Sun Java on Ubuntu 11.10

Decided to 'fork' my previous post because since Ubuntu 11.10, Sun/Oracle Java has been removed from Canonical's partner repository. Fortunately, Roberto Ferramosca is providing the appropriate packages in his personal package archive (PPA).

So open your terminal, and let's go:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ferramroberto/java
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install sun-java6-jdk sun-java6-jre sun-java6-plugin sun-java6-fonts

And that's it. Hope it's helpful. Now if you want to ensure Sun's JRE & JDK are the default, type in the terminal:

sudo update-alternatives --config java

and select your preferred alternative from the list. To select a Java compiler, type

sudo update-alternatives --config javac

Now on to the testing. You should get the version numbers of the currently installed and default runtime and compiler by typing (in the terminal):

java -version
javac -version

Windows, Java and Geany

One of these things that happen in the worst possible moment...

If you want to use the nice and simple Geany IDE under Windows, I'd recommend you to install all the programming languages before you install Geany.

In my case, installing Java and then Geany didn't work at all. Geany wasn't able to compile or execute my Java code. Even after uninstalling and reinstalling both Geany and Java in all possible combinations.

Hope this warning will help someone out there.

Note: Newer versions of Geany have been released, they may have overcome this problem, but I still install Geany after JDK (Java Development Kit) to avoid issues.

Ubuntu 11.10 Beta

I'm curious, so I downloaded Ubuntu 11.10 Beta and tested the live CD.

What I can tell you is that Unity keeps getting better (I'm not a big fan, though, I prefer the good old Gnome, xfce and lxde), the interface looks more polished, and improved.

Ubuntu Classic is gone, though. That's what I didn't like. So we'd have to install another desktop if we wanted options. From the terminal (or Synaptic, which isn't on the live CD either, so you'd have to install it, too) try:

sudo apt-get install lxde

Of course lxde there could be replaced by xfce or gnome, lubuntu-desktop, xubuntu-desktop.

Ubuntu 11.04 Unstable?

After using Ubuntu 11.04 for a while, on different PCs (desktop, netbook), I noticed some unexpected behaviours (slowdowns, crashes, screen garbage). This most likely is a problem of proprietary drivers (nVidia, ATI/Radeon) and Compiz (the 3D compositing window manager).

The solution, although not the most popular, is simple: when you log in, select Ubuntu Classic (no effects), and you'll have a fast, responsive and stable Ubuntu Linux system. I'm not fussed about losing the eye candy, and have no problem waiting for the next release (11.10), anyway.

Classic scrollbars in Ubuntu

Thanks to Andrew from Web Upd8, here's a way to disable Ubuntu 11.04's weird scrollbars and revert to the "old" ones. It's a terminal hack, so you need to open it and type the two lines below to make it work. You may or may not have to restart your computer to finalise the changes.

sudo su 

echo "export LIBOVERLAY_SCROLLBAR=0" > /etc/X11/Xsession.d/80overlayscrollbars

Natty Narwhal's new scrollbar...

Source:
http://www.webupd8.org/2011/04/how-to-disable-overlay-scrollbars-in.html

Delete USN Journal

Well, this is a technical one. If you're running Windows, you'll notice that defragmentation can sometimes become a pain because of USN journals. Here's how to remove it, using the Command Prompt (Terminal):

FSUTIL USN DELETEJOURNAL /D C:

Of course you may replace C: for whatever journaled drive you want

Sources:
annoyances.org
Wikipedia

Firefox 5 Released

Yes, Firefox 5 is out! Download it here, unless you are using Ubuntu 11.04.

If you are a running Natty Narwhal, all you need to do is run the Update Manager, and that's it!


Sources:
Mozilla
Softpedia