Linux on Sony Vaio VGN-A497XP

Max4Lin: Gnome a kind of Leopard

2008-02-02T03:43:00.001-08:00

Today is a cold and rainy day...
I cleaned up the desktop and I'm quite annoyed about standard gnome themes, googoling I find out this theme, it's more a complete restyle of gnome.

gnome-appearance-properties freezes Solved

2008-02-02T03:35:00.000-08:00

Mandriva 2008/Gnome 2.20.0

I didn't a fresh install of 2008, I moved from 2007.1 Spring to 2008 Free.
running gnome-appearance-properties in the last days I got a lot of CPU cosumpion and the application was freezed.
Searching with Google, I found a post in Mandrivauser http://mandrivausers.org/index.php?showtopic=46339 with the solution.

You must only rename the file, I suppose you can remove it too...
As ROOT user type:

mv /usr/lib/gtk-2.0/2.10.0/engines/libhcengine.so /usr/lib/gtk-2.0/2.10.0/engines/libhcengine_backup.so

That's it, Works!

The error was (I posted it only for google' spiders)

gnome-appearance-properties

(gnome-appearance-properties:16430): capplet-common-WARNING **: Could not open file "(null)"
gnome-appearance-properties: symbol lookup error: /usr/lib/gtk-2.0/2.10.0/engines/libhcengine.so: undefined symbol: ge_cairo_inner_stroke_rectangle

ATI Only root run, solved

2007-05-04T09:57:00.000-07:00

I'm pissed of about this problem,
today i decided to solve it.
I assume you are using ATI official drivers, and you have installed them yet.
Looking on the web I found a lot of infos...
1) Check your xorg.conf for:

Section "DRI"
  Mode 0666
EndSection

if not present add it.

2) Check your fstab.
cause running an fglx apps I got

Using GLX_SGIX_pbuffer
FGLTexMgr: open of shared memory object failed (Permission denied)
__FGLTexMgrCreateObject: __FGLTexMgrSHMmalloc failed!!!
FGLTexMgr: open of shared memory object failed (Permission denied)
__FGLTexMgrCreateObject: __FGLTexMgrSHMmalloc failed!!!
FGLTexMgr: open of shared memory object failed (Permission denied)
__FGLTexMgrCreateObject: __FGLTexMgrSHMmalloc failed!!!
FGLTexMgr: open of shared memory object failed (Permission denied)
__FGLTexMgrCreateObject: __FGLTexMgrSHMmalloc failed!!!
FGLTexMgr: open of shared memory object failed (Permission denied)

so....
add this
tmpfs /dev/shm tmpfs defaults 0 0

you can find a lot more infos here :
http://gentoo-wiki.com/HOWTO_ATI_Drivers

see ya,

Ra

List installed packages

2006-12-07T05:30:00.000-08:00

This is an example for libgtk packages.

for x in `urpmq -Y -r libgtk`; do echo `rpmquery $x`; done | grep -v "is not installed"
libGtkScintilla0-0.8.2-5mdv2007

.0
libGtkScintilla0-devel-0.8.2-5mdv2007.0
libgtk+-x11-2.0_0-2.10.3-4mdv2007.0
libgtk+1.2-1.2.10-45mdv2007.0
libgtk+2.0_0-2.10.3-4mdv2007.0
libgtk+2.0_0-devel-2.10.3-4mdv2007.0
libgtk-linux-fb-2.0_0-2.4.14-6mdk
libgtkglarea2.0-1.99.0-9mdv2007.0
libgtkglarea5-1.2.3-9mdv2007.0
libgtkhtml-3.8_15-3.12.0-1mdv2007.0
libgtkhtml2_0-2.11.0-2mdv2007.0
libgtkmm2.0_1-2.2.12-3mdv2007.0
libgtkmm2.0_1-devel-2.2.12-3mdv2007.0
libgtkmm2.4_1-2.10.1-1mdv2007.0
libgtksourceview-1.0_0-1.8.0-1mdv2007.0
libgtkspell0-2.0.11-1mdk
libgtkspell0-devel-2.0.11-1mdk
libgtkxmhtml1-1.4.2-18mdv2007.0

acroread expr syntax error

2006-11-04T03:20:00.000-08:00

Here the solution:

https://fcp.surfsite.org/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=26864&forum=12&post_id=114769

Summary:
I edited the startup script and and added two lines of code ater commenting out the old one as follows :-

418# echo $mfile| sed 's/libgtk-x11-$[0-9]*$.0.so.0.$[0-9]$00.$[0-9]*$\|$.*$/\1\2\3/g'
419 echo $mfile| sed 's/libgtk-x11-$[0-9]*$.0.so.0.$[0-9]*$00.$[0-9]*$\|$.*$/\1\2\3/g'

644# MIN_GTK_VERSION="240"
645 MIN_GTK_VERSION="2040"

XGL & 2007.0

2006-10-27T09:01:00.002-07:00

Hi all,
I have good news. I tried to run XGL on my machine since I installed Mandriva 2007.0, I have followed a lot of guides but no way.
I got it installing compiz-quinnstorm

urpmi cgwd csm cgwd-themes cgwd-themes-extra compiz-manager

Then, in /etc/sysconfig/compiz set COMPIZ=yes and /etc/system/xgl set XGL=yes

Restart your X server, it should start XGL and Compiz

I did in this way cause I had problem with Cube plugin; remember quinnstorm is a developer version not the stable one.
....
ADD SOME PHOTO.
....
Enjoy.

Mandriva 2007 & ATI

2006-10-27T09:01:00.001-07:00

Work in progress...

Upgrading Mandriva 2006 to Mandriva 2007

2006-10-27T08:53:00.000-07:00

Simple:
1) download the iso image of Mandriva 2007.0 and create a bootable DVD
2) select upgrade during the installation process
3) get a big cup of coffe
4) Enjoy.

The process is not so smooth but at the end works.
Y'll probably get problems with Xorg.

First of all you must update your urpmi.cfg, that's mine:
2007Main ftp://ftp.proxad.net/pub/Distributions_Linux/Mandrake/official/2007.0/i586/media/main/release {
hdlist: hdlist.2007Main.cz
key-ids: 70771ff3
update
with_hdlist: media_info/hdlist.cz
}

2007Contrib ftp://ftp.proxad.net/pub/Distributions_Linux/Mandrake/official/2007.0/i586/media/contrib/release {
hdlist: hdlist.2007Contrib.cz
key-ids: 78d019f5
update
with_hdlist: media_info/hdlist.cz
}

2007PlfNonFree ftp://ftp.cica.es/mirrors/Linux/plf/mandrake/2007.0/non-free/release/binary/i586 {
hdlist: hdlist.2007PlfNonFree.cz
key-ids: caba22ae
with_hdlist: ./hdlist.cz
}

2007PlfFree ftp://ftp.cica.es/mirrors/Linux/plf/mandrake/2007.0/free/release/binary/i586 {
hdlist: hdlist.2007PlfFree.cz
key-ids: caba22ae
update
with_hdlist: ./hdlist.cz
}

urpmi.update -a
urpmi --auto-select

The upgrade procedure make some mistake, cause it leaves some old package so, you must clean your system by hand , for example in my case I had to uninstall all gnome 2.10 libraries.

WPA

2006-02-24T13:40:00.000-08:00

I bought an access point and I configured it with a WPA-PSK-TKIP.
I know that my wireless card works because in US I used it with an open wireless-netwok.

A) install the wpa manager:

A.1) urpmi wpa_supplicant

B) Open Wireless Configuration:
B.1) select your network
B.2) select WPA
B.3) insert your key

enjoy your freedom

From Mandriva 2005 LE to 2006 Free

2005-12-16T02:05:00.000-08:00

Hi Guys, yesterday I have decided to upgrade my 2005 LE to 2006 Free.
I had some problem but now all the system seems to be stable.

Get urpmi's repositories of Mandriva 2006 Free Edition, as usual, from http://easyurpmi.zarb.org/.

Before you do anything reads this note Mandriva 2006.0 release notes.

update your urpmi database, and then type:

urpmi --auto-select

I suggest you to use the option "--test" before the main upgrade to check if there are dependencies' problems.

Upgrade your kernel
Upgrade the system
If you use gnome, reinstall gnome-panel.

At this point you Xorg will not have 3D, you can enable it following this process:

Install the kernel-source package
Get the ATI Driver Installer
Run ATI Driver Installer as root, choosing:

Generate Distribution Specific Driver Package
Agree to the license
Mandriva Packages->Mandriva/2006 ( Note: mayby you need some develop package, chk the log file: /usr/share/fglrx/fglrx-install.log. You can Uninstall the driver with :/usr/share/fglrx/fglrx-uninstall.sh )

Install from root all the rpm created using urpmi: ati-8.20.8-1mdk.i586.rpm, ati-devel-8.20.8-1mdk.i586.rpm, dkms-ati-8.20.8-1mdk.i586.rpm
Open the hardware configuration manager and select your video card. Take a look to the image for the settings

Restart X

OpenOffice:

Urpmi --auto-select has installed OpenOffice 1.1.5 but Mandriva has the version 2.0, the package name is: openoffice.org-go-ooo

Note: Some days ago I installed the SUN's JRE, yesterday after the upgrade I had problem running OO with JRE installed, OO sucked all my cpu. I have removed JRE and now all is ok

That's all for now.

RJP

Americas Army 2.5 - Linux

2005-10-30T01:29:00.000-08:00

Hi folks,
yesterday icculus.org has released the final version of AmericansArmy v. 2.5 for Linux

The installer add the game to the Gnome menu ( should be the same for KDE but I don't use it so I can't say nothing ).

The game works perfect with the quite similar frame rate I have under Windows.

Have fun!

ATI fglrx, Xorg and DRI

2005-09-16T06:53:00.000-07:00

Today I have succesfully installed the ATI drivers on my Vaio.

You can find the ATI driver at this link:
https://support.ati.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=894&task=knowledge&folderID=27 and download the rpm version.

This is the main guide I have followed for the installation process:
http://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/showthread.php?threadid=361450
but with some adjustment.

First of all you must have installed the kernel source ( keep in mind that must be the same version that you are running )

I used urpmi to make the installation, in this way I can keep track of the rpm package in db.

Now make a copy of /usr/X11R6/lib/FGL.renamed.libGL.so.1.2 because this file create a conflict with the ATI's rpm and it'll be overwrite. Now you can start with the installation process:

# urpmi --allow-force fglrx_6_8_0-8.16.20-1.i386.rpm
say "y" for all the questions.

If all has gone well, run
# fglrxconfig
You can keep all the default settings, choose only you language ( keyboard layout ) and the resolution about 24 bit depth selecting ( 8632 ).

Then edit your /etc/X11/xorg.conf file, created by ATI and modify the Subsection "Display" adding the mode: 1920x1200. The Subsection should result in this way :

Subsection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1920x1200" "1600x1200" "1280x1024" "1024x768" "800x600"
ViewPort 0 0 # initial origin if mode is smaller than desktop
# Virtual 1280 1024
EndSubsection

In Section "Files", comment all the istances of FontPath and RgbPath then add this line:

FontPath "unix/:-1"

Note: This line indicates to xorg to use the xfs ( X font server )

save and restart the server.

This is the glxgears output:
9648 frames in 5.0 seconds = 1929.600 FPS
11474 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2294.800 FPS
12028 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2405.600 FPS
12018 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2403.600 FPS
12399 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2479.800 FPS
12614 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2522.800 FPS
12169 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2433.800 FPS
13676 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2735.200 FPS
14351 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2870.200 FPS

Done !

*** Keep in mind that there is no guarantee that this process works on your machine and it's at your own risk. ***

2005-09-13T08:30:00.000-07:00

Adding your service to the system:

put your init script in /etc/init.d with a top description like this:
# chkconfig: 2345 99 5
# description:

where the 2345 are the level in which you want the service on, 99 is the start order and 5 the stop.

chkconfig --add myservice

Then you'll be ablo to manage you service from the graphical system manager.

Add media to urpmi

2005-08-23T12:37:00.000-07:00

Keep in mind:
# man urpmi
# man urpmi.cfg
# man urpmi.addmedia

http://easyurpmi.zarb.org/ is very useful to help you in adding sites to you urpmi's media.

For example this is my /etc/urpmi/urpmi.cfg:

# generated Thu Sep 15 09:47:16 2005
{
}

Main\ (distrib1) ftp://bo.mirror.garr.it/pub/mirrors/Mandrake/official/current/i586//media/main {
hdlist: hdlist.Main (distrib1).cz
key-ids: 70771ff3
synthesis
with_hdlist: ../..//media/media_info/synthesis.hdlist_main.cz
}

Contrib\ (distrib2) ftp://bo.mirror.garr.it/pub/mirrors/Mandrake/official/current/i586//media/contrib {
hdlist: hdlist.Contrib (distrib2).cz
key-ids: 78d019f5
synthesis
with_hdlist: ../..//media/media_info/synthesis.hdlist_contrib.cz
}

Java\ Contrib\ (distrib3) ftp://bo.mirror.garr.it/pub/mirrors/Mandrake/official/current/i586//media/jpackage {
hdlist: hdlist.Java Contrib (distrib3).cz
key-ids: c431416d
synthesis
with_hdlist: ../..//media/media_info/synthesis.hdlist_jpackage.cz
}

update_source ftp://bo.mirror.garr.it/pub/mirrors/Mandrake/official/updates/10.2/main_updates {
hdlist: hdlist.update_source.cz
key-ids: 22458a98
list: list.update_source
update
with_hdlist: media_info/hdlist.cz
}

Installation\ CD1\ (2005\ LE\ Dischi\ 1) removable://mnt/cdrom/media/main {
hdlist: hdlist.Installation CD1 (2005 LE Dischi 1).cz
key-ids: 70771ff3
removable: /dev/hda
synthesis
with_hdlist: ../..//media/media_info/synthesis.hdlist1.cz
}

Installation\ CD2\ (2005\ LE\ Dischi\ 2) removable://mnt/cdrom/media/main2 {
hdlist: hdlist.Installation CD2 (2005 LE Dischi 2).cz
key-ids: 70771ff3
removable: /dev/hda
synthesis
with_hdlist: ../..//media/media_info/synthesis.hdlist2.cz
}

Installation\ CD3\ (2005\ LE\ Dischi\ 3) removable://mnt/cdrom/media/main3 {
hdlist: hdlist.Installation CD3 (2005 LE Dischi 3).cz
key-ids: 70771ff3
removable: /dev/hda
synthesis
with_hdlist: ../..//media/media_info/synthesis.hdlist3.cz
}

plf-free ftp://ftp.easynet.fr/plf/mandrake/free/10.2 {
hdlist: hdlist.plf-free.cz
key-ids: caba22ae
list: list.plf-free
with_hdlist: hdlist.cz
}

plf-nonfree ftp://ftp.easynet.fr/plf/mandrake/non-free/10.2 {
hdlist: hdlist.plf-nonfree.cz
key-ids: caba22ae
list: list.plf-nonfree
with_hdlist: hdlist.cz
}

What is it supported ?

2005-08-12T22:55:00.000-07:00

Monitor :
Wide screen 1920x1200 17" WUXGA X-black is very cool, no problems!
Dri not yet supported from xorg for my video card ATI Mobility Radeon X600 256 MB

Wireless:
WiFi:
Works but you have to install the ipw2200-firmware first.
You need to install the dhcp-client if your network has a dhcp-server.

Note: I have to activate the network interface to make it works. :-) these because I use Gnome and the network graphic tool seems to has some problem activating the interface on the fly.

Bluetooth:
Works.

Audio:
Alsa makes its jobs well. I had some trouble with the microphone, I don't know why but to make it works correctly I must open the mixer (Gnome or Kde) deselect Mic in, select another audio source and then reselect Mic.
At the beginning I had problems wyth Skype ( audio resource busy ) so I could not make multiple calls. At now it works very well and my resource in not busy any more.
As Multimedia System ( Gnome ) it's selected OSS.

Connections:
USB and i.Link work.

Card Dual Pro Reads:
It doens't work. No support at all.

Function Keys:
They don't work. I have followed the instruction on http://popies.net/sonypi/ but I think there is some problem with the kernel module, because dmesg reports this:
Sony Vaio Jogdial input method installed.
Sony Vaio Keys input method installed.
sonypi command failed at drivers/char/sonypi.c : sonypi_call1 (line 589)
sonypi command failed at drivers/char/sonypi.c : sonypi_call2 (line 600)
sonypi command failed at drivers/char/sonypi.c : sonypi_call2 (line 602)
sonypi command failed at drivers/char/sonypi.c : sonypi_call1 (line 589)
sonypi: Sony Programmable I/O Controller Driverv1.26.
sonypi: detected type2 model, verbose = 0, fnkeyinit = off, camera = off, compat = off, mask = 0xffffffff, useinput = on, acpi = on
sonypi: enabled at irq=11, port1=0x1080, port2=0x1084

However spicctrl works, in this way you can controll the brightness of you monitor by hand.

DVD/CD:
Works.

I'll find out a way to pint out all the info about hardware that Mandriva is able to identify.

Choose the distro: Mandriva 2005 LE

2005-08-10T07:16:00.000-07:00

At the time of my installation ( end of July 2005 ) only Mandriva 2005 LE has been able to detect my SATA HD . I have tried Debian (testing), Knoppix, Ubuntu without succes, probably now the situation could be better.

0) Backup all you data!
1) I have resized my disk partition for a dual boot with Windows XP SP2 and Linux.

Windows : sda1 - 27.0 GB - NTFS
Linux Swap: sda5 - 1.8 GB - Linux Swap
Linux Root: sda6 - 63.0 GB - ext3

I think you could make the same work with dedicated software.

3) Reinstall Windows following the Sony procedure
4) Start with the Mandriva 2005 LE.
4.1) Insert in your cd/dvd ( first disk )
4.2) Reboot the machine
4.3) Follow the instructions
4.4) Enjoy!

I have to say that the installation procedure of Mandriva has been one of the more easy that I have ever seen for a Linux distro.