend
This is a key issue for failure of power saving in Linux.
Run gedit (applications>accessories) and paste the following text in the empty document

Code:

#!/bin/bash

if [ "$1" = "true" ]; then



  for i in /sys/bus/usb/devices/*/power/level; do

        [ "$(cat $i)" = "auto" ] && continue

        echo "auto" > $i

  done



  for i in /sys/bus/usb/devices/*/power/autosuspend; do

        [ "$(cat $i)" -ge 0 2>/dev/null ] && continue

        echo "2" > $i

  done



fi

close and save (in your home directory) calling it

Code:

usb_autosuspend

Run a terminal (applications>accessories) and paste the following lines one at a time pressing return after each one

Code:

chmod 755 usb_autosuspend

sudo su

install usb_autosuspend /usr/lib/pm-utils/power.d/

exit

you WILL be asked for your password, just type it in and press return.

When starting the notebook with AC on this script doesn't do anything, it is automatically run when going from AC to Battery and it sets usb to autosuspend after 2 secs. NOTE that this could turn off some old usb devices plugged to the computer. To avoid any problem (and save the most battery) DON'T leave usb devices plugged when going from AC to Battery, even better, don't use usb devices when running on battery at all. When using AC there is absolutely no problems at all.

Intel HD audio
Karmic has finally added a line to alsa configuration files that turn off the card after few second of inactivity. HDA cards can be named Intel, Nvidia, Ati and others but all should have this power saving active.

Intel wireless cards
Since kernel 2.6.30 the behavior of such cards has changed, there is no possibility of tuning the power consumption.

Results
Running the powertop program

Code:

sudo powertop -d -t 60

these are my results after unplugging the cable

Quote:

Cn permanenza media
C0 (cpu occupata) ( 0,7%)
C0 0,0 ms ( 0,0%)
C1 halt 0,0 ms ( 0,0%)
C2 0,2 ms ( 0,0%)
C3 28,4 ms (99,3%)

P-state (frequenze)
1,67 Ghz 0,6%
1333 Mhz 0,0%
1000 Mhz 99,4%

Wakeup-da-idle al secondo: 35,5 intervallo: 60,0s
Utilizzo energetico (stima ACPI): 11,3W (1,9 ore)

Cause principali di wakeup:
27,2% ( 12,6) : iwl3945
22,2% ( 10,3) : hrtimer_start_range_ns (tick_sched_timer)
16,0% ( 7,4) : Rescheduling interrupts
6,4% ( 3,0) : acpi
4,4% ( 2,0) : hrtimer_start (tick_sched_timer)
4,2% ( 1,9) gnome-terminal : hrtimer_start_range_ns (hrtimer_wakeup)
3,0% ( 1,4) : uhci_hcd:usb2, i915
2,1% ( 1,0) python : hrtimer_start_range_ns (hrtimer_wakeup)

Suggestion: Enable laptop-mode by executing the following command:
echo 5 > /proc/sys/vm/laptop_mode

The program is still suggesting me to run laptop-mode which is another way to handle the hard drive (and other variables) but I still prefer to avoid it as it's not recommended by Ubuntu.

Known issues & things to do
The guide could be simplified, creating a package for the scripts but I don't know how to do it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Version 0.2 chmod commands were incorrect
Version 0.1 first post

Special thanks to:
Scragar related discussion
Sdennie related post

9.10 fixing nonworking wireless=set wireless domain zone to your wireless router

raygj — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:55:55 GMT

in 9.10 the wireless drivers(kernel modules)are set to ONLY connect to ONE 'wireless domain zone'.(my computer, on boot, defaulted to CN(china)).

to connect to your wireless network your computer and your wireless network router must be set to the same 'wireless domain zone'(zone=region/country)
what country are you in?
if USA then country code = US
if china then country code = CN
if Australia then country code = AU
if Great Britain than country code = GB
etc.etc...
to see what your computer is set to,in a terminal

make sure in your Software Sources that you have a tick next to
"Community-maintained Open Source software (Universe)"

Quote:

sudo apt-get install iw

then enter

Quote:

sudo iw reg get

in-order to set 'wireless domain zone' to your 'country code'( which sets up your wireless TX/RX frequencies/channels & TX power-level & RX antenna preamp levels to work correctly in your country/zone).
All country codes are in 'CAPITAL LETTERS'
enter
in a terminal

Quote:

sudo iw reg set

e.g.
i live in Australia so country code = AU
so I used
'sudo iw reg set AU'
note use the same country code that your wireless network router is set up-to.
then enter

Quote:

sudo iw reg get

to see if your 'wireless domain zone' has changed to your country code.
All country codes are in 'CAPITAL LETTERS'
if ok then
Add a startup script to be run at startup.
Write a bash script.e.g.
my bash script is named 'setwirelesscountrycode.sh'
containing my country code setting

Quote:

#!/bin/bash
##iw reg set
iw reg set AU

this was to set my own country code.i pasted this inside a new bash text file.
you need to
right click on your desktop--> select Create Document--> select(click on) Shell script
rename it to 'setwirelesscountrycode.sh'
double click on 'setwirelesscountrycode.sh' desktop icon
select display button.
a text editor opens up.
replace file' original contents
Quote:

Quote:

#!/bin/bash

with
Quote:

Quote:

#!/bin/bash
##iw reg set
iw reg set CAPITAL-LETERS>

All country codes are in 'CAPITAL LETTERS'

save & close text editer

then put it in the /etc/init.d/ directory.
So in a terminal enter
Quote:

Quote:

sudo cp ~/Desktop/setwirelesscountrycode.sh /etc/init.d/

Then make the file you created executable.e.g.

Quote:

sudo chmod +x /etc/init.d/setwirelesscountrycode.sh

To set it to run on startup

Quote:

sudo update-rc.d /etc/init.d/setwirelesscountrycode.sh defaults

note 'defaults' puts a link to start '/etc/init.d/setwirelesscountrycode.sh' in run levels 2, 3, 4 and 5. and puts a link to stop '/etc/init.d/setwirelesscountrycode.sh' into run levels 0, 1 and 6.
you can now reboot if you want.

output from my computer

Quote:

raymond@ubuntu:~$ sudo iw reg set jp
not a valid ISO/IEC 3166-1 alpha2
Special non-alpha2 usable entries:
00 World Regulatory domain

raymond@ubuntu:~$ sudo iw reg get
country CN:
(2402 - 2482 @ 40), (N/A, 20)
(5735 - 5835 @ 40), (N/A, 30)

raymond@ubuntu:~$ sudo iw reg set JP

raymond@ubuntu:~$ sudo iw reg get
country JP:
(2402 - 2472 @ 40), (N/A, 20)
(2457 - 2482 @ 20), (N/A, 20)
(2474 - 2494 @ 20), (N/A, 20), NO-OFDM
(4910 - 4930 @ 10), (N/A, 23)
(4910 - 4990 @ 40), (N/A, 23)
(4930 - 4950 @ 10), (N/A, 23)
(5030 - 5045 @ 10), (N/A, 23)
(5030 - 5090 @ 40), (N/A, 23)
(5050 - 5060 @ 10), (N/A, 23)
(5170 - 5250 @ 40), (N/A, 20)
(5250 - 5330 @ 40), (N/A, 20), DFS
(5490 - 5710 @ 40), (N/A, 23), DFS

remember All country codes are in 'CAPITAL LETTERS'
MY SYS.LOG OF SOME COUNTRY CODES

Quote:

cfg80211: Calling CRDA for country: HK
cfg80211: Regulatory domain changed to country: HK
(start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp)
(2402000 KHz - 2482000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm)
(5170000 KHz - 5250000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 2300 mBm)
(5250000 KHz - 5330000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 2300 mBm)
(5735000 KHz - 5835000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 3000 mBm)

cfg80211: Calling CRDA for country: CN
cfg80211: Regulatory domain changed to country: CN
(start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp)
(2402000 KHz - 2482000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm)
(5735000 KHz - 5835000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 3000 mBm)

cfg80211: Calling CRDA for country: JP
cfg80211: Regulatory domain changed to country: JP
(start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp)
(2402000 KHz - 2472000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm)
(2457000 KHz - 2482000 KHz @ 20000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm)
(2474000 KHz - 2494000 KHz @ 20000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm)
(4910000 KHz - 4930000 KHz @ 10000 KHz), (N/A, 2300 mBm)
(4910000 KHz - 4990000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2300 mBm)
(4930000 KHz - 4950000 KHz @ 10000 KHz), (N/A, 2300 mBm)
(5030000 KHz - 5045000 KHz @ 10000 KHz), (N/A, 2300 mBm)
(5030000 KHz - 5090000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2300 mBm)
(5050000 KHz - 5060000 KHz @ 10000 KHz), (N/A, 2300 mBm)
(5170000 KHz - 5250000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm)
(5250000 KHz - 5330000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm)
(5490000 KHz - 5710000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2300 mBm)

cfg80211: Calling CRDA for country: AU
cfg80211: Regulatory domain changed to country: AU
(start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp)
(2402000 KHz - 2482000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (N/A, 2000 mBm)
(5170000 KHz - 5250000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 2300 mBm)
(5250000 KHz - 5330000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 2300 mBm)
(5735000 KHz - 5835000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 3000 mBm)

cfg80211: Calling CRDA for country: US
cfg80211: Regulatory domain changed to country: US
(start_freq - end_freq @ bandwidth), (max_antenna_gain, max_eirp)
(2402000 KHz - 2472000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 2700 mBm)
(5170000 KHz - 5250000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 1700 mBm)
(5250000 KHz - 5330000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 2000 mBm)
(5490000 KHz - 5710000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 2000 mBm)
(5735000 KHz - 5835000 KHz @ 40000 KHz), (300 mBi, 3000 mBm)

ps.
if you have problems with 'sudo apt-get install iw'
make sure in your Software Sources that you have a tick next to
"Community-maintained Open Source software (Universe)"

if that still doesn't work then you can download it directly from

A)only if you are running 32bit (i386 to i686) kernel
http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/poo....14-1_i386.deb

B)only if you are running 64bit (amd64) kernel
http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/poo...14-1_amd64.deb

detailed information on using 'iw' is at
http://linuxwireless.org/en/users/Documentation/iw

HOWTO: Add bootmisc.sh script to 9.10 (for custom bootup commands)

WattoDaToydarian — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 07:52:16 GMT

Hello everyone I just spent over an hour figuring out how to get bootmisc.sh back so I thought I would share it with you.
For those of you that are unfamiliar with bootmisc.sh, it used it be included with Ubuntu in versions 9.04 and earlier. It can be used to store your own custom commands that run early in the boot process. For example in my case I use it to reload all my sound modules for my two sound cards so they load in the order I want them to.

There are two simple steps to adding the script. Note: The script can have any name you want just replace "bootmisc.sh" with your own name.

#1. Make the script.
To get started on the script run this in your terminal:

Code:

sudo nano /etc/init.d/bootmisc.sh

Then press CTRL+X then Y then ENTER when you are done to save it.
After that you have to make it executable by using this command:

Code:

sudo chmod +x /etc/init.d/bootmisc.sh

#2. Add the script to init.
For this step all you have to do is run this in your terminal:

Code:

sudo update-rc.d bootmisc.sh start 20 2 .

There are also two simple steps to removing the script if you need to.

#1. Remove it from init.
For this step all you have to do is run this in your terminal:

Code:

sudo update-rc.d -f bootmisc.sh remove

#2. Delete the script.
Just use this rm command:

Code:

sudo rm /etc/init.d/bootmisc.sh

Thanks for reading and I hope you find this helpful.:popcorn:

How to play DVD's in Ubuntu 9.10

Zachk18 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 06:48:39 GMT

To play DVD's in Ubuntu 9.10 first you will need to install the following packages. The reason that you have to install these packages is because most DVD's are copyright protected or some such stuff. To "bypass" this protection you must install packages. As such, Please go to the following page to read about Restricted Formats BEFORE following these steps. Now for the packages.

1. You will need to install the following packages. Just click on the package name. libdvdnav4 libdvdread4 gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad and then gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly

2. For playing Encrypted DVD's you will need to do this. Open up your terminal which can be found by going to Applications -> Accessories -> Terminal. In the terminal type the following,

Code:

sudo /usr/share/doc/libdvdread4/install-css.sh

It will ask you for your password, enter it but note that as you enter it you WILL NOT SEE IT. This is normal and not an error. Just enter your password as normal and then hit enter. After that you're done! Just stick a DVD of your choice in your drive and then enjoy. Don't forget the popcorn!