Nov
26
32bit vs 64bit Ubuntu, that is the question…
Filed Under Hardware | 21 Comments
Recently I’ve seen a good bit of discussion regarding 32bit vs 64bit installations of Ubuntu. We’ve even had long conversations at the office on the matter as well. For a long time I’ve simply installed 32bit on my Core2Duo machine, even though it supports the 64bit installation. I just didn’t see a lot of reason to make the step forward. Well, I thought I’d type up some of my thoughts on the matter and get some of the community thoughts…
32bit Ubuntu
The 32bit Ubuntu definitely get’s the most attention as it applies to the wider user base. There are more packages available for 32bit than there are for 64bit, but that gap is quickly closing. 32bit seems to run well enough on most machines, and a lot of people don’t really see the point for desktop use. I do hear a lot of arguments for 64bit on a server, but for a desktop most people just look the other way.
64bit Ubuntu
The 64bit Ubuntu install base seems to be slowly growing. I am one of the recent “converts” to 64bit Ubuntu. While I don’t immediately see any performance benefit I do see some benefit on principle. In the same way that more attention to an application improves the application, more attention to 64bit improves that platform as well. Basically, I think I’m in the 64bit camp right now simply because I believe it’ll never get “awesome” if nobody uses it, reports issues and resolves those issues.
So far I have not had any show stoppers with my 64bit installation. Everything seems to work the same way it did with 32bit. Again, I don’t think I see much of a performance increase, but on the principle of improving the platform I’ll continue to run it. Issues that were previous show stoppers such as flash not being available are now resolved. While Adobe still does not have a 64bit native flashplayer, Ubuntu 7.10 will auto-wrap the 32bit player for you in 64bit when it is needed for installation. So far I have not run into any missing packages for 64bit, although I’m sure they are out there someplace. Perhaps the more users we got on the 64bit platform the more quickly we’ll find the missing packages. Also, if you have 4G of RAM or more you’ll want the 64bit as it handles that amount of memory better.
I suppose in the end it’ll come down to what the user is the most comfortable with but, again, if you’re already comfortable with potential issues with Ubuntu and feel like you can help improve the platform, why not run 64bit Ubuntu? It’ll only get better if you help us make it better..
Any other thoughts from the community on the topic? Any concerns you’ve run into? Any other pros and cons you might outline? The comment box is down ’bout two inches 
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Nov
25
Extended Video on the Macbook : Xrandr ftw!
Filed Under Hardware, macbook | 4 Comments
Update: I wrote this quite a while ago and never posted it pending more testing. I figure it can be helpful in its current state to more users than just myself. So, in the spirit of release early, release often here are steps that I took for configuring extended display on my MacBook.
Based on the flood of feedback yesterday with suggestions on getting the extended display setup I’m going to attempt to blog what I have figured out. I’m still not 100% on the steps yet but hopefully this’ll help people get started and perhaps work some of the kinks out of the setup. I would like to get a better proper tutorial, but for now I want to get this written down while its fresh in my memory.
- I had some odd issues if both displays were connected at login prior to configuration. Login to your desktop without the external monitor connected. Connect the monitor after you’ve completely logged in.
- Connect the external monitor and generate a new default xorg.conf (sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg).
- Figure out the highest resolution you want between the two screens (1440×900+1280×800 = 2720×1700). Calculate based on what you have. In my case my external does 1440×900. I add that to the 1280×800 of the macbook and get my total.
- Edit your xorg.conf file and add the line to the Section “Screen” > SubSection “Display” area. Add Virtual 2720 1700 (your resolution).
- Log out after saving the xorg.conf file (unplug the external monitor until after you’ve logged back in successfully)
- xrandr –output VGA –auto
- xrandr –output VGA –above LVDS
In further testing I no longer have the issue in step 1, 5 above, but I leave it there as others may have similar problems. In regards to my hardware I am using a MacBook with an onboard intel video card. Card information via lspci output:
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GM/PM/GMS, 943/940GML and 945GT Express Memory Controller Hub (rev 03)
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GM/GMS, 943/940GML Express Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 03)
00:02.1 Display controller: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GM/GMS/GME, 943/940GML Express Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 03)
I now use extended desktop quite a bit and the only “issue” is that compiz-fusion is disabled if the resolution goes this high. Not a big issue, but something to be aware of. I hope this helps some more of you get extended display working. It’s very nice
Nov
24
Disable Bluetooth on Ubuntu 7.10
Filed Under Hardware | 7 Comments
I’ve been troubleshooting some oddities on my machine this afternoon and one thing I’ve done to try and find some conflicts is remove some often unneeded kernel modules. I thought I would outline quickly how to disable and permanently remove the bluetooth module for those that don’t use it. I realize I don’t think I’ve used the bluetooth system on my machine for months, so I may as well just disable the module permanently.
Permanently disable the Bluetooth module
To disable the bluetooth module from being loaded at boot time we’ll need to add it to the system module blacklist. Basically your system keeps a list of modules that need to be blacklisted for various reasons, often those that cause problems, and we’ll add this to that list.
sudo vim /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist
append this line to the end of the file:
blacklist hci_usb
You also may want to turn off the bluetooth services within the desktop as well. Granted they shouldn’t be able to do anything if the module support is not loaded underneath, but it doesn’t hurt.
Disable the bluetooth services
System > Preferences > Sessions should have a listing for the bluetooth service. You may want to uncheck this box or even remove the listing altogether.
System > Administration > Services also contains a listing for starting up the bluetooth system at boot time. You may also want to uncheck this box.
Between blacklisting the module and removing the services from starting up this should disable the bluetooth system on Ubuntu. If you don’t use it, don’t load it. It is just going to take up a bit more of your resources and, for those with laptops, will save power as will if you often go unplugged.
Oct
25
I ordered a new monitor the other day to replace my aging 20″ CRT beast. The thing still works pretty well but I swear it weighs one-hundred pounds. So, I broke down and bought a 19″ LCD that does 1440×900. I figure if I can extend the display that I currently have to an additional 1440×900 I’ll have plenty of screen real-estate to work with.
The thing is I’m having a bit of trouble getting this to do a dual-monitor setup with my macbook. It uses the onboard intel chipset, which I would think would support this type of thing. I’ve never done much with dual-monitor or even video out for that matter so its all a bit new to me. I have tried the screens and graphics application, which really didn’t do what I expected.
If anyone has any tips or links that they can share that will allow me to extend my display (not mirror output) to this device when connected I would be very appreciative.
Sep
8
I wanted to quickly share this link. There is a public poll on Lenovo Blogs asking what distribution the people want.
Here is the link. Go make your voice heard for Ubuntu!
Jun
7
Dialup Networking via Treo 700p and Ubuntu (USB connection)
Filed Under Hardware, Internet | 10 Comments
This tutorial will outline how to connect your Linux machine (probably not distro-specific, but this was tested and created using Ubuntu 7.04) to dial-up networking via a Treo 700p Smart Phone. This method uses USB connection and requires a data plan with your service provider. I use Sprint as they have the cheapest unlimited data plan.
In speed tests over the last few days here I have achieved ~350+kbps up and down speeds. This actually beats some residential DSL speeds that I’ve seen. Not bad. Now for the good stuff…
There are two sections of this tutorial. The first is preparing the phone to share connection to the computer. The second is telling the computer how to connect to the phone. Neither are terribly complicated, just make sure you follow the steps carefully.
Step 1 : Configuring the Treo 700p
From what I understand Sprint changed something since the Treo 650 and now require you to pay extra to share a data connection to your computer. We, of course, don’t want to do that so we’ll use a small piece of third party software to help us share this connection. This application, which you’ll need to install to your Treo 700p is called USB Modem.
I should note that this is not free software and is for-pay software, neither are points that I’m thrilled about but when there aren’t any other tools for the job… (anyone want to reverse engineer some Palm code?)
There is a free trial of that application that will run for 14 days or 30 connections. I’d suggest using the trial to initially set this up and if you find that its something you use go ahead and pay the $24.95 for the full version.
In any event, you’ll want to download the USB Modem application and install the .prc file to your Treo 700p. This tutorial will not outline installing or syncing your PDA. This assumes you already have a method of doing that. Remember to install the application to your phone itself and not a memory card.
After installing the USB Modem application navigate to it on your phone, but do not yet ‘Enable Modem Mode’. We’ll do that in a minute.
Step 2 : Configuring the Linux machine
I should note before I dive into this section that the USB Modem archive also includes instructions for setting up Linux, OS X and Windows. If you have trouble you might want to double check those instructions for more details.
On Ubuntu 7.04 (yet untested on other distributions) you need to manually add a kernel module for the Smart Phone syncing to be properly recognized. You can do this manually (not persistent) by using the command:
sudo modprobe visor
If you would like to make this persistent, which is something I have done, you will want to append a line “visor” to the end of your /etc/modules file. This way the kernel will be watching for a Smart Phone / PDA connection. If you don’t make it persistent you’ll, of course, need to do it manually each time you plan on connecting.
In my situation, using Sprint and an EVDO network, my connection does not require any kind of username and password to connect to the data network. This simplifies the steps a bit, but if your provider needs such information it isn’t too much different. Please refer to the USB Modem instructions for where to add your username and password.
The first step (and simplest way I found to connect) is to copy the connection script from the USB Modem archive to your /etc/ppp/peers/ directory. I used this command (assuming you’ve unzipped the archive to your Desktop):
sudo cp ~/Desktop/drivers/linux/ppp-script-evdo-template /etc/ppp/peers/ppp-script-treo
After you have copied the EVDO template file to the location above you should be ready to make your connection. note: I had to close existing connections (eth0, wlan0, etc) for this to work. Can anyone else verify this?
At this point you’ll want to reach over to your Treo 700p and “Enable Modem Mode”. If you’d like to see that the machine is recognizing your phone you could take a look at /var/log/messages.
Now that the phone is set to “Modem Mode” run the following command on the Linux machine:
sudo pppd /dev/ttyACM0 call ppp-script-treo
This will post some output to the screen and tell you whether or not you’re connecting. If you are assigned a remote and local IP plus primary and secondary DNS you’re most likely connected. You should get your prompt back at this point. Try pinging a location to verify your connection.
ping -c3 google.com
If your ping works you’re set. Enjoy your ppp connection over your phone. Internet wherever you have phone service. w00t! If it didn’t work please leave a comment and we’ll see what we can do for you. (chances are differences in providers, EVDO vs EDGE, etc).
Jun
3
There is some built-in functionality on the MacBook hardware that I have that I have grown accustomed to, but not really enjoyed. It has been one of those slight annoyances–something that you just kind of get used to–although it gets under your skin. Well today I decided I had enough and hunted down the solution. And, as is my nature, I have decided to blog my findings so you won’t have to look as hard as I have.
To reverse the function key behaviour on MacBook and MacBook Pro (I assume) you need to create an entry in one of the files in modprobe.d/. The reason we want to do this is that, by default, the fn key behaviour is already reversed from what you might expect. If there was such a key as fn-lock (think caps lock) imagine that being stuck on all the time. This suggestion will fix that for you.
First, you’ll need to create a new file in the /etc/modprobe.d/ directory. For my machine and for the sake of this tutorial we’ll call that file ‘function’. You might use a command such as:
sudo vim /etc/modprobe.d/function
Within that file you will want to add one of the two below entries depending on your kernel version. (If you are unsure your kernel version run the command ‘uname -r‘ to find out.)
# Reversing the fn behaviour ( >= 2.6.20 kernel)options hid pb_fnmode=2
or
# Reversing the fn behaviour ( < 2.6.20 kernel)options usbhid pb_fnmode=2
After you have pasted in the appropriate entry you may want to restart your machine or try reloading the hid or usbhid kernel module, after which the function behaviour should be corrected.
May
8
I’ve been doing some research this week on getting a better, native driver installed for wireless on my MacBook. Some of you may remember my previous post about getting wireless to work under ndiswrapper, which has been working great so far, but I have been hoping for more.
Digging through the Ubuntu Forums today I ran across a command that I never knew about and thought I would share. It’s helpful in finding and recognizing detected pci hardware on your machine. After running it and listing my pci hardware again things are better recognized and with more detail. The command is:
update-pciids
This will, as the title says, download a newer version of the PCI ID list and give you better output on your recognized hardware. This is particularly helpful for those of you that do work with drivers or, in this situation, try to see if your recognized hardware will be compatible with native drivers or not.
I hope to have a write-up done today or tomorrow on wireless support (including WEP/WPA) for a MacBook without using ndiswrapper. w00t! In the meantime check out that command and see the difference. It’s a tiny app, but cool nonetheless.
May
6
Temporarily Disable Touchpad While Typing
Filed Under Hardware | 11 Comments
I’m still working out a few minor bugs on my Apple MacBook running Ubuntu 7.04 “Feisty” before I write-up my end-all tutorial for Ubuntu on the MacBook. While perusing the Ubuntu Forums this morning I found a nice little hack / script / tool that can help you disable your touchpad while typing. I’m sure many of you have run into the problem of having your touchpad move your cursor while you’re typing and really screw things up. I know it has been a minor annoyance of mine for a while, but this fix seems to do the trick.
note: I have only tested this on my MacBook but I don’t see why it won’t work on any type hardware meeting the minimal requirements.
- You’ll need to have your touchpad enabled
- You’ll need to have “SHMConfig” “on” set in your xorg.conf
If you meet these requirements (pretty simple requirements, I know… and, yes, you should be able to simply add the SHMConfig line if you need to) you’re just about there.
The tool we’re going to use for this is called syndaemon. You may want to “man syndaemon” for more details, but my basic command below should do the trick.
syndaemon -d -t -i 2
- the -d flag tells syndaemon to run all the time and monitor the keyboard
- the -t flag tells it to only disable tapping and scrolling, not pointer movement
- the -i flag is how long (in seconds) to disable the touchpad *after* the last keypress
Basically, if you didn’t follow all of that here is what this does. It launches syndaemon as a daemon to continually monitor input activity. It only disables the tapping and scrolling, but not motion activity (ie; you can still move your mouse but you can’t click or scroll text). Lastly it unlocks that input after only 2 seconds. Update the “2″ to your own preferences if you like.
You could try adding that command to your gnome sessions (System > Preferences > Sessions) to have it load at gnome login, or create a boot time script. I wont go over the boot time script setup here however.
I’d be very interested to know how well that works on other hardware. I don’t see why it wouldn’t but, again, I have only yet tested it on my MacBook and it works just fine. Enjoy.
Mar
12
How To Fix Common Wacom Tablet Issues
Filed Under Hardware | 2 Comments
Based on a comment I had last week concerning the Wacom Tablet support and having done a little research I wanted to offer some resources for getting these tablets going on your Ubuntu machines. Much of this information comes from the Wacom Ubuntu Community pages so please refer to that for more information. It sounds like many of these fixes are very simple and could be updated fairly easily (from what I can tell). If you are having trouble with such a tablet take a look at these suggestions and see if you can get them going. If you are a developer with access to the Wacom packages perhaps you could dedicate a bit of time looking at getting these slightly better supported?
There is a huge amount of instruction on the community page for using these tablets within Ubuntu and its applications. Please refer to the Wacom Support Page for all of those details. Here are also a few links on troubleshooting and seemingly simple fixes:
I hope this’ll help some of you Tablet users get things going better out of the gate. Big thanks go to the Community Docs team and volunteers for getting those steps and fixes documented.
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