MouseCam Pups (V6 released 20th June 2013)

For talk and support relating specifically to Puppy derivatives
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Ted Dog
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#16 Post by Ted Dog »

Thanks, I can hopely talk a family member that mades TV programs into helping, she has lots of nice promo videos for a few car company websites.
But she only his two modes broadcast quality and effort ( days to weeks ) OR cell phone capture.

Its the nature of the audience, Early adopters are handcapped but the usefulness would be evident to those caregivers and family. Disabled people do not know this exist nor would it be worth the time to learn.
The file downloads get corrupted on the journey across the pond, same happens if the servers are located in the Asia rim.
Their has been large scale cyber-attacks against USA, I think this could be a side effect. Switzerland host should work fine in the European market.

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Ted Dog
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#17 Post by Ted Dog »

Also could be your code is solid and there is not much to discuss.
I got angry once as a programmer for a large project at a huge software house, in the lack of feedback I was getting from my group, then unit and the testers. We had time set aside for peer review, units watching over other units code for error, and a team of testers. Two full days were set aside for this process, correction time was planned in. I was twiddling my thumbs for hours a day, waiting for some feedback.
A had enough and marched in to the QA testing group and challenged the team leader. He laughed at me, my code caused him all sorts of problems that his boss had to be the one to assign my code to a tester. Code was so clean that the testing group fought over it, for an easy day, they used automated script testing and my code would spin for about three hours without causing a blip.
Of course it backfired one cycle, The final release QA master triggered a bug, that blew-up my code. My code testing was skipped that cycle due to many reasons. I'm chilling at my desk as was my habit the final hour of week. As the firestorm of cursing mixed with my name found me! He never heard of me, never made it to his code watch list. He thought I was new and did not know the system.
I pulled up my bug list and scrolled back months of no bugs to report. To which he left to go scream at the testing leadership. They accepted blame, while I fixed the bug (code in a shared library) I called the testing group to tell them I fix it, and they where able to salvage that milestone, on just my word and backing of my reputation on clean code.

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mikeslr
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Congradulations & Alternate Keyboard

#18 Post by mikeslr »

Hi ETP and All,
Revised: 6/29: See http://murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic. ... 825#710825

Congratulations on Mousecam pup. For many, hopefully most, it appears to be the best current solution to a difficult situation. Regretfully, I am currently unable to explore it for two reasons. The only webcam I have occasional access to is built into a Toshiba Satellite L775d which doesn't play well with Puppies. The Toshiba belongs to my wife, an only child, who never really became accustomed to sharing her toys.
Hopefully the attached desktop file may be of value to mousepup users on those occasions when they have to use an onscreen keyboard. As I understand it, the keyboard pet you've used is xvkbd. The attached is a keyboard layout which doesn't require –in fact currently works better without-- radar or NavBar. As indicated by the attached photo, it is designed as a spiral around a central space-key, with the most frequently used letters closest to that key and, whenever possible, letters frequently associated with those close to them. That arrangement should reduce mouse-cursor movement when typing to a minimum. Further efficiency might be achieved in two* ways, both through settings in Xvkbd's property menu. The first is Automatic Click, which provides:
“Set on/off of the automatic click feature and the delay before automatic click is activated. If this feature is set, xvkbd will work as if left mouse button is clicked when mouse pointer is moved on a button and stays long enough. You may want to set Jump Pointer? to OFF to avoid auto-repeating.
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XVkbd-Square.zip
Remove false zip ending, follow instructions in post
(2.89 KiB) Downloaded 589 times
Revised Square Keyboard.png
Revised Square Xvkbd Keyboard
(10.67 KiB) Downloaded 388 times
Last edited by mikeslr on Mon 01 Jul 2013, 00:06, edited 2 times in total.

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ETP
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RE: Alternate Keyboard

#19 Post by ETP »

Hi mikeslr,

Thanks for your alternate keyboard layout which makes a useful addition to the accessibility tools. I realise how much effort you have put into this aspect and it is good to see that you have achieved your goal. Despite the inclusion in MouseCam of Google voice search, dictation and the option for voice mail, there will inevitably still be a need to input text into fields.

When I first saw Will Best’s original post in the “Single Switch
Attachments
xbmc_kb (Medium).png
(155.98 KiB) Downloaded 719 times
Regards ETP
[url=http://tinyurl.com/pxzq8o9][img]https://s17.postimg.cc/tl19y14y7/You_Tube_signature80px.png[/img][/url]
[url=http://tinyurl.com/kennels2/]Kennels[/url]

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Ted Dog
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#20 Post by Ted Dog »

remotely nagged over nagged in person.... I know how I'd choose. :wink: That way I can do this :roll:

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mikeslr
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I'm not going to try to customize xbmc's keyboard

#21 Post by mikeslr »

Hi All,

Googling reveals that an xml file is used to define the layout of the the xbmc keyboard. It was suggested that that file can be customized using a text editor. I'll leave doing so to someone who knows what he or she is doing for two reasons. The first is that a quick examination of the xml file failed to reveal a section where the alphanumeric keys are easily apparent and modifiable. But more importantly, xbmc associates its keys with various actions of the applications it controls. http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=Keyboard
I have great confidence in my ability to create total chaos when fiddling with things whose ramifications I don't fully understand.
It makes more sense to use the xbmc keyboard, as it is, for the applications xbmc is specifically designed for, and to use an onscreen xvkbd keyboard for word-processing, text editing, spread-sheets, etc.: those activities for which xbmc wasn't designed.
So, if I was mistaken, and xvkbd hasn't been included in mousepup, perhaps including it in the ISO for easy installation --ala Slacko's initial handling of Frisbee-- might be considered.

mikesLr

musher0
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Re: MouseCam Pup v5 – Add Voice Mail.

#22 Post by musher0 »

ETP wrote:After a long and frustrating search, I finally seem to have struck gold in the form of Vocaroo. You will of course, require a working microphone plus headset or speakers. The webcam mike could possibly be used. To post the email link to the recording you do need to be logged into Gmail.

Easy Setup:

1: Visit the site and add it to your bookmarks bar.

http://www.vocaroo.com

That’s it finish !!!!!!

It is worth watching the following video (With audio) that describes its use:

http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/vocaroo1/

In actual fact it can be simplified even further.

Rather than clicking on the Email icon to the right of the Embed icon, click instead on the Gmail icon that I have circled in blue in the screenshot.
A Gmail compose window will then open with an attached hyperlink to the recording.
Select who you want to send it to and then send it. It gets better. You will note the download options but if you Cc the email to your own Gmail account or another of your mail accounts you can kill two birds with one stone.

It sure beats typing and is ideal for all the accessibility pups or indeed any pup.

Hello, ETP.

NIce find, this vocaroo! Thanks for sharing it!

Indeed, in many cases, for everyone, it's easier to dictate a message than to type it,
but we don't think of dictating, because we're pre-conditioned to type, so to speak.

Have a great day!

musher0
musher0
~~~~~~~~~~
"You want it darker? We kill the flame." (L. Cohen)

musher0
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#23 Post by musher0 »

Hi, ETP.

Hoping to get more people interested in this good and original Puppy, I just gave your MouseCam Pup a little push on the French side! :) http://murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic. ... 245#708245

Continue the good work!

musher0
musher0
~~~~~~~~~~
"You want it darker? We kill the flame." (L. Cohen)

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ETP
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#24 Post by ETP »

Hi mikeslr,
Just to clarify your point XVkbd is included in MouseCam Pup and is launched from the keyboard icon in Eviacam. Please see screen-shot which also shows the options I used.
Another alternative when text input into a field is required is to dictate what is needed and then copy and paste the dictated text into the field using the Eviacam click panel on the left hand side of the screen.

@ musher0,

Thanks for your interest and promotion. It is surprising how often unexpected universal treats such as Vocaroo come out of specialist projects.
Attachments
eviacam_xvkbd.png
(93.05 KiB) Downloaded 588 times
Regards ETP
[url=http://tinyurl.com/pxzq8o9][img]https://s17.postimg.cc/tl19y14y7/You_Tube_signature80px.png[/img][/url]
[url=http://tinyurl.com/kennels2/]Kennels[/url]

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greengeek
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#25 Post by greengeek »

Eviacam tells me my cameras frame rate is too low. It seems to work initially but then gradually seems to become unstable and jittery, then the cursor drifts off towards the bottom of screen. Anyone experiencing something similar?
(I'm using a Toshiba TE2100 2.2GHz, 500MB ram with a cheap usb webcam which works fine for Skype etc)

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ETP
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Eviacam configuration

#26 Post by ETP »

Hi greengeek,

Head tracking is CPU intensive which may be an issue and in addition Eviacam is a bit tricky to get the best out of. It does however respond well to manual tweaking.

It needs to see 25 to 30 fps from the cam and CPU usage in HTOP will probably then be in the range of 25% to 40%. It is best to avoid repeatedly running the wizard and to make manual adjustments instead.

Start by launching HTOP followed by Eviacam. Go straight to configuration and on the advanced tab set CPU to high. On the click panel set dwell to 20. (i.e. 2 seconds)
On the motion tab set smoothness to 8.

Next run the wizard and follow the instructions. Avoid making excessive head movements. Just concentrate on viewing the visible screen edges.
Subsequent tweaking of the X and Y settings is best done manually toggling Eviacam off and on using the scroll lock. Ensure that you use the home key between adjustments to centre the cursor.
Concentrate on getting the X setting right before moving on to the Y setting. Once you have determined the optimum values for your hardware combination make a note of them!
The aim is a smooth range of full edge to edge cursor movement without excessive head movements.
I settled for X=17 and Y=16 using a cheap Logitech C270 but settings will vary wildly depending on your hardware. (10 to 24 possibly)
Good luck. :)
Regards ETP
[url=http://tinyurl.com/pxzq8o9][img]https://s17.postimg.cc/tl19y14y7/You_Tube_signature80px.png[/img][/url]
[url=http://tinyurl.com/kennels2/]Kennels[/url]

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mikeslr
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Alternate radar and xvkbd chooser pet

#27 Post by mikeslr »

Hi All,

Just a note to mention that I've published a pet providing an alternate radar for use with the Square Keyboard, and to make changing keyboard layouts easier.
http://murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic. ... 614#708614.

Happy computing,

mikesLr

oui

#28 Post by oui »

Hi

Wonderful ETP! Thank you very much!

Questions:
- how to load the seamonkey bookmarks and history to continue to use them (from pre existent Precise save file)?
- how to load more dictionaries for Chrome (I never did use Chrome as I have a very very old personal file for Seamonkey with emails in it as Mozilla is the Puppy suite since Puppy 1.4) for other languages?
- how to load stuff for dictate in other languages?

http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 820#708820

Kind regards

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ETP
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#29 Post by ETP »

oui wrote:Hi
Questions:
1- how to load the seamonkey bookmarks and history to continue to use them (from pre existent Precise save file)?
2- how to load more dictionaries for Chrome (I never did use Chrome as I have a very very old personal file for Seamonkey with emails in it as Mozilla is the Puppy suite since Puppy 1.4) for other languages?
3- how to load stuff for dictate in other languages?
Kind regards
Hi oui,
1. Using Seamonkey’s bookmarks manager export them as html and then import them using Chrome’s bookmarks manager. I am not aware of any way of transferring the history and it is probably unwise anyway. Most people regularly clear their cache, cookies and history to keep their save files small and to avoid targeted advertising.

2. See these links:
http://www.smallbusiness.yahoo.com/advi ... 00708.html

https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/95604?hl=en

3.See below:
Edit
Almost forgot about voice mail. Any language you like including Klingon. :lol: :lol:
Attachments
screenshot.1.png
(131.57 KiB) Downloaded 460 times
Regards ETP
[url=http://tinyurl.com/pxzq8o9][img]https://s17.postimg.cc/tl19y14y7/You_Tube_signature80px.png[/img][/url]
[url=http://tinyurl.com/kennels2/]Kennels[/url]

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Ted Dog
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#30 Post by Ted Dog »

speaking Klingon is the dividing line between geek and nerd.... :P

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ETP
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#31 Post by ETP »

Hi Ted Dog,

Mmmm….. That may explain why Microsoft's Bing offers page translations into Klingon.
Then again,
"The nice thing about Windows is, it doesn’t just crash, it displays a dialog box and lets you press “OK
Regards ETP
[url=http://tinyurl.com/pxzq8o9][img]https://s17.postimg.cc/tl19y14y7/You_Tube_signature80px.png[/img][/url]
[url=http://tinyurl.com/kennels2/]Kennels[/url]

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ETP
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MouseCam Pup v6

#32 Post by ETP »

Hi All,
The above is now available for download from my server. Minor cosmetic changes have been made including new default wallpaper.
Experience working on the “single switch
Attachments
v6_desktop.JPG
(47.01 KiB) Downloaded 723 times
chrome.jpg
(72.81 KiB) Downloaded 743 times
Regards ETP
[url=http://tinyurl.com/pxzq8o9][img]https://s17.postimg.cc/tl19y14y7/You_Tube_signature80px.png[/img][/url]
[url=http://tinyurl.com/kennels2/]Kennels[/url]

nancy reagan
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Realize the user unfriendliness of puppy

#33 Post by nancy reagan »

However advanced and nice this pup is, do you realize the user unfriendliness of Puppy.

Most important thing -in my opinion - is to make a simple manual for non tweakers.

For example: "mounting a drive", saving or not a session, usb install.

Pets (???) sfs's.

Best way to find out is to ask a Windozer to take place behind the screen ask him/her "what would you like to do ?" and let her/him try to find out.

Big chance they won't get anywhere. So by taking noter of their questions you could write a small tutorial if only for the basic things a Windozers does with his computer on a daily basis.

Would be such a waste if people cannot properly use this awfully nice contribution !

oui

#34 Post by oui »

nancy reagan you are too strong (I don't know if it is possible to say that: I transscribe from German: «Sie sind zu streng» and say it because it is really important: Bad English is better to understand in the world as original poor :lol: British English :roll: and it seems, that in this case British English did be used)

this Puppy is wonderful

I would wish very urgently that Puppy would arrive in the Android tablet world with such a version!

nancy reagan
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JUST BECAUSE THIS IS A WONDERFUL PUPPY

#35 Post by nancy reagan »

oui wrote:nancy reagan you are too strong (I don't know if it is possible to say that: I transscribe from German: «Sie sind zu streng» and say it because it is really important: Bad English is better to understand in the world as original poor :lol: British English :roll: and it seems, that in this case British English did be used)

this Puppy is wonderful
Just because - THIS IS A WONDERFUL PUPPY - I am saying this.

For this pup is especially meant for handicapped people, who cannot move the way valid people can and usually are forced to use Windoze, I thought it would help a lot that there comes a basic tut telling them about "mounting" "Save as" "/" etc. etc

Some expressions are so hard to understand, that it would be a shame that this pup might get lost just because of the strange expressions.

I mentioned it a lot earlier "such a shame that a diamond like puppy gets lost for lots of people just because it is hard to handle for Windozers".

Hope I made myself a bit clearer.

Verstehts'de ?

Ich meine, weil Puppy ist so wunderbar es sollte nicht verloren gehen durch fremde Ausdrueckungen fuer Windozers. Usw.

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