antiX-14R-alpha1-full-386 available - Page 2

rokytnji · posted: 2014-04-23 17:33

Well, my usb drive did not like my Emachine 3507 AntiX 11 box either.
Boot meesage ="Boot Error"

So I moved on to the Samsung RV510 Laptop. Boots OK on it.

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demo@antix1:~
$ inxi -Fxz
System:    Host: antix1 Kernel: 3.14.1-antix.1-486-smp i686 (32 bit gcc: 4.8.2) 
           Desktop: IceWM 1.3.7 
           Distro: antiX-14R-alpha1_386-full Killah P 21 April 2014 
Machine:   Mobo: SAMSUNG model: RV410/RV510/S3510/E3510
           Bios: Phoenix v: 02UC.P026.20100916.LX date: 09/16/2010
CPU:       Dual core Pentium CPU T4500 (-MCP-) cache: 1024 KB
           flags: (lm pae sse sse2 sse3 ssse3) bmips: 9176 
           Clock Speeds: 1: 2300 MHz 2: 2300 MHz
Graphics:  Card: Intel Mobile 4 Series Integrated Graphics Controller
           bus-ID: 00:02.0
           Display Server: X.Org 1.15.0.901 drivers: intel (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
           Resolution: 1366x768@60.0hz
           GLX Renderer: Mesa DRI Mobile Intel GM45 Express x86/MMX/SSE2
           GLX Version: 2.1 Mesa 10.1.0 Direct Rendering: Yes
Audio:     Card Intel 82801I (ICH9 Family) HD Audio Controller 
           driver: snd_hda_intel bus-ID: 00:1b.0 
           Sound: ALSA v: k3.14.1-antix.1-486-smp
Network:   Card-1: Qualcomm Atheros AR9285 Wireless Network Adapter (PCI-Express)
           driver: ath9k bus-ID: 06:00.0
           IF: wlan0 state: up mac: <filter>
           Card-2: Marvell 88E8040 PCI-E Fast Ethernet Controller
           driver: sky2 v: 1.30 port: 3000 bus-ID: 04:00.0
           IF: eth0 state: down mac: <filter>
Drives:    HDD Total Size: 322.1GB (-)
           ID-1: /dev/sda model: SAMSUNG_HM321HI size: 320.1GB
           USB ID-2: /dev/sdb model: U3_Cruzer_Micro size: 2.1GB
Partition: ID-1: swap-1 size: 4.19GB used: 0.00GB (0%) fs: swap dev: /dev/sda7 
Sensors:   System Temperatures: cpu: 45.0C mobo: 45.0C 
           Fan Speeds (in rpm): cpu: N/A 
Info:      Processes: 109 Uptime: 5 min Memory: 257.4/2971.7MB 
           Init: SysVinit runlevel: 5 Gcc sys: 4.8.2 
           Client: Shell (bash 4.3.81) inxi: 2.1.18

Since both boxes that won't boot are AMD. Don't put much credence in my error reports till I go to the store and buy me some cdrw disks from the
dollar store. Maybe they will boot off of CD . Before I do. I am going to Break out my PLOP cd and see if My IBM M41 likes this or not.
If I don't post back in it running AntiX 14. Take it for granted it did not like the usb either.

dolphin_oracle · posted: 2014-04-23 19:09

I think I have access to an amd based system. I'll find one and report back.

just booted up the liveUSB on a dell pentium dual core (optiplex 790). I have a couple of points.

1. the splash-select on the consoles is kinda cool. combined with the fancy prompts, its makes a unique console environment!
2. I see the metapackage-installer has some stuff from MX in it. I'm going to try netflix-desktop of course!
3. the conky that the menu toggle and the"edit system monitor" button in control center operate is not the default icewm conky. This is an old issue and causes some confusion since icewm is the default desktop. We really need one conky monitor config file instead of two.
3.5 the"persist_enabled" switch in the live conky doesn't seem to work anymore. At least, it doesn't appear with either the rootfs or homefs enabled.
4. root persistence option at boot - this is great, and worked fine for me. The process is long enough that I walked away to do something, and when I came back, I believe DPMS had kicked in and blanked the screen. arrow keys and the mouse did not reactivate the screen. hitting a letter key did. just mentioning it, as it caused me a couple of minutes of"what the heck do I do now". I created a custom 1 gb file.
5. home persistence option - worked fine. I did time this file creation at almost 3 minutes for a 1.78 gb file (the default in my case, which I assume was the free space on the usb stick).
6. boot menu options on liveUSB - I do not get a menu for setting the console resolution. My F7 menu is the save menu. I created the stick with unetbootin.

Does it make sense when making a root persistence file using the script from bootup, to also ask if the user wants to make a homefs persistence file at the same time? Or does that just complicate things?

BitJam · posted: 2014-04-23 21:42

dolphin_oracle wrote:1. the splash-select on the consoles is kinda cool. combined with the fancy prompts, its makes a unique console environment!

Thanks! You have a choice of fancy prompts. Try"prompt-usage" for a list and options.

4. root persistence option at boot - this is great, and worked fine for me. The process is long enough that I walked away to do something, and when I came back, I believe DPMS had kicked in and blanked the screen.

Thanks.
========= SCRAPER REMOVED AN EMBEDDED LINK HERE ===========
url was:"https://superuser.com/questions/152347/change-linux-console-screen-blanking-behavior"
linktext was:"Will look into this"
====================================
but there is no setterm command in busybox.

6. boot menu options on liveUSB - I do not get a menu for setting the console resolution. My F7 menu is the save menu.

Yes. We are not sure what the best thing to do is. Here are some manual options you can play with:

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rm /live-boot/boot/syslinux/gfxsave.on

This will remove the Save menu and put the console menu back at F7.

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echo 1 > /live/boot-dev/boot/syslinux/f6save.on

This will move the Save menu over to F6, replacing the Desktop menu and put the Console menu back at F7.

Suggests are welcome.

Does it make sense when making a root persistence file using the script from bootup, to also ask if the user wants to make a homefs persistence file at the same time?

That is the first thing I tried but there is a problem with it in some cases. If you want both home and root persistence then it is fine. But if you only want root persistence then every time you boot, you will be asked if you want to enable home persistence and you will have to keep saying"no" every time.

Again, suggestions are welcome. One possibility would be to offer the make homefs if both rootfs and homefs are missing. Although this could be confusing if the user chooses to wait until another time to make homefs and the opportunity is not presented again.

BitJam · posted: 2014-04-24 01:34

Screen blanking policy for early boot

According to the command
========= SCRAPER REMOVED AN EMBEDDED LINK HERE ===========
url was:"http://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man4/console_codes.4.html#top_of_page"
linktext was:"man console_codes"
====================================
we can control the screen blanking in the consoles with these escape sequences:

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       ESC [ 9 ; n ]       Set screen blank timeout to n minutes.
       ESC [ 12 ; n ]      Bring specified console to the front.
       ESC [ 13 ]          Unblank the screen.
       ESC [ 14 ; n ]      Set the VESA powerdown interval in minutes.

For example, the following command will disable blanking by setting the timeout duration to zero for both forms of blanking:

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printf"\e[9;0]\e[14;0]"

What should the policy be? Should we simply disable blanking during the early boot process? Should we set it to a large value, such as one hour?

BTW: I am planning to print one"." to the screen every second (in lines of 60) while we wait for the file systems to be created. AFAIK, the screen will have at least 80 characters in width. The rate can be in fractional seconds. Sometimes sending a dot every half second makes it seem like things are going faster but this chews up screen space twice as fast.

dolphin_oracle · posted: 2014-04-24 01:55

I suppose after 80 characters, the dots just loop around like other console output.

My vote would be for the screenblanking to be off during boot time.

That is the first thing I tried but there is a problem with it in some cases. If you want both home and root persistence then it is fine. But if you only want root persistence then every time you boot, you will be asked if you want to enable home persistence and you will have to keep saying"no" every time.

agreed. that would be annoying. still, its not the big a deal. i'm so sold on the liveUSB that I haven't done an install yet, just been running off several systems with the live.

Here's the current (HP)

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$ inxi -F
System:    Host: antix1 Kernel: 3.14.1-antix.1-486-smp i686 (32 bit) 
           Desktop: IceWM 1.3.7 
           Distro: antiX-14R-alpha1_386-full Killah P 21 April 2014 
Machine:   System: Hewlett-Packard product: HP Pavilion dm4 Notebook PC v: 0587110002242B10000022100
           Mobo: Hewlett-Packard model: 146A v: 58.28
           Bios: Hewlett-Packard v: F.26 date: 02/14/2011
CPU:       Dual core Intel Core i5 CPU M 460 (-HT-MCP-) cache: 3072 KB 
           Clock Speeds: 1: 2534 MHz 2: 2534 MHz 3: 2534 MHz 4: 2534 MHz
Graphics:  Card: Intel Core Processor Integrated Graphics Controller
           Display Server: X.Org 1.15.0.901 drivers: intel (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
           Resolution: 1366x768@60.0hz
           GLX Renderer: Mesa DRI Intel Ironlake Mobile x86/MMX/SSE2
           GLX Version: 2.1 Mesa 10.1.0
Audio:     Card Intel 5 Series/3400 Series High Definition Audio 
           driver: snd_hda_intel 
           Sound: ALSA v: k3.14.1-antix.1-486-smp
Network:   Card-1: Intel Centrino Advanced-N + WiMAX 6250 [Kilmer Peak]
           driver: iwlwifi
           IF: wlan1 state: up mac: 00:23:15:7b:a8:14
           Card-2: Realtek RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller
           driver: r8169
           IF: eth2 state: down mac: 64:31:50:6d:81:b4
Drives:    HDD Total Size: 328.1GB (23.0% used)
           ID-1: /dev/sda model: WDC_WD3200BPVT size: 320.1GB
           USB ID-2: /dev/sdb model: Cruzer_Glide size: 8.0GB
Partition: ID-1: /home size: 1.7G used: 77M (5%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/loop2 
           ID-2: swap-1 size: 4.29GB used: 0.00GB (0%) fs: swap dev: /dev/sda8 
Sensors:   System Temperatures: cpu: 51.0C mobo: 44.0C 
           Fan Speeds (in rpm): cpu: N/A 
Info:      Processes: 130 Uptime: 33 min Memory: 439.5/2456.8MB 
           Client: Shell (bash) inxi: 2.1.18 
demo@antix1:~

dolphin_oracle · posted: 2014-04-24 01:58

2. I see the metapackage-installer has some stuff from MX in it. I'm going to try netflix-desktop of course!

netflix-desktop didn't fly. I'm not sure why, but it looks like a dependency problem somewhere. I'll investigate a little, but this particular item may be more for the beta phase than alpha.

any word on the auto-updating menus? I know that was talked about at one time.

dolphin_oracle · posted: 2014-04-24 02:40

a new machine. I finally figured out how to get my gigabyte-based home brew media computer to boot usb. it has an amd athlon II x2 dual core cpu. I mention this because roky mentioned having boot issues with some of his amd based systems. I've got another at work, but it cannot boot usb and my plop cd couldn't boot it either. I'll try an actual cd tomorrow.

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demo@antix1:~
$ inxi -F
System:    Host: antix1 Kernel: 3.14.1-antix.1-486-smp i686 (32 bit) 
           Desktop: IceWM 1.3.7 
           Distro: antiX-14R-alpha1_386-full Killah P 21 April 2014 
Machine:   Mobo: Gigabyte model: GA-MA785GM-US2H v: x.x
           Bios: Award v: F11 date: 05/17/2010
CPU:       Dual core AMD Athlon II X2 245 (-MCP-) cache: 2048 KB 
           Clock Speeds: 1: 2900 MHz 2: 2900 MHz
Graphics:  Card: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] RS880 [Radeon HD 4200]
           Display Server: X.Org 1.15.0.901 drivers: ati,radeon (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
           Resolution: 1366x768@59.8hz
           GLX Renderer: Gallium 0.4 on AMD RS880 GLX Version: 3.0 Mesa 10.1.0
Audio:     Card-1 Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] RS880 HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 4200 Series] 
           driver: snd_hda_intel 
           Card-2 Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] SBx00 Azalia (Intel HDA) 
           driver: snd_hda_intel 
           Sound: ALSA v: k3.14.1-antix.1-486-smp
Network:   Card: Realtek RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller
           driver: r8169
           IF: eth1 state: up speed: 100 Mbps duplex: full 
           mac: 1c:6f:65:2d:c2:b2
Drives:    HDD Total Size: 2128.4GB (0.2% used)
           ID-1: /dev/sda model: Samsung_SSD_840 size: 120.0GB
           ID-2: /dev/sdb model: WDC_WD20EARX size: 2000.4GB
           USB ID-3: /dev/sdc model: Cruzer_Glide size: 8.0GB
Partition: ID-1: /home size: 1.7G used: 106M (7%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/loop1 
Sensors:   System Temperatures: cpu: 29.0C mobo: N/A 
           Fan Speeds (in rpm): cpu: N/A 
Info:      Processes: 120 Uptime: 2 min Memory: 285.5/2780.5MB 
           Client: Shell (bash) inxi: 2.1.18

No audio through the HDMI though.

BitJam · posted: 2014-04-24 02:44

dolphin_oracle wrote:I suppose after 80 characters, the dots just loop around like other console output.

I'm sorry I wasn't clear. My plan was to wrap after 60 dots so each line represents one minute. This only uses 3/4 of the width of the smallest screen and even less when the screen is wider. In 1280x1024 mode, with our splash background the screen is 154 characters wide so we would be using about only 3/8 of the screen width. I could get fancy and if more than 120 chars are available I could double the number of dots and half the time between.

My vote would be for the screenblanking to be off during boot time.

So be it, unless someone else chimes in otherwise.

That is the first thing I tried but there is a problem with it in some cases. If you want both home and root persistence then it is fine. But if you only want root persistence then every time you boot, you will be asked if you want to enable home persistence and you will have to keep saying"no" every time.
agreed. that would be annoying. still, its not the big a deal. i'm so sold on the liveUSB that I haven't done an install yet, just been running off several systems with the live.

I will offer to make the homefs if both the homefs and rootfs are missing. The user can still make it by selecting"Home Persistence" or with the persist-makefs app if they miss that first opportunity. Perfect is the enemy of good.

After seeing your vid, I've set the maximum *default* size to one Gig. The default size gets smaller as the amount of space available gets smaller. When there is only 400 Meg available or less, then we use all of it. When more is available we don't use it all. With the current settings if 1 Gig is free, the default would use 700 Meg and leave 300 Meg. When 1.6 Gig are free then the default would use the maximum value of 1 Gig, leaving 600 Meg free. This is just the default, there will be choices above and below the default (if applicable). I'd be happy to adjust these if anyone has an inkling on how it should be adjusted. For example, should we stop being greedy at 300 Meg instead of 400 Meg? What is the minimum useful size for homefs and/or rootfs?

dolphin_oracle · posted: 2014-04-24 02:48

I will offer to make the homefs if both the homefs and rootfs are missing. The user can still make it by selecting"Home Persistence" or with the persist-makefs app if they miss that first opportunity. Perfect is the enemy of good.

seems reasonable to me.

BitJam · posted: 2014-04-24 02:49

dolphin_oracle wrote:No audio through the HDMI though.

I've attached a tiny tarball that contains a very crude CLI app called alsa-card-select. It will let you set your default alsa card. This should allow you to get sound out of your HDMI. The UI of the app really needs to be improved. Here is the current usage:

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Usage: alsa-card-select [options]

Options
    -d --delete      Delete ~/.asoundrc file
    -h --help        Show this help
    -l --list        List available cards
    -s --set=<name>  Set card <name> to be the default

rokytnji · posted: 2014-04-24 02:52

it has an amd athlon II x2 dual core cpu. I mention this because roky mentioned having boot issues with some of his amd based systems.

Mine are single core Pentium 4 cpus. I got the cdrw's. Too tired to screw with it tonight though. __{{emoticon}}__

skidoo · posted: 2014-04-24 08:40

boot menu options on liveUSB - I do not get a menu for setting the console resolution. My F7 menu is the save menu. I created the stick with unetbootin.

same method for me (unetbootin) and same result (F7 is save)

the"persist_enabled" switch in the live conky doesn't seem to work anymore. At least, it doesn't appear with either the rootfs or homefs enabled.

the cyan"persist enabled" line is displayed with fluxbox. I haven't checked using IceWM.

dolphin_oracle · posted: 2014-04-24 09:43

I've attached a tiny tarball that contains a very crude CLI app called alsa-card-select. It will let you set your default alsa card. This should allow you to get sound out of your HDMI. The UI of the app really needs to be improved. Here is the current usage

I don't know. I tried your script but alsamixer has no volume adjustments for the HDMI. I remember seeing this somewhere before, maybe early in the MX alpha.

BitJam · posted: 2014-04-24 16:09

dolphin_oracle wrote:I I tried your script but alsamixer has no volume adjustments for the HDMI. I remember seeing this somewhere before, maybe early in the MX alpha.

The best I can figure out, HDMI devices don't expose mixer controls. This makes sense since the sound is going to a television or a sound system that have their own controls.

If you want a software volume control for your HDMI then you will have to
========= SCRAPER REMOVED AN EMBEDDED LINK HERE ===========
url was:"http://alsa.opensrc.org/How_to_use_softvol_to_control_the_master_volume"
linktext was:"add one"
====================================
.

dolphin_oracle · posted: 2014-04-24 17:24

BitJam wrote:
dolphin_oracle wrote:I I tried your script but alsamixer has no volume adjustments for the HDMI. I remember seeing this somewhere before, maybe early in the MX alpha.
The best I can figure out, HDMI devices don't expose mixer controls. This makes sense since the sound is going to a television or a sound system that have their own controls.

If you want a software volume control for your HDMI then you will have to
========= SCRAPER REMOVED AN EMBEDDED LINK HERE ===========
url was:"http://alsa.opensrc.org/How_to_use_softvol_to_control_the_master_volume"
linktext was:"add one"
====================================
.

I'll keep working on it. unfortunately I only have one PC that is hooked up via HDMI, and the family uses it, so trouble shooting opportunities are sporadic at best. If I figure out anything, I'll report back. there is the real possiblity using the radeon driver, that my particular hardware (amd 4200) does not support audio on HDMI.