Aircraft Manager: Turn WiFi & Bluetooth On/Off

Aircraft Manager is a program for turning Bluetooth & WiFi off and on. It also enables an "Airplane Mode" that shuts off radio signals allowing you to use your Mini/Vostro safely when flying. Not only is the program great for when your flying and want to use your Mini (or not send the plane towards the ground), but turning off these services while not in use will significantly increase battery life.

Dell released a version of Aircraft Manager when the Mini was first shipped but it stopped working after Ubuntu 8.10. I tried to email the maintainer for the aircraft manager package but never received a response. I thought Aircraft Manager was dead until one of the Ubuntu Mini Google group members Jitender decided to fix the problem himself and repackage Aircraft Manager to work in later versions of Ubuntu.

You can find the Aircraft Manager Packages in Jitender's Launchpad Personal Package Archives (PPA)

If you are using Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala or later you can add Jitender's PPA by
in a terminal type:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:opensource-subakutty/ppa

- this will automatically add the PPA and GPG key to your sources

sudo apt-get update

- to update your sources

sudo apt-get install aircraft-manager

- to install aircraft-manager

For older versions of Ubuntu you will have to manually add the PPA
- refer to Jitender's Launchpad PPA for help

Once installed, you can find Aircraft Manager in System>Preferences, under Airplane Mode, or by running /usr/bin/aircraft-manager

- It allows you to turn off WiFi (wireless), Bluetooth, or both


- And you can also put the Mini into Airplane Mode for safe usage while flying. Turning on Airplane Mode will prevent the battery from charging. In order to charge the battery, Airplane Mode must be disabled.

Since someone asked:
The reason flights ban laptops is that they emit radio waves. All wireless devices do, and the navigation and flight control computers on airplanes are designed to sense even very weak signals coming from far away. Radio waves with just the right power and frequency can, in theory, introduce errors in computing equipment and cause every to go crashing into the ground, water, my house.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Chromium is Now Complete

Chromium the open source web browser on which Google Chrome is based is finally complete. When I first wrote about Chromium back in July, I found it to be a very fast and capable browser, but it lacked the features I needed to be productive on the web. Since then Chromium has finally reached the maturity level to compete with other major browsers, it now features:
- native GTK theming
- flash playback
- bookmark sync (through your google account)
- extensions



It will only be a matter of time until we see the most popular features of Firefox, Opera and other browsers make their way to Chromium via extensions. Until then I'll just enjoy Chromium's fast startup time and rendering engine.

For those not yet running Chromium installing the ppa is incredible simple in Ubuntu 9.10.

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:chromium-daily/ppa

- to automatically add the Chromium PPA and GPG Key

sudo apt-get update

- update your sources

sudo apt-get install chromium-browser

- install the browser and it's dependencies

If you running an older version of Ubuntu use this guide to manually install the Chromium Daily Build PPA.

sudo apt-get chromium-browser installs the chromium-codecs-ffmpeg package by default. This package contains only the free ogg, vorbis and theora codecs needed for the HTML5 audio/video tags. If you want to install the free ogg, vorbis, theora codecs, as well as, the non-free H.264, MP3 and AAC codecs install the chromium-codecs-ffmpeg-nonfree package.

In a terminal type:

sudo apt-get install chromium-browser chromium-codecs-ffmpeg-nonfree

- to install the browser and non-free codec together

sudo apt-get install chromium-codecs-ffmpeg-nonfree

- to install the non-free repository after installing the Chromium browser.

You may be asking why I'm writing about Chromium when Google just announced Google Chrome Beta for Linux? I prefer to support Chromium because it is open source software and receives features before Google Chrome. The only real difference between the two browsers is the non-free codecs, and installing them in Chromium is easy. If you're not ready to take the Chromium plunge, you can install the Google Chrome browser by clicking here, n00b.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Remove The Ubuntu/Gnome Login Sound

I have already written about removing the gdm drum login sound in Karmic's new GDM, this guide will show you how to remove Ubuntu/Gnome desktop login sound. The volume and length of the login sound can be embarrassing when you try to power on your Mini or Vostro in public.



To remove the Ubuntu/Gnome login sound
go to System>Preferences>Startup Applications.

- and uncheck the Gnome Login Sound Box.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

One Month Later

If the 14 new articles didn't tip you off, it goes without saying: I'm back. After getting back to Chicago, I was really busted up and writing helped get me through those very painful weeks. The good news is that my clavicle is healing properly and quickly. Full movement has returned to my left arm and the pain is very minor. I should be 100% in about 4 more weeks.

The guides for installing Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala were a bit late, but I think I have a valid excuse. I want to thank all of you who waited patiently and wished me well. Keep reading and tell some friends.

Karmic is the best Ubuntu release since Ubuntu 8.04 and the improvements to the Intel driver stack make it mark a huge improvement over 8.10 and 9.04. The Broadcom driver installer, not the actual driver, is a bit wonky but the fix is incredibly simple. Everything else works out of the box and novice users should feel comfortable installing Ubuntu 9.10 on their Dell Mini/Vostro.

The site has received a bit of an overhaul. I'm not just focusing on the the Dell Mini 9, I also am writing about the Vostro A90 and the Dell Mini 10v. I rearranged the site and hopefully it's easier to use. The user guides and search function are now the most prominent thing on the page. I am also done with experimenting with colors, sorry about the orange and brown mess that was up for a while. It's strictly black and orange from now on. I did change the font but no one noticed so I doubt it's an issue. Your feedback is always welcome.

The donations have been going well and I'd like to thank everyone who has given money. I was able to buy some gear for the site. I picked up a Vostro A90, Super Talent FEM32GFDL 32GB SSD, LITE-ON Esau208-96 External Slim DVD/CD Burner and a new keyboard to replace the damaged one on my Dell Mini 9. The last thing on my list is a Dell Mini 10v, I'm already 60 dollars towards that goal and with the post holiday deals Dell does I should have one around February.

I am also looking for contributors, if you'd like to help edit articles or write for the site drop me a line. If you have a Mini 10v that would be a huge plus but you don't need to be an expert Linux user.

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

User Guides for Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala

These guides will help you get Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala up and running on your Dell Mini 9, Dell Mini 10v and Dell Vostro A90.

• Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Install Guide

• Fix The Broadcom Wireless Driver on Dell Mini 9/10v & Vostro A90 - Karmic has shipped with a bug preventing the normal installation of the wireless driver.

• Fix the Audio On The Dell Vostro A90

• Aircraft-Manager: Turn off Bluetooth & Wireless

• Read Before Installing Ubuntu Netbook Remix

• Installing Ubuntu Netbook Remix

• Creating a LiveUSB Stick

• Improve Flasher Player 10 Performance

• Medibuntu for Karmic Koala - To install W32codecs, DVD codecs and other popular non-free software

• Hack Karmic's GDM Login Part One - Change the background, theme, font and colors

• Hack Karmic's GDM Login Part Two - Stop login sounds and remove the user list

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Ubuntu 9.10 Netbook Benchmarks

Phoronix is a Linux technology website focusing on product reviews, distribution screenshots, interviews, and news. It is one of my favorite Linux sites and the best site for info on Linux graphic drivers. Today Phoronix released a benchmark comparison between Ubuntu 9.04 Juanty Jackalope and the upcoming 9.10 Karmic Koala release on the Dell Mini 9.

Most of the article is positive, Dell Mini 9/Vostro A90 owners should rejoice. Here is a quick summary:

"There is just one week left until Ubuntu 9.10 "Karmic Koala" will be released, but is it worth the upgrade if you are running a netbook? From our testing of the development releases, it is most certainly worth the upgrade, especially when compared to Ubuntu 9.04 with its buggy Intel driver stack that caused many problems for Atom netbook users. Ubuntu 9.10 brings many usability improvements to the Linux desktop, various new packages, and the overall system performance has improved too. We have ran a set of benchmarks on both a Dell Inspiron Mini 9 and Samsung NC10 under Ubuntu 9.04 and 9.10 to illustrate the performance gains along with a few regressions."

You can find the complete article on www.phoronix.com.

If you can't wait the week and want to make the jump to Karmic, the Release Candidate has been pushed out today. You can download it here.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Beta is Released

Ubuntu 9.10 entered beta yesterday. We have installed it and and are enjoying the improvements Karmic is bringing to the Mini 9. While I don't encourage everyone to download and install the beta, I do ask anyone willing to deal with a cranky system and software occasionally breaking to join us in beta testing Karmic.

You can download the Karmic beta image here.

The only problem I have encountered with Karmic is with the Driver Manager. It will not properly install the proprietary Broadcom STA driver for the wireless networking card. No worries, it's an easy fix.


- When you click activate, Driver Manager will either freeze up or just look like it has installed driver properly.

- First connect to the internet via a wired connection.
- Then go to Synaptic Package Manager (System>Adminstration>Synaptic Package Manager)
- Click the Reload button in the upper left corner of Synaptic to refresh your repository index.
- Then reinstall the bcmwl-kernel-source package


- Click to enlarge

OR: after connecting to the internet via a wired connection in a terminal type:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get --reinstall install bcmwl-kernel-source

If you have any issues with Karmic, don't forget to file a bug on Launchpad!

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Ubuntu 9.10's New Icon Theme

Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala will ship with a new icon theme, Humanity. It still invokes the orange and brown of the old Human theme but is refreshingly modern and clean.

If you can't wait for Karmic Koala you can download the Humanity icons here.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.

Hack Karmic's GDM Login Screen

One of my favorite things about Linux is the ability to customize everything. The Gnome Display Manager (GDM) is an excellent example. A quick look at gnome-look.org illustrates the diversity and choice Linux users have for a screen they might only see for 5 seconds.

Changing your GDM was once a simple processes with an excellent GUI behind it. With Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala the GDM has been rewritten to properly take advantage of xsplash, Ubuntu's new X based boot. While these changes will significantly improve boot time, customizable GDMs are going to suffer. Ubuntu developers have already stated that a level of customization once offered with the old GDM will not be available for Karmic.

Until then we can hack the GDM to change the background, theme, fonts and some minor features. While not as robust as before, it's better then the ugly brown sand option that Karmic testers are stuck with.


- This is th old GDM configuration screen. notice the options and themes you can choose from.


- This is the new GDM screen. Not many options.

1. Logout of your current session and return to the GDM
2. Switch to the tty command line prompt using Ctrl-Alt-F1
3. Login using your normal login/password
4. at the command line prompt type: export DISPLAY=:0.0
5. then type: sudo -u gdm gnome-control-center
6. Switch back to the gdm screen using ALT-F7
7. The gnome-control-center should be loaded. Use it to configure your GDM.
8. Click on the Appearances icon, in appearances you can change your GDM's font, theme and background image.
9. Close the gnome-control-center and login normally.

For more GDM hacks check out part two of this article.

Have a question or problem that this article doesn't cover? Ask our Ubuntu Mini 9 Google Group for help.