emperor linux..

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Shawn
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emperor linux..

#1 Post by Shawn »

Emperor Linux files can be found here.
Can anyone assemble the OS for us to try?
I don't know how nor do I want to learn.

http://downloads.emperorlinux.com/support/kernel/
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Karl Klammer
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Re: emperor linux..

#2 Post by Karl Klammer »

this is just the kernel, e.g. all low level hardware interfaces/drivers
the userland (desktop environment, software) is not included

Your best bet for giving this a testrun would be to install the distribution of your choice and then plug in the emporer linux kernel.
Do not use the precompiled kernel binaries on your own distribution, they will most-likely not work.
You need to re-compile it yourself on your target environment/distribution.

BR
Karl

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Shawn
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Re: emperor linux..

#3 Post by Shawn »

You are speaking alien language to me...

Jeff? HELP?

I like Makulu Aero 10.

Mint is popular and that has advantages.

There is one more I can not think of right now.
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Karl Klammer
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Re: emperor linux..

#4 Post by Karl Klammer »

ah, i geeked out to much. let's try something more like to english:

the kernel is a tiny but important part of an operating system.
it is responsible for interacting with the hardware on the lowest layer, e.g. refresh screen or read keyboard input.
the kernel by itself is pretty useless for pretty much any kind of user. you won't even have a dos prompt or really anything at all.

a linux distribution like mint, ubuntu, redhat ... is a huge collection of software and configuration.
the kernel, firewall, shell, text editor, init system, bootloader, desktop environment like kde/gnome, office suite and so on

you can use the emporer linux kernel with your normal mint linux setup.
basically you would only want to do this IF (big IF) your need additional hardware support, e.g. touchscreen.
expect to invest 4-40 hours when doing it for the first time.




oh well, english is boring. let's get back to geek mode:

the only thing you can do with this emporer kernel is to replace the mint kernel of your mint linux with the emporer kernel
this tends to be a rather technical and frustrating process, mainly due to hunting down dependencies/required c/c++ development environment (gmake gcc g++ automake autoconf and so on).

basically you
1) create a backup copy of your linux mint harddrive with some special-purpose tool like dd or partitionmagic
2) verify your backup is working
3) download the emporer kernel tarball
4) execute the commands listed on the emporer kernel download page
5) install missing dependencies (./configure and make commands will tell you what is missing)
6) repeat steps 4 to 5 till it stops reporting errors
7) reboot while optionally praying to a deity, Cthulhu seems to be a popular choice for this type of work

if everything worked, you will boot into your usual linux mint experience and may or may not be able to interact with some additional hardware
if it doesn't work ... well you are either happy to not have skipped steps 1+2 ... or you need to fix/reinstall your system

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Shawn
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Re: emperor linux..

#5 Post by Shawn »

Ok so I am sure the compiling thing is above the quantity of Xanax I have on hand.
I imagine I "could" do it, but I am so much much better at hardware.
So the Emperor kernel is very simply all the correct drivers and input-output system to make a Toughbook work 100% correct under Linux.

I will have see if someone will volunteer to do the compiling and testing to get a "Emperor/"whatever" distro that would be designed for Toughbooks.

From what I have found, Emperor is used by Panasonic on special model Toughbooks that come with Linux from the factory.

I would say Makulu Aero 10 would be 1st choice to try with the Emperor kernel.
I guess Makulu comes with some sort of thingy called constructor which sounds like what is needed to compile our finished product.
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Shawn
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Re: emperor linux..

#6 Post by Shawn »

This is the page we are discussing..

What have I stumbled upon?
This is the website of EmperorLinux, Inc.'s custom-configured kernel, installed on all machines we build and ship. In compliance with the GPL, the full source and scripts required to build that source are provided here.
In what formats is the empkernel available?
The empkernel package is an archive of the mainline kernel source, any third-party GPL sources, and the scripts we use to automate their compilation. This does not, however, include the scripts required to assimilate the resultant binaries into RPM or DEB files, although binary packages and YUM/APT repositories for prebuilt kernels are also hosted on this server.

While confusing, it is important to make a distiction between "kernel package" and "kernel binary package" formats; the empkernel package, as described previously, is simply a tarball containing all the sources we use when building the kernel itself. The empkernel binary package is the disto-specific archive that we build using the empkernel source tarball. EmperorLinux, Inc. does not provide the scripts used to create a binary package, only the tools necessary to build the empkernel proper.

The yum repositories we host do include the source RPM packages when possible, as do the apt equivalents.
Where do I get the binary packages?
The precompiled kernel binary packages for the empkernel are here:
2.6.x empkernel packages.
3.x.x empkernel packages.
The empkernel source packages can usually be found inside of a directory named src (consult the next section for instructions detailing how to work with this archive).

There are a number of things you should keep in mind as you browse the kernels directory:

First and foremost, our kernel tends to evolve alongside the popular distributions of the time. If, for example, Fedora or Ubuntu required a particular kernel option to be set for the kernel to function properly during the time we were developing it then you will likely find that option inside of any kernels released within a few weeks of that distro's release.

Secondly, our policy regarding the operational scope of our kernels has changed significantly over the last few years, and in general our kernel packages become more sophisticated as time goes on. For this reason you are more likely to have success using the newest kernel possible, but be warned that this is not always the case! If you are using an older distro, installing a new kernel could cripple your entire system; PROCEED WITH CAUTION!

Finally--and partially in addendum to the above--our kernel naming scheme has changed quite drastically in the last year or two. Instead of trying to create a single RPM for any system that supports that particular packaging format, we now build a specific kernel binary package for each distro seperately. What this means for you is that if you cannot find a new kernel (2.6.30 and greater) with your distro's name in it then it is almost certainly NOT the package you want. All new kernels will encode a string such as fed11 or ubu9.04 in their package names so that our customers can be 100% sure they will be using a compatible, functional kernel.


How do I use the empkernel source package?
The empkernel package provides a helper script which automates all of steps required to download (if necessary), patch, configure, and compile the empkernel. This functionality is provided by the buildscript file, whose help can be invoked via make as follows:
# make
# make help
You're welcome to experiment with the various make targets, although be careful when using the install option. In general, a full build procedure will look something like the following:
# make extract-sources
# make initial-ramdisk
# make patch
# make compile
Many of our customers simply wish to modify one or two small config options and rebuild the kernel to include those new features or, if applicable, new modules. In those cases, you may be able to save yourself some time by simply building the modified kernel but only installing the new modules from the resultant build. In a situation like that, your build procedure might look something like below:
# make extract-sources
# make patch
# make menuconfig
# make compile
# PREFIX=/tmp/myNewKernel make install
...and now we go into your new directory and get just the modules you need...
# cd /tmp/myNewKernel
# cp $NEW_MODULE $NEW_MODULE_PATH
# depmod -a
Usage for each customer will vary. Furthermore, you are encouraged to only use the wrapper script rather than interact directly with the sources and patches the script manages (advanced kernel junkies proceed at their own risk). Keep in mind that any customer who currently is within their official support period is welcome to call us at any time for assistance if something goes wrong. As always, anyone is welcome to e-mail us for support, though paying support customers will take precedence.
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SHEEPMAN!
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Re: emperor linux..

#7 Post by SHEEPMAN! »

Keep in mind that any customer who currently is within their official support period is welcome to call us at any time for assistance if something goes wrong. As always, anyone is welcome to e-mail us for support, though paying support customers will take precedence.
Hmmmmm, the word customer in two sentences back to back.

I read this (the whole thing) several times and am as clueless as is usual. Annnnd my wireless just crashed again. :blowaway: G'night.

J'd
Fair for you/ Fair for me.
I chose to NOT be organized.

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Shawn
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Re: emperor linux..

#8 Post by Shawn »

Customer because they build and sell laptops with Emperor Linux preinstalled.
http://www.emperorlinux.com/mfgr/panasonic/
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Karl Klammer
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Re: emperor linux..

#9 Post by Karl Klammer »

why do you want to run the emporer kernel?

the wonderfull thing about open source is, that many emporer changes will be integrated into mainline kernel after some time.
so it is very likely that a new makulu / mint release will allready support your hardware.

if some hardware does not work with standard makulu / mint, then we can have a look at it:
please list not working hardware incl. revision number (lspci -v), kernel version (uname -a) and list of loaded kernel modules (lsmod)

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Shawn
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Re: emperor linux..

#10 Post by Shawn »

I was more curious than "in need"
I wanted to see what the "official" Panasonic Toughbook Linux looked and worked like.
I must admit that I not quite as curious as I was, considering that Emperor is not the full distro. I really wanted the full "official" Toughbook distro.
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