Ubuntu / Linux news and application reviews.

Meteo Qt Is A Nice Qt5 Weather Tray Application

| Date: March 09, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: appindicator, kde, linux, tray, ubuntu, weather

Meteo Qt is a tray application that displays the current weather temperature on the panel, with a 6-day forecast easily accessible from its menu. 

MeteoQt Kubuntu
Meteo Qt in Kubuntu 17.04

The application is based on Python 3 and Qt 5, and while it is aimed at Qt-based desktops (like KDE Plasma or LXQt), it works pretty well on GTK-based desktops as well (either as a tray or as an AppIndicator).

KDE Connect Indicator: Use KDE Connect On Desktop Environments That Use AppIndicators (Unity, Pantheon, Etc.)

| Date: November 21, 2014 | View Comments | Tags: android, appindicator, kde, kdeconnect, linux, ubuntu

Update: you should use the new KDE Connect Indicator fork instead of this.

KDE Connect is a tool which allows you integrate the KDE Plasma Workspace with your smartphone (Android only for now), via WiFi. 

With the help of KDE Connect Indicator, you can now use KDE Connect in desktops which support Ubuntu AppIndicators, such as Unity, Pantheon (elementary OS), Xfce (Xubuntu) and so on.


For those who aren't familiar with KDE Connect, here's a quick list of features for the latest version (0.7.3 at the time I'm writing this article):
  • display notifications from your Android device on your desktop (requires Android 4.3+);
  • send files from your Android device to your desktop and the other way around "without wires";
  • touchpad emulation: use your phone screen as your computer's touchpad (keyboard emulation is also available);
  • shared clipboard between your phone and computer;
  • display your phone's battery status on the desktop;
  • multimedia remote control: use your Android device to control various Linux media players;
  • RSA Encryption.

See What's New In The 14.04 Release Of Lubuntu, Kubuntu And Ubuntu GNOME

| Date: April 17, 2014 | View Comments | Tags: distro, gnome shell, gnome3, kde, kubuntu, linux, lubuntu, lxde, Trusty Tahr, ubuntu, ubuntu gnome

All the Ubuntu flavors reached version 14.04 (LTS) today. Below we'll take a quick look at what's new in Lubuntu, Ubuntu GNOME and Kubuntu 14.04 (Trusty Tahr).

For Xubuntu, see: Xubuntu 14.04 Available For Download [Video, Screenshots]

All the Ubuntu flavors (except for the main Ubuntu version - with Unity, which is supported for 5 years) will be supported for 3 years.

Get Firefox And Phonon-GStreamer To Support H.264 In Ubuntu 14.04 [Updated]

| Date: March 27, 2014 | View Comments | Tags: firefox, fix, gstreamer, kde, linux, tips n tricks, ubuntu

The FFmpeg plugin for GStreamer 0.10 is not available in the official Ubuntu 14.04 repositories and because of this, Firefox doesn't support the H.264 codec.

Furthermore, without the FFmpeg plugin for GStreamer 0.10 package, KDE apps can't play H.264 videos in Kubuntu 14.04 if they use the GStreamer backend. Another issue with this is that Amarok can't play WMA files. There might also be other affected applications.

Make Firefox Use Native Notifications In Linux With GNotifier

| Date: January 27, 2014 | View Comments | Tags: firefox, gnome shell, kde, tips n tricks, ubuntu, unity, xfce

Quick tip for Firefox users: GNotifier is a Firefox extension that makes the browser use native notifications on the Linux desktop. The extension currently supports GNOME (Shell), Unity, KDE and Xfce.

Below you can see a Firefox notification in action using GNotifier, under Unity and GNOME Shell:

Native Unity notification Firefox

Native GNOME Shell notification Firefox

Google Drive Client `Insync` For Linux Out Of Beta, Gets Selective Sync Support

| Date: July 30, 2013 | View Comments | Tags: cinnamon, cloud, google drive, insync, kde, linux, lxde, mate, sync, ubuntu, unity, xfce

Insync is an unofficial Google Drive client that "extends Drive's web functionality to your desktop by integrating tightly with Windows, Mac and Linux so you can get work done".

Insync for Linux: Nautilus integration / Ubuntu appindicator

Insync for Linux is out of beta and it now offers the same features available for the Windows and Mac clients: 

Kubuntu Not Switching To Mir Display Server

| Date: June 27, 2013 | View Comments | Tags: kde, kubuntu, mir, Saucy Salamander, ubuntu

Kubuntu won't be switching to Mir / XMir, has announced Jonathan Riddell, the main Kubuntu developer, in a recent blog post.

Variety Wallpaper Changer 0.4.15 Released With Cinnamon 1.8 And MATE 1.6 Support

| Date: June 12, 2013 | View Comments | Tags: cinnamon, gnome 3, kde, lxde, mate, ubuntu, unity, variety, wallpaper changer, xfce

Variety Wallpaper Changer

Variety is a wallpaper changer that automatically downloads wallpapers from sources such as Wallbase, Flickr, Wallpapers.net, Desktoppr, NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day as well as World Sunlight Map: a live Earth wallpaper which changes throughout the day. Using it, you can get a new, beautiful wallpaper automatically at the interval you set in the application preferences.

The application supports most desktop environments: Unity, GNOME Shell, KDE, LXDE, Xfce, Cinnamon, MATE and Pantheon.

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