[maemo-developers] How VNCVIEWER can bring non maemo applications onto the N800

[From: Detlef Schmicker]

Hay Neil,

I only want to stress one advantage of option #1. This would install
about 7MBytes, where as option #2 and #3 will be about 100MBytes or
more.

This would be a reason to keep option #1 in mind, e.g. for a quick
"port" of rdesktop, an application many users request...

But personally I prefer option #3. But you need a big internal SD-flash.

Detlef


Am Dienstag, den 20.02.2007, 21:44 +0000 schrieb Neil Jerram:
> Detlef Schmicker <d.schmicker at physik.de> writes:
> 
> > Hello,
> >
> > the last weeks I played around a little with setups, which allow to
run
> > applications on N800, which are not ported to maemo. The main
problem
> > using this kind of applications is the missing keyboard, if they are
> > cross compiled. 
> 
> In penguinbait's experiments, I believe he uses xkbd to solve this.
> Presumably that would work with your approach too?
> 
> > vncviewer (http://vncviewer.garage.maemo.org/ ) can handle this, as
> > easily is tested connecting to a debian linux machine and trying all
the
> > applications availible.
> 
> Oh I see, that is clever!  (I guess xkbd is still possible, but the
> vncviewer keyboard is much more convenient.)
> 
> > Have a look at the screen shot at http://physik.de/770/ with
debian /
> > testing runnin on a N800 within chroot and vncviewer.
> 
> Very nice!  To check that I've understood correctly:
> 
> - Are you saying that everything from the debian/testing arm port will
>   run without needing recompilation?
> 
> - Am I right in thinking that the chroot is only needed so as not to
>   mix up the debian/testing distribution with the maemo?  (In other
>   words, it's not required by something about how Xvnc and vncviewer
>   work?)
> 
> > I tried three different setups (all are working, but none is enduser
> > ready:-)
> >
> > 1.) I compiled Xvnc using the source from debian/testing within
bora.
> > This was running on N800. Than I started Xvnc for display :8 (from
> > xterm) set the display variable and started the crosscompiled but
> > unported version of e.g. rdesktop. Than vncviewer was started to
view
> > this localaly.
> 
> How does a bora-compiled Xvnc differ from Xvnc in debian/testing?  Is
> it just which libraries (libc etc.) it links to?
> 
> >
> > This way one can use cross compiled version of linux software.
> >
> > 2.) I installed the debian armel port within a chroot environment,
> > installed the vncserver package within this port and did basicaly
the
> > same as in 1.)
> > what to be done for setup this:
> > I have debian / armel port running on N800 on a 512 internal flash.
> >
> > I had to format it with ext3 filesystem (I think ext2 would have
been
> > OK)
> > I had to insmod mbcache and ext2 module
> > I mounted it
> > I unpacked the rootfs from
> > http://lists.debian.org/debian-arm/2007/01/msg00034.html
> >
> > I installed chroot and chrooted to the directory
> >
> > (I installed a new version of tar (compiled from sources), as the
> > busybox does not support bz2 files)
> >
> > Now I do a gpt-get update within chroot ...
> >
> > This way all packages within this debian armel port seem to be
usable on
> > the N800
>