Ubuntu Wiki

• Internet

• This section describes a number of tasks related to the Internet, including how to connect to the Internet, configuring and using a web browser, and using other types of Internet programs.

Connecting to the Internet

Basic Procedure

This section describes the basic procedure for connecting to the Internet.

Note: If you have a wireless connection or connect to the Internet through a modem (including an ADSL modem), and this section does not work, you should read or .

To connect to the Internet:

Wireless Cards

Many wireless cards are automatically detected by Ubuntu during installation. To see if your card is supported, open System->Administration->Networking. If your wireless card is listed, you can follow to connect to the Internet. A complete listing of wireless cards which work with Ubuntu can be found online at the Ubuntu Wiki. Please add your wireless card to the list if it works with Ubuntu.

Note: If your wireless network is protected by WEP encryption, ensure that you specify your network password when configuring your connection. Ubuntu does not automatically support WPA encryption, if you require this, there is a WPA guide on the Ubuntu documentation wiki.

Unsupported Wireless Cards

Some cards may not work automatically with Ubuntu. If this is the case, please look at the Wireless Troubleshooting Guide on the Ubuntu Wiki which is an excellent resource for troubleshooting wireless cards.

If your wireless card does not work with Ubuntu, you may have to do some research in order to activate it. A relatively reliable way of getting a wireless card to work is to use the ndiswrapper tool which allows Ubuntu to use the Microsoft Windows driver for the wireless card. To do this, follow the instructions below in .

All other information regarding wireless networking on Ubuntu is collected at Wireless Networking Central on the Ubuntu Wiki.

Windows Wireless Drivers

Even if your wireless network card does not have a native Linux driver, you may still be able to get it working with ndiswrapper. Ndiswrapper is a Linux module which allows Ubuntu to use the Windows driver for wireless cards (in most cases).

Note: These instructions apply only to the x86 and AMD64 versions of Ubuntu, and not to Ubuntu for Power PC (PPC).

Tip: If you have access to the Internet, you can see if your wireless cards is in the list of cards supported by ndiswrapper on the ndiswrapper website.

To install ndiswrapper, install the package ndiswrapper-utils (see [ghelp:add-applications Add Applications]). This package is provided on the Ubuntu CD. If you have access to the Internet, you can also optionally install a graphical tool, ndisgtk from the Universe repository (see [ghelp:add-applications#extra-repositories ]).

In order to set up ndiswrapper, it is necessary to obtain the Windows driver for your wireless card. Generally, the best way to do this is from the CD supplied with your wireless card. You should copy two files to the same place on your computer, one ending in .SYS and one ending in .INF. If you find any files which end in .BIN, also copy those. If you are not able to find the right files, and have alternative access to the Internet, you may be able to obtain help from the ndiswrapper website.

If you have installed the graphical tool ndisgtk, to set up ndiswrapper, simply select System->Administration-> Windows Wireless Drivers from the menu, and follow the instructions given.

If you have not installed the graphical tool, use this procedure:

You should now be able to connect to the Internet by following the instructions at .

ADSL Connections

All PPPoE and router-style ADSL modems that use an Ethernet connection are supported by Ubuntu, and some USB ADSL modems are supported too.

For a router-style ADSL modem, simply follow

For information on setting up a PPPoE ADSL modem see .

For information on setting up a USB ADSL modem see .

PPPoE Modems

This section is about setting up an ADSL Internet connection using an ethernet PPPoE modem.

You will need to have subscribed to an Internet Service Provider, and your Internet connection must be installed and functional. A "DSL" light on your modem usually shows that the line is synchronized.

You will need your username and password for the account. You must also have an ethernet card connected to your PPPoE modem with the correct type of cable.

Finally, you need the PPPoE package to be installed in order for the following command to work. This package is installed by default, but can be missing if the configuration has been changed. If the following command does not work, you will need to install this package, which can be found on the Ubuntu CD.

To set up the modem:

To start your ADSL connection on demand, in a terminal type:

To stop your ADSL connection, in a terminal type:

USB ADSL Modems

Often parts of ADSL USB modem drivers are proprietary, closed source software, with a restrictive licence, and so the whole driver cannot be supplied with Ubuntu. To get a modem to work with these drivers, you will need to download files from Internet with a computer having a working connection, then transfer the downloaded files to you Ubuntu installation.

Warning: USB is far from the ideal medium for network access, if you have a modem that can connect both via USB and ethernet or a ethernet router, you should use the ethernet connection instead of the USB modem.

Since any USB modem installation will require Internet access to download the necessary proprietary drivers, as well as extensive configuration which is beyond the scope of this guide, all we can do here is to list the USB Modem models known to work with Ubuntu with links to the relevant installation instructions on the Ubuntu community help site.

The installation procedure of USB modems differs depending on the specific make and model of your modem. To identify model of your modem, Note the name and number on the front. Occasionaly you may have to look for a label to discover the exact model. Consult the list below to see which driver your modem requires and note the link.

When you go online to download the necessary drivers, you can access the relevant driver download links from the page with the installation instructions relevant to that model of USB modem.

1. Speedtouch modems:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UsbAdslModem/SpeedTouch

1. Modems using the Analog Devices Inc. eagle-usb I, II or III chipset (such as Sagem Fast 800, Comtrend ct 350 etc.):

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UsbAdslModem/ueagle-atm https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UsbAdslModem/EagleUsb

1. Connexant AccessRunner based modems:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UsbAdslModem/EciAdsl https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UsbAdslModem/AccessRunner https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UsbAdslModem/e-techV2

Dialup Modems

Most dialup modems are not supported by Ubuntu, but drivers can be found that will enable the use of such modems. First you need to identify what chipset your dialup modem is using:

Read this file, it should list what modem chipset you have. Once you are aware of the chipset you have, see [ ] and follow the directions for your modem. More infomation can be found at SettingUpModems on the Ubuntu Wiki.

Configuring a network

There are many ways of configuring and customizing the way your computer behaves on a network.

Browse Network Computers

To view computers on the network, open Places->Network Servers.

You may need to enter a username, password, and domain. You should obtain these from your network administrator.

Change the Computer Name

When connected to a network, your computer can be referred to by its host name. It is possible to change the host name of your computer.

Restart the computer for the change to take effect.

Install a firewall

A firewall protects a computer system from unauthorized access. It is not normally necessary to install a firewall on an Ubuntu system, because access to the system is closed by default. However, if you run any services that let other computers access yours (for example, the Apache web server), it is advisable to install a firewall. Firestarter is a program that lets you control a firewall through a graphical interface.

Monitor network traffic

Etherape displays network activity among different hosts using circles of varying size.

Analyze network traffic

Wireshark is a network traffic analyzer/sniffer that captures packets off the network in real time and displays their contents.

Web browsing

The powerful and secure Mozilla Firefox web browser is included in Ubuntu. Firefox features tabbed browsing, pop-up blocking, built-in search, and live bookmarks. Also supported are popular plug-ins such as Java, Flash, and RealPlayer.

Firefox can be launched by clicking .

Alternative web browsers

As well as the default Firefox Web Browser, Ubuntu also provides a large selection of alternative browsers. A list of some of these is given below:

• Epiphany Web Browser

• Konqueror

• Mozilla Web Browser

• Opera

See [ghelp:add-applications Add Applications] for help on installing new software.

Get plugins for your web browser

A plugin is a small program which extends the capabilities of another program. In the case of web browsers, plugins typically allow the browser to play different types of multimedia or to run small, web-based programs.

To view a list of currently-installed plugins in the Firefox Web Browser, type into the address bar and press .

Quickly install common plugins

It is possible to install a whole set of commonly-used restricted plugins at once, by installing the Ubuntu restricted extras package.

Restricted plugins are those which cannot be distributed with Ubuntu because of legal issues surrounding their use in some countries. Check that you are allowed to use this software before installing it. See the Ubuntu website for more information on restricted software.

As well as plugins and multimedia codecs, Java and a set of Windows fonts will be installed.

The following plugins and codecs are installed by the Ubuntu restricted extras package:

• flashplugin-nonfree

• gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly

• gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse

• msttcorefonts

• sun-java5-jre

• sun-java5-plugin

Audio and video plugins

Many different multimedia formats are used on the Internet, and so you may find that you are unable to play some audio and video files without first installing an appropriate plugin.

See the following articles for information on installing and using multimedia plugins with the Firefox Web Browser:

• [ghelp:musicvideophotos#onlinemedia-plugins Watch videos in a web browser]
• [ghelp:musicvideophotos#video Play movies and videos]

• Firefox Plugins (Ubuntu Community support pages)

• [ghelp:internet#web-plugins-flash Flash multimedia plugin]

• [ghelp:musicvideophotos#onlinemedia-audiostreams Listen to online audio streams] (instructions for installing RealPlayer)

• [ghelp:musicvideophotos#codecs Multimedia codecs]

Flash multimedia plugin

Flash is a proprietary plugin which allows you to watch videos and animations on the Internet.

To view Flash graphics from the Firefox Web Browser:

Installing the package as described above will download and install the plugin. You need an Internet connection for this to work. If, after installing the application, you need to download and install the plugin at a later time, enter the following command in a terminal:sudo dpkg-reconfigure flashplugin-nonfree

Java browser plugin

Some websites use small Java programs, which require a Java plugin to be installed in order to run.

These instructions are for i386 and AMD64 computers only. The plugin is not currently available for other computers.

• If you are using an i386 computer install the sun-java5-plugin package from the repository.

• If you are using an AMD64 computer install the j2re1.4-mozilla.plugin package from the repository.

See [ghelp:add-applications Add Applications] for help on installing new software.

For a more complete Java installation, see [ghelp:programming#java Java].

Send and receive emails

Email is one of the most popular ways to communicate over the Internet. Ubuntu includes all of the tools that you need to send, receive and organize email messages.

Evolution Mail

The Evolution groupware suite can handle all your email, contact lists, tasks and calendar needs. It also can act as a newsreader and also integrates with the Gnome panel clock, giving you one-click access to your task list.

Evolution can be launched by clicking Applications->Internet->Evolution Mail from the desktop menu system.

If you have Evolution installed, you can find a guide to using it in [x-yelp-toc:#ApplicationsInternet the Internet section] of this help.

Alternative Email Clients

You can also use Mozilla Thunderbird for email. To install it, install the mozilla-thunderbird package (see [ghelp:add-applications Add Applications]).

To start Thunderbird, choose Applications->Internet->Thunderbird Mail Client.

To change your preferred email client to Mozilla Thunderbird:

Instant Messaging

Instant messaging (IM) is a way of communicating with friends and family by sending messages to one another over the Internet. Instant messaging happens in real-time, and there is no delay between you typing a message and the other person receiving it.

Gaim is the default instant messenger client in Ubuntu. With Gaim you can talk to people who use AIM/ICQ, Gadu-Gadu, GroupWise, IRC, Jabber, MSN, Napster and Yahoo, and list all your buddies in a single window.

To start Gaim, choose .

There are several extra packages available for Gaim, which add extra features and allow you to change the way Gaim looks:

• gaim-extendedprefs

• gaim-guifications

• gaim-libnotify

• gaim-themes

You will have to use the Synaptic Package Manager to install these packages. See [ghelp:add-applications Add Applications] for help on installing new software.

IRC instant messaging

For users of IRC instant messaging services, an alternative to Gaim is XChat-GNOME. Its features include advanced scripting support (perl and python) and a clean, easy to use interface.

Getting help using IRC instant messaging

One excellent way to get help with Ubuntu or to introduce yourself to IRC is to join Ubuntu's official support channel on .

Other Internet applications

The Internet has much more to offer besides web browsing, email and instant messaging. Ubuntu provides a selection of other applications to help you get the most out of the Internet.

Peer-to-Peer networks

Peer-to-peer (P2P) networks are a way of sharing files, music and videos between people from all around the world.

A popular P2P service is BitTorrent, and BitTorrent capability is included in Ubuntu by default. To use BitTorrent, find a .torrent file online, click on it in the Firefox Web Browser, and the Gnome BitTorrent client should start automatically.

To restart a download from a .torrent file that is already on your computer, double-click on it.

An alternative P2P application is the aMule File Sharing Client.

News Readers

You can automatically receive news updates from the Internet. There are several different types of news service to choose from:

• Usenet is one of the oldest and allows you to discuss news and other topics with people from all around the world. Pan Newsreader is a news reader which works with Usenet.

Install the pan package and then choose Applications->Internet->Pan Newsreader to start using Pan.

• RSS feeds are a popular way of automatically receiving regular news updates and articles. Liferea Feed Reader is an RSS feed reader with many useful features.

Install the liferea package and then choose Applications->Internet->Liferea Feed Reader to start using Liferea.

Design web pages

Ubuntu includes a wide selection of tools to help you design and develop web pages.

NVU Web Authoring System

NVU is a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) graphical web design application, similar to Dreamweaver.

Bluefish Web Development Studio

Bluefish is a powerful editor for web designers and programmers. Bluefish supports many programming and markup languages, and includes many utilities for designers and programmers.