Category: hardware

Link: ODROID-C1 is a $35 quad-core, single-board Android/Linux PC

When the Raspberry Pi team launched a tiny, low power computer priced at just $35, it was pretty remarkable. But that was 2 years ago, and while the Raspberry Pi has seen a few updates in that time, it’s still powered by the same single-core 700 MHz Broadcomm BCM2835 ARM11 processor.

Over the past few years a number of other single-board computers with more powerful hardware have appeared, but they usually also have higher price tags.

Hardkernel’s ODROID-C1 doesn’t though… it’s a quad-core mini computer that sells for just $35.

odroid-c1_01

Full article and demonstration videos here:
ODROID-C1 is a $35 quad-core, single-board Android/Linux PC (Liliputing)
Related:
$35 quad-core hacker SBC offers Raspberry Pi-like size and I/O (LinuxGizmos.com)
Ordroid-C1 vs Raspberry Pi B+: Hardware, Benchmark, Storage and Ethernet Performance Comparison tables from Ordroid

Link: Do you run one or more TBS PCIe cards under Linux? Check your IRQs…

The other night I happened to have a ssh session open to a TVHeadEnd backend system (running Debian Linux) when this message appeared:

Message from syslogd@backend at Nov 6 23:03:02 …
kernel:[452276.219160] Disabling IRQ

And then the satellite card essentially stopped working – it would act like it was receiving signals, but they were all complete garbage until I rebooted the system.

It turns out that the system was putting several things on IRQ , as revealed by cat /proc/interrupts –

 16:    1669004          0          0          0  IR-IO-APIC-fasteoi   ehci_hcd:usb1, SAA716x Core, SAA716x Core, snd_hda_intel

In searching for a solution to this, I came across this thread (and also this thread), which informed me that the TBS cards were using the old style of interrupts, and that it would be a good idea to change that so they use the newer PCI-MSI-edge type. The procedure for doing that is simple, and easily reversible if it doesn’t work.

Full article here:
Do you run one or more TBS PCIe cards under Linux? Check your IRQs… (Free-To-Air America)

Note that the advice given here may also apply to other types and/or brands of TV tuner cards installed on a Linux system!

Link: 8 Tips to Solve Linux & Unix Systems Hard Disk Problems Like Disk Full Or Can’t Write to the Disk

Can’t write to the hard disk on a Linux or Unix-like systems? Want to diagnose corrupt disk issues on a server? Want to find out why you are getting “disk full” messages on screen? Want to learn how to solve full/corrupt and failed disk issues. Try these eight tips to diagnose a Linux and Unix server hard disk drive problems.

Full article here:
8 Tips to Solve Linux & Unix Systems Hard Disk Problems Like Disk Full Or Can’t Write to the Disk (nixCraft)

Link: Reduce amount reserved free disk space with tune2fs

In Ubuntu/Debian by default while creating ext2/ext3/ext4 file system 5% of disk space is reserved for super user across each partition.

Except for root partition 5% reserved space is not required for other partitions. So we reuse that reserved space.

Full article here:
Reduce amount reserved free disk space with tune2fs (Sany’s Linux and Open Source Blog)
Related:
tune2fs – adjust tunable filesystem parameters (Unix Tutorial)

Link: Review of the TBS MOI+ DVB S/S2 Satellite TV Linux Server – a bit like a HDHomeRun, but for Free-To-Air satellite signals

A couple of years ago, I acquired a HDHomeRun Dual device, and discovered how nice it was to be able to stream terrestrial TV signals to anywhere in my home via my local network. I set up a backend system so that I could record programs and enjoy watching them at my convenience. I wondered if it was also possible to do the same thing with the signals I received off my satellite dishes. So earlier this year I attempted to build a backend system that could receive free-to-air satellite signals and stream them to the various computers around my home, including the home theater PC’s that are connected to my HDTV receivers. Let’s just say that the first attempts didn’t work as well as I’d hoped. There is a huge learning curve, particularly if you’re not a programmer nor otherwise particularly geeky, and sometimes the hardware and the backend software just won’t cooperate.

Then I stumbled across a page on the TBS MOI+. I suspected that it might be able to accomplish what I’d been trying to do, and in a lot smaller package. So, I went online in an attempt to find some reviews on this device. To my surprise, little has been written about it, particularly in English. So, hoping to fill that gap, I contacted TBS and asked if they might be interested in providing a unit for review purposes. They graciously consented, and this review is the result. Just so you know, I did not promise to write only nice things about the unit, and I’m not getting paid anything for this review, beyond receiving the MOI+. So, this will be as honest of a review as I can make it.

Full article here:
Review of the TBS MOI+ DVB S/S2 Satellite TV Linux Server – a bit like a HDHomeRun, but for Free-To-Air satellite signals (Free To Air America)

Link: Repair a Broken Ethernet Plug

The locking tab of RJ45 plugs breaks very easily. Replace it by two nylon cable ties (aka zip ties), in minutes.

IMPORTANT NOTES:
– This must be regarded as a temporary “Mac Gyver” solution, for home usage.
– Definitely not for IT staff! (no crimper? asking for one in the budget won’t get you fired!)
– Before the tab breaks, consider protecting the plug.

Full article here:
Repair a Broken Ethernet Plug (Instructables)

Link: How to Manage Printers in Linux

Linux often gets a bad rap when it comes to certain peripherals. Printers are no exception. As someone who worked as a remote engineer for a large managed service provider, I can happily confirm that printing, as a whole, is a horrible system. In the Windows environment, printing breaks often – and although Windows might enjoy a larger, more mainstream, selection of drivers, it doesn’t have nearly the level of administration tools as does Linux.

Nearly all Linux desktops depend upon a very user-friendly printer configure/management tool called system-config-printer. Though there may be minor differences in the GUI (from distribution to distribution), the use of the tool is the same – and it’s incredibly easy. Even without the GUI tool, managing printers in Linux is quite simple, thanks to a web front-end for the Common Unix Printing System (CUPS). With this web-based management tool, you can even configure your printers remotely.

In this piece, I will introduce you to setting up a printer using the system-config-printer tool. Once you see how easy it is, you’ll worry less about using Linux as a desktop or even using Linux to share printers out.

Full article here:
How to Manage Printers in Linux (Linux.com)