{"id":3717,"date":"2012-03-19T12:00:38","date_gmt":"2012-03-19T12:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.markwilson.co.uk\/blog\/?p=3717"},"modified":"2012-03-15T22:52:16","modified_gmt":"2012-03-15T22:52:16","slug":"some-useful-stuff-to-install-on-a-linux-machine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.markwilson.co.uk\/blog\/2012\/03\/some-useful-stuff-to-install-on-a-linux-machine.htm","title":{"rendered":"Some useful stuff to install on a Linux machine"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last year, I decided to take my netbook out of hibernation and install Ubuntu Linux (11.04) on it. It still doesn’t get used much (the iPad is just so much easier than a netbook – except perhaps for typing) but before I blow it away and install something else… like Windows 8, or Android<\/a> perhaps… I wanted to capture a few notes from the bits and pieces I installed.<\/p>\n

Apologies if these notes are not much use to anyone else but, then again, they might be handy for someone…<\/p>\n

Command Line Twitter client (Twidge)<\/h3>\n

I’ve previously highlighted the existence of Twidge<\/a>\u00a0and it’s a useful tool to install on a Linux box. Ubuntu Manual has outlined the steps for installing Twidge on Linux (specifically Ubuntu)<\/a>\u00a0but the basic steps are:<\/p>\n

Update the sources list:<\/p>\n

sudo gedit \/etc\/apt\/sources.list<\/code><\/p>\n

and add the following lines:<\/p>\n

deb http:\/\/ftp.de.debian.org\/debian squeeze main
\ndeb-src http:\/\/ftp.de.debian.org\/debian squeeze main<\/code><\/p>\n

then install the package:<\/p>\n

sudo apt-get update
\nsudo apt-get install twidge<\/code><\/p>\n

From this point on, twidge --help<\/code> and twidge lscommands<\/code> should tell you all you need to know.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Password manager (LastPass)<\/h3>\n

LastPass works with a variety of Linux browsers so just head on over to the download page<\/a> and follow the instructions.<\/p>\n

File sync (Dropbox)<\/h3>\n

\"\"Dropbox has Linux packages for a variety of Linux distros<\/a>\u00a0(download and then double-click on the installer) and of course there’s the option to compile from source too. \u00a0The download page also includes command line instructions and a script for controlling Dropbox from the command line but I haven’t tried that yet…<\/p>\n

Music (Spotify)<\/h3>\n

There isn’t a fully-supported Spotify\u00a0client\u00a0for Linux but, because so many of their devs use it, there is a “preview version” available<\/a>. More details are available on Spotify’s previews page<\/a>\u00a0but the basic steps are:<\/p>\n

Update the sources list:<\/p>\n

sudo gedit \/etc\/apt\/sources.list<\/code><\/p>\n

and add the following lines:<\/p>\n

deb http:\/\/repository.spotify.com stable non-free
\ndeb-src http:\/\/repository.spotify.com stable non-free<\/code><\/p>\n

Optionally, verify the package with<\/p>\n

sudo apt-key adv --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com --recv-keys 4E9CFF4E<\/code><\/p>\n

Either way, install the package with:<\/p>\n

sudo apt-get update
\nsudo apt-get install spotify-client-qt<\/code><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

I’ve not had any problems, but I did spot Ross Warren’s post about Spotify on Linux crashing at startup. \u00a0If this happens, then you might need to clear the cache<\/a>:<\/p>\n

rm -r ~\/.cache\/spotify<\/code><\/p>\n

Mobile communications<\/h3>\n

The last items is probably not that useful to other people but I managed to get an O2 3G dongle working (Sierra Wireless Compass 889). Unfortunately, Sierra Wireless have updated their website and the Linux support has gone AWOL<\/a>… but I found some information on a third party website<\/a>\u00a0suggesting that\u00a0Sierra Wireless submits driver updates and patches to the public Linux distribution found at\u00a0www.kernel.org<\/a>. Using Network Connections, I was able to create a mobile broadband connection with the following settings:<\/p>\n