How to create rotating wallpapers in Gnome
Posted by Saša Bodiroža | Filed under Linux, Programming, Scripting, Software, Ubuntu
Few days ago I found artwork suggestions for Fedora 10. I really like the wallpapers in Solar theme. They should change based on the time of the day. As I don’t think that is supported in Gnome, I wrote this little script that does the job.
To run it, a directory with wallpapers needs to be passed.
./rotate-wallpapers /path/to/wallpaper/directory/
If you want it to run in the background, you can press Alt+F2 in Gnome, and run it.
/path/to/rotate-wallpapers /path/to/wallpaper/directory/
Once it’s run, it will count the number of wallpapers in the directory (files ending in jpg, jpeg, gif, png or svg), divide 1440 by that number and use the result as a period of time on which wallpapers will be rotated. It will set the first wallpaper, and sleep until the wallpaper needs to be changed.
So, this script is pretty much specific. It will work best with the series of wallpapers that have subtle changes, such as the Solar wallpapers. But, you’re free to use it in every way you want. Good luck :)…
If you find any bugs, please post it in the comments. Thanks.
Tags: gnome, Linux, Programming, script, Scripting, Ubuntu, wallpaper
Mozilla team and Ubuntu Hardy Heron
Posted by Saša Bodiroža | Filed under Linux, Software, Ubuntu, internet, mozilla
This is the first post on the new domain, so I would like to make it a bit special :).
Hardy Heron will be released in five days, and Ubuntu’s Mozilla team has been quite busy preparing all the goodies. So, what has Mozilla team done?
Firefox 3 beta 5 is in the official repositories. It replaces the old Firefox 2, which can still be installed from the repositories. It is a pity that Firefox 3 release candidate is coming out few days after Hardy, but Firefox 3 beta 5 is very useful and pretty stable for day-to-day use. Just look at the reviews. And I’m sure we’ll be able to install Firefox 3 as soon as it comes out from Fabien Tassin’s Personal Package Archive.
Also, many members have been testing, editing and packaging Firefox 3 (and upgraded some of Firefox2) extensions for Ubuntu, so this release brings more of them than before. Currently, around 30 extensions are in the repositories. The work is still in progress, so expect more. If you would like to see your favourite extensions, feel free to suggest them at Firefox 3 extensions wiki. Ubufox extension makes it easy to install other extensions. Start it from Tools -> Add-ons -> Get Ubuntu extensions.
Prism, which allows to users to move webapps to their desktop, is also in the repositories. Be sure to check it out.
And, if you feel like living on the wild side, you can test Thunderbird 3 alpha from Fabien’s Personal Package Archive. No links, since this can be very dangerous. You have been warned :).
Congrats to the whole Mozilla team, and to the Ubuntu community :).
Tags: firefox, hardy, internet, mozilla, Software, Ubuntu
Are we a bit hypocritical?
Posted by Saša Bodiroža | Filed under Freedom, Linux, Personal, Thoughts, Ubuntu
I’m a regular on Serbian’s Ubuntu LoCo forum. Today I stumbled upon one post that got me into thinking “Are we a bit hypocritical?”. Here’s what happened…
There is one guy who messed up his system a bit with Windows and Linux installations and removals. He wanted to have both operating systems on his computer and he asked for a solution. Another guy tried to help him. The problematic part of his message was the comment “If you need help with removing Linux because you want to stay on that other OS, you’re not gonna find it here.” But why?
We, the FOSS community (or Ubuntu community in this particular case), are supposed to fight for freedom. In my opinion, that includes the freedom of choice, to let the user use whatever he or she wants. Including that other OS, which may have a lot of restrictions.
Sure, it wouldn’t be wise to just say “Remove Linux”. I’m not for that in the first place. But if there was no fix, why wouldn’t we help someone to switch back? That is what freedom of choice is all about, right? Someone might say that by not helping others to switch back to that other OS, we will make them adapt to Linux. Someone might say that it’s against its principles to help someone switch back to that other OS. But, if the only fix is the switch back, wouldn’t it be helpful to explain how to switch back.
What is my way of fight for freedom? Education. I think that is the best way to do that. Show people what freedom gives. The rest will follow.
Tags: foss, Freedom, Linux, Thoughts, Ubuntu
Ubuntutray
Posted by Saša Bodiroža | Filed under Misc, Ubuntu
Well, here it is - the Ubuntutray, for all free-software users, who also consume nicotine.
Have fun :)…
Tags: ashtray, funny, smoking, Ubuntu
Something-something sucks…
Posted by Saša Bodiroža | Filed under Apple, Microsoft, Misc, Ubuntu
I don’t know how and why I got the idea to do this little test, but I got it. Oh, I was bored at the moment, I guess that’s it :). So, here’s what I did:
- get a company/product name
- check if there’s a <name>sucks.com site
Among Windows’, Mac’s, Red Hat’s and other *sucks.com sites, I tried what happens in case of Ubuntu and Canonical.
-
canonicalsucks.com leads to Ubuntu’s page.
- ubuntusucks.com takes you to Launchpad’s bug page for Ubuntu.
I was most surprised by the last one. See… At Ubuntu, they care for their users :sweetface:.
