Use CLI to check rpm file dependencies

This should be useful as I’ve now got OpenSUSE 11.2 installed on my EeePC 901.

The power of /

Here’s something simple and useful I discovered in a tweet from @LinuxMusicToys.

When on the  Desktop, and with focus on the Desktop itself, typing / opens a Location dialog which allows you to open a file browser into any folder you specify. I found, too, that long folder names with spaces can be printed as is without quotes.

On a webpage, hitting / opens a very useful Find Text box.

I’ve only tested this in Linux Mint so far.

Convert scanned images to editable txt files

At least that’s what FreeOCR says. However, when I tried a 1.2 MB .tiff file of a scanned image of a 1-page letter, it told me that “for some reason, they couldn’t run OCR on my file”.

Nevertheless, the idea is great as it save you a lot of typing if you only need to scan a document of which you only have a paper copy and then get it converted to an editable file. Nice if it turns out to be reliable particularly as it’s free.

Send email from terminal

Here’s a nice guide to do just that.

Basically it just requires installing sendemail with

sudo apt-get install sendemail

and then finding the address of your ISPs email server. Now use this command:

sendEmail -f abcdefghij@gmail.com -t klmnopqrst@gmail.com -s mail2.eircom.net -u “Test” -m “This is a test with sendEmail from terminal”

Note that mail2.eircom.net is my ISPs email server. Obviously for most of you this’ll be different. This is denoted by the -s (Server) switch. Other switches used are -f (the “from” email address), -t (the ‘to” email address), -u (the email subject line) and -m (the actual email message).

Want some hardware details?

Try this command

sudo dmidecode

Here’s what it gave me on my EeePC 901 from the terminal in Linux Mint 7:

$ sudo dmidecode
# dmidecode 2.9
SMBIOS 2.5 present.
30 structures occupying 1285 bytes.
Table at 0x000F0710.

Handle 0×0000, DMI type 0, 24 bytes
BIOS Information
Vendor: American Megatrends Inc.
Version: 1301
Release Date: 08/05/2008
Address: 0xF0000
Runtime Size: 64 kB
ROM Size: 512 kB
Characteristics:
ISA is supported
PCI is supported
PNP is supported
APM is supported
BIOS is upgradeable
BIOS shadowing is allowed
ESCD support is available
Boot from CD is supported
Selectable boot is supported
BIOS ROM is socketed
EDD is supported
5.25″/1.2 MB floppy services are supported (int 13h)
3.5″/720 KB floppy services are supported (int 13h)
3.5″/2.88 MB floppy services are supported (int 13h)
Print screen service is supported (int 5h)
8042 keyboard services are supported (int 9h)
Serial services are supported (int 14h)
Printer services are supported (int 17h)
CGA/mono video services are supported (int 10h)
ACPI is supported
USB legacy is supported
LS-120 boot is supported
ATAPI Zip drive boot is supported
BIOS boot specification is supported
Targeted content distribution is supported
BIOS Revision: 8.12
Firmware Revision: 0.1

Handle 0×0001, DMI type 1, 27 bytes
System Information
Manufacturer: ASUSTeK Computer INC.
Product Name: 901
Version: x.x
Serial Number: 89OAAQ020893
UUID: 000B5791-C279-DD81-2A6A-00235404A26F
Wake-up Type: Power Switch
SKU Number: 90OAM0BA51211411K224Q
Family: To Be Filled By O.E.M.

Handle 0×0002, DMI type 2, 15 bytes
Base Board Information
Manufacturer: ASUSTeK Computer INC.
Product Name: 901
Version: x.xx
Serial Number: EeePC-0123456789
Asset Tag: To Be Filled By O.E.M.
Features:
Board is a hosting board
Board is replaceable
Location In Chassis: To Be Filled By O.E.M.
Chassis Handle: 0×0003
Type: Motherboard
Contained Object Handles: 0

Handle 0×0003, DMI type 3, 21 bytes
Chassis Information
Manufacturer: ASUSTek Computer INC.
Type: Notebook
Lock: Present
Version: x.x
Serial Number: 0×00000000
Asset Tag: 0×00000000
Boot-up State: Safe
Power Supply State: Safe
Thermal State: Safe
Security Status: None
OEM Information: 0×00000000
Height: Unspecified
Number Of Power Cords: 1
Contained Elements: 0

Handle 0×0004, DMI type 4, 35 bytes
Processor Information
Socket Designation: PBGA 437
Type: Central Processor
Family: Unknown
Manufacturer: Intel
ID: C2 06 01 00 FF FB E9 BF
Version: Intel(R) Atom(TM) CPU N270 @ 1.60GHz
Voltage: 1.3 V
External Clock: 133 MHz
Max Speed: 1666 MHz
Current Speed: 1600 MHz
Status: Populated, Enabled
Upgrade: Other
L1 Cache Handle: 0×0005
L2 Cache Handle: 0×0006
L3 Cache Handle: 0×0007
Serial Number: To Be Filled By O.E.M.
Asset Tag: To Be Filled By O.E.M.
Part Number: To Be Filled By O.E.M.

Handle 0×0005, DMI type 7, 19 bytes
Cache Information
Socket Designation: L1-Cache
Configuration: Enabled, Not Socketed, Level 1
Operational Mode: Write Back
Location: Internal
Installed Size: 24 KB
Maximum Size: 24 KB
Supported SRAM Types:
Other
Installed SRAM Type: Other
Speed: Unknown
Error Correction Type: Parity
System Type: Data
Associativity: Other

Handle 0×0006, DMI type 7, 19 bytes
Cache Information
Socket Designation: L2-Cache
Configuration: Enabled, Not Socketed, Level 2
Operational Mode: Write Back
Location: Internal
Installed Size: 512 KB
Maximum Size: 512 KB
Supported SRAM Types:
Other
Installed SRAM Type: Other
Speed: Unknown
Error Correction Type: Single-bit ECC
System Type: Unified
Associativity: 8-way Set-associative

Handle 0×0007, DMI type 7, 19 bytes
Cache Information
Socket Designation: L3-Cache
Configuration: Disabled, Not Socketed, Level 3
Operational Mode: Unknown
Location: Internal
Installed Size: 0 KB
Maximum Size: 0 KB
Supported SRAM Types:
Unknown
Installed SRAM Type: Unknown
Speed: Unknown
Error Correction Type: Unknown
System Type: Unknown
Associativity: Unknown

Handle 0×0008, DMI type 5, 18 bytes
Memory Controller Information
Error Detecting Method: 64-bit ECC
Error Correcting Capabilities:
None
Supported Interleave: One-way Interleave
Current Interleave: One-way Interleave
Maximum Memory Module Size: 1024 MB
Maximum Total Memory Size: 1024 MB
Supported Speeds:
Other
Supported Memory Types:
DIMM
SDRAM
Memory Module Voltage: 3.3 V
Associated Memory Slots: 1
0×0009
Enabled Error Correcting Capabilities:
None

Handle 0×0009, DMI type 6, 12 bytes
Memory Module Information
Socket Designation: DIMM0
Bank Connections: 0 1
Current Speed: Unknown
Type: DIMM SDRAM
Installed Size: 1024 MB (Single-bank Connection)
Enabled Size: 1024 MB (Single-bank Connection)
Error Status: OK

Handle 0x000A, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J2A2
Internal Connector Type: None
External Reference Designator: USB1
External Connector Type: Access Bus (USB)
Port Type: USB

Handle 0x000B, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J2A2
Internal Connector Type: None
External Reference Designator: USB2
External Connector Type: Access Bus (USB)
Port Type: USB

Handle 0x000C, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J5A1
Internal Connector Type: None
External Reference Designator: USB3
External Connector Type: Access Bus (USB)
Port Type: USB

Handle 0x000D, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J5A1
Internal Connector Type: None
External Reference Designator: USB4
External Connector Type: Access Bus (USB)
Port Type: USB

Handle 0x000E, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J6A1
Internal Connector Type: None
External Reference Designator: Audio Mic In
External Connector Type: Mini Jack (headphones)
Port Type: Audio Port

Handle 0x000F, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J6A1
Internal Connector Type: None
External Reference Designator: Audio Line In
External Connector Type: Mini Jack (headphones)
Port Type: Audio Port

Handle 0×0010, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J6A1
Internal Connector Type: None
External Reference Designator: Audio Line Out
External Connector Type: Mini Jack (headphones)
Port Type: Audio Port

Handle 0×0011, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J5A1
Internal Connector Type: None
External Reference Designator: LAN
External Connector Type: RJ-45
Port Type: Network Port

Handle 0×0012, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J6J2 – PRI IDE
Internal Connector Type: On Board IDE
External Reference Designator: Not Specified
External Connector Type: None
Port Type: Other

Handle 0×0013, DMI type 8, 9 bytes
Port Connector Information
Internal Reference Designator: J6J1 – SEC IDE
Internal Connector Type: On Board IDE
External Reference Designator: Not Specified
External Connector Type: None
Port Type: Other

Handle 0×0014, DMI type 10, 6 bytes
On Board Device Information
Type: Video
Status: Enabled
Description: To Be Filled By O.E.M.

Handle 0×0015, DMI type 11, 5 bytes
OEM Strings
String 1: To Be Filled By O.E.M.
String 2: To Be Filled By O.E.M.
String 3: To Be Filled By O.E.M.
String 4: To Be Filled By O.E.M.

Handle 0×0016, DMI type 13, 22 bytes
BIOS Language Information
Installable Languages: 1
en|US|iso8859-1
Currently Installed Language: en|US|iso8859-1

Handle 0×0017, DMI type 15, 35 bytes
System Event Log
Area Length: 4 bytes
Header Start Offset: 0×0000
Header Length: 2 bytes
Data Start Offset: 0×0002
Access Method: Indexed I/O, one 16-bit index port, one 8-bit data port
Access Address: Index 0x046A, Data 0x046C
Status: Invalid, Not Full
Change Token: 0×00000000
Header Format: No Header
Supported Log Type Descriptors: 6
Descriptor 1: End of log
Data Format 1: OEM-specific
Descriptor 2: End of log
Data Format 2: OEM-specific
Descriptor 3: End of log
Data Format 3: OEM-specific
Descriptor 4: End of log
Data Format 4: OEM-specific
Descriptor 5: End of log
Data Format 5: OEM-specific
Descriptor 6: End of log
Data Format 6: OEM-specific

Handle 0×0018, DMI type 16, 15 bytes
Physical Memory Array
Location: System Board Or Motherboard
Use: System Memory
Error Correction Type: None
Maximum Capacity: 4 GB
Error Information Handle: Not Provided
Number Of Devices: 1

Handle 0×0019, DMI type 19, 15 bytes
Memory Array Mapped Address
Starting Address: 0×00000000000
Ending Address: 0x000400003FF
Range Size: 1048577 kB
Physical Array Handle: 0×0018
Partition Width: 0

Handle 0x001A, DMI type 17, 27 bytes
Memory Device
Array Handle: 0×0018
Error Information Handle: Not Provided
Total Width: 64 bits
Data Width: 64 bits
Size: 1024 MB
Form Factor: DIMM
Set: None
Locator: DIMM0
Bank Locator: BANK0
Type: SDRAM
Type Detail: Synchronous
Speed: Unknown
Manufacturer: Manufacturer0
Serial Number: SerNum0
Asset Tag: AssetTagNum0
Part Number: PartNum0

Handle 0x001B, DMI type 20, 19 bytes
Memory Device Mapped Address
Starting Address: 0×00000000000
Ending Address: 0x0003FFFFFFF
Range Size: 1 GB
Physical Device Handle: 0x001A
Memory Array Mapped Address Handle: 0×0019
Partition Row Position: 1
Interleaved Data Depth: 1

Handle 0x001C, DMI type 32, 20 bytes
System Boot Information
Status: No errors detected

Handle 0x001D, DMI type 127, 4 bytes
End Of Table

Command lists files older than x

Got this from the Tips4Linux blog. This command

sudo find . -mtime +365

lists all files (starting from whatever directory you launched the command) that are older than 365 days. Change the 365 to whatever you want.

Some great CLI commands

This is a great, and evolving, list of some useful and sophisticated CLI commands. Worth keeping an eye on this.

Control CPU hogs with CpuLimit

Found this little app in the wonderful Tips4Linux blog and tried it out. Actually I though it might be useful in preventing Opera getting carried away and literally using almost 100% of my Intel Atom processor which used to happen quite a lot.

In any event, I wrote a tiny bash script which, after making it executable, I included it in StartUp Applications to run at boot. Here’s the script:

#!/bin/bash
cpulimit –exe opera –limit 40

Can’t say yet whether it reduces the problem I’ve been having with Opera but I’ll keep an eye on it.

Group RSS feeds to simplify having the same feeds on various computers

Well, that’s what I wanted. Instead of having all my important feeds on just one computer, which just might be unavailable when I want to check a feed, why can’t I have all the very same feeds on each computer.

Feedstich looked promising and I tried it. It is indeed easy to get all your feeds into a group and create a one-off feed of that group on another computer. I’ assuming that any additions I make to the group will be reflected in the group feed to all computers but I can’t immediately verify that.

Only problem I see so far is that it “lumps” everything together so you get Twitter feeds interspersed  with Lifehacker, Tips4Linux and SimpleHelp stuff.

This is a little disconcerting but it’s certainly better than nothing. I’ll continue with this as it seems worth getting to know.

Feel you need more than 140 chars to express yourself in Twitter?

Well, you’re in luck as you can use the free Twitlonger. This provides a link in your tweet which allows your avid readers the opportunity to further immerse themselves in your eloquence.