I have no problem running 720p .mkv HD video files. No lagging, no dropped frames whatsover. However, when running 1080p .mkv files, especially those big sizes full-HD Blue Ray medias, I have:
- Lagging,
- Dropped frames,
- 100% CPU utilizations.

It doesn’t matter if I’m using VLC, or Totem Movie Player, it will always have those problem above. From what I’ve read, this is probably due to FFMpeg codecs for H.264 decoding.

However, I have a solution, found from http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1037625

Below are the steps:
1. Install mplayer:
sudo apt-get install mplayer-nogui

2. Run your 1080p .mkv files with it:
mplayer -vo vdpau -vc ffh264vdpau /path/to/the/mkv/file

Now the HD movies playing in my Ubuntu laptop are smooth as it can be.
Try it out. Cheers.

1. How to Check for Open Ports in Ubuntu There are various ways to view for open ports on...

Then, I’ve found Conky. I’ll never turn back.

This is the best system monitor I have ever experienced. It is highly customizable, all you have to do is modify the Conky config file. There’s a lot of widgets/variables to use, such as system monitoring tools (CPU, RAM, SWAP, Hard Drive, etc), batteries capacity, networking, and more. And best of all, it is very, very easy to create your own widgets. If you know any programming language such as Python, Perl, or even a simple Shell Scripts, then you’re off to create your own.

Installing Conky are easy as executing command below in the terminal:
$ sudo apt-get install conky

Next, create your Conky config file. Here is my config file I’m currently using.

Then, execute command below to run Conky. Put it in your startup so that it will be running each time you boot-up your computer:
$ conky -c <path_to_my_conky_config>.conf

Below are what my desktop currently looks like with Conky:

Conky Desktop

In there I’ve created my own GMail notifier, Google Reader notifier and local TV guide, all using Python. You will find more ideas, screen shots and scripts to use with Conky on Ubuntu Forum.

Cheers.

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Twitux
A Twitter client for GNOME.
Twitux is a lightweight client for the twitter messaging service, featuring time-line auto updating, a tray area icon and notification of new messages.

gTwitter
Client for tracking and posting to twitter.
gTwitter is a client for posting and fetching updates to the twitter service.

Installation is available through Synaptic Package Manager. Just do a search for the application name, twitux or gtwitter.

1. How to Check for Open Ports in Ubuntu There are various ways to view for open ports on...

To install Google Gadgets on Ubuntu 8.10:

1. Download the .deb package.
2. Install the package using the following command:
sudo dpkg -i google-gadgets_0.10.4-0~getdeb1_i386.deb

3. Run the apps using the command ggl-gtk or from the Applications menu.

Autostart:

1. Add a new entry at System -> Preference -> Sessions.
2. The command entry would be ggl-gtk

Enjoy.

Resource: Howto install Google Gadgets in ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex)

1. How to Check for Open Ports in Ubuntu There are various ways to view for open ports on...

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For Windows: We have Google Reader Notifier for Windows.

For Mac: There’s a desktop application by the same name, for Mac users.

Firefox Extension: There’s even a extension for it.

But what about Linux users?

Enter GrNotify

GrNotify is a simple Python written tray application that will allow you to know when there are new items in the Google Reader.

Here’s a screenshot:

GrNotify Screenshot

Installation from source:
Go to the download page and download the latest .tar.gz source install package. Extract the package using the gui or by using the command line:
tar -xzvf PACKAGE_NAME.tar.gz
where PACKAGE_NAME is the name of the file.

Change the current directory to the extracted directory and install GrNotify by executing the following command:
sudo python ./install.py

The program will then install itself into the right directories.

Running the app:
You can then execute the program by entering
grnotify
in a terminal or program executer. I put the command on my startup session, so it will automatically started when I’m starting my Gnome.
Enjoy!!

1. How to Check for Open Ports in Ubuntu There are various ways to view for open ports on...

To install:
sudo apt-get install fslint

Using Fslint:
If you want to open goto Applications—>System Tools—>FSlint

Screenshot:

1. How to Check for Open Ports in Ubuntu There are various ways to view for open ports on...

Dropbox is a free, multi-platform, online backup and synchronization application. My first attraction to Dropbox is because the client tools supports Linux. It also suports Mac OSX, and oh yeah, Windows too. Installation on my Ubuntu Hardy laptop is a breeze. Just download the debian package, and the rest of the installation is pretty straight forward. No extra tricky setup, configuration or anything. Upon the completion of the installation, just point your Dropbox location to a folder path on your machine, and you ready to go.
  An icon installed on the taskbar for easy access.

Online Backup
Dropbox currently provides 2GB of storage, which is sufficient for me at this time to backup all of my important files. Backing up files is very easy. Just open your Dropbox folder, and copy-paste the file(s) that you wish to backup to that folder.
Dropbox location on your folder.

Seamless sync
I have a couple of computers at home, which is running Ubuntu 8.04, and also a Windows 2003 machine running at my office. Installing Dropbox client on all of these boxes enabling me to sync all my files between those boxes, seamless, and without much effort at all. Just make sure Dropbox client is running, and those files will be sync automatically.

Dropbox website
Just in case you want to grab or upload your files, but Dropbox client are not installed, you can always go to Dropbox site.
Dropbox web interface

Another cool feature is, the files you stored has “Revisions”. Meaning, you don’t have to worry if any of our files get accidentally deleted or overwritten, since you can always retrieve deleted or the previous version of your files.
Dropbox revision feature

Feel free to watch Dropbox screencast for more info on their features and functions. Have you tried Dropbox or any equivalent online backup application? Feel free to share your experiences.

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After doing some googling, I stumbled upon VPNC, alternate VPN client for Cisco servers.

Installing VPNC:
1. Enter the following in the terminal to install VPNC on your computer:
sudo apt-get install vpnc resolvconf

2. Create a <filename>.conf file in /etc/vpnc/ . Enter following command to create myoffice.conf:
sudo gedit /etc/vpnc/myoffice.conf

3. Copy the following text to that myoffice.conf file:
IPSec gateway <server IP address>
IPSec ID <group name>
IPSec secret <group password>
Xauth username <username>

You can get the values for <server IP address>, <group name> and <group password> by opening your Cisco VPN client .pcf file. For <group password>, the value is encrypted. What you have to do is, copy all the characters from the “enc_GroupPwd” value, go to this cisco vpnclient password decoder site, paste the characters and click “Decode”. It will give you the decrypted group password. Now, copy the decrypted password and replace it with the <group password> in your myoffice.conf. Replace your user name to <username>. Save the file and close.

Running VPNC:
You can run VPNC simply by running this command:
sudo vpnc myoffice /etc/vpnc/myoffice.conf

Enter your VPN password once connected. To disconnect:
sudo vpnc-disconnect

Making it work with Firestarter:
You might have a problem accessing for company’s intranet if you have Firestarter installed. Instructions below will make it work.

1. Edit /etc/firestarter/user-pre . First, make the file writable:
sudo chmod 600 /etc/firestarter/user-pre

2. Edit the file:
sudo gedit /etc/firestarter/user-pre

3. Copy the following to the file:
iptables -A INPUT -j ACCEPT -s xxx.xxx.xx.xxx -p esp
iptables -A INPUT -j ACCEPT -s xxx.xxx.xx.xxx -p udp -m multiport --sports isakmp,10000
iptables -A INPUT -j ACCEPT -i tun+
iptables -A OUTPUT -j ACCEPT -d xxx.xxx.xx.xxx -p esp
iptables -A OUTPUT -j ACCEPT -d xxx.xxx.xx.xxx -p udp -m multiport --dports isakmp,10000
iptables -A OUTPUT -j ACCEPT -o tun+

Replace your VPN server’s IP address to the xxx.xxx.xx.xxx.

4. Save the file and close.
5. Change the user-pre file permission back to the way it was:
sudo chmod 440 /etc/firestarter/user-pre

6. Restart Firestarter:
sudo /etc/init.d/firestarter restart

Thanks to Arun for the tips.

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Here’s the link to the whole comic book explaining Google Chrome.

Taken from the official Google Blog.

UPDATE: Google Chrome site just launched.

UPDATE 2: I’ve just installed Google Chrome on my Windows 2003 (this post is edited using Chrome). I have to admit, the features and stability really impresses me. There’s an import feature to migrate all your bookmarks, form fields and saved passwords from Firefox or IE. Bookmarking a page is as easy as a single click.

All the tabs are detachable to create a new window by simply dragging the tab, and much more. I just can’t wait for them to release a Linux version of Chrome.

Few screenshot is available after the jump.

[Show as slideshow]

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