meta: proper README
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README.md
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README.md
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Setting up the extra display using sway's hidden [`create_output`](https://github.com/swaywm/sway/blob/master/sway/commands/create_output.c) command, and starting wayvnc
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# CG Virtual Monitor
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```
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% swaymsg create_output
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% swaymsg output "HEADLESS-1" resolution 396x224
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% wayvnc -o HEADLESS-1
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This demo showcases how an fx-CG calculator can be used as an external monitor
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by forwarding VNC framebuffers through USB. It was made as a test of the new
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USB driver features introduced in gint 2.10. The program also supports multiple
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parallel monitors and can transmit key presses on calculators back to the PC.
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# to remove the output later
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% swaymsg output "HEADLESS-1" unplug
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```
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Compiling and starting the VNC client
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## How it works
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```
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In this demo, the desktop manager ([sway](https://swaywm.org/)) has two virtual
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outputs not connected to any monitor. The calculators don't act as a physical
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monitors since there is no standard device for that in USB 2 (it's too slow).
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Instead, sway's outputs are exposed by a VNC server running locally
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([wayvnc](https://github.com/any1/wayvnc)).
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The VNC client in this repository's `vnc-client` folder is connected to the
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VNC server, while at the same time using the communications library _libfxlink_
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from the [fxSDK](https://gitea.planet-casio.com/Lephenixnoir/fxsdk) to discover
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calculators and exchange messages. It sends framebuffer updates and receives
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keyboard updates (which are, unsurprisingly, forwarded to the VNC server).
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The calculators themselves run [gint](https://gitea.planet-casio.com/Lephenixnoir/gint)
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2.10 using newly-added support for host → calculator USB communication. They
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"simply" show framebuffers they receive and send back keyboard updates so that
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the calculator keyboards can control the PC. Obviously the USB driver is not
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that simple... but this is invisible from the application code.
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The entire setup runs at about 30 FPS, which each frame taking about:
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- 20 ms to receive framebuffers via USB into the VRAM, including
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* 14 ms of raw reading from the USB buffer;
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* 6 ms of waiting for data transfer from the host.
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- 11 ms to send the VRAM update to the display.
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There are many ways to optimize this further if the need ever arises... I'd be
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surprised if it couldn't run at 60 FPS with double-buffer mode, frame streaming
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and/or parallelizing both bottlenecks by reading directly to the display.
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## Download
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TODO: Direct link to the .g3a
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You'll need to build the VNC client, though.
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## Building
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Here are the dependencies:
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- The [fxSDK](https://gitea.planet-casio.com/Lephenixnoir/fxsdk). The fxSDK
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repository alone is needed for the VNC client, while the entire tool suite
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including gint and the cross-compiler is needed to build the add-in.
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- [libvncserver](https://github.com/LibVNC/libvncserver) for the RFB protocol.
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- SDL2 for debug display on the PC.
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Build the VNC client with:
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```bash
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% cd vnc-client
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% cmake -B build # options...
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% make -C build
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% ./cgvm_vnc --calc
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```
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If you installed native fxSDK tools outside of the default `$HOME/.local`, add `-DFXSDK_PATH=<the path>` to CMake options. (GiteaPC uses the default path.)
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If you installed the fxSDK tools outside of the default `$HOME/.local`, add
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`-DFXSDK_PATH=<the path>` to CMake options. (GiteaPC uses the default path.)
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Compiling and installing the virtual monitor add-in
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Build the virtual monitor add-in with:
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```
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```bash
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% cd cgvm-addin
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% fxsdk build-cg
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# Send .g3a file to calculator using fxlink and the LINK app:
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% fxsdk build-cg -s
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```
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---
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## Using virtual monitors
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This entire thing was coded in a few hours with limited regard for exceptions. Ideally, you should
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1. Open the Virtual Monitor add-in on the calculator
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2. Start `cgvm_vnc`
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3. Not disconnect the calculator while `cgvm_vnc` is running
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4. After closing `cgvm_vnc`, disconnect the calculator
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**Step 1: Creating the virtual output**
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This step depends on the desktop manager. I'm using sway, which has a hidden
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[`create_output`](https://github.com/swaywm/sway/blob/master/sway/commands/create_output.c)
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command to create and configure headless outputs:
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```bash
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# Creating outputs under sway specifically
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% swaymsg create_output
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% swaymsg output "HEADLESS-1" resolution 396x224 # position 1920 0
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# For a second monitor:
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% swaymsg create_output
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% swaymsg output "HEADLESS-2" resolution 396x224 # position 1920 224
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```
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Other Wayland desktops might have their own way of doing this, though there
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doesn't seem to be a unified method.
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On X, [Xvfb](https://www.x.org/releases/X11R7.6/doc/man/man1/Xvfb.1.xhtml)
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seems to allow this (but I'm not sure whether it can run alongside the normal
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display).
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**Step 2: Exposing the virtual output on a VNC server**
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The VNC client will connect to VNC servers at addresses `127.0.0.1:5900` and
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`127.0.0.1:5910`, whichever is up. This is because wayvnc only exposes a single
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output, so I run two instances to get both monitors.
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```bash
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% wayvnc -o "HEADLESS-1" 127.0.0.1 5900
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# For a second monitor:
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% wayvnc -o "HEADLESS-2" 127.0.0.1 5910
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```
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As the name suggests, wayvnc is for Wayland, but here I'm not worried about
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X-based alternatives.
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**Step 3: Run the VNC client and calculator add-in**
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Transfer the add-in to the calculator and run it from the main menu. It will
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show "USB connected!" as soon as the PC establishes a connection. Then, start
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the VNC client with:
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```bash
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% ./cgvm_vnc --calc # --sdl
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```
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You can add `--sdl` to have a copy of the outputs in SDL windows for debugging.
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The VNC client will automatically find calculators exposing the proper USB
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interface and send them the frames.
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**Step 4: Stop servers and unplug calculators**
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To take the setup down, interrupt the VNC client and close the add-in on the
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calculator with EXIT or MENU (in any order). Then stop the VNC servers, and
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finally remove the outputs.
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```bash
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# Removing the outputs under sway specifically
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% swaymsg output "HEADLESS-1" unplug
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# For a second monitor:
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% swaymsg output "HEADLESS-2" unplug
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```
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## Known issues
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- The first frame is often incorrect.
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- Frames from the VNC server are dropped if the calculator is busy processing a
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previous frame.
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- The VNC client seems to lost connection with the calculator sometimes (libusb
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returning "No such device"). Not sure why yet, as it's hard to reproduce. In
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that case restart the VNC client.
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