Hi guys,

I've coded a fairly simple Python script that converts a USB mouse into a phase quadrature signal, by reading /dev/input/mouse0, using raspberry pi/Rabain Stretch.
I need this to run headless and I am having trouble making it work without a monitor connected. I was hoping to just have this as a standalone converter and not connected to a monitor.

I've tried forcing hot plug and screen resolutions in the config file, also tried using VNC to emulate a desktop, tried using a HDMI screen emulator (headless ghost) with no joy. I just tried Xvfb but im not sure if I was launching it right, I just put it in rc.local.
Im still thinking its to do with the X server somewhere but is there something else I'm missing?
I'm beginning to think this may not be possible.

Cheers,
Caleb.

Have you looked at Xvfb?

I did but being new to this sort of deeper linux stuff I couldn't get it working

opening a new thread will not help. This is exactly the same issue as your other one. I told you I can run X without problem on my RPi even when there was no HDMI connected. I do not know what is your problem, but stating "nothing happened" and "I couldn't get it working" will not help too.
Please tell us exactly what did you try, what's happened. And what did you find in your log files. http://www.catb.org/esr/faqs/smart-q...html#beprecise

Sorry for the new thread, it's been a busy day and I couldn't find my old thread.

My problem is the mouse will only read when there is a monitor of some kind connected. I have tried changing the /boot/config.txt options forcing HDMI and forcing resolutions etc, I've tried installing GPM and Xvfb none of which seem to do anything no matter what tutorials I follow.
I have a pi that takes a USB input reads the data in python from /input/dev/mouse0 and outputs it via the GPIO of the pi. The outputs go into a TXB0108 logic shifter and then into a 74HC14 schmitt trigger and from that a 15pin DSUB into my device.

The log files all look pretty standard, nothing really seems out of place but as I said I'm new to linux and programming in the linux environment so I'm not sure what I am looking for in there, system boots finds mouse assigns it to an /input/dev file and that is about all that seems useful to me.
I have tried the Headless Ghost display emulator too, the Pi see's it as a device if I use the tvservice but still does not allow the output via GPIO

All I figured out today is the Pi needs some sort of monitor, whether it be HDMI, or through a converter (HDMI to VGA etc) what is interesting though is that a monitor with display port connected and the HDMI from the Pi but no power will allow the output of the mouse data...
I also set the pi back to factory defaults and went back through the process of changing the config file and it still presents the same problem.
I have scoured the internet for the same issue but it seems that no one else needs to process mouse data without a screen attached so there is pretty much no information on this topic.

It's possible that the Pi is not the right device for this application I just can't figure out why its doing what its doing, when a monitor is connected it works perfectly fine.

You can find your posts/threads by clicking on your username and picking the find other posts.

Thank you onebuck, I also realise now it makes me look pretty stupid...
Would you like to remove one of my duplicate posts?