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[teapot]

Now as a Linux newbie a question if I may - I've set up Synergy to use my XP keyboard and mouse with the XO and XP machine - I run Synergy re-directed through ssh so the transmitted mouse and keyboard data is encrypted - at least I think it is.

Is there a relatively "easy" way I can check the actual data stream to ensure it is encrypted (creeping paranoia?). I had a look at ettercap and wireshark but both involve a learning curve - if there is no "easy" way to have a look at the data stream and one of these packages is the only way to go then can someone recommend which is the better choice or perhaps recommend another app.

You can use ssh port forwarding, and use 127.0.0.1 as the only address for Synergy connections.

For example:

Server

synergys -a 127.0.0.1 ( on Windows set Synergy server to use loopback interface in "Advanced" options)

Client:

ssh -fL24800:127.0.0.1:24800 server sleep 15 ; synergyc 127.0.0.1

or assuming that it's more convenient to start everything from the server with its keyboard:

Server:

synergys -a 127.0.0.1 (on Windows set Synergy server to use loopback interface in "Advanced" options)
ssh -fR24800:127.0.0.1:24800 client synergyc -d FATAL --display :0 -f 127.0.0.1

ssh will connect to the client box (XO), create a tunnel and run Synergy client on it.

(killall synergyc on the client ends the session).

[jrobbins]

Teapot, my latest report:

GoToMyPC worked to link to my home PC and from there to my office -- but the experience is painful.  Slow (really delayed) typing response, made even slower when double connecting through to my office;  no way that I could figure out to scale the view in a large enough font to read and be able to scroll left and right to see.  The Java Applet that runs (maybe a double applet?) obviously is a lot to ask of the XO's processor.  Now, I have a swap partition set up on my SD card already.  Will a larger swap partition enable Java to run better, or have I found the limit to what the XO is capable of?  Thanks.  JCR

[teapot]

GoToMyPC worked to link to my home PC and from there to my office -- but the experience is painful.  Slow (really delayed) typing response, made even slower when double connecting through to my office; 

How exactly do you connect from home to the office? Do you run mail/web client on the box at home and connect to the servers at work, or do you have another level of remote desktop so you see application running at work from home? VPN should allow you to do the first without the second.

GoToMyPC, though  owned by Citrix, seems to use its own protocol, so you have to use their Java client, however Citrix Metaframe/Presentation Server/XenApp/whatever-they-call-it-now supports remote desktop with a native client (that you already have), so if you have remote desktop server at work, it can be reached from Citrix client for Linux.

It's also possible that your work has SSH server accessible from outside, so you can use it to pass encrypted VNC connection from XO.

no way that I could figure out to scale the view in a large enough font to read and be able to scroll left and right to see.  The Java Applet that runs (maybe a double applet?) obviously is a lot to ask of the XO's processor.  Now, I have a swap partition set up on my SD card already.  Will a larger swap partition enable Java to run better, or have I found the limit to what the XO is capable of?  Thanks.  JCR

Most likely delays and speed are determined by the combination of Java being slow and the fact that every piece of data passing to your home PC and back is both downloaded and uploaded -- and I guess, your home connection is only fast for download. I recommend to look for some way to exclude both Java and connection to home from this -- Citrix remote desktop, VNC over SSH, etc.

[mavrothal]

Also the mic light of the XO stays ON

Edit 3 Un-checking the "V_REFOUT enabled" box in the sound control panel turns-off the light

Hmm this doesn't work with my installation though.

Check the alsa set up. In the terminal type
alsamixer -V all
navigate with the arrow keys to the last entry and set ti to "MM" by pressing "m" (!). Esc to quit.

[mavrothal]

There are some desktop behavior "idiosyncrasies" that I would like to modify if easily possible.

- Files dragged between Desktop and the File System window  are copied instead of moved
- You can not select multiple items on the Desktop by clicking and dragging the  mouse across them.
- Removable media are showing on the desktop but are not mounted unless you double-click or right-click->mount
- Deleting a file in (FAT formatted) removable media, first copies the file to the trash, which can take considerable time for large (eg movie) files or folders with thousand of items. This is not the case if the file is on the desktop or the SD card filesystem.

I do not know if these are limitations of the XFCE desktop or are removed because they impose a burden on the limited XO resources, but if not I would love to change them.

Apparently there is no easy answer, or no one else bothers...

Could at least someone volunteer the names of the linux components responsible for these behaviors so I could more effectively search for answers, since generic searched result to nothing relevant?

Thx

[Dennis]

There are some desktop behavior "idiosyncrasies" that I would like to modify if easily possible.

- Deleting a file in (FAT formatted) removable media, first copies the file to the trash, which can take considerable time for large (eg movie) files or folders with thousand of items. This is not the case if the file is on the desktop or the SD card filesystem.

I may be misinterpreting the above point but here's my take re the purpose and function of "delete to Trash" ...

When I right click a file (not that large) on the desktop and select delete it is moved to the Trash folder as I would hope it would be - same thing happens for the case of removal media. This design protects me from occasional moments of insanity   - i.e.I can undo the insane action of deleting a text file I worked on for the past couple of hours and then discover I didn't want to do that ...

For very large files - that I'm sure I want to delete  -  it's not much to pop open the console and do a remove command. I tried the following and for me it seemed to work well:

rm /media/USB_DRV_2GIG/popeye.ogv

I'm new to Linux so I had to try all of the above to convince myself that it works as described.

PS - I doubt this makes a difference but I'll mention it - my removal media is formatted VFAT not FAT

Also the GUI "file right click and delete" selection when viewing the Trash folder works as a  remove command rather than a move command - so the GUI OS delete is capable of "deleting" a file either way - move  or remove - depending on context.

[mavrothal]

There are some desktop behavior "idiosyncrasies" that I would like to modify if easily possible.

- Deleting a file in (FAT formatted) removable media, first copies the file to the trash, which can take considerable time for large (eg movie) files or folders with thousand of items. This is not the case if the file is on the desktop or the SD card filesystem.

I may be misinterpreting the above point but here's my take re the purpose and function of "delete to Trash" ...

When I right click a file (not that large) on the desktop and select delete it is moved to the Trash folder as I would hope it would be - same thing happens for the case of removal media. This design protects me from occasional moments of insanity   - i.e.I can undo the insane action of deleting a text file I worked on for the past couple of hours and then discover I didn't want to do that ...

For very large files - that I'm sure I want to delete  -  it's not much to pop open the console and do a remove command. I tried the following and for me it seemed to work well:

rm /media/SD_2GIG/popeye.ogv

I'm new to Linux so I had to try all of the above to convince myself that it works as described.

PS - I doubt this makes a difference but I'll mention it - my removal media is formatted VFAT not FAT

Also the GUI "file right click and delete" selection when viewing the Trash folder works as a  remove command rather than a move command - so the GUI OS delete is capable of "deleting" a file either way - move  or remove - depending on context.

Through the years I had the chance to appreciate the usefulness  of "Trash" as well as many recovery utilities...

I'm new to linux too, maybe  that's way I try to avoid the terminal...
In this case  and in terminal analogies my "problem" is this. Looks like that within the file manger  the "mv" command is used while between Desktop and file manager the "cp" command is used.
Deleting  within the system's "hard drive" looks like the "mv" with Trash as destination is used while in removable media the "cp" to Trash followed by "rm" of the original, is used. I guess what I'm looking for is a consistent "mv" equivalent throughout these file movements.
I'll check to see with about FAT32 formated drives. Thx

Edit It is the same for FAT32 and from what I could figure out the problem with the removable media is that the Trash folder is not created on the removable but the "Desktop" one is used. However, ext3 formated usb sticks behave as expected.
This is clearly an issue with this distro since under "normal" Intrepid this is not happening. What is interesting is that even when a .Trash-1000 folder is created in "normal" Ubuntu, it is ignored in the XO-XFCE-Intrepid.

[mavrothal]

- Removable media are showing on the desktop but are not mounted unless you double-click or right-click->mount

Answering one of my questions... Install thunar-volman plugin. Configure it from the Thunar preferences to just mount the volumes and not browse them (open a window) upon insertion (if you prefer them that way).
As a bonus, volman will also auto-mount and open/play, cameras, mp3players, CD/DVD players, PDAs etc, provide it that you have the software needed and is configured appropriately.
3 more to go...

[teapot]

There are some desktop behavior "idiosyncrasies" that I would like to modify if easily possible.

- Files dragged between Desktop and the File System window  are copied instead of moved
- You can not select multiple items on the Desktop by clicking and dragging the  mouse across them.
- Removable media are showing on the desktop but are not mounted unless you double-click or right-click->mount
- Deleting a file in (FAT formatted) removable media, first copies the file to the trash, which can take considerable time for large (eg movie) files or folders with thousand of items. This is not the case if the file is on the desktop or the SD card filesystem.

I do not know if these are limitations of the XFCE desktop or are removed because they impose a burden on the limited XO resources, but if not I would love to change them.

Apparently there is no easy answer, or no one else bothers...

Could at least someone volunteer the names of the linux components responsible for these behaviors so I could more effectively search for answers, since generic searched result to nothing relevant?

In Xfce Thunar is a file manager and xfdesktop handles desktop. In Gnome the same file manager -- Nautilus -- handles desktop and regular file manager UI. Nautilus is larger and slower than Thunar, and requires full Gnome infrastructure, so its absence is one of things that make Xfce faster. xfdesktop behavior is slightly different from the file manager window -- files are copied if dragged to/from it, icons are aligned to a grid, it uses separate font and icons size, multiple icons can be selected with <Ctrl>+<Left Click> (toggle each file) and <Shift>+<Left Click> (range) but not with "rubber band", and it has a background wallpaper image.

Selecting "Desktop" in the file manager (Thunar) gives you a window with content (but not layout) of the desktop directory, so when I want to move things between desktop and other directories, I use file manager's window instead of actual icons on the desktop.

When a file is deleted, it's supposed to be renamed to a file in a trash directory, and specification encourages the use of a directory on the same media, so usually it doesn't require a separate copy operation, however apparently Nautilus uses a directory on removable media while Thunar always moves the file to $HOME/.local/share/Trash. To delete in a file in manager or desktop without moving the file to trash, right click for menu and have <Shift> pressed while selecting "Delete" in the menu.

[Dennis]

 
EDIT - Successful Intrepid Install on SanDisk 8 Gig gig:

I was able to install Ubuntu Intrepid per Teapot's instructions with one exception - I used fdisk and followed the yellow brick road of prompts to create one 8 gig partition - the card, as sold, came with four partitions.

So a class 2 8 gig Sandisk ($29 Can.) seems to work well - if extended use produces any problems I'll post here.

Previous Post....

I'm trying to do an installation on an 8 gig sandisk SDHC - when I enter command:

echo -e ',,L,*\n\n\n' | sfdisk /dev/mmcblk0

I get "Successfully wrote the new partition table

and then on the Re-reading the partition table ... step I am given the message
BLKRRPART Inappropriate ioctl for device

and some business about doing a dd with a bs of 512 which I tried but to no avail

Next

mke2fs -jLOLPCRoot /dev/mmcblk0p1

gives me the message:

The device apparently does not exist

I had an initial issue with the card's r/w tab being in the readonly position - I moved it up towards the contacts and that resolved that problem.

Should the installation commands be different for an 8 gig SDHC? For instance, I read somewhere fdisk is not meant for large partitions - does an 8 gig partition qualify as "large"?

The olpc wiki indicates SDHCs should work with the OLPC sd slot.

Any ideas/suggestions as to what the problem may be? - I have a 2 gig sd sandisk that has intrepid installed on it and it works with no problems at all.

Thanks

[brisalta]

I'm trying to do an installation on an 8 gig sandisk SDHC - when I enter command:

echo -e ',,L,*\n\n\n' | sfdisk /dev/mmcblk0

I get "Successfully wrote the new partition table

and then on the Re-reading the partition table ... step I am given the message
BLKRRPART Inappropriate ioctl for device

and some business about doing a dd with a bs of 512 which I tried but to no avail

Next

mke2fs -jLOLPCRoot /dev/mmcblk0p1

gives me the message:

The device apparently does not exist

I had an initial issue with the card's r/w tab being in the readonly position - I moved it up towards the contacts and that resolved that problem.

Should the installation commands be different for an 8 gig SDHC? For instance, I read somewhere fdisk is not meant for large partitions - does an 8 gig partition qualify as "large"?

The olpc wiki indicates SDHCs should work with the OLPC sd slot.

Any ideas/suggestions as to what the problem may be? - I have a 2 gig sd sandisk that has intrepid installed on it and it works with no problems at all.

Thanks

Avoid Sandisk like the plaque.  They have know problems.  See http://dev.laptop.org/ticket/8987 .  I have used Patriot brand SDHC cards with the XO with no problems at all.  A lot of SDHC cards are known to work, such as Patriot, Lexar, A-data and others.  The one known exception is Sandisk.

[Mike Lee]

brisalta,

Thanks for the advisory on Sandisk. That may explain the hassles I had on my first tryout of On-Disk's Fedora 10 for the XO.

I just got Teapot's Ubuntu 8.10 running OK on a Sandisk Extreme III 4 gig. Maybe I'm on borrowed time. I will look for the Patriot cards.

Mike

[mavrothal]

There are some desktop behavior "idiosyncrasies" that I would like to modify if easily possible.

- Files dragged between Desktop and the File System window  are copied instead of moved
- You can not select multiple items on the Desktop by clicking and dragging the  mouse across them.
- Removable media are showing on the desktop but are not mounted unless you double-click or right-click->mount
- Deleting a file in (FAT formatted) removable media, first copies the file to the trash, which can take considerable time for large (eg movie) files or folders with thousand of items. This is not the case if the file is on the desktop or the SD card filesystem.

I do not know if these are limitations of the XFCE desktop or are removed because they impose a burden on the limited XO resources, but if not I would love to change them.

Apparently there is no easy answer, or no one else bothers...

Could at least someone volunteer the names of the linux components responsible for these behaviors so I could more effectively search for answers, since generic searched result to nothing relevant?

In Xfce Thunar is a file manager and xfdesktop handles desktop. In Gnome the same file manager -- Nautilus -- handles desktop and regular file manager UI. Nautilus is larger and slower than Thunar, and requires full Gnome infrastructure, so its absence is one of things that make Xfce faster. xfdesktop behavior is slightly different from the file manager window -- files are copied if dragged to/from it, icons are aligned to a grid, it uses separate font and icons size, multiple icons can be selected with <Ctrl>+<Left Click> (toggle each file) and <Shift>+<Left Click> (range) but not with "rubber band", and it has a background wallpaper image.

Selecting "Desktop" in the file manager (Thunar) gives you a window with content (but not layout) of the desktop directory, so when I want to move things between desktop and other directories, I use file manager's window instead of actual icons on the desktop.

When a file is deleted, it's supposed to be renamed to a file in a trash directory, and specification encourages the use of a directory on the same media, so usually it doesn't require a separate copy operation, however apparently Nautilus uses a directory on removable media while Thunar always moves the file to $HOME/.local/share/Trash. To delete in a file in manager or desktop without moving the file to trash, right click for menu and have <Shift> pressed while selecting "Delete" in the menu.

Thanks for the info.
So I guess 3 out of 4 are inherited to the xfdesktop/thunar combo. Maybe the next version....
Actually given the size of the XO "hard disk" that can be smaller than the removable media, the only problem can be the deletion of  large files in the removable that can fill up the card and make the XO unusable. Is there a limit (not a warning) on the minimal free space that could override the "deletion" process and will not allow the disk to fill up??

[mavrothal]

 A lot of SDHC cards are known to work, such as Patriot, Lexar, A-data and others.  The one known exception is Sandisk.

I would also stay away from A-data http://www.olpcnews.com/forum/index.php?topic=4053.msg27482#msg27482

[DaWorm]

Success!


I just used a generic local brand 4GB SDHC Class 6 and it just worked. The Sandisk card failed - does not boot at all.