XnViewMP for Linux (Graphic Viewer)

I was updating some of the MS Windows software I use when I saw that XnViewMP released a Linux version.  XnViewMP is a graphic image viewer that has some cropping/tweaking abilities.  I use it on Windows so I thought I'd try it on Ubuntu.

The thing I like with XnViewMP is that it displays EXIF Data, allows you to add comments, set categories, and ratings, all searchable.  You can look at the 100's of photos you just took, rate them (poor, fair, average, good, excellent) then filter your displayed results to just show the "excellent" ones.  Or you can assign categories to your photos, and then filter based on those (i.e. pets, trees, me, etc.).

You can click on thumbnails and bring them up full screen.  From there you can launch a slideshow, do some color adjustment or apply a few filters.  You can resize images or print them.  There are some color adjustments, light level correction, and batch file operations (resizing, renaming, etc.)

To download and install XnViewMP Click Here and download the Linux Version (.deb).  Once it's downloaded just double click on the XnViewMP-linux.deb file and choose install once the Ubuntu Software Center appears.

The above link takes you directly to the download page.  If that doesn't work or if you just want to know more before you install it here's the main page link.

Auto Mount SMB Share at Boot

I have an Asus RT-N66U Router and it has two USB ports, one of which I have a 1 TB Western Digital Hard Drive attached.  To access it from my Ubuntu 14.04 box I have to use the BROWSE NETWORK option in Nautilus.  This usually works just fine but I started using a Backup Program called BACK IN TIME which does scheduled backups and it needs the remote server share attached all the time.  What we need to do is make a SMB Network Share (MS Windows Share) Auto Mount on Boot.

It's a little harder to do than just installing a few programs but it's not too bad.  Here's how we do it: (Read the NOTES section before starting)

1.  Open a Terminal Window

2.  Install CIFS (this may already be installed, Mine was)
         sudo apt-get install cifs-utils

3.  Create the mount directory.
          sudo mkdir /media/NautilusName

4.  Open your /etc/fstab file with gedit so you can edit it.
          sudo gedit /etc/fstab

5.  Once gedit opens your fstab file add the following 2 line to the bottom of the file and then save it.
         # Mount Point for Network SMB Share
         //192.168.1.1/ServerShare  /media/NautilusName cifs  guest,uid=1000,iocharset=utf8  0  0

6.  After you add the entry to /etc/fstab type:
         sudo mount -a

This last command will (re)mount all entries listed in /etc/fstab.  Open Nautilus and if you see your NautilusName is listed under NETWORK.  If so your good to go just reboot your computer and your network share will automount.

NOTES

We are connecting to the remote SMB Share as a guest which indicates you don't need a password to access the share.  To learn how to mount password protected shares go here.

NautilusName can be replaced by any name you want and it is what will show up in Nautilus.

//192.168.1.1/ is the IP address of your server and should be changed.

ServerShare is the share name on your server, change it to match yours.


The lines you added to your FSTAB file explained:

uid=1000 makes the Linux user specified by the id the owner of the mounted share, allowing them to rename files.

iocharset=utf8 allows access to files with names in non-English languages. This doesn't work with devices or Windows machines that export their shares using ISO8895-15.
 
If there is any space in the server path, you need to replace it by \040, for example if your server path is  "//servername/My Documents" use this instead  //servername/My\040Documents

Here is an image of the lines I added to my FSTAB file.

 

Garmin ForeRunner 210 on Ubuntu 14.04 Update

After doing all the steps in my last Garmin ForeRunner 210 post, my FR 210 started showing up as a storage device (usb thumb drive) in Nautilus.  This made it very easy to copy the .FIT files from the watch to my hard drive. (the .FIT files are the new format that the Garmin Forerunner 210 uses instead of .GPX).

Notice the GARMIN in the DEVICES section.

Drilling down into the GARMIN "drive".

One more Drill down into the ACTIVITIES directory and we find our .FIT files

Just cut or copy the .FIT files from the watch to your HOME directory.  Now the problem is that .FIT format does not work with RunnerKeeper.com, so we have to convert the .FIT files to .GPX files.  Here's where we get to use our old friend GPSBabel.

1.  Open a TERMINAL window

2.  Type the following and press ENTER
   gpsbabel -i garmin_fit -t -f YourFitFileName.fit -o gpx -F zzzz.gpx

        (Replace YourFitFileName with the real name of your .FIT File
         usually the name is DateTime.FIT i.e. 2014-07-26-16-34-24.fit)  

3.  This will create a file in your HOME directory called zzzz.gpx.

4.  Use your web browser and log onto RunKeeper.com.

5.  Add an Activity to your RunKeeper.com and choose UPLOAD a map, picking the zzzz.gpx from your HOME directory.

6.  Done!  No need to use the GARMIN web site or their convert commands.


NOTE:  I'm using GPSBabel 1.5.0-2 32bit which I downloaded from here.  I used the .DEB package NOT the Ubuntu package (newer version).  There is also a 64bit version link here too,

Garmin Forerunner 210 and Ubuntu

My trusty Garmin Forerunner 305 died.  After shopping around, I decided to get a Garmin Forerunner 210 to replace it (I thought about getting the Forerunner 220 but I found the 210 for $90 cheaper $160 and I didn't need the extra features).  I figured the 210 would be close enough to my 305 that it would work with my GPSBabel/RunKeeper.Com setup.  Not the case :-(  After some googling I did figure out a work around (the work around gets the Forerunner 210 working with Garmin Connect on-line which has an export to GPX).  Here is what you will need to do to get started:



1. Create a Garmin Connect Account.  http://connect.garmin.com/
    Click on the SIGN IN link it the upper right corner
    DO NOT CLICK ON THE get started LINK

    After clicking on the SIGN IN link, click on the
    DON"T HAVE AN ACCOUNT "CREATE ONE" link

    Fill out the required information and close your web browser.

2. You must have the Firefox Web Browser installed on your Ubuntu.
     I think Firefox is the default Ubuntu web browser
     If you do not have it installed, go to the Ubuntu Software Center and install it.

3. Install the Synaptic Package Manager
    Go to the Ubuntu Software Center and search for "synaptic" and install it.

We need two things installed now, Linux Garmin Communicator Plugin and the Garmin Forerunner Tools.  The Plugin is NOT available in Synaptic Package Manager so we have to install it from the command line. (You can read about the Plugin here http://www.andreas-diesner.de/garminplugin/doku.php)

CLOSE ALL INSTANCES OF FIREFOX

To install the Linux Garmin Communicator Plugin open a Terminal window and type the following (hit ENTER after each command):

 sudo add-apt-repository ppa:andreas-diesner/garminplugin

 sudo apt-get update

 sudo apt-get install garminplugin

The above steps should install garminplugin in Firefox as a plugin (In firefox go to tools/plugins to see).  If you want to check to see if it was installed correctly, just open up your Synaptic Package Manager and search "garmin".  You should see garminplugin and garmin-forerunner-tools are installed (green box).  If not check each of them and hit the apply button.

You are now ready.  Connect your Garmin Forerunner 210 to its USB connector and plug it into your Linux Box.  Now open Firefox and go to  http://connect.garmin.com/ and log in to your newly created Garmin Connect Account.  Next click on the UPLOAD button in the upper left of your screen and you should see something like the below picture:

If you see this, then it worked!  Go out and put some activities on your new Garmin Forerunner 210 watch and upload them to your Garmin Connect Account.  After they are uploaded you can either leave them there and use Garmin Connect to track your activities or the EXPORT option on the Garmin Connect site to EXPORT to GPX.  Use the EXPORT to download your activity as GPX file and then re-upload the GPX file to your RunKeeper.com account.

This should work with the following Garmin GPS Devices; Dakota, Oregon, Edge 200, Edge 305, Edge 500, Edge 705, Edge 800, Edge Touring Plus, Forerunner 10, Forerunner 110, Forerunner 210, Forerunner 220, Forerunner 305, Forerunner 310XT, GPSmap 60CSx, eTrex / eTrex Legend HCx 10.

I've installed the latest GPSBabel too (version 1.5.1).  If I figure out a way to use it again, I'll post another how to. Good Luck and Go Run!

A Nice Clipboard Manager - Diodon

While I'm researching online for projects (like this one) I find myself opening a GEDIT doc and copying and pasting multiple items to that doc so I can use them later (like the commands in #2 below).  Well I found a nice little Indicator App that lets you copy multiple items and saves them in a nice drop down so that you can use them later.  It's call Diodon Clipboard Manager.  It runs as an Indicator App (little paperclip in the below picture) so it's conveniently located and easy to use.

Let's get it installed and running, here's how;

1.  Open a Terminal Window

2.  Type the following commands, hitting ENTER key after each one.

     sudo add-apt-repository ppa:diodon-team/stable

     sudo apt-get update

     sudo apt-get install diodon diodon-plugins

     diodon

3.  You're done. (see the little paperclip near your date/time)


Now let's make it start every time we reboot or start our system.


1.  Go to your main LENS on your UNITY Bar
     and type in startup applications and hit ENTER

2.  Double Click on the Startup Applications Icon.

3.  This will launch the Startup Applications editor

4.  If Diodon is already there, just close Startup Applications

     because you don't need to do anything and are done.

5.  If it isn't there, click on the ADD button and a popup window will appear.

6.  In the Popup Window type the following;

     NAME: Diodon

     COMMAND: diodon

     COMMENT: Clipboard Manager

7.  Click the SAVE button in the popup window and you're done!

DropBox Quit Working on Ubuntu 14.04

I noticed that Dropbox had quit working when I upgraded to Ubuntu 14.04.  I kept getting a Crash Report window when I rebooted.  When I checked the details of the Crash Report I saw it was Dropbox.

I then noticed that the Dropbox icon was missing from Menu Bar at the top of my desktop.  I tried several things including uninstalling and reinstalling but nothing worked.  After a little Google searching I found this:

1.  Start a Terminal Window

2.  Type the following into the Terminal Window and hit ENTER:
        sudo rm -rf /var/lib/dropbox/.dropbox-dist

3.  Type the following into the Terminal Window and hit ENTER:
        dropbox start -i

4.  If asked for your sudo password (mine did) type it in.

5.  Wait  a few seconds and you will see in the Terminal Window that it is downloading the Dropbox program and then unpacking it.

6.  After step 5 finishes your Dropbox should be working again and you should see it's icon is back in the Menu Bar.

DONE!

What to do after a installation of Ubuntu 14.04 LTS (Trusty Tahr)

This is a one of the best collections of Ubuntu 14.04 (Trusty Tahr) "After Install" document I've seen.

Link to the GOOGLE DOC

There is too much there to describe, you'll just have to click on the link and see it for yourself.

Google Chrome: error while loading shared libraries: libudev.so.0

After upgrading from Ubuntu 12.04 to Ubuntu 14.04 my Google Chrome Browser stopped working. It wouldn't start when I clicked on it in the Unity Launcher so I opened a Terminal Windows and tried to start it there by typing in google-chrome.  When I did this I got the following error;

/opt/google/chrome/chrome: error while loading shared libraries: libudev.so.0: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory

What the hell do you do?  Reinstall Google Chrome right?  Wrong, that didn't work.  After some internet searching I found the following Terminal Commands that worked like a charm.  You only need to run one of these commands.  Which one depends on which 'bit' version of Ubuntu you have 64-bit or 32-bit (mine is 32-bit)

Open a Terminal Windows and type ONE of the below commands.

64-bit fix
   sudo ln -s /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libudev.so.1.3.5 /usr/lib/libudev.so.0

32-bit fix
   sudo ln -s /lib/i386-linux-gnu/libudev.so.1.3.5 /usr/lib/libudev.so.0

FIXED!!!!!!


Here's a link back to the site where I found this fix;
http://askubuntu.com/questions/369310/how-to-fix-missing-libudev-so-0-for-chrome-to-start-again

Upgrading from 12.04 to 14.04

I stayed with Ubuntu 12.04 LTS through all the upgrades until 14.04LTS came out.  Well I couldn't wait until July for the upgrade to just happen (LTS's are not upgraded until a point release on the new LTS) so I made it upgrade tonight.  It's done with a single Terminal Command (make sure you have 12.04 up to date before trying this;

1.   Open a Terminal Window and type the following;

 sudo update-manager -d

This will start the upgrade process.  It took about one hour to download all the updates, an hour and 20 minutes to do all the installs and 15 minutes for the clean up process.  (about two hours total).  Once done I had no problems getting into the system and thing looked good.  (I had to upgrade my nVidia Driver to 331.38 (SYSTEM SETTING--->SOFTWARE & UPDATES--->ADDTIONAL DRIVERS tab)

I've found two other things I need to fix, Photoshop CS2 the ALT is not functioning again but I know how to make it work (there is a post in this blog on howto make it right).  The second is more difficult, Chrome won't start.  When I figure it out I'll post another how to on it.

Fix Your STEAM Install (Connection Error)

I had to put a little effort into get Steam to work on my Ubuntu 12.04 Install (Video Drivers update crashed me) so when it stopped working I fought it to get it back up and running.  The error I kept getting was "Could not connect to Steam network.  This could be due to a problem with your internet connection, or with the Steam network.  Please visit www.steampowered.com for more info."

Well my Internet Connection wasn't the problem and I didn't see any outcry that Steam was down so it had to be something on my system.  I uninstalled and reinstalled from the Ubuntu Software Manager and even downloaded the Steam .deb file, all with no luck.

The answer was to use the Terminal Command Line to reset Steam.  Here's how;

1.  Start TERMINAL
2.  Type
      steam --reset  (HIT ENTER)
3. Wait for this command to run completely
    (it will download all the Steam System files again.)
4. Re-enter your UserName and Password and you're good to go.

This should not affect your Steam Game Library but I cannot guarantee it as I only had one game downloaded and installed when I crashed and I deleted it when I tried to "fix" Steam before I found the reset command.  USE AT YOUR OWN RISK!

Master PDF Editor

Do you need to edit PDF Files?  If so, then read this article on WEB UPD8's site on how to install Master PDF Editor. MASTER PDF EDITOR is NOT Open Source but is free for personal use on Linux ($50 on Windows).  The WEB UPD8 site is worth browsing too.

Expanding your Virtual Hard Drive in VirtualBox

I was getting an error saying I was out of Hard Drive Room when I tried to install the LibreOffice onto my VirtualBox Windows 7 install on my Ubuntu 12.04 box.  So I had to expand the Virtual Hard Drive.  To change the size of a dynamically growing virtual drive in VirtualBox 4.3 running on Ubuntu 12.04, run the following two commands in a Terminal Window:

     VBoxManage list hdds


This will display a list of all your Virtual Drives in VirtualBox.  You will need to write down or copy the uuid of the Virtual Drive you want to increase in size.  You will have a Virtual Drive for every Virtual OS you have installed on VirtualBox.  They have names with them so they are easy to differentiate. 

The last command is:

     VBoxManage modifyhd <uuid> --resize <newsize in MB>

When I did mine, my command looked like this (note the double hyphens):

VBoxManage modifyhd d009bb80-64a4-4ac2-a405-3681dff3964e --resize 30000

This increased my Virtual Drive from 14gb to 30gb.

That's all the Terminal Commands we need so close your Terminal Window and start you VirtualBox Windows 7.  Once your Virtual Windows 7 starts we need to tell it that it has more hard drive room.  To achieve this do the following:

In Windows 7, Right Click on COMPUTER and select MANAGE.

Once the Computer Management screen appears, select Disk Management to view new unallocated space (10.74 GB in below picture)

To finish, Right Click on your (C:) Volume (13.57 GB NTFS in the above picture) and select "Extend Volume..." from the menu that pops up. Choose the Unallocated Space when asked (just choose the defaults when the Wizard asks).  This will make your Unallocated Volume go away and your (C:) Volume will now be bigger.  Done!