Disclaimer: If you are not comfortable with the command line, do not try this.

If you have installed an app from the Ovi Store web portal, you would have noticed that the process is not fast. Clicking the Download link opens the Application-Manager which takes anywhere from 30-40 seconds to prepare the system before actually starting the download. For those who don’t like to wait, the apt-get command is a great alternative to speed up things and also allow installing multiple apps (at least the ones that are free) in one go.

Prerequisites

There are two things required before starting the download. Setting up the Ovi Repo and creating an Archive folder. You need to do this only once.

Ovi Repo

If you have never used the Ovi Store, you would need to have the repo installed first. Downloading an app from the store automatically adds the repo the first time but you need an Ovi account. So if you want the apps but don’t like signing in, you can add the repo manually:
Name: Ovi
Web: https://downloads.maemo.nokia.com/fremantle/ovi/
Dist: ./

Archive Folder:

In order to save space on the root partition, create a download directory for the downloaded packages. Instructions here

Installation

For installation, all you need is the application’s package name. The apt-cache command can be used to find it. The following command will search and list all packages with the word ‘offscr’ in it:

# apt-cache search offscr

This will display the 31 nifty apps by Offscr currently available. This also searches descriptions.

Next, install the desired package using apt-get (as root of course):

# apt-get -o dir::cache=/home/user/MyDocs/apt-archive-cache install  offscr-discs  offscr-backgammon  offscr-watch

This will start the installation process for all 3 apps which will take about the same time it takes for one install from the website. Enjoy!

Latest Mobile Phones 2010

If you connect the N900 to a computer via USB frequently, you will sooner or later encounter this error where the N900 will refuse to be used as external media.

This is because a program (or programs) is accessing files in the /home/user/MyDocs folder. To fix the problem, the program(s) in question needs to be found and stopped. To find the program(s), open a root terminal and type

 lsof | grep MyDocs

This will display the programs accessing the MyDocs folder something similar to this:

Nokia-N900-42-11:~# lsof | grep MyDocs
sh        3474       user  cwd    DIR      179,1    65536       4326 /home/user/MyDocs/tmp

The second column displays the process-ID of the program (in RED above). Now, terminate the program with this command (repeat for multiple programs):

kill 3474

Now, run the lsof command again (press UP arrow to go back) and make sure the program is not displayed. If it is still running, execute this:

kill -9 3474

Reconnect the USB cable and you should now be able to use the N900 as external media.

This tutorial will show you how to add an icon to the topx shortcut in Part 1.

1. Find/create a PNG image of dimension 48×48. (google this)
2. Name the file topx.png
3. Save file to /usr/share/icons/hicolor/48×48/hildon/ (you will need root access)
4. Modify the topx.desktop file to include the following line. The right side should be the name of file without the .png

Icon=topx

The topx.desktop now looks like this:
[Desktop Entry]
Encoding=UTF-8
Version=0.1
Type=Application
Terminal=true
Name=topx
Exec=/usr/bin/osso-xterm top
Icon=topx
X-Osso-Type=application/x-executable

Save topx.desktop and reboot to see the icon for the shortcut in the Application Menu. If the icon does not show up, install a couple of apps from the Application Manager. This should update the icon-cache and display it.

On the N900, it is possible to run a terminal program like ‘top’ directly from the Desktop/Shortcut. The following example creates a shortcut to launch the system monitior program ‘top’.

1. Use a text-editor like vi or Leafpad to create a file with the following text:

[Desktop Entry]
Encoding=UTF-8
Version=0.1
Type=Application
Terminal=true
Name=topx
Exec=/usr/bin/osso-xterm top
Icon=
X-Window-Icon=
X-HildonDesk-ShowInToolbar=true
X-Osso-Type=application/x-executable

2. Save the file as topx.desktop.

3. As root, copy the file to the ‘/usr/share/applications/hildon/’ directory. This will create an ugly blue application icon in the Application list called ‘topx’.

Launching ‘topx’ will execute ‘top’ directly in xterm. You may now put a shortcut on the desktop for quick access. The not-so-great part of this desktop-shortcut is that it displays the default icon.

Being able create a file-shortcut on the desktop is a standard feature of all desktop environments like XP, GNOME, KDE, OS X etc. Unfortunately, the N900’s desktop doesn’t allow putting any kind of link on the desktop except if its a bookmark. So if you like having quick access to certain files from the desktop, there is a workaround through the browser.

In the following example, I will create a shortcut to the agenda.pdf file. Open the file-system from the browser (see my previous post) and navigate to the folder of the file’s location.

Press and hold on the filename to bring up the menu. Select Add Bookmark. Give it a name and Save.

This will create a bookmak to the file. Now add the bookmark on the desktop.

Thats it. The file can be launched directly from the desktop.

Not so nice parts of this hack:
Web-browser launches, bookmark-folder inflates with the links, and the shortcuts on the desktop are deceptive without the thumbnail.

created using MaStory on the N900

The N900’s Web-Browser can be used to browse its entire file-system. To list the root directory, enter file:/// in the web-address field.

File-System on the N900 Web-Browser

If you are looking for the home directory, enter file:///home/user/MyDocs/

The N900 (and the Maemo platform) allows the user to, for lack of a better word, “turbo-charge” the Application Manager by opening up a variety of advanced features locked away by default. Enabling them requires taking the “Red-Pill” so to speak. you can always opt for the “Blue-Pill” but c’mon, you only live once.

So, to enable this mode, open the Application Manager and select Catalogs from the drop-down. This will show a list of catalogs

Tap “New” and type the word matrix in the ‘Web address’ field.

Now tap on the blurry region above the Catalogs window. This will bring up the “big choice”

Taking the Blue-Pill will put you back where you started. Taking the Red-Pill will unlock the new world and the Application Catalog will display new buttons like ‘Settings’ and ‘Install from File’

The Application Manager will now update if an internet-connection is available and display a whole lot more packages. These packages are not only useful for development purposes but also for advanced use.

NOTE: Just a word of caution. Enable this mode only if you feel comfortable with managing the advanced features. The chances of getting your phone bricked are high if you don’t know what you are doing. If you are willing to take the risk, good luck!