Installing Applications in Ubuntu using Appnr

Appnr is a web-based service that allows you to install applications on your Ubuntu desktop with a single click. All you need to do is find the software you want to install and click the “Install” button next to it. Appnr then downloads all the necessary packages from the repositories and installs them on your compuer.

I’m sure new and experienced Ubuntu users alike would love this site: http://appnr.com

Installing Ubuntu 8.10 using Wubi

This is probably one of the easiest and safest ways to install Ubuntu on a PC running Windows. The Wubi installer let’s you install and remove Ubuntu just like any other software on Windows. There are two ways to use Wubi.

The first way is to download the Wubi installer and let it download Ubuntu for you during the installation. This method is good if you have a fast Internet connection. However I don’t recommend this method because while downloading if you experience any connection problems, you would have to start the installation process all over again.

The second way is to download the Ubuntu .iso image file and use the Wubi installer which comes with it. I’m going to explain this in a little detail here. Even though this method may sound a bit long, I think this is better than the first one.

Installing Linux Mint 6 (Felicia) RC1

Linux Mint is an Ubuntu-based distribution of Linux and is one of the most user-friendly distros around. The latest version of Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu 8.10, Linux 2.6.27, Gnome 2.24 and Xorg 7.4. For a full list of features, go here.

Since I’ve read Linux Mint is really good I thought I’d give it a try and see for myself. I downloaded the .iso file and used VM Ware to create a new virtual machine (VM) to test Linux Mint. To download Linux Mint 6 RC1, go here. When you load the .iso file and start the VM, you will see Linux Mint runs as from a Live CD. (Alternatively you can burn the .iso image on to a CD and use it.)

Once you see the desktop you can explore a bit and see if you like it. What really made me like Mint was the fact that some software which I had to install by myself on Ubuntu 8.10 already came with Mint. Some of them include Gufw, Gnome Do, MPlayer, Mozilla Thunderbird, etc.

Once you’re ready to install it, double-click on the ‘install’ icon on the desktop.

Installing Minbar Prayer Times in Ubuntu 8.10

In my last post I wrote about the Ubuntu Muslim Edition (UbuntuME). In UbuntuME there’s a cool software called Minbar Prayer Times which displays daily prayer times and qibla direction. I checked and found that you can easily install it on Ubuntu 8.10

First, go to the Applications menu and click on Add/Remove. Then search for ‘minbar’.

After you find it, select it and click the Apply Changes button. This will start the installation. Once the installation is complete, you can open Minbar by going to the Applications -> Accessories menu.

The first thing to do would be to set your location. Click the Preferences button and select your city. After that you will see the prayer times for your location and also the qibla direction. You can also get this information by moving your mouse pointer over the tray icon on the top panel.

Ubuntu Muslim Edition (UbuntuME) 8.10

UbuntuME is a customized version of the Ubuntu distro which comes with special Islamic software and can be useful for Muslim users of Ubuntu. Tools which come with UbuntuME include Quran studying tools, prayer times application, Islamic calendar, etc.

For more information on UbuntuME and to download it, go to UbuntuME.com