Linux Solutions

The article will provide a user with information and guidance on Pinguy Operating System.
The programs in Pinguy OS are considered to be user-friendly in terms of their ease of use and functionality. Please note that there are a number of programs out there for Linux to give the OS a good implementation, like CoverGloobus, Gloobus Preview, GNOME Do, and Docky. These programs don’t just give the OS a good look and feel but they are also very useful and handy.

Pinguy OS is an optimise build of Ubuntu 11.04 Minimal CD with added repositories, tweaks and enhancements that can run as a Live DVD or be installed. It has all the added packages needed for video, music and web content e.g. flash and java, plus a few fixes as well. Like fixing the wireless problems, gwibber’s Facebook problem and flash videos in full-screen.

It also has a UPnP/DLNA server (pms-linux) so a user can share the music, video’s etc. With a PS3, XBOX 360, Smart Phones or any other UPnP/DLNA media reader. Just like Mint, Pinguy OS includes all the multimedia codecs a user will ever need, Adobe Flash, and Sun Java. In fact the only negative thing I have to say about Pinguy’s default software selection is that having Wine-Doors and Play On Linux both installed feels a little bit redundant. The default theme of the operating system largely resembles OSX (including a global menu bar at the top of the screen). There are two docky bars by default, one located at the bottom of the screen which houses the applications.

Please note that the Firefox that ships with Pinguy is heavily customized to include a fantastic selection of addons that add an array of features to the browser (and Firefox on Pinguy feels much “snappier” than it does on Mint/Ubuntu).

If a user has read the article then he/she would have learnt about Pinguy OS.

The article will provide a user with information and guidance on Diskless Remote Boot in Linux (DRBL).

DRBL (Diskless Remote Boot in Linux) is a NFS-/NIS server providing a diskless or systemless environment for client machines.

DRBL can be used for:
• cloning machines with Clonezilla software inbuilt,
• providing for a network installation of Linux distributions like Fedora, Debian, etc.,
• providing machines via PXE boot (or similar means) with a small size operation system (e. g. DSL, Puppy Linux, FreeDOS).

Providing a DRBL-Server
• Installation on a machine running a supported Linux distribution via installation script,
• Live CD.

A user should note that installation is possible on a machine with Debian, Ubuntu, Mandriva, Red Hat Linux, Fedora, CentOS or SuSE already installed. DRBL comes under the terms of a GPL license so providing the user with the ability to customize it.

DRBL’s categories
Disk Cloning
Clonezilla (packaged with DRBL) uses partimage to avoid copying free space, and gzip to compress Hard Disk images. The stored image can then be restored to multiple machines simultaneously using Multicast packets, thus greatly reducing the time it takes to image large numbers of computers. The DRBL Live CD allows a user to do all of this without actually installing anything on any of the machines, by simply booting one machine (the server) from the CD, and PXE booting the rest of the machines.

Hybrid Client
Using old hardware as Thin Clients is a good solution, but has some disadvantages that a Hybrid Client can make up for.
• Streaming Audio/Video - A Terminal Server must decompress, recompress, and send video over the network to the client. A Hybrid does all decompression locally, and can make use of any graphics hardware capabilities on the local machine.
• Software that requires real-time input - Since all input at a thin client is sent over the network before it is registered by the operating system, there can be substantial delay. This is a major problem in software that requires real-time input (i.e. video games). Hybrid clients run the software locally, and as such, do not have this problem.

DRBL allows a user to set up multiple Hybrid Clients with relative ease. The client computer is set to boot from the network card using PXE or Etherboot. The client requests an IP address, and tftp image to boot from, both are provided by the DRBL server. The client boots the initial RAM disk provided by the DRBL server via tftp, and proceeds to map an nfs share (also provided by the DRBL server) as its root (/) partition. From there, the client boots either the linux distribution in which the DRBL server is installed, Clonezilla, or an installer for various Linux distributions, depending on how that particular client was configured on the DRBL server.

If a user has read the article then he/she would have learnt about DRBL.

The article will provide a reader with information on YUMI. YUMI is the successor to MultibootISOs. It can be used to create a Multiboot USB Flash Drive containing multiple operating systems, antivirus utilities, disc cloning, diagnostic tools, and more.

Creating a YUMI Multiboot MultiSystem USB Flash Drive
Let’s learn how to create a YUMI Multiboot MultiSYstem USB Flash Drive. Please note that YUMI stands for Your Universal Multiboot Installer. YUMI works much like Universal USB Installer, except it can be used to install more than one distribution to run from the USB. Distributions can also be uninstalled using the same tool.

If a user wants to create a MultiBoot USB Flash Drive, then he/she has to follow the steps as provided below:
1. First of all, please run* YUMI-0.0.2.9.exe
2. Now, run the tool again to Add More ISOs/Distributions to the Drive
3. Then restart the PC setting it to boot from the USB device
4. Finally, select a distribution to Boot from the Menu and enjoy!

It is good to learn how it works. YUMI (Your Universal Multiboot Installer) enables each user to create their own custom Multiboot UFD containing only the distributions they want, in the order by which they are installed. A new distribution can be added to the UFD each time the tool is run.
If a user runs YUMI from the same location where it is stored, ISO downloads, they should be auto-detected, eliminating the need to browse for each ISO.

Please note that Windows Vista or 7 Installers will cause Ubuntu or any remix based on Ubuntu (I.E. Linux Mint) to hang during boot. A quick fix is to temporarily rename the Windows SOURCES folder found at the root of the USB device. A user should also note that if MultibootISOs was previously used, then he/she must reformat the drive and start over. YUMI uses Syslinux directly, and chainloads to grub only if necessary, so it is not compatible with the older Multiboot ISO tool.

The Basic Requirements or Essentials
Now, let’s have a look at the basic essentials to create a MultiSystem Bootable USB Drive
• Fat32 Formatted USB Flash or USB Hard Drive
• PC that can boot from USB
• Windows XP/Vista/7 host to create the Bootable USB
• YUMI-0.0.2.9.exe
• Selection of ISO Files

If a user has read the article then he/she would have learnt about YUMI – Multiboot USB Creator (Windows).

The article will provide a user with information on vQuake and QuakeWorld. These are Quake releases.

VQuake
Let’s have a look at VQuake. In late 1996, id Software released VQuake, a port of the Quake engine to support hardware accelerated rendering on graphics cards using Rendition Vérité chipset. Aside from the expected benefit of improved performance, VQuake offered numerous visual improvements over the original software-rendered Quake. It boasted full 16-bit color, bilinear filtering (reducing pixelation), improved dynamic lighting and even optional anti-aliasing. VQuake was a proprietary port specifically for the Vérité; consumer 3D acceleration was in its infancy at the time, and there was no standard 3D API for the consumer market. After completing VQuake, John Carmack vowed never to write a proprietary port again, citing his frustration with Rendition’s Speedy3D API.

QuakeWorld
Now, let’s have a look at QuakeWorld . QuakeWorld was released in order to improve the quality of online play. It was relased by id Software released on December 17, 1996. It featured significantly revamped network code including the addition of client-side prediction. The original Quake’s network code would not show the player the results of his actions until the server sent back a reply acknowledging them. For example, if the player attempted to move forward, his client would send the request to move forward to the server, and the server would determine whether the client was actually able to move forward or if he ran into an obstacle, such as a wall or another player.

With the help of client-side prediction, which allowed players to see their own movement immediately without waiting for a response from the server, QuakeWorld’s network code allowed players with high-latency connections to control their character’s movement almost as precisely as when playing in single-player mode. The netcode parameters could be adjusted by the user, so that QuakeWorld performed well for users with high and low latency.

The tradeoff to client-side prediction was that sometimes other players or objects would no longer be quite where they had appeared to be, or, in extreme cases, that the player would be pulled back to a previous position when the client received a late reply from the server which overrode movement the client had already previewed; this was known as “warping”. As a result, some serious players, particularly in the USA, still preferred to play online using the original Quake engine (commonly called NetQuake) rather than QuakeWorld. However, the majority of players, especially those on dial-up connections, preferred the newer network model, and QuakeWorld soon became the dominant form of online play. Following the success of QuakeWorld, client-side prediction has become a standard feature of nearly all real-time online games.

As with all other Quake upgrades, QuakeWorld was released as a free, unsupported add-on to the game and was updated numerous times through 1998.

If a user has read the article then he/she would have learnt about the Quake’s releases vQuake and QuakeWorld.

The article will educate a user with information and a brief history of Quake ports.

Please note that in 1996, there was a port of Quake to Linux by an id software employee working in his free time. It was not until 1999 that a retail version for Linux was distributed by Macmillan Digital Publishing USA in a bundle with the two add-ons as Quake: The Offering for Linux and in 1997, the official port to Mac OS was done by MacSoft and a port of Quake to SPARC Solaris was released.
Quake was also ported to console systems. In 1997, it was ported to Sega Saturn by Lobotomy. The Saturn port used Lobotomy’s own Slavedriver engine (the same engine that powers the Saturn port of Duke Nukem 3D and Powerslave) instead of the original Quake engine. It is also the only version of Quake that is rated “T” for Teen instead of “M” for Mature. The Saturn version also contains four exclusive levels not seen in any other version. In 1998, Quake was brought to Nintendo 64 by Midway Games.

Both console ports required some compromises because of the limited CPU power and ROM storage space for maps. The Saturn version lacked multiplayer but had most of the maps from the original game, with only the secret levels (Ziggurat Vertigo (E1M8), The Underearth (E2M7), The Haunted Halls (E3M7) and The Nameless City (E4M8)) not making the cut. Instead, it had four new maps: Purgatorium, Hell’s Aerie, The Coliseum and Watery Grave. The N64 version had multiplayer, but was missing The Grisly Grotto (E1M4), The Installation (E2M1), The Ebon Fortress (E2M4), The Wind Tunnels (E3M5), The Sewage System (E4M1) and Hell’s Atrium (E4M5).

It also did not use the “START” map where the player chooses difficulty and episode; difficulty is chosen when starting the game, and all the levels play in sequential order from The Slipgate Complex (E1M1) to Shub Niggurath’s Pit (END). A port for the Commodore Amiga was also made available in 1998 by clickBOOM Software. It is currently only available in a 68K version.

After reading the article a user would have learnt about the ports of Quake and a brief history for it.

The article will provide a user with information on custom maps. Please note that there are a large number of custom maps that have been made by users and fans of the game. These maps are continuing to be made today, over ten years since the game’s release. Custom maps are completely new and original maps that are playable by simply loading them into the original game. Custom maps of all gameplay types have been made, but the most custom maps for Quake have been in the single-player and deathmatch genres.

As an example of the dedication that Quake has inspired in its fan community, a group of expert players recorded speedrun demos (replayable recordings of the player’s movement) of Quake levels completed in record time on the Nightmare skill level. The footage was edited into a continuous 19 minutes, 49 seconds demo called Quake done Quick (QdQ) and released on 10 June 1997. Owners of the game could replay this demo in the game engine, watching the run unfold as if they were playing it themselves.

This involved a number of players recording run-throughs of individual levels, using every trick and shortcut they could discover in order to minimize the time it took to complete, usually to a degree that even the original level designers found difficult to comprehend, and in a manner that often bypassed large areas of the level. Stitching a series of the fastest runs together into a coherent whole created a demonstration of the entire game. Recamming is also used with speedruns in order to make the experience more movie-like, with arbitrary control of camera angles, editing, and sound that can be applied with editing software after the runs are first recorded. However, the fastest possible time for a given level will not necessarily result in the fastest time used to contribute to running the entire game. One example is acquiring the grenade launcher in an early level, an act that slows down the time for that level over the best possible, but speeds up the overall game time by allowing the runner to bypass a big area in a later level that they could not otherwise do.

A second attempt, Quake done Quicker (QdQr), reduced the complete time to 16 minutes, 35 seconds (a reduction of 3 minutes, 14 seconds). The culmination of this process of improvement was Quake done Quick with a Vengeance (QdQwav). Released three years to the day after QdQr, this pared down the time taken to complete all four episodes, on Nightmare (hardest) difficulty, to 12 minutes, 23 seconds (a further reduction of 4 minutes, 12 seconds), partly by using techniques that had formerly been shunned in such films as being less aesthetically pleasing. This run was recorded as an in-game demo but interest was such that an .avi video clip was created to allow those without the game to see the run.

If a user has read the article then he/she would have learnt about Custom maps.

The article will provide a user with information on Quake Mission Pack 1 : Scourge of Armagon and Quake Mission Pack 2: Dissolution of Eternity.

Quake Mission Pack 1: Scourge of Armagon
Let’s have a look at Quake Mission Pack 1 first. Quake Mission Pack 1: Scourge of Armagon is the first official mission packs released on February 28, 1997. It was developed by Hipnotic Interactive. It features fifteen new single player missions, a new multiplayer arena, and gameplay features not originally found in Quake, including rotating structures and breakable walls. New enemies include Centroids, large cybernetic scorpions with nailguns, Gremlins, small goblins that can steal weapons and multiply by feeding on enemy corpses, and Spike Mines, floating orbs that detonate when near the player. New weapons include, Mjolnir, a large lightning emitting hammer, a laser cannon, which shoots bouncing bolts of energy, and a Proximity Mine Launcher, which fires grenades that attach to surfaces and detonate when an opponent comes near.

The storyline follows Armagon, a general of Quake’s forces, planning to invade Earth via a portal known as the ‘rift’. Armagon resembles a giant gremlin with cybernetic legs and a combined rocket launcher/laser cannon for arms.

Quake Mission Pack 2: Dissolution of Eternity
Now, Let’s have a look at Quake Mission Pack 2. Quake Mission Pack 2: Dissolution of Eternity was the second official mission pack, released on March 31, 1997. Developed by Rogue Entertainment, it featured sixteen new single player levels as well as several new enemies and bosses.

New enemies included Electric Eels, Phantom Swordsmen, Multi-Grenade Ogres (which fire cluster grenades), Hell Spawn, Wrath (floating, robed undead), Guardians (resurrected ancient Egyptian warriors), Mummies, and statues of various enemies that come to life. The bosses were Lava Men, Overlords, large Wraths, and a dragon guarding the “temporal energy converter”. Rather than offering new weapons, the mission pack gave the player new ammo for already existing weapons, such as “lava nails” for the Nailgun, cluster grenades, rockets that split into four in a horizontal line, plasma cells, and a grappling hook to help in moving around the map.

If a user has read the article then he/she would have gained knowledge on Quak Mission Pack 1 and Pack 2.

The article will provide a user with information on Quake gameplay’s multiplayer mode. As we are aware that Quake has two fundamental modes of gameplay:

- Single player
- Multiplayer

We have already discussed Quake gameplay’s single player mode in the previous article. Now, Let’s have a look at Quake gameplay’s multiplayer mode. In multiplayer mode, players on several computers connect to a server (which may be a dedicated machine or on one of the player’s computers), where they can play against each other. Typically in multiplayer mode, when a player dies then he/she can loses any items that were collected. This means that a user has to start collecting the items again. Similarly, items that have been picked up previously respawn after some time, and may be picked up again.

The most popular multiplayer modes are all forms of deathmatch. Deathmatch modes typically consist of either free-for-all, one-on-one duels, or organized teamplay with two or more players per team (or clan). Teamplay is also frequently played with one or another mod. Typically, no monsters are normally present, as they serve no purpose other than to get in the way and give away the player.

The gameplay in Quake was considered unique for its time because of the different ways the player can maneuver through the game. An example will further explain this. bunny hopping or strafe jumping can be used to move faster than normal, while rocket jumping enables the player to reach otherwise-inaccessible areas (or just move faster), at the cost of some self-damage. The player can start and stop moving suddenly, jump unnaturally high, and change direction while moving through the air. Many of these non-realistic behaviors contribute to Quake’s appeal. The nature of the gameplay is often fast and frenzied, and has become considerably faster over the years as players mastered advanced movement techniques.

As Quake did not include any automap, it also requires considerable knowledge of the sometimes confusingly-contorted maps (made more complex by the frequent use of teleporters) as well as careful planning in order to collect needed items and conserve health and ammunition. Strategies include regularly picking up items to prevent one’s opponent from having access to them and controlling certain critical areas of each level. Duels often take place with opponents mostly out of sight of each other, jockeying for position and carefully stocking up on items, with sudden changes in speed of play when one player or the other gains an advantage. Sound also plays a central role in keeping track of other players and even items in the game, so many players use headphones to give the clearest sound and directionality. Teamplay adds even more tactical layers, with different ways to communicate and cooperate.

IF a user has read the article then he/she would have gained knowledge about the Quake gameplay’s multiplayer mode.

The article will provide a user with information on Linux Quake gameplay in a single player mode. The game engine was developed for Quake, the Quake engine, popularized several major advances in the 3D game genre.

Quake has two fundamental modes of gameplay:
- Single player
- Multiplayer

In this article, we will look at Quake gameplay’s single player mode. In single-player mode, players explore and navigate to the exit of each level, facing many challenging monsters and a few secret areas along the way. Usually there are buttons to press or keys to collect in order to open doors before the exit can be reached. Once reaching the exit, the game takes the player to the next level.
Before the start level, there is a set of three pathways with easy, medium, and hard skill levels; in order to reach the Nightmare skill level (described in the game manual as so bad that it was hidden, so people won’t wander in by accident), the player must drop through the water before the Episode 4 entrance and jump into a secret passage.

Quake’s single-player campaign is organized into four individual episodes of about eight levels each (each including a secret level, one of which is a “low gravity” level Ziggurat Vertigo in Episode 1, Dimension of the Doomed that challenges the player’s abilities in a different way). As items are collected, they are carried to the next level, each usually more challenging than the last.

If the player dies, he must restart at the beginning of the level. However, games may be saved at any time. Upon completing each episode, the player is returned to the hub Start level, where he can then enter the next episode. Each episode starts the player from scratch, without any previously collected items. The ultimate objective at the end of an episode is to recover a magic rune.

If a user has read the article then he/she would have learnt about Linux Quake gameplay in a single mode.

The article will provide a user with information on SerialICE. SerialICE is a QEMU-based firmware debugging tool running system firmware inside of QEMU while accessing real hardware through a serial connection to a host system. This can be used as a cheap replacement for hardware ICEs.

Please note that following information provides a user with the incomplete support for less frequently-used architectures:
• As of 2011 only supports the traditional BIOS boot model for the guest OSes, no UEFI boot model support yet on x86-64 systems
• Few special device drivers (graphics, sound, IO) for guests are available, thus there is quite a large overhead for multimedia applications. For example, a Cirrus Logic graphics chip and various popular sound cards (ES1370, Sound Blaster 16, Gravis Ultrasound and AdLib) are emulated, but they do not take advantage of hardware acceleration on the host system. Recently a virtual video device compatible with the VMWare video driver has been added, however it does not support any scaled video or 3D features.
• QEMU only supports SDL or Cocoa libraries for video output, in addition to VNC for networked operation.
• Runs significantly more slowly than alternatives on PCs without hardware CPU virtualization, rendering virtualization of modern or visual systems sometimes unusably slow

If a user has read article then he/she would have learnt about SerialICE.