The _khAttAm_ blog

If you add Hardware-sensors applet to avant-window-navigator panel, you will get the following warning if you have not set up hardware sensors and the sensor will not work. It will tell you “NO SENSORS FOUND” and give the warning:

Warning from Hardware Sensors: No sensors found
Install one or more of ACPI, HDDTemp, LM-Sensors, nvidia-sett or nvclock and restart the applet

Here is the screen shot of what it looks like:

To install and setup sensors, just run the following commands:
HDDTemp

sudo apt-get install hddtemp

When it asks you, choose to run its daemon.
LM-Sensors

sudo apt-get install lm-sensors
sudo sensors-detect

You can choose default options (just press Enter) for all of them except when it asks the following:

Do you want to add these lines automatically to /etc/modules? (yes/NO)

Answer yes to that question. Now run the following:

sudo /etc/init.d/module-init-tools start

Now, just restart avant-window-navigator:

killall avant-window-navigator
avant-window-navigator

If you have messed up gnome-panel settings or applets, you can simply reset it to default. To do so, just run the following commands from the terminal (Alt+F2->gnome-terminal):

gconftool-2 --recursive-unset /apps/panel
killall gnome=panel

I created a bootable USB pen drive with Ubuntu 10.10 Maverick Meerkat Alpha Daily Build on it using Startup Disk Creator (usb-creator-gtk) in Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid Lynx. This gave the following message during startup:

SYSLINUX 3.63 Debian-2008-07-15 EBIOS Copyright (c) 1994-2008 H. Peter Anvin
Unknown keyword in configuration file
boot:

It seemed the version of syslinux in Lucid has a bug. I removed syslinux via Synaptic (which also removes usb-creator-gtk and usb-creator-common) and downloaded the deb files for the latest version of syslinux and syslinux-common from here and installed them. Then I installed usb-creator-gtk and then built the Live USB again. Then, it booted fine without problems.

If you have downloaded an older daily build iso and want to update the iso with new daily build, you can use the zsync utility to get the latest version of daily build without having to download the whole of the new iso.
Install zsync:

sudo apt-get install zsync

and then change the directory to where you have the older version of Ubuntu iso. For example, if you had downloaded maverick-desktop-i386.iso, go to the same download location and find the file maverick-desktop-i386.iso.zsync, right click on it and copy link location. Now, in terminal, type the following to get the latest iso:

zsync http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/daily-live/current/maverick-desktop-i386.iso.zsync

Make sure you run it from the same directory where your old iso resides.
When done, you will have the latest iso and a file maverick-desktop-i386.iso.zs-old which is the older version.

This can also be used to download less if the last download was partial and old. In fact, even if you have lucid iso, you can rename it and use zsync. It saves some bandwidth and time.

Since Linux Mint 9 Isadora is based completely on Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid Lynx, you can add Linux Mint repository to Lucid and make it look and feel like Linux Mint (additionally you may have to do more than just mint specific applications such as changing themes and tweaking panel but you get the idea). You may also like to install a few components that you like in Linux Mint, for example just the mintmenu or mint-flashplugin-64 (if you want a 64bit version of flash for your 64bit version of Ubuntu).

To do this, just launch Synaptic Package Manager from System>Administration menu and open up Settings>Repositories. In ‘Ubuntu Software’ tab, make sure you have Universe and Multiverse selected. Then go to Other Software and add the following lines one by one:

deb http://packages.linuxmint.com/ isadora main upstream import
deb http://archive.canonical.com/ubuntu/ lucid partner
deb http://packages.medibuntu.org/ lucid free non-free

Close the Repositories window and click Reload.
When done, you will get the following gpg errors:

W: GPG error: http://packages.linuxmint.com isadora Release: The following signatures couldn’t be verified because the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY 3EE67F3D0FF405B2
W: GPG error: http://packages.medibuntu.org lucid Release: The following signatures couldn’t be verified because the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY 2EBC26B60C5A2783

To get rid of these the next time you reload, search for linuxmint-keyring and medibuntu-keyring in Synaptic and install them. Next time you reload or try to install software from Linux Mint, you won’t get gpg/authentication errors.

To install a mint software, just search and install it. For example, to install mintmenu, search for it, mark for installation and apply. When done, just add the menu to panel (Right Click Panel>Add to Panel>mint-menu).

To install everything, just mark the meta package mint-meta-main (for 32 bit) or ,omt-meta-64 (for 64-bit). That should mark everything that LinuxMint has by default. That includes codecs, java and flash and much more. It also includes other default applications such as pidgin, thunderbird and gimp. You can go to ‘Custom Filters’ (low left hand corner in Synaptic) > Marked Changes (upper right pane) to unmark any applications you don’t wish to install. Also, click on ‘Mark All Upgrades’ and

After installation, tweak it to your liking to make it look the way Linux Mint does or just the way you like it.

Hope this helps.

I am using Ubuntu 10.10 Maverick Meerkat. I don’t remember how or when it happened, but I noticed that while “Right Click On Archive>Extract Here” was working well, “Open Archive File in File-roller a.k.a. Archive Manager (double click)>Right Click on an item>Extract…” was not behaving as expected. It was not recreating the directory structure and spilling all the files to the same target directory.

To fix this, you can either clear all the settings of file-roller so that when you start file-roller next time, it creates all the default settings, or you can edit the configuration manually using gconf editor.

Method I
The first method can be accomplished by typing the following in the terminal:

mv ~/.gconf/apps/file-roller/ ~/.gconf/apps/file-roller.bak/

Method II
The second method is safer since it keeps all other file-roller settings. But you should worry about settings only if you have edited the settings. If you have not, 1st method is easier. If you want to just change what is required, then launch gconf-editor (Alt+F2>gconf-editor) and then navigate to /apps/file-roller/dialogs/extract in the right hand pane. Now, look for a boolean key recreate_folders. If it is not there, create it. Then change the value to true (checked).

After following one of these methods, close all instances of file-roller and start it again for changes to take effect.

I am using Ubuntu 10.10 Maverick Meerkat and live in Nepal, timezone Asia/Kathmandu. I have been trying to setup Plone CMS in my local computer for learning to build sites with Zope/Plone. However, I had been getting errors.

I installed Plone 3.3.5 on my Ubuntu 10.10 Maverick Meerkat 64bit Desktop with Plone Unified Installer – for Linux/BSD/OS X/UNIX/Solaris. The installation was successful.

Then I ran the instance of Zope by changing directory to where my Plone is installed and running the following in terminal:

cd /usr/local/Plone
sudo ./bin/instance fg

Then I could browse the url http://localhost:8080/manage (I had changed the port number to 8888 ).

However, when I tried to create a Plone Site using Zope interface, I got the following error:

Site Error

An error was encountered while publishing this resource.

Error Type: KeyError
Error Value: ”

I see the following error in the terminal:

Module DateTime.DateTime, line 1145, in toZone
KeyError: ”
Unhandled exception in thread started by
Traceback (most recent call last):
File “/usr/local/Plone/Zope-2.10.11-final-py2.4/lib/python/ZServer/PubCore/ZServerPublisher.py”, line 25, in __init__
response=b)
File “/usr/local/Plone/Zope-2.10.11-final-py2.4/lib/python/ZPublisher/Publish.py”, line 401, in publish_module
environ, debug, request, response)
File “/usr/local/Plone/Zope-2.10.11-final-py2.4/lib/python/ZPublisher/Publish.py”, line 227, in publish_module_standard
if request is not None: request.close()
File “/usr/local/Plone/Zope-2.10.11-final-py2.4/lib/python/ZPublisher/BaseRequest.py”, line 211, in close
notify(EndRequestEvent(None, self))
File “/usr/local/Plone/Zope-2.10.11-final-py2.4/lib/python/zope/event/__init__.py”, line 23, in notify
subscriber(event)
File “/usr/local/Plone/Zope-2.10.11-final-py2.4/lib/python/zope/component/event.py”, line 26, in dispatch
for ignored in zope.component.subscribers(event, None):
File “/usr/local/Plone/Zope-2.10.11-final-py2.4/lib/python/zope/component/_api.py”, line 130, in subscribers
return sitemanager.subscribers(objects, interface)
File “/usr/local/Plone/Zope-2.10.11-final-py2.4/lib/python/zope/component/registry.py”, line 290, in subscribers
return self.adapters.subscribers(objects, provided)
AttributeError: adapters

I tried adding the following in buildout.cfg under instance section:

zope-conf-additional =
    <environment>
        TZ Asia/Katmandu
    </environment>

as instructed here and running buildout again but this did not work for me as I got the same error again.

I then installed Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid Lynx 32bit Server in Virtualbox and installed Plone again. This time I used Python 2.4 from Hardy repository rather than having it built by Plone installer. I used the tutorial here for rest of the stuff. But I got the same error again.

I then thought it was a Ubuntu specific issue and then installed CentOS 5.5 minimal in Virtualbox and installed Plone again. This did not work either. The same error appeared.

I then installed Plone 4 using Python 2.6 but the same error appears in instance.log.

Workaround
In the Virtualbox installation of Ubuntu 10.04, I changed the timezone to Asia/Alaska and then the problem was gone. To do so, I did the following:

sudo dpkg-reconfigure tzdata

And then I selected US, Alaska. I then changed the buildout.c
I changed buildout.cfg to reflect the change in timezone:

zope-conf-additional =
    <environment>
        TZ US/Alaska
    </environment>

and ran buildout again.

sudo ./bin/buildout

Then the error no longer shows and I can create page.

I don’t know if it is a python issue, or Datetime bug. I will dig into it later. But for now, Plone works.

Sometimes when you are using PPA repositories or mixing multiple repositories or using a Development version, you encounter a problem and some of your applications might be removed. I want to illustrate the problem with my current Ubuntu 10.10 Maverick Meerkat Alpha installation, which I use as the only OS in my computer. This is not recommended but since I have always managed to solve issues that come up due to development versions, I have mostly used development versions because I get to see the upcoming changes and report problems if anything that bothers me.
With the latest repositories list update, I got into a problem with Filezilla, because I have been using Lucid getdeb repo with my system and Filezilla is in their repo as well as the official repo. When I marked for the latest updates in Synaptic Package Manager, I could see that filezilla, amongst others, was in the package to be removed which was because the package filezilla-common was to be upgraded and the filezilla that was installed, and had no update, had dependency issues. I upgraded the package filezilla-common anyways and lost filezilla. Ideally, since I am using a development version, I should have marked all the changes, and then reviewed the list of programs that are to be removed and unmark them or mark them for reinstallation which automatically unmarks the conflicting updates. Since packages like gdm, gnome-panel and some others which are required for the system to boot properly into the desktop were also marked for removal, I marked them for re-installation or unmarked them so that they remained in the system. But for experimenting, I did not mark it and it got removed. Now, when I try to install the package, I get the error:

filezilla:
Depends: filezilla-common (=3.3.2.1-1ubuntu1) but 3.3.3-1ubuntu1 is to be installed

and it cannot be marked for installation.
Since I need filezilla, I need to get it back installed. For this, the easiest way is to remove the alternate repository and reload the software list. If that does not help, you could just wait for the next repository update and reload it and then install it.
If you can’t wait or if that does not solve the problem, then you can follow the method I explained with 0ad here in my older blog post. I can also find the compatible deb file (download it from some other location and check for compatibility) and install it with gdebi (double click).
If you can’t find it, just find the latest version (which may be found in the directory /var/cache/apt/archives or can be downloaded from http://packages.ubuntu.com) and then install with dpkg i.e.

sudo dpkg -i filezilla_3.3.2.1-1ubuntu1_amd64.deb

This will, however, leave broken packages and synaptic will not let you do any other installation/update without resolving it. But most of the time, you can run the particular program without problems. The next update might fix the problem and you can just reinstall the broken package. But in case if it does not or if you don’t want to wait, you can downgrade to the older version of the conflicting package that you upgraded which caused your program to be removed. You can find the deb online or in /var/cache/apt/archives and install it using dpkg. In my case, it is the older version of filezilla-common that I need. So, all I do is run the following command to install the older version which will replace the newer version:

sudo dpkg -i /var/cache/apt/archives/filezilla-common_3.3.3-1~getdeb2_all.deb

and then to reconfigure the package filezilla, I also installed the older version of filezilla:

sudo dpkg -i /var/cache/apt/archives/filezilla_3.3.3-1~getdeb2_amd64.deb

Hope this helps resolving and recovering your lost programs.

I am using Ubuntu 10.10 Maverick Meerkat and have getdeb (playdeb) repository for Lucid Lynx. Lucid repo can be added to Maverick and many applications can be installed without problems. However, I got this error while trying to install a game called 0ad.

0ad:
Depends: binutils (<2.20.2) but 2.20.51.20100710-1ubuntu2 is to be installed

I could downgrade my binutils to an appropriate version by downloading deb from somewhere else and that would be the ideal thing to do if it did not break any packages, but I decided not to as it could break other packages and decided to try out something that is never recommended and should not be done if you don’t know what you are doing. You should know that this could also lead to broken packages but fortunately this only breaks a game (that is what I am going to install) at worst and not some system program. I just changed the dependency to the version that I had by editing the package description. To do so, I needed to open the file /var/lib/apt/lists/archive.getdeb.net_ubuntu_dists_lucid-getdeb_games_binary-amd64_Packages as root by running

gksu gedit /var/lib/apt/lists/archive.getdeb.net_ubuntu_dists_lucid-getdeb_games_binary-amd64_Packages

If you are using 32-bit version of Ubuntu, you should probably try something else.

The package description for 0ad looks like the following:

Package: 0ad
Version: 0.0.0+r07539~pre-alpha-1~getdeb1
Architecture: amd64
Maintainer: Christoph Korn
Installed-Size: 10412
Depends: binutils (>= 2.20.1-3ubuntu2), binutils (<< 2.20.52), libboost-filesystem1.40.0 (>= 1.40.0-1), libboost-signals1.40.0 (>= 1.40.0-1), libboost-system1.40.0 (>= 1.40.0-1), libc6 (>= 2.11), libdevil1c2, libenet0debian1, libgamin0 | libfam0, libgcc1 (>= 1:4.1.1), libgl1-mesa-glx | libgl1, libglu1-mesa | libglu1, libjpeg62, libopenal1, libpng12-0 (>= 1.2.13-4), libsdl1.2debian (>= 1.2.10-1), libstdc++6 (>= 4.4.0), libvorbisfile3 (>= 1.1.2), libwxbase2.8-0 (>= 2.8.10.1), libwxgtk2.8-0 (>= 2.8.10.1), libx11-6 (>= 0), libxml2 (>= 2.7.4), zlib1g (>= 1:1.2.0), 0ad-data
Homepage: http://wildfiregames.com/0ad/
Priority: normal
Section: games
Filename: pool/games/0/0ad/0ad_0.0.0+r07539~pre-alpha-1~getdeb1_amd64.deb
Size: 3835504
SHA256: d21eea643c4fc6cef6564f1eacbc1bf3a2ef7ca813cbb9cc69912e45ae7708a4
SHA1: 504cdbc3fb2acc6ab4a57ab3bddb652a05910f3d
MD5sum: 8dfced6b1af656f5ff820861e621f393
Description: A war/economy strategy game
A historically based Real Time Strategy game focusing
on the years 500 B.C. to 500 A.D.
.
In short, it is a war/economy strategy game allowing
you to recreate or rewrite the ancient history of western
civilisations.

I changed the line in the “Depends” from binutils (<< 2.20.2) to binutils (<< 2.20.52) and restarted synaptic package manager. Then I could download the game without problems. But it shows dependency errors and the game can’t be configured. So, I removed it from Synaptic. Then what I do next is copy the 0ad deb file to my desktop; mine is called 0ad_0.0.0+r07539~pre-alpha-1~getdeb1_amd64.deb and it is in /var/cache/apt/archives/. So, I fire up the terminal and do the following:

sudo cp /var/cache/apt/archives/0ad_0.0.0+r07539~pre-alpha-1~getdeb1_amd64.deb /home/[USERNAME]/Desktop/

where [USERNAME] is my username. Now the game is copied onto my desktop. Now I changed the owner to myself, so that I can read it:

sudo chown [USERNAME] /home/[USERNAME]/Desktop/0ad_0.0.0+r07539~pre-alpha-1~getdeb1_amd64.deb

Then, I needed to edit the control file and repack the deb. To do so, I just extracted it:

cd ~/Desktop
mkdir -p extract/DEBIAN
dpkg-deb -x 0ad_0.0.0+r07539~pre-alpha-1~getdeb1_amd64.deb extract/
dpkg-deb -e 0ad_0.0.0+r07539~pre-alpha-1~getdeb1_amd64.deb extract/DEBIAN/

Then, I edited the control file:

cd extract/DEBIAN
nano control

and changed the file to say binutils (<< 2.20.52) instead of binutils (<< 2.20.2). Just Ctrl+O followed by ENTER to write the changes and Ctrx+X to exit nano.
Then, I just went back to the Desktop folder.

cd ../../

Then I repackaged the deb file:

mkdir build
 dpkg-deb -b extract/ build/

Then, I could find the new deb inside the build folder in the Desktop which I can install without problems. After it is installed, I tried to launch it from the terminal (0ad) but I got an error saying:

./pyrogenesis: error while loading shared libraries: libbfd-2.20.1-system.20100303.so: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory

So, it really needs the binutils version it says it does. Anyways, just creating a symbolic link named libbfd-2.20.1-system.20100303.so in /usr/lib to the version that I have i.e. libbfd-2.20.1-system.20100303.so did it for me. To do so, in terminal I typed the following:

sudo ln -s /usr/lib/libbfd-2.20.51-system.20100710.so /usr/lib/libbfd-2.20.1-system.20100303.so

Hope this helps.

Mark Shuttleworth mentioned in his blog that the new Ubuntu after Maverick Meerkat 10.10 will be named Natty Narwhal.

Here is what he writes in his blog:

So the Narwhal, as the closest thing to a real live unicorn, is an auspicious figurehead as we lay down the fabric from which dreams will be woven. Dreams of someone’s first PC, dreams of someone’s first million instances in the cloud: whatever your vision of the future, we hope the Natty Narwhal will have something to offer.

Lets hope Natty will make Linux user’s dream come true.