How to use the linux terminal to update twitter

Twitter has become an addicting, fun distraction for many of us. But since it’s mostly a text only media, why not tweet while you’re working in the Linux terminal? Score some geek points, and tweet the Linux geek’s way.

Twidge is a simple Twitter client for the Linux command line. There are other command line Twitter clients, but Twidge is simple to use and easy to install, where many others have not been updated since Twitter changed authorization, and therefore do not work. The Twidge project can be found here, at github.

The github wiki page has links to source, Debian and Arch Linux Packages. Choose whichever suits you, suited for whatever distro of Linux you happen to be running. We’ll be downloading the Debian package and installing it into Ubuntu. Here’s two ways to install Twidge.

Option 1: Add Repositories and Install Via Command Line

If you prefer, you can edit your repositories by opening up a Terminal and running:

The current repository you’ll have to add in your sources.list is for “squeeze” the current stable release. Copy it from here, if you dislike typing.

deb squeeze main

Save this repository to your sources.list to be able to download Twidge. In order to install from the command line, run:

$ sudo apt-get install twidge

Twidge will be ready to run. If you prefer to install in a more Windows-user friendly method by downloading the Debian package, read the next step.

Option 2: Download and Install the Debian Package

Assuming you’re using Ubuntu, you should find the links to the Debian packages on the Twidge wiki front page. As of this posting, the current version is “squeeze,” so navigate to that via the link below.

Many different architectures are available. Most readers are probably i386 or amd64, although there’s a good chance most of you Linux geeks already know that. Download the appropriate architecture from any mirror that suits you.

Simply double-click the package to install.

Easy enough. Keep in mind that installing this way means you cannot pull updates from the repository, so if there’s a major update to Twidge, you’ll have to download and reinstall yourself.

Setting Up Twidge

Open up a terminal. We’ll need to run the setup for Twidge, which is a simple, if not obvious command.

Twidge runs an authorization, generating a secure link to a page where Twitter authorizes the application. Click it to open it in your browser.

Another easy step. Input your username and password, and click authorize.

You’ll get a PIN to copy into your terminal where it requests it.

Simply type or paste the key from your browser into your terminal window shown above.

And you’ve set up Twidge. In order to learn the ropes, don’t be afraid to read the man page:

Sending That First Tweet

You can always update your Twitter with your newly authenticated client by using the following command:

And then typing your 140 character update, as shown above.

Likewise, you can check your @replies with the command:

And this is the command to see the most recent updates from your timeline:

However, this is LINUX! Why waste time typing long commands when you can create aliases in your .bashrc file and save yourself the hassle?

alias replies=”twidge lsreplies”

alias recent=”twidge lsrecent”

Then save and close your gedit window. The aliases “tweet,” “replies,” and “recent” will do in place of the normal versions in the man page for Twidge.

Your tweets appear, easily sent via the command line. Enjoy using your Terminal to tell everybody about your breakfast!

Twitter has become an addicting, fun distraction for many of us. But since it’s mostly a text only media, why not tweet while you’re working in the Linux terminal? Score some geek points, and tweet the Linux geek’s way.

Twidge is a simple Twitter client for the Linux command line. There are other command line Twitter clients, but Twidge is simple to use and easy to install, where many others have not been updated since Twitter changed authorization, and therefore do not work. The Twidge project can be found here, at github.

The github wiki page has links to source, Debian and Arch Linux Packages. Choose whichever suits you, suited for whatever distro of Linux you happen to be running. We’ll be downloading the Debian package and installing it into Ubuntu. Here’s two ways to install Twidge.

Option 1: Add Repositories and Install Via Command Line

If you prefer, you can edit your repositories by opening up a Terminal and running:

The current repository you’ll have to add in your sources.list is for “squeeze” the current stable release. Copy it from here, if you dislike typing.

deb squeeze main

Save this repository to your sources.list to be able to download Twidge. In order to install from the command line, run:

$ sudo apt-get install twidge

Twidge will be ready to run. If you prefer to install in a more Windows-user friendly method by downloading the Debian package, read the next step.

Option 2: Download and Install the Debian Package

Assuming you’re using Ubuntu, you should find the links to the Debian packages on the Twidge wiki front page. As of this posting, the current version is “squeeze,” so navigate to that via the link below.

Many different architectures are available. Most readers are probably i386 or amd64, although there’s a good chance most of you Linux geeks already know that. Download the appropriate architecture from any mirror that suits you.

Simply double-click the package to install.

Easy enough. Keep in mind that installing this way means you cannot pull updates from the repository, so if there’s a major update to Twidge, you’ll have to download and reinstall yourself.

Setting Up Twidge

Open up a terminal. We’ll need to run the setup for Twidge, which is a simple, if not obvious command.

Twidge runs an authorization, generating a secure link to a page where Twitter authorizes the application. Click it to open it in your browser.

Another easy step. Input your username and password, and click authorize.

You’ll get a PIN to copy into your terminal where it requests it.

Simply type or paste the key from your browser into your terminal window shown above.

And you’ve set up Twidge. In order to learn the ropes, don’t be afraid to read the man page:

Sending That First Tweet

You can always update your Twitter with your newly authenticated client by using the following command:

And then typing your 140 character update, as shown above.

Likewise, you can check your @replies with the command:

And this is the command to see the most recent updates from your timeline:

However, this is LINUX! Why waste time typing long commands when you can create aliases in your .bashrc file and save yourself the hassle?

alias replies=”twidge lsreplies”

alias recent=”twidge lsrecent”

Then save and close your gedit window. The aliases “tweet,” “replies,” and “recent” will do in place of the normal versions in the man page for Twidge.

Your tweets appear, easily sent via the command line. Enjoy using your Terminal to tell everybody about your breakfast!

I recently switched from Windows server to Fedora 32/33 server running in the cloud. How do I apply software updates and patches on Fedora 32/33 server using the terminal application?

Fedora Linux uses dnf command. It is the next upcoming major version of yum command. Yum is a package manager for RPM-based Linux distributions such as CentOS/RHEL 7.x and older version of Fedora Linux. You need to use the dnf command to update Fedora Linux using terminal for latest software patches. This page explains how to update a Fedora Linux using the terminal.

Updating Fedora using the terminal go get latest software

Let us see all commands in details to update Fedora Linux using terminal to get latest software patches.

Step 1. Open the terminal application

Open the terminal application and then at the bash prompt type the following command to login into remote server:
$ ssh [email protected]

Step 2. Update Fedora Linux using the terminal dnf command

Type the following dnf command and sudo command:
sudo dnf upgrade

The dnf update command will also work. However, it deprecated the alias for the upgrade command. Therefore, I suggest you use the dnf upgrade only.

Step 3. Note down the Fedora Linux kernel version

Type the following command to find our the Linux kernel version:
uname -mrs
Sample outputs:

Step 4. Reboot the Fedora Linux box

Type the following command to reboot the Fedora Linux server/desktop:
sudo reboot
OR
sudo shutdown -r now
Sample outputs:

Step 5. Verify new Fedora Linux kernel

Type the following command after ssh into your Fedora Linux cloud server/desktop:
ssh [email protected]
uname -mrs
Sample outputs:

Step 6. Learning more about the dnf command to update Fedora Linux software

The dnf command also acts as a package manager for Fedora Linux. You can install new software, remove existing software, update specific software, list installed patches and more. Here are some command examples:

How to install new software called htop on Fedora Linux

sudo dnf install htop

Delete/erase an existing software called htop on Fedora Linux

sudo dnf remove htop

List all installed software

sudo dnf list installed| more
To learn more about the dnf command, type the following man command or read the official documentation:
$ man dnf

Conclusion

And there you have it. You just updated Fedora Linux using terminal to get latest software patches. Keeping your software up to date is an essential task to avoid security problems. Hence, regularly run the ‘ sudo dnf upgrade ‘ command.

Want quick and easy access to Linux on your Windows PC? The best option is to use the Windows Subsystem for Linux.

This gives you a Linux bash shell, a terminal window running in Windows. The process essentially installs Linux on Windows 10 – here’s what you need to know.

What Is the Windows Subsystem for Linux?

First included with the 2018 Windows 10 Anniversary Update and rolled out to all users in the Fall Creators Update, Windows Subsystem for Linux lets you run Linux software in Windows 10.

This is a feature that has been built into Windows. Unlike installing Linux in a virtual machine, the Windows Subsystem for Linux can be instantly called from the Start menu.

For this to work, however, you first need to enable the feature.

Once the Windows Subsystem for Linux is installed on Windows 10, you can run Linux in command line mode. This gives you an almost fully functional Linux terminal for Windows 10.

Linux Bash Shell: For 64-Bit Windows 10 Only

Before you get started, make sure you’re running a 64-bit version of Windows 10. Sadly, the Windows Subsystem for Linux will not work on 32-bit systems. Check if your computer is running a 32-bit or a 64-bit version of Windows.

To check your computer for 64-bit compatibility, press WIN + I to open Settings, then System > About. Under “Device specifications” you’ll see the System type listed; for Windows Subsystem for Linux, this should read 64-bit operating system.

If not, you’ll need to upgrade your Windows 10 system from 32-bit to 64-bit. However, this will only work if you have 64-bit hardware.

How to Install Linux Bash Shell on Windows 10

Before proceeding, be aware that some systems cannot have Windows Subsystem for Linux enabled and virtual machines (VM) at the same time. As such, if running Linux in a VM is your preference, you’ll need to disable Windows Subsystem for Linux before using the virtual machine again.

Ready to install Bash on Windows? Start by clicking Start and entering “turn windows”. The Turn Windows Features on or off item should be displayed, so click this to open. Wait while the list is populated, then scroll down to Windows Subsystem for Linux.

This box should be checked. If it isn’t, add a check, then click OK to confirm.

You’ll be prompted to restart Windows, so follow this instruction. Upon restarting, open Start > Windows Store. Use the search tool to find entries relating to “Linux” and select your preferred Linux version to install. Whichever one you choose will determine the Bash experience. For example, you can install Ubuntu on Windows 10.

Install the Linux operating system, then wait. Once complete, click Launch from within the Windows Store or open it from the Start menu. On the first run, you’ll be prompted to input a username and password to create a user account.

Other methods are available to launch your chosen Linux environment. From the Start menu, you can enter:

Both will display as a “Run command” that can be selected to instantly open Bash shell. The difference with using either of these methods is that they open in the /mnt/c/Windows/System32 directory. This means you can browse the System32 subdirectory in Windows 10.

Note that it is not possible to damage Windows 10 using the Linux environment. Any commands you input will damage only the Windows Subsystem for Linux and the chosen operating system. Windows 10 will remain safe and secure.

Also, you no longer need to enable the Windows 10 Developer Mode in Settings to run Bash.

How Does Bash Shell Terminal Differ from the Windows PowerShell?

With the Linux terminal for Windows 10 running, you can input a variety of command line instructions.

But how does this differ from just using the Windows command prompt or PowerShell?

Well, naturally, both systems are quite different. With the PowerShell or command prompt, you’re limited to commands that are particular to Windows. This means, for example, using the dir command to view the contents of a directory; in Linux, the equivalent is ls.

Basically, the differences between Windows and Linux are what sets these two text environments apart. The advantage of having the Bash shell in Windows 10 is that you can easily access Linux within Windows. This saves time to setting up a virtual machine or rebooting into a dual boot installation of Linux.

What Can You Do With Bash in Windows 10?

With the Bash shell set up on Windows 10, you can use it as you would on a Linux PC.

Standard commands like help will show you how to use the preinstalled apps and tools. For example, apt help will demonstrate the usage of the package manager. You can use sudo apt update to get the latest packages, as you would on a Linux PC.

Similarly, the sudo apt upgrade command upgrades Linux to the latest version of the OS.

Meanwhile, other standard commands are available. You can check your network connectivity with ifconfig, check the current directory with pwd, and change to a different directory with cd.

You can also get a quick list of the last 10 inputs with the history command.

In short, it’s just like using Linux within the Windows 10 operating system.

Windows 10 Bash Brings Linux to Any PC

Setting up the Windows Subsystem for Linux and accessing the Bash shell is easy. It’s also quicker than running a virtual machine, and far less complicated than relying on a dual boot.

To recap, all you need to do to run the Linux Bash shell on Windows 10 is:

1. Check you’re using 64-bit Windows 10.
2. Enable Windows Subsystem for Linux in the Windows Features screen.
3. Install your chosen Linux environment from the Windows Store.
4. Run Linux from the Start menu.

From then on, you can use the Linux terminal for Windows for standard command line tasks. Or you might use Windows 10’s Linux subsystem to install a desktop environment.

Meanwhile, almost all Linux commands can be used in the Bash shell on Windows. Bit rusty, or need some help learn some Linux command line tricks.

Whether you’re brand new to Linux, or a seasoned Linux veteran, the command line offers a bevy of uses. Try these tips for mastering the command line.

About The Author

Christian Cawley
(1500 Articles Published)

Deputy Editor for Security, Linux, DIY, Programming, and Tech Explained, and Really Useful Podcast producer, with extensive experience in desktop and software support.

A contributor to Linux Format magazine, Christian is a Raspberry Pi tinkerer, Lego lover and retro gaming fan.

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There are many popular twitter client for ubunu -Linux. But Twidge is one of the popular twitter client, you can install it quickly in a few simple steps and use it to log in to your Twitter account. This article discusses the way in which this Twitter client can be downloaded and installed on an Ubuntu Linux system. It also discusses the procedure in which you can view, send and receive tweets using this client.
There are basically two methods with which you can install Twidge on your Ubuntu Linux system.
1. Using Command Line
2. Using Debian Package
The first method, i.e., the use of command line for the installation of Twidge is quite simple.
You just require editing your system’s repositories, which can be done by typing the following command in the Terminal window:

You would now be required to add ‘squeeze’ in your sources.list.

deb squeeze main

Save the above mentioned repository to sources.list so that you can move to the next step, which would be downloading Twidge.
Now type the below mentioned command in order to install Twidge:

$ sudo apt-get update
$ sudo apt-get install twidge

You can now start using Twitter via Twidge.
The other method, as mentioned above is by installing the Debian package.
You may download the Debian package from web and install it by double clicking on the package.
Once it gets installed, it is time now to set up Twidge.
Type the following command in the terminal window in order to setup Twidge:

Open the Twidge authorization page in your browser. Enter your username and password and click on the authorize button.
Here, you would be given a pin which needs to be entered in the terminal.
This completes the process of setting up Twidge on your system.
You would now like to login to your Twitter account in order to send and receive tweets.
You may type the below mentioned command in order to update your Twitter account.

This would be followed by your message; the length of a message should not exceed 140 characters.
There is a different command for checking the replies. It is:

If you want to see the recent updates from Twitter, you may type the below mentioned command:

In case, you find it difficult to learn and use these commands, you can use aliases for tweeting. Yes, Twidge offers you the option of creating aliases in your .bashrc file. You can save these aliases and tweet easily.

Interested in learning more about Linux administration? Explore these Linux training courses.

Many years ago, when I first began with Linux, installing applications and keeping a system up to date was not an easy feat. In fact, if you wanted to tackle either task you were bound for the command line. For some new users this left their machines outdated or without applications they needed. Of course, at the time, most everyone trying their hand at Linux knew they were getting into something that would require some work. That was simply the way it was. Fortunately times and Linux have changed. Now Linux is exponentially more user friendly – to the point where so much is automatic and point and click¬†that today’s Linux hardly resembles yesterday’s Linux.

But even though Linux has evolved into the user-friendly operating system it is, there are still some systems that are fundamentally different than their Windows counterparts. So it is always best to understand those systems in order to be able to properly use those system. Within the confines of this article you will learn how to keep your Linux system up to date. In the process you might also learn how to install an application or two.

There is one thing to understand about updating Linux: Not every distribution handles this process in the same fashion. In fact, some distributions are distinctly different down to the type of file types they use for package management.

• Ubuntu and Debian use .deb
• Fedora, SuSE, and Mandriva use .rpm
• Slackware uses .tgz archives which contain pre-built binaries
• And of course there is also installing from source or pre-compiled .bin or .package files.¬†

Ubuntu Linux

• apt-get: Command line tool.
• Update Manager: GUI tool.

• Security updates: Daily
• Non-security updates: Weekly

If you want to manually check for updates, you can do this by clicking the Administration sub-menu of the System menu and then selecting the Update Manager entry. When the Update Manager opens click the Check button to see if there are updates available.

1. Check the updates you want to install. By default all updates are selected.
2. Click the Install Updates button.
3. Enter your user (sudo) password.
4. Click OK.

The updates will proceed and you can continue on with  your work. Now some updates may require either you to log out of your desktop and log back in, or to reboot the machine. There are is a new tool in development (Ksplice)  that allow even the update of a kernel to not require a reboot.
Once all of the updates are complete the Update Manage main window will return reporting that Your system is up to date.

Now let’s take a look at the command line tools for updating your system. The Ubuntu package management system is called apt. Apt is a very powerful tool that can completely manage your systems packages via command line. Using the command line tool has one drawback – in order to check to see if you have updates, you have to run it manually. Let’s take a look at how to update your system with the help of Apt. Follow these steps:

1. Open up a terminal window.
2. Issue the command sudo apt-get upgrade.
3. Enter your user’s password.
4. Look over the list of available updates (see Figure 2) and decide if you want to go through with the entire upgrade.
5. To accept all updates click the ‘y’ key (no quotes) and hit Enter.
6. Watch as the update happens.

That’s it. Your system is now up to date. Let’s take a look at how the same process happens on Fedora (Fedora 12 to be exact).

Fedora Linux

• yum: Command line tool.
• GNOME (or KDE) PackageKit: GUI tool.

Depending upon your desktop, you will either use the GNOME or the KDE front-end for PackageKit. In order to open up this tool you simply go to the Administration sub-menu of the System menu and select the Software Update entry.  When the tool opens (see Figure 3) you will see the list of updates. To get information about a particular update all you need to do is to select a specific package and the information will be displayed in the bottom pane.

To go ahead with the update click the Install Updates button. As the process happens a progress bar will indicate where GNOME (or KDE) PackageKit is in the steps. The steps are:

1. Resolving dependencies.
2. Downloading packages.
3. Testing changes.
4. Installing updates.

When the process is complete, GNOME (or KDE) PackageKit will report that your system is update. Click the OK button when prompted.

Now let’s take a look at upgrading Fedora via the command line. As stated earlier, this is done with the help of the yum command. In order to take care of this, follow these steps:

1. Open up a terminal window (Do this by going to the System Tools sub-menu of the Applications menu and select Terminal).
2. Enter the su command to change to the super user.
3. Type your super user password and hit Enter.
4. Issue the command yum update and yum will check to see what packages are available for update.
5. Look through the listing of updates (see Figure 4).
6. If you want to go through with the update enter ‘y’ (no quotes) and hit Enter.
7. Sit back and watch the updates happen.
8. Exit out of the root user command prompt by typing “exit” (no quotes) and hitting Enter.
9. Close the terminal when complete.

Your Fedora system is now up to date.

Final Thoughts

Granted only two distributions were touched on here, but this should illustrate how easily a Linux installation is updated. Although the tools might not be universal, the concepts are. Whether you are using Ubuntu, OpenSuSE, Slackware, Fedora, Mandriva, or anything in-between, the above illustrations should help you through updating just about any Linux distribution. And hopefully this tutorial helps to show you just how user-friendly the Linux operating system has become. 

April 21st, 2021

A year ago at BUILD 2020 we introduced our goal to bring Linux GUI applications to the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) to run Linux GUI applications. We are proud to announce the first preview of this highly anticipated and open source feature! We’ve given this feature the nickname: “WSLg”. Please check out the video below or keep reading to see what you can use this feature for, how it works, and how to install it.

What can I use GUI application support for?

WSL lets you run a Linux environment, and up until this point has focused on enabling command line tools utilities and applications. GUI app support now lets you use your favorite Linux GUI applications as well. WSL is used in a wide variety of applications, workloads, and use cases, so ultimately, it’s up to you on what you’d like to use GUI app support for. Below, we’ve highlighted some key scenarios to help you fall in love with running applications in a Linux environment.

Use your IDE of choice to develop Linux projects

Visual Studio Code has an amazing experience using VS Code Remote to create a way for you to have a full-fledged Linux IDE directly on your Windows machine, keep extensions and settings across both Windows and different WSL distros (you can view our getting started with VS Code tutorial here. WSLg will let you run other IDEs such as gedit, JetBrains based editors, gvim, etc., to test, build, and debug your Linux applications in a performant manner.

Here’s an example of running gedit and gvim to edit Linux files directly in WSL.

Run Linux only applications, or Linux specific use cases like testing

You can use this feature to run any GUI application that might only exist in Linux, or to run your own applications or testing in a Linux environment. This could be incredibly useful for developers who want to test their cross-platform app, as they can now run it directly on Windows 10, and then easily inside of Linux without ever needing to change machines or manage a virtual machine.

Let’s look at an example of running TestCafe Studio in WSL to do some web testing from a Microsoft Edge browser running in Linux.

Build, test and use Linux applications that use audio or the microphone with built in audio support

Linux GUI applications on WSL will also include out of the box audio and microphone support. This exciting aspect will let your apps play audio cues and utilize the microphone, perfect for building, testing, or using movie players, telecommunication apps, and more.

Here’s an example of using Audacity running on Linux to record some audio and play it back.

Bonus: Leverage WSL’s GPU access to run Linux applications with 3D acceleration

As part of this feature, we have also enabled support for GPU accelerated 3D graphics! Thanks to work that was completed in Mesa 21.0, any applications that are doing complex 3D rendering can leverage OpenGL to accelerate these using the GPU on your Windows 10 machine. This will make some of your more complex applications run smoothly, such as running Gazebo, a robotics simulation tool. This experience will soon be included by default with different WSL distributions, however you can gain access to it right away by following the instructions in this blog post to get the right graphics driver and to ensure your distro has a compatible Mesa version..

Below you can see the Gazebo application simulating a robot exploring a virtual cave, as well as the Rviz application visualizing the camera feed of the robot and its laser field sensor’s output. Thanks to GPU accelerated 3D graphics we can run this demo at 60 FPS!

How does this feature work?

From the demos above, you might have noticed we didn’t need to start an X server manually. That’s because with this feature we are automatically starting a companion system distro, containing a Wayland, X server, pulse audio server, and everything else needed to make Linux GUI apps communicate with Windows. After you’re finished using GUI applications and terminate your WSL distribution the system distro will automatically end its session as well.

Like with the rest of WSL plumbing, our intention is for this component to be fully managed and seamless for users. Our intentions are for this system distro to be as invisible to the user as possible, and this is why you won’t see this system distro when you run wsl -l -v . Lastly, we’re excited to present that we are using Microsoft’s CBL-Mariner distribution for this system distro! CBL-Mariner is an internal Linux distribution used traditionally for Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure and edge products and services, and we are now extending its use to support GUI apps inside of WSL. You can view the diagram below to see an overall summary of the architecture of this feature.

For a full in depth view of what we did to make this feature possible and the deep technical details, please view this blog post written by the developers who made this feature possible.

Getting started with this feature

We are starting the rollout of this feature as an initial preview before we fully roll it into the WSL experience. To get started using Linux GUI app support, you’ll need to make sure you’re on Windows 10 Insiders preview build 21364 or higher. If you already have WSL installed, all you need to do is run wsl –update and you’ll be set to use GUI apps. If you don’t have WSL enabled, running wsl –install will install WSLg automatically as part of the initial WSL setup.

You can find the full install instructions at the GitHub repositories’ README: . We also highly recommend that you have GPU compute support enabled in WSL for the best performance, please see this section of the install instructions to see how you can ensure that feature is enabled.

Feedback

Please file any technical issues, or feature requests for GUI application support on the WSLg Github repository. For general WSL issues, please file them at the WSL repository. You can also follow up with me on Twitter @craigaloewen and all WSL team members that are on Twitter using this list. Please stay tuned to this blog for more exciting WSL announcements, and we can’t wait to hear what you think about this new feature.

Cameron Summerson is the Editor in Chief of Review Geek and serves as an Editorial Advisor for How-To Geek and LifeSavvy. He’s been covering technology for nearly a decade and has written over 4,000 articles and hundreds of product reviews in that time. He’s been published in print magazines and quoted as a smartphone expert in the New York Times. Read more.

Starting with version 69, Chrome OS users can use Linux applications. This is a game changer for Chrome OS, as it opens a massive catalog of available software. Here’s how to get started.

Before we get into the details, it’s worth mentioning that Chrome OS version 69 isn’t yet available on the stable channel—it started hitting the beta channel of many Chromebooks the week of August 13, 2018, but is also available on the developer channel. Similarly, Linux apps aren’t yet available for every Chromebook that’s running version 69, either. There isn’t a definitive list available, so your mileage may vary.

To get started, you first need to move over to (at least) the beta channel. We have instructions on how to change channels on your Chromebook if you need them.

Note: You can move to channels with newer versions of Chrome OS (i.e. Stable to Beta) without powerwashing your Chromebook. However, if you want to move back to a more stable channel (i.e. Beta to Stable), you will need powerwash your system.

Once you’ve decided to make the leap to the beta (or even developer) channel, you’re ready to rock and roll with Linux apps.

How to Enable Linux Apps on Chrome OS

To get started, jump into your device’s Settings menu by clicking the system tray and then the “Settings” button. (Note: I’m on the Chrome OS developer channel with the “New System Menu” flag enabled, so the following screenshot may look different than what you have.)

In the Settings menu, scroll down to the bottom. There should be an entry titled “Linux (Beta).” If it’s there, you’re in luck—your device supports Linux apps. Click the “Turn On” button to get everything rolling.

A new window will open that lets you set up Linux. Click the “Install” button to get started installing the Terminal.

It will take a few minutes for the process to complete, so just hang out for a few while it does its thing. When it’s finished, the Terminal will start automatically.

How to Use the Terminal to Install Apps

If you’ve never used Linux before, the thought of having to use the Terminal to install applications can be a bit daunting. But don’t fret—it’s quite simple and uses a very common system called APT.

To get started, let’s update the apt package list to make sure all the newest stuff is available. Type the following command in the Terminal and then hit Enter:

When that’s finished, you’re ready to install your first app.

Since photo editors are one of Chrome OS’ biggest weaknesses, let’s start with GIMP—an open source Photoshop-like editor. Type the following command and then hit Enter:

It will look for a package called GIMP and then tell you how big it is before the installation. You’ll need to press “Y” to confirm you want to install it. From there, just let it do what it does—it may take a while, so grab a coffee.

After the installation, you can go ahead and type “gimp” at the terminal to start the app, but an icon for it should also show up in your app drawer just like anything else you install!

This is pretty much the way you’ll install all your Linux apps, but there’s also another command you should be familiar with:

This command pulls updates for all of your currently installed apps. It’s good to pair this with the update command you used earlier, which you can do pretty easily:

It’s a good idea to run those commands pretty regularly. There’s also another option for installing software: the Gnome Software Center.

How to Install and Use the Gnome Software Center on Chrome OS

Installing the Gnome Software Center is no different than installing any other app with apt. Type the following command and then hit Enter:

Again, hit “Y” when prompted to install the software. It will download all the necessary files to install the Software Center, which will then show up as “Software” in the app drawer.

Linux apps are still very much in beta right now, so I couldn’t get the Software Center to load on my system fully. Instead, I got this:

Still, I was able to search for applications and install from there, which is better than nothing. The experience may be different for you, of course.

But the point remains: the Software Center is, for all intents and purposes, a GUI front-end for apt, which makes it even easier to install software.

Installing Other Types of Applications

Apt and the Software Center aren’t the only ways to install Linux apps on Chrome OS—there are also standalone .deb installers.

In theory, you should be able to easily install a .deb file—which can be likened to a Windows .msi installer—by simply double-clicking the file. This feature hasn’t yet made its way to all Chrome OS devices (even on version 69), so again, your mileage may vary. It isn’t available on my Pixelbook on the Developer Channel running Chrome 69 yet, for example.

Last updated March 9, 2021 By Abhishek Prakash 7 Comments

I have been an Ubuntu user for as long as I remember. I distrohopped a little but keep on coming back to Ubuntu. But recently, I have started using openSUSE to try something non-Debian.

As I keep exploring openSUSE, I keep on stumbling upon things that are slightly different in SUSE-worse and I plan to cover them in tutorials on It’s FOSS.

As a first, I am writing about updating openSUSE system. There are two ways you can do that:

• Using terminal (valid for openSUSE desktops and servers)
• Using a graphical tool (valid for openSUSE desktops)

Update openSUSE via command line

The simplest way to update openSUSE is by using the zypper command. It provides full functionality of patches and updates management. It takes care of the file conflicts and dependency problems. The updates also include Linux kernel.

If you are using openSUSE Leap, use this command:

You may also use up instead of update but I find it easier to remember.

If you are using openSUSE Tumbleweed, use the dist-upgrade or dup (in short). Tumbleweed is rolling release distribution and hence it is advised to use dist-upgrade option.

It will show you the list of the packages to be upgraded, removed or installed.

You’ll be notified if your system requires reboots.

If you just want to refresh the repositories (like sudo apt update), you may use this command:

If you want to list the available updates, you can also do that:

Graphical way to update openSUSE

If you are using openSUSE as a desktop, you’ll have the additional option of using the GUI tools for installing the updates. This tool may change depending on which desktop environment you are using.

For example, KDE has its own Software center called Discover. You can use it to search and install new applications. You can also use it to install system updates.

In fact, KDE notifies you of available system updates in the notification area. You’ll have to open Discover explicitly because clicking on the notification doesn’t automatically take you to Discover.

If you find that annoying, you may disable it using these commands:

I wouldn’t recommend it though. It’s better to get notified of available updates.

There is also the YAST Software Management GUI tool which you can use for more granular control on package managements.

That’s it. It was a short one. In the next SUSE tutorial, I’ll show you some common zypper commands with examples. Stay tuned.

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