Linux art project

[flood]

Trying to search for answers on the internet I have found this Linux forum.
I'm at the start of a new art project that not only involves visuals but also IT technology.

It's difficult for me to try to find the right people that can guide me thru this project or just give me an opinion about the feasibility of this project.

I'm trying to find somebody with a lot of Linux programming skills that at the start of this project can just tell me if this type of programming can be done in Linux or not and if it's difficult to do or not.

If you are interested to find out what i'm trying to achieve and to give me your opinion about it then I can send you an email/PM with my goals for this project.

Thanks for your interest

[Rich]

Hi flood
Posting what it is you are trying to achieve will ensure the largest number of eyeballs will see it and elicit the best responses. You
don't have to disclose all the details, just the big picture. This tends to be an open forum so that approach would work best, otherwise
we're just guessing. OK, I'll guess first. You want to adapt  LinuxCNC  to do oil paintings or control a LASER light show.

[Pats]

...OK, I'll guess first. You want to adapt  LinuxCNC  to do oil paintings or control a LASER light show.

... Since its related to Arts, I think , it can be something like Robots Opera or a MJ's classic dance on a Musical Fountain , controlled by Tinycore !
... Curiously waiting for OP's response ! Best Luck !

[flood]

Thanks Pats and Rich for the reply.
The reason that I didn't talk about it in detail in my first post is that i didn't want to "spam" the forum in any way with my art project. It's at the early stage where i'm trying to see if i can make my idea come to life or not. But it seems that you don't mind me giving more details on the forum so i'll try to explain myself a little bit more.

I'm a graphics designer and 3D artist that always had big interest in technology. I'm trying to combine both in my upcoming project. I'm not a programmer but know my way around computers.

In this post i'll try to explain the technical/linux part of the project.


The goal:

The goal is to have a very small computer (Stick PC / mini PC) run a very large mp4 movie (but it will be split up in pieces) that will be stored onto the stick PC (lokal storage or microSD card). This small PC is plugged into a TV screen thru HDMI.
This movie needs to run continuously on the same PC for 100 years. If the PC stops working the movie is lost and destroyed.
The movie can never be accessed by trying to get into the PC and trying to copy/download the movie data onto another PC. Encryption should be used to achieve this. The only way to see the movie is by only viewing it thru this PC that may never be shut down.

Linux

Although i have never really used Linux myself, this type of OS is prefered by me because it is highly customisable and probably the only OS that can be used to try to achieve this.

For this project, we could use a command line only linux because the only thing it needs to do is to play the movie. No other software then a MP4 player that is able to use a playlist is
needed.(ideally it should be able to run a scripted playlist so that I can randomize certain parts of the movies and also start certain sequences at certain times.

When everything is set up, and the Stick PC/ Mini PC is booted, access to the Linux and it’s files should not be possible any more.


Summary - Expectations :

- Linux (command line only preferred) OS
- The system can never be accessed or altered after setup and after the movie starts to run. This means that the system must be able to run all by itself without any need for a user.
- The movie (which will be created, it’s not a movie that already exists) is not one huge MP4 file but rather different pieces of MP4 files that need to run in a certain way.
- The PC can never be shut down and will need to run continuously for 100 years. (battery backup will be provided)
-   All files should be encrypted and can’t be accessed or hacked.
-   When the computer is being shut down (because of damage or by loss of power) everything is lost, the PC will not run anymore and none of the files will be accessible any more.
-   The PC must be able to be unplugged from one screen and plugged into another without it shutting down or the need to interact with the PC when plugged into (via HDMI) another TV. Best Resolution for the new TV screen should be set automatically. This to avoid that when the TV breaks down the project is lost. I only want one possible point of failure and that is the PC not the TV.




As mentioned, this is at it's early stages, i'm making the storyboards at the moment for the movie. But I want to know if what i'm trying to do should be possible to make and how difficult would this be? (When i'm further into the project i intend to hire a linux programmer.)

Any remarks are more then welcome.

[Rich]

Hi flood

...
-   All files should be encrypted and can’t be accessed or hacked.
-   When the computer is being shut down (because of damage or by loss of power) everything is lost, the PC will not run anymore and none of the files will be accessible any more. ...

I'll address these 2 points together since they seem to converge on a common theme, controlling the content. I'll try to stick to
the broad strokes here.
1. For storage, a Solid State Disk might be your best bet for longevity.
2. Encryption could be done at the disk level or file level.
3. When first booted, you would have to type in the code for decrypting the files. Key disappears upon power failure since it's in RAM.
4. Software disables keyboard port after decryption code is entered.
5. Decryption code could be used to make the drive accessible or to decrypt the video files as required.

[flood]

Hi flood

...
-   All files should be encrypted and can’t be accessed or hacked.
-   When the computer is being shut down (because of damage or by loss of power) everything is lost, the PC will not run anymore and none of the files will be accessible any more. ...

I'll address these 2 points together since they seem to converge on a common theme, controlling the content. I'll try to stick to
the broad strokes here.
1. For storage, a Solid State Disk might be your best bet for longevity.
2. Encryption could be done at the disk level or file level.
3. When first booted, you would have to type in the code for decrypting the files. Key disappears upon power failure since it's in RAM.
4. Software disables keyboard port after decryption code is entered.
5. Decryption code could be used to make the drive accessible or to decrypt the video files as required.

Yes, this type of "security" is something that i'm looking for.

How easy is it to set up something like that. I have no idea if it is easy or not for a programmer to alter Linux in such a way. I'm willing to pay somebody to do this but don't know what kind of budget i would need.

[Rich]

Hi flood
Something like  cryptsetup  might work for you:
http://tinycorelinux.net/9.x/x86/tcz/cryptsetup.tcz.info
Encrypting at the partition level probably makes the most sense, i.e. the partition containing the video files is inaccessible until
the key is entered. You probably need a separate partition to boot from. I'm sure there are more knowledgeable members on
the forum when it comes to disk encryption. Maybe one of them will chime in.

Disabling the keyboard could be as simple as unplugging it and gluing the port shut with some epoxy. No code required.

[Pats]

... Posted by flood :
... Yes, this type of "security" is something that i'm looking for...

.. Hope your project is not anti-social due to so much secrecy and security features , and you are not attracting attention of global spy and security agencies. ... Just kidding !

... Many years back ,  I had helped an Engg student with head - sector - tracks and BIOS time stamp based encryption algo to encrypt a 2GB HDD , which none was able to decrypt without an unique key. The key was programmed to expire after 60Hrs.
 ... Now-a-days one can google for many decent Disk level encryption algos ready-made on net , in many languages like C , C++, Assembly etc.

 I think , there may be some projects available on net which emits some radio wave signals at perticular intervals thru some hardware gadgets and helpful in space technology.
... Some IoThings remote controlled projects are already available in technology forums. Pl google for it. Final year Students and Teachers in Tech Institutes  in your local area / city can be your best bet for quick and practical help to achieve your goal within your budget.

...Best Wishes , if the project is of any help to public in general and yourself in perticular ! ..

[curaga]

Disabling usb ports is pretty easy, it was just writing a value to some file in /sys IIRC. Being art, gluing the ports shut would look nice in addition to the software lockout.