Moblin beta 2.0.

Moblin is another take on a cloud-based operative system, at least aiming at keeping the user updated with status-updates from social media (Last FM and Twitter currently supported in beta 2.0). Moblin presumably stands for Mobile Linux, which essentially is what the OS is trying to achieve. An easy, intuitive, and user-friendly operative system mainly aimed at the netbook genre of computers. It’s currently in beta and open to anyone who wants to give it a try (netbooks preferred).

I’m running Moblin beta 2.0 on a Asus EEE PC 1000 (SSD version) and it tackles it pretty well thus not being listed under supported hardware. The only quirk I am having directly linked to the hardware is toggling of wireless/bluetooth with the function-key, as I’ve also had with Ubuntu, Mint, Jolicloud and Debian, it seems like a issue with drivers or the kernel itself.

My first thoughts on the OS itself was “Wow, this looks amazing and seems very intuitive! Can this really be Linux?”, I’m happy to see newer Linux distros (take Mint and Jolicloud as good examples) stand out a bit from the standard dull interface most Linux distributions has going.

To be honest I am unsure exactly what Moblin is based on, but I think it is the Redhat package management (RPM for short), GNOME desktop management (GDM for short), and several all-round libraries. I’m not used to Redhat, I’ve only used Debian-based distributions myself and I must admit that the Linux platform is a thick and uncharted jungle for me, there’s just too much to choose from and too much to troubleshoot. To be honest the Linux camp still has a long way to go as far as a user-friendly and easy desktop OS for a new computer user goes. That thought surely is saddening, something I hope the upcoming Google Chrome OS will help solve.

But let’s get back to giving you a small overview of how Moblin handles, how it looks, and acts.

The Moblin interface itself consists of a tab-based taskbar of sorts. The taskbar consists of several tabs and information; on the left you’ll have the current time as well as the date, in the middle you’ll have the tabs (MyZone, Status, People, Internet, Media, Pasteboard, Applications, and Zones), and on the right you have settings for power (brightness and battery status), volume (volume status, mute on/off), and connections (wifi, 3g, bluetooth, as well as network status).

Moblin – MyZone

Click the image for a larger version. Flickr version with notes.

MyZone is what you’ll be greeted with when you boot up the OS. A welcome-screen of sorts, showing your recently browsed media-files, internet-pages, Twitter/Last FM updates, calendar tasks, to-do tasks, as well as your favorite applications (currently limited to eight (8) applications).

Moblin – Status

Click the image for a larger version.

This is the Status tab in the Moblin dashboard. If you’ve connected the web services (Twitter and Last FM) to your status tab you should see your recent updates as shown above. The status tab is basically a quick overview of your currently connected chat-accounts and social-media profiles. This is also the place where you can update your Twitter status.

Moblin – People

Click the image for a larger version.

Here you have the People tab – this is a dashboard that allows you to search through your contact-list (If you’re connected to any IM account in the Instant Messenger application) and engage in either single or group chats, nice and easy.

Moblin – Internet

Click the image for a larger version

This is the Internet tab of the dasboard. Here you’re greeted with a simple search-bar in the top (taking use of your preferred search engine), currently open tabs (if the browser is running in the background) as well as your most-visited websites (currently supporting eight (8) entries). I like the browser in Moblin, but it is still quite quirky for some features (Java, Flash, to mention a few things) as well as missing some features and options available in the larger browsers such as Mozilla Firefox or Opera. I am sure the guys behind this distribution will get to the browser and fix it up.

Moblin – Media

Click the image for a larger version.

This is the Media tab in the dashboard. It provides the user with a list of recently browsed media files (video, audio, and images) as well as showing you a quick playlist. You’re also given a search bar which searches your home folder for supported media files. I’m not sure exactly which formats the media player supports, but I’ve had trouble playing .mp3 files, so it’s not fully functional as of beta 2.0.

Moblin – Media Browser

Click the image for a larger version.

Following the Media tab you have the Media Browser, the file browser in Moblin is actually Nautilus with heavy modifications as you probably can see. The Media Browser provides the user with a easy and intuitive file browser with a zoom-function which scales viewable content up and down ranging from thumbnails and folder-structure to full blown previews of the content itself.

Moblin – Pasteboard

This is a nifty feature (sorry, I didn’t include a screenshot for this tab), it’s another tab in the Moblin dashboard, giving the user a history of his/her clipboard (copied text) where the user can manage current copied items, such as copy text from earlier history. Webadresses are made into hyperlinks, so you can save adresses you’ve been to in your internet browser and pick them up later, for example.

Moblin – Applications

Click the image for a larger version

Next up is the Application tab. This one pretty much explains itself, but it’s like the Control Panel in Windows, giving you a overview of applications and settings. Installed applications are automatically categorized into familiar categories; Accessories, Games, Internet, Media, Office, and Settings. You can also pin down applications/settings, making the selected item a favorite and thus showing up in MyZone as a favorite application (This list is currently (beta 2.0) restricted to eight (8) items).

Moblin – Zones

Click the image for a larger version.

The Zones tab is pretty much like multiple desktop support in for example Ubuntu. This is handled automagically by Moblin, when your current zone is too cluttered, Moblin will initiate another Zone to show the window in. When you alt-tab between windows you’ll notice that this is also handled by the Zones tab. It’s pretty cool.

Moblin – Connections

Click the image for a larger version.

The Connections tab is what you’ll check when you want to connect to either a local or a wireless network. It’s pretty much like the network setting or tray item in any other OS. You’ll have a list of discovered WLAN connections, as well as a manager for turning on/off functions like wireless and 3G. Moblin also provides Offline Mode for when you want privacy and want no connection at all. The two other tabs on the left side is Power-settings and Volume-control.

How to install Java on Ubuntu.

Open up a terminal (Alt+F2, type gnome-terminal) and write

sudo apt-get install sun-java6-jre sun-java6-plugin sun-java6-fonts

#Enter your sudo password

Note: Each line in the quote is a unique line in the terminal, so write them and enter them separately. The #Text is a comment, do what it states.

Once it downloads the packages and begins the installation you will get a screen that contains the Sun Operating System Distributor License for Java. Press Enter to continue. You’ll see a message that asks if you agree with the DLJ license terms. Select Yes, and press Enter; the JRE will finish installing.

You’ll want to confirm that your system is configured properly for Sun’s JRE. Here’s how you do that.

First, check that the JRE is properly installed by running the following command from a terminal (alt+F2 and type gnome-terminal).

java -version

You should get similar output

java version “1.6.0_14″
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.6.0_14-b08)
Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 14.0-b16, mixed mode, sharing)

Second, check that Java works properly with your preferred browser.

Open your browser and head over to Sun’s “Do I have Java” webpage. For Firefox you can alternatively write about:plugins in the adress-bar and see if the Java plug-in is enabled.

You should now have Java functioning on your computer.

How to install Adobe Reader 9 on Ubuntu.

Browse over to Adobe’s download page for Adobe Reader. Download the .bin to your desktop.

Open up a terminal (Alt+F2, type gnome-terminal) and write

cd /home/YourUser/Desktop

sudo chmod +x AdbeRdr9.1.2-1_i486linux_enu.bin

#Enter your sudo password

sudo ./AdbeRdr9.1.2-1_i486linux_enu.bin

#You may need to enter your sudo password once more

Note: Each line in the quote is a unique line in the terminal, so write them and enter them separately. The #text is a comment, don’t write it in your terminal, do as the comment states.

The package will now extract the installation files needed for the setup.

You’ll have to show the installer where it should put Adobe Reader. I installed Adobe Reader under /opt/AdobeReader.

Adobe Reader should now be installed and working properly on your computer.

Jolicloud – the cloud based OS.

If you’re into the Linux-scene you’ve might heard about Jolicloud, a cloud based OS  on Ubuntu (Linux). Sort of like what Google are aiming for with their Chrome OS, an OS relying heavily on connectivity through internet.

The team (Tariq Krim, Romain Huet, and Tristan Groléat) behind Jolicloud have just started sending out roughly one thousand (that’s 1000) invites every day until they’re satisfied with the userbase. The invites will be sent out according to when you registered. If you’re interested in getting a preview of the OS you can sign up and hope for an invitation.

Once you get an invitation, this is how you install Jolicloud

Note: This is an alpha product. It still has bugs and not every feature works. If you are not sure, wait for the beta.

Find a 1GB (or more) USB-drive. Plug it into your computer and follow the relevant instruction on how to make it Jolicloud bootable.

Instructions on how to set up a bootable USB-pendrive for Jolicloud.

Plug the USB-drive into your laptop of choice (netbooks recommended) and boot it up. Make sure you’ve enabled USB-boot in the BIOS, and change the boot priority. Once the Jolicloud boot menu pops up you can either choose to have a look at Jolicloud without installing it (can install it within the live-preview) or choose to install it directly. Continue through the self-explained installation of Jolicloud until it’s finished. If you’re familiar with installing Ubuntu, then installing Jolicloud is more or less exactly the same.

What makes Jolicloud “different” from all the other Linux distributions? Well, one feature would be that it’s heavily based on running applications through the web via a web-interface of sorts. But it can also run applications offline as any normal OS would be able to. Jolicloud is simply a UI that places itself on top of Ubuntu, with the same package manager and base. It uses Maximus to scale windows into full-screen and it uses a Netbook-Remix menu with tabs for applications (e.g. Accessories, Graphics, Internet, Office, Sound & Video, Preferences, Administration) along with a internet-based portal for applications, notifications, and social updates. All wrapped up in a very good looking package while being simple to use.

Right then, my impressions and first thoughts of Jolicloud (mind you, it’s in alpha).

First things first – Bluetooth, Wireless, OSD,  some functions-keys (but not the preferred wireless/bluetooth-key) and additional keys on my Asus EEE 1000 (SSD model) works out of the box. Which is a fantastic feeling just that, not having to clutter around with troubleshooting and sleepless nights to get the basic functions on your laptop to work. I’m not going to blame Linux for this, but that is where I’ve had these kind of problems.

Login screen

First thing you’ll see when you boot up your laptop after installing, is a slick, minimalistic and simple login screen with the simplistic Jolicloud-logo and branding along with the typical login-interface and options of Ubuntu.

Jolicloud Login Screen – Slick, simple, and minimalistic.
Click the image for a larger version

Jolicloud Netbook Remix Desktop

After you log in you’ll see the netbook remix menu. Which is a simple and easy-to-understand menu covering the whole screen. If you’ve tried Ubuntu-EEE or Xandros you know what I’m talking about. To get the Jolicloud UI up and running you can either click the cloud-icon in the tray or the Get Started icon (up to the right, or in the favorites tab) and connect with the account you created through Jolicloud. The Jolicloud UI is created with a platform called Prism (a interface for web applications), and most of the applications you can install through this UI run straight from the internet through Prism. Twitter for example, is basically the Twitter webpage in a full-page window.

Jolicloud Netbook Interface – using the netbook remix menu.
Click the image for a larger version.

As you can see from the menu above you’re presented with a set of tabs for respective applications. The picture display the Internet tab, in the main window you can see which applications I have installed and that are available to me, most of these applications have been installed through the Jolicloud UI (screenshot further down). Clicking either one of these applications brings up a full-screen window of the application itself. Some applications run directly in the Prism interface, which means you need internet-connectivity to run them (for example Twitter, Facebook, Gmail, and Wolfram Alpha).

Jolicloud Dashboard

Jolicloud Dashboard – using Prism to give the user a slick and clean interface.
Click the image for a larger version.

Here’s the dashboard of the Jolicloud UI – this is where you can see the latest updates for your computer, the latest modifications you’ve done on the system (like installing/uninstalling applications, changing notes in your profile, and so on), change your Jolicloud profile as well as following other Jolicloud users and see what they install or remove from their computers (note: It’s currently only the Jolicloud UI that is monitored in a way like this, you still have privacy through for example apt-get).

Jolicloud Application Manager

Jolicloud Applications – Installing applications is easy with Jolicloud.
Click the image for a larger version.

Still showing the Jolicloud UI (or Dashboard). Here’s the application manager, a very nice and simple way to keep track of newly added applications for the system, and it’s just as simple to remove them (One click to install, one click to remove, what more can Windows users ask for?). Categorized in different tabs for your amusement.

All in all I really like the simplicity that the OS puts out for the user. It gives the user a simple and easy-to-understand experience. Combine the intuitive Netbook Remix menu with the Prism-powered Jolicloud UI where you can install several applications in a few amount of clicks and keep up to date with updates and notifications – you have a solid OS, much like how I think Google’s Chrome OS will present itself. Seeing as the OS runs on Ubuntu (Linux), you have everything from Ubuntu available on the OS as well, such as a large amount of offline applications through the synaptic package manager, if you’re afraid that the whole cloud thing and being dependant on internet will kill it for you.

The progress behind Jolicloud can be followed on IRC (#jolicloud at irc.freenode.net), Twitter, and Facebook. Support can be found through GetSatisfaction and Jolisupport.

Here’s a valid beta invitation. First come, first served basis.

How to install Adobe AIR on Ubuntu 8.10.

Browse over to Adobe’s download page for the AIR platform. Download the .bin to your desktop.

Open up a terminal (Alt+F2, type gnome-terminal) and write

cd /home/YourUser/Desktop

sudo chmod +x AdobeAIRInstaller.bin

#Enter your sudo password

./AdobeAIRInstaller.bin

Note: Each line in the quote is a unique line in the terminal, so write them and enter them separately. The #Text is a comment, do what it states.

That should pretty much be it, Adobe AIR will now install correctly. If you want to install applications, look for Adobe AIR Application Installer under Applications -> Accesories in your Gnome Menu. To get you started, if you enjoy using Twitter, take a look at TweetDeck, a good looking and well organized desktop application that uses the Adobe AIR platform.

Posted in All, Computer, How To Tagged: Adobe, Adobe AIR, How To, Install, Linux, Ubuntu, Ubuntu 8.10 ]]> http://skarh.wordpress.com/2009/04/08/adobe-air-on-ubuntu/feed/ 0 Sheel http://skarh.wordpress.com/2008/10/08/ubuntu-terminal-within-the-desktop/ http://skarh.wordpress.com/2008/10/08/ubuntu-terminal-within-the-desktop/#comments Wed, 08 Oct 2008 19:54:14 +0000 Sheel http://skarh.wordpress.com/?p=132 ]]>

Terminal integrated with your desktop, through Devil’s Pie.

As earlier stated in my changelog, I wanted to show you how the gnome terminal can be integrated right onto your desktop (Instead of popping up in a window). How this is done is through virtual transparency and several small tweaks to remove “unneeded” graphic like the menubar, titlebar and scroll. It’s all done through an application called Devil’s Pie.

I suppose saying you can run the terminal “with” the desktop would be to lie, as you can’t really communicate with the desktop, Devil’s Pie creates an invisible overlay for the preferred application (In this case that would be terminal), which unable for example right-clicking to bring up the right-click menu on the desktop and it hides any files/icons showing on the work-space you run the terminal in.

I’ve taken bolts and bits from different web-pages and blogs to create what in my opinion and need is helpful, easy to understand and fairly (hopefully) easy to re-enable if the need ever be.

Here is what you need to do

Create a new terminal profile for your desktop-terminal

Open terminal (Alt+F2 gnome-terminal) >
Edit – Profiles > New > Profile name: NameOfTerminal (I name mine DesktopConsole, I will use this name later in this how-to, so remember to change the name with your own if you go another way) > Base on – Default
General tab – Uncheck Show menubar by default in new terminals
Title and command tab – Change initial title to YourInitialTitle (I name mine “DesktopConsole”, I will use this name later on in the how-to, remember to change the name with your own)
Color tab – Edit this to your own likings, I use “White on black” and transparency to 100% since this suits my needs with my current wallpaper the best
Scrolling tab – Disable the scrollbar

Now close the edit profile and profile windows, let the terminal run.

Download and install Devilspie

As Devilspie resides within Ubuntu’s repository you only need one line written into the terminal  sudo apt-get install devilspie

Create a hidden devilspie folder in your home directory, this is done through terminal – mkdir ~/.devilspie now you need to create a script that devilspie will gather information on how to base your terminal-window from gedit (or nano) ~/.devilspie/DesktopConsole.ds

You should now have a open gedit (or nano) window named DesktopConsole.ds. Paste the following code into the document
# Are comments done by me for this how to, remove them in the actual script. /start and /stop indicates the script. Copy the text after /start and before /stop.

/start
(if
(matches (window_name) “DesktopConsole”) # Change “DesktopConsole” if you rename
(begin
(set_workspace 4) # I use set_workspace 1
(below)
(undecorate)
(skip_pager)
(skip_tasklist)
(wintype “utility”)
(geometry “450×350+795+605″) # More about geometry here
)
)
/stop

Save the document (If in nano you save (Overwrite) with Ctrl+O and exit with Ctrl+X)

Make Devilspie and terminal to run on startup

Open Sessions (System > Preferences > Sessions)

Click Add
Name: devilspie (Or add whatever you want to, just to remember what this process is)
Command: devilspie
Description: Describe the process as you want

Click Add
Name: Terminal (Or add what you prefer, just make sure it comes prioritized after devilspie, so the name has to start with a later letter in the alphabet)
Command: gnome-terminal –window-with-profile=DesktopConsole (Double – before window, profile name must be the same as the terminal-profile you created)
Description: Describe the process as you want

You’re done now, restart your computer to see the terminal integrated with your desktop. You can quickly restart X by doing Ctrl + Alt + Backspace.

You can change the color and window-settings in the terminal-profile to suit your needs. If you ever for example use a light background, you should use darker colors on the terminal and vice versa. There’s tons of commands and manuals on how devilspie works over at the devilspie wiki.

I’ve referred to Ryan’s (Known as ://) Terminal on Your Desktop and LinuxHaxor.net’s Configurating Linux Terminal to Work as a Transparent Wallpaper as well as the Devilspie wiki.

Ubuntu 8.10 codename Intrepid Ibex coming out in November.

It’s sought out to be one of the more user-friendly and kind Linux distributions. With a simple look yet elegant, very customizable and easy adding or removal of applications, updates and whatever the normal user would use his or her computer for.  Ubuntu is in my opinion one of the best OSes out there for a normal PC-user, it’s even free!

Current build is 8.0.4 and you can still see that Ubuntu struggles with coming through to the real masses, it’s still a bit complex and difficult to deal with if you encounter problems. Most of Ubuntu’s/Linux’s user-base are average computers users and people who are familiar with troubleshooting and fixing problems on their own/with help from the internet.

Have no fear though, Canonical behind Ubuntu and a lot of people in the community are constantly evolving, tailoring and updating the operative system to be what you need and want it to be, whatever you may want. One of the truly great benefits with doing anything open source is that it is fairly open, more or less. So if you decide to create something or you have trouble with something, the chances are you’ll easily find someone who can make it or fix it for you.

Anyhow, this post is not about how good I think Ubuntu is, it’s about what’s new and very nice in the upcoming Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex release.

I’ve encountered small problems like trouble with connecting/setting up LAN, WLAN, digital tablets, MP3-players, cellphones and so on. I myself have no problems troubleshooting and sorting stuff out myself, but most desktop systems should positively be easy to use by mostly anyone, on top of that you can customize and setup the stuff you want for your more average and experienced feeling.  These problems are however looked at and being fixed in the 8.10 release, something I think is tremendous, it’s surely needed by now, hotplug support has been missing out since the first days of Ubuntu.

The following is quoted directly from Ubuntu’s 8.10 alpha page.

GNOME 2.23.91

Ubuntu brings you the newest GNOME 2.23.91 desktop environment with tons of bug-fixes and new features, some of which include:

• Nautilus file manager has tab support (by Christian Neumair) and Eject icons for removable drives in Places sidebar (by Stefano Teso, Cosimo Cecchi, Christian Neumair, and others).

• File Roller archive manager now supports ALZ, RZIP, CAB, TAR.7Z file types also (by Paolo Bacchilega and Changwoo Ryu).

X.Org server 7.4

X.Org 7.4, the latest stable version of X.Org, is available in Intrepid. This release brings much better support for hot-pluggable input devices such as tablets, keyboards, and mice. At the same time this will allow the great majority of users to run without a /etc/X11/xorg.conf file.

Linux kernel 2.6.27

The kernel team is evaluating use of Linux kernel 2.6.27 for Ubuntu 8.10, which is included in Intrepid Alpha 6 as part of this evaluation process. This is a significant release with better hardware and numerous bug-fixes which is believed will provide overall improvement for Ubuntu 8.10. Regressions in 2.6.27 should be reported to the Ubuntu kernel team via https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux.

Encrypted private directory

The ecryptfs-utils package was recently promoted to Ubuntu main, with support for an secret encrypted folder in your Home Folder.

You can help test this new feature, by going Applications → Accessories → Terminal and typing:

• sudo aptitude install ecryptfs-utils

• ecryptfs-setup-private

Guest session

The User Switcher panel applet (package fast-user-switch-applet) now provides an extra entry for starting a Guest session. This creates a temporary password-less user account with restricted privileges: the account cannot access any users’ home directories, nor permanently store data. This is sufficiently safe to lend your laptop to someone else for a quick email check, or to use it as a surf station for guests in your house.

Network Manager 0.7

Intrepid Ibex ships Network Manager 0.7, which comes with long-expected features, such as:

• system wide settings (i.e., no need to log in in order to get a connection)
• management of 3G connections (GSM/CDMA)
• management of multiple active devices at once
• management of PPP and PPPOE connections
• management of devices with static IP configurations
• route management for devices

More information can be found on the Network Manager wiki.

“Last successful boot” recovery entry

On each successful boot, Intrepid will retain a copy of your running kernel and make it available from the boot loader as a “Last successful boot” option. This makes it possible for old kernel packages to be safely auto-removed by the package manager, instead of being kept indefinitely.

DKMS

DKMS is included in Alpha 6, allowing kernel drivers to be automatically rebuilt when new kernels are released. This makes it possible for kernel package updates to be made available immediately without waiting for rebuilds of driver packages, and without third-party driver packages becoming out of date when installing these kernel updates.

Samba 3.2

A lot of new features have been added in Samba 3.2 amongst them:

• clustered file server support
• encrypted network transport
• ipv6 support
• better integration with the latest version of Microsoft Windows™ clients and servers.

PAM authentication framework

Intrepid alpha-6 features a new pam-auth-update tool, which allows simple management of PAM authentication configuration for both desktops and servers. Packages providing PAM modules will be configured automatically, and users can adjust their authentication preferences by running sudo pam-auth-update.

More information can be found in the Ubuntu wiki.

As you probably can see, there’s lots of problems that are being fixed. Some of the most needed in my opinion are “X.org server 7.4″, “GNOME 2.23.91″, “Samba 3.2″ and “Network Manager 0.7″. Will surely fix a lot of the current “out of the box” feeling that misses, the network manager is especially nice for the rush of new netbooks hitting the market.

Citrix Presentation Server client/webclient on Ubuntu.
Use the following guide to properly install the Citrix Presentation Server client on Ubuntu under the GNOME environment (Build used in guide is Hardy Heron 8.0.4).

Legends:
[...] = Write/Input

Install OpenMotif 2.2.x – Open terminal (Alt+F2 and write [gnome-terminal]) – [sudo apt-get install libxaw6 libmotif3]
### Ubuntu 9.04 has replaced libxaw6 with libxaw7:
[sudo apt-get install libxaw7 libmotif3] – May be installed by default on most installations of Ubuntu 9.0.4. Thanks to Mick for commenting on that.

Download Citrix

Jump to the downloaded location - While in terminal [cd ~/Desktop] or jump to the location you downloaded the client to

Unpack the client > While in terminal [sudo tar xvfz en.linuxx86.tar.gz]

Start the installation > While in terminal [sudo ./setupwfc]

Install the ICA client > Follow the instructions given on screen – Use the defaults for a smooth installation, choose to integrate the client with GNOME/KDE

Quit the terminal > You now have a ICA client working with presentation servers in your local network

Use the following guide to properly install the webclient for Citrix, if you for example have a home office and need access to work through Citrix MetaframeXP.

Getting the right certificate > Open browser, go to GeoTrust Repository Root Certificates

Download the certificate > Choose the Root 1 certificate, “Download – Equifax Secure Certificate Authority” > Right-click and save as (Save this to preferred location, default is desktop)

Rename the certificate-format > Right-click and rename fileformat of the downloaded file – Edit the .CER to [.CRT] (Windows certification format)

Include the certificate in Citrix client > Move the certificate file to /usr/lib/ICAClient/keystore/cacerts

Close Firefox and reopen - Go to the website for your login and try – If you followed this guide point to point, it works

..and that’s it!

Current desktop on Ubuntu.

Theme: Clearlooks (stock), customized
Window Border: ThinMC, MetaCity
Icons: HighContrastInverse (stock), Hardy Heron
Wallpaper: Zen/White/Blur 1280×1024 from Mandolux.com
Fonts: Sans (stock)
Terminal: Gnome-Terminal (stock), customized profile
Irssi: Fear2 theme (Right-click > Save Page As)

That should be all, I really enjoy the dark and minimalistic feel of the desktop.
Seeing as I use one of the stock themes it scales very well with more or less any application (Firefox, Open Office and Gimp being the most important ones to me).

Enjoy!

MediaTomb on Ubuntu.

I recently talked about MediaTomb in a previous post, here is a basic guide to installing it, configuring it and adding files through the filesystem, all done on Ubuntu.

What is MediaTomb, you might ask.
MediaTomb is a mediaserver for Linux, it runs through UPnP. What it basically does is being a user-friendly web-interface for your mediaserver needs.

Installing MediaTomb
Depending on which release of Ubuntu you run on, for this guide I used Ubuntu 8.0.4 (Hardy Heron).

You can head over to MediaTomb’s official website to read further into downloading and installing on the distribution you run.

Seeing as the repositories for MediaTomb is already added to the sources in the newer releases of Ubuntu, we can simply install the application through ‘Applications>Add/Remove’ on the top-panel. However, the packages are not updated in the official Ubuntu repository, if you want to receive automatic updates for your MediaTomb install you will have to add a “deb” line to your sources.list etc/apt/sources.list

APT (i386, AMD64):
deb http://apt.mediatomb.cc/ hardy main


The next thing we want to do is installing the application. ‘Applications>Add/Remove’ on the top-panel, write mediatomb in the search. You should now see MediaTomb available in the menu, click the radio-button and apply changes. You now have MediaTomb installed.

Configuring MediaTomb
Browse into your /home/<user> folder, press ctrl+h to show hidden files, write .mediatomb and open this folder.
Open config.xml in text editor, here comes the part where you add the possibility for MediaTomb to stream files, how it recognizes the filetype you want to stream.

Tip: Use ‘Find’ (Ctrl+F) to easily find the string you’re looking for, in this case: <server> and <extension-mimetype>

Change <protocolInfo extend=”no”/> to <protocolInfo extend=”yes”/> in the <server></server> section, this is commented for PS3 support. This allows the PS3 to receive info about files you wish to stream. This adds support for mp3s without any extra fiddling.Then add <map from=”avi” to=”video/x-divx”/> into the <extension-mimetype></extension-mimetype> section, this is commented for PS3 support. This allows the PS3 to play files (The PS3 also requires the 2.10 software update for this to work) of an avi/divx nature.

Adding data to your mediaserver
Write mediatomb in your terminal window (Alt+F2 gnome-terminal). You’ll see some text running down, you want to focus on the bit about “MediaTomb Web UI can be reached by following this link: http://localhost:49153/”.

Open up your favorite webbrowser and go to the link you’re provided.
This should be quite self exlaining, it’s documented under User-Interface.

You should now be able to find your MediaTomb mediaserver with your movies, music and pictures on your PlayStation 3.

Recently bought myself a Sony PlayStation 3 and a 32″ Samsung LCD Widescreen. I’ve sat up my Ubuntu box with MediaTomb, a mediaserver for Linux.

Originally the stable release of MediaTomb only supports music browsing, but with a little googling and trying you’ll easily set it up to at least run divx and xvid (As of PlayStation 3 Firmware version 2.10) and some other filetypes fairly fine, I’m yet to have problems watching movies.

Listening to music, watching movies and browsing through pictures on your fileserver through PlayStation is wonderful, especially when you have a nice sound system and a good screen to go with it.

MediaTomb – download
Here’s a little input on what MediaTomb supports

Currently Supported Features

• Browse and playback your media via UPnP
• Metadata extraction from mp3, ogg, flac, jpeg, etc. files.
• Exif thumbnail support
• User defined server layout based on extracted metadata (scriptable virtual containers)
• Automatic directory rescans
• Highly flexible media format transcoding via plugins / scripts
• Sophisticated web UI with a tree view of the database and the file system, allowing to add/remove/edit/browse your media
• Support for external URLs (create links to internet content and serve them via UPnP to your renderer)
• Support for ContentDirectoryService container updates
• Active Items (experimental feature), allows execution of server side scripts upon HTTP GET requests to certain items
• Highly flexible configuration, allowing you to control the behavior of various features of the server
• Support for Linux, FreeBSD, Mac OS X
• Runs on x86, Alpha, ARM, MIPS, Sparc

Ubuntu – download

March 26 – Streaming .mp3 and .avi
Add <protocolInfo extend=”yes”/> into the <server></server> section. This allows the PS3 to receive info about files you wish to stream. This adds support for mp3s without any extra fiddling.

Then add <map from=”avi” to=”video/x-divx”/> into the extension mapping section. This allow the PS3 to play files (The PS3 also requires the 2.10 software update for this to work) of an avi/divx nature.

I’ll get around to adding more information about how to install MediaTomb (From sources) and how to configure the basics and a little bit about using the web-interface later. However, if you can’t wait, there’s always an answer from google the oracle.