Ubuntu on the Dell Inspiron 1501

Thanks R Duthie

2009-10-08T04:32:00.002-05:00

Roger J A Duthie donated half the cost of next years hosting for www.ubuntu1501.com. If you'd like to see your name on the blog feel free to donate. I'll be keeping this site up as long as people visit.

While this blog is no longer updated, please check out my current blog www.ubuntumini.com for your Ubuntu tips, tricks, hacks and tweaks.

Auto-NDISwrapper

2009-03-29T19:50:00.005-05:00

I just came across this project, I am not sure if it works on the Dell Inspiron 1501 but it's worth trying and leaving feedback for everyone else.

Auto-NDISwrapper: Linux Wi-Fi as easy as it can get
This program automatically looks at what Wi-Fi card you have, it disables any wireless driver currently installed, fetches the correct Windows driver from the Internet and installs it with NDISwrapper.

You can check out their Launchpad page here

You can download the package here

For help installing a tarball package

Configure Your System With Ubuntu Tweak

2009-03-17T17:16:00.001-05:00

Ubuntu Tweak is an application designed to make configuring Ubuntu easier. It provides many useful desktop and system options that the default desktop environment doesn't easily provide. It also offers easy installation of popular programs and 3rd party repositories. It is only designed for an Ubuntu GNOME Desktop, and is available for both Ubuntu 8.10 and Ubuntu 8.04 but not for the lpia architecture.

Ubuntu Tweak provides system information:

- these screenshots are from my desktop, not my Dell Inspiron 1501.

Easy installation of popular applications & 3rd party repositories:

- I recommend Ubuntu Tweak as the easy and safe way to install OpenOffice 3.0 Wine, Banshee, Mail Notification, Gnome Do and many other programs.

Configuring your startup programs (Autostart):

- Great for stopping unneeded wanted programs from booting at start up. Making your PC boot faster.

System, Gnome & Nautilus Tweaks:

I enjoy using Ubuntu Tweak, even though it is just a graphical user interface for other graphical user interfaces. All these 'tweaks' can be done through Gconf and editing source lists. The advantage of Ubuntu Tweak is that it has all these options together in one place, listed and presented in a easy to understand format. You still can mess up your install or nerf your system if you are not careful.

Installating Ubuntu Tweak
1. Download the lastest version of Ubuntu Tweak
-or-
2. Install the Ubuntu Tweak Repository
In a terminal type:

sudo apt-key adv --recv-keys --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com FE85409EEAB40ECCB65740816AF0E1940624A220

- to add the repository key

sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

- to open your repository source list

Add the repository for your version of Ubuntu at the end of your source list
-for Ubuntu 8.04 Hardy heron

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/tualatrix/ubuntu hardy main

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

- for Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/tualatrix/ubuntu intrepid main

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

In a terminal type:

sudo apt-get update

- to update your sources

sudo apt-get install ubuntu-tweak

- to install Ubuntu Tweak

Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference

2009-01-27T21:34:00.000-06:00

The Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference is a excellent resource for Ubuntu users and is now available for download at www.ubuntupocketguide.com. The book focuses on teaching new users how to navigate Linux and the skills needed to become an expert Ubuntu user. Offering support for both Ubuntu 8.04 and 8.10. I find the pocketbook to be accessible and easy to understand. I am currently making my way through the 150+ pages on solid Ubuntu knowledge.

© Copyright 2008 Keir Thomas.
Ubuntu is a trademark of Canonical Ltd.
Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference is not affiliated to Canonical Ltd.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

edited by pHreaksYcle

The Linux Alternative Project

2009-01-25T21:36:00.000-06:00

The Linux Alternative Project provides a database with the Linux equivalent of many Windows programs.

Whether you recently made the switch or are an old Linux user, the site contains a lot of information and links for software that being actively developed and comparable to some of the Windows applications you are used to using.

Check out The Linux Alternative Project site at http://www.linuxalt.com/

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Two Years & Four Releases Later

2009-01-18T14:59:00.004-06:00

Ubuntu1501 has been running for over two years and has offered articles and howto's for the last four Ubuntu releases. I'm am very proud of the work I have done and the community the blog has built. I am surprised at the traffic the site generates even though I last updated when Intrepid was released. As you can see the numbers are amazing.

Unfortunately, I am moving on. I sold my Dell 1501 and replaced it with a Dell Mini 9 and a Dell Studio 15. I have been hard at work with www.ubuntumini.com.

I will continue to pay for the domain and publish comments as long as people log on and read.

Thank You,
redDEADresolve

edited by pHreaksYcle

Best Comment on Ubuntu1501

2009-01-16T12:12:00.001-06:00

@Drew Martell
.
Please stop sharing your stupidity here! Running an anti-virus in Win is the only way to go and even that is not guaranteed protection. It's not about knowing what you are doing (and you've already proved you don't) it's just you have been lucky all this time. If you just plug your pen drive on an infected system with Windows it'll pass the virus to your pen drive. And YES, your Win WILL autorun the virus when you plug your pen drive in it, doesn't matter what options you have selected on it. Fact, Windows is full of holes for viruses.
.
As for running as root to use VirtualBox. no comments there, this blog itself explains how to use VB as normal user.
.
Stop posting man, you're just too f** stupid.

Read the comment thread here

This is Why I Love Microsoft's OS

2008-11-05T11:00:00.007-06:00

I don't like it when my PC creahes.

The file has been digitally signed and independently certified as 100% free of spyware, adware and viruses.

After scanning my C:/ drive and my Window files, it reported that I had an IEMonster, Porn Advertiser & Trojan Banker InfoStealer.
I didn't even know I had a C:/ drive or that Microsoft issued Security Warnings to Linux Users.

I feel sorry for people who hit install.

Trust me, that Microsoft certification course you took at the community college/high school only certifies that you can attend a class.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Go Vote, Pretty Please

2008-11-03T12:51:00.005-06:00

This morning I received a email from nin.com that sums up what I wanted to write today.

This Tuesday, we will elect the next President of the United States. The result will have great consequences for the nation.

This election offers a choice between two men with dramatically different visions of the future. We have strong feelings about this choice. But we feel even more strongly that all Americans, regardless of political preference, have a stake in the outcome and should vote in this critical election.

This is likely to be a close election. Your vote matters. Please use it and make a difference.

-----
So dust off your Cheeto stained hands, stop watching internet porn and go vote. I know the sun is a harsh beast, but sacrifices must be made.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex Starter Guide

2008-11-02T07:55:00.001-06:00

If you decided to run Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex on your Dell Inspiron 1501 you came to the right place. This blog is a great starter guide for getting things to work.

Every piece of hardware on the Dell 1501 works in Ubuntu, wireless requires setup but it is much less work then a fresh install of Windows XP/Vista. It's not as hard as it looks and everything here is tested and confirmed to work.

Overview of Ubuntu 8.10 on the Dell Inspiron 1501

Using NDISwrapper for wireless
NDISwrapper uses a wireless devices' Windows driver in Linux.

Installing restricted media codecs
This guide will allowing you to play Flash, Java mp3, aac, DVDs ,mp4, avi, wmv and many more formats. It also installs the Microsoft true type fonts for better compatibility with Word documents.

Installing the Medibuntu repository
Medibuntu is a repository of packages that cannot be included into the Ubuntu distribution for legal reasons like copyright, license or patent restrictions. It also includes many popular .debs for ffmpeg encoding, w32codes, skype and google earth.

Installing Wine
Wine is a compatibility layer for running Windows applications on Linux.

Mandx that's the point, everyone should check out our new Blog about running Ubuntu on the Dell Inspiron Mini 9

NDISwrapper in Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex

2008-11-02T07:43:00.005-06:00

NDISwrapper uses a wireless devices' Windows driver in Linux. If you are using the Broadcom STA wireless driver via the Driver Manager and it's working for all your day to day needs, I wouldn't recommend taking the time to change drivers. NDISwrapper used to work better then the Broadcom driver but in Intrepid Ibex, I haven't noticed a substantial difference.

If you have already enabled the Broadcom restricted driver, uninstall it before attempting this guide.

Step 1: Stop ssb From Loading Before NDISwrapper
Make a script for NDISwrapper's fix
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/init.d/wirelessfix.sh

Paste this into the file:
#!/bin/bash

modprobe -r b44
modprobe -r b43
modprobe -r ssb
modprobe -r ndiswrapper
modprobe ndiswrapper
modprobe b44

Point the terminal to your init.d file and make your script exectuable:
In a terminal type:
cd /etc/init.d/ && sudo chmod 755 wirelessfix.sh

Update and make it stick:
In a terminal type:
sudo update-rc.d wirelessfix.sh defaults

Then reboot
In a terminal type:
sudo reboot

Step 2: Get Needed Packages
To install ndiswrapper
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install ndiswrapper-utils-1.9 ndiswrapper-common

or you can also try:
sudo apt-get install ndiswrapper-utils-1.9* ndiswrapper-common

***If the terminal outputs an error message, telling you NDISwrapper could not be found, insert the Ubuntu disc you used to install Intrepid Ibex and manually search for the file.

Get the Windows driver for your Dell 1501.
This is for the Broadcom 1395 chipset. if yours is different you will need to find the correct windows driver for your chipset to make this guide work.
In a terminal type:
wget http://ftp.us.dell.com/network/R140747.EXE

Step 3: Get Everything Ready
Now we will make a folder.
In a terminal type:
mkdir ~/.drivers

Now we will move R140747.EXE (the Dell driver), to the folder we just made.
In a terminal type:
mv ~/R140747.EXE ~/.drivers

STEP 4: Driver Setup
In order for us to unzip the R140747.EXE driver we need to point your terminal to the /.driver folder.
In a terminal type:
cd ~/.drivers

Unzip the R140747.EXE driver
In a terminal type:
unzip -a R140747.EXE

We need to point your terminal to the DRIVER folder we just unzipped
In a terminal type:
cd ~/.drivers/DRIVER

Step 5: Configure The Windows driver With NDISwrapper
Now install the Windows driver
In a terminal type:
sudo ndiswrapper -i bcmwl5.inf

* bcmwl5.inf is for my chipset, if you are using another driver you will have to use a different .inf file.

Then:
sudo ndiswrapper -l (that is a lowercase L)

You should see a message that says driver present, hardware detected.

Now finish installing the driver
In a terminal type:
sudo ndiswrapper -m
Then:
sudo modprobe ndiswrapper

YOU MUST REBOOT NOW!
In a terminal type:
sudo reboot

STEP 6: TEST WIRELESS
Your wifi light on your laptop should be illuminated. If not, you can always turn it on and off with the Fn+F2 (Function & F2 Key) and you're all set! Try running this to see if your wireless card is functioning properly.)

In a terminal type:
sudo iwlist scanning

edited by pHreaksYcle

Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex on the Dell Inspiron 1501

2008-10-22T21:11:00.010-05:00

Installation:
Intrepid installs without a problem.

Wireless:
Two Methods:
1. The Broadcom STA proprietary wireless driver can be installed via Intrepid's Hardware Drivers gui with two mouse clicks. I found the driver to be a vast improvement over Hardy's,
2. Using NDISWrapper.

ATI Open Source Driver
It took years of of praying, hoping and waiting but Dell 1501/ATI x1150 users finally have a working open source driver. It is installed by default in Ubuntu 8.10.

Compiz-Fusion
Compiz-Fusion runs and pretty well.
To get the most out of Compiz try installing the settings manager and launcher.
In a terminal:

sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager

sudo apt-get install fusion-icon

Media Codecs
Intrepid Ibex makes codec installation easy. Mp3, DVD, avi, aac, mpeg, wmv, asf, mov, flv, mp4, flash codecs are installed when you try to play them. If you like to add all the major codecs and make playback easy, check out this guide. The only thing not enabled in Ubuntu is reading encrypted DVDs. To add DVD playback and some other helpful media codecs to Ubuntu follow this guide.

Ethernet
Works out of the box. In order to do any of these guides you're going to need to plug in your Dell Inspiron 1501. Don't be cheap, go out and buy an Ethernet cable.

Brightness & Volume
Brightness (Fn Up/Down Arrow) and Volume (Fn Page Up/Page Dn) keyboard shortcuts both work.

Suspend & Hibernate
Both Suspend and Hibernate.

Video Out
Works out of the box, Intrepid's Screens and Resolutions (System>Administration>Screens and Resolutions) makes using an external multiple monitor a breeze. Configuration for dual monitors does require editing your xorg.conf file.

Modem
The Conexant Modem driver is usually released by Dell once they switch their Linux machines over to the new version of Ubuntu. Right now there is no deb for the modem driver. I'll update the site and this space when Dell releases it.

Card Reader
Works out of the box.

edited by pHreaksYcle

My Dell Inspiron Mini 9 Blog

2008-10-16T09:43:00.002-05:00

I received my Dell Inspiron Mini 9 yesterday and pHreaksYcle should be getting his today. I love it already. We started a new Ubuntu blog for it about a month ago. Check it out, we're working really hard on it.

The Dell Inspiron 1501 will always have a special place in my heart, I cut my mobile Linux teeth on it. www.ubuntu1501.com isn't going anywhere, but I will be needing your help to keep it going.

Here's a sneak peak at what I've been up to on the Dell Mini 9:

Favorite FireFox 3 Plugins

2008-10-03T08:23:00.005-05:00

These are the Firefox 3 plugins I cannot live without:

Foxmarks Bookmark Synchronizer
If you use Firefox on more than one computer, you'll want Foxmarks. Install Foxmarks on each computer, and it will work silently in the background to keep your bookmarks synchronized. You can also log in to my.foxmarks.com to manage your bookmarks from any computer.

Custom Download Manager
This addon allows you to personalize your download manager. Now, you can open the download manager on a new tab or on the sidebar.

Open Tabs Relative
Tabs Open Relative makes all new tabs open to the right of the current tab, rather than at the far right of the tab bar.

Open Image In New Tab
Adds right-click context menu item for opening images in new tabs.

Undo Closed Tab Button
Tired of going to History -> Recently Closed Tabs just to undo a closed tab? Then this extension is for you! This extension allows you to undo closed tabs via a toolbar and/or tab bar button or the right-click context menu.

Adblock Plus
Ever been annoyed by all those ads and banners on the internet that often take longer to download than everything else on the page? Install Adblock Plus now and get rid of them.

Adblock Plus: Element Hiding Helper
Fight the text ads! Element Hiding Helper is a companion extension for Adblock Plus meant to make creating element hiding rules easier.

Flashblock
Flashblock is an extension for the Mozilla, Firefox, and Netscape browsers that takes a pessimistic approach to dealing with Macromedia Flash content on a webpage and blocks ALL Flash content from loading. It then leaves placeholders on the webpage that allow you to click to download and then view the Flash content.

Mouse Gestures Redox
Allows you to execute common commands (like page forward/backward, close tab, new tab) by mouse gestures drawn over the current webpage, without reaching for the toolbar or the keyboard.

I'd love to know what plugins you use, leave a comment with a description.

Human Theme for Thunderbird by Mares

2008-09-28T18:46:00.004-05:00

Mares sent sent us a link about his/her human theme for Thunderbird. While I have been using Evolution, I think I might be switching back to Thunderbird thanks to Mares.

To Install Thunderbird:
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install thunderbird

To checkout or download Mares theme, which look amazing, check out the official download link at Mozilla's site.

And as always you can contact me at redDEADresolve on Google mail. Hopefully Mares will send us a nice screen shot to go with the article.

Whats Planned For Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid Ibex

2008-09-03T12:57:00.003-05:00

First off, an Ibex is just a wild mountain goat native to Eurasia, North Africa, and East Africa. I had to look it up when 8.10 was first announced back in April.

What's Planned For Intrepid
GNOME 2.23.91 Desktop Environment
Nautilus file manager finally gets tab support and eject icons for removable drives in Places sidebar. File Roller archive manager now supports ALZ, RZIP, CAB, TAR.7Z file types.

X.Org server 7.4
Much better support for hot-pluggable input devices such as tablets, keyboards, and mice.

Linux kernel 2.6.27
Lots of big improvements, head over to www.kernel.org for details.

Encrypted private directory
Keep you private data from prying eyes.

Guest Session
Creates a temporary guest account with a temporary home directory and some restricted privileges. Guests are not able to read any home directory or do any permanent changes to the system.

Network Manager 0.7
Comes with long-expected features, such as, system wide settings, management of 3G connections (GSM/CDMA), management of multiple active devices at once, management of PPP and PPPOE connections, management of devices with static IP configurations, and route management for devices.

Last Successful Boot Recovery Entry
A copy of your running kernel is made after every successful boot and made available from the boot loader as a "Last successful boot" option. This makes it possible for old kernel packages to be safely auto-removed by the package manager, instead of being kept indefinitely.

DKMS
Allows kernel drivers to be automatically rebuilt when new kernels are released. Making it possible for kernel package updates to be made available immediately without waiting for rebuilds of driver packages, and without third-party driver packages becoming out of date when installing these kernel updates.

Lots of great stuff to look forward to. Hardy was a great release for 1501 users lets hope the good times keep rolling.

redDEAD is Not Dead

2008-08-16T02:32:00.005-05:00

I'm alive, still using Ubuntu Hardy Heron 8.04 and waiting for Intrepid Ibex 8.10 to come out. You can find Intrepid's release schedule here.

Expect the site to really go live again around September 4th for the Alpha 5 release and full coverage leading to the full release.

I don't know how many people are still running Ubuntu on their 1501, but I know at least I'm going to be.

Getting The Modem To Work In Hardy

2008-06-28T09:43:00.005-05:00

If you upgraded your install from Gutsy Gibbon to Hardy Heron, your modem may not work. You need to install the new hsfmodem deb. If you have the older version of the Conexant Modem driver, please uninstall it before installing the new one.

You can find the driver here. This is only for the 32bit version of Ubuntu, the one I use and recommend. 64 bit users will need to go here. There is no deb for the 64bit driver so installation can be a bit of a chore.

After installing the modem driver, you might get a pop-up window telling you that the Volume Control has quit unexpectedly and asks you to reload (or not reload) the panel. Click on Reload. Afterwards, the sound icon on the top right corner of the screen changes to "mute", but sound should be fine. A logout/login or GDM restart should have solved the issue. This issue happens because the modem driver lays down its own set of sound codecs and unloads the snd-hda-intel module during the installation process. But it doesn't, when I tried to modprobe snd-hda-intel I received an error. If you check the comments Mmandx has found a workaround. You can download an version of the alsa-driver package (from the ALSA project) with improved support for the HSF driver here.

edited by pHreaksYcle

What is The Terminal & How Do I Find It

2008-06-17T21:54:00.006-05:00

I realized that I talk about using the terminal a lot in this blog. Just about every guide asks users to fire up a terminal. I never have bothered to explain what it is or how to find it, and for that I'm sorry new Ubuntu/Linux users.

When I say terminal I really mean, a command line interpreter. The command line interpreter is a computer program that reads lines of text entered by a user and interprets them in the context of a given operating system or programming language.

The terminal gives you complete access to your operating system and often allows you to do things faster and more efficiently.

To access Ubuntu's terminal go to: Applications>Accessories>Terminal

It looks like this:

I know this may seem silly to many long time readers and hardcore Linux users, but if it wasn't for my buddy Muki showing me the terminal, I would have been asking this question to, or maybe I would have just googled it.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Fix PulseAudio - Play Video & Audio While Playing Flash

2008-06-04T23:22:00.009-05:00

There is a known issue with Firefox/Flash and PulseAudio.

PulseAudio is the standard sound server in Ubuntu Hardy Heron 8.04. A sound server is a background process that accepts sound input from one or more sources (like your applications) and redirecting it to one or more sinks (like your sound card). Unfortunately it doesn't quite work with Flash 9 support in Firefox.

There is an easy fix:
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install libflashsupport

Now when you have audio and video playing, Flash will have sound and vice-versa.

To get the most out of PulseAudio, you may want to download and install the device chooser.

In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install padevchooser
sudo apt-get install pavucontrol

edited by pHreaksYcle

Make KDE Look Like Gnome

2008-05-27T01:14:00.012-05:00

This guide will show you how to make KDE applications look just like and feel like Gnome applications. I can't live without my KDE applications, specifically Amarok, k3b or k9copy; but have always been annoyed by the clashing of styles on my desktop.

KDE Applications Before Using The Guide:

After using the Guide:

Configure KDE
To make this guide work you first need to download the KDE Control Center, kControl. It is the centralized settings manager for the KDE desktop environment.

To Download kControl
sudo apt-get install kcontrol

To launch kControl, enter kcontrol into a run box (Alt+F2), or type it into a terminal.

Gnome Style
Klearlook is a widget style for KDE that is based off the QtCurve style. As its name suggests, it is intended to be a KDE replica of the GTK theme "Clearlooks". Navigate to Appearance & Theme>Style.

To Download Klearlook
sudo apt-get install kde-style-klearlook
Select Klearlooks from the drop down menu under Widget Style.

Gnome Icons
Human Icon Pack for Kde is the best replica of the Human theme for Kde I have seen. It cover all major and minor icons. Navigate to Appearance & Theme>Icons.

To Download Human_KDE.tar.gz, click this link.
Select Install New Theme and navigate to where you saved the Human_KDE.tar.gz file and install it.

Gnome Colors
To make the color scheme in KDE match Gnome, navigate to Appearances & Themes>Colors.

Enter these values to match Gnome color layout.
Inactive Title Bar #C1C5AB
Active Title Bar #D5A637
Standard Text #000000
Selected Text #F8C779
Standard Background #FFFFFF
Link #0000C0
Followed Link #800080

Gnome Feel (Mouse Options)
To make KDE applications feel more like Gnome applications, navigate to Peripherals>Mouse to change KDE's single click default to match Gnome's double click default.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Linux on the Linksys WRT54GL

2008-05-01T19:32:00.009-05:00

In a move to put Linux on everything I own, I just installed DD-WRT on my Linksys router. DD-WRT is free Linux-based firmware for several wireless routers, most notably the Linksys WRT54G family. Many of DD-WRT's features are not included in typical router firmware. These features include support for the Kai network, daemon-based services, IPv6, Wireless Distribution System, RADIUS, advanced quality of service, radio output power control, overclocking capability, and software support for a Secure Digital Card hardware modification.

The Linksys WRT54GL was released in 2005 to support third-party firmware based on Linux. Its fully compatible with DD-WRT. This guide also works for a couple of other LinksysWRT54G, models WRT54G v4 and earlier, but the WRT54GL is the the preferred router to buy/use.

If you want to see what other routers are DD-WRT compatible go here.

BEFORE YOU START:
Use an ethernet cable to connect your PC to your router (use port 1)
DO NOT attempt to use the guide via wifi, you will brick your router.

Step 1: Get Your Router Ready
Type the following into your browser's URL box:
http://192.168.1.1

Restore your router to its factory settings:
In the Administration tab, under Factory Defaults, select YES and the SAVE the Settings.

Log Back Into Your Router:
http://192.168.1.1
name= *Leave It Blank*
password= admin

Step 2: The Inital Flash
Download dd-wrt.v23_mini_generic.bin

Unzip the dd-wrt.v23_sp2_mini.zip file

Go to Firmware Management, under Administration>Firmware Management.
Select the dd-wrt.v23_mini_generic.bin file
Select UPGRADE to begin the process.
* Do not interrupt the process * make sure the router stays plugged in

You will see an Upgrade Successful screen message
Click CONTINUE.

Step 3: Reset and Flash Firmware Again
Find the reset button on the back of the WRT54GL
Hold down the reset button for 30 seconds
Release the reset button
Allow the lights to blink for 15 seconds

Log Back Into Your Router:
http://192.168.1.1
username= root
password= admin

Download the dd-wrt.v23_generic.bin

Unzip the dd-wrt.v23_sp2_standard.zip file

Go to Firmware Management, under Administration>Firmware Management.
Select the dd-wrt.v23_generic.bin file
Select UPGRADE to begin the process.
* Do not interrupt the process * make sure the router stays plugged in

Find the reset button on the back of the WRT54GL
Hold down the reset button for 30 seconds
Release the reset button
Allow the lights to blink for 15 seconds

Step 4: Login & Setup Your Router
http://192.168.1.1
username= root
password= admin

Reconfigure Xorg File (xserver-xorg)

2008-04-24T22:46:00.007-05:00

If you need to reconfigure your xserver-xorg file, are having issues with your monitor resolution, need to reset xorg or just plain can't get a graphical interface to load, use this command.

In a terminal type:
dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

This will allow you to reconfigure your xorg settings, resolution, graphical problems etc.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Installing Wine In Hardy Heron

2008-04-24T13:59:00.007-05:00

Wine is a software application which aims to allow Unix-like computer operating systems on the x86 architecture to execute programs that were originally written for Microsoft Windows.

There are two methods to installing Wine
1. Install Wine from Ubuntu's own repository, it is an older but officially supported version for Hardy Heron.
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install wine

2. Add Wine's own repository, this gives you the newest version of Wine and access to all future updates
In a terminal type:
wget -q http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/apt/387EE263.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add -

Next, add the repository to your system's source list:
In a terminal type:
sudo wget http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/apt/sources.list.d/hardy.list -O /etc/apt/sources.list.d/winehq.list

Update Your Source List:
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get update

Install Wine
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install wine

Once installed (either method) you can configure Wine by running:
winecfg

Make Wine Graphical User Interface Match Ubuntu's
Ina terminal type:
gedit ~/.wine/user.reg

Replace the [Control Panel\\Colors] section with

[Control Panel\\Colors] 1176981676
"ActiveBorder"="239 235 231"
"ActiveTitle"="203 133 61"
"AppWorkSpace"="198 198 191"
"Background"="93 77 52"
"ButtonAlternativeFace"="200 0 0"
"ButtonDkShadow"="85 85 82"
"ButtonFace"="239 235 231"
"ButtonHilight"="255 255 255"
"ButtonLight"="255 255 255"
"ButtonShadow"="198 198 191"
"ButtonText"="0 0 0"
"GradientActiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"GradientInactiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"GrayText"="198 198 191"
"Hilight"="246 200 129"
"HilightText"="0 0 0"
"InactiveBorder"="239 235 231"
"InactiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"InactiveTitleText"="255 255 255"
"InfoText"="0 0 0"
"InfoWindow"="255 255 166"
"Menu"="239 235 231"
"MenuBar"="239 235 231"
"MenuHilight"="246 200 129"
"MenuText"="0 0 0"
"Scrollbar"="239 235 231"
"TitleText"="255 255 255"
"Window"="255 255 255"
"WindowFrame"="0 0 0"
"WindowText"="0 0 0"

A Quick Screenshot:

edited by pHreaksYcle

Stop Compiz-Fusion From Loading Automatically

2008-04-14T22:23:00.006-05:00

This guide will show you how to stop Compiz-Fusion from loading automatically on startup in Hardy Heron and how to setup a shortcut for launching Compiz when you want.

Step 1: Run gconf-edit
Start Run Application by pressing Alt+F2

Enter gconf-editor into the box, hit enter

Step 2: Set Metacity as your default start up window manager
Once in gconf-editor navigate to desktop>gnome>applications>window_manager

under current and default replace each instance of:
/usr/bin/compiz with /usr/bin/metacity
it should like this when you're done:

Step 3: Create a shortcut for starting Compiz-Fusion
right click the Applications Places System Menu
select the Edit Menu option

pick a location for your shortcut and select New Item box

Type: Application
Name: Compiz
Command: compiz --replace
COmment compiz window manager

An Compiz icon pack for your shortcut. Includes some old, new and proposed icons for Compiz.

Overview of Ubuntu 8.04 Hardy Heron on the Dell 1501

2008-04-13T12:10:00.006-05:00

Everything you need to get Ubuntu 8.04 running on your Dell Inspiron 1501.

Installation
Hardy installs with no problems. Whether you're using the LiveCD, Alternative Install or Wubi.

Wireless
Two Methods:
1. The Restricted Driver Manager can install the Broadcom B43 fireware.
Firmware cutter will not work when used through the Driver Manager. In order to install B43-fwcutter you need to use the terminal.
In a terminal Type:
sudo apt-get install b43-fwcutter

2. Use NDISwrapper to install the driver. This guide will walk you through the setup.

ATI Proprietary Driver
Two Methods:
1. The Restricted Driver Manager can install the the driver for ATI graphics card in the Dell 1501. ATI's 2.1.7281 fglrx driver is automatically installed, configured and 3D enabled. The best part is that the new Ubuntu repository fglrx driver supports AIGLX, no more XGL.

2. You can install the newest ATI driver that uses AIGLX yourself. You can find that guide here (use method two) or use Envy to install the newest ATI driver for you.

Compiz-Fusion
Compiz-Fusion is enabled once you install the ATI Propiety Driver.
To get the most out of Compiz try installing the advanced configuration tool.
In a terminal:
sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager

Media Codecs
Hardy Heron makes codec installation easy mp3, DVD, avi, aac, mpeg, wmv, asf, mov, flv, mp4, flash codecs are installed when you try to play them. If you like to add all the major codecs and make playback easy, check out my codec cheatsheet. The only thing not enabled in Ubuntu is reading encrypted DVDs. To add DVD playback and some other helpful media codecs to Ubuntu follow this guide.

Ethernet
Works out of the box. In order to do any of these guides you're going to need to plug in your Dell Inspiron 1501. Don't be cheap, go out and buy an Ethernet cable.

Brightness & Volume
Brightness (Fn Up/Down Arrow) and Volume (Fn Page Up/Page Dn) keyboard shortcuts both work with BIOS 1.70. Please leave a comment letting others know if your BIOS work.

Suspend & Hibernate
Both Suspend and Hibernate work with BIOS 1.70 and the Ubuntu repository ATI 2.1.7281 fglrx driver. Please leave a comment letting others know if your BIOS and/or ATI driver combination work. You can find a mini guide about BIOS flashing here.

Video Out
Works out of the box, Hardy's Screens and Resolutions (System>Administration>Screens and Resolutions) makes using multiple monitors a breeze. Configuration doesn't require editing your xorg.conf file.

Modem
The Conexant Modem driver is usually released by Dell once they switch their Linux machines over to the new version of Ubuntu. I'll update the site and this space when Dell releases the new driver.

Card Reader
Works out of the box.

Overall:
Hardy Heron is the Ubuntu release that Dell Inspiron 1501 owners have been waiting for. Everything works, you only need to install 3 drivers (ATI, wireless and modem). If you were hesitant about trying Ubuntu on your 1501, rest assured, it takes minimal skill and computer knowledge to setup.

NDISwrapper In Hardy Heron

2008-04-11T02:04:00.006-05:00

When the Dell 1501 first came out there were no native wireless drivers for the internal Broadcom chipset, so NDiswrapper was the only way to get wireless working. NDiswrapper uses a wireless devices' Windows driver in Linux. It works surprisingly well. Using NDiswrapper allows you to run the Broadcom card in your Dell 1501 at full speed and connect to certain networks that the native Broadcom driver can't. In Hardy Heron there was a slight problem with NDiswrapper. I found the fix to get ssb from loading before NDiswrapper from this forum post. Thanks to Ubuntu Forum user Mazza558, NDiswrapper is working again on the Dell 1501.

If you are using the native Broadcom driver via the Driver Manager and it's working for all your day to day needs, I wouldn't recommend taking the time to change drivers.

If you have already enabled the Broadcom restricted driver, uninstall it before attempting this guide.

Step 1: Stop ssb From Loading Before NDISwrapper
Make a script for NDISwrapper's fix
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/init.d/wirelessfix.sh

Paste this into the file:
#!/bin/bash

modprobe -r b44
modprobe -r b43
modprobe -r ssb
modprobe -r ndiswrapper
modprobe ndiswrapper
modprobe b44

Point the terminal to your init.d file and make your script exectuable:
In a terminal type:
cd /etc/init.d/ && sudo chmod 755 wirelessfix.sh

Update and make it stick:
In a terminal type:
sudo update-rc.d wirelessfix.sh defaults

Then reboot
In a terminal type:
sudo reboot

Step 2: Get Needed Packages
To install ndiswrapper
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install ndiswrapper-utils-1.9 ndiswrapper-common

or you can also try:
sudo apt-get install ndiswrapper-utils-1.9* ndiswrapper-common

***If the terminal outputs an error message, telling you NDISwrapper could not be found, insert the Ubuntu disc you used to install Hardy Heron and manually search for the file.

Get the Windows driver for your Dell 1501
In a terminal type:
wget http://ftp.us.dell.com/network/R140747.EXE

Step 3: Get Everything Ready
Now we will make a folder.
In a terminal type:
mkdir ~/.drivers

Now we will move R140747.EXE (the Dell driver), to the folder we just made.
In a terminal type:
mv ~/R140747.EXE ~/.drivers

STEP 4: Driver Setup
In order for us to unzip the R140747.EXE driver we need to point your terminal to the /.driver folder.
In a terminal type:
cd ~/.drivers

Unzip the R140747.EXE driver
In a terminal type:
unzip -a R140747.EXE

We need to point your terminal to the DRIVER folder we just unzipped
In a terminal type:
cd ~/.drivers/DRIVER

Step 5: Configure The Windows driver With NDISwrapper
Now install the Windows driver
In a terminal type:
sudo ndiswrapper -i bcmwl5.inf
Then:
sudo ndiswrapper -l (that is a lowercase L)

You should see a message that says driver present, hardware detected.

Now finish installing the driver
In a terminal type:
sudo ndiswrapper -m
Then:
sudo modprobe ndiswrapper

YOU MUST REBOOT NOW!
In a terminal type:
sudo reboot

STEP 6: TEST WIRELESS
Your wifi light on your laptop should be illuminated. If not, you can always turn it on and off with the Fn+F2 (Function & F2 Key) and you're all set! Try running this to see if your wireless card is functioning properly.

In a terminal type:
sudo iwlist scanning

edited by pHreaksYcle

Firefox 3 Beta 5 Ramblings

2008-04-09T17:05:00.011-05:00

I complained about Firefox 3 Beta 4 being included in the Alpha 5 release of Hardy Heron. The complaint was valid, at the time most plugins were not Firefox 3 compatible, spell check wasn't working and not having a fully working bowser was painful. Firefox is the most used program on my computer. Having a dwarfed version that makes it harder for me to surf the web was my only real complaint about Hardy Heron.

There are some good things about Firefox 3 Beta that leave me hopeful:
One of the big changes in Firefox 3 is the implementation of Gecko 1.9 and xulrunner. Firefox 3 fixes many bugs, improves standard compliance, and implements new web APIs. Firefox 3 is the first official release of a Mozilla browser to pass the Acid2 test. It also gets a better score on the Acid3 test than Firefox 2. Standards compliance is important.

A new internal memory allocator, jemalloc, is used rather than the default libc one. Firefox 2 had problems keeping memory usage stable. So far I haven't had any problems with Firefox 3, it's footprint has been minimal.

Gecko 1.9 uses Cairo as a graphics back end, allowing for improved graphics performance and better consistency of look and feel on various operating systems. I included a picture of my Firefox 3 setup below.

It fits perfectly with the look and feel of Ubuntu's human theme. I hated how Firefox 2 looks, I preferred 1.5's look; but after using Firefox 3 I think I'm ready to make the switch to the gtk theme.

Plugins are being updated to be compatible with Firefox 3 Beta 5 (and Firefox 3 in general). So most our of favorite plugins will be Firefox 3 ready within the next month.

Some cool tweaks for Firefox 3:
Access FireFox's Configuration File
Type about:config into the URL address bar

The red box is the url, where you type about:config
The Blue box is the filter box, it allows you to search through the about:config file and is where you type the green text commands.

Make Firefox to run faster:
Normally the browser will make one request to a web page at a time. When you enable pipelining it will make several at once, which really speeds up page loading.
Set "network.http.pipelining" to "true"
Set "network.http.proxy.pipelining" to "true"
Set "network.http.pipelining.maxrequests" to 15.
Right-click anywhereinside the firefox winodw and select New-> Integer.
Name it "nglayout.initialpaint.delay" and set its value to "0″.

Firefox downloads webpages from links it thinks you may click. This may make the "experience" seem faster but really it just bogs down Firefox and you PC.
Set "network.prefetch-next" to false

Turn off chrome tool tips, this causes little pop up windows to tell you what your mouse is hovering over. If you been using Firefox for as long or longer than I have (before 1.0) you really don't need to be told what the back button does. It also hinders dragging a bookmark into the bookmark toolbar folder, the tool tip gets in the way and prevents the drop from working.
Set "browser.chrome.toolbar_tip" to false

Customize backspace button, the Ubuntu default is set to scroll up when hit. I prefer it to work like it did in Windows and go back in my page history.
Set "browser.backspace_action" to either 0 or 1
0 - Pressing backspace button will go back a page in the session history
1 - Pressing backspace button will scroll up a page in the current document and
[Shift]+[Backspace] will scroll down.

To enable auto scrolling & smooth scrolling go to Edit->Preferences and click Advanced. It allows you to middle click/touch pad scroll smoothly left, right, up and down web pages. It's enabled in Windows but not in Ubuntu

Some Helpful Firefox Plugins that have been upgrade to work with Firefox 3 Beta 5:
Foxmarks Bookmarks
If you use Firefox on more than one computer, you'll want Foxmarks. Install Foxmarks on each computer, and it will work silently in the background to keep your bookmarks synchronized. As a bonus, log in to my.foxmarks.com from any computer anywhere to access your bookmarks. The Firefox 3 version of Foxmarks Bookmarks is currently in beta and is only available if you sign up. Good news is that they're signing people up left and right.

Flashblock
Flashblock is an extension for the Mozilla, Firefox, and Netscape browsers that takes a pessimistic approach to dealing with Macromedia Flash content on a webpage and blocks ALL Flash content from loading. It then leaves placeholders on the webpage that allow you to click to download and then view the Flash content.

Adblock Plus
Right-click on a banner and choose "Adblock" from the context menu - the banner won't be downloaded again. Maybe even replace parts of the banner address with star symbols to block similar banners as well. Or you select a filter subscription when Adblock Plus starts up the first time, then even this simple task will usually be unnecessary: the filter subscription blocks most advertisements automatically.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Easy Media Codec Installation for Hardy Heron

2008-04-07T21:30:00.004-05:00

This simple howto installs the most common restricted codecs in Heron, allowing you to play mp3, aac, DVD ,mp4, avi, wmv and many more formats. It also installs the codecs for ripping mp3s using the lame encoder and making DVD/CDs.

In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly gstreamer0.10-ffmpeg libxine1-ffmpeg libdvdread3

In order to play copyrighted DVDs, you need to install the libdvdcss2 package. To do this you need to install the Medibuntu repository. You can find my howto here.

Once you install the Medibuntu repository
To play encrypted DVDs, in a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install libdvdcss2

To download the win32 codecs, in a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install w32codecs

To download the FFmpeg Encoders, in a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install ffmpeg

Medibuntu for Hardy Heron

2008-04-07T20:59:00.004-05:00

Medibuntu (Multimedia, Entertainment & Distractions In Ubuntu) is a repository of packages that cannot be included into the Ubuntu distribution for legal reasons like copyright, license or patent restrictions. It also includes many popular media .debs for ffmpeg, w32codes, skype and google earth.

Ubuntu 8.04 Hardy Heron can't play encrypted DVDs out of the box. In order to play DVDs you need to install a couple of codecs. This guide will show you how to install the Medibuntu repository and codecs.

This will add the Medibuntu repository to your repository lists
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

Add this to the end of your source list:
## Medibuntu - Ubuntu 8.04 "hardy"
## Please report any bug on https://bugs.launchpad.net/medibuntu/
deb http://packages.medibuntu.org/ hardy free non-free

Then you have to add the GPG Key to authenticate the packages
In a terminal type:
wget -q http://packages.medibuntu.org/medibuntu-key.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add - && sudo apt-get update

Now update your system to load the Medibuntu repository into your apt-get sources
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get update

Download the DVDs playback packages
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install libdvdcss2 libdvdread3

edited by pHreaksYcle

Why NDISwrapper Didn't Work in Heron

2008-04-04T22:33:00.004-05:00

The article doesn't apply anymore, NDISwrapper does work in Hardy Heron, you can find the fix here.

NDISwrapper is a free software driver wrapper that enables the use of Microsoft Windows drivers for wireless network devices (cards, USB modems, and routers), on Unix-like operating systems. Ndiswrapper works by implementing the Windows kernel and NDIS APIs, and dynamically linking the driver to this implementation.

With the release of Hardy Heron, I tried getting NDISwrapper working, as it was my prefered method of wireless on my Dell 1501. I tried a bunch of different methods but nothing worked for me. I was reading linux.slashdot.org today when I came across this article.

It explains why I was unable to get ndiswrapper to work in Hardy Heron. A change in the 2.6.24 kernel broke ndiswrapper by accidentally removing its access to GPL-only symbols. Without access to GPL-only symbols NDISwrapper is unable to implement the Windows kernel and NDIS APIs and link the driver.

Pavel Roskin attempted to patch the kernel to allow NDISwrapper to access those GPL-only symbols but Linus Torvalds shot down his patch. He stated, "I'm not seeing why ndiswrapper should be treated separately. If it loads non-GPL modules, it shouldn't be able to use GPLONLY symbols." He then went on to state, "ndiswrapper itself is *not* compatible with the GPL. Trying to claim that ndiswrapper somehow itself is GPL'd even though it then loads modules that aren't is stupid and pointless. Clearly it just re-exports those GPL ONLY functions to code that is *not* GPL'd."

Linus makes a excellent point, if NDISwrapper is going to abuse the use of GPL-only sysmbols by exporting them to code that is not GPL then they should not have access to GPL code. While it saddens me that the faster method of using the Broadcom card in my Dell Inspiron 1501 is gone, I do believe in the GPL.

Until then there's always:
sudo apt-get install b43-fwcutter

edited by pHreaksYcle

Ubuntu Hardy Heron: Beta - Review and Wireless fix

2008-03-28T23:27:00.001-05:00

Even more promising than the Alpha versions, as expected. Everything is a lot more stable, Firefox 3 is warming up to us and it is overall a good experience.

Installation
Although most peoples 1501's will work with no hiccups in the beta, we did experience an issue with our install. When trying to format the disk and install fresh, it would not format. There was a known bug that locked any previous partitions. To wipe the drive and start with the whole thing unallocated, it was necessary to create a new disk label by going to System->Administration->Partition Editor and in Partition Editor selecting Device->Set Disklabel. This is easy but should not be necessary. Hopefully by the official release this will not be needed for anyone and it will work the way it is supposed to.

Wireless
The Driver Manager still has a bug when installing the driver. The Broadcom B43 firmware cutter will not work when used through the Driver Manager. In order to install B43-fwcutter you need to use the terminal.
In a terminal Type:
sudo apt-get install b43-fwcutter

This takes care of the driver, and we can see wireless networks. If you're lucky, you can connect to them too, but many of our readers have been reporting that connecting just keeps going and going with the connecting animation seemingly going on forever with no results at all.

For the majority of users, the most recent updates that include the new version of "network-manager" will fix this issue. For those of you who are still encountering issues after updating completely, congratulations you have found the fix.

This will uninstall the unworking version of network-manager, that screws up and replace it with the old one which works without flaw.

Download the working version - Type in a terminal
sudo wget http://download38.mediafire.com/2bdi9e0d0l7g/jyjze9dd7t9/network-manager_0.6.6-0ubuntu1_i386.deb

Downgrade - Type in a terminal
sudo dpkg -i network-manager_0.6.6-0ubuntu1_i386.deb

If you followed the instructions, you now have wireless working perfectly. Simple, two commands, copy and paste, you don't even need to reboot. Hope this is satisfactory to everyone in need.

All other categories (ATI driver, card reader, modem etc.) have remained the same since Alpha 6.

Please tell me how these things work for you in the comments, a few of the testers have already confirmed it works well but I want to hear from everyone else. Keep up to date, good things to come soon.

pHreaksYcle

WIRELESS FIX TESTER NEEDED

2008-03-25T19:50:00.005-05:00

UPDATE: The fix has been released. Thanks to those who tested!
UPDATE: The new update with the ubuntu3 package has been released, not sure how long ago. It fixes all the problems, rendering my fix pretty much useless before I even published it. Sorry, but at least it works.

UPDATE: Testers have been notified with instructions, if you would still like to participate, hit me up. Hopefully we will be getting success stories soon.

There has been complaints that wireless has stopped working recently and not connecting to networks but still being able to see them. This is due to an updated version of network-manager with regressions. If you would like to test a fix to help us make the post, please contact pHreak immediately at pHreaksYcle for AIM or the same at gmail.com for more info!

Thanks,

pHreaksYcle

Ubuntu Hardy Heron 8.04 New User Guide

2008-03-23T08:08:00.008-05:00

Overview and setup for getting Ubuntu 8.04 Hardy Heron installed on the Dell Inspiron 1501

Setting Up Wireless with NDISwarapper

Easy Codec Installation

Encrypted DVD playback & Medibuntu

Stop Compiz-Fusion From Loading Automatically

Ubuntu Hardy Heron Alpha 6 Review

2008-03-11T01:53:00.012-05:00

In a couple words, really promising. Everything is working well.

Installation
Heron installs with no problems. The GRUB resolution bug that plagued Gutsy is gone. Easy as following a simple graphical user interface.

Wireless
The Driver Manager has a bug when installing the driver. The Broadcom B43 firmware cutter will not work when used through the Driver Manager. In order to install B43-fwcutter you need to use the terminal.
In a terminal Type:
sudo apt-get install b43-fwcutter

Once you do this the WiFi light will light up then turn off. Wireless will work even with the light turned off. After a reboot the light does turn on.

I couldn't get ndiswrapper working. If you did, please let me know how you did it.

ATI Proprietary Driver
The Restricted Driver Manager can install the the driver for ATI graphics card in the Dell 1501. ATI's 2.1.7281 fglrx driver is automatically installed, configured and 3D enabled. The best part is that the driver supports AIGLX, no more XGL.

Compiz-Fusion
Compiz-Fusion is enabled once you install the ATI Propiety Driver.
To get the most out of Compiz try installing the advanced configuration tool.
In a terminal:
sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager

Media Codecs
Ubuntu will install the appropriate codec when you try to play a file. mp3, DVD, avi, aac, mpeg, wmv, asf, mov, flv, mp4, flash codecs are installed when you try to play them. If you like to add all the major codecs and make playback easy, check out my codec cheatsheet. The only thing codec Ubuntu will not enable is reading encrypted DVDs (You'll need to install it yourself).

Ethernet
Works out of the box. In order to do any of these guides you're going to need to plug in your Dell Inspiron 1501. Don't be cheap, go out and buy an Ethernet cable.

Brightness & Volume
Works with BIOS 1.70, use this guide for rolling back you BIOS.
LET ME KNOW IF THEY WORK WITH YOUR BIOS.

Logout, Suspend & Hibernate
Logout is working, suspend and hiberate are not working with BIOS 1.70.
LET ME KNOW IF THEY WORK WITH YOUR BIOS.

Sound
A kernel update broke sound, thats been fixed and sound on the 1501 works.

Modem
Will work once Dell releases the new driver, usually it takes a month after release.

Card Reader
Works out of the box.

Video
The 2.1.7281 fglrx ATI driver plays video while Compiz-Fusion running. This has been a problem with some ATI driver installs.

What I don't like
Firefox 3. Not that Firefox 3 is a blotted piece of bad software. It's that Firefox 3 is not compatible with 90% of my old plugins and 100% of my old themes. While this won't be an issue 3 or 4 months from now because plugin authors will update their plugins as Firefox 3 becomes used more, it is an issue now.

If there is anything else you want to know, please ask.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Heron Alpha 6

2008-03-09T22:22:00.001-05:00

its looking good, but i cant get the wifi to work. any help?

Amazon MP3 Downloader Released For Linux

2008-03-01T20:49:00.004-06:00

Amazon has just released a Linux version of their popular MP3 Downloader.

Amazon MP3 is a digital music store owned and operated by Amazon.com. It sells music without digital rights management (DRM) from the four major music labels (EMI, Universal, Warner Music, and Sony BMG), as well as many independents. All tracks are sold in 256 kilobits-per-second variable bitrate MP3 format without per-customer watermarking or DRM. Most songs are $0.99 and most albums are $9.99 or less.

Linux users have always been able to use the Amazon MP3 store but they have been limited to only being able to download one song at a time and having to pay $0.99 for each song on an album. With the Amazon MP3 Downloader, you get discounts on buying whole albums.

You can downloaded it HERE

Once installed you can change the preferences by going to File>Preferences.

I've been using this service for a while now, I love it. I can find a lot of independent music on it and it doesn't force any DRM or watermarking on me. If I want to share a song or album I can and don't have to worry about it being traced back to me. Before this I had to load up my Windows Virtual Machine, download an album and then copy it back into Linux so I could play it in Amarok and transfer it to my iPod.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Recommended Watching: Revolution OS

2008-02-13T21:03:00.006-06:00

Revolution OS is a 2001 documentary film made in the United States, directed by J. T. S. Moore, which traces the twenty-year history of GNU, Linux, open source, and the free software movement.

It features interviews with prominent hackers and entrepreneurs (and hackers-cum-entrepreneurs), including Richard Stallman, Michael Tiemann, Linus Torvalds, Larry Augustin, Eric S. Raymond, Bruce Perens, Frank Hecker and Brian Behlendorf.

It is a great documentary, I want to to call it required watching. It is a must see if you want to learn about to the genesis of GNU, Linux and the people involved.

Check out the trailer here:

If it has caught your interest you can watch the full movie on Google videos here.

I'd love to know what you guys and girls think of it. I love the ideas behind GNU.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Hardy Heron Alpha 4 on the Dell 1501

2008-02-07T09:53:00.000-06:00

I usually do not install alpha software. It's too buggy and unpredictable. The reason why I use Ubuntu is because it just works for me. So when I decided to try alpha 4 of Ubuntu Hardy Heron 8.04, it was with much hesitation. Unfortunately Heron didn't do much to change my perception of alpha software.

The Good
1. Heron LiveCD works and boots without a problem on the 1501.
2. Installation works without a problem and the GRUB resolution bug (Ubuntu 7.10 taking forever to load) didn't effect me.
3. Migration of my old accounts worked without a problem.
4. Restricted Driver Manager named has been changed to Driver Manager. I like this, calling it restricted may give new users the wrong idea.
5. Tracker notified me when it was indexing and when it was done, I liked this.

The Bad
1. After installation I received this error message:

2. Driver Manager recognized my ATI graphics card but not my Broadcom wireless card.
3. Wireless doesn't work out of the box right now. (It should be working for the beta)
4. After installing ATI driver out of Ubuntu's repositories, my computer wasn't able to boot and my Heron partition became unusable.

The Ugly
Now I know Hardy Heron Alpha 4 is not intended for production machines/everyday use but it is really rough around the edges on the Dell 1501. New and advanced user alike may not want to spend the time fixing all the problems that arise in the alpha. I know I don't. This is the second time that installation of the Ubuntu ATI driver has killed my machine while running an alpha version of Heron. With all the bugs shipped in Gutsy I really hope the developers are taking the time to make Ubuntu 8.04 just work.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Happy One Year Anniversary To Me

2008-01-30T10:28:00.000-06:00

This month marks the one year anniversary of Ubuntu1501.com

As usually I'd like to thank you guys for reading and coming back. I'm glad that I've helped so many people discover Ubuntu, Linux and open source software. I seem to never have enough time but the blog is a definite labor of love for me.

I do want to touch on a couple of subjects:

1. This coming month I will finish the iPod in Ubuntu guides. They have said coming soon for 5 months and it's about time.

2. I don't like Gutsy, and find it difficult to write about a release I dislike so much. Hopefully Heron will not have the same usability bugs Gutsy did. Four months later and I still am unable to encode CDs in VO. In Fesity, Edgy & Dapper it worked.

3. Dell doesn't sell the Inspiron 1501 anymore, so the site might not be as busy as it once was. I plan on updating with every release. It's a shame, I'd love to pick up a 1521 and continue the site but I think this is my last non-made for Linux laptop.

4. Some readers have complained that some of my guides aren't specific to the Dell Inspiron 1501, a lot of people find these guides useful. I'm not going to stop writing them anytime soon.

Enjoy the articles.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Quick & Dirty Samba Guide

2008-01-22T01:47:00.000-06:00

This is my very inelegant Samaba guide. For over a year I've been struggling to get Samba working properly. This is the best configuration I have found so far. I don't need to share a printer, I just need to get my laptop and desktop to share a couple of folders. This guide does just that, it allows you simple access to folders on different computers. If you guys have any suggestions or a better understanding of Samba please share them.

Step 1: Setup
Install Samba
sudo apt-get install samba

Stop Samba services
sudo /etc/init.d/samba stop

Backup your old samba.config
sudo mv /etc/samba/smb.conf /etc/samba/smb.conf.template

Create a blank samba.conf file
sudo touch /etc/samba/smb.conf
Start samba services
sudo /etc/init.d/samba start

Add a user
sudo smbpasswd -L -a (username you want to add)

Enable user
sudo smbpasswd -L -e (username you want to add)

Step 2: Create a name for your network:
Go to System>Administration>Shared Folders

You should see this, In the General Properties Tab:

Enter a Network Name, if networking with a Windows or Mac make sure you have the same network name entered for all your computers.

Step 3: Share a folder
To share a folder right click the folder you want to share, select the share folder option.

A box will pop up asking you how you want to share the folder and, if you want to make it read only. (These are my default settings)

To browse a network, go to Places>Networks

edited by pHreaksYcle

Ubuntu1501 in your language

2008-01-07T10:58:00.000-06:00

In response to many comments from users who have mentioned being from countries other than the U.S., we have implemented Google Translate on the site to make it easier for those who have a different native language. You can find this feature on the left side of the site, near the top under the Ubuntu1501 logo. It should be noted that the colored text, (red, green and blue) is also translated, so please refer to the original articles for correct commands.

Hope this is useful!
pHreaksYcle

edited by redDEADresolve

Power Saving In Linux

2008-01-05T10:44:00.000-06:00

Craig Russell sent me a very cool link about going green in Linux.

Less Watts is a great site about how to save power in Linux. These howtos and tips not only save energy and cut down on useless consumption, but give you better battery life.

It's well worth checking out if you go mobile often.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Flash Plugin Not Installing

2008-01-02T16:16:00.000-06:00

I just spent the last few hours struggling, trying to install the Flash plug-in in Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon, only to find out the package is broken. The Launchpad bug has already been filed.

The md5 checksum error doesn't allow the installation to complete.

You can find a better explanation and the .deb file with the correctmd5 checksum on this ubuntuforums.org thread.

Happy Holidays

2007-12-24T09:19:00.000-06:00

pHreaK and I would like to wish all our readers a happy holiday. Thanks for reading and contributing to the site. Without your support this site would be nothing.

For any new readers who are thinking about installing Ubuntu on their new Dell Inspiron 1501s and have found this site, welcome. Check out the new user guides for help setting up Ubuntu and the general users guides for learning how to setup and tweak some of the best programs open source has to offer.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Dell's Inspiron 1501 Service Manual

2007-12-20T07:44:00.000-06:00

This is a direct link to Dell's Documentation Website

Inside you'll find complete guides for the:
Optical Drive
Hard Drive
Memory Module
Modem
Mini-Card
Hinge Cover
Keyboard
Display Assembly
Palm Rest
Coin-Cell Battery
Speakers
Processor Thermal-Cooling Assembly
Processor Module
Fan
ExpressCard/Hard-Drive Bay Assembly
System Board
Battery Latch Assembly
Flashing the BIOS
Pin Assignments for I/O Connectors

I was sent this a long time ago, It's about time I posted it.

Transparencies and Opacity in Compiz-Fusion

2007-12-18T09:42:00.001-06:00

Another cool tweak for your menus. This adds a bit of transparency to your menus, drop down menus, tooltips, notifications and a few other small things. It gives them a clean look with just a hint of transparency.

In CompizConfig Settings Manager, under General Options, in the Opacity settings:

Select edit and copy this into the pop up window:
((type=Menu | PopupMenu | DropdownMenu | Tooltip | Notification | Combo | Dnd | name=sun-awt-X11-XWindowPeer) | (type=Normal & override_redirect=1)) & !(name=sun-awt-X11-XFramePeer | name=sun-awt-X11-XDialogPeer | name=gnome-screensaver)

I set the Opacity window values at 96-98, giving it a nice clean look. You can set it to whatever you like. I think everyone should check this tweak out, it really pretties up the desktop.

Speed Up Gnome's Menus

2007-12-16T01:30:00.000-06:00

This a simple 3 step tweak that really speeds up your gnome menus. It just removes the built in delay.

Step 1: Create A Text File
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit ~/.gtkrc-2.0

Step 2: Write The Text File
In the text file that is created paste:
gtk-menu-popup-delay = 0"| tee -a .gtkrc-2.0

Now save and close

Step 3: Log out
When you log back in you should see a significant speed increase in you Gnome menus.

edited by pHreaksYcle

getdeb.net

2007-12-14T11:03:00.000-06:00

I stumbled across a pretty useful website the other day at www.getdeb.net. It has a bunch of precompiled .deb files, making it easy to check out of some the newest and most exciting open source software.

What's a .deb?
A .deb file is the Ubuntu equivalent of an Windows .exe. It' s Ubuntu's way of standardizing package installation and securing system stability. The .deb files have all the necessary information and dependencies to make installation and removal painless. Compiling software is still a viable method of program installation in Ubuntu it just doesn't have dependency and uninstallation information built in. Deb's maintain system stability. With a standardized method of installation and removal, you don't have to worry about the old Linux problem of dependency hell. When installing a .deb Ubuntu's package manager apt will be able to monitor all dependencies. Nothing can be installed without satisfying those dependencies and dependencies will not be removed when installing programs if they are needed by other programs.

Installing a .deb
Installing a .deb works very much like installing an .exe on windows. A window will pop up telling you what you are installing and a couple of mouse clicks starts the automated installation.

What's on getdeb.net?
On getdeb.net you can get the latest bleeding edge releases of programs that wouldn't be available in the Ubuntu repositories until another distro release. As well as, .debs for smaller open source projects. Not every project is Ubuntu specific or has the time to compile a deb for Ubuntu users. If program A is only released as a tarball, most users would be able to install it with a little help. But satisfying the dependencies, removal and system stability all could be theoretically compromised. Thanks to getdeb.net these smaller projects get the ease of installation and system stability of having a .deb.

Advantages to using getdeb.net
The current Ubuntu official packages update policy is limited to critical bug fixes, meaning after each release there will be no regular bug fixes or improvement updates. This is a good practice for stability purposes specially if you are planning to do an enterprise level support but for you the user it means that until the next release you will not be able to get the latest and greatest software versions for your system.

Experienced users and developers will be able to compile and install from the source but unskilled users which would like to try the latest versions will be complaining about how hard it is to compile software packages, especially those which depend on several development libraries.
This policy is also a limitation for the emerging applications which will not be available on the official repositories and consequently not getting the proper recognition, something that they can get by being easily available to the end users.

Disadvantages to using getdeb.net
Installing .debs from 3rd parties (not officially from Ubuntu) always runs a risk. This Ubuntu forums post illustrates it. When installing a .deb, you give the installer root privileges, it has full access to install and remove anything on your computer. It needs root access to install and satisfy dependences, but if used maliciously it could install key loggers, spyware, viruses or simply delete your system files. This is why it is important to know and trust any site you download a .deb file from. getdeb.net is a trustworthy site and used by hundreds of Ubuntu users, but a warning needed to be issued.

I hope you enjoy getdeb!

Happy Birthday pHreaksYcle

2007-12-13T00:06:00.000-06:00

Today is an important day in the Ubuntu community. It's Ubuntu1501's editor pHreaksYcle's birthday. So everyone wish him a happy birthday!

pHreaksYcle done an excellent job since joining the team, thanks to him all the articles have been edited. He also is finishing up his second article and turning into quite the Ubuntu power user.

Leave some love after the break for the pHreak. Hopefully he'll have edited this article before most of you read this.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Installing Wine in Gutsy Gibbon

2007-12-08T11:01:00.000-06:00

Wine is a software application which aims to allow Unix-like computer operating systems on the x86 architecture to execute programs that were originally written for Microsoft Windows.

There are two methods to installing Wine in Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon

1. Install Wine from Ubuntu's own repository, older but offically supported version.
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install wine

2. Add Wine's own repository and download the lastest bleeding edge version.
In a terminal type:
sudo wget http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/apt/sources.list.d/gutsy.list -O /etc/apt/sources.list.d/winehq.list

Add Wine's repository key.
Ina terminal type:
wget -q http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/apt/387EE263.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add -

Update your sources.
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get update

Download Wine
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install wine

Once installed (either method) you can configure Wine by running:
winecfg

Ken pointed out, that you can change the wine color scheme to match Ubuntu.

Ina terminal type:
gedit ~/.wine/user.reg

Replace the [Control Panel\\Colors] section with

[Control Panel\\Colors] 1176981676
"ActiveBorder"="239 235 231"
"ActiveTitle"="203 133 61"
"AppWorkSpace"="198 198 191"
"Background"="93 77 52"
"ButtonAlternativeFace"="200 0 0"
"ButtonDkShadow"="85 85 82"
"ButtonFace"="239 235 231"
"ButtonHilight"="255 255 255"
"ButtonLight"="255 255 255"
"ButtonShadow"="198 198 191"
"ButtonText"="0 0 0"
"GradientActiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"GradientInactiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"GrayText"="198 198 191"
"Hilight"="246 200 129"
"HilightText"="0 0 0"
"InactiveBorder"="239 235 231"
"InactiveTitle"="239 235 231"
"InactiveTitleText"="255 255 255"
"InfoText"="0 0 0"
"InfoWindow"="255 255 166"
"Menu"="239 235 231"
"MenuBar"="239 235 231"
"MenuHilight"="246 200 129"
"MenuText"="0 0 0"
"Scrollbar"="239 235 231"
"TitleText"="255 255 255"
"Window"="255 255 255"
"WindowFrame"="0 0 0"
"WindowText"="0 0 0"

Overview of Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon on the Dell 1501

2007-12-06T10:52:00.000-06:00

Everything you need to get Ubuntu 7.10 running on your Dell Inspiron 1501.

Installation
Gutsy installs with no problems. There is a problem with GRUB, the resolution settings are wrong and this causes a 2 -3 minute lag in booting. Once done, Gutsy takes less than 25 seconds to load. You can find the guide on how to fix it here.

Wireless
Two Methods:
1. The Restricted Driver Manager can install the the firmware for the Broadcom 43xx card in the Dell 1501. You can find the guide .

2. You can use ndiswrapper to install the driver. For the guide and maybe why you'd want to do it yourself, check out this article.

ATI Proprietary Driver
Two Methods:
1. The Restricted Driver Manager can install the the driver for ATI graphics card in the Dell 1501. ATI's 8.37.6 fglrx driver is automatically installed, configured and 3D enabled. You can find the guide here.

2. You can install the newest ATI driver that uses AIGLX yourself. You can find that guide here.

Compiz-Fusion
Compiz-Fusion is enabled by default, so you don't have to install anything. If you used ATI Propiety Driver method 1, use need to setup Xgl using this guide to get Compiz-Fusion working. If you used ATI Propiety Driver method 2, Compiz works after a logout/reboot.

Media Codecs
Gutsy makes codec installation easy, no more automatix or struggling with adding repos. mp3, DVD, avi, aac, mpeg, wmv, asf, mov, flv, mp4, flash codecs are installed when you try to play them. If you like to add all the major codecs and make playback easy, check out my codec cheatsheet. The only thing not enabled in Ubuntu is reading encrypted DVDs. To add DVD playback to Ubuntu follow this guide.

Ethernet
Works out of the box. In order to do any of these guides you're going to need to plug in your Dell Inspiron 1501. Don't be cheap, go out and buy an Ethernet cable.

Brightness & Volume
Works with BIOS 1.70, use this guide for rolling back you BIOS.

Suspend & Hibernate
Doesn't work if you install the Proprietary ATI Driver (either method). A bug in ATI's driver causes this. No fixes have been found yet. If you use the MESA driver that is installed by default suspend and hibernate will work.

Video Out
Works out of the box, Gutsy's Screens and Resolutions (System>Administration>Screens and Resolutions) makes using multiple monitors a breeze. Configuration doesn't require editing your xorg.conf file.

Modem
Works, you just need to follow this guide to set it up.

Card Reader
Works out of the box.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Conexant Modem Driver for Gutsy

2007-12-06T08:11:00.002-06:00

If you upgraded an Ubuntu 7.04 installation to Ubuntu 7.10, your modem will no longer work. You need to install the new deb. If you have the older version of the Conexant Modem driver, please uninstall it before installing the new one.

You can find the driver here. This is only for the 32bit version of Ubuntu. 64 bit users will need to go here. There is no deb for the 64bit driver so installation is a bit of a chore.

After installing the modem driver, you might get a pop-up window telling you that the Volume Control has quit unexpectedly and asks you to reload (or not reload) the panel. Click on Reload. Afterwards, the sound icon on the top right corner of the screen changes to "mute", but sound should be OK. A logout/login or GDM restart clears the issue. This issue happens because the modem driver lays down its own set of sound codecs and unloads the snd-hda-intel module during the installation process.

Step 1 - Install the Package

Step 2 - Reolad

Step 3 - Check the Restricted Driver Manager
System>Administration>Restricted Driver Manager

Thanks go to Alex Kriegisch for pointing this out.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Installing VirtualBox with USB Support

2007-12-04T04:24:00.002-06:00

VirtualBox by InnoTek is a commercial and proprietary (with a limited GPL version) x86 virtualizer for Linux. It works fast and I like it more than VMware. For more info, check out it's wiki page. This guide will show you how to install both versions, the Open Source (OSE) and the Personal Use & Evaluation License (PUEL).

The Open Source Edition
This version of Virtualbox is released under the GPL. It does not have USB support and Virtual Remote Desktop support. It is the free as in freedom version and the easier of the two to setup. If you don't need USB or remote desktop support this method may be the one for you.

Download Virtualbox & Dependencies
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install virtualbox-ose virtualbox-ose-source

Prepare the source for kernel
In at terminal type:
sudo m-a prepare

Then install
In a terminal type:
sudo m-a auto-install virtualbox-ose

Add yourself as a virtual box user
In a terminal type:
sudo adduser username vboxusers
You must replace userame with your user name!

Personal Use & Evaluation License Version
The PUEL version has both USB support and Virtual Remote Desktop support. It is proprietary, but is available as a free download. It's my preferred version of VirtualBox.

Step 1: Download and Install VirtualBox
You can download the PUEL version of Virtualbox from Innotek website here.
Once your download is complete double click the .deb file and install VirtualBox.

Step 2: Setup User groups & USB support
Add yourself as a virtual box user
In a terminal type:
sudo adduser username vboxusers
You must replace userame with your user name!

Add USB support to you fstab file
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/fstab

And paste this line to the end of your fstab
none /proc/bus/usb usbfs devgid=1001,devmode=664 0 0

Enable USB
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/init.d/mountdevsubfs.sh

You need to look for this section:
#
# Magic to make /proc/bus/usb work
#
#mkdir -p /dev/bus/usb/.usbfs
#domount usbfs "" /dev/bus/usb/.usbfs -obusmode=0700,devmode=0600,listmode=0644
#ln -s .usbfs/devices /dev/bus/usb/devices
#mount --rbind /dev/bus/usb /proc/bus/usb

And delete all the # shown, it should look exactly like this.

#Magic to make /proc/bus/usb work

mkdir -p /dev/bus/usb/.usbfs
domount usbfs "" /dev/bus/usb/.usbfs -obusmode=0700,devmode=0600,listmode=0644
ln -s .usbfs/devices /dev/bus/usb/devices
mount --rbind /dev/bus/usb /proc/bus/usb

Find your vboxusers number
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/group

Look for this, the number following it is your vboxusers number
vboxusers:x:NUMBER

Next you have to add a line to your /etc/fstab to allow usb mounting
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/fstab

Add this line:
none /proc/bus/usb usbfs devgid= enter vboxusers number HERE,devmode=664 0 0

Allow access to /proc/bus/usb/
in a teminal type:
sudo chown -R root:vboxusers /proc/bus/usb

Once you Log out or reboot, you can start VirtualBox (Applications>System Tools>Innotek VirtualBox)

Step 3 - Configuring VirtualBox
When you first run VirtualBox there is a wizard that automates setting up your virtual machine. Follow the steps, it's incredibility easy.

Once you have setup up your VM you should configure a couple of things in Settings.

First enable IO APIC

Then enable USB, and add the USB devices to your VirtualBox with the green USB icon. Deivces must be plugged in for this to work. Use the green and red USB icons to add and remove USB devices.

Installing the Newest ATI Driver with AIGLX

2007-12-02T16:09:00.000-06:00

ATI's fglx video driver an be installed in two different ways in Ubuntu.

The first method installs the driver using Ubuntu's default fglx driver that is maintained in the officially supported restricted repository. It is as simple as selecting a box in the Restricted Driver Manager or synaptic and Ubuntu configures everything. This method gives you a stable driver with bug fixes. The only draw back is that you don't get the newest drivers. ATI releases a new driver just about every month and lately the ATI fglx driver has seen a major overhaul. The only way to install the newest fglx driver is to use the second method.

The other method involves you downloading and compiling the driver yourself. This method gives you the newest driver but doesn't give you any bug fixes or automatic configuration. What it will give you is a chance to use ATI Catalyst 7.11 driver which uses AIGLX. AIGLX allows you to run hardware accelerated rendering over the GLX protocol, eliminating the need to use XGL for hardware acceleration. AIGLX support is built into xorg and allows for a faster, less buggy Compiz Fusion experience. There is a great HowTo written on the Unofficial ATI Linux Driver Wiki, I couldn't have written a better guide.

...or You Could Use Envy
Envy will download the newest ATI fglx driver and automatically install and configure it for you. It does all the steps that are outlined in the Unofficial ATI Linux Driver Guide. It incredible easy and safe.

Step 1
Download Envy

Step 2
Uninstall any previous ATI fglx drivers you have installed. If you installed fglx driver via the Restricted Driver Manager all you need to do is go to System->Administration->Restricted Driver Manager and unselect the enable box.

You will have to reboot for the changes to take effect.

To test if you have properly uninstalled the old ATI driver
In a terminal type:
glxinfo

You should see something similar to this:
OpenGL vendor string: Mesa project: www.mesa3d.org
OpenGL renderer string: Mesa GLX Indirect
OpenGL version string: 1.4 (2.1 Mesa 7.0.1)
(You do not want to see any mention of the ATI driver only mesa)

You also need to uninstall xserver-xgl
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get remove xserver-xgl

Step 3 - Install Envy
Double click the .deb package you downloaded to install Envy

Step 4 - Use Envy To Install Driver
To start Envy Go to Applications->System Tools->Envy.
Select the Install ATI Driver Option.

You will have to reboot for the changes to take effect.

Step 5 - Confirm it Works
In a terminal type:
fglrxinfo

You should see this output:
display: :0.0 screen: 0
OpenGL vendor string: ATI Technologies Inc.
OpenGL renderer string: ATI Radeon Xpress Series
OpenGL version string: 2.1.7059 Release

Go to the Restricted Drivers Manager (System->Administration->Restricted Driver Manager). You should see the ATI driver in use but the enable box unselected.
DO NOT ENABLE THE DRIVER.

Congrats You're done!

* Note Suspend & Hibernate still do not work on the Dell 1501, even with the newer ATI drivers.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Backlight & Brightness Fix

2007-12-02T00:27:00.000-06:00

The brightness controls (Fn+the up and down arrows) don't seem to be working for many people in Gutsy. There is a very easy fix for this, use BIOS 1.70.

You Can Find BIOS Version 1.70 on Dell's Driver Website Here

The bad news is that it is a Windows process, meaning you have to do it in Windows. The good news is that it a completely automated process and impossible to mess up. All you have to remember is that you need to have your Inspiron plugged in when you update the BIOS. If your not plugged in, you'll brick your laptop.

There are other ways to update your BIOS, but I don't feel comfortable writing a guide or recommending them to my readers. So many things can go wrong, especially when updating via the DOS command line.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Wireless in Gutsy Gibbon with Ndiswrapper

2007-11-30T22:27:00.000-06:00

Back when the Dell 1501 first came out there were no native wireless drivers for the internal Broadcom chipset, so we had to use Nidiswrapper. NdisWrapper uses a wireless devices' Windows driver in Linux. It works surprisingly well. Using ndiswrapper allows you to run the Broadcom card in your Dell 1501 at full speed and connect to certain networks that the native Broadcom driver can't. You won't surf the internet faster but your PC to PC connections will be faster. If you are using the native Broadcom driver via the Restricted Driver Manager and it's working for all your day to day needs, I wouldn't recommend taking the time to change drivers.

If you have already enabled the Broadcom restricted driver, uninstall it before attempting this guide.

Go to System>Administration>Restricted Driver Manager and unselect the enable box.

Step 1: Get Needed Packages
To install ndiswrapper
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install ndiswrapper-utils-1.9 ndiswrapper-common

Get the Windows driver for your Dell 1501
In a terminal type:
wget http://ftp.us.dell.com/network/R140747.EXE

Step 2: Get Everything Ready
Now we will make a folder.
In a terminal type:
mkdir ~/.drivers

Now we will move R140747.EXE (the Dell driver), to the folder we just made.
In a terminal type:
mv ~/R140747.EXE ~/.drivers

Finally, we need to blacklist the broken and useless bcm43xx firmware drivers that try to load in a default Ubuntu install:
In a terminal type:
sudo su
Then type:
sudo echo blacklist bcm43xx >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist

YOU MUST REBOOT NOW!
In a terminal type:
sudo reboot

STEP 3: Get The Proper Folder
In order for us to unzip the R140747.EXE driver we need to point your terminal to the /.driver folder.
cd ~/.drivers

Unzip the R140747.EXE driver
In a terminal type:
unzip -a R140747.EXE

We need to point your terminal to the DRIVER folder we just unzipped
In a terminal type:
cd ~/.drivers/DRIVER

Step 4: Configure the Windows driver with ndiswrapper
Now install the Windows driver
In a terminal type:
sudo ndiswrapper -i bcmwl5.inf
Then:
sudo ndiswrapper -l (that is a lowercase L)

You should see a message that says driver present, hardware detected.

Now finish installing the driver
In a terminal type:
sudo ndiswrapper -m
Then:
sudo modprobe ndiswrapper

YOU MUST REBOOT NOW!
In a terminal type:
sudo reboot

STEP 5: TEST WIRELESS
Your WiFi light on your laptop should be illuminated. If not, you can always turn it on and off with the Fn+F2 (Function & F2 Key) and you're all set! Try running this to see if your wireless card is functioning properly.

In a terminal type:
sudo iwlist scanning

If once you get everything working and after a reboot and the wifi light does not come back on, simply repeat Step 4 and wireless will work again.

Step 6: Make it Stick
To autostart the ndiswrapper module
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/modules

and add this to the end of the file
ndiswrapper

edited by pHreaksYcle

Fix For Gutsy Taking Forever to Boot/Load

2007-11-30T15:29:00.000-06:00

Readers have complained that Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon has been taking forever to load. Once GRUB loads the screen goes black for 2 - 3 minutes. It seems not everyone is having this problem, but for those who have been, there is a very simple and easy fix. You can find the fix on the Ubuntu forums here. Your resolution for the Dell Inspiron 1501 should be 1280 by 800.

Now for my HowTo:

First you need to change your splash resolution settings.

In a terminal:
sudo gedit /etc/usplash.conf

You need to edit the file to look like this:

xres=1280
yres=800

Then to make the changes stick:

In a terminal type:
sudo update-usplash-theme usplash-theme-ubuntu

This is what your terminal output should look like:

Now you shouldn't have to wait 2 -3 minutes for your computer to load.

This information was passed onto me by a reader named Matt. Thanks Matt!

edited by pHreaksYcle

Non-Distro Specific Ubuntu Guides

2007-11-24T11:35:00.000-06:00

This is a collection of all the howto's on Ubuntu1501.com that aren't distro specific and offer you a chance to enhance your Ubuntu experience.

How Get Ubuntu

Customizing Firefox

Configure the Touchpad

Dual Booting with Windows or another OS

Replacing your Hard Drive

Installing VirtualBox with USB Support

Upgrading your RAM

How to BitTorrent

How to run uTorrent torrent client in Ubuntu

Using Evolution with Gmail

How to Encode Videos for your iPod

How to get FREE Ubuntu disks

How to get FREE Ubuntu system stickers

Integrate Last.fm into Ubuntu

Using Your Apple iPod in Ubuntu

Using KDE Applications in GNOME

Running the Conky System Monitor

How to Install a TTF Font in Ubuntu

How to Screen Capture

Fixing Dell Laptop Keyboards

Make Firefox Pretty

Using Evolution with Gmail

2007-11-18T00:41:00.001-06:00

Evolution is the official personal information manager and workgroup information management tool for GNOME. It combines e-mail, calendar, address book, and task list management functions. It's user interface and functionality are similar to Microsoft Outlook. It can be connected to a Microsoft Exchange Server using it's web interface and an Evolution add-on. Using gnome-pilot, it may be synchronized with most Palm devices, and OpenSync enables it to be synchronized with mobile telephones and other PDAs.
From Wikipedia

I really dig Evolution. I used to be a huge Mozilla Thunderbird user and still think it's a great email client. I find Evolution integration with the Gnome desktop and it's ability to do all things that I did in Thunderbird makes T-Bird an unnecessary install on my systems. I'm not saying one is better than the other, but if you'd like to use e-mail client in Ubuntu, check them both out. If you find you need help setting up Evolution with your Gmail account, this guide will get you setup in less than five minutes. I wrote out what to put in the fields as well as took pictures. If you are having trouble, just make sure your Evolution looks like mine.

When you first run Evolution or when you go to: Edit->Preferences in Evolution, the Account Editor opens up. From here you can configure Evolution to send and receive email from your Gmail account.

Identity:

Name: Name your account.
Full Name: Write Your Name.
Email Address: You have to put your full Gmail user name and include the @gmail.com

Receiving Email:

Server Type: POP
Server: pop.gmail.com
Username: You have to put your full gmail user name and include the @gmail.com
Security: SSL encryption
Authentication Type: Password Check for supported types

Receiving Options:

- You can set Evolution to automatically check for new mail every set number of minutes
- You want to check the leave messages on server box if you want a copy of your email kept on Google's Gmail server. (I prefer this option so I have access to all my email whether I'm at my laptop of not)
- Set Evolution to delete mail that is older than a set amount of days

Sending Email:

Server Type: STMP
Server: smtp.gmail.com
- Check the box server requires authentication
Use Secure Connection: SSL encryption
Authentication Type: Plain Check Supported Types
Username: You have to put your full Gmail user name and include the @gmail.com

Enabling Evolution to download and Send Email:
- Go to www.gmail.com

Click the picture for a larger view

- Log into your gmail account, select Settings in the upper right hand corner of the window
- In the settings tab, select Forwarding and POP/IMAP
- In the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab, look for POP Download and enable POP. This can either be set for all your Gmail email you have on the server or for just email that arrives after you enable it.

edited by pHreaksYcle

We're Moving On Up

2007-11-11T22:50:00.000-06:00

I'm sure you most of you have noticed but we've moved. I've bought the url www.ubuntu1501.com and all traffic from www.ubuntu1501.blogspot.com is being rerouted to our new home. I really just got tired of having to spell out blogspot. Please update your RSS feeds and bookmarks accordingly.

I've been blogging about running Ubuntu on the Dell Inspiron 1501 for almost a year and I never thought the site was going to be this big. I started blogging thinking if 10 or 20 people read one of my articles, I'd consider myself successful. Then, I thought I was big when I thought I was getting about 50 readers a day. Once I started looking at the numbers I realized a hundreds of people were reading my blog. Today a little over 1,000 unique IPs log onto the site everyday. My guides have been used for the Ubuntu online documentation, translated into a bunch of different languages, linked to on a bunch of mobile Linux sites, referenced in bigger tech blogs, and the site has been referenced in the Ubuntu forums. I think I've come a long way, I feel like my guide writing is really come into it's own. Here's an example, my first guide on how to install Ubuntu 6.10 Edgy Eft and my latest guide about encoding videos for the iPod. The difference is amazing.

I owe all my success to you guys and girls who have been reading my blog and helping with all the feedback. Thanks from the bottom of my little open source fanboy heart.

Keep On Reading,
redDEAD

P.S. Two things:
1. I really could use a waffles.fm, what.cd or Demoniod type site invite, since oink.cd and Demonoid were shut down I've really been lost for a good Demonoid type torrent site and a good music torrent site.
2. In a case your wondering about how to get in contact with me, you can always catch me on AIM (pidgin) as redDEADresolve or redDEADresolved and via email at redDEADresolve at gmail.com. I don't mind helping you troubleshoot any problems.

Easy Codec Install for Gutsy

2007-11-11T22:36:00.000-06:00

This simple howto installs the most common restricted codecs in Gutsy, allowing you to play mp3, aac, DVD ,mp4, avi, wmv and many more formats. It also installs the codecs for ripping mp3 using the lame encoder in Soundjuicer and making CDs from mp3s in K3b.

This is rewrite of a howto that I did for Feisty and it just needed a little touch up for Gutsy.

In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly gstreamer0.10-ffmpeg libxine1-ffmpeg libdvdread3

In order to play copyrighted DVDs, you need to install the libdvdcss2 package. To do this you need to install the Medibuntu repository. You can find my howto here.

Once you install the Medibuntu repository, in a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install libdvdcss2

edited by pHreaksYcle

How To Encode Videos for Your iPod

2007-11-11T22:33:00.000-06:00

This works for any media device, or if you you just want to convert video files to other formats.

We're going to use the command line conversion tool ffmpeg, it's incredibly fast and does a great job. Don't be scared, because we also going to install and use a GUI for the ffmeg tools so we can convert video with a pretty interface.

First thing we have to do is install the version of ffmeg that allows encoding in mp4. To do this we need to install the Medibuntu repository.

This will add the Medibuntu repository to your repository lists
In a terminal type:
sudo wget http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/gutsy.list -O /etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list

Then you have to add the GPG Key to authentic the packages
In a terminal type:
wget -q http://packages.medibuntu.org/medibuntu-key.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add -
Now update your system to load the Medibuntu repository into your apt-get sources
sudo apt-get update

Now download the Medibuntu version of ffmeg that allows for mp4 encoding/converting video for your iPod
sudo apt-get install ffmpeg
You may have to update your system again
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get update

Now we can convert video for your iPod. FFmpeg is a command line tool and is a bit difficult for seasoned command line warriors to use. In order to make things as easy and simple we can download a GUI (graphical user interface) for the ffmpeg tools.

WinFF is a cross platform batch GUI for FFMPEG. It will convert most any video file that FFmpeg will convert. WinFF does multiple files in multiple formats at one time. You can for example convert mpeg's, flv's, and mov's, all into avi's all at once.

Download WinFF 0.31 for Ubuntu Here this is for the 32 bit version

Once your download completes, double click the winff-0.31-i386.deb to install it onto your system.

To run WinFF go to Applications>Sound & Video>WinFF

You should see this:

You can select options in the upper right corner of WinFF and a drop down menu will appear and you will see this:

You can choose where you want the files you are converting to be saved as well as what format you want to convert to. I choose usually use the XviD for iPod or H.264 High Quality settings. I find XviD for iPod encodes faster and gives excellent picture quality.

You can also go to WinnFF>Edit>Preferences to futher customize WinFF.

Anyone running a dual processor will want to check the box off that says, "Multithreadng for Dual Core Processors"

Have Fun!

edited by pHreaksYcle

How to Play Encrypted (Copyrighted) DVDs in Gutsy

2007-11-11T22:27:00.000-06:00

Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon does not play DVDs out of the box. In order to play DVDs you need to install the Medibuntu Repository and a couple of packages. This guide will get your Gutsy install playing DVDs like a champ in less then 4 minutes.

This will add the Medibuntu repository to your repository lists
In a terminal type:
sudo wget http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/gutsy.list -O /etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list

Then you have to add the GPG Key to authentic the packages
In a terminal type:
wget -q http://packages.medibuntu.org/medibuntu-key.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add -

Now update your system to load the Medibuntu repository into your apt-get sources
sudo apt-get update

Download the DVDs playback packages
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install libdvdcss2 libdvdread3

Now pop in a DVD and enjoy!

edited by pHreaksYcle

Compiz-Fusion with XGL in Gutsy

2007-11-10T19:29:00.000-06:00

This guide only works for Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon, but works for any one who is using an ATI card in Gutsy.

This is the easiest Compiz install ever. Compiz-Fusion is enabled by default, so all you have to do is setup XGL, install the CompizConfig Setting Manager and configure Compiz-Fusion.

In a terminal type:
fglrxinfo

You should see:
display: :0.0 screen: 0
OpenGL vendor string: ATI Technologies Inc.
OpenGL renderer string: ATI Radeon Xpress Series
OpenGL version string: 2.0.6473 (8.37.6)

If not, make sure you enable the restricted ATI driver via the restricted driver manager. Check your restricted driver manager by going to System>Administration>Restricted Driver Manager. Make sure the box is checked as illustrated bellow.

Once you have the ATI driver setup you need to install Xgl and the CompizConfig Setting Manager.

In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install xserver-xgl compizconfig-settings-manager

Once everything is done downloading you should see this:

Ubuntu will install and setup Xgl to run with you normal gnome desktop. It will also run Compiz-Fusion for you at startup.

Log off your current session or restart your computer. Go to System>Preferences>Appearance and select the Visual effects tab.
You will see this:

Select the Custom and edit you Preferences. Now you should be able to get your all you pretty eye candy setup.

You can check my custom preferences by downloading this file, and loading it through the CompizConfig Setting Manager.

You can find it under System>Preferences>Advanced Desktop Effect Settings or running ccsm in a terminal.

It look like this:

To install my profile just select the Preferences option in ccsm and Import it.

edited by pHreaksYcle

New Staff Member

2007-11-06T13:09:00.001-06:00

If you've read this blog for any length of time, you would have noticed my poor writing skills. I have a hard time proof reading my own work, organizing my thoughts clearly and I just plain suck at spelling. Good news is that I found someone to edit the blog for me. Dan volunteered to go through the archives and clean up my sloppy work and edit all my new articles. So let's all welcome him to the ubuntu1501 family. I made him answer a couple of questions, so we all could get that warm fuzzy feeling of "getting to know" him.

What your name?
dan AKA pHreaksYcle

What do you do?
Student, but work part time as a cashier at a service station

What do you study?
Chemistry, geometry (pHreak is still in high school)

How long have you been using Ubuntu?
Hardcore since September, but dabbled with it last year as well...never switching back

Why did you switch?
I switched because of many things, all surrounding the fact that I hate Windows. I don't hate windows because its not Linux, i hate windows because they do things i do not agree with, software-wise and politics-wise, like contracting schools to only use MS products is bullsh*t. Things like that make me sick.

What kind of rigs do you having running at your house?
I have 2 desktops and 2 laptops. Laptop 1, mine, runs Ubuntu, but has Vista partition because I haven't gotten WINE yet. Laptop 2 has Vista solely. It isn't mine. Desktop 1 runs Ubuntu clean. I use it to listen to music on my surround sound and as a backup for my laptop files. It is shit, but it runs.

What do you do to earn your geek street creditability?
I go to my schools computer club weekly and win every game. We usually play games like Unreal Tournament, but winning is still important. I fix all of my families computer problems on their Windows PCs (what a surprise). At the moment, I am looking into putting Linux on my PlayStation Portable (PSP).

Anything else you want to tell us about yourself?
I play hockey, race sprint cars, and type really fast. I kick @$$ in first person shooters, used to play WarRock a lot, but I have become sick of the server lag and I'm in between games.

Closing thoughts?
Linux is my religion.

Hey, I'm just happy that I don't have to endure anymore email about my writing or spelling.

Edited by pHreaksYcle

Moved This Week

2007-11-05T16:57:00.000-06:00

For those of you who have emailed, instant messaged and commented on articles, I'm sorry for not getting back to you. I moved last Sunday and don't have a internet connection at my condo yet. It getting installed on the 7th. See You Then.

New ATI fglrx Driver 8.42

2007-10-27T23:44:00.000-05:00

I, like many of you, was really excited that ATI released a new driver that allowed AIGLX support. AIGLX allows you to run Beryl, Compiz or Compiz-Fusion without XGL. Intel and NVIDEA users have been able to do this for over a year. I have an EVGA 7600GT in my desktop and AIGLX is a pleasure to run. Unfortunately, the driver came out too late to be included as the default ATI driver in Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon. You can compile the driver yourself.

I couldn't get the 8.42 driver to work for me after multiple attempts. I was willing to keep on trying until I get this e-mail from a reader named Christopher:

"hibernate/suspend does not work with the new 8.42.3 ati driver. Andfor anyone reading this, i've installed the new driver and though it isa great step forward, i'd stick with the xgl setup in gutsy. The newdriver does eliminate the need for xgl, but its much slower, and notworth it. I eventually took it out, and reverted back to the old setup,trust me its dog slow, you dont want it just yet. Give these guysanother 6 months and maybe well have a decent ati driver by then."

I think I'm going to use the repo ATI driver this release. XGL isn't pretty, but it's relatively fast and does work. I'd love to hear if any of you got the 8.42 driver working and any impressions you have regarding it's performance. For now, I'm going to use XGL for my Compiz-Fusion needs.

edited by pHreaksYcle

My Dirty Little Secret

2007-10-23T23:39:00.000-05:00

I owned two Dell Inspiron 1501s, one running Ubuntu and the other running Windows XP. That's right, I was a stupid 1501 owner who ran Windows.

It's my ex girlfriend's fault, she used the the one with Windows XP as her main PC. I never could convince her to use Ubuntu. Once we broke up I sold the Windows 1501 to my kid sister, she kept Windows on it too. Chicks don't dig Linux (wtf aren't you supposed to be smarter then us ladies?). I still see my bastard Windows 1501 all the time. I miss her; could of put Fedora on her and blogged on fedora1501.blogspot.com too.

Long story short, her AC adapter broke so I gave her mine. Dell is sending me a new one in a couple of days but until then I won't be doing much on the 1501.

Sorry guys, I should be a good blogger and write up a way to get the new ATI Driver, 8.42.3, running on the 1501 but I'd rather be a better big brother. Look at the kid, how could you be mean to her?

edited by pHreaksYcle

Upgrade or Fresh Install?

2007-10-17T18:57:00.000-05:00

People have been asking me whether or not they should upgrade their Feisty installs or do a completely new install for Gutsy. My answer is that you should install Gutsy fresh. There are 3 main reasons for doing this:

1. You don't have to worry about 3rd Party Repositories. If you have Wine, Skype, Opera, Mediabuntu or any other 3rd party repo installed you have to make sure they are ready for Gutsy and get updated as well. Some 3rd party repos might not be as easy to update as others.

2. If you have any Compiz-Fusion running on your Feisty install you'll have to completely uninstall it, remove the 3rd party repo you installed it from and reinstall Ubuntu-desktop and the Feisty version of Compiz. There is no way around this. If you don't do all these steps right, you are going to run into a lot of problems with Compiz-Fusion in Gutsy. All Compiz-Fusion guides for Feisty where hacky (including mine) and have potential to cause these conflicting install & dependency problems.

3. I LOVE Ubuntu, but updating it from one version to another sucks and doesn't work. I'm sure people will argue this with me, but they're full of it. Upgrading is a real pain and posses too many problems and complications to ever be a realistic choice. If you want things to work like there supposed to install it fresh. Gutsy is totally worth the work. If one thing is broken during the update you run the risk of losing your ability to actually use Ubuntu. While in Linux everything is fixable, but if you aren't comfortable with the command line you run the risk of completely hosing your system and not being able to get your data back.

Tips for Installing Gutsy
1. Have your Home folder on a different partition.
2. Back up your Home folder.
3. Back up your Home folder. (Not a typo, its so important it needs to be said twice)

edited by pHreaksYcle

redDEAD's Other Blog

2007-10-16T21:02:00.000-05:00

For the last couple of months I've been writing another blog not related to Ubuntu, Linux or the Dell Inspiron 1501. It's been a nice place for me to blow off steam, post pictures and share stuff that I find funny or amusing. It's definitely NSFW, not safe for work. I curse, there is nudity, chicks dancing very seductively, drawn genitalia, racist porn stars, homage to the karate kid and a guide on not getting beat up by the police. It's not a very good blog or a terribly interesting must read, but it is a nice place to visit if you want to laugh or see the inner workings of my mind. Bookmark it, share it with friends etc. Please don't visit if you are easily offended or not old enough to buy cigarettes.

Learn a little more about redDEAD (click the picture)

edited by pHreaksYcle

Suspend/Hibernate Not Working Due To ATI Driver

2007-10-15T23:56:00.000-05:00

*Update suspend & hibernate still not working with newer ATI drivers.

From Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon Release Notes:

Suspend to RAM with fglrx
Attempting to suspend to RAM using the "fglrx" ATI video driver from the restricted component will hard-lock the system due to changes in the kernel's memory allocator (which will be the default in Linux 2.6.23) that have not been followed by ATI in a timely fashion; we do not have the resources to support more kernel flavours to support a single outdated driver at this point. Workarounds include remaining on Ubuntu 7.04, avoiding suspending to RAM, or using the free ATI driver. Bug #121653

Gutsy Gibbon Release Notes

Thanks Tyler & Adrian for the heads up, keep reading and thanks for contributing. I will post an update as soon as the bug gets squashed.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Ubuntu Now Taking Orders for Free Gutsy CDs

2007-10-09T07:23:00.000-05:00

There are many reasons to love Ubuntu, besides being the best operating system out and being free (as in freedom) Ubuntu also will send you FREE (as in money) copies of it's releases.

This morning I woke up and discovered that Ubuntu is taking pre-orders for its upcoming Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon release.

By going to Ubuntu's ShipIt website You can order your copies of the PC Edition or 64-bit PC Edition. Ubuntu can ship you multiple CDs but the default is two discs. Good thing is you can mix and match between the two. I picked up one PC and one 64 bit. I might actually try the 64 bit again. Allow 4-6 weeks for delivery.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Wireless in Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon

2007-10-06T13:51:00.000-05:00

Wireless for the Dell Inspiron 1501 now works out of the box in Gutsy Gibbon. It's a simple graphical install that requires four clicks of a mouse. The Ubuntu Restricted Driver Manager does all the work for you. After installing Ubuntu 7.10 you need to run the Restricted Driver Manager; you can find it in System>Administration>Restricted Driver Manager.

*Quick note if you update your install of Gutsy and wifi no longer works, it's a simple matter of running the Restricted Driver Manager over again.

You will see this:

Next you just need to click on the enable box. Then you will see this:

Simply click on the Enable Firmware button. The Restricted Driver Manager will now ask you to Specify Firmware Location:

You now have two choices.
1.- To use a local file for the firmware or to download it from the internet. Using a local file doesn't require you to connect an ethernet cable to the your Dell 1501 but you will have to download a file before installing Gutsy.
2. - Downloading from the internet requires you to connect an ethernet cable to the your Dell 1501 to establish an internet connection before you can download the firmware.

To use a local file you have to download the firmware for the Broadcom 43xx chipset family, before you install Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon. You can find the driver here Click the OK button and WiFi works.

If you can plug an ethernet cable into your Dell 1501 you can simply choose download from internet. Click the OK button and WiFi works.

Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon makes setting up WiFi a much simpler process then Edgy & Feisty, you no longer need to downloading debs from untrusted sites or set up ndiswrapper. It's four clicks of a mouse button. Dell 1501 owners can now rejoice, it's impossible to screw up the wifi setup.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Last.fm & Ubuntu

2007-10-06T11:11:00.001-05:00

What it is?
Last.fm is the world's largest social music platform with over 20 million active users based in more than 232 countries. Using a unique music recommendation system known as "Audioscrobbler", Last.fm builds a detailed profile of each user's musical taste by recording details of all the songs the user listens to, either on the streamed radio stations or on the user's computer or portable music device. This information is transferred to Last.fm's database ("Scrobbled") via a plug-in installed into the users' music player. The profile data is displayed on a personal web page. The site offers numerous social networking features and can recommend and play artists similar to the user's favourites.

Users can create custom radio stations and playlists from any of the audio tracks in Last.fm's music library, but are not able to listen to individual tracks on demand, or to download tracks unless the rightsholder has previously authorized it. Registration is required to acquire a profile but is not necessary to view any part of the site or to listen to radio stations.
From Wikipedia.org

To sign up to get a Last.fm Profile

How to integrate Last.fm into your jukebox in Linux
In Amarok you just need to go to the Settings>Configure Amarok and then scroll down to the last.fm icon.

In Rhythmbox, go to Edit>Plugins then select the Last.fm Plugin.

Last.fm Player

The player allows the user to enter the name of any artist or tag which then gives a choice of a number of similar artist stations, or similar global tag stations. Alternatively, Recommendation radio or any of the user's personal radio stations may be played without the necessity to visit the website.

The player displays the name of the station and track currently playing, the song artist, title and track length as well as album details, the artist's photo and biographical details, album cover art when available, lists of similar artists and the most popular tags and top fans. There are several buttons, allowing the user to love, skip, or ban a song. The love button adds the song to the user's loved tracks playlist; the ban button ensures that the song will not be played again. Both features affect the user's profile. The skip button does not. Other buttons allow the user to tag or recommend the currently playing track. Other features offered by the application are: minor editing of the user's profile including removing recently played artists and songs from the loved, banned, or previously played track lists; lists of friends and neighbours, lists of tags and a list of previously played radio stations. Users can also open their full Last.fm profile page directly from the player.
From Wikipedia.org

To get the Last.fm Player:
sudo apt-get install lastfm

This is basically the only radio I listen to anymore. I enter an artist I like and it makes great recommendations. I have found a lot of new music through Last.fm

You can find me on Last.fm here.

Excessive hardrive activity in Gutsy Beta???

2007-10-04T00:11:00.000-05:00

Some people have been emailing and instant messaging me about excessive hard drive activity on their Dell Inspiron 1501 with Gutsy, even after disabling "Tracker" and having nothing running in the background. The problem is described as a weird hard drive noise every few seconds while the HD light goes on. They are reporting that this does not happen with their Windows XP and Vista Partitions.

I am not getting any weird noises or excess hard drive activity from my 1501. I'm guessing that it can either be from the problem being isolated to a small subsection of users, or the fact that I upgraded my hard drive a while ago, so I cannot really be of much help.

If anyone is getting weird noises or excessive hard drive activity with Gutsy on their 1501, leave a comment.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon Beta Overview

2007-09-30T00:49:00.001-05:00

A quick note from redDEAD:
This is an outdated article, please refer to my new overview of Ubuntu 7.10 Gusty Gibbon. This article talks only about the Beta and is missing a bunch of updates, the new article covers everything you'll need to know and do to get Ubuntu 7.10 running on your Dell Inspiron 1501.

-----

I installed the beta of Gutsy Gibbon today, so far I'm in love.

Installation:
The LiveCD doesn't load correctly. To install Gutsy you need to load Start Ubuntu in Safe Graphic Mode at the LiveCD splash screen. From there you just need to install normally.

Wi-Fi:
Works out of the box. Once you sudo apt-get update Gutsy, the Restricted Manager (System>Administration) can install the the firmware for the Broadcom 43xx card in the Dell 1501. Once it downloads the deb, just select the grab the firmware from the web option and in four clicks wi-fi works.

ATI Proprietary Driver:
ATI's 8.37.6 fglrx driver is automatically installed, configured and 3D enabled with the Restricted Driver Manager (System>Administration). It's Faster and more responsive than the Feisty's 8.34.8 fglrx driver. Compiz-Fusion is running really well.

Compiz-Fusion:
Easiest Compiz install ever. Compiz-Fusion is enabled by default, so all you have to do is sudo apt-get install xserver-xgl compizconfig-settings-manager and Gutsy will configure and setup your Xgl session. Log out and back in and run Compiz-Fusion (compiz --replace) and your desktop effects work. To configure Compiz's options run ccsm.

Media Codecs
Gutsy like Feisty makes codec installation easy, no more automatix or struggling with adding repos. mp3, DVD, avi, aac, mpeg, wmv, asf, mov, flv, mp4, flash codecs are installed when you try to play them. The only thing not enabled is reading encrypted DVDs. For an easy codec install just sudo apt-get install gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly gstreamer0.10-ffmpeg libxine1-ffmpeg libdvdread3

Ethernet:
Works out of the box.

Card Reader:
Works out of the box.

Brightness & Volume:
Works out of the box, so far I've only been able to confirm this with the 1.7 BIOS.

Video Out:
Works out of the box, Gutsy's Screens and Resolutions (System>Administration) makes using multiple monitors a breeze. Configuration doesn't require editing your xorg.conf file.

Suspend & Hibernate:
Doesn't work, my gut is telling me it has to do with a restarting the xserver at login error Feisty also had. I discussed the solution here. Hopefully one of us will figure it out. It is either a matter of finding out how to restart the xserver at login or a BIOS issue. I'm BIOS 1.7, let me know if you get different results with different BIOS version.

Modem:
Doesn't work, Dell's driver isn't compatible with Gutsy's kernel. Dell is readying it's fixes for Gutsy. Modem deb should be out when Gutsy hits or shortly after.

Overall Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon looks like a great step in the right direction for Dell Inspiron 1501 users. Setup and execution is n00b friendly and extremely easy. I highly recommend you check it out and even recommend installing it. You can find the iso HERE

edited by pHreaksYcle

Problem with the Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon Beta

2007-09-27T21:35:00.000-05:00

SOLVED!
To install the Gutsy beta on the Dell 1501, select the Start Ubuntu in Safe Graphic Mode. Once in you just have to install Gutsy normally and when you restart everything works perfectly. Problem solved.

First thing I did when I walked into the door today was download the Gutsy beta. Popped it into my Dell Inspiron 1501 and was treated to a really nice login screen. Unfortunately the login screen is as far as I got. The five Gutsy alphas didn't load on the Dell 1501 either. Looks like 1501 owners are going to have to wait a bit to enjoy Ubuntu 7.10

As soon as I figure/find out what's going on I'm gonna blog about it. There is a bug report for the alphas but its not very descriptive besides the fact that it doesn't work.

I received an error about Nautilus (Gnome's file manager) not loading. I'm going to test the beta CD this weekend and post anything I find on launchpad and here.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Does Anyone Use the Microphone?

2007-09-26T21:36:00.000-05:00

Sergio de la Cruz asked:
"My microphone does not work. I don't know why. Some people here tells that it works OK. Can you guide me to the proper audio configuration for it to work?"

Can anyone out there tell me if their microphone works and if they had to do anything special to get it working? I left my 1501 in the office and I'm lazy. Thanks!

edited by pHreaksYcle

Using Your Apple iPod in Ubuntu

2007-09-16T20:54:00.001-05:00

This guide works with all iPods models except iPod classics, iPod Video Nano and iPod Touch. Apple has updated it's cryptographic "checksum" in their song databases for these models. This means third-party applications are no longer able to sync your music, video & pictures to these devices. The good news is that the older iPods are fully compatible with 3rd party applications.

I love my iPod and I love Ubuntu so these guides are definitely a labor of love for me. I find that the iPod works great in Ubuntu. I use 3 programs in Ubuntu for syncing my iPod; gtkpod, GPixPod and Amarok.

gtkpod
gtkpod is a platform independent Graphical User Interface for Apple's iPod using GTK2. It supports the first to fifth Generation including the iPod mini, iPod Photo, iPod Shuffle, iPod nano, and iPod Video. It allows you to sync you iPod in Linux. Some of it's features include importing the existing contents of your iPod including play counts, ratings and on-the-go playlists, adding MP3, WAV, M4A, M4B, podcasts, and video files to your iPod and allowing you to view, add and modify cover art and playlists.

To get gtkpod
in a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install gtkpod-aac

GPixPod
GPixPod is a new PyGTK application to organize photos and photo albums on your photo capable iPod models. Its approach to modify manually the elements in the Photo Database of your iPod could be also more useful than the syncing-only method of iTunes. For Linux users gpixpod is an excellent complement to gtkpod and amarok. While these two programs do an excellent job of syncing music, album art and video to your iPod neither do pictures and I haven't been able to find another program in Linux/Ubuntu that does all four; music, video, album art and pictures.

To get gpixpod
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install gpixpod

Amarok
Amarok a fantasic music player for Linux and Unix with an intuitive interface. Amarok not only makes playing the music you love easy, but also allows you to organize a library of music into folders according to genre, artist, and album, edit tags attached to most music formats, associate album art, attach lyrics, and automatically "score" music as you play it. It is seen as Linux's major iTunes alternative and in many people's opinions an iTunes killer. It allows you to look up album via Amazon, sync music, podcasts and audiobooks. Amarok does not do video or pictures, but it's such an amazing jukebox that I don't mind using other apps to take care of it's shortcomings.

To get Amarok, ipod support and mp3 support
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install amarok ipodslave libxine1-ffmpeg

edited by pHreaksYcle

AMD/ATI to Open Source Video Drivers

2007-09-05T21:58:00.000-05:00

Source: From Christopher Blizzard's Blog: Invisible Sandwich

AMD, ATI's parent company, has been promising better video driver support for the Linux community for the past year. While driver updates have been monthly and the ATI's fglx driver has gotten much better, development still has been slow, closed and proprietary. AMD has now decided to open source their drivers and has promised the these two things:

To develop of a fully functional 2D and 3D driver that supports all of their newer radeon chipsets. This will be done in full collaboration with the open source community and will have the direct participation of hackers from companies like Red Hat and Novell.

To release documentation that anyone can use to build and support drivers for their chips.

This means that not only will Red Hat & Novell hackers be able to work on the driver, but anybody will be able to contribute to the code. Once the drivers do go open source, we should see vast improvements quickly.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Running uTorrent in Ubuntu

2007-09-05T01:02:00.001-05:00

Make sure you have Wine installed before you try to run uTorrent.

To install Wine:
Add Wine's repositories to your source list:
sudo wget http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/apt/sources.list.d/feisty.list -O /etc/apt/sources.list.d/winehq.list

Add the repository key:
wget -q http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/apt/387EE263.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add -

Update apt-get:
sudo apt-get update

Install Wine:
sudo apt-get install wine

Download uTorrent
wget http://download.utorrent.com/1.7.2/utorrent.exe

Make uTorrent hidden
mv utorrent.exe .utorrent

To launch uTorrent use the command
wine ~/.utorrent

To get firefox to automatically open uTorrent when clicking on torrent links
sudo gedit /usr/bin/utorrent

Paste the following into the newly opened text file:
#!/bin/sh

cd ~/
if [ "$1" != "" ]; then
var="`echo $1 | sed 's/\//\\\/g'`"
var="Z:${var}"
wine .utorrent "$var"
else
wine .utorrent
fi
save it & close

Make the script you just wrote executable
sudo chmod a+x /usr/bin/utorrent

Now, go into Firefox and download a torrent. Choose "open with" and hit "browse" on the list, and navigate to /usr/bin and choose uTorrent.

To learn a little more about what bittorrenting is, how it works or where to find torrents; check out my guide here

edited by pHreaksYcle

Make Your Own Papercraft Tux

2007-09-05T00:47:00.000-05:00

Source: http://www.pricoinsa.es/

Download the pattern here

If you want to make a little tux companion for your Dell 1501. It's as easy as printing out on heavier paper, cutting and gluing. Send me your pics!

edited by pHreaksYcle

KDE The Other Blue Meat

2007-08-31T18:33:00.000-05:00

I never talk about the other major Ubuntu distro, Kubuntu. I wish I had the time to cover Kubuntu, but I don't. The good thing is that just just because I run Ubuntu doesn't mean I can't use some of Kubuntu's best applications.

Kubuntu is an official derivative of the Ubuntu operating system using the KDE environment instead of GNOME. KDE enviroment is quite similair and has advantages and disadvantages over GNOME. I will not get into specifics here but I can attest that the following KDE applications I will be recommending are fantastic and many of you might like them more than the GNOME equivalents.

Amarok
Best music jukebox for any operating system. Amarok serves many functions rather than just playing music files. For example, Amarok can be used to organize a library of music into folders according to genre, artist, and album, can edit tags attached to most music formats, associate album art, attach lyrics, and automatically "score" music as you play it. But even under an environment like GNOME Amarok retains all of its functionality. It's biggest features is it last.fm integration, media player support, cover manager and ability to synch the ipod and use many of each features.

To download Amarok, ipod support and mp3 support
sudo apt-get install amarok ipodslave libxine1-ffmpeg

K3b
Provides a graphical user interface to perform most CD/DVD burning tasks like creating an Audio CD from a set of audio files or copying a CD/DVD, as well as more advanced tasks such as burning eMoviX CD/DVDs. It can also perform direct disc-to-disc copies. The program has many default settings which can be customized by more experienced users. The actual disc recording in K3b is done by the command line utilities cdrecord or wodim, cdrdao, and growisofs. As of version 1.0, K3b features a built-in DVD ripper.

sudo apt-get install k3b
sudo apt-get install libk3b2-mp3 for mp3 decoder plugin (allows you to burn mp3s to CD)

K9copy
It is generally seen as the Linux equivalent of the Windows-based DVD Shrink, as it shrinks a DVD-9 DVD down to a DVD-5 DVD, allowing for movies on dual layer DVDs to be shrunk down in order to fit on a single layer DVD. The program allows the user to have the shrunken down DVD written to the hard drive as an ISO image which can then be burned to a DVD recordable by using a CD/DVD burning program such as K3b. Like DVD Shrink, k9copy is also useful for circumventing copy protection that normally leads to an "input/output error".

sudo apt-get install k9copy

KControl
KControl is the graphic tweaking system for the KDE enviroment. It has a modular architecture, the window is split into two parts: the left side displays the list of available modules (also known as applets), and the right side displays the current module. Applications can install their own KControl modules (an example being Konqueror), although most applications prefer to use their own, independent settings managers. This means you can use kcontrol to tweak the look and feel of these kde based programs to fit better into your ubuntu/gnome enviroment.

sudo apt-get install kcontrol

edited by pHreaksYcle

Compiz Fusion Upgrade Problems (Trevino's Repo)

2007-08-23T04:05:00.000-05:00

A couple people have approached me about Compiz Fusion not working 100% after updating when using my Compiz Fusion in Feisty with Xgl guide and more specifically when using Trevino's Repository. Good news is that the updates are not broken, Compiz Fusion just needs to be reset. If you are experience problems with transparent cube or 3D windows simply launch CompizConfig Settings Manager.

If you don't know where to find CompizConfig Settings Manager (System>Preferences) or don't have an entry in your menu you can launch it by firing up a terminal and typing in: ccsm

Select the preference option (in red)

Select the Reset to Defaults option (in red)

Now Compiz Fusion will reset and everything will work again. You may have to reconfigure you settings again.

If you wonder how my setup looks you can download my compiz-fusion setting profile here.

edited by pHreaksYcle

iPod in Ubuntu Main Page

2007-08-18T09:11:00.001-05:00

What You'll need to get started

Howto Convert Videos for Your iPod

Using gtkpod with your iPod Coming Soon

Using Amarok with your iPod Coming Soon

Using GPixPod with your iPod Coming Soon

F.A.Q. Coming Soon

edited by pHreaksYcle

Codec Cheatsheet

2007-08-15T23:44:00.000-05:00

redDEAD's version of Automatix
This simple howto installs the most common restricted codecs. Allowing you to play mp3, aac, DVD, mp4, avi, wmv and many more formats & rip mp3 using the lame encoder.

For Ubuntu 7.04 Feisty Fawn
in a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad-multiverse gstreamer0.10-plugins-bad gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly gstreamer0.10-ffmpeg libxine1-ffmpeg gstreamer0.8-lame gstreamer0.8-faac gstreamer0.8-faad libdvdread3 libk3b2-mp3

To play encrypted DVDs you need libdvdcss2. You need to install the Medibuntu Repositories to do this. My how to can be found here

Enjoy!

For more, check out Randall Munroe site at xkcd.com/

edited by pHreaksYcle

Compiz Fusion in Feisty with Xgl

2007-08-08T00:03:00.000-05:00

This is the guide everyone has been waiting for, this not only works for the Dell Inspiron 1501 but works for any computer running an ATI card using Xgl.

Check ATI Driver
In a terminal type:
fglrxinfo

You should see this output in your terminal window:
display: :0.0 screen: 0
OpenGL vendor string: ATI Technologies Inc.
OpenGL renderer string: RADEON XPRESS Series
OpenGL version string: 2.0.6334 (8.34.8)

If you get something different make sure you enable the proprietary ATI driver via the Restricted Driver Manager. You can find it in the top left menu bar under System>Administration>Restricted Drivers.
(This is what you get when using the Dell Inspiron 1501, other users can check for enabled 3D by using the command glxgears, you should see spinning gears)

Install Xgl
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install xserver-xgl

Setting Up XGL
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /usr/local/bin/startxgl.sh

and this to the file:
#!/bin/sh
Xgl :1 -fullscreen -ac -accel xv:pbuffer -accel glx:pbuffer &
DISPLAY=:1
cookie="$(xauth -i nextract - :0 | cut -d ' ' -f 9)"
xauth -i add :1 . "$cookie"
exec dbus-launch --exit-with-session gnome-session
save and close file

Then make the xgl script executable by entering this into a terminal:
sudo chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/startxgl.sh

Creating a XGL Login
Make the script, by typing this into a terminal:
sudo gedit /usr/share/xsessions/xgl.desktop

add this text to the file:
[Desktop Entry]
Encoding=UTF-8
Name=Xgl
Comment=Start an Xgl Session
Exec=/usr/local/bin/startxgl.sh
Icon=
Type=Application
save and close file

Remove Compiz & Desktop Effects
sudo apt-get remove compiz-core desktop-effects

If you have Beryl Installed Remove Beryl Too
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get remove beryl-ubuntu beryl-manager emerald

If you want to use emerald as your decorator for Compiz Fusion do not remove the emerald package.

Add the Compiz Fusion Repository
In a terminal type:
sudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

Add this to the end of your your source list:
deb http://download.tuxfamily.org/3v1deb feisty eyecandy
deb-src http://download.tuxfamily.org/3v1deb feisty eyecandy
save and close file

Add the tuxfamily Repository Key
In a terminal type:
sudo wget http://download.tuxfamily.org/3v1deb/DD800CD9.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add -

Update Your System
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get update

Install Compiz Fusion
In a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install compiz compizconfig-settings-manager compiz-plugins compiz-gnome compiz-fusion-plugins-extra compiz-fusion-plugins-unofficial libcompizconfig-backend-gconf

Now you just have to log off, log into your Xgl session and run Compiz Fusion.

To run Compiz Fusion:
compiz --replace

To run the Compiz Setting Manager:
ccsm

I find Compiz Fusion to be faster and more responsive then Beryl. I don't use Beryl's window manger, Emerald. If you want to use Emerald with Compiz Fusion, it's as easy as sudo apt-get emerald and to launch it's emerald --replace. I didn't mention it in my guide because I prefer Compiz's gtk-window-decorator, and don't want to put up with the hassle of people asking my questions about software I don't use.

Troubleshooting
Q: Compiz Fusion doesn't load/work?
A: Make sure you are you logged onto your Xgl session. Select it at startup from sessions.

Q: I don't have windows decorations.
A: Did you run ccsm (compiz setting manager) and enable Window Decorations

Q: I don't have a cube.
A: Did you run ccsm (compiz setting manager) and enable 3D cube

Q: I get error: E: Couldn't find package ******, can you help?
A: You have to add the repository correctly and then update it. Do those steps over again.

Q: How do I get Compiz Fusion to load when I log in?
A: You have to add compiz --replace to your startup session. First, go to System>Preferences>Session. Then click on the New button on the right hand side of the menu. Add compiz --replace to your startup.

Hope you guys like the guide.
redDEADresolve

edited by pHreaksYcle

Make Firefox Pretty

2007-07-27T02:14:00.000-05:00

The Firefox default buttons in Ubuntu are ugly, here's an example:

But It's easy to make them pretty. Notice that the buttons, radio buttons, check boxes, text fields and drop down menus (not shown) all look much smoother.

In a terminal type:
get the updated widgets
wget http://users.tkk.fi/~otsaloma/art/firefox-form-widgets.tar.gz

uncompress the downloaded file
tar -xvzf firefox-form-widgets.tar.gz

move the files from your home folder to the firefox folder
sudo cp /usr/lib/mozilla-firefox/res/forms.css /usr/lib/mozilla-firefox/res/forms.css.bak

set the widgets
cat firefox-form-widgets/res/forms-extra.css | sudo tee --append /usr/lib/mozilla-firefox/res/forms.css > /dev/null

sudo cp -r firefox-form-widgets/res/form-widgets /usr/lib/mozilla-firefox/res

rm -rf firefox-form-widgets

Now that Firefox is pretty, you can customize Firefox to load faster, block ads, get rid of useless features. Also check out my list of the best extensions. Check It Out Here

edited by pHreaksYcle

Conexant Modem on the Dell 1501

2007-07-22T11:00:00.000-05:00

amaurynieto just sent me the .deb file to get your Conexant Modem to work in Ubuntu.

This .deb is the Conexant driver for the 1505n officially supported by Dell, however it also works in the 150 because it's the same D110 Chipset.

Conexant Modem .deb from Dell's Website
-Or-
You can wget in a terminal (default save is to your home login folder /home/YOUR USER NAME)
wget http://ftp.us.dell.com/comm/hsfmodem_7.60.00.06oem_i386.deb

It's good to see Dell involvement is giving back to the open source world. I wish I could test it out but I don't have a phone line or access to a dial-up account. If you get it to work, let me know how it went.

edited by pHreaksYcle

My .conkyrc File

2007-07-15T23:28:00.000-05:00

A lot of people have been asking me about my system monitor in the upper right hand corner of my 1501 desktop, it's called Conky.

Conky is a system monitor software for the X Window System. It is able to monitor almost all systems variables including CPU, memory, swap, disk space, temperature, top, upload, download, system messages, and much more. It is extremely configurable, however the configuration can be a little hard to understand. To learn more vist the Conky website

To get conky in a terminal type:
sudo apt-get install conky

If you need help or just want to see mine .conkyrc file:
you can find your .conkyrc once installed in your home folder, once you enable show hidden files under View>Show Hidden Files. Ctrl+H is the shortcut

# THIS CONFIG RELIES ON 2 SCRIPTS, CPUSPEED AND CPUTEMP
# YOUR SYSTEM MAY NOT REQUIRE THEM, REPLACE AS DESIRED

# maintain spacing between certain elements
use_spacer yes

# set to yes if you want tormo to be forked in the background
background no

use_xft yes

# Xft font when Xft is enabled
xftfont Bitstream Vera Sans Mono-7
#xftfont Andale Mono-9
#xftfont Clean-8
#xftfont cubicfive10:pixelsize=8
#xftfont squaredance10:pixelsize=14
#xftfont swf!t_v02:pixelsize=10

# Text alpha when using Xft
xftalpha 1
mail_spool $MAIL

# Update interval in seconds
update_interval 4.0

# Create own window instead of using desktop (required in nautilus)
own_window no

# Use double buffering (reduces flicker, may not work for everyone)
double_buffer yes

# Minimum size of text area
minimum_size 280 5

# Draw shades?
draw_shades yes

# Draw outlines?
draw_outline no # amplifies text

# Draw borders around text
draw_borders no

# Stippled borders?
stippled_borders 0

# border margins
border_margin 9

# border width
border_width 1

# Default colors and also border colors, grey90 == #e5e5e5
default_color grey90
default_shade_color black
default_outline_color DarkGrey

# Text alignment, other possible values are commented
#alignment top_left
alignment top_right
#alignment bottom_left
#alignment bottom_right

# Gap between borders of screen and text
gap_x 24
gap_y 24

# Subtract file system buffers from used memory?
no_buffers yes

# set to yes if you want all text to be in uppercase
uppercase no

# stuff after 'TEXT' will be formatted on screen

TEXT

${color #EFEBE7}CPU: $freq_g${execi 5 cpuspeed}MHz $cpu%$color
${color #EFEBE7}$cpubar
${color #EFEBE7}NAME PID CPU% MEM%
${color #EFEBE7}${top name 1} ${top pid 1} ${top cpu 1} ${top mem 1}
${color #EFEBE7}${top name 2} ${top pid 2} ${top cpu 2} ${top mem 2}
${color #EFEBE7}${top name 3} ${top pid 3} ${top cpu 3} ${top mem 3}
${color #EFEBE7}${top name 4} ${top pid 4} ${top cpu 4} ${top mem 4}

${color #EFEBE7}RAM: $memmax $memperc% $color
${color #EFEBE7}${membar 6}${color}
${color #EFEBE7}NAME PID CPU% MEM%
${color #EFEBE7}${top_mem name 1} ${top_mem pid 1} ${top_mem cpu 1} ${top_mem mem 1}
${color #EFEBE7}${top_mem name 2} ${top_mem pid 2} ${top_mem cpu 2} ${top_mem mem 2}
${color #EFEBE7}${top_mem name 3} ${top_mem pid 3} ${top_mem cpu 3} ${top_mem mem 3}
${color #EFEBE7}${top_mem name 4} ${top_mem pid 4} ${top_mem cpu 4} ${top_mem mem 4}

${color #EFEBE7}Upload: ${upspeed eth1}kb/s Download: ${downspeed eth1}kb/s
$color

edited by pHreaksYcle

Show Off Your Dell Inspiron 1501s

2007-07-13T01:48:00.000-05:00

I love that people have been sending me pictures and screen shots of their Ubuntu 1501 setups. I want to write an article on mine and others. So, please send me some pictures/screen shots and anything about Ubuntu on the Dell 1501 that you want to share. All I ask is you tell everyone what's running on your desktop, send me your background image if you want to share it, and maybe a brief paragraph on why you chose Ubuntu on the Dell 1501. You can really just write as much or as little as you want. This is just a chance for you to show off your cool and personalized setups. Everyone knows mines is pretty much the standard gnome desktop.

edited by pHreaksYcle

How To Install a TTF Font In Ubuntu & Microsoft Fonts

2007-07-11T02:24:00.001-05:00

Step 1: Download a ttf font you like. Here is a cool website that has a ton for free. Save your fonts onto your desktop.

If you font is zipped or uses any other compression make sure you uncompress it. Your font should end in the extension .ttf

Now make a directory for your custom ttf fonts
in a terminal type:
sudo mkdir /usr/share/fonts/truetype/custom

Step 2: Put the ttf font into the custom folder
In a terminal type:
sudo nautilus

This will bring up a nautilus window
go to /usr/share/fonts/truetype/custom

copy in your fonts

Step 3: Rebuild your font cache
in a terminal type:
sudo fc-cache -f -v

To get the free Microsoft fonts, and make opening MS Office documents easier in OpenOffice
in a terminal type: sudo apt-get install msttcorefonts

edited by pHreaksYcle

akabrek's fix for people having trouble with ndiswrapper

2007-07-10T11:04:00.000-05:00

People are reporting that every time at startup they have to do a "sudo modprobe ndiswrapper" to get their WiFi working again when using the ndiswrapper guide. akabrek has come up with a solution.

You could solve this problem by doing as follows:

sudo ndiswrapper -m
gksudo gedit /etc/modules

and simply append the word ndiswrapper at end of file. Then save and reboot.
It will boot ndiswrapper module everytime Ubuntu kernel is loaded.

Thanks redDEAD for your good work, very useful. Don't give up.

__________________________________________________________________

akabrek, thank you for you good work and keep reading!

edited by pHreaksYcle

Niall's Question

2007-07-09T22:07:00.000-05:00

Hello, redDEAD. I have a small problem and was wondering if you could help me, sorry I had to post it here, I couldn't find another way to contact you.

I think the problem is with my BIOS version(2.4.1), however I managed to get my ATI card to work on 2.1.0 so I'm not sure. Do you think you could help me solve the problem?

I think Niall is asking me to help him get the ATI driver installed on his Dell 1501 with the 2.4.1 BIOS. Niall, all you have to do is use Restricted Driver Manager found in System>Administration. It won't give you the most recent ATI driver but it will give you a solid ATI driver that really works. The BIOS shouldn't matter, in fact, if you are worried about your BIOS version you should be using BIOS 1.7 you can find it here

Cheers I hope that helps.
___________________________________________

A quick reminder to people, if you want my help you have to get me as much info as possible. Paint me a pretty picture and tell me exactly what your problem is. If you need to contact me you can always email me at redDEADresolve at that fancy google mail.com

Now since this post is kinda boring here is the greatest Marvel/DC TEAM UP EVER

edited by pHreaksYcle

Rewrote the Wi-Fi Guide

2007-07-04T13:47:00.001-05:00

Ross has sent me two comments which I have pasted below. He couldn't get the WiFi working on his Dell 1501. He begged and pleaded for me to fix the guide. The guide wasn't very broken, it just required a cognitive ability. I did notice it lacked the polish and feel of my later guides. So for Ross and everyone else who complains that they can't get the WiFi working and my guide isn't working I rewrote the guide. It is truly idiot proof and in my opinion, my best guide yet. It's almost 100% command line meaning you just have to copy and paste. If it doesn't work for you you can always try the alternate native Linux driver, which guide you can find here. Good luck Ross and enjoy the new guide.

Hi
I have tried this like 8 times now. and have just started fresh by reinstalling it and trying again but it won't work for me
I have a dell 1501 same as you. but i got the 1g mem and i have the dvd burner too but this just will not work the light does not come on. even when i restart and all the other lights flash , (the lock with 9 and the A and the down arrow) but no wifi flash , i will attach all my workings on my next post after i try once more. wish me luck!! i realy want my wifi.....
------------------
doesn't WORK!!

I've tried sooo many times i got the same thing as the guy who started this everything seems to work
but in the end nothing is actually installed at all!!
am i doing it the wrong place should i do this entire guide in root. i did it and saved both downloads to a file named .driver(wich i created ) (is there supposed to be one in there allready?)
its a hidden file. anyway inside that folder i created another folder named wifi for my driver download (the zipped one) so after that i un TAR the ndiswrapper file to the .driver folder and do everything as the guide says, thousands of dell owners have. it doesn't work for me.
the guide seems to be a bare skeleton when it comes to the informative and descriptive side...

getting no where and have reinstalled twice can you edit your guide a little, starting at the verry first line,,,,

after you suggest the root folder option you say to enter the 2 previous command's again....

which 2? the first 2 in the guide or the one to become root . there are some other confusing factors too. it seems to work for some people but i am having trouble.

and your guide for the beryl thing dont get me started....

you should tell people what it means to log in as XGL not everyone knows its a profile.. i can proof read your guides to make them idiot proof , I am half idiot after all..

edited by pHreaksYcle

A Microsoft Case Study

2007-07-03T23:20:00.000-05:00

First a rant: it isn't Windoze or M$, it's simply Microsoft Windows. Windows isn't a horrible operating system, it works just as well as many Linux distros. Each operating system has it strengths and weaknesses, it's just Windows isn't for me. I do not like having to pay for software that I have no rights to. If I spend money on your product, please do not tell me I don't own it. I paid for it, it's in my house, how is this product not mine? Why can't I look at the code, or modify it? In the same vein I hate DRM. I paid for the song or movie, it's mine. If I want to put it on a backup CD for my car, put it on my iPod, or stream it across the net to buddy so he can hear how cool it is; don't tell me no or restrict my ability. In Ubuntu, I can customize everything, the desktop enviroment, package handler, themes, skins, code and etc. The most important reason I use Linux is that I love my FREEDOM. So don't say M$ Windoze sux, both Windows and Linux get the job done and have some really great programs. Tell people you love free, as in freedom.

Now that the rant is over, back to the story. All this stuff doesn't mean a thing to my kid sister. She wants to surf the web, use iTunes and do her work in Microsoft Office. She would trade her freedom for compatibility and usability and that's okay because it's her choice. So I setup Windows XP on her new Dell Inspiron 1501 this week. Wow, the difference between installing Ubuntu and Windows is night and day. Below is a picture of all the drivers I had to install to get her Dell 1501 to work.

The Ethernet, audio, smbus, ricoh card reader, touchpad, graphic and wireless drivers had to be installed. Basically nothing worked. During installation of the drivers I had to reboot 6 times. Then I still had to install flash, Microsoft Office and VLC to get the media codecs that Windows didn't come with.

In Ubuntu all you need is an Ethernet cable and a LiveCD. You don't even need to install the Ubuntu on your Dell 1501 to have a pretty functional computer. You can use the Ethernet connection and the LiveCD session to surf the net,listen to audio, use the card reader and touchpads advanced features.

An Ubuntu install isn't perfect, but it's still much easier than Windows. The only drivers you need to install are the wireless and graphic card. Wireless card issue is being worked on and future kernel updates should have support built in and Ubuntu's Restricted Driver Manager helps you install the ATI driver with 3 clicks. An office suite comes installed and media codecs and flash also take three clicks of a mouse button.

Overall I find the Ubuntu install to take half the time and half the headaches.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Full Circle Magazine

2007-07-01T01:19:00.001-05:00

Every once and a while I'll think about posting a news story, but my blog isn't really about news. If I start writing about current Linux development, I would have to actually update my blog on a semi-regular basis and would make it more of a job then an actual hobby. That why I'm excited about Full Circle Magazine. It is an independent magazine for the Ubuntu community. It covers all the Ubuntu flavors and has great articles and information that are useful for every Linux user. It covers Ubuntu news that I would love to blog about if I wasn't too lazy. If the first two issues are indicative of where this project is going, then I'm an excited Full Circle reader.

In case you missed them: Issue one covered - a MythTV and Scribus tutorial, a guide to the Linux directories and an interview with the Deluge BitTorrent client developer (which I am a fan of). Issue two covered - installing Kubuntu, Virtual Private Networking, an overview of great software for Ubuntu and a guide on installing Ubuntu on the Mac Mini.

Check out the magazine, let me know what you think, and maybe help contribute. Download Issues & Wallpaper Here
and yes I know this post would be considered a news story.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Medibuntu & How to Install DVD codecs

2007-06-27T10:10:00.000-05:00

Please read this post before installing anything. You are responsible for not violating copyright law, not me. I do not endorse theft.

Medibuntu (Multimedia, Entertainment & Distractions In Ubuntu) is a repository of packages that cannot be included into the Ubuntu distribution for legal reasons; copyright, license, patent, etc. But, if you want to play restricted formats like the w32codecs, quicktime videos or encrypted DVDs you'll need to intstall the Medibuntu repository. First have to make sure your allowed to download these packages because Legal Notice Patent and copyright laws operate differently depending on which country you are in. Please obtain legal advice if you are unsure whether a particular patent or restriction applies to a media format you wish to use in your country.

To add the repo:
sudo wget http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/feisty.list -O /etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list

Then add the key that authenticates the repo:
wget -q http://packages.medibuntu.org/medibuntu-key.gpg -O- | sudo apt-key add -

The reload the your sources to add Medibuntu:
sudo apt-get update

Then in order to play encrypted DVDs download this package:
sudo apt-get install libdvdcss2

There are many other things in this repo that you may find useful besides codecs. Skype, Opera, Java, Realplayer & GoogleEarth. While they might not be free and open source, they are FREE to use. For a list of packages in the Medibuntu look here.

edited by pHreaksYcle

Feisty Fawn Starter Guide

2007-06-24T23:02:00.000-05:00

If you decided to run Ubuntu Feisty Fawn 7.04 on your Dell Inspiron 1501, you came to the right place. This blog is a great starter guide for getting things to work. Enjoy, it's not as hard as it looks and everything here is tested and confirmed to work. - redDEAD

AND NOW EVERY PIECE OF HARDWARE ON THE DELL 1501 WORKS IN UBUNTU

Getting Ubuntu Feisty Fawn 7.04

Dell 1501 Compatability

Can't Get Feisty To Install

Dual Booting Ubuntu and Windows

Getting Wireless To Work Using ndiswrapper

Getting Wireless to work Using the Native Linux Driver

Beryl In Feisty With Xgl

Getting the Conexant Modem working in Feisty

Installing Java Runtime Environment 6.0

Installing Newest Azureus in Ubuntu 7.04 Feisty Fawn

Installing Wine

Installing VMware

How to Fix a Broken Key

Configure Synaptic Touchpad Settngs

Fixing Logout Freezing

Customizing Firefox

Installing Mozilla Thunderbird

edited by pHreaksYcle