trollmaker.com

How to Install Google Earth on Debian Wheezy

virtualmix — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 19:11:00 +0200

Here is a quick tutorial to explain how to install Google Earth on Debian Wheezy.

This tutorial can also be used to install Google Earth on Ubuntu or any other Linux distribution, however it has only been tested on Debian Wheezy.

Installing Google Earth in Four easy steps

1) The first step is to install googleearth-package:

sudo apt-get install googleearth-package

2) The second step is to install the dependencies:

sudo apt-get install alien lib32nss-mdns libfreeimage3 lsb-core msttcorefonts
pax rpm ttf-dejavu ttf-bitstream-vera

If you are using the nVidia proprietary driver, you can also install the following package:

sudo apt-get install libgl1-nvidia-glx-ia32

3) The third step is to build a deb package for Google Earth:

make-googleearth-package --force

4) If everything worked as expected, the last step consist of installing the deb package built previously:

sudo dpkg -i googleearth*.deb

Conclusion

Google Earth should now be installed on your system.
The software can simply be launched using the command "googleearth" or via a new icon in the menu.
If something went wrong when you followed the tutorial above, make sure you read the error message carefully and install any missing dependency needed by your package manager.

Video of Google Earth running on Debian Wheezy

How to install Gnome Shell 3.2 on Debian Testing

virtualmix — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 14:56:00 +0100

If you are using an up-to-date installation of Debian Testing today, you have probably realised that Gnome-Shell is only available in version 3.0 from the testing repository at the time I'm writing this article (21.01.2012).

Note: Gnome-Shell 3.2 is now in Debian Testing. Simply update your system to use it. These instructions are for information only.

Introduction

If you want to install some extensions to make Gnome more usable, you will need a version of Gnome-Shell <= 3.2.
You can track the Status of Gnome 3.2 in Debian from this page.
As you can see, the Gnome-Shell 3.2 package is stuck in the Unstable repository for some reasons which means we will have to install it directly from Unstable.

Disclaimer

You understand that we are going to install a package from the Unstable repository (also called SID for Still In Development) so please don't blame me if something goes wrong :-)

Installation

Open a terminal and login your root account or use sudo before typing the following commands.

First, make sure you system is up-to-date:

# apt-get update && apt-get upgrade

Open your sources.list in order to add the Unstable repository (sid):

# nano /etc/apt/sources.list

Then paste the following lines:

##DEBIAN SID
deb http://ftp.debian.org/debian/ sid main non-free contrib
##deb-src http://ftp.debian.org/debian/ sid main non-free contrib

Once this is done, you can save and close the file but you will need to reload the package list:

# apt-get update

Then you can install Gnome-Shell from the sid repository:

# apt-get install gnome-shell/unstable

When the install of Gnome-Shell is finished, I recommend you remove (or comment) the lines we added to the sources.list file.

Conclusion

That's it. You can now install extensions from your broswer (you will need to use a compatible browser such as ~~Firefox~~ Iceweasel or Epiphany) and start enjoying the other great features of Gnome 3.2.

Arduino 1.0 with enc28j60 Ethernet Shield V1.1

virtualmix — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 10:24:00 +0100

Here is how to use the enc28j60 Ethernet Shield V1.1 with Arduino 1.0.

Introduction

The Arduino team recently released the Arduino software in version 1.0, which adds a lots of new feature and bug fix (see release notes) but also breaks backward compatibility with sketches and libraries written for the previous versions of the software.

From now, in order to use the cheap enc28j60 Ethernet Shield V1.1 you will need a library that is compatible with the latest revision of the Arduino IDE.

After some research on the web, I found a library that works properly but I still had to change a few path name before I could compile a sketch without error.

Download and install the library

Download the library here: ethershield_v1.1_for_arduino_v1.0.zip
Extract the zip file.
Copy the folders "ETHER_28J60" and "etherShield" into your libraries folder.

On Linux: $HOME/sketchbook/libraries
On Mac: $HOME/Documents/Arduino/libraries
On Windows: ..\My Documents\Arduino\libraries

Open the Arduino software and go to "File → Examples → ETHER_28J60" and try some of the examples.

Use a web browser to turn an LED on or off

Connect the Ethernet Shield and Ethernet cable to the Arduino.
Upload the code below.
Connect an LED between Pin 6 and Ground.
Open a web browser and visit http://192.168.1.15/
Click the button to turn the LED on or off.

Code

The code below is taken from the library example with some minor modifications from myself:


// A simple web server that turn an LED on or off"

#include "etherShield.h"
#include "ETHER_28J60.h"

int outputPin = 6;

static uint8_t mac[6] = {0x54, 0x55, 0x58, 0x10, 0x00, 0x24};   // this just needs to be unique for your network, 
                                                           
static uint8_t ip[4] = {192, 168, 1, 15}; // IP address for the webserver

static uint16_t port = 80; // Use port 80 - the standard for HTTP

ETHER_28J60 e;

void setup()
{ 
  e.setup(mac, ip, port);
  pinMode(outputPin, OUTPUT);
}

void loop()
{
  char* params;
  if (params = e.serviceRequest())
  {
    e.print("<h1><a href='/?led=off'>Arduino Web Remote</a></h1>");
    if (strcmp(params, "?led=on") == 0)
    {
      digitalWrite(outputPin, HIGH);
      e.print("<a href='?led=off'><button style='border: 1px solid #ff0000; border-left: 10px solid #ff0000' type='button'>LED IS ON</button></a>");
    }
    else if (strcmp(params, "?led=off") == 0)
    {
      digitalWrite(outputPin, LOW);
      e.print("<a href='?led=on'><button style='border: 1px solid #000; border-left: 10px solid #000' type='button'>LED IS OFF</button></a>");
    }
    e.respond();
  }
}

Video

Going further

Here is another example using 2 buttons to control 2 LED, as requested in the comments below.

Reader Contribution

EDIT 01/01/2013: Reader "Nio" have sent me a modified version of the library described above, removing the buffer size limit and adding new print_P function.

If you would like to try Nio's version of the library, you will find it here. (*Not* tested yet)

Arduino LED Notification for Gmail on Linux

virtualmix — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 16:54:00 +0100

This is a small project to display new mail notification with a RGB LED connected to an Arduino.
Every few minutes, the computer will check a Gmail inbox for unread emails. If one or more unread emails are found, it will tell the Arduino to turn a light on.

This article is not complete yet. I'm going to had more details later...

Electrical Diagram:

Bash Script:

On the computer, a bash script is running to regularly check for unread emails on a Gmail account. Depending on the result, a number will be send to the Arduino in order to display a notification.

0: No new mail.
1: Red LED, error while fetching the number of unread mail.
2: Green Led, new emails.
3: Blue Led, new emails.


#!/bin/bash
#SCRIPT_NAME="Arduino Gmail Checker"
#SCRIPT_VERSION="0.1"
#figlet $SCRIPT_NAME $SCRIPT_VERSION
#########################################################################################
# Description: Check Gmail for unread email and switch RGB LED on Arduino in accordance #
# Dependencies: sed, curl,                                                              #
# Author: Virtualmix                                                                    #
# http://blog.trollmaker.com/article10/arduino-led-notification-for-gmail-on-linux      #
# License: CC BY                                                                        #
#########################################################################################
# Enter Gmail username and password below (Warning: Unsafe storage):
USERID=yourUsernameHere
PASSWORD=yourPasswordHere
# Enter number of seconds between email verification:
WAIT=300
#########################################################################################

# Loop to check for new mail every X minutes:
while [ "1" -eq "1" ]; do

    # Command line to fetch the number of unread emails:
    MAILCOUNTER=`curl -u $USERID:$PASSWORD --silent "https://mail.google.com/mail/feed/atom" | sed -n 's|<fullcount>\(.*\)</fullcount>|\1|p'`

    if [[ "$MAILCOUNTER" = "" ]]; then
        echo "ERROR: The program coulndn't fetch the account for user \"$USERID\"."
        echo "- Are you connected to the Internet?"
        echo -e "- Is the userid and password correct for \"$USERID\"?\n"
        echo 111 > /dev/ttyUSB0 # Turn Red Led on
    elif [[ "$MAILCOUNTER" -eq "0" ]]; then
        echo "* There is 0 new email for user $USERID."
        echo 000 > /dev/ttyUSB0 # Turn all leds off
    elif [[ "$MAILCOUNTER" -gt "0" ]]; then
        echo "* There is $MAILCOUNTER new email for user $USERID."
        echo 232 > /dev/ttyUSB0 # Turn blue and then green led on
    fi

    echo "* Waiting $WAIT seconds before checking for emails again."
    echo "* (^C to quit the program)"
    sleep 300

done

Arduino Code:

The program running on the Arduino is very simple. All it does is wait to receive a number sent via serial communication from the computer.

0: The LED will is turned off.
1: Red LED is switched on.
2: Green LED is switched on.
3: Blue LED is switched on.


/*****************
RGB LED connected to Arduino with 330 ohm resistor to GND
Read value from serial and set LED high or low depending on the number received
0: All off
1: Red LED on
2: Green LED on
3: Blue LED on
******************/

int redLed = 11;
int greenLed = 10;
int blueLed = 9;

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(9600);
  pinMode(redLed, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(greenLed, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(blueLed, OUTPUT);
}

void loop () {
  int value = Serial.read();

  if (value == '0') {
    digitalWrite(redLed,LOW);
    digitalWrite(greenLed,LOW);
    digitalWrite(blueLed,LOW);
  }

  if (value == '1') {
    digitalWrite(redLed,HIGH);
    digitalWrite(greenLed,LOW);
    digitalWrite(blueLed,LOW);
  }

  if (value == '2') {
    digitalWrite(redLed,LOW);
    digitalWrite(greenLed,HIGH);
    digitalWrite(blueLed,LOW);
  }

  if (value == '3') {
    digitalWrite(redLed,LOW);
    digitalWrite(greenLed,LOW);
    digitalWrite(blueLed,HIGH);
  }

  delay(1000);
}

Download:

Bash Script and Arduino Code:

arduino_gmail_checker.zip

Let me know if you ever make something cool with it!

Big-Fourmi Hexapod Walking Robot

virtualmix — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 07:01:00 +0100

Big-Fourmi is an hexapod walking robot I have designed and built in the scope of a final year project at university.

Video:

Project Constrains:

There is many different ways to design an hexapod robot but Big-Fourmi was influenced by 3 major constraints:

Smooth walk: The main goal of the project was to develop a robot that can walk smoothly.
Very low budget: The final cost was 550 Australian dollars, not including labour time. With a greater budget, a better robot can be build.
No prototype: With such time and budget constrains, only one robot could be produced.

Components List:

Main Controler: 1x Freetronic Twentyten
Servos controller: 1x Lynxmotion SSC-32
Servomotors: 18x GWS S03T STD (the cheapest servos I could find in Australia)
1x Micro servo (from ebay)
6x Small ball bearings (from ebay)
1x RGB LED
3x 220 Ohm resistors
1x Small Piezo Speaker
2x Toggle Switches
1x Sharp Infrared Sensor GP2Y0A21YK
1x 9 Volt Battery (standard)
1x 6 Volt Battery (to power the servomotors)
Material: Aluminium and Plexiglass (leftover from previous projects)

Technical Details:

Electrical Diagram:

Possible improvements:

The greatest way to improve Big-Fourmi is to use higher quality servomotors.
The servomotors currently in use are pushed to their limit. Using better quality servos would produce a faster and more accurate motion of the robot.

Download:

If you want to build your own Big-Fourmi hexapod robot I am sharing the robot Arduino program and CAD assembly files.

Big-Fourmi Arduino Program [11.7 KB]
Big-Fourmi CAD Design (SolidWorks 2010) [21.2 MB]

Please let me know if you make anything cool with it!

Use custom mouse buttons on a Linux system

virtualmix — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 02:42:00 +0100

Btnx is a small software that will let you configure your mouse's extra button on Linux.

For example with Debian or Ubuntu, the btnx package can be installed using the command:

sudo apt get install btnx

Once the software is installed, btnx must be configured using administrator privileges:

sudo btnx-config

The configuration window will let you affect a command or a keyboard shortcut to each of your mouse buttons.

Once the setup is finished, btnx must be restarted in order to load the new configuration. This can be done on the config window or with the command:

sudo btnx

I have a "Logitech Performance MX" mouse with plenty of extra buttons and this software let me use them all.

[bug fix] Nvidia non-free driver on Debian Testing

virtualmix — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 01:49:00 +0100

Here is how to (temporary) fix an important bug (#642757) occurring with nvidia non-free driver on Debian Wheezy (Testing) and xserver-xorg version 1.11.1.

Note: The problem has been fixed in Debian Testing, this article is for information only.

This bug affect the Xserver-xorg and result in very high CPU loads causing the system to freeze or lag...

An easy way to fix this issue is to downgrade the xserver's packages to the version present in Debian Squeeze (Stable) until the issue is fixed:

Add Debian Stable repository to your sources.list and update the packages list.
Then use aptitude to downgrade the xserver-xorg packages:
```
#aptitude install "~i xserver-xorg-*"/stable
```
Restart the X server (by login out the session for example) for the modifications to take effect.

Arduino and SN754410 H-Bridge Motor Driver

virtualmix — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 16:59:00 +0200

A simple set-up to control one motor speed (PWM) and rotational direction over serial using SN754410 (L293D) motor driver.

Video:

Code:


/*SCHEMATIC USING ONLY ONE MOTOR:
 (N/A MEANS FREE PIN)
 
 5V  N/A  N/A  GND  GND  N/A  N/A  N/A
 |    |    |    |    |    |    |    |
 ------------------------------------
 |            SN754410              |
 ------------------------------------
 |    |    |    |    |    |    |    |
N/A  PIN5 MOT1 GND  GND  MOT2 PIN6 VIN
 
 */

#define motorPinOne 5 //The chosen pin must have PWM
#define motorPinTwo 6 //The chosen pin must have PWM

/* Define the rotational direction of the motor. (0 = clockwise and 1 = counter-clockwise) */
int val = 0;
/* Define the rotational speed of the motor. MUST be between 0 and 255. */
int pulse = 0;
/* Used to store the current rotational direction */
int storage = 0;

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(9600);
  Serial.println("Enter 0 or 1 to choose rotational direction");
  Serial.println("Then enter + or - to increase/decrease the rotational speed.");
  Serial.println("Warning: Rotational speed MUST be between 0 and 250.");
}

void loop() {

  val = Serial.read(); //

  switch (val) {
  case '0':
    clockwise();
    break;
  case '1':
    counterClockwise();
    break;
  case '+':
    pulse = pulse + 10;
    updateSpeed();
    break;
  case '-':
    pulse = pulse - 10;
    updateSpeed();
    break;
  }
}

void clockwise(){
  storage = 0;
  Serial.print("Rotation is clockwise and speed is ");
  Serial.println(pulse);
  analogWrite(motorPinOne,pulse);   // set leg 1 of the H-bridge low
  analogWrite(motorPinTwo,0);
}

void counterClockwise(){
  storage = 1;
  Serial.print("Rotation is counter-clockwise and speed is ");
  Serial.println(pulse);
  analogWrite(motorPinOne,0);   // set leg 1 of the H-bridge low
  analogWrite(motorPinTwo,pulse);
}

void updateSpeed(){
  if (storage == 0){
    clockwise();
  }
  if(storage == 1){
    counterClockwise();
  }
}