There is a new application available for Sparkers: Joplin

What is Joplin?

Joplin is a free, open source note taking and to-do application, which can handle a large number of notes organised into notebooks. The notes are searchable, can be copied, tagged and modified either from the applications directly or from your own text editor. The notes are in Markdown format.
Notes exported from Evernote via .enex files can be imported into Joplin, including the formatted content (which is converted to Markdown), resources (images, attachments, etc.) and complete metadata (geolocation, updated time, created time, etc.). Plain Markdown files can also be imported.
The notes can be synchronized with various cloud services including Nextcloud, Dropbox, OneDrive, WebDAV or the file system (for example with a network directory). When synchronizing the notes, notebooks, tags and other metadata are saved to plain text files which can be easily inspected, backed up and moved around.
The application is available for Windows, Linux, macOS, Android and iOS (the terminal app also works on FreeBSD). A Web Clipper, to save web pages and screenshots from your browser, is also available for Firefox and Chrome.

Installation (amd64 only):

sudo apt update
sudo apt install joplin

or via APTus-> Office-> Joplin icon.

Author: Laurent Cozic
License: MIT
GitHub: github.com/laurent22/joplin

There is a new application available for Sparkers: Gmail Desktop

What is Gmail Desktop?

It is an unofficial Gmail Desktop Application.

Installation (amd64 only):

sudo apt update
sudo apt install gmail-desktop

or via APTus-> Email-> Gmail Desktop icon.

Author: Tim Cheung
License: MIT
GitHub: github.com/timche/gmail-desktop

Many thanks to all of you for supporting our open-source projects, specially in this difficult days. Your donations help keeping them alive.

Don’t forget to send a small tip in August too, please

The 7th monthly report of 2020 of the Sparky project:

• Linux kernel updated up to version 5.7.11 & 5.8-rc7
• added new desktop: NsCDE
• added to repo: Shutter-Encoder, Lite Editor, Sparky APTus AppCenter
• Sparky 5.12 Nibiru of the stable line released
• riot-desktop package changed its name to element-desktop

There is a new application available for Sparkers: Sparky APTus AppCenter 20200725-beta1.

What is APTus AppCenter?
It is improved APTus, still Yad based, but with HTML technology, and still as small, fast and lightweight as possible.

Don’t expect it can be comparable to other existing AppCenters, it is not. It is still set of bash scripts wrapped up in Yad, but can be easy modified and enlarged as required.

The matter of fact is, the development of the application I started with MoroS back in December 2018, and due to problems with Yad’s html dependencies, after a month or so I put it down.
The second attempt was between December 2019 and January 2020; a newer version of Yad let me build it with the html option, but lack of time didn’t let me finish it again.
The 3rd try started on the beginning of June 2020, and this time I was making small steps, one by one to finish it; so the first beta of APTus AppCenter is out.

Changes between APTus and APTus AppCenter:
• APTus uses Yad, APTus AppCenter uses Yad with HTML technology
• more app’s categories
• many more applications to be installed via one click
• full description of every application displayed before installing, removing or re-installing a package
• integrated other APTus related packages (sparky-aptus-extra, sparky-aptus-gamer, sparky-codecs, sparky-desktop, sparky-office, sparky-webbrowser-installer, etc. ) into the one
• added option of searching packages

Installation (Debian Bullseye/Sparky 6 only):

sudo apt update
sudo apt install sparky-aptus-appcenter

It can be installed alongside to Sparky APTus, both work independently.

Any suggestions, new app categories, new apps to be added, and bugs can be reported at our forums, via GitHub or email, please.

Translations are located in 3 files:
1. traditional file for bash scripts as all Sparky tools use
2. additional 2 xx.js files to be used by html pages

Thanks go to:
• MoroS for the app’s base/frame
• lami07 for the new icon
• all the APTus translators (there are new files to translate anyway)

Plans for the future?
It could be reconfigured and moved to Electron or something else, but not sure will it be still lightweight and fast. Anyway, this part is still open, if you would like to help with that.

There is a new application available for Sparkers: Lite Editor

What is Lite Editor?

Lite is a lightweight text editor written mostly in Lua — it aims to provide something practical, pretty, small and fast, implemented as simply as possible; easy to modify and extend, or to use without doing either.

Additional functionality can be added through plugins which are available from the plugins repository; additional color themes can be found in the colors repository. The editor can be customized by making changes to the user module.

Installation (Sparky 6 i386/amd64 only):

sudo apt update
sudo apt install lite-editor

or via APTus-> Office-> Lite Editor icon.

Author: “rxi”
License: MIT
GitHub: github.com/rxi/lite

There is a new application available for Sparkers: Shutter Encoder

What is Shutter Encoder?

Shutter Encoder is a free encoding software for converting images, videos, and audio files, allowing you to choose from a large number of functions.
Encode your files, replace audio, burn to DVD, analyze audio Loudness, download web videos, make your own timelapse etc…

Functions:
– Without conversion : Cut without re-encoding, Replace audio, Rewrap, Conform, Merge, Subtitling, Video inserts
– Sound conversions : WAV, AIFF, FLAC, MP3, AAC, AC3, OPUS, OGG
– Editing codecs : DNxHD, DNxHR, Apple ProRes, QT Animation, Uncompressed YUV
– Output codecs : H.264, DV PAL, XDCAM HD422, AVC-Intra 100, XAVC, HAP, H.265, VP9, AV1, OGV, MJPEG, Xvid, WMV, MPEG
– Archiving codec : FFV1
– Images creation : JPEG, Image
– Burn & Rip : DVD, Blu-ray, DVD RIP
– Analysis : Loudness & True Peak, Audio normalization, Cut detection, Black detection, Media offline detection

Installation (amd64 only):

sudo apt update
sudo apt install shutter-encoder

or via APTus-> VideoTools-> Shutter Encoder icon.

Copyright: Paul Pacifico
License: GNU GPL 3
GitHub: github.com/paulpacifico/shutter-encoder

A quarterly update point release of Sparky 5.12 “Nibiru” of the stable line is out. This release is based on Debian stable 10 “Buster”.

Changes between 5.11 and 5.12:
• system upgraded from Debian stable repos as of July 5, 2020
• Linux kernel 4.19.118
• Firefox 68.10.0esr
• Thunderbird 68.9.0
• VLC 3.0.11
• LibreOffice 6.1.5
• Otter Browser replaced by Epiphany Browser (MinimalGUI)
• added Openbox Noir to the desktop list to be installed as a choice (via MinimalGUI & MinimalCLI and APTus)
• ‘debi-tool’ replaced by ‘gdebi’
• disabled package list updating, during installing Sparky via Calamares; even you install Sparky with active Internet connection, the Debian or Sparky server can be temporary off, so it could stop the installation

System reinstallation is not required; if you have Sparky 5.x installed make full system upgrade:

sparky-upgrade

or:

sudo apt update
sudo apt full-upgrade

or via the System Upgrade tool.

Sparky 5 is available in the following flavours:
– amd64 & i686: LXQt, Xfce, MinimalGUI (Openbox) & MinimalCLI (text mode)
– armhf: Openbox & CLI (text mode)

New iso/img images of the stable line can be downloaded from the download/stable page.

There is a new desktop available for Sparkers: NsCDE

What is NsCDE?

Not so Common Desktop Environment (NsCDE) is a retro but powerful (kind of) UNIX desktop environment which resembles CDE look (and partially feel) but with a more powerful and flexible framework beneath-the-surface, more suited for 21st century unix-like and Linux systems and user requirements than original CDE.
NsCDE can be considered as a heavyweight FVWM theme on steroids, but combined with a couple other free software components and custom FVWM applications and a lot of configuration, NsCDE can be considered a lightweight hybrid desktop environment.

Installation

sudo apt update
sudo apt install nscde-desktop

or via APTus-> Desktop tab -> NsCDE icon

It can be installed on all Sparky editions, means: Sparky 4/5/6 amd64/i386/armhf.

It is a release candidate 21, build and works ok on amd64, but the workspace switcher doesn’t load on i386 and ARMHF so far.

Copyright: “Hegel3DReloaded”
License: GNU GPL 3
GitHub: github.com/NsCDE/NsCDE

Many thanks to all of you for supporting our open-source projects, specially in this difficult days. Your donations help keeping them alive.

Unfortunately, we were not able to collect all the amount we needed for this month, but we thank all of you very much for your support.

Don’t forget to send a small tip in July too, please

The 6th monthly report of 2020 of the Sparky project:

• Linux kernel updated up to version 5.7.6 & 5.8-rc3
• added to repos: Popcorn-Time, eDEX-UI, Visual Studio Code, VSCodium, Bitcoin-Qt, Litecoin-Qt
• Sparky 2020.06 of the rolling line released
• a point release of the stable line is on the way, stay tuned

There are 2 new applications available for Sparkers/Developers: Visual Studio Code & VSCodium

What is Visual Studio Code?

Visual Studio Code is a distribution of the Code – OSS repository with Microsoft specific customizations released under a traditional Microsoft product license.
Visual Studio Code combines the simplicity of a code editor with what developers need for their core edit-build-debug cycle. It provides comprehensive code editing, navigation, and understanding support along with lightweight debugging, a rich extensibility model, and lightweight integration with existing tools.

Installation (amd64 only)

sudo apt update
sudo apt install code

or via APTus-> Office-> Visual Studio Code icon.

Copyright (c) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
License: MIT
GitHub: github.com/microsoft/vscode

What is VSCodium?

This is not a fork (of Visual Studio Code). This is a repository of scripts to automatically build Microsoft’s vscode repository into freely-licensed binaries with a community-driven default configuration.
This repository contains build files to generate free release binaries of Microsoft’s VSCode. When we speak of “free software”, we’re talking about freedom, not price. Microsoft’s downloads of Visual Studio Code are licensed under this not-FLOSS license and contain telemetry/tracking.

Installation (amd64 and ARMHF)

sudo apt update
sudo apt install codium

or via APTus-> Office-> VSCodium icon.

Copyright (c) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
License: MIT
GitHub: github.com/VSCodium/vscodium

There is a new application available for Sparkers: eDEX-UI

What is eDEX-UI?

eDEX-UI is a fullscreen, cross-platform terminal emulator and system monitor that looks and feels like a sci-fi computer interface.

Heavily inspired from the TRON Legacy movie effects (especially the Board Room sequence), the eDEX-UI project was originally meant to be “DEX-UI with less « art » and more « distributable software »”. While keeping a futuristic look and feel, it strives to maintain a certain level of functionality and to be usable in real-life scenarios, with the larger goal of bringing science-fiction UXs to the mainstream.

Features:
– Fully featured terminal emulator with tabs, colors, mouse events, and support for curses and curses-like applications.
– Real-time system (CPU, RAM, swap, processes) and network (GeoIP, active connections, transfer rates) monitoring.
– Full support for touch-enabled displays, including an on-screen keyboard.
– Directory viewer that follows the CWD (current working directory) of the terminal.
– Advanced customization using themes, on-screen keyboard layouts, CSS injections. See the wiki for more info.
– Optional sound effects made by a talented sound designer for maximum hollywood hacking vibe.

Installation

Build on i386 arch failed, so the package can be installed on amd64 and ARMHF Debian/Sparky stable & testing.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install edex-ui

Copyright Gaby ‘GitSquared’
License: GNU GPL 3
GitHub: github.com/GitSquared/edex-ui

There is a new application available for Sparkers: Popcorn Time

What is Popcorn Time?

Popcorn Time is a multi-platform, free software BitTorrent client that includes an integrated media player. The applications provide a free alternative to subscription-based video streaming services such as Netflix. Popcorn Time uses sequential downloading to stream video listed by several torrent websites, and third party trackers can also be added manually.

Features:
– Popcorn Time constantly searching all over the web for the best torrents from the most important sites.
– Watch any movie or TV show as many times as you want. All you need to get started is a proper internet connection.
– If the movie or TV show is out there, Popcorn Time will find the best version possible and start streaming it right away.
– Watch your movie or episode instantly in HD and with subtitles. And then keep watching.
– No wait or download time. Instant playback of your favorite movies and TV shows.

Installation (32/64bit):

sudo apt update
sudo apt install popcorn-time

or via APTus-> VideoPlayers.

Copyright © Butter Project and the contributors
License: GNU GPL 3
GitHub: github.com/popcorn-official/popcorn-desktop

The June snapshot of Sparky 2020.06 of the (semi-)rolling line is out.
It is based on the Debian testing “Bullseye”.

Changes:
• system upgrade from Debian testing repos as of June 5, 2020
• Linux kernel 5.6.14 (5.7.0 in Sparky unstable repos)
• Firefox 77.0
• Thunderbird 68.8.1
• LibreOffice 6.4.4.2
• debi-tool’ replaced by ‘gdebi’
• added ‘spterm’ (Sparky Terminal) to be used by Sparky tools
• Otter Browser replaced by Epiphany Browser (MinimalGUI)
• added RadioStation – a fork of RadioTray-Lite (and Radiotray)
• added Openbox Noir to the desktop list to be installed as a choice (via MinimalGUI & MinimalCLI and APTus too)
• added disk autopartitioning, encrypting and lvm support to the Advanced Installer DEV (still experimental)
• Calamares updated up to 3.2.24; changed password strength to a minimum number of digits as possible in Calamares, as requested a few times by our users (can be used 1 digit, but I recommend to use strong password); thanks to lami07
• added lxappearance to MinimalGUI iso (Openbox)

System re-installation is not required, make full system upgrade via Sparky Upgrade gui or a text based tool:

sparky-upgrade

or via apt:

sudo apt update
sudo apt full-upgrade

New rolling iso images can be downloaded from the download/rolling page.

Many thanks to all of you for supporting our open-source projects, specially in this difficult days. Your donations help keeping them alive.

Don’t forget to send a small tip in June too, please

The 5th monthly report of 2020 of the Sparky project:

• Linux kernel updated up to version 5.6.15 & 5.7-rc7
• added to repos: Riot-desktop which replaces Riot-web, Xdman, RadioStation (a fork off Radiotray-Lite), Beaker Browser
• Sparky 2020.05 of the rolling line released
• Sparky 2020.05 Special Editions released
• new app: ‘spterm’ (Sparky Terminal) – a very simple terminal emulator (a fork of k3rmit) which will be used by Sparky tools
• new desktop: Openbox Noir – a variant of the Openbox, which provides dark and modern looks and feel of a lightweight desktop; by lami07

There is a new application available for Sparkers: Beaker Browser

What is Beaker Browser?

Beaker is an experimental peer-to-peer Web browser. It adds new APIs for building hostless applications while remaining compatible with the rest of the Web. It is an open-source application in development by Blue Link Labs.

From Wikipedia:

Beaker Browser peer-to-peer technology allows users to self-publish websites and web apps directly from the browser, without the need to set up and administrate a separate web server or host their content on a third-party server. All files and websites are transferred using Dat, a hypermedia peer-to-peer protocol which allows files to be shared and hosted by several users. The browser also supports the HTTP protocol to connect to traditional servers.
Beaker is built using the Electron framework and therefore uses the Chromium browser as a renderer for webpages.

Installation (Debian/Sparky testing 64bit only):
It is a prerelease2 version so can be installed from Sparky unstable repository.

It requires nodejs (>= 12.0) which will be installed/upgraded from Sparky unstable repos too. That version removes (but provides too) ‘libnode64’ and ‘npm’ packages.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install beaker-browser

License: MIT
GitHub repo: github.com/beakerbrowser/beaker

There is a new application available for Sparkers: RadioStation

What is RadioStation?

RadioStation is a fork off RadioTray-Lite, a lightweight clone of the original RadioTray online radio streaming player rewritten in C++.

Online radio streaming player:
– Runs on a Linux system tray.
– Has minimum interface possible.
– Plays most media formats (it uses gstreamer).
– Supports PLS, M3U, ASX, RAM, XSPF playlists.

Installation (Debian/Sparky stable & testing):

sudo apt update
sudo apt install radiostation

or via APTus-> AudioPlayers-> RadioStation.

Changes between the latest RadioTray-Lite 0.2.18 and RadioStation 0.2.19:
– updated up to present libs versions
– added new genres and stations
– renamed to the new one

Please test the new application and report your suggestions, issues, and anything else at our forums, please.

If you would like to add your favorite radio station, simply send it to the GitHub repos.

License: GNU GPL 3
GitHub repo: github.com/sparkylinux/radiostation

It happened my friends…

…what we expected, but we were not thinking that it would be so bad.

Our dear friends, the coronavirus changed everything now, and we lost our main source of income, which we used to pay our monthly rent, food and medicine – we both suffer from chronic diseases. In addition, all products and services getting more expensive everywhere, in Poland too.

From your current donations and money from advertising, we will cover only some bills of electricity, gas, water, internet, domains, taxes, small computer equipment (memory, USB sticks, mice, batteries, etc …) and fuel. But there is 400 Euros too short to cover rent, meals and medicines.

Linuxiarze, SparkyLinux, ArchiveOS, SoftMania are our life and passion and we don’t want to give them up.

For this reason, we would like to ask you for slightly more support starting from June, means $ 700 / € 650 / PLN 2.600 at least every month. This is just the amount of the minimum wage in Poland per one person, but it will allow us to pay all the bills and survive another month, and another, just one by one. We can’t do it without you.

We are not entitled to any funding, we are on our own and your help, which never disappointed us and we hope that you understand our situation, because you are the best community in the World.

In short, we have lost the only “normal” source of income we have had, and at the moment we can only count on you!
We don’t know will we be able to return to the time before the pandemic, so without looking back, we try to live here and now as best as possible by creating our services and SparkyLinux for you.

So, will you help us survive this hard times?

With all our heart, we thank all of you.
Stay well.
Aneta and Paweł