I have recently installed Ubuntu Linux on my Dad’s old laptop using a LiveDrive installation. System details are:

• ubuntu 12.04 LTS
• Toshiba TravelMate 4230
  • Intel® Core™2 CPU T5500 @ 1.66GHz × 2
  • 32-bit
  • 1 GB RAM
  • 314 GB harddrive

On installing some basic essentials I had a few issues that were resolved with the help of some Google searches and helpful postings.

Making the Webcam work with Skype

% sudo gedit /usr/share/applications/skype.desktop

Then replace the line

Exec=skype %U

with:

Exec=bash -c 'LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/libv4l/v4l1compat.so /usr/bin/skype %U'

Downloading and installing the stable release version of Handbrake

% sudo add-apt-repository ppa:stebbins/handbrake-releases
% sudo apt-get update
% sudo apt-get install handbrake-gtk

http://askubuntu.com/questions/107915/how-do-i-download-and-install-handbrake

Getting the required decryption files to play DVD movies

% wget -c http://packages.medibuntu.org/pool/free/libd/libdvdcss/libdvdcss2_1.2.9-2medibuntu4_i386.deb
% sudo dpkg -i libdvdcss2_1.2.9-2medibuntu4_i386.deb

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1737727