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PCLinuxOS Magazine, September 2010 (Issue 44) is available to download. You can find it at the PCLinuxOS Magazine website.

In this issue:

• LXDE: An Overview
• LXDE: The Control Center
• LXDE: Autostart Apps With .desktop Files
• Installing PCLinuxOS-LXDE On An IBM Thinkpad 600e
• Does Linux Market Share Matter? What Matters?
• OpenOffice 3.2, Part 4: Impress
• Command Line Interface Intro: Part 12
• Ms_Meme's Nook: Download The Distro
• Forum Foibles: User Names
• Computer Languages A to Z: Octave
• Alternate OS: Syllable, Part 1
• Ladies Of PCLinuxOS: Meemaw
• Educational Linux!
• Game Zone: Battle For Wesnoth
• Repo Spotlight: Repository

After good healthy interest in yesterday’s video I decided to post the code in a repository (GPLv3 and CC-BY-SA) and as a second act to deliver Mark Shuttleworth’s feature request which I show off in the new video:

View Video on Blip

This is particularly cool since it means desktops will converge and look the same at certain dates as well as diverge and look different at all other times. What are your thoughts?

Here at my house we have three desktops, two different kinds of netbooks, and a laptop running Kubuntu.  They all have two things in common:

1.  They all have Intel graphics of one variety or another.

2.  None of the work very well (or at all) with Kwin compositing in Maverick.

These appear to be mostly properly blacklisted from compositing to start with, but the thing is, they all work with compositing just fine on Lucid (the upstream Kwin solution to compositing issues with KDE 4.5 is to make sure the black lists disable compositing where it won’t work well and that generally works).  The problem is (from my perspective) that I have a beautiful, functional composited “desktop” in Lucid with KDE 4.4 and to move to KDE 4.5 in Maverick and lose that would not be an “upgrade”.

None of my hardware is cutting edge for Intel.  The newest is i965.  I have one of those, four i945 variants, and one i865.  It may be that newer chips are fine, I have no way of testing.

Personally, I find this extremely demotivating.  After investing a truly ridiculous amount of time and effort into Kubuntu development, I discover at the end that I literally have no systems I can reasonably run it on (my servers are staying LTS anyway).

I’m posting this as a warning to people considering upgrading.  Don’t just upgrade, burn a live CD and try it out first.  Make sure you’re happy with the graphics performance.

P. S.  The current KDE in Maverick, 4.5.1, is the one we will release with.  If you want to know why 4.5.1 instead of the usual 4.X.2 we’ve released with for the last four release cycles?  It’s because 101010 binary = 42 decimal.  Enjoy the extra bugs.

I have finally managed to fix the problems with the installation of php5-mcrypt and php5-imap from my repository. However, it needs to be noted that the versions of those packages are 5.2.6, hence the pinning in the /etc/apt/preferences file must be done accordingly!

As stated before, your feedback on these sessions as well as the documentation that will be provided will be most helpful to us. You are also welcome to approach us for other avenues of support. We are always looking for more help on a variety of kernel related areas such as documentation, bugs and spelling/grammar applications so please don’t hesitate to ask how you can help.

[Discuss the First Kernel Triage Summit on the Forum]

Originally posted here by Jeremy Foshee on September 3rd 2010

The most notable design element of a GTK theme are the scrollbars and I’m amazed how the basic design has persisted over the years.

1992 MS Windows 3.1

From a design perspective, scroll bars consist of three basic components; bar, trough, and steppers. Of the three, the bar often draws the most attention. I am reminded of the importance of hub cabs as a design element in some automobiles.

The real issue with scrollbar design is usability. The desired result is a readily available element which does not get in the way.

OSX

OSX sports a bold approach with bright blue glassy bars. However, when I view the OSX screen shot above I always see the scroll bar no matter where I direct my attention. Some would argue this is a good thing although the trend today is towards something more subtle.

Impression Scrollbars

Flickr Preview

The Impression GTK series uses round design elements. The default color of the bar is a neutral dark gray with blends with the tool bar and metacity. Although many scroll bars are raised as demonstrated by OSX, the Impression themes use a flat presentation against a hollow trough. Some new designs such as “Unity” use a flat presentation for both the bar and the trough.

Impression Prelight Scrollbar

Flickr Preview

Most scrollbars support a “prelight” event which changes the appearance of the bar when the mouse pointer hovers above. The Impression “prelight” event changes the color of the bar to either Impression orange or Night Impression aubergine. This is consistent with usability standards to bring focus to the bar when selected.

Impression Scrollbar Steppers

Flickr Preview

Steppers are the arrows which nudge the window in a predefined manner. They are often displayed before and after the trough. A case can be made these elements are no longer needed as they have been replaced with the mouse scroll wheel. Indeed, Apple’s Magic Mouse combines the functions of a traditional mouse and laptop touch pad.

The Impression themes sought the middle ground by creating a stepper “prelight” event. As demonstrated in the two screen shots above, the steppers are hidden unless the mouse hovers above the area before or after the trough. A very muted stepper is shown when the bar has landed at the beginning or end of the trough to provide visual feed back to this event.

	Download Impression GTK themes for Maverick: Ubuntu Wiki
	View (Lucid): Flickr Slide show

      stamp = str(datetime.datetime.now())
extension = ".png"
directory = os.environ["HOME"] + _("/Pictures/")
self.filename = directory + self.filename_prefix + stamp + extension
self.camerabin.set_property("filename", self.filename)
self.camerabin.emit("capture-start")
return self.filename

       t = message.type
if t == gst.MESSAGE_ELEMENT:
  if message.structure.get_name() == "image-captured":
      #work around to keep the camera working after lots
      #of pictures are taken
      self.camerabin.set_state(gst.STATE_NULL)
      self.camerabin.set_state(gst.STATE_PLAYING)

      self.emit("image-captured", self.filename)

        self.camerabin.set_state(gst.STATE_PLAYING)
self.camerabin.set_state(gst.STATE_PAUSED)
self.camerabin.set_state(gst.STATE_NULL)

if __name__ == "__main__":
"""creates a test WebCamBox"""
import quickly.prompts

#create and show a test window
win = gtk.Window(gtk.WINDOW_TOPLEVEL)
win.set_title("WebCam Test Window")
win.connect("destroy",gtk.main_quit)
win.show()

#create a top level container
vbox = gtk.VBox(False, 10)
vbox.show()
win.add(vbox)

mb = WebCamBox()
mb.video_frame_rate = 30
vbox.add(mb)
mb.show()
mb.play()

mb.connect("image-captured", __image_captured)
play_butt = gtk.Button("Play")
pause_butt = gtk.Button("Pause")
stop_butt = gtk.Button("Stop")
pic_butt = gtk.Button("Picture")

play_butt.connect("clicked", lambda x:mb.play())
play_butt.show()
mb.pack_end(play_butt, False)

pause_butt.connect("clicked", lambda x:mb.pause())
pause_butt.show()
mb.pack_end(pause_butt, False)

stop_butt.connect("clicked", lambda x:mb.stop())
stop_butt.show()
mb.pack_end(stop_butt, False)

pic_butt.connect("clicked", lambda x:mb.take_picture())
pic_butt.show()
mb.pack_end(pic_butt, False)

gtk.main()

import gtk
from quickly.widgets.web_cam_box import WebCamBox
from ImageListPage import ImageListPage

class CameraPage(ImageListPage):
def __init__(self):
    gtk.VBox.__init__(self,False, 0)
    self.__camera = WebCamBox()
    self.__camera.connect("image-captured",self.image_captured)
    self.__camera.show()
    self.__camera.set_size_request(128, 128)
    self.pack_start(self.__camera, False, False)

    button = gtk.Button("Take Picture")
    button.show()
    button.connect("clicked", lambda x:self.__camera.take_picture())
    self.pack_start(button, False, False)


def image_captured(self, widget, path):
    self.emit("clicked",path)

def on_selected(self):
    self.__camera.play()

def on_deselected(self):
    self.__camera.stop()

I?ve posted a screencast on how to use the Ubuntu Stack Exchange. (Ogg version)

Vous ne pouvez pas attendre d’avoir les banni?res de compte ? rebours pour Ubuntu 10.10 ? Voici une version officieuse faite par kyleabaker et basée sur la conception d’Anthony Scarth. Cette banni?re de compte ? rebours existe en deux variantes orange et violette. Pour inclure une de ces deux banni?res sur votre site, il suffit de copier l’un des scripts fournis a la fin de ce billet.

You can not wait to get the countdown banners for Ubuntu 10.10? Here is an unofficial version made by kyleabaker and based on design by Anthony Scarth. This banner countdown comes in two variants orange and purple. To include one of these banners on your site, simply copy one of the scripts provided at the end of this post.

Orange

<script type='text/javascript' src='http://www.kyleabaker.com/fun/ubuntu1010banner/orange.js'></script>

Purple

<script type='text/javascript' src='http://www.kyleabaker.com/fun/ubuntu1010banner/purple.js'></script>

Ubuntu 10.10 countdown is a post from: Pourquoi pas !!

Full Circle Side-Pod #3: Where’s the Neurotic Numbat?

In this episode; with great power, comes a big utility bill.

This is an extra, irregular, short-form podcast, which is intended to be a side-branch of the main Full Circle Podcast. Somewhere to put all the general technology, non-Ubuntu news and opinions, hobby-horses and general kipple that doesn?t fit anywhere else. Be prepared for a healthy dose of British sarcasm.

It’s been a while. We’re maybe half way through our summer recess from the Full Circle podcast, so this is either goodbye to season one or hello and welcome to season two.

News: Products die, divorce by Facebook, yet more lawsuits…

Interview: Matt Grove from Miserware describes Granola’s energy-saving ability

Expert Spot: Editing the Full Circle Podcast pt. 3: The Edit Environment

Feeds for both MP3 and OGG:

RSS feed, MP3: http://fullcirclemagazine.org/category/podcast/feed

RSS feed, OGG: http://fullcirclemagazine.org/category/podcast/feed/atom

The podcast is in MP3 and OGG formats. You can either play the podcast in-browser if you have Flash and/or Java, or you can download the podcast with the link underneath the player. Show notes after the jump. Your Hosts:

• Robin Catling (blog at http://catlingmindswipe.blogspot.com/)

Additional audio by Victoria Pritchard

Show Notes

1.06 | WELCOME and INTRO

2.25 | NEWS: round-up of some news items that caught my eye during the break.

• Mark Shuttleworth announced the codename for Ubuntu 11.04,
  We’re disappointed; where’s the Neurotic Numbat? The Numbat is a real, and endangered marsupial. Myrmecobius Fasciatus.
• Microsoft Kin phone cancelled after a month
• Google Wave RIP; wave developments ceases, Schmidt says ‘celebrate our failures.’
• Everybody sues everybody:
  • Lexmark sues 3rd party cartridge supplier
  • Interval Research sues everyone but the yacht club (summarised in arstechnica coverage)
    Patents in question:
    Browser for use in navigating a body of information 2005,
    Attention manager for occupying the peripheral attention of a person 2008 ,
    Alerting users to items of current interest 2004
• Intel buying McAfee, which probably means lock-down or DRM in more future hardware.
• Google voice calls to gmail (gmail blog announcement and TechWatch on VOIP integration).
  GoogleVoice Rate card for ‘insanely low rates’ but only til 2011.
• Philadelphia’s $300 blog tax – Business Privilege Tax
• MPEG-LA declares H.264 codec to be royalty free in perpetuity
• Facebook entries admissable as evidence in divorce cases

13.07 | INTERVIEW: Matt Grove from Miserware

Energy-saving computing. It’s a neat concept, saving you money by saving you electricity. That’s money off your utilitiy bill while you do your bit to save the planet. Granola is software that improves the energy efficiency of your PC or laptop. A few weeks ago I spoke to Matt Grove from Miserware, who explained who it works…

34.57 | EXPERT SPOT: Editing the Full Circle Podcast ? Part 3: The Edit Environment

45.05 | FEEDBACK: How to get in touch with us

45.55 | WRAP and OUTRO

Comments: on this page, using the comment form, OR; Send us a comment to podcast@fullcirclemagazine.org.
You can also send us a comment by recording an audio clip of no more than 30 seconds and sending it to the same address.
Comments and audio may be edited for length. Please remember this is a family-friendly show.

Please note: this podcast is provided with absolutely no warranty whatsoever; neither the producers nor Full Circle Magazine accept any responsibility or liability for content or interaction which readers and listeners may enter into using external links gleaned from this forum or podcast series.

Creative Commons Music Tracks

• Opening: ?Knights of the darkness’ by Zero Project (http://www.jamendo.com/en/track/516745)
• Main theme: ‘CCMixter’ by Code (http://ccmixter.org/files/Mixro/16474)
• Incidental: ‘Funkorama’ by Kevin MacLeod (http://music.incompetech.com/royalty-free/Funkorama.mp3)
• Incidental: ‘Techno-dog’ by Unknown, original recording royalty free under Creative Commons v2.

File Sizes:

OGG 24.5Mb
mp3 19.8Mb

Runtime: 45 minutes 55 seconds