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Which version of Lightning (Linux) is compatible w/ Thunderbird 31.4.0?

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  • Last reply by user1149631

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I have installed via Ubuntu repository Thunderbird 31.4.0. I then installed Lightning 3.3.3 via the Thunderbird add ons menu. Lightning installed, but it doesn't function. My online calendar does not show up and there is an exclamation point next to the calendar name, indicating it's not working.

Any suggestions? I'm new to Linux (Ubuntu), so if the solution requires anything beyond typical install/uninstall, I'd appreciate a detailed explanation.

THANKS

I have installed via Ubuntu repository Thunderbird 31.4.0. I then installed Lightning 3.3.3 via the Thunderbird add ons menu. Lightning installed, but it doesn't function. My online calendar does not show up and there is an exclamation point next to the calendar name, indicating it's not working. Any suggestions? I'm new to Linux (Ubuntu), so if the solution requires anything beyond typical install/uninstall, I'd appreciate a detailed explanation. THANKS

All Replies (20)

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Lightning 3.3.3 is current and the same for me on Ubuntu 14.04. Who is providing your online calendar, and have your followed their setup instructions?

Cheers, Dave

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Modified by user1149631

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Modified by user1149631

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Okay, I think you might have to contact support at kolabnow and see if there is any setup or connectivity issue they are aware of. If/when you find out please let us know. Very interesting looking service, actually.

(BTW, I see an "EDIT THIS POST" button to the upper-right of posts I've made, so it works for me at least.)

Cheers, Dave

(EDIT: Testing the post edit functionality on this forum...)

Modified by davenz

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Modified by user1149631

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I have installed via Ubuntu repository Thunderbird 31.4.0. I then installed Lightning 3.3.3 via the Thunderbird add ons menu.

You're mixing the Ubuntu provided version of Thunderbird with the vanilla Lightning extension from Mozilla, which may cause problems. Either install the vanilla Thunderbird from Mozilla, or install Lightning from an Ubuntu repository.

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Hi 3dme,

Anything is possible, but I can say in a few years of using Ubuntu primarily on the desktop, using Thunderbird via the Ubuntu Software Centre, and Lightning via the Thunderbird add-ons menu, adding a Google Calendar via CalDAV, and subequently via the Provider for Google Calendar add-ons, it's worked out of the box.

(christ1, I've never heard of this scenario before – can you please point to links where this is a confirmed issue and documented, thanks.)

Cheers, Dave

Modified by davenz

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Modified by user1149631

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This site lists compatible versions. https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Calendar/Calendar_Versions There is no Lightning 3.3.4 as far as I can tell.

I have no problems with Lightning here, but I don't use Kolab as calendar server.

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If kolabnow's documentation is incorrect, or if there is a service issue, or if there is some other issue they are aware of but haven't yet communicated, you could spend a long time on this and not get any further. I strongly suggest contacting their support in the first instance (you are a paying customer), and if you don't get any joy, then proceed with manually installing Thunderbird .deb files and separate versions of Lightning and what-have-you. A vendor issue of some sort I suspect is going to be the most likely cause.

Alternatively or in tandem you could try another CalDAV client to see if you can connect to the same calendar.

Cheers, Dave

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I noticed that when I did attempt to install a Linux version through Thunderbird add-ons, they were grayed out.

I don't understand what that means. You can download the latest version of Lightning (not the version provided by Ubuntu) from AMO: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/addon/lightning/

it looks to be Mozilla's way of requiring Ubuntu users to download via the repository.

Mozilla doesn't care whether you use Ubuntu, another Linux distribution or Windows. And Mozilla doesn't require you to download via repository. That's entirely up to you.

Does anyone know of a free service I could use to test this?

Google Calendar

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Modified by user1149631

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Last time I used it, Ubuntu's repository offered a customised version of Thunderbird with the auto update disabled; the expectation was that you'd simply wait for your package manager to offer you any available updates. Enigmail and Lightning are both offered through the repo too. Whilst you can manually download these add-ons from moz, your apt won't know you have done this and will show you an older version number.

I switched to using vanilla Thunderbird et al from the Mozilla sites, and I switched from Ubuntu to Mint because it was too hard to subvert the messy launcher script provided in Ubuntu.

If you just use the repo, you should NEVER get a wrong/incompatible set-up. I suggest you check functionality independently with Google calendar.

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Actually, Mint is based on Ubuntu so shares its strengths and weaknesses. I think I should have said that after some disappointments with Mint, I moved on to LMDE. But I can't recommend this to everyone, especially new users.

For now, I'd suggest you use the Thunderbird and Lightning offered to you via Ubuntu's package manager. Downloading Lightning directly from the Mozilla site is unlikely to offer you any advantages.

One motivation for my move was that to be able to help here, I wanted to be able to use the latest version of Thunderbird. I didn't want to have to wait for the Ubuntu folk to incorporate Thunderbird updates as and when they saw fit.

Also, I had occasional need to revert to an older version, and using the repo didn't allow this.

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