Messages

1

6000 - Tosa / Rom Discussion On Tosa

« on: January 04, 2006, 01:26:11 pm »

I've tried each of the ROMs for the 6000, and have settled on the OZ release candidate, despite the remaining problems. The others, outside of the Sharp ROM, have several problems which are showstoppers for me.

In OZ, the orange line problem is largely gone -- you still see one every so often, but only briefly. The missing keys and problems with authenticated SMTP remain the biggest problems for me, but I can live with them for now. I haven't noticed any sound problems, though (unless it's the double-speed in opieplayer thing, which is easy to fix, and I use XMMS anyway).

In the near future, I'm going to get a development platform set up. Perhaps I can help with some of the OZ kernel problems (my favorite programming is low-level programming).

My second choice would be Guylhem, although the problem with using the on/off button is a big enough deal for me that I ditched it as soon as OZ RC1 came out.

2

Zaurus - pdaXrom / Why Not Use Bittorrent?

« on: January 01, 2006, 01:49:01 pm »

Even for "popular" stuff like Debian and Mandrake, using BitTorrent often results in transfer rates of a few KB/sec[div align=\"right\"][a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=109015\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a][/div]

This has been my experience, too. I only use bittorrent when there's no other option or I'm feeling very patient, as for large files it's often an overnight operation.

On the other hand, it never hurts to have multiple methods of distribution!

3

Security and Networking / An 802.11 Intermittent Failure Solved

« on: December 23, 2005, 04:53:06 am »

I was having strange intermittent problems when using my Zarus with 802.11. It would mostly work, but sometimes communications apps would hang when trying to talk.

The nastiest problem was that I couldn't use TLS with my mailserver -- when I tried, opiemail would hang during the TLS handshake.

The problem turned out to be my access point (I use a Linksys BEF-W11). The access point would sometimes send frames that were too large to fit into the frame size the Z was expecting (1504 bytes, when they should have been 1500). I discovered this when I ran the "dmesg" command on the Z after opiemail hung, so if you suspect something similar is happening, take a look there.

My solution was to add a line to the /etc/network/interfaces file, in the iface wlan0 stanza:

Code: [Select]

iface wlan0 inet dhcp
        #
        # blah blah blah configuration stuff here

        up ifconfig wlan0 mtu 1508   # This is the line I added
This changes the size of the frame the Z expects to 1508. Shouldn't have to do it. It's not the Z's fault. But it makes everything work.

4

General Discussion / Sl-6000 Poll

« on: December 23, 2005, 01:56:32 am »

I love mine, too. This is pretty close to the ideal hardware setup for me. Some of the clamshells come close, too, except that I hate clamshells.

5

6000 - Tosa / I Have A Dilemma.

« on: December 23, 2005, 01:53:32 am »

Hey, Barry, I'm glad someone found my hack useful!

Did opie stop drawing lines on the screen?[div align=\"right\"][a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=108173\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a][/div]

Yes, 3.5.4-RC lost that line problem on the 6000. You can even suspend and resume it without it locking up, so long as you either don't have a CF card in the slot when you do or you don't leave it suspended for more than a few minutes.

6

6000 - Tosa / I Have A Dilemma.

« on: December 21, 2005, 05:24:44 pm »

Have you tried using shell scripts?  I have a lot of those to change between various configurations.
[div align=\"right\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a][/div]

The other day, I posted [a href=\"https://www.oesf.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=16675]my solution to this kind of problem[/url]. Perhaps that will help, or can be easily modified to do what Barry needs? As a bonus, it provides a cheesy GUI interfance so you don't have to use the command line.

7

Angstrom & OpenZaurus / 3.5.4-rc1 Battery Light

« on: December 21, 2005, 05:20:07 pm »

I think this has been the behavior in prior OZ releases as well, but I've forgotten.

When I have the power cord plugged in and the Zaurus is suspended, the battry light stays on even after the battery is fully charged. With other ROMs, the battery light will turn off when the battery is done charging in this circumstance.

I'm worried that perhaps the battery really is continuing to charge for too long in this situation. Does anyone know if this is a valid concern? Should I take the Z out of the cradle when I've gone to bed for the night?

I'm running OZ3.5.4-RC1 on an SL-6000.

8

Angstrom & OpenZaurus / Wifi Profiles Stopgap Solution

« on: December 20, 2005, 03:05:59 am »

Since I can't do without connection profiles for my wifi networking, I came up with a stopgap solution for use while waiting until Opie's Network app does the right thing. Perhaps other people will find it useful too. Here it is.

I'm running OZ3.5.4-RC1 on tosa, but this should work regardless of the platform. It uses opie-sh to provide the GUI, so if you haven't installed it (and why haven't you? It's an excellent tool to slap quickie GUIs onto your shell scripts), then do an "ipkg install opie-sh" before you start.

Step One

Create a file in /opt/QtPalmtop/bin named "wlanchooser.sh", and make it executable:

touch /opt/QtPalmtop/bin/wlanchooser.sh
chmod +x /opt/QtPalmtop/bin/wlanchooser.sh

Edit the file and paste in this script:

Code: [Select]

#!/bin/sh

OPIE_SH=$OPIEDIR/bin/opie-sh
OURNAME="WLAN Chooser"
NETDIR="/etc/network"
DBASEDIR="${NETDIR}/wlanlib"


# ---- Code begins

WLANLIST=`ls -1 $DBASEDIR`
wlanstat=`ifconfig wlan0 2> /dev/null`
  
if [ "x$wlanstat" = "x" ]; then
   command=`echo "$WLANLIST" | $OPIE_SH -g -i -t "Activate which profile?" -l 2>/dev/null`
  
   if [ "x$command" != "x" ]; then
      cp $DBASEDIR/$command $NETDIR/interfaces
      ifup wlan0 | $OPIE_SH -t "${OURNAME} Results" -f
   fi
else
   $OPIE_SH -m -t "$OURNAME" -M "Shall I disconnect the WLAN?" -g
   command=$?
  
   if [ "$command" = "0" ]; then
      ifdown wlan0
   fi
fi

rm -f /tmp/qcop-msg-wlanchooser.sh
Step Two

Create a file in /opt/QtPalmtop/apps/Opie-SH/ named "wlanchooser.desktop":

touch /opt/QtPalmtop/apps/Opie-SH/wlanchooser.desktop

Edit the file and paste this in:

Code: [Select]

[Desktop Entry]
Exec=wlanchooser.sh
Icon=opie-sh/opie-sh
Type=Application
Name=WLAN Chooser
Comment=Choose between wlan configurations
Step Three

Make a new subdirectory:

mkdir /etc/network/wlanlib

Step Four

Copy your existing interface script to the directory, with a new name, such as:

cp /etc/network/interfaces /etc/network/wlanlib/Roaming


That's about it. When you run the chooser, you'll get a list of all the files in /etc/network/wlanlib/ and when you pick one, it will get copied over the top of /etc/network/interfaces. So, create a whole new interfaces file for each different "profile" you want, and save it to /etc/network/wlanlib/ with some descriptive name.

If you run the Chooser when your wlan0 interface is active, you'll get a confirmation box. Confirm and the wlan0 interface will be brought down. (Cancel by tapping on the little 'x'. I really should add a proper button, I guess.)


It's crude, but it works well enough for me. I have three files in wlanlib, named "Roaming", "Home", and "Office".

9

Angstrom & OpenZaurus / Oz 3.5.4 Rc Bug & Work-around List

« on: December 19, 2005, 08:55:41 pm »

Is anyone else having trouble with opie-mediaplayer2? When I use it to play mp3s. it plays them too quickly and at an uneven rate. It doesn't matter where the mp3 is stored (CF, SD, RAM, or over an NFS mount), the effect is the same.

I can stream audio correctly with esd, so the dsp stuff is fine.

If you were paying attention to my last post about fiddling with the libxine version installed  , good for you!  I suspected that right off, so I restored the original installation and have the same problem.

(SL-6000 tosa OZ 3.5.4-RC)

10

General Discussion / Unflashable Zaurus After Nand Recovery

« on: December 18, 2005, 10:10:00 pm »

New test : C+D hold down and reset : both lights mail and power are blinking ...
[div align=\"right\"][a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=107511\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a][/div]

That's a good sign, actually! The blinking lights are a code to tell you that something was wrong with the CF card and it couldn't find all the files it needed to flash. That means that your Z is working well enough to at least do that much, so it probably isn't bricked.

I'm still suspicious of the CF card itself. Perhaps you have or can borrow/buy/steal one that has never been reformatted since it was purchased? That would certainly work, from a filesystem point of view. If that doesn't do it, then there's something wrong with the fileset you're putting on the card (missing files, wrong names, etc.)

11

General Discussion / Unflashable Zaurus After Nand Recovery

« on: December 18, 2005, 04:35:42 pm »

I have reformatted using mkfs.msdos[div align=\"right\"][a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=107497\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a][/div]

I ran into a problem with this recently, perhaps it's the same one. When I formatted the card using mkfs.msdos, the card would not work for flashing on the Z. When I did an fdisk/format of the card from a windows machine, the card worked to flash from. You might try that.

I didn't delve deeply into this because the workaround was easy, but I'm guessing that either the OS type in the partition table was wrong (fixable with fdisk) or that the default format mkfs.msdos uses is one of the newer ones that won't work right, such as FAT32 (in which case there's probably some kind of switch to correct it).

I don't know where to get 5600 factory ROMs, but Google or someone else here can probably help you.

12

General Discussion / Unflashable Zaurus After Nand Recovery

« on: December 18, 2005, 03:02:54 pm »

I assume that you're sure the CF card is formatted FAT16 and that you've named the files correctly? I think you need the rootfs.jffs2 (for OZ3.5.3/4-RC) as well, making four files on your CF. Maybe not, but I always put it on there for good luck.

You might try flashing the original factory ROM back on, to see if the problem is your device or if there's some mistake in your OZ installation procedure.

13

Angstrom & OpenZaurus / Oz 3.5.4 Rc Bug & Work-around List

« on: December 18, 2005, 02:02:14 am »

By the way, do we report problems with the package feed contents to bugs.openembedded? They're not actually OE issues, are they?

For example, on my 6000 when I do an "ipkg upgrade", libxine tries to update, but package "libxine1" prevents it (apparently there's a mistake in the dependencies listed in the feed). The workaround is to:

ipkg remove libxine1
ipkg install libxine
ipkg upgrade

(the package names mislead. "libxine1" = version 1.0-r1 and "libxine" = version 1.0-r2)

Where's the proper place to report this (outside of here, of course!)?

14

Angstrom & OpenZaurus / Oz 3.5.4 Rc Bug & Work-around List

« on: December 17, 2005, 02:53:11 am »

SL6000 - no kernel-module-ipv6 installed (or kernel-module-ip6*)
[div align=\"right\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a][/div]

I'm stuck in this same exact situation (SL-6000, OZ3.5.4RC). I can't find any workaround that will let me run ntpdate.

I noticed that in [a href=\"http://openzaurus.org/wordpress/releases/354/]the release notes[/url], the ntpdate/ipv6 bug is listed as fixed in OE. Is this true? Did the fix perhaps simply not get incorporated into this build?

UPDATE

I'm told this bug has indeed been fixed, but after the RC release. So it should vanish at the next release.

15

6000 - Tosa / Sd Probleme?

« on: June 10, 2005, 07:55:07 pm »

I've been having no end of problems with SD cards as well, and have permanently destroyed two so far. SOmetimes, a card can appear to be fried, but can be recovered using a desktop machine with a card reader, by fdisk-ing and reformatting. I've recovered two SD cards this way (aside from the two I blew up). So I guess I'm running 50-50.

Originally, I had the same trouble as you -- an SD card would work for a little while before becoming corrupted. I came into the habit of issuing "sync" commands regularly and this no longer happens to me -- however, now I'll get SD card corruption if I leave the Z suspended for a long time (overnight will do it). This occurs without fail, every time.

I have no other solutions, but this problem is a showstopper for me -- it renders OZ useless for my purposes. I'm hoping that the next release will fix this.