Why does this work?

[hafaphoto]

Ok, up front, I use Linux for folding borgs, but beyond installing Linux, I am lost as heck. I have had a hard time in the past getting the folding program running on a Linux computer. I have tried stuff with chmod, all kinds of guides. I can't make it work!

But I found a way to make it work in Fedora core 5 and Ubuntu 5.1. I download the client, make a folder in home, put it there, give it all the permissions possible, and then click on the .exe file. And it works. I have 2 Linux computers folding as I type this. The only thing I type is the folder name in my home folder, and my name and team number.

Can any of you Linux experts tell me why I can just use a mouse to install a program? Or is Linux taking the next step...

Just curious. And thanks for your time.

E

 

[MRD]

Personally, I can never get anything to install in Fedora... I hate rpm distros for installing software. Ubuntu should be easy though, just apt-get install it then add it to your default run level and it should start when you start up the pc. How are you trying to start it up? Are you trying to manually start it or add it to your default run level?

In Gentoo, my installation process goes like this:

emerge foldingathome
rc-update add foldingathome default

I need to make sure to run the script in the /opt/folding directory once to give it my user name and such.

 

[hafaphoto]

Personally, I can never get anything to install in Fedora... I hate rpm distros for installing software. Ubuntu should be easy though, just apt-get install it then add it to your default run level and it should start when you start up the pc. How are you trying to start it up? Are you trying to manually start it or add it to your default run level?

In Gentoo, my installation process goes like this:

emerge foldingathome
rc-update add foldingathome default

I need to make sure to run the script in the /opt/folding directory once to give it my user name and such.

When I restart the computer, I just go to the Home folder and right click on it and open/run it. It works, I do not know how.

E

 

[MRD]

In Linux, when your PC starts, it goes through a series of what are called run levels, in order. It starts the programs in the lowest run level first, then moves up from there. You want to add the folding program to your default run level.

Once you've installed the folding program, the correct way to make it automatically run all the time in the background is to add it to your default run level. In gentoo this is done with rc-update. Ubuntu uses the old System V run level setup (which I hate and can never remember how to use). There are a few programs that will graphically administer this for you though. However, I don't really use Ubuntu, so I'm not sure how to do this off the top of my head, but maybe someone else on these forums can give more details. If not, google for a guide or post on the Ubuntu forums on how to add foldingathome to your default runlevel. This will make it start automatically.

Fedora also has run levels (it's a general Linux thing). I know even less about how Red Hat does it though. Sorry I'm not more help, but these aren't really the distros I'm most familiar with. If it were Gentoo, I could give you precise instructions. Probably someone on these forums can tell you though, Ubuntu is popular around here.

 

[Misfit138]

In Linux, when your PC starts, it goes through a series of what are called run levels, in order. It starts the programs in the lowest run level first, then moves up from there. You want to add the folding program to your default run level.

Once you've installed the folding program, the correct way to make it automatically run all the time in the background is to add it to your default run level. In gentoo this is done with rc-update. Ubuntu uses the old System V run level setup (which I hate and can never remember how to use). There are a few programs that will graphically administer this for you though. However, I don't really use Ubuntu, so I'm not sure how to do this off the top of my head, but maybe someone else on these forums can give more details. If not, google for a guide or post on the Ubuntu forums on how to add foldingathome to your default runlevel. This will make it start automatically.

Fedora also has run levels (it's a general Linux thing). I know even less about how Red Hat does it though. Sorry I'm not more help, but these aren't really the distros I'm most familiar with. If it were Gentoo, I could give you precise instructions. Probably someone on these forums can tell you though, Ubuntu is popular around here.

Couldn't he just make a simple shell script and simlink it to the gnome equivalent of ~/.kde/Autostart?
something like
#!/bin/bash
fah
and then
ln -s /path/to/fah ~/.kde/Autostart fah
(?)

 

[hafaphoto]

Thanks for the info. I am more than happy with it the way it is. They are borgs, they rarely restart. I am just curious how I got folding working by just clicking a mouse!

I choose Linux for the borgs because, well, I am not going to buy XP for a borg, Linux is free, but alien to me. The Linux machines are for me to try to learn a little, and so they can fold.

thanks.

E

 

[Misfit138]

Well, you are running the client when you (double)click on it, which is just a simple exe, IINM. Once you chmod it, it should run no problem.

 

[hafaphoto]

Misfit138 you just posted stuff I cannot understand. Scripts, chmod, aptget, I understand none of those things. I want to learn, but I think that will be a long drawn out process.

I got Linux folding by clicking with the mouse. How I do not know. But They are folding. I never chmod'd it. I just clicked with the mouse.

E

 

[MRD]

Well, clicking runs a program, that should be self-explanatory. Not sure which part you aren't understanding.

 

[Zerileous]

Ok, hopefully this stuff is on your level hafaphoto (no insult intended, I just learned this stuff last week).

Every file in linux has certain permissions. These control which users can read, write, or execute the file. Extensions mean little to nothing in the linux world, at least as far as the OS is concerned.

Chmod is the command line program to change permissions. I am not sure what you mean by "give it all the permissions possible" because as far as I am aware its the only way to change them. Though I wouldn't be surprised to see others.

By running chmod +x on the folding file, you give it executable permissions (thats the +x part, the chmod part calls the program and the filename tells it which file to modify).

Double clicking an executable file in linux will run it. Just like Windows, most linux distros have a system that knows how to run a file when double clicked. (IE, text will open in a text editor...etc)

(To the more experienced linux users)There are probably some technical errors in that explanation, so please correct them if you catch any.

 

[AlabamaCajun]

When you downloaded the folding.tgz it is just a zip/compressed file just as in winzip/compressed folder. The permissions are already set and stored in the compressed file. You simply opened the compressed folder and extracted it to your home directly (similar to the MyDocuments directory in Windoze).

Next step, why does it work without an install? The program is self contained in one exe and uses standard linux IO and standard libraries that the system set paths to when it loaded. Shell and script files that MistFit spoke of are called at start up. These are like the bat files in Windows. So in this case all you have to do is run the program from a console as I do or double-click it forcing Gnome your windowing desktop to run a console just like CMD.EXE does for DOS programs. Once F@H starts, it creates all the config files with your ID and Team, settings and proxies (if needed) and stores them in a config file. Now when you double click on F@H it reads the config and starts folding. F@H and the SMP version will run on a non windowing Linux also but you have to use dos like commands to start it or write a batch/script to run it.

Last; Permissions. Linux uses a 3 tier permission system such as 751 or 777. These are bit level flags attached to the disk file header telling the os who can do what with a file. The first number if you the owner and what you can do to the file but you as wner always have absolute privilege to change these bits. The second number is a groub like a work group that you can set users up in. You may want people in your group to read and execute the files in your folder but not write, this gives them controlled access to your files or denies them. The last is for anyone that can log in to the system via keyboard or internet. Don't be alarmed about the internet at this time. When you install the firewall was set be default to block the internet to all files except what browsers, email and download programs need to function.

That should answer most of the inner questions for now.

 

[Zerix01]

Honestly I've never had luck getting any Linux binary to run from the file manager unless it had a program set in KDE for it (like .deb files associated with KPackage Manager).

For F@H from a console (in the directory where F@H is located) I set permissions 'chmod 755 FAH504-Linux.exe' then to run it I type './FAH504-Linux.exe'. The ./ will run any Linux binary files which are shown in green when you use 'ls' ('ls --color' maybe needed). On my distro (Freespire 1.0) all binaries that I download are shown as gray until I set the permissions even as root.

Another thought as to why it may not run in some distros. You may need to set the file to run in console, right click and look through the file's properties.

Here are a few basic commands to help you through the command prompt:

cd - will Change Directory, used as 'cd folder' or 'cd folder/subfolder' or if you are in lets say root and you want to go to your F@H folder in your user folder then 'cd /home/your*user*name/FAH'

cd .. - will go back one directory

ls - list folder contents, also add --color if you need color (some distros set this by default)

cp - will copy file, 'cp file to-location'

rm - remove file, becareful, this may not prompt you to confirm what you are doing.

mv - move file, use same as copy.

 

[Misfit138]

I just read your original post, and I think I was overthinking this whole thing..
AlabamCajun seems to have answered what you were asking in the first place.
You downloaded a simple exe, and clicking on it runs it. The 5.04 Linux f@H client isn't tarred (compressed) or anything, if you got it from the stanford download page, so it is ready to run.
Sorry for the misunderstanding on my part, I think I responded more to MRD's post than yours.

 

[hafaphoto]

Thanks for the info, interesting reading. Me and the penguin just don't communicate very well.

E

 

[MRD]

You and Tux just need to spend more time getting to know each other.

 

[asusradeon]

Personally, I can never get anything to install in Fedora... I hate rpm distros for installing software.

I have exactly the same problems with RPMs, you run the RPM and when its finished it gives you no infomation telling you how to start the application youve just installed, where its been installed to or nothing. However i've found that Yum adds the icons straight into the menu. I also like compile applications from source as it was a big learning chance for me to see how it was done. Really helped when i first started using linux.