Slackware ARM 14.1 rc1 released
 

Hello!

Slackware ARM 14.1 rc1 is also now available for testing.
Please report any issues here. The upgrade documentation hasn't yet been updated, so it'd be preferable to test on a new installation.

Thanks
s.

I will love to test the new ARM Slackware 14.1 RC1, using my outdated 10 inch netbook WM8650 with kernel 2.6.32, my outdated 10 inch netbbook, WM8850 with kernel 3.0.8, my outdated MK808B mini-PC, Rockchip RK3066 (dual-core) with kernel 3.0.36 , my outdated mini-PC MK802, AMLOGIC MESON3 8726M with kernel 2.6.34, and even I would be delighted to do tests with my outdated MK908 mini-pc, Rockchip RK3138 (quad-core) with kernel 3.0.36 .

Unfortunately , I can not install Slackware ARM 14.1 RC1 , in any of my devices without using technical gimmicks like recompiling GLIBC using AlienBOB 's Slackware ARM or my slowly WM8650 with his Slackware ARM 14.0 ...

And no, I do not intend to buy a modern Raspberry PI, because I think it is just a tech toy that is outclassed today. My opinion, don't shoot me! ;)

How about a CubieBoard(2) or CubieTruck? I'll probably (can) try your version of Slackware ARM 14.1 RC1, when I will get that CubieTruck, that can work with kernel 3.4.x...

Until then, I have to be an happy user of Slackware ARM, BUT using the AlienBOB 's version (with his native build of GLIBC, who support kernels starting with 2.6.32), in all my devices, excluding the WM8650 netbook, where sadly I am forced to use the now historical Slackware ARM 14.0, like I said.

Or perhaps , you will do a rebuild of (and you'll update) GLIBC, touching, you known ... the minimal 3.1.0 kernel issue, who we all known that is an artificial limitation, that way allowing me to use Slackware ARM 14.1 RC1, in my so outdated devices?

BTW, speaking of your version of Slackware ARM ...

I see you have not found a solution to that whale bug that pollute the KDE4, from several generations, under ARM, making it practically unusable.

It is the famous "plasma buttons are unclickable".

Easy method of reproduction: open several Konqueror windows for them to group together. Try to select, from the taskbar, one of the windows. Or try to configure NetworkManager via the taskbar button.

Anyway, this bug exists also in the version of AlienBOB, because is an (well known) upstream problem, but his Linux is a unofficial version, right? ;)

Since your devices obviously have a hardware floating point unit, I'd suggest that indeed you do use alienBOB's version to make the best use of your hardware.

Well, not all my devices have a hardware floating point unit. :)

My WM8650 netbook is a glorious ARMv5TE, and I bought it especially knowing that it is the native arch of the Slackware ARM.

I also noticed with great pleasure that on the October 20, Slackware ARM current obtained in GLIBC, support for kernels starting with 2.6.32, which allows me to finally be able to do the upgrade from 14.0 to current, even on this WM8650 netbook, and eventually using it in any of my devices.

Sincere Congratulations! In my opinion, it is the brightest decision you took it this year. :hattip:

So, I intend to start, as I said, to upgrade the Slackware ARM on the WM8650 netbook.

Being here also to help, I ask you what variant is really more convenient to you? Clean install or upgrade? I can do both, without problems, I believe.

If you especially want a test on a clean installation, would be very nice if you can publish a minirootfs using the top level of October 20.

----------------------------------

Also, I have a suggestion for when you release 14.1.

Slackware comes to the style where the recommended installation is the full, then I think at a solution in such megarootfs, a tarball containing the full Slackware ARM installation, would be excellent.

The point is, today, a 16GB SD card, capable of supporting the entire installation, it is possible to buy at an affordable price. Also, as I do, it is possible to use the SD card to boot a (Slackware ARM) Linux installation on a external USB harddrive, where you have no limitations of partition size, i.e with my WM8850 netbook installation, I use an USB harddrive hosted 40GB partition.

As a potential user Slackware ARM is also a Slackware(64) user, the stage of obtaining a complete ARM operating system using a host x86(_64) is much simplified. Simply, he has to extract the tarball in the right partition. And, of course, to configure the right kernel and its boot.

I would like to find bigger hardware, like something server grade, that can run this.

Sure, there you have to go:

http://www.calxeda.com/

But, yeah!, at that level you'll become very interested also by AlienBOB's work... ;)

I am happy that you are bright enough to enjoy just one of them.


A clean install.

The officially supported devices all come with the installer, from which you can choose a 'Full' installation.
The miniroot was primarily for myself to aide the first steps of supporting devices, but people can and do whatever they want with it. The authors of 'Community supported devices' can and do provide large archives of copies of SD cards.

I'll be more than happy to do some testing on the Raspberry Pi. :)

I think what you'd have to do is use the existing Slackware 14.0 Raspberry Pi installer (assuming you used the Slackware installer) to install the latest batch of -current. If you were using one of the pre-built images, we'd need its author to make a new one; or you could upgrade all of the packages but this would be a manual process. However, I haven't gone through the upgrade documentation yet, so I'm not sure what this would look like.

I'm using Dave Spencer's installer via rpi.fatdog.eu - the best guide available for installing Slackware ARM on a Raspberry Pi. (if I may say so myself) :D

Cheers Stuart. Looking forward to Slackware ARM 14.1 very much.

So I clean installed Slackware ARM (indeed, RC3, sorry, but bussy at job) in my ARM netbooks.

This version works great, both in under WM8850 and WM8650.

Under WM8650 (with custom kernel at 2.6.32), I used, as usual, XFCE, because I have only 256MB RAM.

Under WM8850 netbook (running custom kernel at 3.0.8), I also used, as usual, KDE, having 1GB RAM.

I have noticed that KDE behave better about the famous whale bug "plasma buttons are unclickable". This time, the taskbar is functional, plasma configuration is also functional, but the System Tray and NetworkManager applet still suffering from this disease.

As expected, under Slackware ARM 14.1 we have just ONE web browser disponible: Konqueror, offered by the KDE 4.10.5. But I compiled and installed also his friend Rekonq.

As a suggestion, given that KDE is the default DE of Slackware ARM 14.1, you should make efforts to fix this disgusting whale bug which pollute the Plasma...

And, no, isn't a kernel problem, tested even with the kernel.org's shipped 3.11, on both netbooks. It's something wrong on Plasma with KDE under ARM.

PS. I attached 2 screenshots of Slackware ARM 14.1's KDE, with system native resolution of 1024x600, on my WM8850 netbook... ;)

Yes - it's a pity about the lack of browsers, but Firefox and the others simply don't build or run on ARMv5 hardware. From what I can tell, Debian have it working with their 'iceweasel' rebrand, but I haven't been able to determine what they have changed in order to make it work.

It's not the default - it's an option, but not one I have ever recommended. I thought all of the installation documents recommend using Windowmaker, but it seems it's just the 'Versatile' document. Thanks for pointing that out - I've updated the other INSTALL_* docs.

Thanks for the feedback. If you find a patch for it, let me know.

How about an last minute integration (on /extra ?) of Rekonq? You have a feel of Chrome on top of KDE and QtWebKit... ;)

Thinking that KDE offer The Only Web-Browser, that suggest that KDE is the default DE, if you want an minimal web-browsing & Co... :)


Well, I do not have a solution... Even the Grand Houses like OpenSuSE, who are based massively on KDE, do not have a reliable solution for that.

Maybe KDE-4.11 will have an better comportment under glorious ARM platform? Will be interesting to see an KDE tree, AlienBOB's like, for KDE on ARM... :rolleyes:

There's no time for that. Anyway, Firefox exists if you read the changelog - you will find out where it is :-)

I'd rather spend time figuring out how to get Firefox working on ARMv5 again and add it into /patches after the release.

I'm not really sure what that means, but if the big distributions haven't fixed it then it's most likely not going to be. There have been many fixes for KDE and QT in Debian over the years which I've applied to Slackware, but I didn't see any plasma related ones for this KDE release.

How did you manage to boot slackware on the WM8850 btw? How did you create the boot.scr/boot.cmd files -- I've looked all over but can't find out exactly what or how to make these files at all let alone for ARM SW 14.1 . Also do you still need to use 2 partitions (eg FAT for booting and then EXT3 for the slackware filesystem)?

ljones