Yeraze's Domain 3.0

This week at work I’ve been lucky enough to get a new project.  I’ve been attempting to get a Nintendo Wiimote to work with a Linux system so that we can use it as the new input device for our Renderwall.  I was given (temporarily) a Laptop with RedHat Enterprise Linux 4 (OId, I know) with full root priviledges (but no network access) to work on.

I got a DLink DBT-120 for the Bluetooth communication, and an el-cheapo wireless sensor bar.  Plugging in the DBT-120 worked magically without any intervention from me (Linux hardware support has come a looong way).  I pretty easily got the ‘hcitool scan’ to show the Nintendo Wiimote.  Next step was to actually compile something usable for it.

I finally settled on CWiid (At http://abstrakraft.org/cwiid/).  It has a good selection of demos and an API.  To get it to compile, I did have to upgrade Flex (compiled from source) and install the bluez-libs-devel RPM to get the bluetooth headers.  With that in place, everything works just great!

As a final feather in my cap, I setup wminput.  it’s a simple daemon that will let the Wiimote inputs emulate (via uinput) a Mouse & Keyboard, so I was able to use it to interact with our openGL demos without any code changes.  It’s all pretty slick and pretty easy to use.

So, where to from here?  Well, I’m going to build a simple GLUT-type wrapper to work with the Cwiid API, so that we can get low-level access to the LED’s, battery information, and tracking data.  With that, I should be able to pretty easily gather a set of demos that we can use to show visitors!  I’ll post back more as I get more stuff working!
[tag:wiimote][tag:linux][tag:programming][tag:cwiid]

I’ve fallen a bit behind on posting, so I’m gonna conglomerate a few together into quickies for what few viewers remain.     

	Laura & I went to see Iron Man on opening weekend.  Great film, two thumbs up.  I had my doubts whether Robert Downy Jr could pull off Tony Stark, but he did a fantastic job.  The Special Effects are top-notch as well.  Definately a must-see.
	I picked up Super Smash Brothers Brawl for the Wii a few weeks ago, and I’ve been thoroughly enjoying that. I’ve beaten the single-player mode "The Subspace Emissary", and I’m working my way through the various characters in Classic mode.  Tons of stuff to do and unlock in the game, every time I play it I see something new.  Great addon for the wii.
	Season 4 of Dr Who, the final season of Battlestar Galactica, and the new show "The Sarah Jane Adventures" have all begun airing on the SciFi channel.  I’m a little disappointed they picked Sarah Jane over Torchwood, but glad to see that they’re still dealing with BBC.  Hopefully, Torchwood will replace Dr Who after this season ends.  So now I keep my MythTV busy on Friday Nights.

[tag:ironman][tag:drwho][tag:ssbb][tag:wii][tag:movie]

Over the last several months I’ve heard more and more rumblings of "Twitter" and just how fantastic it is.  I’ve dug around it a bit before and simply never seen the appeal.  Well, I finally decided to bite the bullet and I’ve been using it for a few weeks now.

Well, it’s fun.  I’m still not particularly convinced it’s useful or even a good idea, but it is fun.  I use the IM interface almost exclusively, since I run meebo at work and it’s a great way to see the tweets go by.  So, if you’re bored and in search of a new friend for your twitter login, Add me.  I’ve added the stuff at the top of the blog to show my most current "Tweet", so you can click on that to see me.
[tag:twitter][tag:web2.0]