TechZilo » Tutorials

Install Ubuntu Linux themes

Sumesh P — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 01:23:41 +0000

Instructions for beginners in Linux have always been scarce/hard to find. When I started out in Linux, I actually gave up twice and went back to Windows, before returning a third time and using it full-time for months. So many actions were unexplained, and it is not practical to ask several dozen doubts in the Ubuntu forum. Installing themes was one such action.

While writing a post rounding up Linux themes, I realized that many readers may have never installed an Ubuntu theme before, and may find instructions for the same helpful.

If you have any doubts, post them in comments below.

Ubuntu themes installation instructions

I assume that you would already have downloaded the theme, you can look at our roundup of beautiful Ubuntu Linux themes.

Themes are usually a tar.gz, or a zip file with a tar.gz inside it.

If it is a tar.gz file, do NOT extract it. Skip the next step.

If it is a zip file, extract it to get the tar.gz file – it contains the theme files and maybe, a readme file.

We need to install the theme now – right-click anywhere on the desktop (other than on icons, of course) and click Change Desktop Background. Click the Theme tab in the window that comes up.

Click Instal button (in lower right). Point to the tar.gz theme file you downloaded in step 1 and click Open.

Note that some themes might require you to install components manually. In that case, there would be install instructions either inside the downloaded files (as readme.txt or something), or on the webpage you downloaded the theme from.

An original article by TechZilo

Install Ubuntu Linux themes

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Convert MKV videos to MP4 files on Mac OS X

Sumesh P — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 10:33:23 +0000

.mkv (Matroska Video) is a popular format for online video distribution (particularly through BitTorrent networks and all). It is an open and free container format. One of its advantages is that it can keep a number of video, audio, picture subtitle components in just one file.

One popular use of .mkv files is to store high-definition (HD) videos, in formats like H.264. Matroska video files end with the extension .mkv (may also contain audio and subtitle), while audio only files are .mka and subtitle files are .mks Typically, you would find a .mkv file – that is also what I have come across.

MKV container format is a fork of another format, after disagreements between its founders regarding some technical decisions. Most users of the original format moved to .mkv format after its developer went inactive, and .mkv has gained popularity ever since.

You can play .mkv files in Mac OS X using VLC player without downloading any additional codecs, but what if you need to convert and keep the file as a .mp4 video, for example, to play on other devices (like PS 3, iPod, Apple TV, iPhone etc.)?

Most solutions online (which also happen to be outdated and impractical) require Quicktime Pro and Perian, or other expensive mkv video converters, or has severe restrictions regarding the encoding types allowed within the .mkv container format. Some others use the command-line utilities, which may be acceptable if you are a total geek, or uses Windows software, in which case you will need access to Windows via Bootcamp/virtualization or a PC.

You have come to the right place if you are looking for an mkv to mp4 converter – this guide shows you how to convert .mkv video files to .mp4 files using a single open-source and free software, Handbrake.

Convert .mkv to .mp4

The latest version of Handbrake (0.93 or above) allows MKV source files. Then, you can convert the file to various supported formats like any other conversion using Handbrake. Note that Handbrake may have to re-encode and/or re-compress videos, and if this is the case, be prepared to leave your Mac on for processing for a considerable amount of time, as it will be time and resource-hungry.

Download Handbrake.

Open Handbrake, and you will be asked to enter a source. Select a file and continue with the conversion process.

I will update this post if I find any good tweaks or settings regarding the conversion. Meanwhile, leave a comment here if you have any difficulty in converting .mkv files to .mp4 and using it.

An original article by TechZilo

Convert MKV videos to MP4 files on Mac OS X

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Free Hulu video download / converter

Sumesh P — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 11:28:37 +0000

Hulu is a video streaming site that has gained popularity recently. Unlike YouTube and similar services, Hulu hosts legal, licensed content and serves video only to visitors from USA.

This tutorial will show you how to download and (optionally) convert Hulu videos to formats like MPEG, WMA, DivX or 3GP (suited for mobile phones). We will be using the aptly titled Hulu Video Downloader. It is free to use for normal videos, and you need to purchase a Pro version license only for HD downloading.

Also see:

Download and convert Hulu videos

Getting a video to your computer is as easy as pasting the URL of the video into the application window and hitting Start. The video file will be downloaded into the folder of your choice. It shows you size and length of a file before you start downloading. Hulu Video Downloader supports simultaneous downloads. They can then be put into your iPod, Zune, PSP, mobile phones etc. easily. Hulu Video Downloader works on Windows 2000, XP, 2003, Vista.

Download Hulu Video Downloader and install it. You will need to click Next a few times – there are no settings that require tweaking. Once installation is complete, it will show you a confirmation window – uncheck all options except “Launch Hulu Video Downloader” and click Finish.

Open Hulu Video Downloader and enter the URL of the Hulu page on which contains the video you need. Choose the folder to download into and select Hulu.com in the Download From option.

If you want to convert the video for easier playback, choose MPEG 2 format (works best in most cases).

Click “Add” to begin downloading.

Note: Hulu videos cannot be accessed outside USA, so downloads will not work either. However, I will be sharing a trick to access and YouTube videos soon, so stay tuned

An original article by TechZilo

Free Hulu video download / converter

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How to search inside zip files on Mac OS X

Sumesh P — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 17:23:14 +0000

Although Mac OS X natively supports zip format and has an excellent search and indexing tool in Spotlight, you cannot search within zip files using Spotlight.

However, Spotlight can be extended with plugins, and we can use Ziplight plugin to search within zip files. Installing Ziplight is slightly different from normal programs, as you are installing a plugin for an app.

Download Ziplight

Ziplight is available for free from Bartas Technologies- download it.
On double-clicking the downloaded .dmg file, you get a Ziplight.mdimporter file.

Install Ziplight

Drag and drop the file into Spotlight folder under Library – by clicking Macintosh HD, then Library and finally the Spotlight folder.

Reboot or logout and login to your Mac to start using Ziplight plugin. It takes a few minutes for Ziplight to index all the zip files on your Mac – usually 10 to 30 minutes depending on the number of zip files on your system.

In an effort to be fast and easy to use, Ziplight searches only names of files within a zip folder. This should be enough for most purposes.

An original article by TechZilo

How to search inside zip files on Mac OS X

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How to download Facebook photos / albums

Sumesh P — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 10:44:03 +0000

Many users have taken to using Facebook albums to share a few photos to their friends. Downloading those images individually can get pretty boring.

FacePAD is a Firefox extension to download entire Facebook albums with one click. Since the addon runs on Firefox, you can download albums on Windows, Mac OS X or Linux.

Download FacePAD addon

If you do not use Firefox already, get it (it is free and has lots of cool functionality by installing addons, like, FacePAD).

Visit the Firefox addons page for FacePAD and install it.

How to download Facebook albums and photos

Then, visit any Facebook user’s Photos page, then right-click the image or image to the album and click “Download album with FacePAD”.

An original article by TechZilo

How to download Facebook photos / albums

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How to automatically rotate wallpapers (Windows/ Mac / Linux)

Sumesh P — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 09:39:11 +0000

All too often, I see workstations with default wallpapers (like those for Windows XP/Vista and Mac OS X), and wonder why no one ever takes the time to get a bunch of better wallpapers.

But then, most people do not have the time or energy to waste for a task as trivial as changing wallpapers. Have you wanted to rotate wallpapers from a folder of good wallpapers automatically? Here are methods to rotate wallpapers in Windows, Mac and Linux.

Rotate Wallpapers on Windows

Windows users can use the freeware application Wallpaper Juggler to rotate wallpapers. Lucky you, because unlike the methods for Linux and OS X, Wallpaper Juggler can use existing images in a folder and downloads beautiful wallpapers for rotation, all automated.

Windows 7 has support for wallpaper rotating, but if you also want to automate downloading wallpapers, you might want to look for a standalone application.

Rotate Wallpapers on Mac OS X

Mac OS X has a built in functionality for rotating wallpapers. Place all your selected wallpapers in a folder (I used /Downloads/Wallpapers/).

Open up System Preferences, click Desktop and Screensaver and tick Change Picture every (and also set how many minutes). Then, click the plus button on the left pane and add the folder where you placed all the wallpapers.

Wallpaper rotation on Linux

Lifehacker has a proper tutorial on setting up a changer script to rotate wallpapers on Ubuntu Linux. There are probably similar scripts for other Linux distros, a web search for rotate wallpapers in will give you the required solution.

Do recommend your favorite wallpaper rotating solution (if any), and tell whether you found the methods in this post useful.

An original article by TechZilo

How to automatically rotate wallpapers (Windows/ Mac / Linux)

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How to remove / delete / erase files permanently on Windows

Sumesh P — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 11:44:33 +0000

Files are not actually erased from your hard disk when you delete them in WIndows. They can be recovered usign file recovery software.

If you are really paranoid about your privacy, you can use software to erase files permanently from your hard drive. Such software rename files and overwrite them to ensure they cannot be recovered. In this tutorial, we will use Delete On Click, a free software, to erase files.

If you are on Mac OS X, follow this tutorial to erase files permanently using Permanent Eraser.

Download and install Delete On Click

Download Delete On Click. Once the file is downloaded, double-click and start the install process.

You will need to click Next a few times – there isn’t any settings that you need to tweak. Once installation is done, it will ask you to restart the computer. Hit “Finish”.

Securely erase / remove files

Delete On Click runs off the context menu (that comes up when you right-click). To permanently delete a file, right-click and click “Securely Delete”. Depending on the size of your files, it may take a few minutes to delete your files permanently.

An original article by TechZilo

How to remove / delete / erase files permanently on Windows

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How to find MAC address (Windows Vista)

Sumesh P — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:45:58 +0000

Media Access Control address or MAC address, is a unique ID assigned to network adapters/cards. It is used in MAC protocol. MAC address is also called as Ethernet Hardware Address or adapter address.

This tutorial will help you find the MAC address for your ethernet and wireless cards quickly.

Find MAC address

Open a command prompt (click Start orb > cmd and hit enter).
Type in getmac and you will see a screen as shown below.

In the details shown in the command prompt, the number listed under Physical Address, next to \Device\Tcipip_…. is your MAC address.

If you find more than one MAC address, see the detailed method below to lookup MAC address for specific devices (like ethernet or wireless network).

Detailed lookup of MAC address

Open a command prompt again.
Type in ipconfig /all and hit enter.
Several details will be listed below – you should first locate the device for which you need MAC address. Devices like ethernet LAN, wireless LAN, Bluetooth adapter are shown. For example, if you need MAC address of Wireless LAN, you should take the number next to physical address under Wireless LAN adapter.

An original article by TechZilo

How to find MAC address (Windows Vista)

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How to view hidden (asterix) passwords on Windows

Sumesh P — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:17:43 +0000

If you use numerous web services with different logins, chances are that you selected the “Remember me” option. For logins again, all you have to do is click sign in (password will be hidden with asterix), and you do not have to look at the passwords again.

However, if you need to get back the password for some reason (to migrate to a new computer, for example), there are two ways. We shared a bookmarklet to view hidden passwords, and here is the second method – using a software called Revelation. Note that Revelation is Windows-only, for other operating systems, you can use the bookmarklet.

Display hidden passwords with Revelation

Download and install Revelation.
Open Revelation.
Drag the circle to the password field you need, and you can the password in the Revelation window.

Note that some passwords cannot be viewed by Revelation, and it will be indicated by a red dot to the left of Status.

An original article by TechZilo

How to view hidden (asterix) passwords on Windows

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How to flush DNS cache in Windows XP / Vista

Sumesh P — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:54:38 +0000

DNS request are cached by your operating system to speed up lookups. If you need to clear DNS cache for some reason(like testing your blog in a new host), you need to know the correct commands to be entered in the command prompt / terminal. We had shared the command to clear DNS cache in Mac OS X, here is the simple command line shortcut to do it in Windows.

Flush DNS cache in Windows Vista

Hit Windows key and type in cmd (do not hit enter).
In the search results that come up, right click “cmd” and run as administrator. When the screen flashes and asks for permission, accept it.
In the command prompt, type in ipconfig /flushdns (or right click and paste it to the command prompt) and hit return.
You should see the confirmation as shown below:

Flush DNS cache in Windows XP

Hit Windows+R to bring up the Run dialog box.
Type cmd and hit ok.
In the command prompt that comes up, enter ipconfig /flushdns and hit return.

An original article by TechZilo

How to flush DNS cache in Windows XP / Vista

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How to use a Windows keyboard with Mac OS X

Sumesh P — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 12:51:16 +0000

There may be more than one reason why you want to use a Windows keyboard with a Mac OS X computer: a powerful/expensive keyboard that you already possess, lack of availability of Apple keyboards, or you cannot justify spending the money to buy an Apple keyboard when there’s a Windows keyboard lying around.

Whatever the reason, DoubleCommand is a free Mac OS X preference pane which you would want to get. It enables you to reassign some of the keys on your keyboard. You can remap various keys – see their feature page for the full list.

Configure Windows keyboard with DoubleCommand

Download DoubleCommand and install it. Installation is done with the usual procedure: mount it by double-clicking the .dmg file you downloaded, then copy the application from the mounted image (found in the left pane of Finder) to the Applications folder.
Once installed, it will be available under the ‘Other’ section of System Preferences pane.
Clicking on it will bring up the preference pane for DoubeCommand.
Click the checkboxes to configure keys as you want them. Remember to hit the System button to the right of Save so that your settings will be remembered.
You can see the settings I used in the image below.

I started using DoubleCommand to switch only two keys – the Command and Control keys on my Windows keyboard connected to a Macbook. You may want to configure / reassign other keys too – lots of keys and swapping are provided as options in DoubleCommand.

An original article by TechZilo

How to use a Windows keyboard with Mac OS X

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How to install Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala on Parallels Desktop on Mac OS X

Sumesh P — Mon, 25 May 2009 09:36:43 +0000

Ubuntu 9.10 alpha has been around for some time now, and final version will be released later this year. This tutorial will guide you in installing Ubuntu 9.10 (Karmic Koala) alpha using Parallels Desktop 4.0 on Mac OS X. I’m using build 4.0.3522 of Parallels Desktop. When the final version is released, this will be updated to reflect any changes in install.

Download Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala

To get started, download the appropriate version of Ubuntu from the links below:

Intel x86 installer (choose this unless you want 64 bit Ubuntu)
64 bit installer (choose this only if you have a Intel Core 2 or AMD64 processor)

Install Ubuntu Karmic Koala (9.10) on Parallels Desktop (Mac OS X)

Some general instructions before getting started: hit left/right arrow to move from one option to another. Where arrows don’t work, use Tab.

Open Parallels Desktop and click File > New Virtual Machine.

Choose CD/DVD image and point to the ISO file you downloaded.

Name it Ubuntu 9.10 (include the version number so as to identify it easily).

Upon clicking “Start”, the installation will begin.

Choose your language and hit Enter.

“Install Ubuntu” will be selected by default, hit enter again.

English will be selected as the language, hit Enter again.

Choose your country and hit enter.

For keyboard layout, choose No (by using left/right arrow) and hit enter.

If you use a standard keyboard, choose USA under “Origin of keyboard”.

Choose USA again – unless you have a non-standard layout.

The installer will proceed, with a progress bar.

If you are on a home network, enter any name, I choose Ubuntu. Hit enter.

Select the region and city, to configure the clock.

For partition, choose “Guided – entire disk”, which will be the default option. Hit enter.

Ensure that the disk chosen has the words “Virtual HDD” in it.

Confirm partitioning by choosing “No” and hitting enter.

Enter your name, hit tab and then hit enter.

Enter your username (remember it, this is the login username), hit tab and then hit enter.

Enter password and hit enter, and renter your password for confirmation.

Encryption is not really important for a Parallels install, so choose No (by hitting Tab) and hit enter.

Unless you use a proxy, hit tab (to navigate to “Continue”) and hit enter.

Depending on whether your clock is set to UTC, choose the option and hit enter.

You will be asked to eject Ubuntu disk. Since we have used a .iso file, Ubuntu considers it as the real drive. To set up the real CD/DVD drive, hit Control+Alt to come out of Parallels, then click Devices, point to CD/DVD ROM 1 > Real CD/DVD ROM > (whichever real optical drive you have).

click to enlarge

Since we have used a .iso file, you do not have to eject anything. Hit tab to get to “Continue” and hit enter.

Ubuntu will reboot.

Let it complete the reboot and reach the login screen.

Enter your username and password to log in.

Here’s the Ubuntu desktop, booted for the first time.

It is a good idea to update all software (and do so every week or so) – the advantage of Linux is the frequent security updates and patches. To update, click System > Administration > Update Manager.

Hit Check to refresh updates. Then, enter your password and hit OK.

If Update Manager shows any new updates, check them and hit “Install Updates”.

Parallels Tools will be available for Ubuntu 9.10 soon after the final release, so we will update this tutorial when it is available.

An original article by TechZilo

How to install Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala on Parallels Desktop on Mac OS X

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How to convert WMA to MP3 audio (Mac OS X)

Sumesh P — Fri, 22 May 2009 10:54:19 +0000

Windows users who have switched to Mac often need to convert their WMA files (as it cannot be used in an iPod or played on iTunes on the Mac easily). There are many paid software to convert WMA files to MP3 (like Switch Pro and Easy WMA), while the precious few free and excellent WMA – MP3 converters are not written about or promoted.

In this tutorial, we will use only a free software, called All2MP3, to convert WMA files to MP3. It works on Mac OS X 10.3 and above. We have already used All2MP3 in our tutorial on converting .flac to .mp3 – it converts most common audio formats like FLAC, OGG, .wma, WAV and AIFF to MP3.

Convert WMA files to MP3

Follow the steps below to convert WMA files to MP3 using an easy drag-drop software called All2MP3.

Download All 2 MP3

Download All2MP3.

Install All 2 MP3

Double-click the All 2 MP3 zip file to get a .mpkg installer file.

Unlike normal applications, you cannot just drag-drop the app to Applications folder to install it.
Double click it to begin the installation. You will have to click continue a couple of times, then click “Agree”.

Then click “Install” and enter your Mac OS X login password. Once setup is done, you will be presented with a confirmation like below:

.wma to .mp3 conversion

Double click the All 2 MP3 icon from Applications to start it.

Drag and drop your WMA files (it can convert multiple files at once) to the All 2 MP3 window.

Settings for .wma conversion

Choose bit rate for your song – depending on the quality you require (indicated as high/medium/low), and also the original file bit rate. If your original file is, say, 256 Kbps, do not select a higher bit rate than that.

Hit All2MP3 button to begin the conversion. Once conversion is done, a confirmation will be shown. The converted .mp3 files will be in the same location as the original .wma files.

What is .wma ?

Windows Media Audio, commonly called WMA, is a proprietary audio compression format by Microsoft. WMA consists of four codecs: WMA codec, and variants like WMA Pro, WMA Lossless (similar to FLAC).

Although WMA files can be played on Mac OS X using plugins for Quicktime, it is often a hassle, and even part-time OS X users should consider converting them to a better-supported format like MP3. For conversion, there are paid tools like Switch Pro and EasyWMA, but we figured, most users would be looking for free tools. Hence, the need for this tutorial.

An original article by TechZilo

How to convert WMA to MP3 audio (Mac OS X)

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How to erase files permanently on Mac OS X

Sumesh P — Fri, 15 May 2009 10:01:27 +0000

When you delete a file in Mac OS X (or even Windows for that matter), you are not actually erasing the file, but rather removing the references to the file on hard drive. The data remains on the drive until it is overwritten by other data.

Removing files permanently (or shredding files) is required in several situations – to remove data that may incriminate you (BitTorrent downloads?), to remove data before selling a computer (most do not erase files permanently, leading to serious security concerns) etc.

Permanent Eraser is a free software for Mac OS X that removes files permanently. It uses the Gutmann Method (of overwriting files 35 times) and does various other things to obfuscate your data before removing it permanently. Once permanently erased, chances of recovering data are slim.

Get Permanent Eraser

An original article by TechZilo

How to erase files permanently on Mac OS X

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Install extensions in Google Chrome

Sumesh P — Wed, 13 May 2009 13:28:51 +0000

One of the features that were often-requested when Google Chrome was launched was support for extensions. Firefox supports extensions, and many users were hesitant to switch to Chrome because of lack of extensions on Chrome.

The good news is, Chrome supports extensions, and there are a few official extensions already. Hopefully, developers will take the lead and make more extensions. This tutorial walks you through installing extensions for Chrome.

Download Google Chrome extensions

Download and install Channel Changer (see original post). Exit Chrome if you are running it already. Run it and choose the dev option, then click Update. Then, close the window.
Open Google Chrome. Click the wrench icon and click About Google Chrome. The window will show that an update is available – click update.
Once you get the confirmation message, click OK.
Right-click the Chrome shortcut on your desktop and click Properties and add the –enable-extensions parameter.
Click the wrench icon again and click Options. Then, ensure that the checkbox next to “Help make Chrome better by sending user statistics” is checked.
You can install any addons now – the official extensions page is a good place to start. When you click on the “install” link, a confirmation box will come up – click OK to install.

Thanks to Killer Tech Tips for the instructions.

An original article by TechZilo

Install extensions in Google Chrome

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