I find the little chat application that sits in the Facebook status bar pretty handy for sending quick messages to buddies who are online when I am. If you're a user of Pidgin like me you might like the idea of being able to use the Facebook chat service from within Pidgin (keeping all your IM accounts in one place ). Awesomely enough, you can do just that. All you have to do is grab the Facebook Chat for Pidgin plugin:

wget http://pidgin-facebookchat.googlecode.com/files/pidgin-facebookchat-1.38.deb

Once that has finished downloading you can then do:

sudo dpkg -i pidgin-facebookchat-1.38.deb

Now a bit of tidying up:

rm pidgin-facebookchat-1.38.deb

After you restart Pidgin you will have a Facebook option in your Add Account dialog.



Done and done .

Are you using Git in Ubuntu and want to use an external visual diff viewer? It's easy! I will be using Meld for this example but most visual diff tools should be similar. If you don't already have Meld, then install it:

sudo apt-get install meld

Ok. Now let's begin by breaking it. Enter this into a terminal:

git config --global diff.external meld

Then navigate to a Git tracked directory and enter this (with an actual filename):

git diff filename

Meld will open but it will complain about bad parameters. The problem is that Git sends its external diff viewer seven parameters when Meld only needs two of them; two filenames of files to compare. One way to fix it is to write a script to format the parameters before sending them to Meld. Let's do that.

Create a new python script in your home directory (or wherever, it doesn't matter) and call it diff.py.

#!/usr/bin/python

import sys
import os

os.system('meld "%s" "%s"' % (sys.argv[2], sys.argv[5]))

Now we can set Git to perform it's diff on our new script (replacing the path with yours):

git config --global diff.external /home/nathan/diff.py
git diff filename

This time when we do a diff it will launch Meld with the right parameters and we will see our visual diff.

I was listening to some music with Amarok this morning when I wanted to watch the new The Happening trailer. To my annoyance there was no audio! After conducting a bit of googling research, I learnt that it was because of Ubuntu using PulseAudio as its audio backend for Hardy. The fix is simple; install libflashsupport:

sudo apt-get install libflashsupport

Then maybe log out and log back in .

It seems the reason libflashsupport isn't installed by default is because of some problems some people are having with it.

After an agonising wait on Thursday for the latest Ubuntu to be released I finally managed to download a copy of the Hardiest of Herons, Ubuntu 8.04. Every six months, with each new Ubuntu release, I format my Ubuntu partition and start again, cleansing my computer of all the 'testware' that I installed since the last format. I wanted to allow plenty of time for tinkering so I decided to put off the format until Friday (with it being a public holiday). I burned the Hardy ISO to a CD and got some sleep.

The next morning I began the upgrade. I booted up the live CD and set the install in motion before getting thrashed at chess... twice. Next came a reboot and a nasty surprise: no network! After a bit of unsuccessful tinkering I decided that I must have had some special network settings that were lost in the format. In went my old Gutsy CD to see if I could get networking happening with it. Networking worked straight away, which I thought was strange, so I figured that I would just install Gutsy and then do a dist-upgrade to Hardy (and hopefully trick Ubuntu into letting me use my network ).

After all that finished and I still didn't have networking, I jumped onto another computer and googled my network card to see if there were any known issues. Thankfully (I guess) there were. A bug had been lodged on Launchpad, citing a problem with the drivers for my network card, and a solution had been proposed. A quick test and SUCCESS! I had network, and with came Internet.

Now that I was finally connected to the outside world again I could get on with installing Ubuntu. I installed my video card drivers and enabled compiz. The first thing I noticed was a strange pink border around all of my windows. Luckily enough I had just opened Firefox and one of the first things to greet me was Google Reader and a post from Tombuntu regarding that very peculiarity. By following Toms advice I was able to replace the pink shadows with regular black ones.

With my now problem free Ubuntu, I could get on with checking out some of Hardy's new features. The first addition I looked at was Firefox 3 which I thought was a fair improvement over version 2. Its a shame none of my plugins work yet (especially Firebug and Del.icio.us) but it will only be a matter of time before they are updated. The next thing I noticed was the policykit integration. I think that it makes viewing settings much simplier; if you only want to look and not touch why should you have to enter a password? I also like the new integrated weather/clock (it is currently 15 degrees in Brisbane at the moment ).

As for the other features, you can check out the Ubuntu site for more of an idea.

Want to change the way that Gnome clock applet looks? Its easy. Start by opening up the Gnome Configuration Editor. If it isn't in the menu, you can open it by typing this into a terminal:

gconf-editor

Now navigate to /apps/panel/applets and find your clock preferences key (my clock was at /clock_screen0/prefs/). Change the format key to 'custom'. You can now change the custom_format key to whatever you like (using basic HTML and strftime format strings). I changed mine to:

<span color="#039">%a %d %b</span> <b>%I:%M %p</b>

Which looks something like this:



For more information on date/time formats that you can use, check out the c++ strftime reference.

If you have ever used Quicksilver on a Mac or Launchy on Windows then you have already experienced the concept that makes Gnome Do awesome. If you haven't (and are running Gnome) then give it a try.

To install Gnome Do, first add it's repository to your /etc/apt/sources.list:

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/do-core/ubuntu gutsy main

Then install it:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install gnome-do

You can then run it from Accesories->Gnome Do (you might also want to add it to your start up programs in your session).



To launch something, assuming the Gnome Do window isn't already showing, press Super+Space (Windows key + Space bar) and then start typing a program name, etc and press enter. For more information on Gnome Do check out it's project site.

Ubuntu launched its new feedback site the other day. Brainstorm sites seem to be growing in popularity recently with Dell's IdeaStorm site and GIMP's UI Brainstorm blog proving to be useful in getting quality ideas from the people who use their products.

After looking through some of the ideas I found that one suggestion of mine had already been raised. Previews of images in the Gnome open dialog is something that seemed obvious but had yet to be implemented until now (its going to be in Hardy).

I think one of the best ways to design a product for users is to know what they want, and asking them what they want is a good way to start .

I noticed I was getting a bit of traffic from people searching for 'Eyetoy Ubuntu' but the only article I had regarding the Eyetoy in Ubuntu was about Cheese. So, in an effort to make the Google results pointing here more useful, here is a How To about getting the Eyetoy working in Ubuntu Gutsy (I mostly followed this tutorial on Ubuntu Forums, with a few changes).

First, plug the Eyetoy into an available USB slot.

Then type this into Terminal and press enter.
sudo apt-get install build-essential linux-headers-`uname -r`

Go to http://www.rastageeks.org/downloads/ov51x-jpeg and download the latest ov51x-jpeg driver to your home directory. At the time of writing the latest driver was ov51x-jpeg-1.5.3.tar.gz.

Extract the the archive by typing this into terminal (change the filename if you have a newer one).
tar -xvf ov51x-jpeg-1.5.3.tar.gz
cd ov51x-jpeg-1.5.3

You should now be in the folder of the drivers so let's install them.
sudo make install
sudo modprobe videodev
sudo modprobe i2c_core

And thats it! If you want to test out the Eyetoy, then check out cheese.

I got a new 6x8" Wacom Graphire4 yesterday. After finishing off an assignment for uni this afternoon I got a chance to hook it up and have a play.

It is incredibly easy to install a Wacom in Ubuntu. It is so easy in fact, most of it has already been done for you. There are only two steps left:

Enter this into Terminal:
sudo apt-get install wacom-tools

Once that finishes, enter this:
sudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Find these lines and uncomment them (remove the '#' from the start of the line):
# Uncomment if you have a wacom tablet
#InputDevice "stylus" "SendCoreEvents"
#InputDevice "cursor" "SendCoreEvents"
#InputDevice "eraser" "SendCoreEvents"

Now log out and log back in and your Wacom should be working fine.

To get pressure sensitivity working in GIMP, fire it up and go to File->Preferences and then select Input Devices, then Configure Extended Input Devices.... Set each device (eraser, cursor, stylus) to enabled. Click Save and then Ok. You should now have pressure sensitivity enabled. You can try it out by selecting one of the drawing tools and defining its pressure sensed behaviour.

As for me, I had a bit of a play with my new wacom and got this:



I think I need some more practice

Getting a LAMP installation happening in Ubuntu is easy. Just open up Applications->Accessories->Terminal and type each of these commands in.

To install MySQL, enter the following into Terminal:
sudo apt-get install mysql-server
You will be prompted for a password during the install.

To install Apache, enter this:
sudo apt-get install apache2

To install PHP5, enter this:
sudo apt-get install php5

To get PHP talking to MySQL, enter the following 2 commands:
sudo apt-get install libapache2-mod-auth-mysql
sudo apt-get install php5-mysql

And now, to install PHPMyAdmin, enter the following:
sudo apt-get install phpmyadmin
When it asks which server you would like to install it on, choose Apache2.
After the install completes, enter this command:
sudo ln -s /usr/share/phpmyadmin/ /var/www/phpmyadmin
That will make a symbolic link (kind of like a shortcut) in the right folder for Apache to be able to see PHPMyAdmin. Now you should be able to access it by navigating to http://localhost/phpmyadmin.

If you want to set up Mod Rewrite, then enter this into Terminal:
sudo a2enmod rewrite
(for more information on Mod Rewrite, check out Apache's Mod Rewrite Guide)

Hope that was helpful

Today marked the occasion of me giving in to the call of the Gutsy Gibbon. I know I said I was going to wait until after all of my exams/assignments were over but the lure of the latest Ubuntu was too strong. I took some time out from writing my MMDS3300 essay to load up the Gutsy live CD. In a few minutes I'd filled out the installer forms and the install was under way. A quick game of Lagno (I lost ) later and my computer was ready to restart.

First impressions have me impressed with how much faster Ubuntu is. Whether its booting or just opening and running programs, Ubuntu seems to power through it without a fuss. After installing the latest Nvidia driver with Envy I got to see the default Compiz that comes with Ubuntu. Even Compiz seemed to be a great deal smoother than what it was in Feisty.

Although I have always been happy with each new release of Ubuntu, I am particularly pleased with Gutsy

Well the new Ubuntu is out. It's 7.10 or 'Gutsy Gibbon' for those of you playing at home. There are quite a number of tweaks and changes in this release. After a quick download I had my copy ready for me to burn and install it. However, I did neither. As a rather unfortunate coincidence, each October release of Ubuntu seems to coincide with my uni exams and I know that if I install Gutsy now, it will be way too easy for me to procrastinate and not get my study done.

What I do find it handy, though, is that if I pre-order a Shipit CD of Ubuntu it seems to arrive on my doorstep right in time for the last exam. It makes for a nice reward to finishing uni for another year.

I decided to give Cheese another go the other day. Last time I tried it was just after I got my Eye-toy working in Ubuntu but, back then, Cheese didn't seem to play nice. This time, however, things were different.

I installed the latest version (0.2.4) from GetDeb.net and fired it up. The Eye-toy was picked up first go

Although it is still lacking slightly compared to its inspiration, Photobooth, Cheese is certainly a great piece of software. It comes with a whole bunch of different effects that you can play with.

Scruffled hair and the Hulk effect make me very angry.

The Shagedelic effect is just plain groovy.

The Edge effect... creepy.

It is also possible to stack the effects to create crazy new creations.

Shagedelic + Edge make for some craziness.