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SteveA · (This post was last modified: 03-06-2010 04:44 PM by KDulcimer.)

BACKGROUND: We have a small accounting office using Windows 2008 Terminal Server. Most of the client machines are newer platforms with either Windows XP Professional or Windows 7, but the majority of the work is done on the terminal server.

One client machine had Windows 2000 installed on a low-end platform (PII-233 MHz w/160MB RAM).

Instead of retiring the machine, we decided to try something like Remote Desktop ('rdesktop') on a Linux platform. However, that machine also provided access to our postage meter, so we needed a desktop environment to install Stamps.com software.

REQUIREMENTS: We needed a lightweight Linux platform that could host 'rdesktop,' 'wine' and Stamps.com software.

TinyMe-2010-Acorn-Beta provided just what we needed with a little work. This is an account of that work.

PROCEDURE: First of all, it was installed on a 1GB disk, but after careful consideration of its use, it was reinstalled on 2GB.

That proved to be a bit small when it came to building the software required for Remote Desktop and Stamps.com (Wine). I would recommend using 3GB or greater for any configuration beyond providing a platform for remote access or browsing.

PROBLEMS: The first problem we encountered after installation was with the Midori browser.

With Google.com identified as the Home Page, it would load the page and immediately crash. We discovered that if we started with a different Home Page, it would not crash if we changed the identification to Internet Explorer. However, some websites complained that it needed upgrading to a newer version, and others simply crashed at first load. It remains too unstable for use.

I do not know if there's an issue with the Midori package. However, after a suggestion from 'KDulcimer,' we installed 'Netsurf,' and that suggestion proved to be a godsend when it came to providing the 'other' software desired.

[instructions on installing software from outside the repos has been deleted ~KDulcimer]

However, since this machine will not be used for storage, we should have enough disk space. We'll add the 1GB disk as a second disk and create a new swap partition of 264MG or greater, and we'll leave the remaining space for any future needs.

I hope this helps anyone looking for a how-to in building software on TinyMe

***KDulcimer*** · (This post was last modified: 03-06-2010 04:45 PM by KDulcimer.)

If you didn't know how to search for an application, why didn't you ask? Wine and rdesktop are already in the repositories.

Also, please don't post instructions on how to install things from outside the repositories. It's a good way to bork your install. I don't support TinyMe installations which have packages from outside the repositories.

Please run 'make uninstall' for the programs you installed.

SteveA · (This post was last modified: 03-08-2010 09:55 PM by SteveA.)

ok ...

I tried looking in the repositories but with the browsing issue it was difficult.

I also tried to use 'smart install' (from the cli) for 'rdesktop' and 'wine' but found nothing, and I looked in the Smart Package Manager but found nothing.

I took the approach to trying to be self-reliant instead of asking too many questions, and I did search the forum, but references to 'wine' were for older installations (i.e., 2008) which it appears no longer install properly.

I also found no references to where to find the 'wine' package.

Regarding the browsing issue, I booted the Live-CD from a P4 and had no issues with Midori crashing, so that tells me it's something with the low-end hardware. I'll have to look into that though it's not a big issue.

'rdesktop' and 'wine' show up in Smart Package Manager, in the Unity Main channel, and they're marked (New).

They didn't show up Saturday when I was configuring the machine. I can handle that. It appears those were my own. However, I've found them by restricting the channels to Unity Main and TinyMe.

There's still a problem with 'libgphoto-common'

***KDulcimer*** · 03-08-2010, 04:31 PM

Do you prefer using the GUI version of Smart or the CLI?

SteveA · (This post was last modified: 03-08-2010 09:51 PM by SteveA.)

The gui version freezes every time it runs the update.

The CLI does the same but eventually completes whereas the gui never seems to let me out of the update loop.

The 'rdesktop' and 'wine' packages I saw this morning apparently were my own. After a reinstall (I added a disk and reconfigured the mount points), I did not see them initially in the gui version. However, I know they're in Unity Main.

'rdesktop' is now installed but 'wine' chokes on 'libgphoto-common'

I had the same issue the other day when I build it from source. I got around it somehow.

***gettinther*** · 03-08-2010, 10:24 PM

Thanks for the info. What error are you getting with gphoto-common?

SteveA · (This post was last modified: 03-09-2010 12:22 AM by SteveA.)

It tells me there's no package that provides 'lockd' when I try to install 'wine'

I think I encountered that in the build and installed 'freetype-devel' and 'freetype2-devel' but I don't have much more than notes now.

Either that or it built it without 'gphoto'

Right now, the gui is working fine but I limited the channels to Unity Main and TinyMe

ok ...

After updating the entire system (some 48Mgs), the offending package ('libgphoto') now appears in the 'wine' updates.