Category: kde

Kororaa 15 Beta released

Kororaa is a Fedora remix that includes tweaks and extras that make it much easier to use than many Linux distros. As it is based on Fedora it includes the latest versions of most software. Kororaa adds the extras that many people need or want. Currently the stable version is based on Fedora 14 but a beta of 15 is now available.

The second beta was released yesterday after a few users, including me, had problems with the first beta. This was a quick response from the developer, Chris Smart. There are versions for both Gnome and KDE. The Gnome version comes with Gnome 3 and the KDE with 4.6.5. Both are the latest versions. The kernel version is 2.6.38. Both come as live DVDs which can run from DVD, usb drive or be installed on your hard drive. Instructions are on the download page.

I tried the KDE version both as a live usb and installed in a vm. The live version worked fine on my laptop but I have had some problem getting it to boot on my desktop. It appears to be a graphics card issue with my nvidia 250 that has been difficult to set up in previous versions. With the older 8400GS graphics on my laptop it worked fine. For the first time I was able to run Desktop Effects from the live boot using the included nouveau driver. Previously it required the proprietary nvidia driver for 3d to work but the latest version of nouveau has solved this problem.

This is a fully featured Linux system with software to do just about everything you can do with a computer. Included are LibreOffice, video editor kdenlive, blogging client Blogilo, micro blogging client Choqok, image and graphics editors, a number of media players with VLC as the default and many other applications.

One special feature is the Add / Remove Extras utility which will install proprietary graphics drivers and Flash. This simplifies something many new users find difficult.

After less than a year in existence in its current form Kororaa has built up a small but friendly community. No doubt a lot of this is due to the willingness of the developer to respond to user’s questions and suggestions.

If you are looking for a Linux system that can do everything and requires little set up before it is ready to go check out Kororaa.

Kororaa Released

After a few months of work the final of Kororaa 14 has been released. Kororaa is a Fedora respin that includes all the extras many add to Fedora. After a number of beta releases the final was released this week. It includes all the latest Fedora updates and is available with a choice of KDE or Gnome Deskto environments. As it is based on Fedora 14 it is a stable release. Work will now start on Kororaa 15 based on Fedora 15 which was also released this week.

For the full details see the Kororaa Site

Kororaa Updated

I posted a short time ago about Kororaa, a Fedora Remix. Today the beta 2 was released with some big changes.

I quote

“Kororaa 14 (Nemo) Beta2 has been released for download.

This release includes several fixes, updates to all your favourite applications, as well as the following major changes:

Download it today! :-)“

New / Old Fedora Remix

There is a new remix of Fedora that has just been released. Koororaa is based on Fedora 14 KDE. It is actually a return of an old KDE remix but now it is based on Fedora.

It comes preinstalled with popular non-KDE apps such as Firefox and Gimp as well as having extra repos such as Flash and RPMFusion preconfigured. There is also a Lite version which can be used on basic machines such as netbooks or as the base for a customised system. There are 32 and 64 bit versions too. Both run as live versions so can be used without installation.

I have been experimenting with the standard version and was impressed with the included packages even though he has it tagged as a Beta version. I intend to install it on a system in the next few days and give it a further tryout.

The developer, Chris Smart, is an Australian based in Canberra so it is nice to see something this useful coming out of Oz. Have a look at his site at kororaa.org

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KDE Tips Updated for F14

I’ve updated the KDE Tips and Hints page to cover Fedora 14 or more specifically KDE 4.5. There are few changes that affect the page but the System Settings screen has been rearranged and some options given new names. E.G. the former Regional and Language page is now the more accurate Locale and the Keyboard and Mouse section is now called Input Devices as it includes Touchpads and Joysticks.

KDE 4.5 In Fedora 13

KDE released version 4.5 some time ago. However it hasn’t appeared in Fedora 13. There is some suggestion that it will be saved for Fedora 14. Of course this brought the question can it be installed on Fedora 13?

There is a thread on the Fedora Forum that provides the answer. I have used it one computer for a couple of weeks without issue although it has some quirks that suggest it is not the final version. If you want to give it a go have a look at http://forums.fedoraforum.org/showthread.php?t=250066

New KDE Page

I’ve added a new page with hints and tips for KDE. It is based on Fedora 13 running KDE 4.4 but should be reasonably accurate for most recent distros.

It isn’t designed to be a full how to for KDE, see the KDE site for that, but just a list of things I have learnt. It started as my own notes but I decided it might be useful for others so I tidied it up a little and here it is. It isn’t complete, I will add to it from time to time. Any suggestions or questions are welcome.

Fedora 13

I’ve been rather busy lately. (click here if you want to know why) so haven’t been blogging here at all. By the way that site is on WordPress too, good option for our ‘not for profit’ group. But when I did have some time for myself I installed Fedora 13 on my laptop. Once again no problems, everything worked out of the box but I made the usual improvements.

My nvidia graphics card has needed the proprietary drivers in the past but I was hoping the improvements to Nouveau would make that un-necessary this time. It is possible to get 3D using Nouveau and mesa-dri-drivers-experimental but not with my GeForce 8400 GS so I’m back with the drivers from RPMFusion again.

In KDE knetworkmanager has replaced the networkmanager-gnome applet which is an interesting change. If you are using KDE you should use its utilities but it hasn’t been stable in past versions. This time it works well but doesn’t have the wizards the gnome version has. Maybe they will follow.

The new version of Conky (1.8.0) now supports transparency so the steps needed to make it work in KDE using feh are no longer needed. A good improvement.

I’ve been using Google Chrome as my browser for a while. It is faster then Firefox and has most of the extensions. I tried the open source version, Chromium, but found it too unstable for everyday use so back to Chrome.

The need to edit the hal fdi policy files to get touchpad options such as “tap to click” working has been overcome now. KDE has a touchpad option in the settings and it works well.

Overall I’m very pleased with Fedora 13 and when the opportunity arises I will install it on my other computers.

Fedora 12

I have been trying out the new verison of Fedora since it was released a couple of weeks ago. This version is more of a evolutionary update rather than a major change, at least in KDE. F12 comes with the same version 4.3.2 that F11 was running. An update to 4.3.3 has been released for both versions since then.

That is not to say there haven’t been changes just that the majority are behind the scene improvements. A list of the changes are on the release notes.

Moblin Added

One of the changes to F12 is the release of Moblin for Fedora. Unfortunately it is currently based on Moblin 2.0 instead of the current 2.1. I installed it on my netbook and gave it a run for a few days. It is obviously in the early stages of development as some of the basic features are missing. There is no way to log out for example.

I liked the basic concept but don’t think it is quite ready for day to day use yet. I went back to KDE.

Network Manager

For a few versions now Fedora has worked well with Mobile Braodband but this verison includes some big changes in that area.

One big improvement is the provision of preset configuration for many Broadband providers. When you connect for the first time it asks you for your country and isp as well as type of service and then it connects with the correct setup.

It seems to work well. However one problem, probably not associated with the changes, is it is not possible to reconnect should you disconnect. You need to unplug the modem and plug it back in again. An irritation but not a major problem unless you are working in an area with poor reception.

Nvidia Cards

The open source nvidia driver nouveau has been improved for this version. Reports are that it is much more stable than previous versions. It still doesn’t do 3d so you need to install the propriety drivers if you want Google Earth, desktop effects or other 3d apps. There is a how to on the Guide section of the Fedora Forums. There is some extra steps due to a new version of x.org.

Atom Processors

Atom processors are common in netbooks and this version of Fedora has been optimised for them. I noticed some improvement in the performance of my netbook. I am using KDE on there now and find it is performing so well I haven’t felt the need to install Xfce which I did in F11.

Overall I would say this is a good update of Fedora especially if you use netbooks or Mobile Broadband. If you are using F11 and it is working fine for you there is no hurry to update though.

Netbooks

I have been interested in the idea of a netbook since they first appeared. I can see the advantage of a small portable computer especially since laptops seem to be getting larger. I remember many years ago using a 486 laptop that only ran dos but was small and light. It was the ideal travel companion. So recently I decided it was time to add to my collection of pcs.

The new unit is Kogan Agora Pro from Kogan, an Australian company. At under $500 it is the cheapest netbook available in Australia but despite that is well equipped. It has a 160gb drive and 2 gig ram as well as the standard Atom processor. Graphics are Intel 950 which support 3d, transparency etc. OS is gOS a version of Linux based on Ubuntu with a emphasis on Google.

So how good is it? It is only available online which is a bit of a concern. I like to see and touch before I buy. However there were several good reviews online so I took a risk. It arrived in a couple of days. Just a plain white box with the usual hardware but no manual. That is only available on the website. Kogan proudly state they are a paperless company. It had a Windows XP sticker even though it came with Linux, that went very quickly. My first impressions were very good, it runs well and seems well made.

I was not so impressed with the operating system though. It seemed to be an older version as it contained out of date versions of OpenOffice and Firefox. The getting started guide recommended against updating it too. Seems that causes problems with the wifi driver. To add to that it didn’t recognise my wireless broadband so I couldn’t get online.

My next move was predictable I guess. gOS was gone and Fedora replaced it. Most things worked out of the box including wifi and my wireless broadband. I was surprised how well it ran even with KDE 4.3 installed which is a bit resource intensive. Even the desktop effects worked. It didn’t take me long to have the desktop customised the way I like it. Later I added the Xfce 4.6 desktop and that runs even better. I will give Fedora’s new Moblin spin when that becomes available after the release of Fedora 12 in about a month.

I have used it around home, in meetings and when out and about. It has prove a worthwhile investment and a useful tool.

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