X-Git-Url: http://pere.pagekite.me/gitweb/homepage.git/blobdiff_plain/6858ce2065f53c1a3b26f35dffe5160916a5285c..feb473cda9dc7b09ddc973f7b10e8ee0d15f60ee:/blog/archive/2016/12/index.html diff --git a/blog/archive/2016/12/index.html b/blog/archive/2016/12/index.html index 00d9e488da..522af464fd 100644 --- a/blog/archive/2016/12/index.html +++ b/blog/archive/2016/12/index.html @@ -21,6 +21,222 @@

Entries from December 2016.

+
+
+ Appstream just learned how to map hardware to packages too! +
+
+ 23rd December 2016 +
+
+

I received a very nice Christmas present today. As my regular +readers probably know, I have been working on the +the Isenkram +system for many years. The goal of the Isenkram system is to make +it easier for users to figure out what to install to get a given piece +of hardware to work in Debian, and a key part of this system is a way +to map hardware to packages. Isenkram have its own mapping database, +and also uses data provided by each package using the AppStream +metadata format. And today, +AppStream in +Debian learned to look up hardware the same way Isenkram is doing it, +ie using fnmatch():

+ +

+% appstreamcli what-provides modalias \
+  usb:v1130p0202d0100dc00dsc00dp00ic03isc00ip00in00
+Identifier: pymissile [generic]
+Name: pymissile
+Summary: Control original Striker USB Missile Launcher
+Package: pymissile
+% appstreamcli what-provides modalias usb:v0694p0002d0000
+Identifier: libnxt [generic]
+Name: libnxt
+Summary: utility library for talking to the LEGO Mindstorms NXT brick
+Package: libnxt
+---
+Identifier: t2n [generic]
+Name: t2n
+Summary: Simple command-line tool for Lego NXT
+Package: t2n
+---
+Identifier: python-nxt [generic]
+Name: python-nxt
+Summary: Python driver/interface/wrapper for the Lego Mindstorms NXT robot
+Package: python-nxt
+---
+Identifier: nbc [generic]
+Name: nbc
+Summary: C compiler for LEGO Mindstorms NXT bricks
+Package: nbc
+%
+

+ +

A similar query can be done using the combined AppStream and +Isenkram databases using the isenkram-lookup tool:

+ +

+% isenkram-lookup usb:v1130p0202d0100dc00dsc00dp00ic03isc00ip00in00
+pymissile
+% isenkram-lookup usb:v0694p0002d0000
+libnxt
+nbc
+python-nxt
+t2n
+%
+

+ +

You can find modalias values relevant for your machine using +cat $(find /sys/devices/ -name modalias). + +

If you want to make this system a success and help Debian users +make the most of the hardware they have, please +helpadd +AppStream metadata for your package following the guidelines +documented in the wiki. So far only 11 packages provide such +information, among the several hundred hardware specific packages in +Debian. The Isenkram database on the other hand contain 101 packages, +mostly related to USB dongles. Most of the packages with hardware +mapping in AppStream are LEGO Mindstorms related, because I have, as +part of my involvement in +the Debian LEGO +team given priority to making sure LEGO users get proposed the +complete set of packages in Debian for that particular hardware. The +team also got a nice Christmas present today. The +nxt-firmware +package made it into Debian. With this package in place, it is +now possible to use the LEGO Mindstorms NXT unit with only free +software, as the nxt-firmware package contain the source and firmware +binaries for the NXT brick.

+ +

As usual, if you use Bitcoin and want to show your support of my +activities, please send Bitcoin donations to my address +15oWEoG9dUPovwmUL9KWAnYRtNJEkP1u1b.

+ +
+
+ + + Tags: debian, english, isenkram. + + +
+
+
+ +
+
+ Isenkram updated with a lot more hardware-package mappings +
+
+ 20th December 2016 +
+
+

The Isenkram +system I wrote two years ago to make it easier in Debian to find +and install packages to get your hardware dongles to work, is still +going strong. It is a system to look up the hardware present on or +connected to the current system, and map the hardware to Debian +packages. It can either be done using the tools in isenkram-cli or +using the user space daemon in the isenkram package. The latter will +notify you, when inserting new hardware, about what packages to +install to get the dongle working. It will even provide a button to +click on to ask packagekit to install the packages.

+ +

Here is an command line example from my Thinkpad laptop:

+ +

+% isenkram-lookup  
+bluez
+cheese
+ethtool
+fprintd
+fprintd-demo
+gkrellm-thinkbat
+hdapsd
+libpam-fprintd
+pidgin-blinklight
+thinkfan
+tlp
+tp-smapi-dkms
+tp-smapi-source
+tpb
+%
+

+ +

It can also list the firware package providing firmware requested +by the load kernel modules, which in my case is an empty list because +I have all the firmware my machine need: + +

+% /usr/sbin/isenkram-autoinstall-firmware -l
+info: did not find any firmware files requested by loaded kernel modules.  exiting
+%
+

+ +

The last few days I had a look at several of the around 250 +packages in Debian with udev rules. These seem like good candidates +to install when a given hardware dongle is inserted, and I found +several that should be proposed by isenkram. I have not had time to +check all of them, but am happy to report that now there are 97 +packages packages mapped to hardware by Isenkram. 11 of these +packages provide hardware mapping using AppStream, while the rest are +listed in the modaliases file provided in isenkram.

+ +

These are the packages with hardware mappings at the moment. The +marked packages are also announcing their hardware +support using AppStream, for everyone to use:

+ +

air-quality-sensor, alsa-firmware-loaders, argyll, +array-info, avarice, avrdude, b43-fwcutter, +bit-babbler, bluez, bluez-firmware, brltty, +broadcom-sta-dkms, calibre, cgminer, cheese, colord, +colorhug-client, dahdi-firmware-nonfree, dahdi-linux, +dfu-util, dolphin-emu, ekeyd, ethtool, firmware-ipw2x00, fprintd, +fprintd-demo, galileo, gkrellm-thinkbat, gphoto2, +gpsbabel, gpsbabel-gui, gpsman, gpstrans, gqrx-sdr, gr-fcdproplus, +gr-osmosdr, gtkpod, hackrf, hdapsd, hdmi2usb-udev, hpijs-ppds, hplip, +ipw3945-source, ipw3945d, kde-config-tablet, kinect-audio-setup, +libnxt, libpam-fprintd, lomoco, +madwimax, minidisc-utils, mkgmap, msi-keyboard, mtkbabel, +nbc, nqc, nut-hal-drivers, ola, +open-vm-toolbox, open-vm-tools, openambit, pcgminer, pcmciautils, +pcscd, pidgin-blinklight, printer-driver-splix, +pymissile, python-nxt, qlandkartegt, +qlandkartegt-garmin, rosegarden, rt2x00-source, sispmctl, +soapysdr-module-hackrf, solaar, squeak-plugins-scratch, sunxi-tools, +t2n, thinkfan, thinkfinger-tools, tlp, tp-smapi-dkms, +tp-smapi-source, tpb, tucnak, uhd-host, usbmuxd, viking, +virtualbox-ose-guest-x11, w1retap, xawtv, xserver-xorg-input-vmmouse, +xserver-xorg-input-wacom, xserver-xorg-video-qxl, +xserver-xorg-video-vmware, yubikey-personalization and +zd1211-firmware

+ +

If you know of other packages, please let me know with a wishlist +bug report against the isenkram-cli package, and ask the package +maintainer to +add AppStream +metadata according to the guidelines to provide the information +for everyone. In time, I hope to get rid of the isenkram specific +hardware mapping and depend exclusively on AppStream.

+ +

Note, the AppStream metadata for broadcom-sta-dkms is matching too +much hardware, and suggest that the package with with any ethernet +card. See bug #838735 for +the details. I hope the maintainer find time to address it soon. In +the mean time I provide an override in isenkram.

+ +
+
+ + + Tags: debian, english, isenkram. + + +
+
+
+
Oolite, a life in space as vagabond and mercenary - nice free software @@ -694,6 +910,19 @@ større.

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