Ubuntu / Linux news and application reviews.

Ubuntu 17.04 (Zesty Zapus) Available For Download

| Date: April 13, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: ubuntu, Zesty Zapus

Ubuntu 17.04 Zesty Zapus

Ubuntu 17.04 has been released.

The new version brings updated applications and various under-the-hood improvements, along with bug fixes. As expected, Compiz and Unity have only received minor improvements and bug fixes.

On the other hand, Ubuntu 17.04 includes the GNOME 3.24 stack for the most part (GTK3 along with Totem, Disks, Calendar, and so on). There are some missing bits, but this is still pretty important, as Ubuntu didn't use the latest GNOME since around Ubuntu 11.10 / GNOME 3.2.


Pandora Radio Client Pithos 1.3.0 Released, Available In PPA

| Date: April 13, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: appindicator, linux, pandora, pithos, radio, ubuntu

Pithos 1.3.0 was released recently and is now available in its official PPA, for Ubuntu 17.04, 16.10 and 16.04. The new version brings support for MPRIS playlist and tracklist interfaces, improved accessibility UI, and more.

Pithos

Pithos is a Pandora Radio (only available in Australia, New Zealand and the United States) client that supports Pandora features such as love / ban / tired, allows creating, editing and switching between stations, and more.

The application integrates tightly with the desktop, providing notifications, MPRIS v2 support (it integrates with the Ubuntu Sound Menu / GNOME Shell, etc. ), media keys, can inhibit the screensaver and so on.

New KDE Connect Indicator Ubuntu / Linux Mint PPA

| Date: April 07, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: android, appindicator, kde connect, ubuntu

The KDE Connect Indicator (fork) PPA maintainer is not available any more, and I was asked to create a new PPA. 

KDE Connect Indicator

Since I'm a KDE Connect Indicator user myself, I couldn't say no, so I created a new KDE Connect Indicator PPA, which provides packages for Ubuntu 17.04, 16.10 and 16.04 / Linux Mint 18.x.

Polo Is An Interesting New GTK3 File Manager (Beta)

| Date: April 06, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: file manager, linux, polo, ubuntu

Developed by Tony George, who's also behind other fairly popular applications such as Selene Media Converter, TimeShift backup tool, and more, Polo is only available for users who donate for now. The stable release will be available for all users, however, those who donate will get a few extra features.

Polo File Manager

Polo is a new file manager that aims at providing features that are missing from popular file managers. The application is currently in beta, and it lacks some feature, but it already looks very promising.

Ubuntu 18.04 LTS To Use GNOME By Default; Unity 8 And The Phone To Be Discontinued

| Date: April 06, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: linux, ubuntu, ubuntu phone, unity, unity 8

Ubuntu logo

Ubuntu 18.04 LTS will go back to using GNOME as the default desktop environment, instead of Unity.

Streamlink 0.5.0 Adds Support For Streaming Google Drive / Google Docs Videos

| Date: April 05, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: cli, linux, livestreamer, macosx, streaming, streamlink, ubuntu, windows

Streamlink 0.5.0 was released yesterday, bringing support for streaming videos from Google Drive / Google Docs, along with other improvements.

Streamlink

Forked from Livestreamer, which is no longer maintained, Streamlink is a command line tool (and API) that can be used to stream videos from various streaming services, such as Twitch, YouTube Live and many more, and play them using your favorite video player, be it VLC, mpv, and more.

Razer Peripherals Configuration GUI Polychromatic 0.3.8 Released With Overhauled Tray / AppIndicator

| Date: April 05, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: keyboard, linux, mouse, polychromatic, razer, ubuntu

Polychromatic, an unofficial GUI and tray applet for configuring Razer peripherals on Linux, was updated to version 0.3.8 today, bringing a completely overhauled tray / AppIndicator applet which only shows options relevant to your device(s), along with other changes.

Polychromatic Razer configuration tool

PB For Desktop 5.0.0 Brings Support For SMS Notification Mirroring

| Date: April 04, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: android, linux, notifications, pushbullet

PB For Desktop 5.0.0 was released today, bringing some important enhancements and fixes, like support for SMS mirroring, improved reconnection (in case the network gets disconnected), and more.

PB For Desktop

Fix AppIndicator Not Working For Electron Apps In Ubuntu 17.04 Zesty Zapus w/ Unity

| Date: April 04, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: electron, fix, tips n tricks, ubuntu, Zesty Zapus

Skype For Linux Indicator Ubuntu 17.04 Zesty Zapus

[Quick update] It looks like Dropbox isn't the only AppIndicator that doesn't work in Ubuntu 17.04 Zesty Zapus (under Unity) due to the change of XDG_CURRENT_DESKTOP from "Unity" to "Unity:Unity7".

Update (thanks Martin): the Dropbox AppIndicator no longer has this issue.

Electron applications (such as the new Skype For Linux, WMail, PB For Desktop and many others) are affected as well, but in a different way. For Electron applications, the indicator is not displayed at all in Ubuntu 17.04 Zesty Zapus under Unity.

GNOME Twitch 0.4.0 Includes Improved Chat, Re-Enabled Notifications, More

| Date: April 04, 2017 | View Comments | Tags: gnome, gnome twitch, linux, twitch, ubuntu

GNOME Twitch (not an official GNOME app) 0.4.0 was released recently, bringing improved chat moving and resizing, re-enabled notifications, along with improved stability and more.

GNOME Twitch

 The application was updated 3 days ago, but there was a bug that prevented it from building in Ubuntu 16.10, so I preferred to wait until it's fixed so I could update the PPA.

License: (cc) BY-NC-SA WebUpd8 | Privacy