Raspberry Pi 2 some points to know

[Andreas29]

Hi,

I´m using oc with a headless pi2.
With an android tablet I can interact via remote with the pi.

In the moment I use the latest jessie (not stretch yet) and OC 4.8.0 with plugins from the ubuntu ppa.

What to know:

For the remote connection it´s possible to use xrdp or vnc.
Xrdp works great but it´s inpossible to use the hw grafic acceleration cause xrdp uses virtual desctops not the console desctop.
Since a few month jessie Comes with a build in vnc server (realvnc). This works also great and it will use the console desktop. Cause of this it´s possible to use hw grafic acceleration. In the pi´s config it´s possible to use two settings, with "full kms" and with "fake kms". When using the "full kms" option the resolution is very bad and not changeble. When using the "fake kms" option the resulution ist very much better (can set in the raspi config).

With hw acceleration on it´s possible to switch OpenGL in oc to on.
With the latest jessie and oc 4.8 there are no problems using raster or vector charts. Since yet I didn´t get a problem when zooming or panning the (big) charts.

There are different ways to get charts. A longer time I use "self-made" raster charts (made from my paper charts). This works well but making the charts needs time.

Now I use the oesenc Vektor charts. It´s very easy to get and install theese charts in oc and there are really good and very cheap. The pi´s grafic can manage theese charts and in daily use it´s ok for such a low cost (and low e-consumption!) system.
There´s one Point to know when using Vektor charts: The chart information strongly depends from the zoom step. So it can be that e.g. informations for vhf channels are only visible in one special zoom step. This is also the same when trying to get the informations about the doubble clic or right clic and object Information menue.

The last point is that after updating jessie and oc to the latest version I can´t reactivate the tidal or current Informations. When clicking on the Tide or current point oc stops and shut down (normally a window with the tide graph will open). I tried to use it with or without the hw acceleration or trying the original harmonic file. I reinstalled oc. Since yet I didn´t find a way to reactivate this. The currents or the Tide bar will be shown but right click->bang - out. The log file didn´t show anything, just stops.

Regards

Andreas

[rgleason]

Andreas29
I found this report very interesting. Thank you. Would you support software opengl that Did_g suggests?

[conachair]

Quick note for anyone who fancies giving a Raspberry Pi a go -
Fast enough even without the experimental hardware video acceleration enabled.


The openplotter image has everything you need plus much more, ready to go-

OpenPlotter RPI | Sailoog

https://sailoog.gitbooks.io/openplot...on/content/en/

[verkerkbr]

Originally Posted by conachair

Quick note for anyone who fancies giving a Raspberry Pi a go -
Fast enough even without the experimental hardware video acceleration enabled.


The openplotter image has everything you need plus much more, ready to go-

OpenPlotter RPI | Sailoog

https://sailoog.gitbooks.io/openplot...on/content/en/

I'am using Linux Stretch and OpenPlotter and the latest kernel version. Works great.

Screen movements are fast if you don't switch OpenGL to on ! Switching OpenGL to on then the screen movement slows down.

Linux stretch is certainly an improvement and very stable.

Only the update function on OpenPlotter does not work.

But you do the update in Jessie and then switch to Stretch.

Bram

[seandepagnier]

Originally Posted by verkerkbr

Screen movements are fast if you don't switch OpenGL to on ! Switching OpenGL to on then the screen movement slows down.

Bram

Did you actually enable the vc4 driver??

[verkerkbr]

Originally Posted by boat_alexandra

Did you actually enable the vc4 driver??

Using the latest kernel 4.9.57 and switching the VC4 driver and OpenGL in OpenCPN to on. Then O is not working well and stalls.

Switching off the VC4 and OpenGL in OpenCpn 4.8. Then I get fast screen movements.

Linux version is Stretch with OpenPlotter.

You have to use the OpenPlotter updates with the Jessy version and then switch to Stretch (Debian 9.1). Quite a long update process.

Because updating OpenPlotter still does not work. Other updates for Stretch etc work.

The Linux Stretch version is also very stable. Recommended !

Egalax Touchscreen worked in Jessy "out of the box". But in Stretch you have to install the driver from EETI and have to make adjustments in de config file. Then this also works.

Bram

[Andreas29]

Hi,

there where some questions, try to answer them

I use the latest up to date Jessie. I found a description for an update procedure to Stretch but this doesen´t work for me. For setting up the pi with a new out-of-the-box Stretch I didn´t found the time.

The kernelversion in Jessie is 4.9.35-v7+
The grafic-driver ist vc4-fkms-v3d
No overclocking
Graficmemory is set to 128 mb.

OC is 4.8.0 as ready build packages from the ubuntu-ppa. Also the plugins.

Using osenc vector charts (but also tried rastercharts 50mb each)

With this I can switch OpenGL to on and then it´s a little bit faster then without OpenGL. No crashes when zooming or panning.

With the fine world chart fps are 50 to 90, with the vector charts 5 to 12. Without hw accl. and OpenGL the vector charts will run with 1 to 5 fps.

After the latest update of Jessie the problem with the tidal grafic is solved.

The only Problem left is the grafic overlay Problem with the grib plugin. But maybe I try to compile oc with the changes for the pi or I swith back to OC 4.6 wich I can restore from a backup file.

I want OpenGL on cause the radarplugin needs this option and I whant to change my radarinstallation to a 3g radar.
When doing this I want to install a 13" Monitor at the chart table as the main chartplotter and using the Tablet as remote chart plotter.

@rgleason: I only have experience with jessie and OC and the plugins. On the raspberrys web site there are more exambles for OpenGL Software.
After seraching in the web for hours and hours and a lot try and error I found out that the hw grafic acceleration on the pi with jessie will not work with the xrdp remote desktop solution, but with vnc it will. This is my personal conclusion.
Here https://www.segeln-forum.de/board1-r...pi-und-opengl/ is a discussion (in german) about this. Maybe when running ubuntu on the pi you can use xrdp with the hw acceleration and OpenGL but I don´t really know cause I didn´t try this.

Regards

Andreas

[verkerkbr]

Originally Posted by boat_alexandra

Did you actually enable the vc4 driver??

Dear B-A,

just did a new try. Now kernel 4.9.57. Linux Stretch. Switched the VC4 driver to on and OpenCPN OpenGL also to on. And it seems to work. The problem was caused by the texture caching that was switched to on. And now with this switch to off, OpenGL works with a low processor load. Not higher then 30 %.

Regards,

Bram

[rgleason]

Andreas29, thank you for looking into that. I do hope Did_g will see your post.

[Andreas29]

Hi,

@rgleason: I tested software OpenGL now. It´s much slower than hardwareaccelerated OpenGL. So I will not support software OpenGL.

When I found the time I´ll try to built oc from source and than I´ll look what the fps will say.

Regards

Andreas

[verkerkbr]

Originally Posted by verkerkbr

Dear B-A,

just did a new try. Now kernel 4.9.57. Linux Stretch. Switched the VC4 driver to on and OpenCPN OpenGL also to on. And it seems to work. The problem was caused by the texture caching that was switched to on. And now with this switch to off, OpenGL works with a low processor load. Not higher then 30 %.

Regards,

Bram

Linux stretch with switching on the VC4 driver, works very well with kernel 4.9.59.

Screen movements in OpenCPN works best without switching OpenGL in OpenCPN to on ?!