Gav's World

Eee 901 Software Mods (Ubuntu 8.10 - Intrepid Ibex)

Merge the 2 default partitions (sda1 & sda2)

This can be either done from the Ubuntu CD once it has booted up as a "live" CD and launching gparted, or using a gparted live CD:

• Remove all other media (SD cards / USB drives) just in case.
• Burn a gparted (Gnome Partition Editor) CD or USB drive and boot with it.
• Delete partition sda2.
• Extend partition sda1 into the free space.
• Apply changes.

I'd keep the 3rd and 4th partitions just in case you want to update the BIOS with them, although there are other methods available.

Install Ubuntu 8.10 from CD or USB drive

Make sure that all on-board peripherals are turned on first : WiFi / Bluetooth / camera

I'd go with the following partition layout:

• /dev/sda1 on /
• /dev/sdb1 on /home
• /dev/sdb2 as swap (make it 2 times bigger than physical RAM)

If you wish to hibernate the Eee 901, then create a swap partition on the user drive. If you don't, then just use the whole drive as /home. It's quite a slow process as the user SSD is a lot slower than the primary SSD, but at least it gives you the option.

After installation, plug in an Ethernet cable (only Ethernet works by default) and install all updates and reboot since there will be a new kernel installed.

Change the rootfs options

This will stop a lot of writes to the SSD with access time updates. See "Post Install."

There are also some more tweaks that can be done to optimise the SSD performance and longevity.

Install the Array.org Eee kernel

This will just get everything working!

Open a terminal and type the following commands:

Then open "System -> Administration -> Software Sources" and then select the "Third Party Sources" tab.

Add the following source:

Close the sources window and then select "Reload" when prompted.

Then install the custom kernel:

Now reboot into the new kernel

To stop Ubuntu from updating the generic kernel, remove the generic one:

Install eee-control

This allows you to turn on/off the peripherals and set the CPU speed.

It's now available in a feed, so just type this command:

Move Right Shift Key etc.

(* if you've physically shifted the keys)
This swaps the up/PgUp key with right shift and the down/PgDn with right/End key. However, best way is to put all of the "xmodmap" statements into /etc/rc.local.

Tweak some Gnome settings

Allow windows to move off the top of the screen and change font sizes etc.

Stop Firefox from hanging

Some of the new bits aren't quite working well enough.

Install all of the nice multimedia stuff and libdvdcss

Install the likes of mp3 codecs etc. Just select the right distribution. Also need to install gstreamer good, bad and ugly codes plus a few others to get digital TV working.

Download the latest firmware for WinTV Nova-T USB Stick

A firmware update is available to fix i2c errors.

Set up Channels for TV

If you have a TV card and want to use "Media Player" (Totem) for viewing. I'm not going to go into the details for setting up your specific card.

• Download w_scan
• Compile w_scan
• run w_scan with:

Those options explained:

• -X : put the file into "xine" format
• -E0 : ignore all pay channels
• -R0 : ignore all radio channels

Then you simply fire up "Movie Player" and watch away!

---

[ Page last updated Sat 7th Nov 2020 | viewed 1960 times ]