[Sugar-devel] Ideas on how to more widely propagate Sugar Desktop in regular and VM versions of soas and opensuse-edu files (Forwarded to list)

[Thomas C Gilliard]

Forwarding e-mail
Open for discussion


Happy New Year!

Tom Gilliard
satellit
Bend, Oregon



> I am writing to you to inform on what I have doing lately to propagate
> sugar more widely.

Thanks for this writeup, Thomas - I'd love to respond to this discussion 
on a public list; it may be be that other folks (like Wade) are 
interested and working in similar areas, but we won't be able to find 
and take advantage of those partnerships unless we're consistent about 
having these conversations in the open. Would you mind forwarding this 
conversation to sugar-devel?

David, Walter, Sebastian - would you mind continuing the conversation 
there?

--Mel

> 1-) I have built VM versions of Blueberry for VMPlayer and VitrualBox
> and uploaded them to:
> http://people.sugarlabs.org/Tgillard/Blueberry-vmx.tar.gz
> http://people.sugarlabs.org/Tgillard/Blueberrycleared.vdi.tar.gz
>
> 2-) I have been updating the wiki pages:
> http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Category:Liveusb
> http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/VMware
> http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/VirtualBox
>
> 3- )I have uploaded a copy of opensuse-edu sugar-.vmx file on 
> sourceforge:
> https://sourceforge.net/projects/opensuse-edu/files/
>
> (cyberorg got this listing and uses it for opensuse-edu builds)
>
> I have also listed this site on VMware's Free Appliance webpage:
>
> /http://www.vmware.com/appliances/directory/216653 "
>
> (https://sourceforge.net/projects/opensuse-edu/files/Sugar/openSUSE-Sugar-vmware-vmx.tar.bz2/download) 
>
>
>
> I wish we could set up a similar listings on sourceforge and VMware for
> Sugar Labs Blueberry and Strawberry so we have a second DL source.
>
> I copy a e-mail I sent asking for permission to do this:
>
> I hope you think that I am not overstepping bounds by trying to do this.
>
> The Virtual Appliances really do work well, both on a Hard Disk and as a
> portable USB solution...Plus the sourceforge page would be very useful
> for Sugar-Labs.
>
> Cordially
>
> Tom Gilliard
> satellit
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
>
>
> Thomas C Gilliard wrote:
>> Sebastian;
>>
>> I used VMworkstation6.52 to make a 8GB (in 2GB slices) VM Application
>> with soas-v2-Blueberry.iso
>> it has 1024 memory, nat networking
>> I did yum install anaconda
>> then liveinst
>> custom install
>> /root =200 ext4
>> / =7989 ext4
>>
>> TZ set to Los Angeles
>> root=sugarroot
>
> As it has been said on IRC quite some times, installing SoaS directly in
> a VM and then redistributing this installation is not really 
> recommendable.
>
>> On boot:
>> get progress bars and note label changed from "Generic" label to 
>> "Soas 2"
>> It would not start due to not having selinux=0 set ("dracut" halted it)
>
> That's because of the changes anaconda does with regard to our kickstart
> %post parts, yes.
>
>> I rebooted
>> hit ESC a number of times till I got to boot menu.
>> TAB let me add selinux=0 to kernel commands
>> then it booted.
>> (on reboot it failed again)
>> so I redid this and yum install gedit then edited /etc/sysconfig/selinux
>> and grub to add selinux=0 to kernel commands.
>>
>> Did
>> rm ~/.sugar su - shutdown -h now
>> to clear /.sugar
>
> That removes the sugar identity, but when the machine boots the first
> time, it might make more changes - I'm just not sure on that, which is
> why I'm hesitating. :)
>
>> The resulting VM Appliance is 1.7 GB
>> I did a compression (.tar.gz )to 614.9 MB
>> I did a upload to Tgillard
>> then a test download
>>
>> It works well
>
> Cool! Good to hear that.
>
>> I have loaded the expanded download to a 2 GB USB and it starts as it
>> should in VMPlayer
>>
>> The memory requirements can be changed in VMPlayer to 256 and it runs
>> fine.
>>
>> Hope this explains my methodology to create this.
>
> Yeah, thanks for the detailed write-up! As I said, I'm not sure whether
> using an installer is sustainable for creating virtual appliances. Have
> you already had a chance to look at thincrust.net? This is where the
> tools to create an appliance like a live image live.
>
> Maybe it would make sense for you and Wade, who was been looking into
> virtual solutions for Sugar on a Stick too, to join forces? I'm copying
> to this e-mail just in case.
>
>> Regards
>>
>> Tom Gilliard
>> satellit
>
> Keep up the cool work!
> --Sebastian
>
>>
>> Sebastian Dziallas wrote:
>>> Walter Bender wrote:
>>>> On Wed, Dec 16, 2009 at 12:38pm, Thomas C Gilliard
>>>> <satellit at bendbroadband.com> wrote:
>>>>> I have created a Blueberry.vmx file and uploaded it to Tgillard. It
>>>>> is in
>>>>> compressed form, and works well when decompressed and copied to a
>>>>> 2GB USB
>>>>> stick, or used from the computer with VMPlayer (free download but
>>>>> non free
>>>>> software...)
>>>>>
>>>>> I am asking permission to list it on the VMware web site as a free
>>>>> Download.
>>>>>
>>>>> http://www.vmware.com/appliances/directory/
>>>>>
>>>>> I need your permission to do this.
>>>>> Pros& Cons:
>>>>> *It will give us more exposure.
>>>>> *It require a full uncompressed file 1.7GB for downloading from
>>>>> Tgillard.
>>>>> *non free issues.
>>>>
>>>> Let me think about this one. My immediate reaction is that we are
>>>> providing other (libre) means of using our software, so this is not
>>>> forcing a compromise on anyone's part. So I would think it is OK.
>>>>
>>>> -walter
>>>
>>> I'd like to hear about how this has been technically realized before
>>> giving my say on it, to make sure I'm understanding it correctly and
>>> to have a supportable solution up and running.
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>> --Sebastian
>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Cordially;
>>>>>
>>>>> Tom Gilliard
>>>>> satellit
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>
>