Neuros OSD Media Player - Auto Mount Network Shares

Neuros OSD: http://www.neurostechnology.com/

IMPORTANT: Remember to turn off the firewall on the computer with the shares!
(Use Fire Starter and add a rule to allow the OSD access)


Setup Samba
This was basically to allow basic networking and so the script files created using gedit could be copied on to the OSD.
Create Samba user: http://linux.byexamples.com/archives/123/creating-samba-user/
Open terminal and type...

smbpasswd -a username

Telnet into the OSD
Open terminal and type...

telnet
open [IP address]
User name: root
Password: pablod
cd ..
ls

Auto Mount Script
General instructions: http://forums.neurostechnology.com/index.php?topic=7918.0
Specific script I adapted: http://forums.neurostechnology.com/index.php?topic=7918.msg41934#msg41934

Create the script and rc.user files using gedit and copy them to /mnt/OSD folder on the OSD

cp /rc.user /mnt/OSD
cp /mount_script.sh /mnt/OSD

Sharing Files Over A Local Area Network (LAN) - Ubuntu and Windows

Straight forward and clear tutorial for getting files sharing between Ubuntu and Windows machines using Samba: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=202605&highlight=network+sharing

I used this with Ubuntu Gutsy 7.10 and and Vista, and it worked great.

[Edit] Another good tutorial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ad17kma8rNM

Network Printing

Finally got 2 Ubuntu machines sharing a printer over a wireless network using this tutorial: http://www.linuxquestions.org/linux/answers/Networking/Setting_Up_a_Network_Printer_using_CUPS

I had to stop the firewall on the server, using Firestarter, while setting the printer up. I also had to creae a new policy to always allow access to the print server (Ubuntu machine) 0n port 631 from the client machine's IP address.

Once the Ubuntu machine was setup as a server for the printer it took about 5mins to get an Windows XP machine sharing the printer, over the same home network, using this how to: http://www.owlfish.com/thoughts/winipp-cups-2003-07-20.html. The only bits I actually had to use are posted below.

( Note: my network printer address - http://192.168.2.4:631/printers/LaserJet-1018)

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Hostname lookup

Another common step is to ensure that hostname broadcast by CUPS is accessible from the Windows XP machine. If your CUPS machine is accessible using a name rather than just an IP address then you don't need to do anything for this step. If the CUPS machine is not accessible via it's hostname then you need to set a mapping between the CUPS hostname and its IP address in the Windows hosts file. Under WindowsXP the host file is in C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC\HOSTS, in Win2k replace WINDOWS with WINNT. The format is simple:

# Example hosts entry
192.168.0.3 rock

Under some CUPS server configurations you will be able to use the IP address instead of the hostname, but often only a hostname will work.

Postscript Printing

To use a printer queue as a Postscript printer requires a Windows XP Postscript printer driver, such as the built-in MS Publisher Imagesetter or this freely available one from Adobe.

Built-in MS Publisher Imagesetter

To use the MS Publisher Imagesetter driver, use "Add Printer" to add a new network printer, select "Connect to a printer on the Internet..." and enter the URL for your printer queue (e.g. http://rock:631/printers/Epson). When prompted for a driver select a Manufacturer of "Generic" and the Printer "MS Publisher Imagesetter".

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Beyond the Red Line

I came across a new community developed game today, Beyond the Red Line, based on the new (rather than original) Battlestar Galactica TV series. This was exciting as there is a Linux (as well as Windows and Apple) version. I did have a problem running the game tho (on my Toshiba A120 running Ubuntu Feisty Fawn beta - fully updated), so I have documented the solution here for future reference.

Installing the game was easy. Download the Linux install to the desktop (took about 30mins). Then change the permissions of the file so that it is executable - right click on the file, choose the permissions tab and click the "allow executing file as program" check box, and then click close. Then run the install - double click the install file (BtRLDemoInstaller.run) and click "run". After checking the files integrity the install box pops up, then click through the couple of options. install completed.

To run the game pop up Nautilus file manager and navigate to home-directory~/btrl_demo, double click the btrl_demo file (I might have had to make this executable as well!). The game starts - excellent. The problem was when I click on the "Briefing" option the game crashed with the error [Linux] ERROR: "Could not load ABexp04 anim file" at fireball/fireballs.cpp:697. This was solved by checking out the BtRL forums, and following this thread.

Download the file libtxc_dxtn060508.tar.gz (from the bottom of the s3tc page) on to the desktop. Unpacked it with archive manager - double click it and click extract. Then install libtxc_dxtn - pop up a terminal using Ubuntu's main menu Applications>Accessories>Terminal and navigate to the libtxc_dxtn dircetory by typing... cd Desktop/libtxc_dxtn ...and then hit the enter key. Then type the two commands below, hitting enter after each command, to install libtxc_dxtn.
make

make install

That got things going for me. I still have a problem with garbled sound, but I'm working on this!

Installing Ubuntu on a Toshiba Satellite Pro A120

UPDATE: I have since run 7.04 and 7.10and Hardy Heron 8.04 (LTS) and all work perfectly out-of-the-box, including the wireless card and Compiz Fusion (or whatever 3D desktop 7.10 ships with). I NO longer use Automatix as most stuff is installed by default or is as easy to install through Synaptic or Apt.

I recently (Jan 2007) bought a Toshiba Satellite Pro A120 (Part Number: PSAC1E-04V00VEN) and, as I have been using Linux for the last two years and Ubuntu for the past year, the first thing I did was (boot up the system decline the Windows XP license and email Toshiba for a refund) install Ubuntu Edgy 6.10. Here I want to document the process for my own records and for anyone thinking of installing Ubuntu on a Toshiba A120. [EDIT: I had said that the built in wireless card did not work, this was wrong, the card works perfectly - see below]

Introduction
Basically it was a really (really) smooth ride installing Ubuntu, everything worked – Beryl 3D desktop even worked with no configuration once the repositories were added, and Beryl installed. Even the built in wireless card worked.

 

Basic Installation
I downloaded the Ubuntu iso file and burnt it on to a CD using GnomeBaker on my desktop, which is also running Ubuntu. I then booted up my Toshiba laptop with the Ubuntu CD in the CD Rom, making sure that the CD Rom was set as the primary boot device in the BIOS. At the Ubuntu menu I select the "Live CD/Install" option (at this point the hard drive is not effected) and boot in to the Ubuntu live desktop. On the desktop there is an install icon, click this and the install process will start. I went through the few steps, selecting time zone etc, and then left the laptop to install Ubuntu – this took about 15 mins.

 

Useful links

• Get GNU Linux - Trying out the live CD


• Video Tutorial – Installing Ubuntu


• Ubuntu Forums

 

Post Install
Ok, the installation was really straight forward, time to install Automatix and get the wireless network going as well as a few other useful codecs and applications.

 

Installing Automatix
Installing Automatix is a simple as going to the website and downloading the install .deb file. Having downloaded the file double click on it and install Automatix.

 

Setting up the wireless network card
Once installed, start Automatix from the Applications>System Tools>Automatix menu option and select the NDISWrapper from the “Internet” options and click start (you have to be connected to the Internet obviously). Once it is installed, from the main Ubuntu menu bar go to System>Administration>Networking and setup the wireless network settings.

It is also worth installing a bunch of other packages/applications through Automatix, namely Mplayer, GnomeBaker, Google Earth, Multimedia Codecs, AUD-DVD Codecs (to enable watching of DVDs) Thunderbird (email client), Flash Player, Real Player etc.

 

Installing Beryl 3D desktop
Add the Beryl repositories then open System>Administration>Synaptic Package Manager, search for Beryl, select the packages and click “Apply”. Once Beryl is installed open Applications>Accessories>Terminal and type beryl, and Beryl should start. Try holding down Ctrl + Alt and pressing the left or right arrow key! To make Beryl start everytime the laptop is started open System>Preferences>Sessions, click the "Startup Programs" tab, click the "Add" button and type "beryl" (lower case with out the quotations) as the "Startup Command", and you are done.

Games
With the good support for the Intel graphics cards I decided to find out what games run natively under Ubuntu, and was welcomely surprised to find quite a few really good ones

 

Open Arena
I was really please to find that the Quake III engine had been GPL'ed a while back and an open source project had been busy creating an excellent open source version called Open Arena. Having been a huge fan of the original Quake, it was great to be able to download this and have it just work, very smoothly, even getting straight into an Internet game. To start playing Open Arena, download the Linux tar ball, unpack, and double click the "ioquake3.i386" file (I might have had to right click on the file, choose the “Permissions” tab and click the “allow executable” box) and it should fire up – excellent game.

 

PlaneShift
PlaneShift is a open source and free Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMOGPG) that, although I have not had time to get into it, looks really sweet. Well worth a try.

 

Other Games
Other games to try are BZFlag a “free multiplayer multiplatform 3D tank battle game” installable through Synaptic, as well as Globulation 2, LXDoom and Trigger.

 

Windows Games on Linux
To play a good variety of Windows games, for a small price you can purchase TransGames, Cedega. From my limited experience this is an excellent way to get Windows games going on Linux, with lots of titles supported.

 

Linux Game Publishing have a range of titles for sale that are worth looking at as well.

 

Well, hope this helps someone!