[Installation] Long time Mint user

[rdonnelly]

Hi all, I have decided I want to give Kubuntu a try, as Mint is no longer making a KDE version.

I am just starting to teeth and have a few questions.
1 When I do a search in package manager I never get any results, even if I type in a software that I know is there, such a libre.
2 How do I install proprietary Nvidia drivers? In mint there was an app to do this.
3 When I suspend, my screen will not power back on in resume, and I am forced to push the power button and reboot. I am assuming the Nvidia driver may fix this?

Here is my old Mint sig.

Using Mint since 2008
*Mint 18.2 KDE
*ASUS 970 PRO GAMING/AURA AM3+ AMD 970 + SB 950 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1
*AMD FX-8370 with AMD Wraith cooler Vishera 8-Core 4.0 GHz (4.3 GHz Turbo)
*G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB DDR3 SDRAM
*nVIDIA GEFORCE GT 610 2GB

Looking forward to making the move, and Happy New Years to all of you.

[DoYouKubuntu]

Hi there, rdonnelly! Always glad to see another Kubuntu user.

1 When I do a search in package manager I never get any results, even if I type in a software that I know is there, such a libre.

Which package manager are you using? If it's not Synaptic, I highly recommend using it instead. If it's not already installed, you can use Discover, search for "synaptic" and install it from there.

Once inside Synaptic, if you're going to search for something, make sure that you haven't selected any particular category (on the left), unless you're very sure that what you're looking for might be there. For example, if you're looking for LibreOffice programs, don't pre-select a 'games' category! Either be on 'All' or in a specific, appropriate category.

2 How do I install proprietary Nvidia drivers? In mint there was an app to do this.

Yes, there's an app on my new laptop; its program is /usr/bin/nvidia-settings. You should find it, and a bunch of other NVIDIA-related stuff in Synaptic.

3 When I suspend, my screen will not power back on in resume, and I am forced to push the power button and reboot. I am assuming the Nvidia driver may fix this?

Perhaps, perhaps not. Try installing its drivers and tweaking its settings, then let us know if it's still misbehaving.

Looking forward to making the move, and Happy New Years to all of you.

Same to you, and we're glad you're here!

[claydoh]

1 When I do a search in package manager I never get any results, even if I type in a software that I know is there, such a libre.

I'd suggest installing Synaptic, too many packages in Ubuntu's repos seem to miss the appstream data Discover and other 'apps stores' use, compared to old' fashioned package' managers

2 How do I install proprietary Nvidia drivers? In mint there was an app to do this.

In System Settings, there should be a link to the Driver Manager. it can also be found in Discover's settings, in the Software Sources section

3 When I suspend, my screen will not power back on in resume, and I am forced to push the power button and reboot. I am assuming the Nvidia driver may fix this?

Possibly, it is usually a good place to start, for sure. There is always the chance that the newer kernel version in Kubuntu vs Mint 18 could have a regression, but it is probably more likely the driver.

[rdonnelly]

Thanks for the quick help, I will give your suggestions a try!

[Fred47]

Discover search is rather lacking, change to Applications then use libreoffice to find all the packages.

[jglen490]

For me, Discover has two uses. 1) let me know when updates are available. 2) as an absolutely last choice among so many other ways to find packages, including Google searches.

[chimak111]

For me, Discover has two uses. 1) let me know when updates are available. 2) as an absolutely last choice among so many other ways to find packages, including Google searches.

A third use could be to access the "Software Sources" GUI.

(Running `pkexec software-properties-qt` gives me (after providing my sudo password):

$ pkexec software-properties-qt
qt.qpa.xcb: could not connect to display 
qt.qpa.plugin: Could not load the Qt platform plugin "xcb" in "" even though it was found.
This application failed to start because no Qt platform plugin could be initialized. Reinstalling the application may fix this problem.

Available platform plugins are: eglfs, linuxfb, minimal, minimalegl, offscreen, vnc, wayland-egl, wayland, wayland-xcomposite-egl, wayland-xcomposite-glx, xcb.

Aborted (core dumped)
$

[DoYouKubuntu]

Thanks for the quick help, I will give your suggestions a try!

You're welcome! Let us know if you still need help.

[Beerislife]

I install Muon (in KDE Neon) to search for and install packages and Synaptic on the boss's Mint machine.

[rdonnelly]

I will report back once I get a few of the tasks done. Another question is how to change kernels? In mint you could do it through the update app. I am installing Synaptic right now, the same package manager that comes with mint. OTOH, Discover seems to have quite a bit of software, and works well.

[rdonnelly]

I'd suggest installing Synaptic, too many packages in Ubuntu's repos seem to miss the appstream data Discover and other 'apps stores' use, compared to old' fashioned package' managers

In System Settings, there should be a link to the Driver Manager. it can also be found in Discover's settings, in the Software Sources section

Possibly, it is usually a good place to start, for sure. There is always the chance that the newer kernel version in Kubuntu vs Mint 18 could have a regression, but it is probably more likely the driver.

Thanks, I found the driver manager, but any options to select Nvidia are greyed out?

[rdonnelly]

I am inpatient, I got the driver from Nvidia, I will know in a short while if it helps with my system not resuming the display.

Edit: Yes, no more resume problems, so far.

[rdonnelly]

Another question, how do I get Kuser on Kubuntu?

[sithlord48]

It appears to be unmaintained and not have a kf-5 port . Someone needs to port this to KF5.

[rdonnelly]

It appears to be unmaintained and not have a kf-5 port . Someone needs to port this to KF5.

Thank you, is there any other type of user and group manager, or do I have to use the cli?