Search and Install Packages From The Ubuntu Command Line

When you are trying to install software on Ubuntu or Debian linux using the apt-get package system, quite often you’ll forget the exact name of the package you are trying to install. Here’s how you can get a little help figuring out what the name is.

Syntax:

apt-cache search SearchTerm

Example:

> apt-cache search monodevelop

monodevelop – C#/Boo/Java/Nemerle/ILasm Development Environment
monodevelop-boo – Boo plugin for MonoDevelop
monodevelop-java – Java plugin for MonoDevelop
monodevelop-nunit – NUnit plugin for MonoDevelop
monodevelop-query – MonoQuery plugin for MonoDevelop
monodevelop-versioncontrol – VersionControl plugin for MonoDevelop

Rather useful, no? I’ve found it very useful even when I know the name of the package I’m trying to install, you can figure out what the names of extra plugins are, as in the above example. I had initially installed monodevelop, but didn’t realize there was nunit and version control plugins for it.

You may also want to run the results through a more, or even a grep. For instance:

> apt-cache search firefox | grep plugin

libflash-mozplugin – GPL Flash (SWF) Library – Mozilla-compatible plugin
mozilla-helix-player – the helix audio and video player (browser plugin)
j2re1.4-mozilla-plugin – Java plugin for mozilla/firefox
mozilla-acroread – Adobe Acrobat(R) Reader plugin for mozilla / konqueror
totem-gstreamer-firefox-plugin – Totem Firefox Plugin – gstreamer version
totem-xine-firefox-plugin – Totem Firefox Plugin – xine version

Mozilla Prism - Web Services As Desktop Applications

Mozilla labs recently introduced Prism a standalone software which can convert web services to desktop applications . Although it seems to look cool at the beginning i dont see that much use as of now with mozilla prism . Here's a small review on mozilla prism :

When i first heard about mozilla prism i was really excited to try it out because it seemed to be something really different and possibily really useful . But when i started using it , i really didnt think it was all that great . What mozilla prism really does is opens a webpage in a separate window . Yes , Thats about it . Its like you bookmark or create a shortcut of a website on your desktop and you double click on it and it opens that webpage . Only difference is that the buttons, search box , address bar , other toolbars are not present . You just have the window showing up . Something like the screenshot shown below of gmail.com




Well , there are some advantages of using mozilla prism , its not useless , although its pretty tough to find a use for it :). Firstly , mozilla prism launches each window (like the screenshot i showed you earlier ) as a separate application , so even if some other website crashes , it wont affect this window , as this window starts as a different process giving you that "desktop application" effect :).Secondly i feel it would be a lot more quicker as i mentioned earlier there is no addons or anything which launches , just a plain window.
So as mentioned earlier the "shortcut to desktop" thing can be done with mozilla firefox as well. So the only difference is that it would be light without any addons and address bars etc . So unless you find firefox crashing on you always , i really dont know what this can be used for!!

Here are a few screenshots on how i installed it :

Download standalone application


extract the downloaded file

Double click on PRISM to launch

How To Fix : DSL Tab Disabled In Ubuntu Jaunty

Another major bug in ubuntu jaunty is causing a problem for ADSL users to connect to the internet using bridged mode . Apparently , the DSL tab gets disabled in the network manager hence making it impossible to create a PPPoE dialer


Well , this probably doesnt happen to all ubuntu jaunty users , but incase you face this , you would need to create the dialer using the terminal . CLICK HERE to view a link on that bug.To create the dialer from the terminal , follow these steps :

Step 1 : Go to the Terminal ( Applications->Accessories->Terminal)
Step 2 : Now type , sudo pppoeconf
Step 3 : Follow the instructions , and enter the username and password wherever required
Step 4 : Now to Connect to the internet you need to type sudo pon dsl-provider and to disconnect you need to type sudo pff dsl-provider
Step 5 : Thats it. For more details on this with screenshots CLICK HERE

How To Use Empathy For Google Talk Voice chat In Ubuntu

There is no official google talk version for linux which supports voice chat , also most of us have a lot of buddies in our google account , so not being able to talk to them from ubuntu can be a bit frustrating . So here's a small tutorial on how to get empathy to voice chat with your google talk buddies :

Step 1 : Go to Your Terminal and type sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

Now if you are using Ubuntu Hardy , then add the following two lines

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/telepathy/ppa/ubuntu hardy main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/telepathy/ppa/ubuntu hardy main

If you are using Ubuntu Intrepid , then add the following two lines

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/telepathy/ppa/ubuntu intrepid main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/telepathy/ppa/ubuntu intrepid main

If you are using Ubuntu Jaunty , then add the following two lines

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/telepathy/ppa/ubuntu jaunty main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/telepathy/ppa/ubuntu jaunty main

NOTE : For any other version of ubuntu , just replace jaunty with the version name

Step 2 : Now save and close the file
Step 3 : Back in the terminal type sudo apt-get update and then type sudo apt-get install empathy telepathy-gabble telepathy-mission-control telepathy-stream-engine telepathy-butterfly python-msn
Step 4 : Now the installation is complete.
Step 5 : Now open Empathy by going to Applications->Internet->Empathy

Step 6 : Now click on Edit->Accounts ( or press F4)
Step 7 : Now select Account Type as Google Talk and click on CREATE

Step 8 : Enter your Login ID and password and ensure that the other settings are as shown in the screenshot ( its usually the default settings)

Step 9 : Now CHECK the option next to your gtalk account where it says ENABLED
Step 10 : Now back to the main empathy screen , select AVAILABLE instead of OFFLINE

Step 11 : Now when this page pops up , click on Always Allow

Step 12 : Now you should be successfully logged in
Step 13 : ALl the users which have a mic symbol next to it means that you CAN call them ( as they have a mic and headphone with them )

Step 14 : To CALL , just right click on the person's name and click on CALL
Step 15 : You should now see a window like this and should be able to TALK to your google talk buddy