Lock a version of a software

This is a very important thing to know if you like a particular version of a software. I'll give you an example to clarify. The current version of Wine is 1.1.41. However most of the Windows programs I have dont run on it. I have found that another version 1.1.31 does the job pretty well. Now if you have installed Wine or have repositories of it enabled, you might unknowingly update your Wine to the latest version, and lose the functionality of it (which is true in my case). I gave the example with Wine, but this applies to any other application.

So, what do you do in such a situation? The answer is surprisingly simple. There is a function in Synaptic which allows you to 'lock' a particular version so that it doesnt update or stays 'as is'.

Here's how you 'lock' a version of any particular software. The screenshots given below has been done with respect to a particular software (Wine in this case), but the same procedure applies to everything else as well.

First up, go to System > Administration > Synaptic Package Manager. There, search for your software (in this case its Wine1.2), and select it.



Next, go to the Package option and select/click on Lock version:



After you have done that you will find that a small Lock sign appears next to the software name:



Thats pretty much it! You will now not be updated to a later version of the software unless you un-select the Lock version option.

Sysinfo

Sysinfo is a small light-weight software which will give you information about the hardware as well as the OS installed on your PC. Its a very useful tool if you're not sure about the exact configuration of your computer.



How to install:

Go to Ubuntu Software Center and search for Sysinfo. Simply install it from there.

OR

Go to the Terminal and type:

sudo apt-get install sysinfo

Songbird

Image via Wikipedia

I guess most of you must have heard of it, if not then this is for you.

Songbird is to Ubuntu what iTunes is to Mac or Windows. This music player uses the Mozilla build with loads of features. The best part is, it supports 'add-ons', yea much like the ones for Firefox, and believe me the add ons are brilliant! There are loads of customisation options available and the interface is unlike any other media player you have seen. And its syncing features are really awesome. So give it a try.

Songbird can be downloaded from the website here. (Although the Synaptic should already have Songbird)

Nexuiz

Image via Wikipedia

If you're using Linux, you might feel a bit uncomfy whenever your friends tease you about Linux not having any proper games. There's no 3D first person shooter game etc etc. Well, next time you meet such people, tell them you came across Nexuiz.

Nexuiz is a first person shooter game which is much like Quake. It has both single player and multiplayer versions. The game-play is smooth and perhaps more importantly the game itself is very 'light', absolutely nothing special is required in terms of processing power and graphics capability to enjoy this game.

Its available from the Synaptic as well as the Ubuntu Software Center (I would prefer to use the latter). Type 'nexuiz' in the search bar of Ubuntu Software Center. And install it. This image will demonstrate it.



Mind you the installation can take some time, on a 256kbps connection it took me about 4-5 hours. The link to the official site of Nexuiz is here. Also, do note the Ubuntu software repos might not update itself as soon as Nexuiz releases a new version. So, do check out the download page of the site here for the very latest updates (if you're playing in the Multiplayer mode, the latest updates are necessary).

Try it out! You wont be disappointed.