Fixing Skype 64 Bit (Linux Mint 16)

I kept having this problem installing the 32 bit version of Linux in Linux 64 bit: pusleaudio would never show up is the sound options. To fix it, I ended up installing the i386 version of libpulse

apt-get install libpulse0:i386

It may also be worth trying to run Skype from a terminal using...

PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=30 skype 

If it works, try adding...

Exec=/usr/bin/env PULSE_LATENCY_MSEC=30 /usr/bin/skype %U

... to the 'exec' line in the .desktop file.

Solving the Permissions HDD Fault (Linux Mint 15)

To solve the permissions fault when using the XFCE sensors applet, type into a console...

sudo chmod u+s /usr/bin/hddtemp

... and reboot.

Fixing Blue Tint Video (Linux Mint 13 and Ubuntu 12.04)

Open 'gstreamer-properties' by typing into a terminal...  

$ gstreamer-properties 

 Click on the 'Video' tab. Under 'Default Output' choose the 'Plugin' dropdown and select 'Custom'. Add the following line to the 'Pipeline' box. 

videobalance hue=-1 ! autovideosink

 If that doesn't work, it might be worth turning off  'Xv optimizations'. Under the same tab choose... 

X Window System (No Xv)  

 If this method doesn't work... try the following here.

Installing nVidia GT640 Graphics Driver (Mint 13 and Ubuntu 12.04)

Add the following lines to your repositories list...

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/ubuntu-x-swat/x-updates/ubuntu precise main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/ubuntu-x-swat/x-updates/ubuntu precise main

By doing...

gksudo gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

And then import the GPG key with...

sudo apt-key adv --recv-keys --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com 0x643dc6bd56580ceb1ab4a9f63b22ab97af1cdfa9

Refresh packages list in Synaptic and install.

More here.

Repairing Broken Window Manager (Mint 11)

This appears to be caused by a broken window manager. The top bar of the window vanishes, and your maximise, minimise, close window buttons with it. To fix, type in a terminal...

metacity --replace

Disabling Glitch-Free Mode (Mint 11)

If your sound is choppy, distorted, or drops out when two or more programs are running at once, try disabling glitch-free mode (oh, the sweet irony!) by navigating to /etc/pulse/default.pa and, as root, adding tsched=0 to the end of the "load driver modules" commands. See below. (Bold text for illustrative purposes only.)

### Automatically load driver modules depending on the hardware available
.ifexists module-hal-detect.so
load-module module-hal-detect tsched=0
.else

Turn Off "Fortunes" in Konsole

Type into Konsole.....

kdesudo kate /etc/bash.bashrc

.....then remove (or hash out) the line.....

/usr/bin/mint-fortune

(It's usually the very last entry).

Linux Mint - xorg.conf (Post Refresh Tweaks)

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Configured Monitor"
Vendorname "Generic LCD Display"
Modelname "LCD Panel 1280x1024"
Horizsync 24.0 - 80.0
Vertrefresh 50.0 - 75.0
modeline "640x480@60" 25.2 640 656 752 800 480 490 492 525 -vsync -hsync
modeline "800x600@56" 36.0 800 824 896 1024 600 601 603 625 +hsync +vsync
modeline "800x600@60" 40.0 800 840 968 1056 600 601 605 628 +hsync +vsync
modeline "1024x768@60" 65.0 1024 1048 1184 1344 768 771 777 806 -vsync -hsync
modeline "1280x960@60" 102.1 1280 1360 1496 1712 960 961 964 994 -hsync +vsync
modeline "1280x1024@60" 108.0 1280 1328 1440 1688 1024 1025 1028 1066 +hsync +vsync
Gamma 1.0
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Monitor "Configured Monitor"
Device "Configured Video Device"
Defaultdepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
Virtual 1280 1024
Modes "1280x1024@60" "1280x960@60" "1024x768@60" "800x600@60" "800x600@56" "640x480@60"
EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "glx"
Disable "dri2"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "Configured Video Device"
Driver "nvidia"
EndSection

Section "ServerFlags"
Option "DontZap" "False"
EndSection

Linux Mint - xorg.conf (Prior To Refresh Tweaks)

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Configured Monitor"
Vendorname "Generic LCD Display"
Modelname "LCD Panel 1280x1024"
Horizsync 31.5-64.0
Vertrefresh 56.0 - 65.0
modeline "640x480@60" 25.2 640 656 752 800 480 490 492 525 -vsync -hsync
modeline "800x600@56" 36.0 800 824 896 1024 600 601 603 625 +hsync +vsync
modeline "800x600@60" 40.0 800 840 968 1056 600 601 605 628 +hsync +vsync
modeline "1024x768@60" 65.0 1024 1048 1184 1344 768 771 777 806 -vsync -hsync
modeline "1280x960@60" 102.1 1280 1360 1496 1712 960 961 964 994 -hsync +vsync
modeline "1280x1024@60" 108.0 1280 1328 1440 1688 1024 1025 1028 1066 +hsync +vsync
Gamma 1.0
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Monitor "Configured Monitor"
Device "Configured Video Device"
Defaultdepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
Virtual 1280 1024
Modes "1280x1024@60" "1280x960@60" "1024x768@60" "800x600@60" "800x600@56" "640x480@60"
EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "glx"
Disable "dri2"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "Configured Video Device"
Driver "nvidia"
EndSection

Section "ServerFlags"
Option "DontZap" "False"
EndSection

Solving The Initramfs Problem

Try adding the following to /boot/grub/menu.lst

all_generic_ide

Mounting Partitions (Mint 5.0)

Unlike in Mint 4.0, for some reason the NTFS partitions don't auto-mount on bootup in Mint 5.0. To get them to boot, the easiest solution is to download the "ntfs-config" tool from Synaptic. It's basically a GUI tool that alters the fstab for you.

If however you're happy with editing the fstab, you need to create individual directories first in /media, using......

sudo mkdir /media/nameofdirectory

........and then alter your fstab accordingly. The finished product should look something like this......

proc /proc proc defaults 0 0
# Entry for /dev/sda5 :
UUID=a1f611d0-1cf4-4906-b652-5f851d0b70a6 / ext3 relatime,errors=remount-ro 0 1
# Entry for /dev/sda7 :
UUID=b1fa4d86-0b25-4e96-a331-8a1033b8f647 /home ext3 relatime 0 2
# Entry for /dev/sda6 :
UUID=2294b177-9d7f-4a68-a32a-ff3b8adcbefa none swap sw 0 0
/dev/scd0 /media/cdrom0 udf,iso9660 user,noauto,exec,utf8 0 0
/dev/sdb6 /media/Video ntfs-3g defaults,locale=en_GB.UTF-8 0 0
/dev/sdb1 /media/Archives ntfs-3g defaults,locale=en_GB.UTF-8 0 0
/dev/sdb5 /media/Audio ntfs-3g defaults,locale=en_GB.UTF-8 0 0
/dev/sda1 /media/System ntfs-3g defaults,locale=en_GB.UTF-8 0 0

Incorrect Screen Resolution (Mint 5.0)

There seems to be a problem with the "Heron" release of Ubuntu with regards it accurately detecting screen resolution and monitor type. Using the vesa drivers, the maximum screen size seems to stick at 800x600. After installing the nvidia proprietary drivers and restarting, the resolution if further lessened to 640x480 and the nvidia X-server setting tool is likewise maxed out at 640x480, with no hope of changing anything.

There are a few issues here. Firstly, by default Mint enables Compiz...which makes navigating your way around the nvidia X Server tool virtually impossible, due to it jumping all over the place with every mouse click. If this is an issue for you, first turn off Compiz by choosing "None" under "Visual Effects" in "Appearance".

Secondly, after installing the propreitary nvidia drivers and restarting, type the following into a console.......

gksudo displayconfig-gtk



.....to bring up the "Screen and Graphics Preferences". Under "Screen" choose a suitable monitor type and resolution and under "Graphics Card" choose the nvidia driver and not the "Vesa" driver. "Test" if you like and then hit "OK" if all goes well.