Software testing help wanted for Raspberry Pi

@Chris Hall,

mate, I m booting the RISCOS (latest rom) with 1920×1080, I just used the (!Boot)→Configuration→Screen
then I set the monitor as HannsG JC171D and the resolution to 1280×770 (16m), in fact my monitor is an AOC that just handle max1366x768, the 1920×1080 is scaled as I see…

anyway, I think you may edit your monitor file….here is what says in my case (I managed to have a 1280×720 by putting the “correct” frequency (76Hz), when its wrong the monitor goes to 1920×1080....

!boot→ choices → boot → predesk → configure → monitor

LoadModeFile BootResources:Configure.Monitors.HannsG.HannsG-JC171d
WimpMode X1280 Y720 C16M F76

I have tried the new ROM, it worked but didn’t save the settings.
I modied the !Run file from the folder above:

|Set Alias$VIDCBandLimit VIDCBandwidthLimit 2000000000 2000000000 2000000000

|VIDCBandLimit

Set PreDesk$Configure <Obey$Dir>.Monitor

/<PreDesk$Configure>

LoadModeFile BootResources:Configure.Monitors.Acorn.AKF92

WimpMode X1280 Y1024 C16M F70

This also solved the issues of someother settings not being saved.

This a good improvement. Thanks. I’m now listening to Some Kind of Wonderful (Nation 12 – used in Gods apparently) on digital cd on a 1280 × 1024 monitor.

I wasn’t expecting all that to work yet. The only serious issue now is the mouse pointer.

If i remove the hdmi settings from config.txt I get 1600×1200 to the monitor. If I force it (using config.txt) to 1980×1080 I get 1024×768 to the monitor.
Reverting the firmware and forcing works fine.
Also removing the hdmi settings works fine with the old firmare/new ROM.

So Old firmware + New ROM is great
New firmare, you must remove hdmi from config.txt and it still gets it wrong (1600×1200 with no hdmi setting 1024×768 trying to force 1980×1080)

Setting it to auto in the !Boot → Screen means you can’t set the resolution it seems. However the desktop screen application says Raspiinternal (or something like that) and shows all the correct modes with refresh rates.
Setting it in !Boot → Screen to generic works as I can set it to 1980×1080 but it’s only 33Hz, not 73Hz

Package – Toppler.
Using virgin 8th Aug distro on RPi
Problem, not limited to this specific package.

“Files that conflict”
SDFS::RISCOS.$.System.310.Modules.DRenderer

Installation fails.

If I delete this file, it extracts okay and seems to run, no sound, but that’s to be expected as I haven’t installed the other bits and pieces needed yet.

Version supplied on distro is DRenderer 0.52 GPL 15 Jan 2006
This is replaced by 0.55 GPL 13 Apr 2012 when installed successfully.

Is !Packman supposed, (or intended in future,) to update any modules to the latest version automatically? Or is it possible to make it an option at the time a conflict is discovered?

7pm 6th Sep.
On a fresh SD card again, using virgin 8th Aug distro, carefully :) followed Sep 2nd 14:43 instructions and rebooted okay to low res screen.

Set back to hi res full colour using !Boot – screen, Generic 16M 1920×1080
Copied todays HardDisc4 over top of old distro. Reboot.
New boot sequence appears in hi res, but then goes back to low res screen.
Using 1080p TV on HDMI. Not meddled with config.txt or anything else yet.

Had similar results using manual updates the other day, but this does seem a little easier, as long as I remember to remove old files first.

btw, I think the issue with the mouse pointer is a bit worst now, I can see a trailing when I drag icons….

“Files that conflict”
SDFS::RISCOS.$.System.310.Modules.DRenderer

Installation fails.

That sounds like the limitation in the package manager that it can’t replace files that it didn’t put there itself.

I think there is a planned fix. (So you can upgrade things already that have already been installed by other means.)

I’m still being thick. I found a Monitor Definition File for my Dell monitor and put it in a folder named “Dell” in: !Boot → Resources → Configure → Monitors

Then in !boot→ choices → boot → predesk → configure → monitor I copied what Jess Hampshire posted above with the “!run” file and edited the “monitor” file to point to my MDF (LoadModeFile BootResources:Configure.Monitors.Dell.2407WFP)
and set WimpMode X1600 Y1200 C16M F60

Now my desktop boots in a higher resoluion, but it’s awfully fuzzy. The Monitor setting on the task bar reports 1600×1200 16M 60Hz but the monitor itself says it has a 1024 x 768 signal. Obviously there is more to it than this. In theory RISC OS is thinking 1600×1200, and the monitor is trying to display 1600×1200 but the bit in the middle is blindly doing 1024 × 768. I havem’t touched config.txt – mainly becasue I don’t even know where to find it!

Adrian what resolution does your monitor say it is receiving?
What does RISC OS display manager report it is outputting? (click on the display icon on the iconbar)
A fuzzy display sounds like the image is being scaled somewhere probably in the Pi.

Adrian what resolution does your monitor say it is receiving?
What does RISC OS display manager report it is outputting? (click on the display icon on the iconbar)
A fuzzy display sounds like the image is being scaled somewhere probably in the Pi.

Hi Chris, monitor OSD reports 1024 × 768, display manager reports 1600 × 1200. The desktop fills the screen but is obviously scaled and blurry.

I should probably point out that I previously had to remove all the monitor entries from the config.txt to get a proper display.

(I’m away from home with access to a 1280×1024 screen, at home I have a 1920×1200 screen which wouldn’t work properly with any monitor type entry in config.txt, but works fine with none)

I should probably point out that I previously had to remove all the monitor entries from the config.txt to get a proper display.

OK, thanks Jess, I guess I should try that too. Can this be done from within RISC OS? Incidentally, I keep mentioning 1600×1200 only because it’s the highest resolution I can get to fill the screen but the monitor’s native resolution IS 1920×1200 and that’s what I’d really like to get but if I select that from the display manager I get a fuzzy letterbox (still a 1024 × 768 signal according to the monitor’s OSD). Actually setting the desktop to 1024 × 768 at least gives a sharp(er) display but is still not very comfortable.

you can do it from RISC OS. you go into the image file in !Boot. I would copy the existing config.txt, before editing, then if it all goes horribly wrong, it shouldn’t be too hard to put back. (I have an extra folder called backup with the file in)

With the old ROM on my newer monitor I got 1080p. With my older monitor it just gave horrible scaled displays, until I deleted the entries, I then got a 1920×1200 native display with a 1920×1080 desktop shown letterbox. (Therefore properly sharp.)

From then on I only had access to a 1280×1024 screen

So I used the specially compiled ROM for 1280×1024 which worked fine.

I then tried the new ROM, which after taking the steps above modifying files in boot, works fine.

you can do it from RISC OS. you go into the image file in !Boot. I would copy the existing config.txt, before editing, then if it all goes horribly wrong, it shouldn’t be too hard to put back. (I have an extra folder called backup with the file in)

Excellent, that did the trick. Now I have a pin-sharp desktop @ monitor-native 1920×1200. In case any other dummies like me get on this trail, the first line of !boot→ Loader → CONFIG/TXT

hdmi_mode=16

Is all that needs deleting.

The only serious issue now is the mouse pointer.

You’ll be glad to hear today’s ROM now uses a hardware pointer (assuming VCHIQ is loaded).

Meanwhile, I’ve rediscovered why I was using my config.txt to force my Pi into 1080p – because without it it defaults to 1080i, making everything look a bit crummy due to the monitor (or the Pi?) passing the image through an extra filter.

I just tried the system on an HDMI TV and automatic didn’t work. (However HDMI sound did – which is brilliant news – DCD through my DAC, if I can find an HDMI to SPDIF at a non silly price.)

I had to go through the monitors and find one that sort of worked.

It appears that auto detection over HDMI cannot be relied upon. I think it would be good if the monitor choice were rationalized for the release. e.g. HDTV 1080p, HDTV 1080i, HDTV 720p, SDTV, SDTV 576i, SDTV 480i, VESA 1920×1200, VESA 1600×1200, etc. Instead of a list of old models.

You’ll be glad to hear today’s ROM now uses a hardware pointer (assuming VCHIQ is loaded).

Damn, now I’ll have to plug it up again. :)

Excellent news.

Will packman fetch it after 10:30?

PiRO should now be a viable replacement for a RiscPC, at this rate it won’t be long before the same can be said of an Iyonix.

Is the memory split likely to be sorted soon?

I really like the new way the loading screen works. (Though the terminal window could do with being bigger).

Just tried it. Brilliant. Streaming internet radio, while I type looking at a non-fuzzy screen with no mouse trails.

I really like the new way the loading screen works. (Though the terminal window could do with being bigger).

What’s that?

Is !Packman supposed, (or intended in future,) to update any modules to the latest version automatically? Or is it possible to make it an option at the time a conflict is discovered?

That sounds like the limitation in the package manager that it can’t replace files that it didn’t put there itself.

As Jess says PackMan can’t replace files it didn’t put there itself. Once you have sorted it out for the first install it can then update them.

I think there is a planned fix. (So you can upgrade things already that have already been installed by other means.)

My next release (0.7) will help more with things that already exist by giving the option to backup your existing version and replace it with the packaged version.

I really like the new way the loading screen works. (Though the terminal window could do with being bigger).

What’s that?

There’s a new module in the Pi ROM, BootFX, which throws up a splash screen just before the “RISC OS xxxMB” message appears. It sets up the VDU text window so that the startup text won’t overwrite the text/logos on the splash. It also supposedly adds a progress bar to the boot sequence, but I think I need to update my !Boot in order to see that in action. Either that or it’s not fully working yet.

PackMan will fetch the new ROM (20120907.053950) but won’t do VCHIQ because I haven’t made any boot sequence packages. That might need plugging into the ROOL build process in a tighter way – so will need some work.

Is the memory split likely to be sorted soon?

AFAIK it’s sorted already, you just need to select an appropriate start.elf. But I haven’t had time to check it myself.

There’s a new module in the Pi ROM, BootFX, which throws up a splash screen just before the “RISC OS xxxMB” message appears. It sets up the VDU text window so that the startup text won’t overwrite the text/logos on the splash. It also supposedly adds a progress bar to the boot sequence, but I think I need to update my !Boot in order to see that in action. Either that or it’s not fully working yet.

Ah, OK. Sounds nice. Any reason it’s RPi only?

It’s still a work in progress. There’s a splash screen in CVS for the ‘Sovereign’ user interface, but at the moment it’s just a copy of the Pi one!

I’d assume the plan is to roll it out for the other ROMs once it’s a bit further along. Although since it’s somewhat reliant on the ROM being able to boot into a high-res, true-colour mode it might be a bit fiddly on machines where you can’t read EDID data or might have limited VRAM (i.e. I wouldn’t be surprised if the IOMD ROM doesn’t receive the module, or maybe only gets a cut-down version with just the progress bar)

with just the progress bar

What progress bar? It starts up in 12s (new splash screen) plus a further 10s to full desktop with networking. Not much time to look for a progress bar.

I have had to edit Boot.Choices.Boot.PreDesk.Configure.Monitor manually to remember my (RISC OS) screen resolution:

|oadModeFile BootResources:Configure.Monitors.HP.HP-LP2465
WimpMode X1920 Y1080 C16M

Note the ‘|’ on the first line (not a lower case ‘L’).

My monitor tells the GPU that it has 1920×1080 so the GPU sets itself to that whatever RISC OS tells it.