how-to

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on Fix for Ubuntu 16.04 “1024×768 Resolution” Problem in VirtualBox

Fix for Ubuntu 16.04 “1024×768 Resolution” Problem in VirtualBox

My main computer is running Ubuntu 14.04.4 LTS, and I’m currently waiting for the Ubuntu 16.04.1 before upgrading to the latest version, which should happen in July. In the meantime, I have upgraded one of my VirtualBox image from Ubuntu 14.04 to Ubuntu 16.04, but I had only two options to set the resolution: 1024×768 or 800×600. This is quite a common problem, and usually the solution is to install VirtualBox additions, but this would not do for me. After trying several solutions, including disabling 3D graphics support, without success, I decided to check Additional Drivers, and I noticed only VirtualBox Graphics Adapter driver was enabled. So I also enabled Innotek Systemberatubg GmbH: VirtualBox Guest Service, and Processor microcode firmware for AMD CPUs, and this fixed the issues most likely thanks to the former. I’m running VirtualBox 5.0.18 installed from the ppa. Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments on Getting Started with MPLAB Xpress Board and Online IDE

Getting Started with MPLAB Xpress Board and Online IDE

Microchip launched MPLAB Xpress online IDE and board earlier this year, and as part of the launch they offered 2,000 free boards. I joined the program and received my board. The keyword for the board is “Xpress”, as you should be able to get started in mere minutes thanks to the operating system agnostic online IDE that works with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, and Safari. That also means you don’t need to install any other tool. All you need is a web browser. MPLAB Xpress Board Let’s start by quickly checking out the package, board, and offline documentation. Once you open the package, you’ll get the board, a folded sheet of paper for the schematics, and some information on the package itself with the pinout diagram, and a quick start guide explaining that the board acts as a mass storage device, and all you need is a web browser for […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 49 Comments on How to Change Language to English and Install Apps Remotely on Xiaomi Mi Box 3 Enhanced

How to Change Language to English and Install Apps Remotely on Xiaomi Mi Box 3 Enhanced

Just like other Xiaomi TV boxes the latest Xiaomi Mi Box 3 Enhanced (aka MiBox 3 Pro) comes with a Chinese only user interface, but a similar method as used for Xiaomi Mi Box Mini to change English and remotely install apps. I’ve gone through this and taken pictures and screenshots to show how to change the language. I had connected the HDMI cable, a USB hard drive, as well as a USB keyboard and RF dongle for my airmouse and gamepad to the device, and after powering up the device, you are know some text in Chinese, you can press OK, and you’ll soon be presented with a list of WiFi access points. Select one, and you’ll be asked to input the password for the network. However, in my case I had no connect button, and pressing OK on the remote did not work at all. It turns out […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 22 Comments on Stream Live TV to Your Computer or Smartphone with U4 Quad Hybrid Android TV Box, Kodi and TVheadend

Stream Live TV to Your Computer or Smartphone with U4 Quad Hybrid Android TV Box, Kodi and TVheadend

TVheadend is a streaming server and recorder for Linux, FreeBSD and Android supporting DVB-S, DVB-S2, DVB-C, DVB-T, ATSC, ISDB-T, IPTV, SAT>IP and HDHomeRun as input sources, and while in theory it should be possible to configure any recent Android TV set-top box with digital TV tuners, configuration is complex, and there’s no guarantee the tuner will be recognized. However, the manufacturer of U4 Quad Hybrid has already configured their box to support HTSP clients, so I’ve installed the latest firmware, and given it a try with my Android smartphone running Kodi 15.2 with TVheadend HTSP client, and I could successfully stream live TV (DVB-T2 free-to-air channels) to my smartphone. Once you’ve scanned the channels using DVB-T2 and/or DVB-S2, there’s no other configuration in U4 Quad Hybrid TV box, but you’ll still need to find out your IP address by going to Setup->Network, and WiFi, Ethernet or 3G depending on your […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments on Getting Started with Wemos D1 mini ESP8266 Board, DHT & Relay Shields

Getting Started with Wemos D1 mini ESP8266 Board, DHT & Relay Shields

Wemos D1 mini is an ESP8266 board that’s interesting thanks to its size, its low price ($4), micro USB power, its shields, and a documentation that looks fairly good. The board can be programmed with Arduino or Lua, and supports both serial and OTA programming. I’ve decided to give it a try and bought the board together with two temperature shields, a relay shield, and micro SD shield. I got all for $ 14.00 from Wemos Aliexpress shop, and it took about one month for delivery. I can also see they’ve recently released a new OLED shield selling for about $5. All shields were shipped inside their own anti-static bags. The pins are clearly marked on both side of the board and the shields. One side of the board features ESP8266 module. and the other side has CH340 serial to USB chip, and the reset button. The provided headers make […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on Decode or Generate QR Codes in Ubuntu with QtQR and zbar-tools

Decode or Generate QR Codes in Ubuntu with QtQR and zbar-tools

Sometimes I’ve found myself having to decode a QR code on my computer, and usually I’d just get my Android smartphone, use a QR code app to decode it, and send the results to my computer by email. It works, but wouldn’t it be better to simply do this straight from my computer instead? After a few minutes searching, I eventually found out QtQR graphical utility that can both generate and decode QR codes. In Ubuntu and Debian, you can install it as follows:

You can create a QR code with a given pixel size and level of error correction for text, URL, bookmark, email, phone number, SMS/MMS, WiFi network, and so on, and then use the Save QRCode button to save the resulting picture. If instead you simply want to decode a QR code from an image or your webcam use the Decode button, and the tool will […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 34 Comments on Orange Pi One Board Quick Start Guide with Armbian Debian based Linux Distribution

Orange Pi One Board Quick Start Guide with Armbian Debian based Linux Distribution

Orange Pi One board is the most cost-effective development board available on the market today, so I decided to purchase one sample on Aliexpress to try out the firmware, which has not always been perfect simply because Shenzhen Xunlong focuses on hardware design and manufacturing, and spends little time on software development to keep costs low, so the latter mostly relies on the community. Recently, armbian has become popular operating systems for Linux ARM platform in recent months, so I’ve decided to write a getting started guide for Orange Pi One using a Debian Desktop image released by armbian community. Orange Pi One Unboxing But let’s start by checking out what I received. The Orange Pi One board is kept in an anti-static bag, and comes with a Regulatory Compliance and Safety Information sheet, but no guide, as instead the company simply asks users to visit www.orangepi.org to access information […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 20 Comments on How to Resize Partitions and Update Firmware in MXQ-4K TV Box (Rockchip RK3229)

How to Resize Partitions and Update Firmware in MXQ-4K TV Box (Rockchip RK3229)

Since I’ve received MXQ-4K Android TV box yesterday, I have started to play with it, and so far I can’t say I’m impressed, as while the device automatically detected the maximum resolution (3840×2160 @ 60 Hz) for my television, I could not play any of my 4K samples smoothly with either the pre-installed Kodi 15.2, Video and Video Player apps, there’s no power off mode (only standby), and the “internal partition” is only 0.96GB large which can quickly become an issue if you plan on installing several apps. Since GeekBuying has released the stock firmware, I decided to try to adapt the method to resize the partitions for GeekBox (RK3368) to MXQ-4K. Rockchip RK3229 Firmware Modding I’ve used a computer running Ubuntu 14.04, and assume you have most tools pre-installed. The first step is to download the firmware (MXQ-4K_ota_ok_20160127.img update.img), and install the tools to extract it :

The […]

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