Manas T

KDE SC 4.5 RC 1 was released on June 27, 2010. This is the first Release Candidate for KDE SC 4.5 which is due later in August. The Kubuntu developers have been fast in packaging KDE SC 4.5 RC 1 for Kubuntu Lucid and have uploaded it to the Kubuntu Beta PPA in Launchpad. Here’s how you can upgrade to KDE 4.5 RC 1 on Lucid.

Open Konsole and type the below commands in sequence.

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:kubuntu-ppa/beta
sudo aptitude update
sudo aptitude safe-upgrade

P.S – Updated this post for KDE 4.5 SC RC 1 release

KTorrent 4.0 was released couple of days back after being in development for close to 5 months. It adds many new features, the big ones being magnet support and support for µTP protocol (bittorrent over UDP) along with many bug fixes.

Users of Kubuntu / Ubuntu Lucid will not be getting the new version automatically but as always you can install the new version from a Launchpad PPA.

Note – Before proceeding ensure that you have added the Kubuntu Updates PPA. You can add the PPA by using:

apt-add-repository ppa:kubuntu-ppa/ppa

Open Konsole and type the following commands in sequence:

apt-add-repository ppa:blca/published
aptitude update
aptitude full-upgrade

You should see KTorrent 4.0 in the updates list. Enjoy the new version.

Envied by your friends who use QuickSilver on OS X and Launchy on Windows. Key stroke program launchers can be a real time saver once you get the hang of it.

GNOME Do is a GNOME utility for fast launching of applications and files. It can easily be said to be the Linux equivalent of QuickSilver for Mac and Launchy for Windows. Using GNOME Do, you can easily launch your programs, files, Firefox bookmarks all from the comfort of your keyboard.

Installing GNOME Do on Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon 7.10

You can install GNOME Do on your Ubuntu system just like any other application. All you need to add is the GNOME Do repository.

1. Fire up Terminal.
2. Type sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list
3. Add the following two lines at the end of the file :

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/rharding/ubuntu gutsy main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/rharding/ubuntu gutsy main

4. Save the file, close it. Then in Terminal type sudo apt-get update
5. Finally install GNOME Do by typing sudo apt-get install gnome-do

Delicious Plugins

The plain install of GNOME Do gives you the ability to launch the applications that are installed on your system. But if that’s not enough for you, GNOME Do has plugin support too. Two of my favorite plugins are the Pidgin plugin and the Rhythmbox plugin.

Delicious Plugins !!!

For example you can install the Pidgin plugin, then launch Gnome Do, type the first few letters of the name of the contact and hit Enter. Voila, a Pidgin chat window will open to chat with that person. Same with Rhythmbox you can easily play specific albums or artists using the Rhythmbox plugin. All you need is to type few letters of the artist or album.

Thats not all. You can find the complete plugin list here.

With Pidgin 2 yet to make an appearance in Ubuntu Feisty repositories even after two weeks of its release, I was a getting a little bit impatient to use it. So I resorted to the manual method of installing it. You can get the plain Pidgin 2 deb from GetDeb. But it is no fun using Pidgin without any plugins. So my friend Kalpik has compiled a .deb for all the Pidgin plugins and put it up for download.

Install Pidgin 2 with all plugins

• Download Pidgin 2 from GetDeb.
• Download lib-notify from GetDeb.
• Download Plugin pack from Kalpik’s blog.

Install the above packages and there you have it… Pidgin 2 running with all plugins on Ubuntu Feisty.

P.S. - Pidgin will not replace Gaim in your system. Rather they will both be available in your system. If you want to remove Gaim, you can uninstall Gaim manually or wait for the Pidgin update in repos which will automatically remove Gaim.