console output for Linux?

wayn3 · Post by **wayn3** » Thu Jul 11, 2002 8:01 am

How does the Linux audience view console messages on the LCD screen? Ideally, I'd like to see the startup sequence, then switch the control of the display over to another service (lcd4linux or lcdproc) when the boot-up sequence is done.

Is it as simple as passing the "console=/dev/ttyS1" command to the kernel?

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: wayn3 on 2002-07-11 10:19 ]</font>

KzA · Post by **KzA** » Tue Jul 23, 2002 4:25 pm

I am not posting with an answer..ButI am woindering if you have figured anything out yet..I am gettin an LCD very son and would also Love to be able to output console..thanks

ctimmer · Post by **ctimmer** » Wed Jul 24, 2002 9:42 am

You might have a problem with flow control if you designated the LCD tty device as the console. A better solution would be to write a kernel mod (easier than it sounds) to intercept the console output as pass it to the LCD device.

Thlayli · Post by **Thlayli** » Wed Aug 07, 2002 11:53 am

You most definately could not just pass the serial device as a parameter, mostly because of the commands required to display text on the LCD screens. I'm trying to figure out a way for you to do this easily, with a minimum of fuss, but the only real possibility I see is creating a false device that intercepts console output and then manages the display of the text on the lcd. I've done this once before but it was set up after boot, so I'm not sure how you'd manage to get it set up prior to kernel messages and the like being displayed...

guy.named.matt · Post by **guy.named.matt** » Wed Sep 04, 2002 5:40 pm

I would also like to know the answer to this- please help.

guy.named.matt · Post by **guy.named.matt** » Fri Sep 06, 2002 8:18 pm

Any ideas Henry?

Post by **Henry** » Mon Sep 09, 2002 9:27 am

I'm no Linux guy, sorry

zedgama3 · Post by **zedgama3** » Tue Sep 10, 2002 9:03 pm

If you are just looking to get the system loading and not the actual kernel load you should be able to have init load a program that would follow the log file and output it to the display. This would show you things as they loaded as well as if they failed or not.

Shak · Post by **Shak** » Sat Oct 19, 2002 12:50 pm

what do people want from the Linux program, output from a command directly to the LCD? So it acted like a small terminal?

Shak

Post by **linear** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 8:18 am

It's a cool idea, but it has some issues in practice. The line length is too short for much of anything of interest, although it may be suitable to use for an intrusion detection system or something that throws messages infrequently.

The 'tail a log file' idea is the straightforward way, something like

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tail -f /var/log/messages > /dev/ttys2 &

Seems to me like it would suffice. Actually grabbing the console is more difficult and perhaps less appropriate to what you want anyhow.

I'd think that between some appropriate entries in syslogd.conf and the tail trick, you should be able to control waht you send the the LCD very well.

(I'm not a Linux person as much as a FreeBSD person, but I wrote a 'mini-shell' that would just exec() programs based on keypresses using the MOPerl out of the downloads section. The idea occurred to me to write a proper termcap entry for an LCD, but I never did it. I think it's come up in this forum before as well.)

Shak · Post by **Shak** » Wed Oct 23, 2002 3:05 am

Its easy to write a program that is executed like this:

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tolcd uname -a

Which just grabs the uname -a string and puts it on the LCD. could be useful, might not be.

Shak

tjonespc · Post by **tjonespc** » Thu Oct 24, 2002 12:13 pm

Sounds like you need to work with the maker of LCDC to port it over to Linux

Post by **Henry** » Thu Oct 24, 2002 12:23 pm

Don't know if that will be possible, but we have started looking into getting some one to write a Linux program for us. It's going to be closed source, I'm sure we will catch allot of flack for that one, but I belive it will be the best Linux LCD software when it's done.

greeno76 · Post by **greeno76** » Mon Mar 24, 2003 4:00 am

How's progress on the Linux app you mentioned?

I just bought a LCD screen and installed LCD4Linux which has so far failed to 'make' on my Redhat 8 so would be very interested.
Cheers
Jason

Hallis · Post by **Hallis** » Mon Mar 24, 2003 8:25 am

Henry wrote:Don't know if that will be possible, but we have started looking into getting some one to write a Linux program for us. It's going to be closed source, I'm sure we will catch allot of flack for that one, but I belive it will be the best Linux LCD software when it's done.

I'm not going to rip you on it but why closed source? I would think you'd get alot more done faster if it were open. All we need is a port of LCDC to Linux,, i think thats about as gould as one could ever need or want

console output for Linux?

Linux LCD prog