Archive for the 'Tech Stuff' Category

Ubuntu Thunderbird 3.05 Lightning 1.0b2

Published on July 7, 2010 in Tech Stuff. 4 Comments

Last night, I got the following message in Mozilla Thunderbird:

Lightning 1.0b2 could not be installed because it is not compatible with Thunderbird 3.0.5

The problem seems to be that Ubuntu had upgraded Thunderbird to version 3.05 in its repositories, which is currently incompatible with Lightning version 1.0b2. The ultimate fix would be to wait for Thunderbird 3.1 to come out. However, for the time being, refer to the following fix to downgrade Lightning to version 1.0b1 and restore your calendar:

32-Bit:
http://releases.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/calendar/lightning/releases/1.0b1/

64-Bit:
http://releases.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/calendar/lightning/releases/1.0b1/contrib/linux-x86_64/

Download lightning.xpi and install in Thunderbird as an add-on.

ThinkPad Middle Button Scroll – Ubuntu Linux 10.04 Lucid Lynx

Published on May 2, 2010 in Tech Stuff. 38 Comments

It’s that special time of year again! I have just finished upgrading my trusty ThinkPad T61 to the latest version of Ubuntu Linux — 10.04 Lucid Lynx. This edition of the operating system no longer employs the udev method of emulating scrolling. With the following instructions, one will be able to scroll with the middle button both vertically and horizontally:

Step 1. Create a new file

sudo nano /usr/lib/X11/xorg.conf.d/20-thinkpad.conf

Step 2. Insert the following

Section "InputClass"
Identifier "Trackpoint Wheel Emulation"
MatchProduct "TPPS/2 IBM TrackPoint|DualPoint Stick|Synaptics Inc. Composite TouchPad / TrackPoint"
MatchDevicePath "/dev/input/event*"
Option "EmulateWheel" "true"
Option "EmulateWheelButton" "2"
Option "Emulate3Buttons" "false"
Option "XAxisMapping" "6 7"
Option "YAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Step 3. Save file, restart computer, and enjoy!

Please comment and let me know whether this solution worked for you, or if you have alternative methods.

By the way, I’m not able to get the fingerprint reader working. Has anyone had any luck with it? Any tips to share?

Ubuntu 9.04 Jaunty Jackalope on Thinkpad T61

Published on April 23, 2009 in Tech Stuff. 27 Comments

Before upgrading to Ubuntu 9.04 Jaunty Jackalope (64-bit) on my Thinkpad T61 laptop, I wondered whether it would be worth it. How much of a time commitment would it be? What about functionality — would everything still be in pieces after the upgrade? What kind of an enhanced user experience would I expect?

After all, I am currently in the middle of my final exams and cannot afford to spend a whole evening upgrading the operating system. My previous experience upgrading from Hardy Heron (8.04) to Intrepid Ibex (8.10) was, by no means, a smooth-sail. There were numerous glitches: both the fingerprint-reader and scrolling-emulation functions were broken out of the box. After much exploration, the above-mentioned bugs were eventually fixed. How did it work out this time around?

In medias res

Probably due to the huge number of users upgrading through the mirrors concurrently, it did take a while for all the new packages to be downloaded (all 1000+ of them), lasting around just over an hour. On top of that, it took around half-an-hour for the rest of the installation processes to wrap up (on an Intel Core2 Duo T8300 processor @ 2.40GHz with 2 GB of ram).

Look ‘n feel

Slick.

jaunty1

Overall the user interface looks great — though I’m not sure how much I appreciate the new gnome log-on screen (somewhat Vista-like). Some cool, new applets have been added for volume-control and network manager. I haven’t done a whole ton of exploring yet, but I’m guessing that there are probably more tricks in store. Though, I have to say, things feel somewhat slower. Even with all visual effects turned off, it feels as though things are lagging behind just a little bit.

**Update — Intel 965 GM Graphics

Here’s a quick fix for the decrease in performance of Intel graphics cards (in my case, a 965 GM) after the upgrade to Intrepid:

mkdir -p ~/.config/compiz/ && echo SKIP_CHECKS=yes >> ~/.config/compiz/compiz-manager

The patient has survived the operation!

There was hardly any “junk” installed and both the fingerprint-reader and scroll-emulation functions worked out of the box! The only difference that I noticed in ThinkFinger is that more pressure is needed in order for the swipe to proceed.

And, unlike last time, unnecessary packages such as Gnome games, Evolution…etc. — ones that have already been removed — were not installed again. Efficient.

Further more, it appears that Jaunty uses less memory. Currently, with multiple tabs opened in Firefox, Thunderbird running, among others, the memory usage rests at around 500 MB. This is a lot less than the usual ~1 GB that I get. Perhaps 64-bit operations have been more more efficient?

Have you upgraded? How do you like Jaunty Jackalope?

Surviving a Laptop Spillage — I Love Lenovo Thinkpads

Published on March 8, 2009 in Tech Stuff. 6 Comments

One does not truly comprehend the beauty of a Lenovo Thinkpad until a glass of protein shake is spilled onto it. We’ve all seen videos like these, supposedly showing off a Thinkpad’s ability to survive anything from water damage to car crashes. Today, I was privileged enough to experience one of these moments myself.

So long story short, here’s what happened to me this afternoon:

Liquid + Thinkpad (keyboard, speakers…etc.) –> an even better Thinkpad

After the glass-flies-out-of-hand moment, I immediately powered off the computer and unplugged the power chord (didn’t a have battery in there to begin with). Since the majority of the fluids has leaked out of the laptop through the drainage holes, I simply tipped the laptop over to allow any remaining fluids to leak out. Since the Thinkpad keyboard is a beautiful machine on its own — that is, it encases the internal compartments of the laptop and prevents water from flowing in — the laptop was fine, except for the stickiness.

Then, I simply removed the water-proof keyboard, gave it a nice rinse, dried it off with a hair dryer, and attached it back on.

It’s as simple as that. Now, my laptop is even in a better state than it was before the “accident”.

Java SE 6 Runtime Environment JRE — Firefox Ubuntu 64-Bit

Published on February 3, 2009 in Tech Stuff. 4 Comments

As of Dec. 2008, Java Sun has released a 64-bit beta version of the Java SE Runtime Environment. Since this is still in the beta stage, it hasn’t yet made it into the Ubuntu repository.

Here’s how to get it:

  1. Download the latest .bin file from:
    https://jdk6.dev.java.net/6uNea.html
  2. cd /opt
  3. sudo sh jre-6u12-linux-x64.bin
  4. cd /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins
  5. ln -s /opt/jre1.6.0_12/lib/amd64/libnpjp2.so
  6. Restart Firefox!

Is there still a reason to not go 64-bit? :P