Archive for the 'software' category

peewit, Lapwing-Linux and annoying kernels

Aug 05 2010 Published by under FOSS, software

I've been working on peewit recently. I've finally got it talking to telepathy-mission-control, logging in, retrieving a contacts list, displaying it in the GUI and updating when contacts leave/change status.
The current code is the master branch, but extra work may go on in the "tmc" branch.

This has distracted me slightly from Lapwing-Linux, but not by much. Updates are still occurring, although the 2009 core is starting to creak a bit. I've decided therefore to limit updates to aaa_base/aax_base to security and major bug fixing only; there is a lot of exciting things coming in the next 6 months or so (gobject-introspection, GVariants, GTK3, GSettings) that would be more suited to a clean base, rather than getting tacked onto or hacked into 2009.

Where does this leave 2009? I am going to get a release out, with a LiveCD and GUI installer. First however I have to get the web2py site working as I'm fed up with TikiWiki being so clunky (yes, I do remember singing it's praises before. Blogged too soon ...).
Writing a custom site will be better in the long run, but is still a long run ;) The current hurdle is porting my bastardised version of pyForum to work on GAE, or writing it from scratch to work without SQL based queries.
Whilst it would be nice to get the bugtracker and package lister working, I'd be happy to settle for the wiki, forum and user apps working to start with.

LiveCD/installer wise, I'm probably not going to use anaconda, it seems to be getting weirder with each release. vanellus will be the installer for the forseeable future, basically copying the SquashFS image to the HDD. Currently it requires code to do the actual installation, the GUI is good to go AFAIR.

Kernels. Damn. 2009 will ship with a 2.6.30 kernel. Mainly because I've been using it constantly since August last year without hiccup; also because the last few kernels (2.6.33, 2.6.34, 2.6.35) have an annoying bug/feature/omission/regression with "snd_hda_intel spurious response" in dmesg. It seems lots of people are having this problem, especially with VIA chipsets.
It doesn't cause no sound or clicks, but under heavy load the sound will skip, and having dmesg full of noise prevents real errors from appearing, like why nouveau doesn't like resume from hibernation, resuming to a garbled screen and then a hard lock up.
I'll take solace in that the mainline distros with kernels > 2.6.30 also have this sound problem, so it's not just me being stupid.

Until next time :)

No responses yet

OpenID now works here

Jul 29 2010 Published by under software

I mentioned a while ago that I had problems getting OpenID support on this blog.
I've now resolved them (as you can probably tell from the title) and heres a quick howto.

0: Remove the nifty way to do OpenID
You need to remove it, else Bad Things® will happen.

1: Install OpenID, XRDS-Simple and Comments with OpenID
This is the easy bit. Admin > Plugins > Add New and search for "openid" and "xrds". Select, install, activate.

2: Set the Blog Owner
Set which user is the blog owner. Admin > Settings > OpenID. If you have 2 separate accounts, one admin and one editor (and if not, why not?) you will have to enable "Editor" in "Enable OpenID", save the changes, then set the blog owner. Now you can use a simplified URL (eg http://samwwwblack.lapwing.org rather than http://samwwwblack.lapwing.org/author/samwwwblack)

3: Turn off OpenID for comments
I know this seems counter intuitive, but the OpenID plugin includes a technically cool but UIally (cough) crap way to do OpenID comments. The OpenID for Comments plugin (keep up) will handle this a lot better.
Goto Admin > Settings > Discussion and uncheck "Enable OpenID for comments"

4: Add OpenID to your template
Goto Admin > Appearance > Editor, then select "comments.php" (the default theme should already be selected; if not, select it from "Select theme to edit:" in the top right corner).
About 3/4s the way down, add the code in red between the URL block and the endif statement, as suggested below;

<label for="url"><?php _e('URL','precious'); ?> <small>(<?php _e('optional','precious');?>)</small></label>
<input type="text" name="url" id="url" value="<?php echo $comment_author_url; ?>" size="30" tabindex="3" />

<label>Or enter your OpenId URL:</label>
<?php comments_with_openid(); ?>
<input type='text' name='openid_identifier' id='openid_identifier' class=textfield' tabindex='4' style='width:300px' />

<?php endif; ?>

<label for="comment"><?php _e('Your comment','precious'); ?></label>
<textarea name="comment" id="comment" cols="40" rows="10" tabindex="4"></textarea>
<!--<small><strong>XHTML:</strong>  <?php echo allowed_tags(); ?></small>-->

This will add a selector for the OpenID provider which will populate the OpenID URL with the correct URI, and the appropriate text highlighted if you need to input a username (eg for LiveJournal the URL is http://USERNAME.livejournal.com; USERNAME will be highlighted for you to edit)

5: Add OpenID to the badbehaviour whitelist
This is one major thing that stopped me from using OpenID in the first place.
Goto Admin > Plugins > Editor and select the badbehaviour plugin. Select "bad-behavior/bad-behavior/whitelist.inc.php", scroll down to "$bb2_whitelist_urls" and add the following in red;

// Includes two examples of whitelisting by URL.
$bb2_whitelist_urls = array(
//    "/example.php",
"/openid/server",
"/index.php/openid/server",
"/openid/consumer",
"/index.php/openid/consumer",
);

This will allow OpenID to work correctly.

6: Test your new OpenID system
What it says in the title.
When you use http://your.blog.com as the OpenID URL, it should direct you to your WordPress login, and/or to allow the site access to your OpenID.
You can check the trusted sites, and add other OpenIDs on your profile page under Profile > Your OpenIDs or Profile > Your Trusted Sites.
Nb; I've only briefly tried setting OpenID Delegation (in Profile > Your Profile) and it didn't work properly. May have just been the URL I used. YMMV.

No responses yet

Why we still have the point and click GUI

Jul 11 2010 Published by under FOSS, software

TechRadar have an article about "Point and click GUIs: why are we still stuck with them?", bemoaning the lack of innovation in the software interfaces we all use daily. Since the 80's computer GUIs have been based on files, taskbars, menus and windows, manipulated by a mouse and keyboard.
My defence of point and click GUIs? They are an adequate fit for the majority of computer based tasks.
You'll note the caveats adequate fit and majority in that sentence. It isn't best fit to train surgeons in keyhole surgery, or for running automated tasks or better immersion in driving or flying simulation games. It also wouldn't be practical for use with a mobile devices or single purpose machines (ATMs, information points, ticket machines etc.).

The point and click GUI with a mouse and keyboard is the best fit for what most people use their computers for; manipulating files whilst sat at a desk.

For example, imagine organising your physical photo collection. You'd collect the photos together based on a criteria like location, time, people in the photo etc. You'd then place this collection in a pile or folder, suitably labelled, adding or removing from piles as you went along, until you were happy about the collections.
This is the same as you'd do on your computer with a digital collection; select the photos you want, make a folder or open a new window, move/copy them across, label the folder and repeat until finished. Instead of physical piles of photos, you have windows with them in; instead of physically picking up the photos and moving them, you click and select with the mouse.
It's the same thought process in both instances, just executed differently.

The article mentions touch screens and the iPad specifically as better for read only use of files, and in these circumstances, I agree. However, as also mentioned in the article, touchscreens aren't good for "data input or content creation ... [or] heavy-duty desktop computing". They aren't an adequate fit for the majority of tasks. They are a specialised interface for a limited set of (mostly) well defined tasks. The point and click GUI is at least adequate for browsing the web; typing on an iPad is so bad you can get a keyboard for it.

Just as a humorous illustration, suppose the author had been talking about doors. We haven't changed the basic premise of the door in hundreds of years; they mostly require us to exert a force on one edge either via a handle or push plate, to rotate along the opposite edge on a set of pin hinges in order to move a lump of material from a hole in a wall. I mean, sure we've got alternate door types for specialised situations (sliding doors, airlocks, revolving doors) but I'm bored of pushing material out of the way.

The reason we aren't clamouring for a revolution in door design? The current design works fine, thanks.
The reason there hasn't been a revolution in UI design away from point and click GUIs? The current design works fine, thanks.

2 responses so far

Too much newness

May 13 2010 Published by under Life, politics, software

Two bits of newness.

I've taken the plunge and moved to hosting my own WordPress blog. The LiveJournal import script crapped itself a few times (it reached 13,000 comment imports; I only have 212 comments), but I think I've gotten them all across.
Also, I apologise for the lack of OpenID support, I can't seem to get any of the plugins to work without either errors or interfering with a nifty way to set my blog as an OpenID provider without any provider software. I hope to fix this in the near future, or just hack away at it until it works.

The other is the Lib/Con government. I've had a read through of the agreement, and whilst I'm not thrilled about nuclear power, replacing Trident or the marriage tax rebates, I'm heartened that the LibDems can abstain from the votes and speak against them without jeopardising the coalition.
I'm more heartened by the wholesale adoption of LibDem policies, such as the £10,000 tax free allowance and political reform. Along with the common viewpoint on education and civil liberties, these are good things, whatever the nay-sayers say (Try saying that quickly repeatedly)
With respect to them, the LibDems have not abandoned their soul, lost the plot or sold out. Whilst a number of supporters would like to have seen a Lib/Lab pact (and had Labour got more seats it probably would have happened), it would have been more unstable than the current arrangement, and I have a gut feeling that the public would vilify the LibDems more for propping up Labour. I also suspect that once Labour were "safely" back in, the promises would get dropped as "too expensive", "unworkable", "not a priority", or New Labour's current authoritarian streak would assert itself.
I'm not fan of the Tories; I would not vote for them even if every other candidate were more unpalatable. The element that gets me enthused about the government are the LibDem ministers, providing liberal viewpoints to counter the conservative ones, to propose liberal solutions to problems. This strong counterpoint will be enough to hold back the Tories' natural instincts whilst providing decent government.

I think I've finished drinking the KoolAid now. Cynical service should be resumed shortly. ;)

No responses yet

Microsoft opens as the UK closes

Feb 22 2008 Published by under politics, software

Microsoft has made a step (ish, sorta) to providing interoperability documentation available, and supporting standards. Whilst MS finally getting its backside into gear (its only taken them 4 years to start to adhere to the EC's ruling) is good, many many people have noted they've said this before, and the EC in particular remains sceptical (he Commission notes that today's announcement follows at least four similar statements by Microsoft in the past on the importance of interoperability).
I'd be happy if MS actually released useful documentation. I'd be even more happy if they follow through with adhering to standards; not MS defined de facto standards, but ISO standards. W3C standards. The ones everyone else in the computing field have agreed to and use.

Whilst this possibly good news happened, possibly bad news occurred here. Our government is suggesting that legislation be brought in to force ISPs to cooperate with the MAFIAA, err, sorry, "creative content industry".
Argh.
The music/film industries' current model is broken. The government should in no way, shape or form be supporting it. This bleating about "lost sales due to piracy! WAAGHH!" is bullshit.

For example, Joe Public spent, in the past, £100 a month on movies and CDs. Joe Public now has a Wii. He enjoys playing Wii games with his kids, and so buys more games. He still only has £100 a month to spend on entertainment, so he'll have to cut back on the CDs and DVDs. Net result? The movie/music industries see lower sales.

Do they just not see that? People enjoy games more. They therefore spend more money on games, not buying as many CD/DVDs as before. Thats simple economics.

People have also woken up to the fact that most of the "content" the industries put out isn't worth it any more. The money either goes to the wrong people (the middleman rather than the creative person) or its so bad and bland it just simply isn't worth the cost any more.

I look forward to the first disconnection. I also look forward to the ensuing legal battle for the wide variety of offences caused by the ISP/BPI/HMG.

No responses yet

« Newer posts Older posts »