Author: Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)

Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 14 Comments on XBMC for Android on Mele A1000 Media Player (Video)

XBMC for Android on Mele A1000 Media Player (Video)

Following this morning announcement, I’ve started to build XBMC for Android using the instructions on XBMC Android github repository, but it takes hours on my machine. In the meantime, I’ve found a prebuilt apk that I’ve tried on my Mele A1000 and shot a (super blurry) video. This is still a development version, so there are a lot of bugs, but it shows good progress. The user interface renders at 28 fps and it’s very smooth, although CPU usage is about 65%. The remote control can work properly, but XBMC does not respond to mouse clicks and keyboard input. It can find UPNP servers (Windows) and locate your file. SMB client crashes XBMC on my system I’ve tried Big Buck Bunny 480p, 720p and 1080p, and none of the sample can play smoothly, so NEON software decoding does not appear to be fast enough to play videos smoothly. The APK […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments on Installing Android SDK on Ubuntu 12.04

Installing Android SDK on Ubuntu 12.04

The official instructions to install Android SDK do not appear to be really up-to-date for Ubuntu 12.04, so I’ll post how I’ve installed the Android SDK and Eclipse on Ubuntu 12.04. First download and decompress Android SDK for Linux:

on 64-bit Ubuntu:

Sun Java is not part of Ubuntu packages anymore, so you’ll need to use openjdk instead

Now install the SDK

Android SDK Manager should show up. Use the default recommended packages and platforms, as well as any extra packages you may need, and click on Install x packages, accept all licenses and after installation is complete, the Android SDK is installed. Eclipse IDE is optional, but it’s the most widely used IDE to develop Android apps. You can install Eclipse as follows:

Once both Android packages and platforms, and eclipse are installed, start eclipse:

Then in the top menu, click on Help->Install […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on WiFi Tank Based on EEE PC, Arduino, Ubuntu and Node.js

WiFi Tank Based on EEE PC, Arduino, Ubuntu and Node.js

Eight computer and electrical engineers built a WiFi Tank (Node.js robot) as part of a senior design project at Northeastern University, in Boston, Massachusetts. The robot brain is an EEE PC running Ubuntu, together with an Arduino board and is programmed using node.js. Each tank is equipped with a camera and 2 customized Wi-Fi repeaters (which it can drop it extend range), and it’s targeted at military operations or disaster-affected areas where network infrastructure is not available. Here are the key characteristics of this robot Robot controlled over WiFi 102 cm long, 71 cm wide, 41 cm tall, about 68 kg. Custom-built (except for treads) out of aluminum Range: 1 km with one on-board router and two droppable long-range repeater modules Running time: ~12 hours On-board webcam with microphone, night vision, pan and tilt On-board GPS for location tracking Custom-made remote user interface, works on any device with a web […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments on XBMC Media Center Coming to Android

XBMC Media Center Coming to Android

I’ve received a mysterious picture this morning without further details… After a little Google search, it appears XBMC has announced their progress on XBMC for Android. There was already XBMC remote and thin client available on Google Play, but the latest announcement is the real deal, and XBMC can be launched on you Android based devices be it a set-top box, a tablet, a phone, or whatever… It will be the same user experience as on the desktop Have a look at a short (and blurry) teaser video showing XBMC running in Android. “Big Buck Bunny” video is to media player what Angry Birds is to tablet, it has to be shown during demos… XBMC developers explain that most devices only support software decode of audio and video for now, but expect on OpenMAX based player to eventually be available. The main development platform was a Pivos XIOS DS set-top-box […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on ACE CoSy Compiler Framework Outperforms LLVM by up to 25% for ARM9 processors

ACE CoSy Compiler Framework Outperforms LLVM by up to 25% for ARM9 processors

ACE (Associated Compiler Experts) announced that their 2012 CoSy compiler development system delivers better performance than the latest LLVM 3.0 compiler on ARM9 processors. Using an ARM9 processor as reference, CoSy compiler framework (2012) shows more than 15% performance improvement using Livermore benchmark loops and 25% in MiBench against LLVM 3.0. The CoSy compiler framework is also more than 7% ahead of LLVM on the EEMBC CoreMark benchmark. The company explains this feat by the use of “CoSy’s unique flexible phase ordering of cutting-edge code optimizations and the addition of new CoSy features” such as compile-time code generator feedback injected into optimization algorithms in order to augment realistic and accurate decision making in architecture-independent optimizations. ACE did not publish the benchmark results publicly, and I could not find any reference to “cosy” or “ace” in EEMBC Coremark database, so I could not check those results myself. CoSy Compiler Framework is […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments on Frontier FT103 21.5″ Android SmartDisplay

Frontier FT103 21.5″ Android SmartDisplay

Frontier, a Japanese company, launched a 21.5″ Smartdisplay running Android 4.0 powered by Texas Instruments OMAP4428 application processor with 1 GB RAM and 8 GB Flash. Here are the specifications of this giant Android tablet: Processor – Texas Instruments OMAP 4428 dual core Cortex A9 @ 1 GHz System memory – 1 GB Storage – 8 GB Flash + SD card slot (Up to 32 GB) Display – 21.5″ TFT LCD touch panel (maximum resolution: 1920 x 1080) USB – microUSB (stereo mini jack) USB2.0 + 2x USB 2.0 Host ports. Audio I/O – Built-in Microphone, built-in stereo speakers (1W + 1W) and headphone jack. Connectivity 10/100 MBit Ethernet Wifi 802.11 b/g/n Bluetooth ® Ver.2.1 + EDR Camera – 1.2 MP Webcam Power Supply – AC adapter (19V, 2.1A) Dimensions – 512.8 x 353 x 24.8 mm Weight – 5.0 kg The company does not expect you to carry this […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment on NXP Unveils JenNet-IP-EK040 Evaluation Kit for the Internet of Things

NXP Unveils JenNet-IP-EK040 Evaluation Kit for the Internet of Things

NXP Semiconductors announced the availability of JenNet-IP-EK040 evaluation kit featuring JenNet-IP wireless network layer software for the Internet of Things. This evaluation kit based on NXP’s JN514x single chip wireless MCU provides all the components needed to create applications for IPv6-based networks for lighting and home automation. The JenNet-IP EK040 evaluation kit includes the following: 4 wireless sensor nodes, including modules based on JN5148-J01 and JN5142-J01 chips (single chips with MCU and IEEE802.15.4 transceiver) , USB micro-B connectors, a JN514x IO expansion port, support for USB, battery or an external power supply unit (not included), and 2 USB cables. 4 plug-in shields with an Arduino-compatible footprint featuring 3 dimmable white LEDs, as well as temperature, light level and humidity sensors. 2 high-power JN5148-J01 modules for extended range 2 high-power USB dongles for sniffer and coordinator A router providing connection to Ethernet, with a custom Open WRT Linux distribution and power supply. […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments on $99 OUYA Android 4.0 Open Source Hackable Video Game Console

$99 OUYA Android 4.0 Open Source Hackable Video Game Console

More and more new games are targeted to mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets running Android and iOS, and less games are developed for standard gaming console. To work around this issue, OUYA is working on a gaming console based on Android ICS called .. well… OUYA, and posted the project on Kickstarter to complete development and start manufacturing. Here are OUYA Specifications: Nvidia Tegra3 quad-core cortex A9 processor 1 GB RAM 8 GB of internal flash storage HDMI port (up to 1080p HD) WiFi 802.11 b/g/n Bluetooth LE 4.0 USB 2.0 port Wireless controller with standard controls (two analog sticks, d-pad, eight action buttons, a system button), a touchpad Android 4.0 Although you may just think it will just run existing Android games, the company expects the device to bring higher end games such as the ones available on console. Each box will be a development kit, and developers […]

UP 7000 x86 SBC