blog.erik.rainey.name

After fixing a few issues with MySQL (I knew it was going to be a problem, which i solved by installing Webmin and letting it fuss with the command line crap of MySQL), I had a set of .deb's installing from the MythTV build (which used dpkg-buildpackage). Only one complained, mythtv-backend; but that's a rather important one to complain. It seems there's still something not right about MySQL. ...sigh...
On a better front, I've also tweaked the hd-3000 drivers a bit to fix some warnings in the files (missing return's, missing casts in printk) and some problems with the install script that I found answers for in the HD-3000 forums. It looks like it should be pretty straight forward to get things running from here once I have the modules installed correctly. But I also have to fix sound too. I tried playing an mp3 on XMMS to see of my sound card had correctly detected, which it had, but the alias to /dev/dsp evidently had not been made and the module for ALSA was not trying to open the driver. In the end I couldn't hear anything. I also fixed the firewire support in the kernel, removed floppy support, removed the hw_random driver that I thought I had and added RAID 0,1,0+1 and LVM to the kernel. I'll need that stuff to make a sufficiently large partition to save HD-Video on. Once I did all that and compiled the kernel and rebooted I got runtime module link errors in the kernel bootup for a couple kernel symbols out of the hd3000 modules. I'll have to recompile again and be sure to remember to compile it along with the kernel. I'm wondering now if I should try KnoppMyth to see if my Terk HDTV will work well for me and skip all this junk.

Since I'm not using Fedora Core 3 in this system (I'm starting to wish that I did), I have to modify things to run smoothly. Here's a few of them for the HD-3000 card:

• Compile Kernel to support HOTPLUG
• Install Firmware to /usr/lib/hotplug/firmware
• Manually install modprobe commands from scripts/patch_modprobe.sh to /etc/modules.conf

I'm sure this list will grow with time. But, heartache is unfortunately how one learns with Linux, especially Debian, it doesn't get much easier. I'll be posting and following this thread to see what's up with the Debian port.

It seems the problem with the kernel was the RAM disk after all. The error certainly did not make it clear that the RAM disk had failed, which is irritating. So, as promised, here is a, hopefully, complete list of kernel features I added, most unneccessary to MythTV:

• IDE Chipset support for Intel PIIxn, Promise PDC20268. Lots of "Generic" support needed to get the kernel to actually boot.
• IEEE-1394, Raw, DV, and OHCI support
• I2C Support for Intel 82801EB/ER
• ATI Radeon 9700 Pro Driver (needed I2C support)
• Filesystem: EXT2, EXT3, REISERFS
• USB Support: Mass Storage, ATI RF Remote
• Ethernet: Realtek 8139
• Video for Linux Support
• DVB Support

I wasn't able to find a suitable driver for the HD-3000 (which reports as a Conexant Winfast TV2000 XP and Conexant Unknown Device 8802). However mythTV is supposed to have them available. Next, I'll have the steps I took to install MythTV from the debian sources. It's looking to be another big pain in the ass, mainly because of MySQL.

Well, I've been running "make menuconfig" on my kernel all night, adding one off things, trying to get my 2.6 Debian off the ground. The 2.6 kernel keeps reporting that it can't "mount the root fs, unknown-block(3,3)". So far I've had to add all the obvious things like:

• IDE/ATA Support
• EXT2 as a Compiled-in module, not a loadable module.
• MSDOS Partition Tables
• Intel PIIXn chipset support - just added this, and it's compiling, we'll see if it works.

Hopefully that will work. Once I've got the thing running I'll list out all the tweaks I put in.

I'm putting together an HD PVR based around MythTV and the HD-3000 card. It'll be able to do Off-Air ATSC recording and normal Cable Recording (if I had cable). I had to order the case, motherboard and a cooling fan for the CPU, but the rest are part from older machines. Here's the spec's:

• Pentium 4 2.4 GHz Northwood Socket 478 533MHz FSB
• 1 GB DDR 333, PC2700 RAM
• pcHDTV HD-3000
• ATI Radeon 9800 All In Wonder (DVI out)
• Abit IS7 Motherboard
  • On-board IEEE 1394
  • On-board Optical SPD/IF in/out
• Silverstone LC10B-M Case
• 700GB of Storage!
  • 1 x 20GB Western Digital (WDC WD205AA) HDD
  • 2 x 200GB Seagate (ST3200822A) HDD
  • 1 x 160GB Maxtor (Maxtor 6Y160P0) HDD
  • 1 x 120GB Western Digital (WDC WD1200JB-00EVA0) HDD

I plan on following these instructions on assembling a MythTV. The parts should be in by friday. All I need to do now is to buy an Antenna that can get most of the off-air stations in Dallas. I've been warned not to get the "StealthAntenna" as the design was misimplemented and is not able to get good reception in the suburbs.

Order Info Web Order Number order number omitted Shipping Address Erik Rainey address omitted Shipping Method 2-3 Day Shipping Shipping Preferences Ship each item when available.

Order Items Quantity Item Price Item Total Mac mini 1.25GHz Part Number: Z0B7 Accessory kit 512MB DDR333 SDRAM - 1 DIMM 56K v.92 Modem Mac OS X - U.S. English 40GB Ultra ATA drive 4x SuperDrive (DVD±RW/CD-RW) Estimated ship: 2-3 weeks Delivered within 2-3 business days after shipping 1 $633.00 $633.00 Order Subtotal: $633.00 Shipping Charge: $14.00 Estimated Tax*: $53.38 Estimated Total: $700.38

It's that time of year at TI, when the wallets swell and the DLP incentives become nearly irresistible. That's right it's bonus time! I got a modest raise, some handsome profit sharing and a bump in the grade level. Now I'm going to be a development lead on a new software component on a new chipset for a new platform, which in itself is a big challenge but the software itself will also be a challenge, so I'm in for Double Jeopardy! *glee*!

I just bought the ScanGauge for my car! It's a quite cool car computer monitor that can tell you all sorts of things that they didn't put on your dashboard, like your Fuel Efficiency, and it can read and clear engine codes. They sell it over at thinkgeek. In order to properly interpret your engine codes you need to look them up on Trouble Codes. They have most auto codes up to 2000, even for my Nissan Altima 1999.5 (not like it's rare or anything). This will, of course, drive the mechanics crazy as people can now tell them which sensors are publishing trouble codes without any knowledge of what that actually means.

I'm currently listening to "The 8th Habit" by Stephen Covey, a follow-up to his original title, "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People". I originally began to read the first book when I was in high school during my time in Boy Scouts, before I got my Eagle Scout (which is a whole other discussion in achievement under false pretenses that I only now realize). However I stopped for one reason or another and never picked it up again. I recently found the book on Audible.com and having run out of other things to listen to with my monthly subscription I decided to give him a shot. Mr. Covey's book is a semi-rational approach to learning how to be a more effective person; how to train yourself to become what you want to be. I'd say that 60% of what he says I would agree with little modification (mostly by using more precise terminology that I can only assume he did not use in order to remain accessible to the general populace). For another 20% I'd say that I agree with it but for completely different reasons, sometimes the opposite reasons that he states. And finally there's another 20% that I think is too far into a mystical notion of the universe, stemming from Mr. Covey's religious background, for me to relate to, much less understand (i.e. his idea of "connecting with the infinite"). For the 20% that I agree with but for other reasons that he states, I feel he suffers from not having a consistent perspective on his issues. At the same time he talks about free will and choice he quotes famous people who make statements to the opposite. He is a religious man, as I mentioned before, which places him in the groupings with the "mystics". How one can synthesize the pre-determinism of deities (i.e. God's Divine Plan) and free will and choice, I don't know. But he talks at great length about the concreteness of reality (we'd call it the Primacy of Existence) and repeats, but does not quote, Ayn Rand's statement (and I'm recalling from memory here) "Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed". (I have no idea if he's read Rand). He agrees that there are axioms, though he does not name them (like: to be Conscious is to Identify).

My intention of in starting this blog is mainly to post links to stories I find particularly good or bad, post my response, and let you the reader learn more about the world, or me, or yourself, or about some ideas.