Darko on April 7th, 2008
In the aim of getting myself comfortable in working with Ubuntu, i decided to install an RSS reader so i can be able to stay up-to-date while working on the desktop. The job turned out to be very simple. On my lap, running windows xp, i use GreatNews to manage my RSS feeds, so the first thing i did was to export all the feeds to an OPTML file.
On Ubuntu, i launched “Synaptic Package Manager” and looked-up the term “RSS”. From the list, i chose Akregator, a KDE feed Aggregator. The program was instanlty downloaded and installed.
Now, it’s time to import all feeds from GreatNews, to do that: File > Import Feeds… > select the optml file > choose the feeds folder’s name and let Akregator do the rest
Akregator has lots of great features. To add new feeds, you simply add the link to the website you want to monitor, and Akregator will automaticly retrieve the feeds from that website. You can also set the time interval on witch the application should wait before updating the feed.
Akregator is available on Linux/BSD/UNIX-like OSes
Darko on April 6th, 2008
Setting up AMP(Apache, Mysql, PHP) was the first thing i did after installing Ubuntu on my Desktop computer. So this will be the topic of my first article in regards of working with Ubuntu.
Most guides to installing AMP on ubuntu relies on the terminal to download all the packages and install them one by one, in this guides i use the terminal in a limited way for editing purposes only.
I’m a beginner with ubuntu and this guide is based on my own experience in install the trio(AMP) on my machine, so if it worked for me, it should work for you.
Installation:
To download and install the necessary software i’ll use the “Synaptic Package Manager”, witch you’ll find in System > Administration
Search for:
apache2
libapache2-mod-php5
libapache2-mod-auth-mysql
mysql-server-5.0
mysql-client-5.0
php5-mysql
phpmyadmin
and mark each of them for installation then click the apply button to download and install the packages.
Once you finished download and the installation process began, you’ll be prompted to select from a list of webservers, the software that you would like phpmyadmin to be automaticly configured with, select apache2 from the top of the list. You will also be prompted to choose a password for the root user of the MySQL server.
When the installation process is over, open your browser and point it to http://localhost. a page titled Index of/ should appear. Congrats, you just installed AMP on your Ubuntu.
To make sure that apache is capable of handling PHP, open the terminal and run the following command:
gksudo gedit /var/www/test.php
Add the following line to the file and save it:
Reload the localhost page, for the new test.php to appear. Click on the page, to make sure that apache can handle it. A new white page should appear with the following words written on it:
Hello World
If everything goes as stated, you are doing great.
Configuration:
Now, we have to configure Mysql to work with bother PHP and Apache, here’s how it’s done:
In the terminal run:
gksudo gedit /etc/php5/apache2/php.ini
* You’ll need to uncomment the “;extension=mysql.so” line so that it
looks like this
…
extension=mysql.so
…
* Save the file then exit
That it, AMP is now installed on your ubuntu box.
Note: The document root of the apache server is /var/www/, you might want to grant yourself full privilegs of that directory, so that you can eeasly create and edit files without the use of the command prompt. To do that, run the following command:
sudo chmod 777 /var/www/
Darko on April 5th, 2008
A couple months ago, i received Ubuntu 7.10 - The Gutsy Gibbon but i was too busy and didn’t have the time to try it out. Well, last week i installed Ubuntu on my Desktop machine and played around with it. I faced some problems, but i quickly turned to the support forums and IRC rooms and got everything fixed. I will be writing articles regarding my experience with Ubuntu in the following days and week.
For those intersted, you can order your ubuntu CD, delivered for FREE to your door step, no matter where you are around the world. The package sent includes the installation CD and 4 Ubuntu stickers. Here’s some pictures of what i received:
You can get Ubuntu from here
