Time Unknown (Entries tagged as hardware)

Kubuntu 8.10 Alternative and P5Q Pro network card

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 08:14:07 +0200

If you are installing Kubuntu 8.10 to a computer having a P5Q Pro (or possibly other type of P5Q) motherboard using the alternative install cd and the installer refuses to find the network card, there is no need to panic. Just install as you would normally, then do

sudo apt-get install linux-generic

which will install the ever so slightly newer version of the kernel. After a boot you'll have network normally.

External monitor goodness

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:53:13 +0300

Seems I ridiculously overestimated the difficulty of getting an external monitor working with my HP NC8230 laptop in Kubuntu. I fiddled with the GUI settings. I fiddled with the xorg.conf. No image. I pressed Fn+F4 (the button for external monitor) till my finger was sore. Only a login screen, then nothing. I asked for help in#kubuntu and they fiddled with the settings with me. Occasionally I got settings that worked worse than my originals and had to revert. I tried displayconfig-gtk with miserable results.

Then I thought to try xrandr --auto and it just worked! Not only did it work, but when I closed my laptop, the image on the external monitor just briefly blinked off and then came back. I'm one happy geek now.

2008-05-02:
Alas, later I discovered this too easy fix might not been all without drawbacks. I needed to switch the video.driver setting in Xine to get video playing work again in Miro and Kaffeine. For Kaffeine it was easy, just modify the settings from within the app, Miro however does not offer a human-writable config file, so I ended up adding --xine-driver=xshm to Miro's flags.

The route to techtoy satisfaction

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 09:41:37 +0300

Most people probably buy a new computer in one go, new monitor, keyboard, components and all. But is this the route to the optimum techtoy satisfaction?

Let's think about the alternative and assume that the current computer is a somewhat old but still functioning laptop. First you might upgrade to a new and fine 24" monitor. It's a pleasurable new toy, though the laptop video card might not be modern enough to use it with the full range of colours. Next you maybe get a new keyboard and a better mouse and enjoy snappier typing and speedier response in gaming. Eventually you get the new main unit, with fancy new CPU, a modern video card and other components, except it has just 2G of memory compared to your planned 4G. The next month or so the rest of the memory gets inserted. At each step you experience some techtoy pleasure.

This gradual approach feels maybe less appealing than the "everything right now" way of getting all you want in one go, but I do think it's likely to provide greater amounts and longer time oftechtoy joy than the one-time joy of getting a totally new system.

Disassembling your ill Roomba

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 12:35:17 +0200

If your Roomba is ill, you might want to disassemble it to see what might cure it... or just two see what makes it tick. I partially disassembled and reassembled our Lo (as in Robot, when said with a Japanese accent) in order to perform some more serious de-dusting. Only afterwards I found a good set of images showing how to do it properly.

Lo did not mind, though. It's now dutifully vacuuming the hallway.

Length does matter

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 22:14:39 +0200

It's true, length does matter - in cables. I need a Schuko (male) to IEC-C5 (male) cable and the shorter the better. Any idea where I could get one?

The thing is, my laptop charger has build-in cable of about 2 metres, so I hardly need 2 metres of cable on top of that most of the time, and all that cable takes bag space, and even adds weight. I could manage with even just 20cm long Schuko (male) to IEC-C5 (male) cable, but the shortest I have been able to find is 1 metre long.

Make your own iPhone killer

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 14:27:40 +0200

If you want to make your own Linux phone, with wifi and gps goodness, EM-X270, a screen and a pretty case might be a really good start. Even X270 on its own looks yummy. I cannot wait to see someone using it.

Dear reader

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 07:15:43 +0200

Do you have hardware that is not completely supported in Linux? Did it's manufacturer release its full specs? If the device is listed on Drivers needed page, the answer is a resounding "No". Contact them today and tell them that you will not continue to buy from them if they will not supply the specs. Then stick to that when it comes the time to buy new hardware.

This kind of consumer-provided pressure is essentially important for getting manufacturers release specs. Without specs driver development for Linux is difficult and slow work. If you care about Linux, let the manufacturers know.

Testing tablet touchscreens

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 07:41:58 +0300

One can test table touchscreens handily with any app that lets the user draw. Just draw black freehand lines, horizontal or vertical, small distance apart (the smaller the better). If some lines come out dashy or dotted, don't stop, just draw the next one at the same distance as before. If you cannot the line at all, draw the next line as soon as you can, in red. The resulting picture, especially if you do both horizontal and vertical versions, is a pretty handy map of your touchscreen sensitivity problems.

The image here is on a borrowed Nokia N770, which has nearly problemfree touchscreen, though some lines failed.
In the previous log entry you can see results of a vertical freehand line test on a more broken touchscreen.

I'd like to see your test result somewhere. Please add a comment with a link.

'New' computer

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 12:22:09 +0200

Somehow adding more disk, more memory and a new version of Kubuntu made my computer feel brand new.

Flick of the thumb

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 11:18:07 +0200

I like my trackball a lot but I have noticed it makes 2 corners out of the four the computer screen has harder to hit than the two others.

Let me demonstrate:
Look at your right hand. Now spread your thumb away from the fingers. Pull it closer to the fingers again. Repeat. Easy, huh?

Next keep the location of your thumb neutral but bend and unbend the top of the thumb. Repeat. Less easy.

La Fonera

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 16:25:00 +0200

The wireless access point device by FON, the La Fonera is really a sight to behold. It's tiny white device, with the smallest transformer I have ever seen, about the size of a mobile phone charger. Even the box it comes in is spectacularly good looking.

La Fonera provides two wireless networks, one for FON use and one for your private use. I haven't tested the range yet, as the weather is not really laptop friendly right now, but the signal seems as good as the one from the DLink device I had before.

The price is very good also. Buying the device means committing to keeping it online for a year but in exchange you get access to any other FON wireless out there.

Just do remember to change the key for the private network after plugging your La Fonera in.

2006-12-01
As some of you might have noticed in the comments, just a day after this post the La Fonera stopped serving either of the networks. Resetting brought them back but then the private network accepted connecting neither with the serial number nor with the WPA key I had set. After further resets the the networks disappeared for good.
Eventually FON sent a courier to pick it up. I'm currently waiting for some word from them about whether they'll send me a new one.

Newbie dance pad considerations

nospam@example.com (Lynoure) — Sat, 04 Nov 2006 10:48:00 +0200

There is more to dance pads than the "soft or hard" angle. In soft pads a firm thick foam is a really nice thing even if it costs a bit extra. Then there is the number of puttons. Most pads have 4 or 8, but unfortunately you need 9 to be able to play both Dance and Pump in Stepmania.