Ubuntu Netbook Remix
This is a placeholder page, which will document the process for installing the Ubuntu Netbook Remix graphical interface on top of the UbuntuChroot. The eventual goal is to automate this into an installable package as well. For more information or assistance, you can /msg Cerealklr in #webos-internals or reach me by email at cerealklr<ignore.everything.in.the.arrow.brackets.if.you're.human>@gmail.com.
Installation Process
Note: This is incomplete and almost entirely untested. Do not attempt this. I can almost guarantee your device will spontaneously combust if you do.
1. Enter Ubuntu chroot.
2. Run the commands under "Upstart jobs cannot be run in a chroot" at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/KarmicKoala/ReleaseNotes
3. run "sudo apt-get install ubuntu-netbook"
4. Confirm all prompts and accept the defaults for all configuration (unless you know what you are doing).
5. Paste the contents of the latest snapshot from http://git.balabit.hu/?p=gyp/upstart-dummy.git;a=summary into your /sbin folder, inside the chroot. NOTE: failure to do this while within the chroot will probably necessitate a doctoring, at minimum.
6. once this is done, execute the following commands:
- sudo /etc/init.d/rcS start
- sudo /etc/init.d/rc 2 start
7. Unfortunately, the upstart replacement can't handle dbus by default, so you need to create your own script to do so. In order to remedy this, we'll slightly modify the command it normally would have run, without messing with the faux upstart.
- touch start-dbus.sh
- chmod +x start-dbus.sh
- echo "start-stop-daemon --start --pidfile /var/run/upstart-dummy-pids/dbus.pid --exec /bin/dbus-daemon -- --system --fork --activation=upstart" >> start-dbus.sh
8. Execute your new script with "sudo ./start-dbus.sh"
9. You should not be ready to create a new gnome-session manually. To do so, type "sudo gnome-session" The session will start up, reducing the terminal you were typing it to a window. Do NOT close that window, or it will kill the session! I cannot predict what will happen then. Everything ever everywhere might spontaneously corrupt. Just don't do it. In order to exit, you can type ctrl-C in the window first, and then close the card. If you want to go back to using that terminal, it is recommended that you maximize it first, or it will remain wherever the window had been before closing the session.
Future Work
As shown here, https://wiki.ubuntu.com/NattyNarwhal/TechnicalOverviewUpstart, Upstart 0.9 and newer support children chroots. If we can ugprade Upstart on WebOS to 0.9.x or later, few to none of the hackarounds will be necessary, and the implementation will likely be less buggy.
Resources
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/KarmicKoala/ReleaseNotes
http://gyp.blogs.balabit.com/2011/01/using-upstart-in-a-chroot
http://git.balabit.hu/?p=gyp/upstart-dummy.git;a=summary
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/NattyNarwhal/TechnicalOverviewUpstart
While I've done the work of assembling bits and pieces, this could never have been accomplished without valuable input from, in no particular order, dtzWill, PatrickC, Pdunny, dwc-, and a few other people i'm too tired to think to credit.