Tiny Core Linux
Tiny Core Base => TCB Q&A Forum => Topic started by: AMA3 on January 13, 2025, 10:18:15 PM
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Howdy! Thank you for creating Tiny Core Linux! I have been perusing the docs to try to figure out if Tiny Core is right for my need, but honestly I am overwhelmed and could just use some good advice.
I have a 15-year old notebook w/Intel Atom N455 (1.66GHz, 512Kb cache), 1GB DD3 memory and a 250GB HDD. I want to use it to open a local HTML file that uses JS APIs to sync a treadmill (using Bluetooth FTMS) with a locally-stored <video> displayed in the browser, so that the video speed is in sync with the treadmill speed and the treadmill inclination corresponds to the changing slope of the route shown in the video. I only need the OS to open a fairly-recent version of Firefox or Chromium (with Bluetooth and <video> support) full-screen.
I can handle all of the HTML/JS programming, I only need advice IRT the minimum Linux installation that will make this work as flawlessly as possible. Right now, I am using LinuxMint 18.3 w/MATE 1.18, and it can't keep up with basic video playback using VLC media player: I have to divide the video into 4 files and play them in a playlist, which is still wonky and doesn't allow me to use the browser Bluetooth API to sync the video speed & treadmill inclination.
I just need minimal Linux with as little overhead as possible--not even Networking (except Bluetooth)--with the HTML/MP4/JS/CSS installed on the hard drive, and the ability to launch the browser upon startup or login.
Is Tiny Core the right solution?
If yes, how should I go about creating the configuration I need? From what I was able to make sense of, Tiny Core only wants to run from a USB or Network without touching the hard drive. Can't I just install Tiny Core onto the hard drive with the files I need? And can I install it with nothing except the few necessary web files, and enough GUI for the browser to run with the video & Bluetooth?
If Tiny Core is *not* the right solution, can anyone recommend an alternative?
I'm OK with command line and basic Linux administration (hard to believe I was a Unix sys admin 25 years ago, when admin was a much simpler process!). I have a hard time wrapping my head around all of the many layers of complexity that have been added since then! :P
Thank you, in advance, for any advice that you can provide me!
Andrew
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Hi AMA3
Welcome to the forum.
... From what I was able to make sense of, Tiny Core only wants to run from a USB or Network without touching the hard drive. ...
I'm not sure where you got that from. Tinycore can be installed to a hard drive.
Maybe reading this book will give you a better handle on things:
http://tinycorelinux.net/corebook.pdf
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I don't believe your computer is able to play your video in any browser under any OS, it's simply too slow, based on your standalone player experience. The overhead of a browser vs a standalone player is great.
If you really must use that computer, you'd have to go lower level programming, as well as re-encode that video in a lighter codec.
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mostly for future thread visitors regarding bluetooth ftms:
https://www.xterrafitness.com/blog/bluetooth-apps/
https://www.reddit.com/r/treadmills/comments/1cbhemd/mobile_app_to_track_under_desk_treadmill_walks/
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Thanks for your responses, folks. After about 24 active hours I finally got TC installed on the hard drive; I'll see what I can accomplish (if anything) from here.
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Hi, AMA3.
I have an old laptop.
Model: ASUS A8J, manufactured in 2007, screen resolution 1280X800, upgraded to 2G RAM, the CPU is Core2 T5200.
Running TC15 32-bit (can run 64-bit), connect to the internet via the onboard wifi.
firefox-ERS downloaded from the repo, software rendered.
720p is playable, but it stutters.
480p has some hiccups.
360p is smooth.
I'd say it is fairly usable.
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720p is playable, but it stutters.
480p has some hiccups.
360p is smooth.
I discovered that, if I play youtube video with "picture in picture" mode in Vivaldi, it render much faster. Firefox don't have this pip mode.
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with older, less-capable hardware it is unnecessary to download the higher-resolution versions of videos so i have been using:
python3 yt-dlp -S "res:360,fps" _video_url_here_
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Hi neonix
... Firefox don't have this pip mode.
If you click on Edit->Settings
Then scroll down to Browsing
It lists this:
Enable picture-in-picture video controlswith this link:
https://support.mozilla.org/1/firefox/115.4.0/Linux/en-US/picture-in-picture