Tip: Using nmcli to connect to Internet in Enlightenment

If you are using Enlightenment in OpenSUSE or some other Linux distribution¹ , chances are you may face problems in using the NetworkManager to connect to Internet.

This is because the  NetworkManager applet (nm-applet) doesn't show itself in the taskbar of the Enlightenment desktop. And as the saying goes - what you can't see, you can't control.

'less' command as a substitution for 'tail -f'

Here is a useful substitution to the popular 'tail -f' command used by many Linux users.

The 'tail' command is used to view the last part of a text file. So if you want to see the last 5 lines in a text file named 'log.txt' then you do the following.

$ tail -n 5 log.txt

Introducing GNOME 3.16 - A Preview

GNOME 3.16 is the latest version of GNOME 3, and is the result of six months' work by the GNOME project. It includes major new features, as well as a large number of smaller improvements and enhancements. The release incorporates 33525 changes, made by approximately 1043 contributors.

Creating and Using Barcodes with Inkscape

Barcodes provide a simple, reliable, machine-readable way to read numbers or addresses into your computer (or smartphone or tablet) so that information can be looked up online or in a database.

Barcodes are used in a variety of industries such as in library systems, in blood banks, for labeling telecommunication equipments, ISBN codes in books, on packaged products - just to name a few.

Download Viber for Linux

Linux gets Viber. Viber is an instant messenger, video & telephony app similar to Microsoft Skype that allows you to connect with others freely. It is popular on mobile devices the world over with a base of more than 200 million users in over 193 countries. People use Viber to send free text messages, photo messages, video messages and share locations with other users. It also allows you to make free HD-quality calls to other Viber users on iPhone, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, Windows, Mac, Symbian, Nokia S40 and Bada devices over 3G/4G or WiFi connections.



Now they have released a Linux version of the popular Viber client. Viber for Linux can be installed on the following Linux distributions - Ubuntu, Mint, and Zorin OS. But it should possibly work without any problem in most major Linux distributions. Unfortunately, this release of the Linux client of Viber does not allow you to make video calls over the Internet yet, which is supported on Windows and Mac OS X.

You can download the Linux version of Viber by visiting http://www.viber.com/products/linux/.

Mosh - A replacement for SSH

Mosh is a secure shell that is touted as a replacement for the venerable SSH.

How is Mosh different from SSH ? Well, Mosh uses a new protocol called the State Synchronization Protocol (SSP) that runs over UDP. This means it is possible to synchronize the state of an object from one host to another.

Fedora 19 Released

Fedora project has officially announced the release of Fedora 19 code named Schrödinger's cat. Fedora 19 features the 3.9.0 kernel. For end users, the new features include the Cinnamon desktop environment, GNOME 3.8, KDE 4.10, and MATE 1.6 desktop; Out of the box support for extraction of RAR archives using File Roller archive utility, a new screen management software for KDE named KScreen, OpenVPN 2.3, and more.

For the developers, most of the development tools like Python, Java, PHP, Ruby, GCC (4.8.x) - have been updated. But more importantly, Fedora 19 now includes the Node.js JavaScript runtime environment for developing fast, scalable network applications using the JavaScript programming language. MariaDB a fork of MySQL has also been included which replaces MySQL.

How to download Fedora 19

There are multiple desktops available for use with Fedora. Each has a slightly different look and feel and offers varying levels of customization. Visit fedoraproject.org/en/get-fedora-options and choose the one that strikes your fancy.

If you are already using a previous version of Fedora, then it is possible to upgrade to Fedora 19. Visit fedoraproject.org/wiki/Upgrading to know more.

You can find the full release notes here. Fedora also comes with comprehensive documentation on every aspect of the OS that the end user might encounter which is a big plus.