Audio, Video, and General Amusement

Audio, Video, and General Amusement

This chapter presents you with the lighter side of Red Hat Linux. From games and toys to audio and video applications, Red Hat Linux provides many packages to let you have some fun with your computer.

 

9.1. Playing CDs

To play an audio CD, place the CD in your CD-ROM drive and click Main Menu => Sound & Video => CD Player to open the CD Player application.

 

Figure 9-1. CD Player Interface

 

The CD Player interface acts like a standard CD player, with play, pause, and stop functions. There is also a sliding bar that allows you to adjust the volume. You can press the Next track and Previous Track buttons to skip forward or backward one track; you may also use the Track List drop down menu to choose a track from the available menu.

 

You can edit the track listings for your CDs by clicking the Open track editor button. You can also change the way the utility functions by clicking on the Open Preferences button. Here you can set themes for the player as well as set the behavior of the CD-ROM drive when you open or quit the CD Player application.

 

Figure 9-2. CD Player Preferences

 

9.2. Playing Digital Music Files

Digital audio has become very popular in recent years. Users enjoy the technology because the sound quality is excellent compared to analog tape or records and the files are compact, so an audio file can easily be transferred across the Internet. To allow you to take advantage of this technology, Red Hat Linux includes the powerful X Multimedia System (XMMS), a cross-platform multimedia player that allows you to play several digital music file formats.

 

Figure 9-3. XMMS Interface

 

XMMS can be used for more than just playing digital audio files. By default XMMS can play Ogg Vorbis, RIFF wave, and most module formats. XMMS can be extended through plugins to play a number of other digital multimedia formats.

 

To launch XMMS, go to Main Menu => Sound & Video => XMMS.

To launch XMMS from a shell prompt, type the command xmms.

 

9.2.1. Using XMMS

To play an audio file with XMMS, click the Open button and choose a file from the Load File(s) window.

 

Figure 9-4. The Load File(s) Window

 

In Figure 9-4, you see that there are several files to choose from. The files that end in .ogg are Ogg Vorbis files, a popular new audio file format; the .pls file is an audio playlist file. You can use XMMS to add audio files into a list and then save it as a playlist. This can be convenient if you have several audio files and you want to categorize them (for example, by genre or artist). Highlight the file you wish to play (if you have more than one, you can click and hold the mouse button and drag it over all of the files you want to open) and click OK. Notice that XMMS begins to play your audio files immediately. To adjust the volume click the volume slider (the long slider above the Open button) to the left to lower the volume, and to the right to increase it. There are also buttons to stop, pause, and

skip (backward and forward) your music.

 

There is so much more you can do with XMMS. To learn more about using XMMS, refer to the man page by typing man xmms at a shell prompt.

 

9.3. Troubleshooting Your Sound Card

If, for some reason, you do not hear sound and know that you do have a sound card installed, you can run the Sound Card Configuration Tool utility.

 

To use the Sound Card Configuration Tool, choose Main Menu => System Settings => Soundcard Detection. A small text box will pop up prompting you for your root password.

 

Note

Most sound cards are supported by Red Hat Linux, but there are some sound cards that are not completely compatible or may not work at all. If you are having trouble configuring your sound card, check the Hardware Compatibility List at http://hardware. redhat.com to see if your card is supported.

 

The Sound Card Configuration Tool utility probes your system for sound cards. If the utility detects a plug and play sound card, it will automatically try to configure the correct settings for your card.

 

You can then click the Play test sound button to play a sound sample. If you can hear the sample, select OK and your sound card configuration is complete.

 

Figure 9-5. Sound Card Configuration Tool

 

9.3.1. If Sound Card Configuration Tool Does Not Work

If the Sound Card Configuration Tool does not work (if the sample does not play and you still do not have audio sounds), there are alternatives, although they are not quite as simple as running the Sound Card Configuration Tool. You can edit your modules.conf file as discussed below (this strategy is not recommended for most new users), or refer to the documentation that came with your sound card for more information.

 

9.3.1.1. Manual Sound Card Configuration

If your sound card is not a plug and play card, you can manually edit your /etc/modules.conf file to include the sound card module that it should use,

 

for example:

alias sound sb

alias midi opl3

options opl3 io=0x388

options sb io=0x220 irq=7 dma=0,1 mpu_io=0x300

 

9.4. Troubleshooting Your Video Card

Video card configuration is handled during the Red Hat Linux installation (see the Official Red Hat Linux Installation Guide). However, if you did not choose to configure a video card at that time, or if you need to reconfigure your settings, you can use the X Configuration Tool utility. You will want to do this, for example, if you install a new video card.  

 

Note

The X Configuration Tool will backup your system's original video configuration file to /etc/X11/XF86Config.backup in case you need it to switch back.

 

To run the X Configuration Tool, click Main Menu => System Settings => Display. A pop-up window will prompt you for your root password. You can also start from a shell prompt by typing the command redhat-config-xfree86, which will then prompt you to input your root password. If you are working from a shell prompt and X is not working, redhat-config-xfree86 will attempt to start a minimal X session to allow you to continue your configuration. Follow the instructions that appear on the screen. X Configuration Tool will attempt to automatically configure your video card and monitor settings for you. Figure 9-6 shows the Advanced tab for configuring your video devices manually.

 

Figure 9-6. X Configuration Tool

 

To configure your monitor manually, click the Advanced tab, then click the Configure... button next to the Monitor Type entry. A pop-up window will display a list of monitor models. Choose your model and click OK. You can also let X Configuration Tool probe your monitor for the correct model and vertical/horizontal frequency settings.

 

To configure your video card manually, click the Advanced tab, then click the Configure... button next to the Video Card entry. A pop-up window will display a list of video card models. Choose your model and click OK. You can also let X Configuration Tool probe your video card for the correct model and settings by clicking the Probe Videocard button. When you have finished reconfiguring your video card and monitor, you should be able to start an X session and enjoy your graphical desktop environment.

 

9.5. Games

Playing games under Red Hat Linux is a fun way to pass the time. The games included in Red Hat Linux appeal to quite a large number of video game enthusiasts. Whether you enjoy card games like Aisle Riot (a solitaire card game), arcade games like Tux Racer, board games like Chess, or space shooting games like Chromium and Maelstrom, you can find it in Red Hat Linux.

 

To start a game, click Main Menu => Games and select the game of your choice. Figure 9-7 shows a fun game for kids of all ages called Same Gnome. In this game you point your mouse at matching marbles until they start to spin; then, you can click them to make them disappear. Try to make all the marbles disappear.

 

Figure 9-7. Same Gnome  -- Match the Marbles Game

 

9.6. Finding Games Online

There are many more games available within Red Hat Linux and online. For more information, here are a few suggestions:

• http://www.evil3d.net/  -- A 3D gaming site that covers 3D Linux games in depth.
• http://www.tuxgames.com  -- A store where you can buy games just for Linux.
• http://www.linuxgames.com/  -- a Linux gaming news site.
• http://happypenguin.org/  -- the Linux gaming repository.

 

You can also browse the Internet for linux games using a search engine, such as http://www.google.com.