Editing XFCE Applications Menu

 Menu After Editing

Menu Before Editing

Since Gnome 3 has been messed up, many Linux folks finally switched into another Desktop Environments. One of the favorite destination is XFCE Desktop. It is very typical to the old Gnome 2 Desktop and still actively maintained by its developers, so people feel safe to use this Desktop.

Unfortunately, IMHO, XFCE folks didn't write enough manual about XFCE Tweaking. One of the missing part about XFCE manual is in Editing XFCE Applications Menu.

Why is editing XFCE Menu necessary? For me, as an ex-Gnome 2 user, it is necessary. IMHO, XFCE Menu arrangement is too bloated. There are many shortcut at the menu and too many separators and that is annoying my sight every accessing the menu. And I want to remove all the shortcuts and the separators at the menu, so how do I do this? Let's dive.

XDG

XFCE, just like another DEs in Linux, follow the FreeDesktop standard. The file configuration about the menu is put in /etc/xdg/menus and named as xfce-applications.menu. So, the file configuration for the XFCE Applications Menu is located in /etx/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu. All we need to do is to edit this file.

Editing Menu

As I told above, to edit XFCE Applications menu is by editing file /etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu. To do this, just simply use our favorite, available text editor (for now, some XFCE based distro has switched from mousepad to leafpad for the sake of speed).

First, backup the original file. As root, backup the file :

sudo mv /etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu /etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.old

Second, edit the file :
sudo leafpad (or mousepad or gedit or whatever) /etc/xdg/menus/applications.menu.

Find the line : Layout
started from this line Layout block all lines to the line /Layout and delete those lines. Last, Save. Now access the menu and see the change. Our XFCE Applications menu now becomes simpler.

Xubuntu Tweaking
Not like Fedore XFCE and or another XFCE based distro, Xubuntu doesn't put the file configuration in /etc/xdg/menus but put the file in the /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce-applications.menu instead.

So, to edit Xubuntu Applications menu, the way is just same, but the file is different.

sudo mv /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce-applications.menu /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce-applications.old

sudo edit /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce-applications.menu

Note
If we want to let one or some shortcut left, such as Ubuntu Software Center, don't delete all the lines from to

but leave the lines we want :

Layout
Filename ubuntu-software-center.desktop /Filename
/Layout
Reverting Back The Menu

If we want to revert the XFCE menu to its default, just delete the edited one and rename the backup.

sudo rm /etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu

sudo mv /etc/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.old /etx/xdg/menus/xfce-applications.menu
In Xubuntu :
sudo rm /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce-applications.menu
sudo /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce-applications.old /etc/xdg/xdg-xubuntu/xfce-applications.menu

Menu Editor
As I know until I was writing this post, there is no an existed menu editor that compatible with XFCE Menu. I've heard about LXMenuEditor but seems for long ago has been abandoned by the developer.

How To Make XFCE Application Menu Keyboard Shortcut

Since Gnome 3 came as a disaster, many people later switched to some directions. One of then the destination for Gnome 2 folks is XFCE Desktop. It is light, gtk+ based and highly customizable just like the old Gnome 2 desktop.

Overall we can say, XFCE is great. But there is one question about this Desktop that is not yet answered : How to make the keyboard shortcut for XFCE Menu ? In Gnome 2, or LXDE we can use Alt+F1 combination to pop up the Application menu, but how about in XFCE ?

I've sought the way but I got nothin'. In the end, I was just looking around the XFCE Desktop and I found that the shortcut Alt+F1 is used to show the XFCE4 Help page. And so, I think about replacing the executable into the command to pop the XFCE4 Application menu up.

Here are the steps :

1. Open text editor and put this simple script

xfce4-popup-applicationsmenu

Save as xfhelp4

2. Make the script executable

chmod +x xfhelp4

3. Rename the default xfhelp4 executable in the system to any name

sudo mv /usr/bin/xfhelp4 /usr/bin/xfhelp4.bak

4. Move the script we have made into the system

sudo mv xfhelp4 /usr/bin

5. Try to press Alt+F1

Now, I can easily access the XFCE4 menu by keyboard shortcut :)

How To Make PCmanFM Shows All Images Thumbnail

 Change the amout of image file size we want to generate

 PCmanFM shows the thumbnails for all images

Since GNOME went to version 3 (which is a disaster), LXDE is now one of the most popular and most used desktop environments in Linux, alongside MATE and XFCE. It is good looking, modern and amazingly fast.

But don't you aware? That PCmanFM, the default File Manager for LXDE, ain't able to show all of our images/pictures/photos thumbnail. At the first time I realized this, I was lil bit confused. Why, and what happened ? Was this a bug ?

Apparently, this is not a bug. It is the default setting of PCmanFm for the sake of speed. This file manager won't show thumbnails for images/pictures with file size more than 2 MB.

So, to make PCmanFM able to show thumbnail for images with size more than 2 MB, we have to set it. To do that, just go to menu Edit > Preferences > Display, and at the bottom, change the value of  "Do not generate thumbnails for file exceeding this size" from 2000 KB to bigger size we want. Maybe 10000 KB (10MB) is enough, but if you are a photographer, you probably need more value because better image (in resolution and quality) will produce bigger file size.

That's all.

Fixing nm-applet (Network Manager Applet) icon in LXDE/XFCE/MATE Desktop

If we use MATE or LXDE, we probably often got a bug in Network Manager Applet (nm-applet) particularly if we use a mobile broadband connection. The bug is there is no icon when the connection is established. What does really cause this ? Well, apparently, the cause is very small, actually not a big deal. The cause is in the crappy default gnome icon theme (yeah, tango icon theme and the gnome icon theme is the ugliest icon themes ever).

To fix this, just follow these simple steps :

1. Choose a good icon theme for 24 pix panel size
   (I took an icon from /usr/share/icons/Faenza/status/24/nm-signal-100.png
2. Rename the icon to be nm-wwan-tower.png
3. Move the icon into the system
   sudo mv nm-wwan-tower.png /usr/share/icons/hicolor/22x22/apps
4. Logout login, or reboot the system, and last, try it by connecting to the Internet.

Solved : How To Install Nvidia-173 on Ubuntu 12.10 Quantal Quetzal

Ubuntu 12.10 Quantal Quetzal has been released. It brings some improvements, especially in UI design. But for those who still have old machines like Pentium IV with an old Nvidia graphic card, they might be upset (like me). Just like Ubuntu 12.04 at the early release, nvidia-173 graphic driver is also uninstallable on Ubuntu 12.10. I don’t know exactly about it, seems a technical bug in Ubuntu’s Debian packaging.

But, don’t worry. After exploration, I’ve finally found that installing nvidia-173 onto Ubuntu 12.10 is quite easy to do. Let’s rock, here are the steps :

1. First, install the libc6-dev package

sudo apt-get instal libc6-dev

2. Create a new additional repository address of the Ubuntu Precise address

sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list.d/precise.list

And add this address :

deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu precise main restricted universe multiverse

Save the file

3. Create two pin addresses to specify a version of a Debian package

sudo /etc/apt/preferences.d/xorg-xserver-pin-1050

And put these lines :

Package: xorg xserver-xorg*
Pin: release a=precise
Pin-Priority: 1050
Save the file. This file is used to downgrade the xserver-xorg package to the Ubuntu Precise version

And also, create an another one :

sudo /etc/apt/preferences.d/nvidia-173-pin-1050
And put these lines into the file :

Package: nvidia-173*
Pin: release a=precise
Pin-Priority: 1050

Save the file.

4. Update our apt database

sudo apt-get update

5. Downgrade the xserver-xorg by this command :

sudo apt-get dist-upgrade

6. Install the nvidia-173 package :
sudo apt-get install nvidia-173

7. Run nvidia-xconfig as root

sudo nvidia-xconfig

8. Reboot the system and run nvidia-settings as root

sudo nvidia-settings

9. At the nvidia-settings window, go to X Server Display Configuration and at the right bottom change the configuration from “Disabled” to “Separate X Screen”. Then, please choose our maximum monitor resolution and press Save to X Configuration File.

10. Last, logout and login back in order to restart the X Server. Done!

Happy Linuxing and I hope this simple trick will be useful :)

How To Use / Install Indicator Applet on Lubuntu Desktop

Lubuntu 12.04 with Indicator Applet

[click to enlarge]

Indicator Applet is probably the best thing in Ubuntu Linux Desktop. It was first came from Ayatana project in Ubuntu 10.04 LTS and then became popular because of its pretty look and great function. But can Indicator Applet to be installed on a Lubuntu Desktop ? The answer is yes, it can. Here are the very simple steps to install / use Indicator Applet on Lubuntu Desktop :

1. First of these all, install these packages from the Ubuntu repo

   indicator-application-gtk2

   indicator-datetime-gtk2

   indicator-messages-gtk2

   indicator-session-gtk2

   indicator-sound-gtk2

2. Then, go to lxpanel properties, go to panel applet tab, and add the applet “Indicator Applet”. It is presented as default in LXDE but not used as default because of its heavy dependencies to GNOME Control Center.

   Then, at lxpanel preferences, go to panel applet tab and select the Indicator-Applet and select Edit. Check all choices : Indicator-Applications, Clock Indicator, Messaging Menu, Session Menu, Sound Menu.

3. Now, you have a Lubuntu Desktop with the gorgeous Ubuntu's Indicator Applet.

How To Resume Download in Mozilla Firefox After Our Computer Shutted Off Suddenly

Sometime, when we were downloading something using Firefox, because of electricity and another unknown causes, our computer was suddenly shutted off and our download was also stopped. It is OK if the file size of the download is small, but how does if the file size is big (1 GB maybe) and we have done download 600 MB size ? Oh My God that must be crazy -_- And so what to do ?

Hey don't be mad, happily I've found the solution. Here are the solution :

1. Turn on your computer

2. DON'T EVER RUN FIREFOX or YOU WILL LOSE YOUR FILE

3. Go to Download folder

4. You will find two files that you are downloading

   For example : Video.mp4 and Video.mp4.part

5. Copy the file Video.mp4.part to another place whatever you like (e.g. Desktop)

6. Now, open Firefox and open Downloads dialog box.

7. Our previous unfinished download process will be resumed FROM ZERO :D

8. Pause the download.

9. Go to Download folder and now you will find only one new file Video.mp4, delete it and replace it with the the previous backed up file Video.mp4.part that we stored at Desktop. Rename it as Video.mp4

10. Go to the Firefox Download dialog, and resume the Download.

11. Now, you will see, the Download will be resumed from last Download that we have reached before our computer shutted down suddenly (hurrayy!).

That's it, hope it will be useful for you. Happy penguin forever ^_^

How To Install MATE Desktop Environment on Ubuntu 12.04 LTS and How To Use Ubuntu Ambiance Theme on MATE Desktop Environment

MATE Desktop Environment 1.2.2 On Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

[click to enlarge]

MATE Desktop Environment has been growing popular. In the earlier version, I found that this Gnome 2 Fork was messy, absoulutely unstable and wasn't ready yet for everyday computing. So do in the 1.2 version for Ubuntu Oneiric Ocelot, I found this DE was still unstable, especially if I used Ubuntu Ambiance theme, the desktop will be crashed (panel lost etc).

I almost gave this DE up until I got a suprise when I took an experiment with MATE 1.2.2 on Ubuntu 12.04 LTS. This Destkop is amazingly quite stable and ready to use for now. Even, we can use Ubuntu Ambiance theme with no problem. But, to be known, we can't just use official Ubuntu Ambiance theme for MATE. If we use official Ubuntu Ambiance Theme, the panel will look incomplete and messy.

Hapilly, there is a project to provides a customized version of Ubuntu Ambiance Theme specialzed for XFCE and LXDE. I suddenly temembered that MATE and XFCE and LXDE now is very similar. They are DE with gtk2 so I thought how about using Ambiance Theme For XFCE and LXDE on MATE Desktop, and the result was really good.

Because of the success, I decided to remove the XFCE and LXDE configurations in the theme and then renamed the theme to be : Light-Themes-MATE, and I packed the theme into a Debian package so we all can install it easily on our MATE desktop. Here is the theme you can download and install :

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/72782740/debian/light-themes-mate-12.04-all.deb

MATE Installation

MATE installation instruction can be found at http://mate-desktop.org/install/

How To Install Mac OS X Lion Theme On Lubuntu / LXDE

Lubuntu 12.04 with Mac OS X Lion Theme, xcompmgr & cairo-dock

[click to enlarge]

Mac OS X is the special one in the Desktop market. So many people admire it because of its beauty, safety (yes, it is an UNIX) and its profesional image as “an OS for profesional modern art designer”. Yeah, Mac OS X has beautiful look and I do like its look-n-feel. And so, there are so many theme patcher to make our Microsoft Windows or Linux OS become Mac OS X in the appearance.

In Linux Desktop, there are some project specialized in designing theme transformation pack to make our Linux desktop to be looked like Mac OS X. The most popular project probably is Mac4Lin. But, all of those projects was designed only for GNOME or sometimes support XFCE and how about LXDE? Our Star in the current lightweight Linux desktop? (Yes, LXDE is the most light-but-complete Linux desktop for now).

Until now, there is no project that officially support LXDE. Basically, LXDE uses gtk (now still stay with gtk2) and any gtk theme can be used in LXDE. The problem is, LXDE uses openbox as its window manager. And as the logical reason for its ligthweight, openbox has limitation. Openbox doesn't support complex theming by using high resolution png images so we couldn't build sophisticated theme for openbox. However, we could still build window theme with color for openbox and we could try to resemble any theme we want, although it will never be pitch-perfect same as a clone. And so, there is an openbox theme tried to resemble Mac OS X theme and we could use it to transform our LXDE desktop to be looked like Mac OS X Lion.

After experimenting with previous Mac4Lin theme, I've successfully transform my Lubuntu 12.04 to be Mac OS X Lion style and so then I pack them into DEBS and we could transform our Lubuntu to be looked like Mac OS X easily. Here are the steps to transform Lubuntu to be looked like Mac OS X Lion :

1. Download and install Mac OS X Theme For LXDE
   GKT Theme
   http://dl.dropbox.com/u/72782740/debian/macosx-lxde-0.1-all.deb
   Wallpapers (Only For Lubuntu)
   http://dl.dropbox.com/u/72782740/debian/macosxlion-wallpapers-lubuntu-0.1-all.deb
2. Download and install Mac OS X Lion Icon Theme
   http://dl.dropbox.com/u/72782740/debian/mac-lion-icons-0.1-all.deb
3. Install Cairo Dock and XCompmgr
   sudo apt-get install cairo-dock xcompmgr
4. Move the Panel to the top and remove Window List (Task Bar) Applet, Application Launch Bar Applet, Minimize All Windows Applet and Desktop Pager Applet.
5. Check the Strecth option of Spacer Applet between Menu Applet and system applet in order to get wide space between Menu and System Tray Applet.
6. Change the gtk and icon theme into Mac OS X, and change the Lubuntu logo into Apple logo by right clik at the Menu applet and point the image logo to /usr/share/icons/Mac-Lion-Icons/places/24/start-here.png
7. Add Cairo Dock and xcompmgr as additional autostarted startup applications in LXDE by editing this :
   sudo leafpad /etc/xdg/lxsession/Lubuntu/autostart
   At the end, add these lines :
   @xcompmgr
   @cairo-dock
8. Save and Exit, and then Reboot the System
9. Now, we have Lubuntu with Mac OS X like look :*

How To Fix Inappropriate Faenza Icon Theme Distributor Logo / Start Here Logo In Gnome Session Fallback in Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

Ubuntu 12.04, GNOME Session Fallback, Faenza Icon Theme

[click to enlarge]

Faenza Icon Theme is a very popular icon theme in Linux desktop. But, strangely, in Ubuntu 12.04 GNOME Session Fallback mode, this theme doesn't work perfect. The distributor logo doesn't appear perfect if we use Faenza Dark (it just appears orange square Ubuntu logo, not white circle Ubuntu logo). So, how to fix this? After explored, I found that the start-here logo has been moved into apps directory not in places like before. So what we have to do? What we have to do is not simple but it worked good in my machine.

Here are the steps :

1. Go to /usr/share/icons with nautilus with administrator mode. We could do this by terminal :
   sudo nautilus /usr/share/icons
2. Make file search by clicking search button, and search files named icon-theme.cache. When searching process done, remove 'em all.
3. Install Faenza Icon Theme. We have to download the newer version specified for Precise from HERE.
4. Remove Humanity Icon Theme (by terminal)
   sudo rm -rf /usr/share/icons/Humanity -v
5. Make a soft link for Humanity icon theme to Feanza icon theme
   sudo ln -s /usr/share/icons/Faenza /usr/shar/icons/Humanity -v
6. Remove these icons and replace them with another appropriate icons
   sudo rm /usr/share/icon/ubuntu-mono-dark/22/distributor-logo.svg -v
   sudo rm /usr/share/icon/ubuntu-mono-dark/22/start-here.svg -v
   Then, make soft link for the replacement into Faenza-Dark icon theme
   sudo ln -s /usr/share/icons/Faenza-Dark/places/24/start-here-ubuntu.png /usr/share/icons/ubuntu-mono-dark/apps/22/start-here.png -v
   sudo ln -s /usr/share/icons/Faenza-Dark/places/24/start-here-ubuntu.png /usr/share/icons/ubuntu-mono-dark/apps/22/distributor-logo.png -v
7. Logout and Login back to the GNOME Session Fallback and now we have our ultimate Classic GNOME back in Ubuntu 12.04 LTS.

Solved, Cheese 3.2 Error In Ubuntu 11.10 : Clutter-CRITICAL **: Unable to initialize Clutter: The OpenGL version could not be determined

Cheese is a “cheesy” app to take photos or videos from your webcam. This is a part of GNOME project so it comes altogether with GNOME release. Cheese 2.32 is a part of GNOME 2.32, Cheese 3.0 is a part of GNOME 3.0, and so on.

This is a very cute app. We could take photos with several cute effects, and so, I love this app. But, in Ubuntu 11.10, the Cheese 3.2 couldn't be loaded in any computer that doesn't have GLX/3D supported Graphic Card/VGA (Intel, ATI, Nvidia). Just like in my old Pentium4 with onboard SiS 661 FX, Cheese 3.2 couldn't be loaded and resulted this error message :

(cheese:2352): Clutter-CRITICAL **: Unable to initialize Clutter: The OpenGL version could not be determined.

This error occurred because of Clutter, a new graphic library on GNOME 3 project and this library is absolutely “arrogant”. This app wouldn't load itself in any old non-GLX supported Graphic Cards so any apps that depends on it, wouldn't be loaded too (this is why, Ubuntu still stay with Totem 3.0, the last Totem that doesn't depend to Clutter).

So, is there any problem solving for this? I can answer this : no! We must upgrade our graphic cards into GLX-supported one like Nvidia or ATI; or we must seek another webcam app, another Cheese equivalent.

If we have some money, we could purchase GLX supported Graphic Cards, but if not, we have to look for another webcam app, and I've found this! The app we look for this is : KAMOSO. Kamoso is Cheese like app in KDE SC. This app is just very similar to Cheese but without effects (at the version when I wrote this post). In Ubuntu, it could be installed easily from repo :

sudo apt-get install kamoso

And now, though without cute effects, I could take my photos or videos from my webcam, by using Kamoso :)

System Comparison :

SiS 661 FX OnBoard Graphic Card

Ubuntu 11.10

Kamoso 2.0.2

KDE 4.7.1

How To Setup and Configure USB Mobile Broadband Modem (GSM/HSDPA/CDMA/EVDO) In Linux

Linux desktop now has became a modern operating system. With its newer kernels, this cute desktop operating system has supported more wide types of hardwares. Also, Linux kernel now, is more superior than Windows in multi processing with multiple processors.

In end-user computing, there are some basic hardwares that users need to fulfill their needs in their everyday works : 3D VGA (Nvidia, ATI, Intel), Wi-Fi, Printers, and Modems (USB, ADSL etc). But now, the trending stuff in end-user computing, alongside Wi-Fi to catch free WLAN Internet connection services, is USB Broadband GSM/HSDPA/CDMA/EVDO Modem.

There are many brands of USB modem and only small numbers of brands that until now aren't recognized yet by Linux. Yesterday, I've already purchased an CDMA/EVDO modem with Huawei brand. This is a leading company in USB modem market and this company has been recognized as a great developer in USB modem market.

So, their products has been well recognized in any modern Linux desktops and we could use their products easily. But, in some ex-Windows users, it is little unfamiliar to use and configure USB Modem in Linux desktops. So, I post this simple tutorial for us.

I use Ubuntu 11.10 to do this, and these are the easy steps :

1. Plug our USB modem in. Wait for some moments or just simply reboot the system.

2. Go to system settings, and select Network.

3. At Network settings Window, select the Mobile Broadband in left side pane and turn it on by click OFF button into ON.

4. Now, go to Network Manager icon at right top panel and select New Mobile Broadband Connection. Follow the wizard. This is easy.

5. Some provider need specific username with specific password to be connected. You should ask to your provider about this. If yes, go to Network Manager again, and select Edit Connection.

6. In Edit Connection windows, select at Mobile Broadband tab, and select at the provider you've set it up, and select edit. Fulfill your specific provider username and password and then click save button.

7. Go to Network Manager again, and click the connection you've edited, and now, we are connected !

How To Easily Install Latest Adobe Flash Player Plugin in Ubuntu / Debian / BlankOn / Any Other Linux Distro Linux Using Offline Installer

Flashplayer works well
[click to enlarge]

Today, video tutorial or video preview is became trend, since internet access has became more cheap and more fast. The format that used is Adobe Flash Video with .flv file format. It is small and so portable to be included in our website. One successful internet website that using this technology is Youtube, a personal video broadcasting owned by today biggest internet king maker Google.

To access Flash Video, we need flashplayer plugin and if we has good internet connection, we could install it in Ubuntu very simply by Ubuntu Software Center. But, many of us have not good connection yet so installing flash plugin by this way is a trouble. Or, we need offline installer so in other times if we need to clean install our Ubuntu system, we don't have to get online again to just install a plugin.

One thing to do is very simple. Go to Adobe Flashplayer Download Page, and install flashplayer plugin package and install it manually to our Ubuntu system. At Adobe page, choose the latest flashplayer plugin, and at "select version to download" dropdown menu, choose the .tar.gz for other Linux (not APT for Ubuntu 10.04+).

Then we will get flashplayer-bla-bla.tar.gz package and the next steps to do are :

1. Extract it by right click in nautilus/file manager and Extract Here

2. We will get one file and one folder : libflashplayer.so (the main file) and usr folder (consists Adobe Flash Player Configuration. This folder is just optional).

3. Move libflashplayer.so to the directory /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins by terminal

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

4. Then, move the usr folder into usr directory in our Ubuntu system (this is optional, we don't have to do this if we don't need it) by terminal :

   go to usr directory we have extracted (ex : we put it in home or wherever we like to maybe /home/Downloads)

   cd usr

   then move it into /usr folder in our system

   sudo cp -rf ./* /usr -v

5. (Re)start Firefox and go to any site that using flash medias and we will get the latest flashplayer plugin work well in our Ubuntu system. Now, since Flashplayer version 11.x, will also get Adobe Flash Player Preferences to do some things about flashplayer configuration.

6. Just repeat the steps if we have to reinstall our Ubuntu System (maybe for the newer Ubuntu release).

System Specification :

Lubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot

Flashplayer 11.2.r2

Mozilla Firefox 13 (Aurora build)

How To Install Indicator-Applet In Gnome Classic in Ubuntu 11.10

Indicator-Applet-Complete in Gnome-Session-Fallback (Gnome Classic) in Ubuntu 11.10
[Click to enlarge]

Too many people still deeply in love with GNOME 2 UI and still find the ways to bring that desktop back. One way to bring back GNOME 2 interface is by using GNOME Fallback that shipped with GNOME 3.

In Ubuntu 11.10 we get GNOME 3.2 and we can install gnome-session-fallback from its repository. In previous post, I've posted how to make GNOME 3 looks like GNOME 2. Now, I want to share one completion stuff to make GNOME 3 (almost) same to GNOME 2. The stuff I meant is : Indicator Applet.

Since Ubuntu 10.04, there are a amazing gnome applets called indicator-applet. In Ubuntu 11.04 and and later in Ubuntu 11.10, it appeared more amazing than before. But, the bad news is, it is not included as default in gnome-session-fallback package. So, if we install gnome-session-fallback, we won't get it and we will just get default applets from gnome-panel in gnome-session-fallback package.

But, apparently, this great stuff has already been ported into gtk3 and we could install it very easy. Here are the simple steps to install indicator-applet to GNOME 3 gnome-session-fallback.

1. Go to Launchapad, to THIS PAGE.

2. Select Page Details, and download the appropriate package for your system (x86 or x64, Ubuntu 11.10 or Ubuntu 12.04). Select the package indicator-applet-complet and download it.

3. Last, install it by terminal : sudo dpkg -i *.deb

4. Now, we get our indicator-applet-complete back to our new GNOME 3 gnome-session-fallback desktop :)

How To Add Custom Command in File Properties In GNOME 3 / How To Change Default Preffered Application in GNOME 3

GNOME 3 has dropped its capability to add custom command as the default application to open specific file with specific formats. In Gnome 2, we could do this by select at the file right click > properties > Custom Command. But, in Gnome 3, this feature is dropped.

And so, how to replace the default application to open specific file with our preferred favorite application. Example : we want to replace Ubuntu Software Center with Gdebi to open .deb files as default. The only way is : we must add our application manually, by editing application list file configuration named /etc/gnome/defaults.list or by creating a local mimetype list in our home folder named /home/ourname/.local/share/applications/mimeapps.list.

Both ways work, but the easier is by editing file /etc/gnome/defaults.list. To edit this file, just simply type in terminal : sudo gedit /etc/gnome/defaults.list. After opened, we will see long lines about default mimetypes with their default applications to open.

As an example, we want to replace Ubuntu Software Center with Gdebi, these are the steps :

1. The most first, of course, we have to install gdebi by apt : sudo apt-get install gdebi

2. Find two lines and replace them

   application/x-deb=ubuntu-software-center.desktop

   application/x-debian-package= ubuntu-software-center.desktop

3. with these :

   application/x-deb=gdebi.desktop

   application/x-debian-package=gdebi.desktop

4. logout and login back.

If we want to replace another default applications (such as : evince with foxit-reader to open pdf), just do the same way. Find the file type, and replace its defaults application to open the file.

How To Print With CMYK Color Profile In Linux (Ubuntu)

Without Internet Connection, driver download will be failed. But this is the trick to let the system uses Gutenprint driver :D

Printer Canon PIXUS iP2700 was recognized and Gutenprint has already had the driver

Configuration done !

Now, in printer properties, we will get (generic) CMYK color profile

In digital media, there are two main color profile to arrange colored images/objects. First, RGB (Red-Green-Blue) color profile, used in monitors, and televisions. Also, RGB color profile is used in digital cameras to capture photos. And second, CMYK color profile, used in publishing industry to print medias (magazine, newspaper etc).

What are the advantages and disadvantages of each? Simply, as an end user view, we could say, printing medias with CMYK color profile, will result more bright, smooth, and real --as real as the reality. We could make comparison between printing medias in RGB and CMYK color profile, and we could see, printing medias in RGB color profile results more dark and blurred pictures.

In publishing industry, we maybe know that Macintosh (now, branded as Mac OS X) machines is very popular. But why does that OS become so popular in publishing industry? The answer is, Macintosh uses CMYK color profile as default to print medias, and also, uses CMYK color profile in its monitor (Macbooks, Mac PCs).

In Linux, if we realize, there is RGB color profile that used as default color profile to perform desktop appearance and also used RGB color profile as default profile to print medias. And then, is there any way to print media in Linux using CMYK color profile? The answer is Yes, there are.

Here are the ways to print media in Linux in CMYK color profile :

First, we could use a professional tool called TurboPrint. It is a set of complete printer driver in Linux, with a professional tool in printing. But, it is not a FOSS software. It's proprietary and you must purchase to use this tool. But, the good news is, you could use its 30 days shareware version and you will get a complete set of professional printing. You can visit its homepage here.

Second, we could use Gutenprint. Just like TurboPrint, it is a set of generic printer driver that built by FOSS community. Although Gutenprint doesn't have additional professional tools in printing (such as GUI control panel to control brightnesses, head cleaning etc), it offers complete set of printing profiles (includes CMYK color printing).

Now, how to configure our printer in Linux, by using Gutenprint, and so we could print medias in CMYK color profile? Here is the ways :

1. Login into Ubuntu Linux and choose Unity or Unity-2D desktop. Why is it necessary? Because, since Ubuntu 11.10, Ubuntu has made complex configuration, that affects, we only could get full desktop functionality if we use Unity/Unity-2D desktop. So, even though we dislike Unity, it is wise for us to don't remove Unity as a “recovery” desktop.

2. DO NOT CONNECT TO THE INTERNET. If you have Internet connection, unplug.

3. Plug our printer in, and switch it on. Wait and we will get notification, that there is no driver for our printer, but recognized by the system.

4. Go to System Settings (appears in Unity Launcher), and select Printers.

5. Select Add, and then, we will see our printer has already been recognized. Just click Forward, and wait for driver downloading process. Because we ain't connected to the Internet, there will appear an error message : “Downloading package indexes failed, please check your network status. Most drivers will not be available”. Just leave the message, and select Forward.

6. Next, there is a list of Printers, and our Printer brand is recognized. Just select it, and Forward. Then, we will get our printer be configured and there is a notification “Would you like to print a test page?”. Click Print Test Page if you wish, and Cancel if not.

7. Go to LibreOffice and try to print an image. Go to Print dialog by hitting Ctrl+P, and then select Properties>Device>Color Model. We will see some color profiles includes CMYK.

FOR CONFIGURED AND EXISTING PRINTER

If we have had our printer been configured before, we could just easily edit our printer driver and add some line to put color profile configuration.

1. The most important thing in editing file configuration in Linux is, You must backup it first. So if our configuration ain't success, we could easily restore the file. To backup our printer driver, open terminal and type this :

dir /etc/cups/ppd

There will appear a our_printer_name.ppd

Then, copy it to the Home by cp /etc/cups/ppd/our_printer_name.ppd ~/

2. Then, edit our printer driver by sudo gedit /etc/cups/ppd/our_printer_name.ppd and add these lines (carefully) :

*ColorKeyWords: "ColorModel"

*OpenUI *ColorModel/Color Model: PickOne

*OPOptionHints ColorModel: "radiobuttons"

*OrderDependency: 10 AnySetup *ColorModel

*DefaultColorModel: RGB

*StpDefaultColorModel: RGB

*ColorModel Gray/Grayscale: "<>setpagedevice"

*ColorModel Black/Inverted Grayscale: "<>setpagedevice"

*ColorModel RGB/RGB Color: "<>setpagedevice"

*ColorModel CMY/CMY Color: "<>setpagedevice"

*ColorModel CMYK/CMYK: "<>setpagedevice"

*ColorModel KCMY/KCMY: "<>setpagedevice"

*CloseUI: *ColorModel

3. Save and exit.

4. Open LibreOffice, and Print any images. Go to printer properties, and there will appear color model choice.

5. But, if this modification doesn't affect or even make our printer doesn't work, just restore our old printer home by :

sudo cp /home/ourname/our_printer_name.ppd /etc/cups/ppd

To make our printer driver readable by CUPS, change the permission file by :

sudo chmod 777 /etc/cups/ppd/our_printer_name.ppd

Happy Linuxing ! :D

Technical Comparison :

System : Ubuntu 11.10

Gutenprint version : cups-driver-gutenprint 5.2.7-2ubuntu4

Printer : Canon PIXUS iP2700

This way was done in Ubuntu Linux 11.10, if you’re using another distros, please give us reports. Does this way work in another distro, or not?

How To Make GNOME 3 Looks Like Gnome 2 Desktop Experience (Gnome Fallback Review)

(Click at the picture to enlarge)
Ubuntu 11.10 With Customized GNOME 3 Gnome Fallback Desktop,
Appears Almost Exactly Same As Gnome 2 Desktop (Minus System Menu)

Gnome 3, alongside its controversies, has redeemed itself at the first its release. Alongside gnome-shell, Gnome 3 project also brings fallback-session, a 2D desktop that very similar to the previous Gnome 2 interface, with several minus changes. I've installed and tried it in Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot by apt :

sudo apt-get install gnome-session-fallback

At the first look, I felt so familiar but annoyed with these things :

1. The top panel appears big and very ugly with size 30 pixels and unable to be resized into 24 pixels as in Gnome 2 desktop.

2. Top panel theme is not consistent at the applets each others. Looks so bad and crappy.

3. System menu gone. There are just Applications and Places menu.

4. Distributor logo officially hidden.

5. Removable media is not shown in the desktop.

To fix those minus changes, here are the steps :

1. I've posted the way to resize top panel size in GNOME 3 gnome-fallback desktop HERE.

2. We could use Solid Color instead of Background image theme to fix this problem. To do this, press Alt and right click, select Properties>Solid Color, set the transparency into 100 and pick the color into semi-black like the color of window border.

3. Apparently, System menu in GNOME 3 gnome-fallback is absolutely dropped by the developer. We have nothing to do (and we will always miss this pretty and usable menu).

4. I've posted the way to put or show back the distributor-logo in GNOME 3 gnome-fallback menu HERE.

5. To show removable media icons in the desktop, we have to install and use a tool called gnome-tweak-tool. It is installable through apt : sudo apt-get install gnome-tweak-tool.

After installation, run it by Alt+F2 and type : gnome-tweak-tool, or by accessing it in the menu Others>Advanced Settings.

In the gnome-tweak-tool, Select Desktop option in the sidebar, and check/turn on the option “Show Mounted Volumes on the Desktop”.

That's all, and now, we have our familiar Gnome 2 interface lives again and gives us efficient and productive desktop to use.

Long Live Linux ! Long Live Gnome Fallback ! :D

How To Put / Bring Back The Distributor Logo / Gnome Foot Logo at Corner of GNOME Menu in GNOME 3 Gnome Fallback Desktop

Distributor Logo Brought Back to GNOME 3 Gnome Fallback Desktop

As I've ever said, GNOME 3 gnome-fallback desktop is the only one that official to perform Gnome 2 desktop interface in GNOME 3 desktop (gnome-panel, metacity). But there is another problem in appearance of GNOME 3 gnome-fallback : The Distributor Logo Disappeared !

From internet forums, I later knew that this “problem” is official by default. We don't know the reason behind. Maybe the taste among GNOME developer about desktop is just different with us, but we all realized that Distributor Logo at the left corner of Gnome Menu is ultimately pretty and we want that amazing logo back !

But not to be worried, there is a way to bring back our pretty Distributor Logo, and here it is :

1. Edit the gtk3 theme we're using (Ambiance or Adwaita or another theme).

As a sample, I use Ambiance theme in Ubuntu (if you use another theme, just adjust this way with your theme). Open terminal and type this :

sudo gedit /usr/share/themes/Ambiance/gtk-3.0/apps/gnome-panel.css

2. Find this line

PanelMenuBar.menubar.menuitem {

and then, at bottom of that (give a Enter space) put this code :

-PanelMenuBar-icon-visible:true;

Clearly, must be like this :

PanelMenuBar.menubar.menuitem {

-PanelMenuBar-icon-visible:true;

Save and exit.

3. Logout and login back.

Enjoy ! :D