several questions; execution of pkgs, printers/scanners, bluetooth

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denny
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Mar 24, 2021 4:17 pm

several questions; execution of pkgs, printers/scanners, bluetooth

Post by denny »

Good evening,

I have installed the 20.01.20 version. I am a linux user and had tried Freebsd years ago and gave up. Ghost seems to fulfill the same function that Manjaro linux does for Arch linux that is, makes the OS accessible to everyday users.

How would like to know how software that is installed from the software station is launched; I can't find any information on this topic. I don't see the pkg which I installed anywhere in the menus, though I see it in a command line listing.

I do not see any information regarding installation of a printer and scanner in ghostbsd(I use a brother printer). I am curious to find out how this is accomplished in an OS claiming to be an everyday desktop OS for the general user.

Along with printers and scanners I would like to know if bluetooth is available; I installed ghost on a lenovo T510 that does not have bluetooth hardware and my bluetooth dongle is not seen by ghostbsd.

I can only praise the developers of Ghostbsd for providing general users like myself a chance to experience BSD. My computer use basically involves web search, wordprocessing,emails,music listening and video viewing and sometimes printing and scanning; that about covers 90% of computer users of desktop OS's I think.

I would like to use Telegraph but I don't know how to use it.

Thank you for assistance in these matters.



Cordially,

denny
Ian_Robinson
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Dec 07, 2019 9:53 am

Re: several questions; execution of pkgs, printers/scanners, bluetooth

Post by Ian_Robinson »

You asked:

1. How would like to know how software that is installed from the software station is launched; I can't find any information on this topic. I don't see the pkg which I installed anywhere in the menus, though I see it in a command line listing.

You probably know that you that to run Software Station, you click the Application Launcher (the "Start Menu"), select System, then System, then Software Station. Enter your password.

Software Station presents a split screen -- on the left are the categories for software. These categories are identical to the programs found in Ports (FreeBSD's original compilation of add-on programs). On the right side of the screen are the list of programs within the category. The checkmark within the blackened box indicates a program is installed. (Note on Ports: The ports for Ghost are modified from FreeBSD, so to install follow the instructions here: https://forums.ghostbsd.org/viewtopic.php?p=9200#p9200.

To install a program within that category, you check the empty box next to it. You can check more than one at a time. When ready to install, click "Apply" in the upper right corner. In my experience, the install routine also produced a menu item and a desktop item when the install finished.

Thus, to launch or start a program, one method is to click on the menu item (i.e., to launch Firefox, it would be StartMenu==> Internet ==> Firefox. A second method would be to click or double-click the program icon on the Desktop. A third method to launch the program would be to click the StartMenu and type the program name into the search box (i.e., Firefox) and press Enter/Return. A fourth method to start a program is to enter a terminal and type the program name followed by Enter/Return.

Further information can be found here: https://wiki.ghostbsd.org/index.php/How_To#Software


You asked:


2. I do not see any information regarding installation of a printer and scanner in ghostbsd (I use a brother printer). I am curious to find out how this is accomplished in an OS claiming to be an everyday desktop OS for the general user.

Re: Printer Installation -- Ghost includes the CUPS printer manager. (CUPS= Common Unix Printing System)

"After the CUPS system has been installed and configured, the administrator can begin configuring the local printers attached to the CUPS print server. This part of the process is very similar, if not identical, to configuring CUPS printers on other UNIX®-based operating systems, such as a Linux® distribution.

Here is a quote from the FreeBSD Documentation called "CUPS on FreeBSD" (https://docs.freebsd.org/en/articles/cups/index.html)

========== Begin Quote ============

"The primary means for managing and administering the CUPS server is through the web-based interface, which can be found by launching a web browser and entering http://localhost:631 in the browser’s URL bar. If the CUPS server is on another machine on the network, substitute the server’s local IP address for localhost. The CUPS web interface is fairly self-explanatory, as there are sections for managing printers and print jobs, authorizing users, and more. Additionally, on the right-hand side of the Administration screen are several check-boxes allowing easy access to commonly-changed settings, such as whether to share published printers connected to the system, whether to allow remote administration of the CUPS server, and whether to allow users additional access and privileges to the printers and print jobs.

"Adding a printer is generally as easy as clicking "Add Printer" at the Administration screen of the CUPS web interface, or clicking one of the "New Printers Found" buttons also at the Administration screen. When presented with the "Device" drop-down box, simply select the desired locally-attached printer, and then continue through the process. If one has added the print/gutenprint-cups or print/hplip ports or packages as referenced above, then additional print drivers will be available in the subsequent screens that might provide more stability or features."

========== End Quote ============


Here is what to do:

Click the Application Launcher (Start Menu), type CUPS in the search box, then Enter/Return. CUPS launches in a browser window.

Next, click Add Printer.

Next select the type-of-connection, assign a name, choose a manufacturer, model, and font preference (i.e., HP LaserJet 4500/Gutenprint) for your printer and click the "Add Printer" button. Be precise in selecting the driver that matches your printer.

For the Scanner -- maybe someone else can jump in, but have you tried looking into the FreeBSD Handbook?

https://docs.freebsd.org/en_US.ISO8859- ... index.html (The entire handbook)
https://docs.freebsd.org/en_US.ISO8859- ... nners.html (The scanner section from the handbook)

You asked:

3. I would like to use Telegraph but I don't know how to use it.

Do you mean Telegram? GhostBSD uses it for user-provided support. It's available for cell phones, tablets, and computers. A good start would be to check out the Telegram FAQ at https://telegram.org/faq.



In closing, GhostBSD is an easy-to-use desktop for day-to-day tasks like you use. One can say the same thing about Windows. In either case, the user must invest his or her time into learning how the system works. Linux users should generally adapt quickly.

Problems and confusion often occur because Windows users have not learned the vocabulary. For example, in Windows the most powerful user is the Administrator, but in BSD (and Linux) the most powerful user is known as root. BSD disks don't necessarily use "partitions"; they use "slices." Windows often does not care if you type with upper case or lower case or mixed letters. BSD & Linux cares a lot. BSD users learn to use the "command line interface" in a DOS-looking program called the "terminal," but that requires knowledge built from time and study.

If one does not have the knowledge, it is necessary to "look it up." Let me apply the expression, "God helps those who help themselves." FreeBSD users often use the incredibly useful handbook referenced above. It's often the first place to go when a question or problem arises. You can download the entire handbook in pdf or text versions that will let you search by words or phrases. Do an internet search on your problem. The answers are there. FreeBSD, the operating system underlying GhostBSD, is like an F-1 racing car. Spend the time learning how to use it so that you will enjoy it and put great value in the acquired knowledge.
grahamperrin
Posts: 105
Joined: Sun Sep 04, 2016 6:06 am

Bluetooth dongle not seen with GhostBSD

Post by grahamperrin »

denny wrote: Wed Mar 24, 2021 4:52 pm … bluetooth dongle is not seen …
Please, is this still true with the most recent release of GhostBSD?

Cross-reference: https://forums.ghostbsd.org/viewtopic.p ... 247#p10247
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