Tools

Let Ubuntu use more RAM?

May 10th, 2013

You will never, ever run out of RAM with 4 GB, except if you do one of the following :

•   Video edition/encoding
•   Image edition
•   3D edition/render
•   Heavy scientific calculations
•   3D gaming with all bells and whistles turned on, in which case you’re running your games natively under Windows anyway

Desktop usage should not even get to a single GB, without factoring caching (already enabled) in, even with multiple documents open, surfing the web with dozens of tabs, music playing in the background, etc.

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ImageMagick nejauši foni — Plasma Gradients

May 9th, 2013

convert -size 1440×900 plasma:black-black black-black-1.png
convert -size 1440×900 plasma:black-black black-black-2.png

ImageMagick nejauši foni — Plasma Gradients – Karsta Dzelzs Laika Terminālis.

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Create Charts Online

April 30th, 2013

Create a graph online quickly.

ChartGo is a graph maker tool. Simply follow these steps; pick your settings, paste your data and click the create button. That’s it. For additional chart setting options, visit each chart type in the menu section on the left. You can also use existing graphs by clicking on the graph examples section.

ChartGo – Online Graphing Fast, Easy and Free

Example:

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Kubuntu Photos and Graphics

April 25th, 2013

Manage and edit your photos, create stunning 3D drawings and graphics, or convert between formats.

Accessing a digital camera from the Dolphin file manager

• Plug in your digital camera to the USB port using the appropriate cord and make sure the camera is turned on.
• Start the Dolphin file manager.
• In the leftmost panel of the Dolphin file manager, mount the camera as a folder:

Dolphin -> <right-click> on the leftmost panel -> Add Entry… -> Label: Digital Camera

-> Location: camera:/

• Now you should be able to access the contents of the digital camera as a folder.

• It may be necessary to adjust the settings of the camera first (to be sure it is properly recognised):

K Menu -> Settings -> System Settings -> Digital Camera

GIMP (Image Manipulator)

Gimp is a powerful, full-featured, free open-source graphics and image editor, similar to Adobe Photoshop.

sudo apt-get install gimp

• There is an extra set of brushes, palettes, and gradients for The GIMP.

sudo apt-get install gimp-data-extras

• See these instructions to create an alpha transparency layer (transparent background) for any image using Gimp.

Gwenview (Image Manipulator)

Gwenview
is the quick image manipulator installed by default in Kubuntu (K menu
-> Graphics -> Gwenview Image Viewer). Simple cut-and-paste,
resizing, and format conversion are some of the graphics files
manipulations that can be accomplished. Install:

sudo apt-get install gwenview

Krita (Painting and Drawing)

Krita
is a drawing and painting program that is part of the KOffice suite of
applications. It has many of the functions of Gimp. Install:

sudo apt-get install krita

Adding Text to Images with Krita

Krita -> Add Shape: Text -> (Resize and position shape
box) -> Double-click on the newly created shape box to bring up the
Text Tool

Dia (Diagram editor)

Dia is a free open source GTK-based diagram creation program for Gnome (but can be used in KDE). It is similar to Visio.

sudo apt-get install dia

Kivio (Diagram editor)

Kivio is an open source flow-chart and diagram creation program that is part of the KOffice Suite for KDE. It supports Dia stencils.

sudo apt-get install kivio

Inkscape Vector Illustrator

Inkscape Vector Illustrator is an open source drawing program similar to Illustrator and CorelDraw.

sudo apt-get install inkscape

Digikam (Photo Organiser)

Digikam
is a comprehensive open source digital photo organiser and editor for
KDE. It is installed by default in Kubuntu. If not, you can install it:

sudo apt-get install digikam kipi-plugins digikam-doc

Google Picasa (Photo Organiser)

Google Picasa is a photo editor and organiser similar to Digikam. It allows uploads to a Google web server for online exchange.
For more info, see the Picasa for Linux FAQ. A self-installing .deb file is available at Picasa 2.7 downloads.

Tesseract (Optical Character Reader)

Tesseract is a command-line optical character reader. Install:

sudo apt-get install tesseract-ocr

Ocropus is a document-analysis engine that uses Tesseract. Install:

sudo apt-get install ocropus

Cuneiform (Optical Character Reader)

Cuneiform is an optical character reader. Install (multiverse repositories must be enabled):

sudo apt-get install cuneiform

• Pdfocr is a tool to use Cuneiform for OCR and then to add the resulting text file layer back to the PDF file to make it searchable.

YAGF (Cuneiform/Tesseract GUI)

YAGF is a Qt-based GUI for Cuneiform, Tesseract, and/or XSane. Installation can be from a Debian (.deb) package from GetDeb (see these instructions as well) or by compiling from source downloaded from the original site. (Qt 4.7 or later, already part of Raring, is required on your system).

Xsane (Scanning utility)

Xsane is a full-featured scanning utility. Install:

sudo apt-get install xsane

Some users report a “SANE: Error during device I/O” error with HP multifunction printers.
This is a bug
If experiencing this problem:

sudo nano /var/log/User.log

If it includes a line that references the file “libhpmud.so” such as this example:

scanimage: scan/sane/soapht.c 67: unable to load restricted library: libhpmud.so: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory

Then try creating the following symlink to fix the issue:

sudo /bin/ln -s /usr/lib/libhpmud.so.0 /usr/lib/libhpmud.so

Gnome-Scan (Scanning Utility)

Gnome-Scan is a simple utility for scanning (still in alpha stage). Install:

sudo apt-get install gnomescan

OpenClipart (ClipArt Library)

OpenClipart
is a utility to provide access to a large library of free PNG, SVG, and
OpenOffice clipart. It includes a utility for OpenOffice Gallery. Files
are installed to /usr/share/clipart. Install:

sudo apt-get install openclipart

It is also possible to only install a single collection (openclipart-png, openclipart-svg, or openclipart-openoffice.org) in case you don’t want the entire collection (or the utilities). For example:

sudo apt-get install openclipart-png

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GIMP vs Photoshop

April 25th, 2013

Adobe Photoshop is the industry leading graphic design program, proprietorially developed by Adobe Systems, while the GNU Image Manipulation Program
is a gratis and free (as in freedom) alternative. Photoshop costs from
$400-$600 depending on the version and the customer’s eligibility for
discounts. The GIMP on its own is an adequate image editor, but it pales
in comparison Adobe Photoshop.

Memory Usage

The memory usage of the two programs largely depends on what they are
being used for, 3D rendering in Photoshop will consume more memory than
GIMP rendering lens flare filters. A general rule of thumb is that
photoshop will consume more resources because of it’s stylized UI and
more resource intensive filter rendering mechanisms. Photoshop has
supported GPU acceleration since CS4 (Version 11.0), released October
2008. GIMP gained GPU acceleration in 2.81_rc1, released April 2012.
Thus Photoshop’s GPU acceleration is more refined and effecient.

Features

When it comes to features, Photoshop beats GIMP but GIMP still has
most of the features Photoshop has. Aside from the dozens of brushes,
filters, and other features, Photoshop’s Extension framework and it’s
large user base provide a plethora of additional features. GIMP also has
a plugin framework it has many plugins and will soon support Photoshop
plugins making it have even more plugins than Photoshop.

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Ubuntu vs Windows

April 23rd, 2013

Since Windows is sold with almost every PC, it is logically the number one operating system operated by most consumers. The result is that more malware, viruses, and Trojans are developed for Windows. Linux users are usually much savvier when it comes to general computer use.

Linux has been used on servers for a near decade and was a target to very sophisticated malware and a lot was learned from this constant beating; Linux security is very tried-and-true nature. The source of Linux is open and shared, making collective patching and inspection as easy as it gets and allowing 2 hours reaction speed between detection of malware and release of a patch (see Debian). Windows users will have to rely on antivirus updates to keep their machine somewhat protected, until Microsoft or a responsible company release a patch (if ever). This is also one of the reasons that desktop Linux-based OS, such as Ubuntu, usually does not need any firewalling.

Antivirus companies do not exist without hackers producing malware. There has been speculation that Windows security is intentionally low, and that antivirus companies promote this supposed lack of security to better suit their own agendas. Of course, Ubuntu (and all Linux-based operating systems) is not immune to computer viruses, as is evidenced by the implementation of such free Antivirus software programs as ClamAV. Ubuntu does offer the advantage of having far fewer viruses and malware that can run on it. This is mainly due to two reasons: 1) Ubuntu is a Linux distribution, which inherently has enhanced security measures, and 2) There are far fewer users operating Linux-based operating systems. Naturally, hackers will target the operating systems that have the largest user base. The main short-coming for most average Linux users is that they do not run any antivirus software at all – either paid or otherwise. This in itself could increase the chances of those said users to be able to harbor or become victims of malware – or both. Additionally, as the Linux user base increases, the community could potentially see an increase in malware available for Linux-based platforms.

Antivirus software relies mostly on heuristic methods to determine whether the software in question is dangerous. These methods are highly unreliable. They also use virtual machines and virtual execution and analysis before actual execution, this however, is no-saver as modern malware can obfuscate, mutate and update itself on its own.

Linux has very deep, yet simple and efficient file rights management out of the box and additional restriction mechanisms available. Windows started implementing the same technique starting with Windows 2000, but even today its security model is weak.

Linux has “ability to be executed” as access parameter and utilizes NX (no execute) together with memory address randomization (where available) very efficiently, where Windows relies only on NX and file MIME types to determine if file is executive (very often mistaking and executing “pictures”! See 2010-3970 as the most recent entry).

Ubuntu software is updated centrally and automatically, making the application of security patches centralized. In the past, Windows users were required to search for and install the latest security patches themselves. There have, however, been improvements in this area as Windows Update was redesigned for Windows Vista and Windows 7. Many third-party software vendors have also increased their update features, but this still leaves a large margin for error, as Windows updates and third-party software updates cannot be managed from one centralized location. Due to the central and open nature of FOSS development, it is very unlikely any malware can make it into the repository. Be aware however, that closed source software, which is also available for Linux (such as Adobe Flash) has a long history of un-patched vulnerabilities. Updating both OS’s and using extensions, such as NoScript is useful for both.

The Linux kernel binary interface is more unstable than that of Windows. This leads to situation, where with change of kernel compiler, system C library and its version – all binaries must be recompiled or they will break. Windows however has been trying to maintain compatibility with older revisions and APIs for years. Because of this, infecting Windows by exploiting errors is MUCH easier. Windows also has a LOT more old crap and bloat in form of outdated libraries. Still, the compatibility with legacy on Windows is not that great (but its non-existent on Linux, either application is maintained or it will eventually disappear because of breaking).

Windows software usually costs much more than of Linux equivalents. As such, many people illegally download Windows software and many crackers integrate malware deeply within their releases, making such Windows machines a “zombie” (part of botnet) as soon as such software is installed.

Because Windows has been primary desktop platform for years, Windows has the most software available. However, if only the newest or most up-to-date software is considered, the value will be lower, but still will beat Ubuntu, Gaming was one that areas, but now this situation change a lot with Steam for Linux.

The most drastic difference was in Gaming, where Microsoft has been pushing and polishing its DirectX exactly for the purpose of games to relate on its Windows-only technology than on feature-comparable crossplatform OpenGL. This is however again changing, due to OpenGL availability for smartphones(android), consoles (ps3) and Macs. Apart from it, the project exists to make free implementation of Windows API available on Linux and Unix systems making running of Windows-only software at near native speed possible (See WINE). Ubuntu is OpenGL capable, has increasing number of games and is capable to run at least 2/3 of Windows-only titles via WINE, 1/2 of them perfectly. Sometimes even better than on Windows. With Steam for Linux, chipmakers also start to build better graphics drivers for Linux, since Valve plan to launch a SteamBox using Linux.

The current area where Linux lacks software choice is Flash editing. Adobe, the authors of Flash, refuse to provide any Flash productivity suite for Linux. Perhaps, Flash are becoming obsolete very fast with HTML5 and Javascript occupying the place. One good example and move to put out flash, was Apple not supporting flash in iPad.

As application development platform however Linux software choice is larger than that of Windows.

Overall amount of software for Ubuntu should be more than enough for its use as Desktop OS. Most of software, unlike on Windows, is free and usually opensource.

Ubuntu does not need its drives defragmented (except using non-extX based FS), it does not need any special tuning, software installation is done very quickly and from one place, its kept on current status automatically, the system overall is very predictable.

Windows does require more maintenance time and much more setup time.

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Content languages for websites

April 5th, 2013

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AV-TEST – The Independent IT-Security Institute: Home

April 5th, 2013

05th April 2013.

26 of the latest anti-virus programs were recently put to the test by the independent experts in the AV-TEST laboratory. The conclusion: All of the programs did well and were awarded the AV-TEST certificate when used with Windows 8.

via AV-TEST – The Independent IT-Security Institute: Home.

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Linux Desktop Docks

August 3rd, 2012

Docky

is an advanced shortcut bar that sits at the edges of your screen.

It provides easy access to some of the files, folders and applications on your computer, displays which applications are currently running, holds windows in their minimized state and more.
A full fledged dock application that makes opening common applications and managing windows easier and quicker. Docky is fully integrated into the GNOME Desktop and features a no nonsense approach to configuration and usage.  It just works.

Docky provides an application launcher, running application management, and various “docklets” including a CPU monitor, weather report and clock. It is similar to other docks such as AWN and cairo-dock.

Applications can integrate with Docky to add extra items to their context menus or modify their icons to display more information. This package includes integration helpers for a number of applications, including Banshee, Rhythmbox, Deluge, Tomboy and Zeitgeist.

Docky is derived from the GNOME Do “docky” interface.

Elegant, powerful, clean dock.

 

Cairo-Dock

is a pretty, light and convenient interface to your desktop,
able to replace advantageously your system panel!
It features multi-docks, taskbar, launchers and a lot of useful applets. Applets can be detached from the dock to act as desktop widgets. Numerous ready-to-use themes are downloadable in 1 click, and can be easily
customized at your convenience.
It can use hardware acceleration to be very fast and low on CPU.

Some screenshots are available : http://pics.glx-dock.org

Development site : https://launchpad.net/cairo-dock

Cairo-Dock is probably the best dock available for the Linux desktop environment.

Avant Window Navigator

Avant-window-navigator (Awn) is a MacOS X like panel for the GNOME Desktop written in C. In addition to launchers that can be dragged onto the bar, it features a taskbar that behaves similarly to the Mac OSX dock. The window navigator uses the composite extension for transparency and other effects.

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Linux text editors

December 8th, 2010

Free Linux text and code editors.

Gedit

Website: http://projects.gnome.org/gedit/

gedit is the official text editor of the GNOME desktop environment.

gedit is a text editor which supports most standard editor features, extending this basic functionality with other features not usually found in simple text editors. gedit is a graphical application which supports editing multiple text files in one window (known sometimes as tabs or MDI).

gedit fully supports international text through its use of the Unicode UTF-8 encoding in edited files. Its core feature set includes syntax highlighting of source code, auto indentation and printing and print preview support.

gedit is also extensible through its plugin system, which currently includes support for spell checking, comparing files, viewing CVS ChangeLogs, and adjusting indentation levels.

Screenshots:

Kate

Website: http://www.kde.org/applications/utilities/kate/

Kate is a multi-document, multi-view text editor for KDE. It features stuff like codefolding, syntaxhighlighting, dynamic word wrap, an embedded console, an extensive plugin interface and some prelimentary scripting support.

With a built-in terminal, syntax highlighting, and tabbed sidebar, it performs as a lightweight but capable development environment. Kate’s many tools, plugins, and scripts make it highly customizable.

Screenshots:

LeafPad

Website: http://tarot.freeshell.org/leafpad/

Leafpad is a simple GTK+ based text editor, the user interface is similar to Notepad. It aims to be lighter than GEdit and KWrite, and to be as useful as them.

Screenshots:

Mousepad

Website: http://www.xfce.org/projects/mousepad/

Mousepad is a graphical text editor for Xfce based on Leafpad.

The initial reason for Mousepad was to provide printing support, which would have been difficult for Leafpad for various reasons.

Screenshots:

Geany

Website: http://www.geany.org/

Geany is a small and lightweight Integrated Development Environment. It was developed to provide a small and fast IDE, which has only a few dependencies from other packages. Another goal was to be as independent as possible from a special Desktop Environment like KDE or GNOME – Geany only requires the GTK2 runtime libraries.

Screenshots:

Cream

Website: http://cream.sourceforge.net/

Cream‘s motto is “Cream makes the powerful Vim text editor easy!”. It brings a completely different look and feel to the VIM for those who are used to more intuitive editors while still preserving the more powerful features of VIM. It features pull-down menus, color themes, bookmarking, auto spellcheck and more. It leaves the default VIM untouched and is started by running ‘cream’.

Screenshots:

Emacs

Website: http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/

GNU Emacs is an extensible, customizable text editor—and more. At its core is an interpreter for Emacs Lisp, a dialect of the Lisp programming language with extensions to support text editing. The features of GNU Emacs include:

Screenshots:

Vim

Website: http://www.vim.org/

Vim is a highly configurable text editor built to enable efficient text editing. It is an improved version of the vi editor distributed with most UNIX systems.

Vim is often called a “programmer’s editor,” and so useful for programming that many consider it an entire . It’s not just for programmers, though. Vim is perfect for all kinds of text editing, from composing email to editing configuration files.

Screenshots:

nano

Website: http://www.nano-editor.org/

GNU nano is an easy-to-use, small, friendly text editor originally designed as a replacement for Pico, the ncurses-based editor from the non-free mailer package Pine (itself now available under the Apache License as Alpine).

Screenshots:

SciTE

 

Website: http://scintilla.org/SciTE.html

SciTE – GTK-based Programming with syntax highlighting support for many languages. Also supports folding sections, exporting highlighted text  into colored HTML and RTF.

Lightweight GTK-based Programming Editor.

Screenshots:

Bluefish

Website: http://bluefish.openoffice.nl/

Bluefish is a GTK+ HTML editor for the experienced web designer. Its features include nice wizards for startup, tables and frames; a fully featured image insert dialog; thumbnail creation and automatically linking of the thumbnail with the original image; and configurable  HTML syntax highlighting.

For validation to work you need weblint and xmllint. For preview to work, you need a web browser that can view local files given to it on the command line.

Screenshots:

Winefish

Website: http://winefish.berlios.de/

Winefish is a GTK+ based LaTeX editor, which was forked from Bluefish. The main features are autotext, auto-completion, function references, syntax highlighting, customizable external tools and UTF-8 support.

Screenshots:

KWrite

Website: http://www.kde.org/applications/utilities/kwrite/

KWrite is the KDE 4 simple text editor. It uses the Kate editor component, so it supports powerful features such as flexible syntax highlighting, automatic indentation, and numerous other text tools.

Screenshots:

Bless

Website: http://home.gna.org/bless/

Bless is a binary (hex) editor, a program that enables you to edit files as a sequence of bytes written for the GNOME Desktop.

Screenshots:

Okteta

Website: http://utils.kde.org/projects/okteta/

Okteta is a simple editor for the raw data of files. This type of program is also called hexadecimal editor or binary editor. The data is displayed in the traditional view with two columns: one with the numeric values and one with the assigned characters. Editing can be done both in the value column and the character column. Besides the usual editing capabilities Okteta also brings a small set of tools, like a table listing decodings into common simple data types, a table listing all possible bytes with its character and value equivalents, a info view with a statistic and a filter tool. All modifications to the data loaded can be endlessly undone or redone.

Screenshots:

…

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