Month: September 2007

Categories
iPhone Linux

How To Mount Your iPhone Filesystem On Your Desktop In Ubuntu

Ever want to browse your iPhones’ filesystem on your Ubuntu machine? Follow these instructions and you’ll have it working in no time flat.

This article assumes your iPhone is “out of jail” and has Installer.app installed. If you have not already gotten this part taken care of, click here for steps you need to follow first.

  1. Install SSH on your phone by the following proceedure:
  2. Tap the Installer on your home screen.
  3. Install the following utilities:
    • Community Sources
    • BSD Subsystem
    • OpenSSH
  4. Once your iPhone has these installed, find your IP address by going into Settings, Wi-Fi and then click the blue arrow next to the network your iPhone and your Ubuntu machine are on.
  5. Turn off Auto-Lock on your iPhone, which will interrupt the OpenSSH server by going into Settings, General and Auto-Lock. Set Auto-Lock to never.
  6. Now, on your Ubuntu machine, simply click on Places, Connect to Server and follow these screenshots:
  7. Connect to iPhone via SSH
  8. Connect to iPhone via SSH
  9. Connect to iPhone via SSH
  10. Type the default password for root – “dottie”
  11. Connect to iPhone via SSH

Bam! You’re in! Now upload ringtones, compile hello world, slice dice and serve http via apache – whatever floats your dingy.

If you aren’t running Ubuntu, it’s time to upgrade. Just kidding. On any other Linux system this is probably going to be as easy (I hope) or gentoo-style (aka difficult and useless frustration). Two utilities you might need are FUSE and SSHFS if you’re going the frustrating route.

Thanks for reading, I’ll be writing about how to get the iPhone talking with Amarok and how to get ringtones uploaded very soon.

Categories
iPhone Linux

Unlocked My iPhone Using Windows, Not Possible In Linux

This terrific wiki describes in detail the “tried and true” method of manually performing pretty much every step. Unfortunately, the Wine Application Database shows that iTunes has no maintainer, and is rated as “garbage” by most people.

So right there, my article I had planned about unlocking the iPhone using Linux – simply not possible, as of right now. According to Martin Aumueller, a moderator at the iPhone amarok forums,

“If you manage to get it working it won’t be easy at all:

Other than a regular ipod, the iphone does not work as a ‘usb mass storage device’. This means you can’t just mount it as a hard disk. However, it appears that people have managed to hack their iphone so that they are able to install arbitrary software on it, in particular a ssh server. Then it is possible to expose the iphones file system and mount it via fuse as sshfs. On the gtkpod-devel mailing list you could read that the format of the data on the iphone is very similar to an ipod. So they might be able to handle that shortly. As soon as the gtkpod guys have libgpod working with the iphone, you could try to compile Amarok against the updated libgpod and try to get it working.”

So I checked out the libgpod SVN, and found they had a version that worked once you had SSH running on the iPhone – which means it’s kinda pointless to use a Linux box to try and get things unlocked, because to get SSH running, you need Window or Mac, which is confirmed by Eric Betts (who also has a quick guide how to get gtkpod working), a CS major at OSU – go Beavers!

benanzo has some interesting information over at the ModMyiPhone forum:

“Linux users have been able to sync with the iPhone for awhile now. We just mount the iPhone’s FS wirelessly via sshfs, load GTKPod and sync …wirelessly.

The current SVN version of libgpod (the backend that manipulates iTunesDB) has recently implemented full support for artwork, video, calendar, contacts, podcasts etc. for the iPhone, iPT.

You can also use gnupod. In fact, with that I’ve written a script that runs on my phone that checks what wifi network i’m connected to and if it’s my home network (where my computer is) it automatically initiates syncing.

That means that whenever I get home, I don’t have to sit down at my computer, or even take my phone out of my pocket — everything syncs back and forth automatically. Beautiful.

I’m currently in the process of porting libgpod to the iPhone environment so we can integrate over-the-air downloads into iTunesDB. That basically means we can then write a GUI frontend to bashpodder (podcast client) and automatically download/sync podcasts on-the-go.

My next project will be to get internet radio running…

Shoutcast on-the-go will be sweet.”

That’s it from me, for now. Here are a bunch of links that should get you started unlocking your iPhone. I’m going to detail later on how to get the sshfs and libgpod svn working on Ubuntu.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and lastly, how to remove the iPhone AT&T SIM card. That threw me for a loop.

So far I’m enjoying the iPhone, it’s a beautiful machine – even better when running on T-Mobile.

Categories
iPhone Linux

Why Would A Linux Geek Buy An iPhone?

Three words, one acronym: Midnight Commander via SSH. Damn, I really am a geek!

There’s two solutions that I’ve found. One is a native client, the other is a web based solution that acts as an SSH proxy.

I’m buying an iPhone tomorrow, and I’ll be demonstrating both solutions, plus any others that I find. I’m going to be trying to get it running on T-Mobile’s data network also, so I’ll have plenty of new material coming up within the next few days. SSH to my Smoothie, my Ubuntu box, and probably even a quick how-to use the VLC web-interface to remote control your PC.

That’s a good one – I’ll be using a glorified iPod to control my PC that’s playing music and movies.

Please subscribe to my RSS Feed on the left if you’d like to be notified when I post new articles.

Categories
Linux

Digg “Linux Nation” for Thursday September 20th 2007

I’ll be posting a new “Linux Nation” every Thursday starting today. Why Thursday? Why not. It’s a not so busy day for me, and I started it last week on Thursday, so I’ll keep doing what works.

  1. SUPERGUIDE: How to replace Windows completely with Linux
    ‘Number 1 With A Bullet’ is a “superguide” and that’s no kidding. A 10-part series of articles on replacing Windows completely with Linux. Part 1 through 9 is a list of tasks, such as installing, email and device connectivity, and part 10 is the conclusion. Go ahead, skip straight to the conclusion (like I did), but please read the rest of the articles.
  2. Funny (but real) linux commands and results
    Oh my… funny errors from Linux commands. I’m pretty sure this is really old, since many of the commands do not work in the BASH shell, but now it’s making the rounds again, making people laugh out loud about something like this one:
    % “How would you rate Quayle’s incompetence?
    Unmatched “.
    3. Continue reading “Digg “Linux Nation” for Thursday September 20th 2007”
Categories
Linux

Busybox Creators Sue Monsoon Over GPL Violation

Here’s the jist of things:

Busybox, the guys who make a single, small, optimized package which contains a total of 17 useful GPL tools bundled into one. From their website:

“It provides minimalist replacements for most of the utilities you usually find in bzip2, coreutils, file, findutils, gawk, grep, inetutils, modutils, net-tools, procps, sed, shadow, sysklogd, sysvinit, tar, util-linux, and vim.  The utilities in BusyBox often have fewer options than their full-featured cousins; however, the options that are included provide the expected functionality and behave very much like their larger counterparts.”

Vs:

Monsoon, who makes consumer devices primarily for home multimedia users which are close in function to the SlingBox. They decided to take busybox and use it, without releasing source code as required by the GNU Public License. That’s a shame. I guess we’ll finally see the GPL proven in court in the USA for the first time.

“We licensed BusyBox under the GPL to give users the freedom to access and modify its source code,” said Erik Andersen, a developer of BusyBox and a named plaintiff in the lawsuit filed Sept. 19 in Manhattan Federal District Court. “If companies will not abide by the fair terms of our license, then we have no choice but to ask our attorneys to go to court to force them to do so.”

I the best part of the BusyBox website is the Hall of Shame where they list prior violations – a total of 18. That page is no longer updated, instead they refer violators to the Software Freedom Law Center which files suit on their behalf.

The lawsuit, “Erik Andersen and Rob Landley v. Monsoon Multimedia Inc.,” case number 07-CV-8205 (PDF), will be heard by Senior District Judge John E. Sprizzo of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

I think this image pretty much sums things up:

ex_a_gnu2.JPG

Categories
Off-Topic

Do You Submit Articles Or Make Insightful Comments On Digg? Enable Shouts From Anyone.

 You’re likely thinking, “Why the hell do I want to do this?  I’m gonna get a ton of spam!”

Actually, you’re not.

Instead, you are going to make more “Mutual Friends”, and even if you don’t submit articles on digg, this will benefit you.  If you make very informative and in-depth replies to submissions, you’re going to meet people and make friends.

Thanks to the new digg “social network” features, users have been able to communicate among themselves instead of on Facebook or other places.  Digg doesn’t allow HTML in a shout, so spammy links are not going to be a problem.

Here’s how to do it:

1.  Click My Profile at the top of the screen.

digg1.jpg

2.  Press Settings.

digg2_2.JPG

3.  Select the radio button that says Allow shouts to me from…. Anyone.

digg3_3.JPG

4.  Press Save.

That’s it, you’re done.  Now monitor your profile page for shouts from people who would like to be your friend.  The more mutual friends you have, the more diggs you get on comments and submissions.

To prove this works, if you want more mutual friends, send me a shout and I’ll add you as a friend.

Categories
Linux

How to Install Adobe Flash Player for amd64 / 64-bit on Debian Etch

Alrighty, so I switched operating systems – again, this time I’m trying out Debian 4.0r1 aka “Etch” after deciding that Zenwalk is for metro-sexuals. First things first right? Gotta get my YouTube working, Firefox Plugins installed, etc.

The following guys made this possible: DIP Consultants and Weiqi Gao.

Unofficial nspluginwrapper & ia32-libs-gtk packages for Etch

———————————————-
First things first, as root:

  • Add repository to sources.list:
    • echo “deb http://www.dipconsultants.com/debian etch main” >> /etc/apt/sources.list
  • apt-get update
  • Install the keyring so you’re not bothered with key/verification warnings:
    • apt-get install markybob-keyring
  • apt-get update once more
  • Install what you want:
    • apt-get install ia32-libs-gtk nspluginwrapper

If you’re looking to install Flash in a 64-bit browser:

  • Do *every* step listed above, then the following as a *user*, not root:
  • wget http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/install_flash_player_9_linux.tar.gz
  • tar -zxf install_flash_player_9_linux.tar.gz
  • mkdir ~/.mozilla/plugins/
  • mv install_flash_player_9_linux/flashplayer.xpt install_flash_player_9_linux/libflashplayer.so ~/.mozilla/plugins/
  • nspluginwrapper -i ~/.mozilla/plugins/libflashplayer.so
  • Start/restart iceweasel/firefox/whatever
  • Enjoy, Etch 64-bit users, from the guys at dipconsultants.com 🙂

The underlined bit is my contribution, for some reason it does not exist by default, probably since the switch to Iceweasel. Honestly I don’t get the point of changing the name and stripping the logos from the browser, everybody knows that Mozilla is NOT going to start charging people for use of their trademark logos. Google would have a hay day and clean some house at Mozilla Foundation.

Damn Debian and their “Social Contract.” It’s silly if you ask me.

On a side note, I did goto the screening of Pirates of the Great Salt Lake tonight, and I thought it was a smart and funny movie that doesn’t have any blazingly obvious flaws.  I rate it 4.5 out of 5 “ARRRGS”

Categories
Linux Windows

The REAL Fix For Comcast BitTorrent Throttling

First, a little explanation may be needed as to what is happening in between our computers, Comcast and the Internet.
Comcast is using a packet filtering platform called Sandvine. This platform is a at its core, a Quality of Service system that has legitimate uses, such as giving high priority to Xbox Live communications and VOIP packets. 

Unfortunately, Comcast has decided to use Sandvine (some say illegally) to impersonate us and send a reset packet (known as an RST flag), which is exactly like the Chinese goverment filters the internet!  (PDF)

TorrentFreak hinted on August 22nd, is that someone was working on a fix for Comcast users.

“…we know that at least two BitTorrent client developers are including this fix in their next update.” –TorrentFreak 

It’s two weeks later, where is the fix!?  And just exactly how do you find out if you’re being throttled by Comcast?  And how can we figure out how to avoid this traffic shaping?

Continue reading “The REAL Fix For Comcast BitTorrent Throttling”
Categories
Linux

Mini Zenwalk Review

Alrighty… Zenwalk.

How about a stream of consciousness review for “zen computing”? That seems fitting to me.

By the way, the iceweasel spellchecker underlines EVERYTHING as being spelled incorrectly, so excuse the mistakes.

Nifty auto-partition, OK text mode installer. Packages chosen by default, gnome, iceweasel, icedove, lilo configured properly. Booted into XFCE, and BAM no DHCP. Lots of hunting later, I find it under System / Zenpanel. Enable DHCP for IP, DNS, etc, everything working. Still looking at 1280×1024 desktop. 2 “videoconfigure” later, still not working. Manually edit /etc/xorg.conf and add resolutions, working great, but compositer still not working despite detection and use of nv driver. gnash required to display some items, Xarchiver wasn’t able to successfully unzip a tar.bz. Tried to open a PDF, defaulted to Evince, which threw up an error stating that the file had an invalid MIME type.

Deep breath. Ahhhh. This is definitely “Zen” for Linux users – but not in 2007. Maybe in 1999. 1.5 Opposable Thumbs down.

I’m not gonna say all negative things about this one. I give it a total of 0.5 Thumbs up for fantastic full-out beautiful dolphin-ized themes for XFCE and bootsplash.

P.S.

Dolphins used as mascots only work in one place, and that’s in Miami. Even then it’s kinda metro-sexual.

I bet there was some manager out there who sent the art team a memo that read something like this:

From: “Manager Promoted For Prodigious Incompetence”;
To: “Artsy Team Mailing List”;
Subject: New Mascot Idea.

Hey guys,

I think we should use a dolphin for our logo. Yeah, that’ll do. And make it YELLOW! ASAP Over and out, 10-4 good buddy.

Categories
Off-Topic

Pirates of the Great Salt Lake Screenings In Six Cities On Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Whew, my first real off-topic post.  I’ve been waiting for the screenings to begin, and I’m finally going to be able to see the movie in Salt Lake City on Sept 19th – International Talk Like A Pirate Day.

I’m already an Associate Fan Club Producer for the film, having donated money and purchased the DVD in advance.  This is really a great opportunity to promote an indy film that is really hilarious.

Trailer is after the bump, as well as the email anouncement I received.

Continue reading “Pirates of the Great Salt Lake Screenings In Six Cities On Talk Like a Pirate Day!”