This being summer, we’re back on the Windows XP Embedded kick. After generating an image, the question was..how do we get this on to our target machine?
We wasted a lot of time on this one. As recommended in the docs, we installed “regular” Windows XP on the target machine to make sure that it would run Embedded. No problem there, it installed without problems from CD. We ran the Target Analyzer, to get our device.pmq. Copied device.pmq back to the development machine and generated the image.
At this point, we started fiddling with a second partition on the target machine. We created and formatted this using Acronis Disk Doctor, which comes on a bootable CD. Our plan was to install our target image on this partition, change the ARC listing in boot.ini to point to the second partition as the boot partition. We spent a day fooling with this, including changing the drive letters, hiding the partition, moving stuff around. Didn’t work.
Finally, we reformatted the hard drive on the target machine. Now you’d think that Microsoft would have something like a “LiveCD” for this purpose, which would boot a version of Windows enough to allow copying to an existing hard drive. It doesn’t, but Ubuntu, Suse, and Fedora Linux all have this, and Ubuntu had drivers that would read the USB drive where we stored the image, as well as the NTFS formatted hard drive.
A quick drag and drop, and we’re done!
Have they no shame? (Microsoft that is…) There is a Community Technology Preview out for a new version of Embedded…let’s hope this issue might be addressed with a couple of extra tools.
The Spousal Unit always wonders why I upgrade my computer and operating system as frequently as I do. The fact is I think the world has enjoyed a pretty long run with Windows XP, wasn’t it out in 2001? She doesn’t sympathize with my explanation that sometimes I just get to the point that I’m tired of solving old problems, and I would just as soon solve new ones.
I bought a Macbook back in November. I was just coming off a bad experience with Microsoft Windows Vista. Partly I needed a new laptop…my Dell Inspiron keyboard was terrible, even after two replacements. So even thought the Inspiron is as great laptop, it was essentially useless for actual work, like word-processing. It was also heavy, but considering it could be a replacement for a desktop machine, I was willing to live with the weight.
So, an update on the Macbook, and my (non)-conversion to all things Mac.
The hardware is terrific. Even thought Apple upgraded the processor speed and hard drive capacity shortly after I bought mine, both have been more than adequate. What is really nice is that the weight is about half of the Inspiron. I can keep this machine in a LL Bean Sportsman Briefcase, along with the essential accessories and a leather-bound pad for note-taking. It has an excellent and usable keyboard. It has a track pad which mimics a single-button mouse. This is still a pain for us two-button mouse users, but it something you can live with if you want to go naked, or you can buy a Microsoft two-button notebook mouse to carry in the briefcase.
The Macbook plays nicely with external non-Apple peripherals. When you aren’t traveling, you can plug it into one of those Dell 19″ monitors from Staplesand work at 1440×900 resolution. If put the notebook to sleep, and then attach the external mouse, keyboard and monitor, you can restart it with the lid closed. Not as convenient as a docking station, which might be something to try next.
I’ve got the Macbook printing to an HP OfficeJet Pro K5400 ink-jet printer. Two of these printers have been working reliably and well for the past eighteen months under what I would call light duty. The printer has a USB interface. If you need to plug this in with a USB keyboard and USB mouse, then you need an external USB hub. I note that the docking station advertises five USB connections, which is another reason to consider it. Right now I’m using $14.95 keyboard from Logitech as the external keyboard. It is a little scary to realize that this dirt-cheap keyboard is superior to that of the Dell laptop keyboard.
Having all this paraphernalia connected to the Macbook detracts considerably from its sleek and smooth look. The Macbook is considerably more attractive running alone on a battery, connected wireless to the unseen network cloud. I’ve gotten well over three hours on the battery when running wirelessly which is fine. With the wireless connection enabled, the machine will sniff out the strongest local network connection and walk you through the connection process. If you have done this once already, the connection will be automatic the next time. It works fine on the university’s VPN with the addition of the Cisco VPN client which requires manually logging on.
Mac heads rave about the Mac software and operating system. I think the OS is fine. I don’t care really for the “Finder”, but that is partly because I haven’t really transitioned comfortably from the Windows “Explorer”. But I really like that fact that the OS on the Macbook is the same as the OS on all other Macs, and that it is available in one version only. It is an operating system instead of a demanding lifestyle. Apple doesn’t try to bludgeon its competition or its customers with its operating system. Really, can you imagine the Apple OS getting the same kind of treatment and publicity that Vista has gotten in the past two years? Upgrades and patches are a fraction of what comes out for Windows every week.
As for the backsliding, well, I installed Vista using the Parallels software. I did this strictly so that I could run OneNote, the one essential Microsoft program that doesn’t seem to have a Mac equivalent. Except for the onerous secondary startup process of booting Vista within Parallels and then starting OneNote, this seems to work fine. In fact, the Macbook would really make an ideal Windows laptop.
Safari is much maligned in the blogosphere, and it has crashed several times. I installed Firefox as an antidote, but it crashed even more, so I’m sticking with Safari on the Mac side of the house at the moment. IMail doesn’t really compete with Outlook, and I’ve had trouble trying to duplicate the series of folders that I have in Outlook with rules that automatically move new messages into specific folders. The calendar and address book have separate interfaces, and I guess I prefer how Outlook integrates all these into a single (albeit bloated) application.
The bottom line is that I’m really attached to this notebook. It is a fine combination of price and functionality with a sleek and comfortable design. I’m not sure if I would recommend it for an office, but for an individual’s private machine it is ideal. With the addition of some inexpensive peripherals, it doubles nicely as a desktop machine as well.
Trying to get some of this stuff off my desk, chest, mind, whatever… A spate of new books:
The Big Book Windows Hacks by Preston Gralla
This is a compilation of tricks for Windows users. Although addressed primarily to people struggling, er, working with Vista, many of the hacks work with XP. The book contains a lot of more generic information as well, regarding wireless networking, Microsoft Office, and PC hardware.
Windows Registry Guide, Second Edition This second edition does not include Vista, but is primarily oriented toward XP and Windows 2003 Server. It includes a couple chapters of basic registry description…how the registry is organized, how to back it up, and then goes into some detail about how to change registry entries on your own. Lots of practical advice here. For example:
Some of this we’ve covered ourselves, (indeed using using the same sources). And some of these things are covered by utility programs such as TweakUI and other PowerToys..
The Practice of System and Network Administration – Second Edition
This very fine book of systems administration is broad enough to provide help for everyone from entry-level to senior management. It includes a balance of nuts and bolts tactical information with high level planning and strategic ideas which is a rare thing in a single volume. Backups, disaster planning, and staffing are discussed alongside open source vs. closed source, supporting mixed environments, maintaining your asset inventory, and maintaining your sanity. This is the one book I’d take on a desert island, assuming there was a network to maintain there.
And a trio of hardware books by Jan Axelson…
These editions are by Nuts & Volts and Circuit Cellar author and tech columnist Jan Axelson. If you want to know anything about interfacing computer hardware, she is the go-to author.
USB Complete – third edition
The Universal Serial Bus (USB) has evolved to replace “legacy” connectors on many computers, including serial RS232, keyboard, mouse, and printer ports. In addition, almost anyone who wants to connect to a PC these days will provide a USB interface. This book explains how to develop and debug such interfaces and describes the hardware and software necessary to make them work.
USB Mass Storage
This sub-class of USB devices encompasses things like interfacing a digital camera to a PC via the USB interface, where the mass storage is actually contained on a chip in the camera, or a removable card. Although generic mass storage units (USB thumb drives) are ubiquitous these days, there are a variety of emerging applications for this kind hardware.
Embedded Ethernet and Internet Complete
This is the classic “internet web server on a chip”, where you have a device or sensor located remotely that you want to access over the web, or as the subtitle describes:
Create tiny Web servers and use TCP/IP to communicate over local networks & the Internet
The book as a thorough and readable discussion of the internal parts of TCP/IP. She even talks about crimping cable connectors. But then the book continues on to work through example applications using two popular modules: The Rabbit RCM2300 and the Dallas DSTINIm400. Want to interface your toaster to the web? This book will show you how.
Logitech provides a site for programmers who are interfacing the Logitech webcams to their own applications. There is support for both Windows and Linux, and there are forums to ask questions. Very nicely done using Plone, the open source CMS system.
I’m hoping to spend a lot of time here, after we finish installing about 12 end-user sites using Vista.
Wanted to show some photos of the little systems picked up from Logic Supply. Here’s a look at the exterior of the fanless one. The top and sides are perforated to let the heat out. Click on the photos to see a larger image.
Here’s a look with the covers off. You can see the massive heat-sink that sits over the processor, to the right…the smaller, shiny heat sink sits above the hard drive.
A look right down on the top…
And, a view with both heatsinks removed. You can see the mini hard drive to left. It is mounted into a carrier that has the hard drive heat sink already attached.
Intel Celeron M440 (Yonah) 1.86Ghz
1 meg of Ram
2.5″ Samsung hard drive SATA 80 GB
As with all Windows installs, there are lots of possible deviations that you might want to make with the default. We’re shoehorning a Vista Business on to a Mini-ITX machine with 1 meg of RAM and 1.86Mhz Celeron processor (socket M) and we want to keep the level of background processing down. Here’s what we’ve found you can do to reduce the footprint.
Both Vista and the Mini-ITX machine that it is running on, from Logic Supply, are growing on me. I attached a $179.00 Dell monitor from Staples to the machine as well as an inexpensive Logitech keyboard and Microsoft mouse. You are better off using newer peripherals; there are no ‘legacy’ connections on the machine. Even the monitor requires a digital connector. Fan noise is a problem when using the unit for video or VoIP calls, so we’ll also be testing a fanless version and crossing our fingers that it won’t run too hot. Cost for the unit, plus Windows, plus the peripherals will put you in the $1000 range. On the other hand, a colleague is testing an Acer 4620 laptop that he got at a special at Best Buy for $499. Comes with Vista Home, (here are the differences between home and business) and it has been running everything that he can throw at it.
I’ve been drinking a lot of coffee today, and I think it affects my ability to concentrate. So, one thing has been leading to another and another, and I’ve ended up installing the latest version of Ubuntu Linux on both my PC and my MacBook using virtual machine software.
A virtual machine allows you to host multiple operating systems on a single physical computer. The classic reason for doing this is to run some form of Windows on the Macintosh OS because you just can’t live without some crucial Windows program. (Think Quickbooks, or OutLook, or in my case OneNote). The Virtual machine program is a thin layer of software which sites between the original OS (on the Mac this is OSX), and one or more “guest” operating systems, (in my case Windows Vista). There are a couple to choose from. The people at our university recommended Parallels. Installing Vista and Parallels went pretty smoothly. So, as I hadn’t seen a Linux desktop for while, I thought I’d try installing the latest and greatest Ubuntu.
Ubuntu appears to the current favorite for a “desktop” Linux. It is available on some Dell machines. It comes with a large number of applications, and an attractive desktop. There are several versions available for specific purposes. It is well supported.
I started with this step-by-step tutorial, which is available for a couple different combinations of Parallels and Ubuntu.
While waiting for this to install, I fiddled with Microsoft Virtual PC on my Windows box and found that I was using an older version 2004. I downloaded and installed version 2007. Looks just like 2004, but includes support for Vista as reported at Linux.com. After a couple of false starts dealing with the mouse, I was able to get Ubuntu installed.
Once installed there are several additional tweaks that need to happen which required editing the boot loader parameters and some config files to get the mouse working. Then a similar process is required for sound drivers, and network drivers.
sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg
More from LifeHacker on running Parallels on the Mac.
My cellphone battery died the other day and I was in a hurry. I went to the local Verizon store only to be told that my two-year old phone was “obsolete”, and they didn’t have any batteries for it. Rushed around to a couple Radio Shacks, and the almost had batteries, at least they looked similar but no deal. The batteries at Radio Shack, by the way were going to be about $50.00 a pop.
Back to Verizon and I bowed to the inevitable, and got a new phone. Since I have a prepaid plan, I paid full price, more the $200, after paying for the phone a 12 volt charger and case. Its an OK phone, it flips…and has a camera.
Back home several days later I went on the Internet to check, and sure enough there was a battery for my old Kyocera phone for $17.95 Cell Power plus $4.95 shipping. It arrived the next day. Moral: You have a lot more control of your budget and impulses before a deadline.
I’m testing a tiny computer from Logic Supply It has the following specs:
Intel Celeron M440 (Yonah) with a Front-side bus of 533Mhz
1 gig of memory
A 2.5″ Hitachi hard disk 5400 rpm
Panasonic DVD/CD reader
No OS
Build and test for additional $45.00
The case is about 7″ x 7″ and maybe 1.5 inches tall.
Total price is $661 before tax.
They gave me an awesome tour of the assembly plant. Dozens of these little guys being assembled, tested and burned in.
The one caveat that I would bear in mind is that the ones without fans can run hot…really hot, like hard to hold your hand on to them hot. This was the case at least when they were running the test program which exercises the processor.
I ordered mine with a fan; and the noise is acceptable, just a low swoosh (so far).
It came without an OS, so I’m installing Vista just for grins.
So far the buying experience has been terrific. They are really helpful on the phone. They specialize in small machines using mini-ITX motherboards using either Intel, AMD or Via systems. This unit is a candidate platform for our embedded application, and a successor to our beloved Pundit pizza-box sized system.
tfnp 