[Sussex] Debian install - Still no sound (from cdrw/dvd)

[Steve Dobson]

Hi John

12 September 2003 at 14:48 John D. wrote:
> Since my posts of last week about sound and the advice from 
> Steve D. i have 
> done a fair bit of digging around, but still no luck. 
> 
> All the stuff that I have managed to find is about 
> permissions, but I don't 
> know the correct way to check permissions and stuff, so I 
> tried a command 
> that I found a reference to which refered to scsi devices -  "ls -la 
> /dev/sg0" but I couldn't see anything like that, or any reference to 
> /dev/sg*, so I thought i'd try the suggestions anyhow and got this
> 
> debian:/home/john# chmod g+rw /dev/sg0 
> chmod: failed to get attributes of `/dev/sg0': No such file 
> or directory 

SCSI is a system for attaching disk, tape and other such devices.
In simple speek it is a technically better (read more costly) version
of IDE.  As your system doesn't have a SCSI I'm not expected you to
see any SCSI devices.

However some system (like some devices on the IDE and USB buses)
emulate SCSI so they may show up.
  
> Then I thought that perhaps the system see's the device in 
> the same way as 
> mandrake so I tried and got this
> 
> debian:/home/john# chmod g+rw /dev/scd0 
> chmod: failed to get attributes of `/dev/scd0': No such file 
> or directory 
>  
> So, as I see that the system refers to my cdrw as "hdc", I tried both 
> commands that I found out about (well sort of found about!)
>   
> debian:/home/john# chmod g+rw /dev/hdc 
> debian:/home/john# chgrp cdrom /dev/hdc 
>  
> both of which just returned a # prompt (and according to 
> "whoever", no news 
> is usually good news with linux?). 
>  
> So, using the original "ls -la /dev" command, it has gone from this, 
>  
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 32 Sep 11 2003 hda ->
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/disc 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda1 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda2 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part2 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda3 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part3 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda4 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part4 
>  
> to this 
>  
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 32 Sep 11 2003 hda ->
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/disc 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda1 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda2 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part2 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda3 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part3 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda4 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part4 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 30 Sep 11 13:58 hdb ->  
> ide/host0/bus0/target1/lun0/cd 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root cdrom 30 Sep 11 13:58 hdc ->
> ide/host0/bus1/target0/lun0/cd 
>  
> Now, what is confusing me even more, is that with the same ls 
> -la /dev 
> command, I can now see this lot as well,
>  
> debian:/home/john# ls -la /dev 
> <snip> 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 11 Sep 11 13:14 audio -> sound/audio 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 13 Sep 11 13:58 cdrom -> cdroms/cdrom0 
> drwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 1 1970 cdroms 
> <snip> 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 9 Sep 11 13:14 dsp -> sound/dsp 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 10 Sep 11 13:14 dsp1 -> sound/dsp1 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 10 Sep 11 13:14 dspW -> sound/dspW 
> <snip> 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 32 Sep 11 2003 hda -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/disc 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda1 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part1 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda2 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part2 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda3 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part3 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 33 Sep 11 2003 hda4 -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target0/lun0/part4 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 30 Sep 11 13:58 hdb -> 
> ide/host0/bus0/target1/lun0/cd 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root cdrom 30 Sep 11 13:58 hdc ->
> ide/host0/bus1/target0/lun0/cd 
> <snip> 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 10 Sep 11 13:14 midi -> sound/midi 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 11 Sep 11 13:14 midi1 -> sound/midi1 
> drwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 1 1970 misc 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 11 Sep 11 13:14 mixer -> sound/mixer 
> <snip> 
> drwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 1 1970 scsi 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 15 Sep 11 13:14 sequencer -> sound/sequencer 
> lr-xr-xr-x 1 root root 16 Sep 11 13:14 sequencer2 -> sound/sequencer2 
> drwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 1 1970 shm 
> drwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 1 1970 sound 
> </snip> 
> debian:/home/john# 

When you see a "ls -l" listing that starts with an "l" this 
means it is a symbol like (short cut if you like) to another
file.

Try this as "root"

  # cd /dev/sound
  # chmod 666 *

> all of which, well too my knowledge anyway, is in some way 
> connected with sound and stuff. 

If "stuff" means the system as a whole then yes.  If you mean
"stuff" to means "related to sound" then no - some of the devices
you are looking at are your disks (hda for example).

> Would it still be a possible permissions problem? If so, 
> which and what would  I need to change? and what too? 

I think so - see above.
  
> Just for info, I have tried all the permutations of 
> /dev/cdrom or hdc or 
> cdrom0 or scd0 or even /dev/ide/host0/bus1/target0/lun0/cd to 
> see if that 
> made any difference, but I still get the signal 11 (SIGSEVG) 
> error followed 
> by the kscd crashing, and it doesn't matter whether I am 
> logged in as user or 
> root.
>  
> I have also found a command line tool called "cdtool", I put 
> the disc in the 
> cdrw and issued "cdplay", to which the bash reply was 
> "nodisc", I then put 
> the disc into my dvd player and did the "cdplay" command and 
> it started 
> playing - well I say started playing, it seemed to be 
> working, but with no 
> sound coming out. I haven't managed to work out how to point 
> the "cdtool" at 
> the cdrw yet!

First "cdplay" with out arguments will work on the default CDROM
type device (the DVD in this case).

Next you need to get sound working before a user level program can
write to your sound device.

To test to see if the sound works try (as root):

  # apt-get install esound
  # esd 

If that plays a little music then the sound system is working.
 
> I do have the system sounds i.e. apps opening and closing, 
> the startup jingle 
> etc etc, but nothing from the cdrw (which is the drive that has the 
> connection to the soundcard)
> 
> any ideas or suggestions as to what I am doing wrong are 
> mucho appreciado (as 
> they say in "spanglish")

Also try installing tkmixer so you can set the volume of the sound
system.

  # app-get install tkmixer

Steve