Top Open-source eCommerce Marketplace Solutions 2018

Below I have complied some Top Marketplace solution for the year 2017. Please note the list below are Not as per Ranking. It's just I have listed it that way.

1. Ecommerce Engine: Prestashop

     Solution #1.1:  

          Module Name: Advanced Market Place Module
          Cost: $199

          Web: http://addons.prestashop.com/en/8057-advanced-marketplace.html

     Solution #1.2:  

          Module Name: Knowband Marketplace Module (Basic)
          Cost: Free

          Web: http://www.knowband.com/prestashop-free-marketplace-modules

     Solution #1.3:  

          Module Name: Knowband Marketplace Module (Premium)
          Cost: $159.99 $145.99

          Web: http://www.knowband.com/prestashop-marketplace

     Solution #1.4:  

          Module Name: Prestashop Advanced Marketplace
          Cost: $199

          Web: https://store.webkul.com/Prestashop-Advanced-Marketplace.html

2. Ecommerce Engine: OpenCart

     Solution #2.1:    

          Module Name: Multimerch
          Cost: $349-$749

          Web: https://multimerch.com/features/

     Solution #2.2:    

          Module Name: Webkul Opencart Marketplace
          Cost: $199

          Web: https://store.webkul.com/OpenCart-MarketPlace.html

     Solution #2.2:    

          Module Name: Clerkscart
          Cost: Free

          Web: https://store.webkul.com/OpenCart-MarketPlace.html 

3. Ecommerce Engine: Magento

     Solution #3.1:    

          Module Name: Magento Marketplace Multi Vendor Module
          Cost: $349

          Web: https://store.webkul.com/Magento-Marketplace.html

     Solution #3.2:    

          Module Name: Marketplace Multi Vendor Extension
          Cost: $349

          Web: http://bit.ly/2ccX7JS

      Solution #3.2:    

          Module Name: Medma Marketplace
          Cost: $299

          Web: http://bit.ly/2bTE8oN

      Solution #3.3:    

          Module Name: Vnecoms Market
          Cost: $349 - $399 - $999

          Web: https://www.vnecoms.com/magento-marketplace/

4. Ecommerce Engine: CS Cart

     Solution #4.1:    

          Module Name: CS Cart Marketplace
          Cost: $1450

          Web: https://www.cs-cart.com/compare.html

5. Ecommerce Engine: X-Cart

     Solution #5.1:    

          Module Name: Multivendor/Ultimate
          Cost: $1495 - $3955

          Web: https://www.cs-cart.com/compare.html

6. Ecommerce Engine: Dokan using WooCommerce/Wordpress

     Solution #6.1:    

          Module Name: Dokan
          Cost: $199 - $299 - $499

          Web: https://wedevs.com/products/plugins/dokan/#product-features

Unable to Create New User/Administrator in Magento 2.x

Yesterday, I tried creating an account from the Admin Panel but was unable to do so. After filling up all the fields in the User Creation Form and when I hit the Save Button, the screen would just get stuck with the rotating GIF image.

There are many causes to this issue but below I will discuss the one I experienced and how I resolved it.

The thing is, few days ago, I'd created a role called 'Store Owner' & assigned to it some permissions. Yesterday, I renamed the role to 'Store Manager' and assumed that like other CMS that I use viz. Drupal, changing the role name wouldn't revoke the erstwhile granted permission to the renamed role biz. 'Store Owner to Store Manager.'

Once I granted permission to the newly created role my problem was resolved.

Hope this helps!

Create Admin User from Terminal in Magento 2.x

If you would like to create Administrator accounts in your Magento 2x installation from your Terminal/SSH then try the following command:

N.B:The password must be at least 7 characters in length and must  include at least one alphabetic and at least one numeric character. A longer & more complex password is recommended. Enclose the entire password & other fields string in single quotes & NOT DOUBLE QUOTES.

For example: --admin-password=''A0b9%t_3`g'

 php bin/magento admin:user:create --admin-user='your_username' 

--admin-password='your_pass' --admin-email='your_email'

--admin-firstname='your_firstname' --admin-lastname='your_lastname'  

The following parameter & values are compulsory:

1. Name: --admin-firstname
   Value: Magento administrator user's first name.
   Required: Yes
   
2. Name: --admin-lastname
   Value: Magento administrator user's last name.
   Required: Yes
   
3. Name: --admin-email
   Value: Magento administrator user's e-mail address.
   Required: Yes
   
4. Name: --admin-user
   Value: Magento administrator user name.
   Required: Yes
   
5. Name: --admin-password
   Value: Magento administrator user password.
   Required: Yes

Change Admin URI/URL in Magento 2 using Terminal or Admin Page

First and foremost never change your Admin URI directly from the 'env.php' page because that alone isn't sufficient to change/update the URI. Best is to use the terminal because along with the URI value in the 'env.php' file, you will also have to change/update the following database values:

• db-engine
• db-model
• db-init-statements

If you update the admin-uri values using the terminal below is what you get:

Click on image to enlarge

1. Change Magento 2 Admin URI/URL FROM CLI/Terminal:

  php bin/magento setup:config:set --backend-frontname="your_admin_path"  

Note: No forward slash at the front or back of your path admin path.
Example:

  php bin/magento setup:config:set --backend-frontname="vXc12eR_1991"  

Note: Please do not use names such as 'admin' or your store name in the Admin URL.

1. Change Magento 2 Admin URI/URL FROM Store Back End:

 Click on STORES > Configuraiton > Advanced > Admin. Please view image below for example:

[Solved] - How to Change Table Prefix in Magento 2.x

Please follow the instructions below to change your Table Prefix in Magento 2.x:

1. Open the file 'env.php' located at ''app/etc/env.php'.
2. On line number 17 change your table prefix. Please look at the image below:

 

 

[Solved] - There was no Home CMS page configured or found - Magento Error.

If you get this error, this is because the website's home page is not set. This  can happen when you change the site Home Page and forget to update the CMS page at: Store >> Configuration >> General >> Web >> Default Pages >> CMS Home Page.

To Change Your Site's Home Page:

1. First Go to CMS Home Page, as mentioned above, and select any page as your home page. Then Go to Content >> Pages and Save your changes.Only this will allow you to Save the changes your have made to your page, else you won't be able to Save the change.

2. Now go back to CMS home page and select the page mentioned in Step 1 as your Home Page and Save.

[SOLVED] Change Default Language for Spell-Checker in Thunderbird

Free YouTube Audio Library - Use Music in your YouTube Videos Without Any Hassle

If you would like to use music & soundtracks in your YouTube videos then you can find a massive collection of free music in YouTube itself.

 Just visit the YouTube audio library at: http://bit.ly/2hb5qJK and search for music of your liking; download them and use them in your videos.

To Check YouTube Music Policies & Copyright Violation you may check my article at: http://www.evagabond.me/2016/12/check-youtube-music-policies-copyright.html

Check YouTube Music Policies & Copyright Violation

If you want to use a particular song or music in your YouTube video but unsure whether it will lead to copyright violation then you may check its copyright policy at: http://bit.ly/2hb0Wmd.

Often you will be allowed to use the music but will have to share revenue. In such case you might download free music to use in your videos from YouTube itself. To know more check this article of mine: Free YouTube Audio Library - Use Music in your YouTube Videos Without Any Hassle  - http://www.evagabond.me/2016/12/youtube-audio-library-use-music-in-your.html 

Connect Bluetooth Headset/Headphone to Ubuntu 14.04

If you have been trying to connect your Bluetooth headset/headphone to your Ubuntu 14.04 laptop, and running into errors; here's a simple solution:

1. First run this command in your terminal:

 sudo apt-get install pavucontrol  

2. Now run this command:

 pactl load-module module-bluetooth-discover  

You might have to run the command #2 every time you boot your system. Else you might set it up to start in Start Up Applications.

Setup Custom TinyWebDB (App Inventor) in Ubuntu or Linux

1. For this tutorial, you will use two commands from the Google App Engine SDK:
1.1. dev_appserver.py, to run the development web server locally
1.2. appcfg.py, for uploading your app to App Engine -- e.g:  In your terminal run the following command: ~/path-to-your-google-cloud-sdk/platform/google_appengine/appcfg.py update ~/customtinywebdb/appinventordb

2. Custom TinyWebDB Tutorial in App Inventor Website: http://bit.ly/2gCYjKw

3. Download Custom TinyWebDb: http://bit.ly/2fiHT3R

4. Installing Google Cloud SDK for App Engine using Python 2.7 in Ubuntu 14.04: http://bit.ly/2gbpWZE

Installing Google Cloud SDK for App Engine using Python 2.7 in Ubuntu 14.04

This tutorial shows you the various steps to successfully install the Google Cloud SDK for App Engine using Python 2.7 in Ubuntu 14.04.

1. First make sure whether you have Python 2.7 installed or not. Open your terminals and enter the following command:

 $ python -V  

You should similar output as this: Python 2.7.6.

2. Download the SDK for App Engine from here: http://bit.ly/2fe0azC. Make sure you select the Python version.

3. Once your file downloads, extract it in any folder of your choice. In our example we will extract it inside the Home directory. Your SDK path in side the home folder should be like:

 ~/google-cloud-sdk/bin  

Note: In Ubuntu ~ represent the Home directory.

4. Remain in your home folder (do not change directory to your SDK folder) and execute the following commands in your terminal.

 ./google-cloud-sdk/install.sh  

You should be getting the following result as shown in the image below:

Click image to enlarge

5. You will be asked the following questions which you may respond as below:


5.1 To help improve the quality of this product, we collect anonymized usage data  and anonymized stacktraces when crashes are encountered.. You may choose to opt out of this collection now (by choosing 'N' at the below prompt), or at any  time in the future by running the following command:

gcloud config set disable_usage_reporting true

Do you want to help improve the Google Cloud SDK (Y/n)?  N

5.2. Modify profile to update your $PATH and enable shell command
completion? (Y/n)?  Y

5.3. Enter a path to an rc file to update, or leave blank to use
[/home/evagabond/.bashrc]: just leave blank and hit enter

Iniitialize SDK

Use the gcloud init command to perform several common SDK setup tasks. These include authorizing the SDK tools to access Google Cloud Platform using your user account credentials and setting up the default SDK configuration.

Once you run the initi command, your default browser will open up and you will be asked to sign into your google account. This will be the account connected to your App Engine and various Google Cloud related services. 

6.1. Open up another terminal and run the following command:

 gcloud init  

6.2 Accept the option to log in using your Google user account:

 To continue, you must log in. Would you like to log in (Y/n)? Y  

For further instructions on initialization you may go through the following Google Documentaiton: http://bit.ly/2gsZdrY

Installing App Engine:

 Once you have successfully performed the installations explained above, you can now install the App Engine by running the following command in your terminal (also refer image below). Make sure you are outside your SDK folder else the command wont execute.

 gcloud components install app-engine-go  

To run App Engin: 

 dev_appserver.py app.yaml  

Helpful Resources by Google:

• Quickstart for Linux: https://cloud.google.com/sdk/docs/quickstart-linux
• Google SDK Documentation: https://cloud.google.com/sdk/docs/
• Concepts: https://cloud.google.com/sdk/docs/concepts
• Managing Cloud SDK Components: https://cloud.google.com/sdk/docs/managing-components
• gcloud component installs: https://cloud.google.com/sdk/gcloud/reference/components/install

Change 'Default Welcome Message' in Magento 2.1.x & Cleaning Cache

This tutorial shows the steps to change the 'Default Welcome Message' as of Magento 2.1.x and also shows how to clear the Magento cache.

Magento 2 CLI/Terminal Commands

Commands for Magento 2x

If you are a Terminal/CLI ninja and have been seeking for nifty CLI commands, head forward!

Note: You may/may not have to enter 'sudo', depending on your folder permission settings. In my case I had to so I have added 'sudo' before each of my command.

>> To view Magento Help Commands: php bin/magento

>> To view Magento Version: php bin/magento --version

>> To REINDEX CACHE: php bin/magento indexer:reindex

>> To Clean Cache: php bin/magento cache:clean

- Cache Options: config , layout , block_html , collections , reflection , db_ddl , eav , customer_notification , full_page , config_integration , config_integration_api , translate , config_webservice

- Cache Options Usage:

• php bin/magento cache:clean
• php bin/magento cache:flush
• php bin/magento cache:enable
• php bin/magento cache:disable
• php bin/magento cache:status

>> Maintenance Mode:

• Sets maintenance mode exempt IPs: php bin/magento maintenance:allow-ips your_ip_address1 ip_address2
• Disable Allowed IPs: php bin/magento maintenance:enable --ip=none
  
• Disables maintenance mode: php bin/magento maintenance:disable 
• Enable maintenance mode: php bin/magento maintenance:enable 
• Displays maintenance mode status: php bin/magento maintenance:status

For more on Maintenance Mode, you may check Magento Guide at: http://devdocs.magento.com/guides/v2.0/install-gde/install/cli/install-cli-subcommands-maint.html

>> Info:

• Displays the Magento Admin URI: php bin/magento info:adminuri 
• Displays the list of available currencies: php bin/magento info:currency:list 
• Displays the list of available language locales: php bin/magento info:language:list 
• Displays the list of available timezones: php bin/magento info:timezone:list

>> Admin Solutions: 

• Change Magento Admin URL/URI: Please check my post at: http://www.evagabond.me/2016/12/change-admin-uri-url-magento-2.html
•  Create Admin User from Terminal in Magento 2.x: http://www.evagabond.me/2016/12/create-admin-user-from-terminal-in.html

>> Module:

 NOTE: If you are disabling a module, first & foremost, check whether the particular module has any circular dependency.

 php bin/magento info:dependencies:show-modules-circular  

 The command above will generate one CSV file, please analyze this and make a decision. The file will be located in your DOCUMENT_ROOT folder bearing the filename 'modules-circular-dependencies.csv'.

Also, while disabling an extension using the command below, it will throw an exception, if it has a circular dependency. - Source: https://magento.stackexchange.com/a/238338/58152

• Disables specified modules: php bin/magento module:disable module_name --clear-static-content
• Enables specified modules: php bin/magento module:enable module_name --clear-static-content
• Displays status of modules: php bin/magento module:status 
• Uninstalls modules installed by composer: sudo php bin/magento module:uninstall

>> Setup:

• Run CRON for Setup Application: php bin/magento setup:cron:run
• Installs and upgrades data in the DB: php bin/magento setup:db-data:upgrade
• Installs and upgrades the DB schema: php bin/magento setup:db-schema:upgrade
• Checks if DB schema or data requires upgrade: php bin/magento setup:db:status
• Generates DI configuration and all missing classes that can be auto-generated: php bin/magento setup:di:compile
• Installs the Magento application: php bin/magento setup:install
• Rolls back Magento Application codebase, media and database: php bin/magento setup:rollback
• Deploys static view files: php bin/magento  setup:static-content:deploy
• Installs the store configuration: php bin/magento setup:store-config:set
• Uninstalls the Magento application: php bin/magento setup:uninstall
• Upgrades the Magento application, DB data, and schema: php bin/magento setup:upgrade

>> Backup:

• Takes BACKUP of Magento Application code base, media and database: php bin/magento setup:backup
•  View various backup options available: php bin/magento| grep backup
•   View various backup options in detail: php bin/magento setup:backup --help

Example to backup both code & data:

 php bin/magento setup:backup --code --db  

Enable/Disable Backup from CLI:

• Enable: php bin/magento config:set system/backup/functionality_enabled 1
• Disable:  php bin/magento config:set system/backup/functionality_enabled 0

>> Theme:
Uninstall Theme: php bin/magento theme:uninstall theme_name

Probably the above method is only applicable to themes that have been installed using composer. For other themes that haven't been installed using composer, please refer to the methods below:

• Unisntalling Magento 2 Theme -- Reference 1
• Unisntalling Magento 2 Theme -- Reference 2

An important point I noticed from Reference 2 was this SQL query:

There is a table in database named as theme.You can use the below code to delete your theme:

 USE dbname;  
 DELETE FROM theme where theme_id=5;  

>> Deploy Static Content for Selected Theme:

NOTE: Executing just the 4th command from the list below, will automatically run all the commands from 1 to 3.

1. php bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy --theme Magento/backend en_US
2. php bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy --theme frontend/Smartwave/porto en_US
3. php bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy --theme Smartwave/porto_child en_US
4. php bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy --theme Smartwave/porto_child

>> Sample Data:

• Deploy sample data modules: php bin/magento sampledata:deploy
• Remove all sample data packages from composer.json: php bin/magento sampledata:remove
• Reset all sample data modules for re-installation: php bin/magento sampledata:reset

>> Magento Mode:

• Display current mode: php bin/magento deploy:mode:show
• Change mode: magento deploy:mode:set {mode} [-s|--skip-compilation]
  where
  {mode} is required; it can be either developer or production
  --skip-compilation is an optional parameter you can use to skip code compilation when you change to production mode.
  Example: php bin/magento deploy:mode:set production -s or php bin/magento deploy:mode:set developer
• Change to production mode: magento deploy:mode:set production
• Change to developer mode: If you’re changing from production mode to developer mode, delete the contents of the var/generation and var/di directories. Run the following command in your Magento Root Directory:
  
  

   rm -rf var/di/* var/generation/* var/cache/* var/page_cache/* var/view_preprocessed/* var/composer_home/cache/*
  

 php bin/magento deploy:mode:set developer 

  or

 php bin/magento module:enable [--force] Magento_Developer  

>> Cron Job Hang/Stuck/Stopped
If your cron job has got stuck or what is also known as hanged, you can run the commands below to resolve the issue. Sometimes, you might have to re-run all the 3 commands, in case the issue doesn't resolve in the 1st attempt:

• php bin/magento setup:cron:run
• php bin/magento cron:run
• php update/cron.php

[SOLVED] - Problem after Updating NVIDIA Drivers in Dell 5558 Laptop using Ubuntu 14.04

Today I was recommended to update my NVIDIA drivers to its latest version nvidia-graphics-drivers-367 package. Once I updated and rebooted my Dell 5558 laptop, using Ubuntu 14.04 I experienced a blank login screen. After some Google searching I found out that probably the Unity Service had failed to load because of driver incompatibility issue.

So the solution I figured out was to switch to terminal from the blank login screen; where I was unable to see nothing. Press CTRL+ALT+F2 to switch to Terminal. Then log into your account and hit the following command to remove the NVIDIA drivers completely from your system:

 sudo apt-get remove --purge nvidia-*  

You should be getting a message as displayed in the image below:

Confirm by pressing 'y or Y' to delete.

Once deleted restart your computer and install the compatible driver version.

In my case I had TimeShift installed which is a software that allows feature just like Windows Restore through which I restored my computer to the state just before it was updated.

Updating PHP 5.5.x with PHP 5.6 or PHP 7.0 in Ubuntu 13.04, 14.04, 15.04

After trying a couple of packages, settings and configuration, finally I seem to have found out a working solution:

1. Update your PPA repository with the  PHP 5.6 package sources:

 sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php

Please note the repository is as stated above and not as:

 ppa:ondrej/php5-5.6 because this has been deprecated where the above PPA is a co-installable one, meaning you can install PHP 5.5, PHP 5.6 or PHP 7.0 as per your requirement.

Press enter to confirm. If you come across any error then you will need to install python-software-properties first as shown below:

 sudo apt-get update  
 sudo apt-get install python-software-properties  

2. Update

Once again update your packages:

 sudo apt-get update  

3. Install PHP 5.6 and its relevant mods:

 sudo apt-get install php5.6 php5.6-mbstring php5.6-mcrypt php5.6-mysql php5.6-xml   
 sudo apt-get install php7.0 # for PHP 7.0   
 sudo apt-get install php5.5 # for PHP 5.5   

4. Disable PHP 5.5:

Now this step is very important else you won't be able to use PHP 5.6. Even when you check your PHP version, it will still display as PHP 5.5. Follow the step below to disable PHP 5.5.

 sudo a2dismod php5  

5. Enable PHP 5.6:

 sudo a2enmod php5.6  

6. Restart Apache web server:

 sudo service apache2 restart  

Note: New location of php.ini file in PHP 5.6:

The location of php.ini fie is changed in PHP 5.6 unlike PHP 5.5 where it used to be located at '/etc/php5/apache2/php.ini'; the new location is at '/etc/php/5.6/apache2'

[[Solved]] - How to Update Eclipse from Terminal or IDE in Ubuntu 12.04, 14.04, 15.04, 16.04

Since I had installed Eclipse manually under '/opt/eclipse/' directory and not from the Ubuntu Software Centre, I couldn't update it from the terminal. Trying to Update Eclipse from the Terminal or within the IDE was giving me several errors such as these:

 Error 1:  
 An error occurred while uninstalling  
 session context was:(profile=epp.package.cpp, phase=org.eclipse.equinox.internal.p2.engine.phases.Uninstall, operand=[R]org.eclipse.platform_root 4.5.1.v20150904-0015 --> null, action=org.eclipse.equinox.internal.p2.touchpoint.natives.actions.CleanupzipAction).  
 Backup of file /opt/eclipse/.eclipseproduct failed.  
 File that was copied to backup could not be deleted: /opt/eclipse/.eclipseproduct 

 Error 2:  
 An error occurred while uninstalling  
 session context was:(profile=epp.package.cpp, phase=org.eclipse.equinox.internal.p2.engine.phases.Uninstall, operand=[R]org.eclipse.rcp_root 4.5.1.v20150904-0015 --> null, action=org.eclipse.equinox.internal.p2.touchpoint.natives.actions.CleanupzipAction).  
 Backup of file /opt/eclipse/readme/readme_eclipse.html failed.  
 File that was copied to backup could not be deleted: /opt/eclipse/readme/readme_eclipse.html 

 Error 3:  
 An error occurred while uninstalling  
 session context was:(profile=epp.package.cpp, phase=org.eclipse.equinox.internal.p2.engine.phases.Uninstall, operand=[R]org.eclipse.rcp_root 4.5.1.v20150904-0015 --> null, action=org.eclipse.equinox.internal.p2.touchpoint.natives.actions.CleanupzipAction).  
 Backup of file /opt/eclipse/readme failed.  
 Permission denied  

Update Eclipse

Looking at the above errors I figured out one of the possible cause was that Eclipse did not have SU (Super User) privilege. So, I executed Eclipse from the terminal giving it Super User privilege. And once in the IDE ran and update from within it. (Look image below)

To run Eclipse with Super User Permission from within the terminal. Launch your terminal with CTRL + ALT + T:

 cd /opt/eclipse  
 sudo ./eclipse  

Updating Eclipse from IDE

Once in Eclipse go to Help > Check for Updates. Now the Eclipse should be updated without any error.

JavaScript Equivalent of PHP's number_format() Function

Today while going through JavaScript I came across a float value and then wanted to truncate it by two decimal places. I knew in PHP we have the number_format() function and this is what I found for Javascript:

yourFloatVarHere.toFixed(2);

Example:

Suppose you have a value say: 0.589723, and you would like to truncate this value to two decimal place.

 var divide;  
 var num_format;  
 divide = 33/86;  
 num_format = divide.toFixed(2);  

33/ 8 = 0.38372093
Since we have truncated our answer to two decimal place, the final answer will be: 0.38

Understanding the Difference Between isset(), empty(), is_empty() and unset() functions in PHP

isset() function in PHP: 

As the name suggests the isset() function in PHP checks whether the variable 'is set' or not. To be more clear this is what happens when this function is called:

•  Returns TRUE if the variable exists; FALSE otherwise. In other words, only variable that don't exist (or, variable with strictly NULL values) will return FALSE in the isset() function. All variable types that have any type of value, whether it is 0, a blank text string, etc. will return TRUE.

empty() function in PHP: 

The empty() function in PHP returns TRUE or 1 in the following cases:

1. if the variable is undeclared
2. if the variable is assigned zero. Example $high = 0;
3.  if the variable is assigned an Empty string or declared NULL. Example: $high= ''; or $high = NULL;

is_null() function in PHP:

As the name suggests, the is_null() function checks whether a variable is NULL or not. This holds TRUE if:

1. variable is not declared
2. variable is declared as NULL. Example: $high = NULL;

Note: '' empty string is not NULL because NULL has no memory allocation, as it has nothing to store, but an empty string does.

unset() 

You can wipe a variable out of existence using unset().

Handy Usage: These functions are handy when you need to make sure that the user filled out the appropriate fields in the form.

Example:

 <?php   
  // Experimenting with isset(), empty() & is_null()   
 // Comment/Uncomment each condition below and test  
  // $high = '';   
  // $high = NULL;   
  // $high = 0;   
  // $high = 'hello';   
  echo '$high = '.$high.'<br />';   
  echo 'isset($high) = '.isset($high).'<br />';   
  echo 'empty($high) = '.empty($high).'<br />';   
  echo 'is_null($high) = '.is_null($high).'<br />';   
  ?>   

>> Last Updated: 2-Mar-2018

Install and Run the MIT App Inventor Emulator in Ubuntu 12, 13, 14, 15 & 16

1. You'll need sudo privileges to do the installation.

Note: The setup programs are 32-bit software. If you have a 64-bit system you may need to install libraries to allow your machine run 32-bit software. One way to do this is to run the command:

 sudo apt-get install lib32z1  

2. If you have previously installed the App Inventor setup software, you should remove those files before installing the new software:

 sudo rm -rf /usr/google/appinventor  
 sudo rm -rf ~/.appinventor  

3. Download the .deb package for the Emulator from the following link: http://appinv.us/aisetup_linux_deb

4. Use the GDebi Package Installer to install the .deb Emulator package. If you don't have the GDebi Installer you can get it from the Ubuntu Software Centre at: http://bit.ly/2c1AlRD

5. The software will be installed under /usr/google/appinventor.

6. Hit Ctrl+Alt+T and fire up your Terminal and change directory as below:

 cd /usr/google/appinventor/commands-for-Appinventor  

7. Once in the appInventor directory enter the following command to finally Run the Emulator:

 ./aiStarter  

8. Now connect the appInventor to the Emulator as shown in the image below:

Click Image to Enlarge

फ्री (FREE) VPN: ल्यांटर्णको (Lantern) फ्री (Free) VPN सेवा चलाउनु होश (Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait र Bahrain)

 

UAE, Qatar, Saudia Arabai, Oman, Bahrain र Kuwait मा बस्नु हुने नेपाली हरुलाई खुसीको खबर!!!

खाडीमा बस्नुहुने नेपालीहरुलाई VPN सेवाको महत्तव थाहा छ नेै, त्यसमा पनि फ्री VPN सेवा।

ल्यांटर्ण (Lantern) भन्ने कम्पनीले ८०० MB सम्म फ्री चलाउन मिल्लने एन्डरोइड (Android ) र कम्प्युटर APP निकालेको छ।

मासिक ८०० MB केवल Viber, Skype चलाउन मज्जाले पुग्छ।

यो APP चलाउन निक्कै सजिलो छ। बस् डाउनलोड गर्नुहोश, ON गर्नुहोश र पर्योग गर्नुहोश।

App OFF:

APP ON:

APP डाउनलोड (Download) गर्ने लिंक:

•  एन्डरोइड फोनमा (Android Phone) प्रयोग गर्न यो लिंकमा क्लिक (click) गर्नुहोश: http://bit.ly/2cMVBk3
• कम्प्युटरमा  प्रयोग गर्न यो लिंक क्लिक गर्नुहोश: http://bit.ly/2cld0yf 

Lanter App को Icon:

Connection सफल भएको संकेत:

Connection बन्द गर्न:

How to List your business in Google Local business/Google Maps [New]

Links used in the video:

• https://business.google.com/add
• https://maps.google.com

What Should You Use, Kazam, Simple Screen Recorder or Vokoscreen for Screencast in Ubuntu/Linux?

Top 3 Screen Recorder for Ubuntu/Linux:

I tried all Kazamm, Simple Screen Recorder and Vokoscreen and this is what I would recommend:

 Kazam

 

If you would want to go with a simple solution then go for Kazam. You simply install the software and sart using it without having to be bothered about much customizations.

To Install Kazam: 

You can install it from the Software Center by checking this link: Download Kazam.

 SimpleScreenRecorder

 

 

SimpleScreenRecorder has much more features and customization compared to Kazam. For detailed configuration option for SimpleScreenRecorder, you may check my other post: SimpleScreenRecorder Configuration.

To install SimpleScreenRecorder:

 sudo add-apt-repository ppa:maarten-baert/simplescreenrecorder  
 sudo apt-get update  
 sudo apt-get install simplescreenrecorder  
 # if you want to record 32-bit OpenGL applications on a 64-bit system:  
 sudo apt-get install simplescreenrecorder-lib:i386  

Note for Audio setting: If you are  using a microphone, then please select the option: 'Built-in Audio Analogue Stereo' as shown in the image below.

Vokoscreen

 

Vikoscreen has similar features as SimpleScreenRecorder. The one feature it stands out from both of the above screen-recorders is it's Webcam option. If you select the 'Webcam' option then you can enable your webcam and simultaneously record yourself along with your screencast.

Note for Audio setting: Same as above.

Install Simple Screen Recorder in Ubuntu 14.04 with Settings Configuration

Open your terminal by entering CTRL+ALT+T and enter the following commands:

 sudo add-apt-repository ppa:maarten-baert/simplescreenrecorder  
 sudo apt-get update  
 sudo apt-get install simplescreenrecorder  

If you want to record 32-bit OpenGL applications on a 64-bit system:

 sudo apt-get install simplescreenrecorder-lib:i386  

For technical settings and configuration, such as audio/video settings, please watch the video below:

Nepali Typing (नेपाली युनिकोड टाइपिङ) Using Unicode in Ubuntu/Windows

युनिकोडमा नेपाली टाइप गर्न keyboard मा enter गर्नु पर्ने keys हरू: 

ठुलो चित्रको लागी माथिको चित्रमा क्लिक (click) गर्नुहोस्।

NOTE/नोट:

• SHIFT+K भनेको तपाइंले computer को keyboard my type गर्नु पर्ने keys हरुको combinatin. 
• SHIFT+K वा SHIFT+C अादी देखदा = SHIFT र K एकसाथमा टाइप गर्नु होला।
• ् = ? press गर्नुस
• । = . (Full Stop)
• ं = SHIFT+M - Example: संयोग
• ँ = SHIFT + V - EXAMPLE: नयाँ 
• English/नेपाली फेर-बदल (interchange) गर्न: Windows Key + Space Bar  

Consonants:
 
 क = K     ख = SHIFT+K     ग = G     घ = SHIFT+G     ङ =  SHIFT+,

च = SHIFT+C     छ = C     ज = J     झ = SHIFT+J     ञ =  SHIFT+Y

ट = Q     ठ = SHIFT+Q     ढ = SHIFT+X     ड = X     ण = N

प = P     फ = SHIFT+P     ब = B     भ = SHIFT+B     म =  M

य = Y     र = R     ल = L     व = V     श =  SHIFT+S

ष = Z     स = S     ह =  H

क्ष = क‌+् (? press गर्नुस)+ष     तर् = त+र+्     ज्ञ = ज+्+ञ

Vowels:

अ = SHIFT+H     आ = SHIFT+A     इ = [     ई = SHIFT+[

उ = F     ऊ = SHIFT+F     ऋ = SHIFT+Z     ए = ]     ऐ =  SHIFT+]

ओ = पहिला SHIFT+H तेस पछि O     औ = SHIFT+O     अं = पहिला SHIFT+H तेस पछि SHIFT+M     अः पहिला SHIFT+H तेस पछि SHIFT+|     ॐ = |   

Numbers:

0 = ०     1 = १     2 = २     3 = ३     4 = ४     5 = ५     6 = ६ 7 = ७     8 = ८     9 = ९ 

How to Type Pi/Phi Symbol in Ubuntu/Eclipse

Follow the instructions below to type the Greek Pi/Phi symbol in Ubuntu:

1. First & foremost turn off your Num Lock.
2. Now type CTRL + SHIFT + U
3. Now you may release the U key & type the following number from your Num Pad 3c0 and then press Spacebar or the Enter/Return key on your keyboard.
4. Now you should see the Pi symobl as π.

Redirecting a Naked Domain (non-www to www) to its WWW Version in Blogger/Blogspot

The steps below explains the procedure to redirect your naked domain to it's 'www version' such as, 'example.com' to 'www.example.com' for blogspot.

I also found an explanation in blogger at http://bit.ly/1TiXBis but that didn't help my case.

So, goto your domain host such as Godaddy or Netfirms. Then open the section called as 'Domain Name System', 'DNS Management' or 'DNS' etc in your Domain Control Panel.

Now look for a section called as Address Record aka 'A Record.'

Then open your terminal or shell and ping your blog address as below:

 ping www.example.com  

After pinging you should get an IP address as: '74.125.200.121'

Copy/Paste this IP address and paste it in the Value box of your A Record as shown in the image below:

Save and exit.

It should work now else please allow sometime, a few hours and check again.

Interpreters and Compilers Explained Simply

Today while trying to recollect the difference between an Interpreter & a Compiler I ran across this classic Computer Science tutorial video series:

Executing Java Program from Ubuntu Terminal

If you want to execute your java program from your terminal in Ubuntu first make sure you have installed any one of the Java packages:

• default-jdk
• ecj
• gcj-4.8-jdk
• openjdk-7-jdk
• gcj-4.6-jdk
• openjdk-6-jdk

To know the differences in each of the above packages, please follow this link: http://bit.ly/24FpTc9

In my case I installed the first package using the following command:

 sudo apt-get install default-jdk  

Now change your directory to the directory containing your Java Program(s). Once done hit the following command to execute your Java Program:

 javac FileName.java  

 java FileName  

Making Drush Work With Both Drupal 7 & Drupal 8

The following solution worked for me when I wanted to make Drush work for both Drupal 7 & Drupal 8:

Upgrading Drush to work with Drupal 8-dev

Steps for Creating SSH Connection in Ubuntu 14.04

1. First you should generate an SSH key pair on your Linux distribution. Open up your terminal and execute the following commands:

 user@localhost: ssh-keygen -t dsa  

 Generating public/private dsa key pair.  

 Enter file in which to save the key (/home/user/.ssh/id_dsa): (just press Enter here)  

 Enter passphrase (empty for no passphrase):  

 Enter same passphrase again:  

Once you've entered the passphrase you will see the following message as below:

 Your identification has been saved in id_dsa.  
 Your public key has been saved in id_dsa.pub.  
 The key fingerprint is:  
 16:8e:e8:f2:1d:c9:b9:cf:43:9a:b3:3c:c1:1f:95:93 user@localhost  

This will create a private key written to /home/user/.ssh/id_dsa and a public key written to /home/user/.ssh/id_dsa.pub. The passphrase is used to protect your key. You will be asked for it when you connect via SSH.

2. If you are using cPanel then log into it and open the SSH section. Then open the file 'id_dsa.pub' in a text editor like Gedit. The file will be located at '/home/user/.ssh/id_dsa.pub.' The '.ssh' directory might be hidden so press 'CTRL+H' to view hidden files & folders. Select ALL & COPY the content of the file inside the box with the label 'Public Key (DSA only):' Look at the image below.

3. Logging in to your Web Hosting account via SSH in Linux:

 user@localhost: ssh-add /home/user/.ssh/id_dsa  

 Enter passphrase for id_dsa:  

 Identity added: id_dsa (id_dsa)  

(The passphrase is the same as the one you have set during the generation of the SSH key in Step 1).

Then you should initiate an SSH connection:

user@localhost: ssh USER@HOST_NAME -pPORT

• USER - the user for which you want to establish the SSH connection; this will be the same username as the one you use to log in to your cPanel.

• HOST_NAME (or IP address) - here you should enter the host/IP of the server to which you wish to connect (e.g. siteground300.com);

• PORT - the port for the connection - here you should enter the port provided by your Web Host; try something like -p18765

Press "Enter" and if everything has been set up properly, you will establish an SSH connection to your account.

Updating PHP & MySQL in Ubuntu 14.04

1. Updating PHP 5.5 to PHP 5.6

To upgrade to a newer version of PHP 5.6 on Ubuntu 14.04, you can use Ondřej Surý's PPA. He is one of the Debian maintainers of the php5 package. Also not that this update will overwrite any change you made to your 'php.ini' files. So, I recommend you make a back up of your 'php.ini' file and later on you can use it as a reference file to make changes in your new 'php.ini' file.

To add the PPA and upgrade your packages, run:

 sudo apt-get install software-properties-common  
 sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php5-5.6  
 sudo apt-get update  
 sudo apt-get upgrade  
 sudo apt-get install php5  

1. Updating MySQL 5.5 to MySQL 5.6

 step 1 : take a backup  
 mysqldump --lock-all-tables -u root -p --all-databases > dump.sql  
 step 2 : remove old mysql  
 sudo apt-get remove mysql-server  
 sudo apt-get autoremove  
 step 3 : install new version of mysql  
 sudo apt-get install mysql-client-5.6 mysql-client-core-5.6  
 sudo apt-get install mysql-server-5.6  
 step 4 : restore your data  
 mysql -u root -p < dump.sql  

3. If error after logging into phpMyAdmin:

If you happen to get an error as below:

'Your PHP MySQL library version 5.5.46 differs from your MySQL server version 5.6.27.....'

Run the following commands:

 sudo apt-get remove php5-mysql  

You might have to reinstall your phpMyadmin.

To reinstall phpMyadmin enter the following commands:

 sudo apt-get install phpmyadmin