Il-Bozo

2008-04-28T17:23:00.004+02:00

Hi all,
this guide was started a year ago on renderglobal forum. Since it started many users improved this guide adding useful informations about configuring and setting up maya on any existing ubuntubox.
I know my english is not perfect but i'll try to be clear, if you cannot understand something don't be afraid to ask!
Actually this guide is meant (intended) to help you installing Maya 2008 over ubuntu gutsy but there is no reason why this shouldn't work for other versions. I tested this procedure over many pcs and many users confirmed that it worked for their too.

BEFORE WE START I WANT TO ALERT YOU. THIS IS NOT AN OFFICIAL GUIDE AND IS NOT INTENDED TO BE. I DON'T HAVE ANY RESPONSABILITY ABOUT WHAT YOU DO WITH YOUR PC. SO IF U FEEL READY LET'S GO ON.

The first thing we have to do is to convert the rpm packages into deb packages. Someone told me that is possibile to install directly from rpms but i never tested and i dunno if it will work so i'll not use this method.

Copy the entire "linux" folder contained in your Maya CD to your local hard drive then open up the Terminal and cd into the folder you just copied. Type:

sudo apt-get install alien csh
sudo alien -cv *.rpm

It will take a lot so, as many guides suggest, go for a walk, smoke a cigarette and maybe drink a martini cocktail.
Once the conversion has finished you should have 6 rpms and 6 deb files.

PAY ATTENTION! Before you try to install them you need to create 2 symbolic links to get maya work. Type in terminal:

sudo ln -s /usr/aw /aw
sudo ln -s /usr/autodesk /autodesk

Now we can install the deb packages. You don't need the 2 aksusb packages so you can delete them. awcommon and maya packages are needed, awcommon server is needed for the network license and maya-help... well... is the documentation.
From terminal type:

sudo dpkg -i name_of_the_package.deb

where name_of_the_package is the package of your needs. Usually i install awcommon, maya and maya help.

Now you need to copy your license file on /var/flexlm folder.

sudo cp /path_of_your_license_file/aw.dat /var/flexlm

Maya is now installed but we have to fix some issues to get it work fine.

Maya while you're working saves temporary files into /usr/tmp folder but ubuntu doesn't have this folder. One simple solution is to create that folder:

sudo mkdir /usr/tmp
sudo chmod 1777 /usr/tmp

Another possibility is to create a script that redirects temporary folder to the ubuntu one. To do so you need to create an empty text file and put inside theese lines:

#!/bin/bash
export TMPDIR=/tmp/
export XLIB_SKIP_ARGB_VISUALS=1
maya

Save the edited file (for example "maya_launcher") ad make it executable:
ostro moderatore preferito lascia Mpc per andare alla scoperta di posti un po

chmod +x maya_launcher

Now you can start maya simply doubleclicking this batch file.

Maya should work now but you will notice a few issues that still need to be fixed. So, be patient and follow these guidelines.

First of all i usually fix the horrible fonts that maya uses by default. To do that you need to create a folder called "app-defaults" in your home directory. Then create inside that folder file named "MayaScheme" and paste inside the following text:

*extraLargeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-16-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*largeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-14-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*boldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*tinyBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*plainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallPlainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-10-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*obliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallObliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*fixedWidthFont: -*-fixed-medium-r-normal--13-*-*-*-*-*-iso8859-1
*smallFixedWidthFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal--12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*basicBackground: #d9d9d9
Maya*Background: #d9d9d9
*textForeground: #000000
*textFieldBackground: #eeeeee
*readOnlyBackground: #bdbdbd
*buttonBackground: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarTroughColor: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarControlBackground: #bdbdbd
*indicatorBackground: #cbcbcb
*radioColor: #0000ff
*checkColor: #ff0000
*blueSelectBackgroundColor1: #3884c4
*blueSelectBackgroundColor2: #81a7c1
*drawingAreaBackground: #90abb1
*drawingAreaContrastColor1: #b86b6b
*drawingAreaContrastColor2: #7894bf
*drawingAreaContrastColor3: #7ba988
*drawingAreaContrastColor4: #ab7ec8
*scrolledListBackground: #bdbdbd
*textBackground: #b5b5b5
*highlightColor1: #ff0000*extraLargeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-16-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*largeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-14-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*boldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*tinyBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*plainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallPlainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-10-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*obliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallObliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*fixedWidthFont: -*-fixed-medium-r-normal--13-*-*-*-*-*-iso8859-1
*smallFixedWidthFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal--12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*basicBackground: #d9d9d9
Maya*Background: #d9d9d9
*textForeground: #000000
*textFieldBackground: #eeeeee
*readOnlyBackground: #bdbdbd
*buttonBackground: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarTroughColor: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarControlBackground: #bdbdbd
*indicatorBackground: #cbcbcb
*radioColor: #0000ff
*checkColor: #ff0000
*blueSelectBackgroundColor1: #3884c4
*blueSelectBackgroundColor2: #81a7c1
*drawingAreaBackground: #90abb1
*drawingAreaContrastColor1: #b86b6b
*drawingAreaContrastColor2: #*extraLargeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-16-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*largeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-14-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*boldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*tinyBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*plainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallPlainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-10-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*obliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallObliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*fixedWidthFont: -*-fixed-medium-r-normal--13-*-*-*-*-*-iso8859-1
*smallFixedWidthFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal--12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*basicBackground: #d9d9d9
Maya*Background: #d9d9d9
*textForeground: #000000
*textFieldBackground: #eeeeee
*readOnlyBackground: #bdbdbd
*buttonBackground: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarTroughColor: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarControlBackground: #bdbdbd
*indicatorBackground: #cbcbcb
*radioColor: #0000ff
*checkColor: #ff0000
*blueSelectBackgroundColor1: #3884c4
*blueSelectBackgroundColor2: #81a7c1
*drawingAreaBackground: #90abb1
*drawingAreaContrastColor1: #b86b6b
*drawingAreaContrastColor2: #7894bf
*drawingAreaContrastColor3: #7ba988
*drawingAreaContrastColor4: #ab7ec8
*scrolledListBackground: #bdbdbd
*textBackground: #b5b5b5
*highlightColor1: #ff0000
*highlightColor2: #0000ff
*highlightColor3: #00ff00
*highlightColor4: #a01ef0
*highlightColor5: #ffa500
*highlightColor6: #00ffff
*highlightColor7: #ff00ff
*HighlightColor8: #ffff00
*wMBackground: #aaaaaa
*wMForeground: #000000
*wMActiveBackground: #c6c1aa
*wMActiveForeground: #000000
*textSelectedBackground: #e6e6e6
*textSelectedForeground: #000000
*indicatorLightColor: #ffff00
*selectFillColor: #ffff00
*redColor: #ff0000
*orangeColor: #ff7e00
*yellowColor: #ffff00
*greenColor: #4fe44f
*blueColor: #0000ff
*brownColor: #743f3f
*purpleColor: #ae00ff
*errorColor: #ff0000
*warningColor: #0000ff
*informationColor: #00ff00
*alternateBackground1: #c1adad
*alternateBackground2: #a7b7a7
*alternateBackground3: #bbbbcd
*alternateBackground4: #9fbfbf
*alternateBackground5: #87aaca
*alternateBackground6: #d1d1c9
*disabledTextForeground: #aaaaaa
*layerAdjustmentTextForeground: #e56929
*lightRadioFillColor: #9e9edc
*disabledCheckColor: #dc9e9e7894bf
*drawingAreaContrastColor3: #7ba988
*drawingAreaContrastColor4: #ab7ec8
*scrolledListBackground: #bdbdbd
*textBackground: #b5b5b5
*highlightColor1: #ff0000
*highlightColor2: #0000ff
*highlightColor3: #00ff00
*highlightColor4: #a01ef0
*highlightColor5: #ffa500*extraLargeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-16-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*largeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-14-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*boldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*tinyBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*plainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallPlainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-10-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*obliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallObliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*fixedWidthFont: -*-fixed-medium-r-normal--13-*-*-*-*-*-iso8859-1
*smallFixedWidthFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal--12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*basicBackground: #d9d9d9
Maya*Background: #d9d9d9
*textForeground: #000000
*textFieldBackground: #eeeeee
*readOnlyBackground: #bdbdbd
*buttonBackground: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarTroughColor: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarControlBackground: #bdbdbd
*indicatorBackground: #cbcbcb
*radioColor: #0000ff
*checkColor: #ff0000
*blueSelectBackgroundColor1: #3884c4
*blueSelectBackgroundColor2: #81a7c1
*drawingAreaBackground: #90abb1
*drawingAreaContrastColor1: #b86b6b
*drawingAreaContrastColor2: #7894bf
*drawingAreaContrastColor3: #7ba988
*drawingAreaContrastColor4: #ab7ec8
*scrolledListBackground: #bdbdbd
*textBackground: #b5b5b5
*highlightColor1: #ff0000
*highlightColor2: #0000ff
*highlightColor3: #00ff00
*highlightColor4: #a01ef0
*highlightColor5: #ffa500
*highlightColor6: #00ffff
*highlightColor7: #ff00ff
*HighlightColor8: #ffff00
*wMBackground: #aaaaaa
*wMForeground: #000000
*wMActiveBackground: #c6c1aa
*wMActiveForeground: #000000
*textSelectedBackground: #e6e6e6
*textSelectedForeground: #000000
*indicatorLightColor: #ffff00
*selectFillColor: #ffff00
*redColor: #ff0000
*orangeColor: #ff7e00
*yellowColor: #ffff00
*greenColor: #4fe44f
*blueColor: #0000ff
*brownColor: #743f3f
*purpleColor: #ae00ff
*errorColor: #ff0000
*warningColor: #0000ff
*informationColor: #00ff00
*alternateBackground1: #c1adad
*alternateBackground2: #a7b7a7
*alternateBackground3: #bbbbcd
*alternateBackground4: #9fbfbf
*alternateBackground5: #87aaca
*alternateBackground6: #d1d1c9
*disabledTextForeground: #aaaaaa
*layerAdjustmentTextForeground: #e56929
*lightRadioFillColor: #9e9edc
*disabledCheckColor: #dc9e9e
*highlightColor6: #00ffff
*highlightColor7: #ff00ff
*HighlightColor8: #ffff00
*wMBackground: #aaaaaa
*wMForeground: #000000
*wMActiveBackground: #c6c1aa
*wMActiveForeground: #000000
*textSelectedBackground: #e6e6e6
*textSelectedForeground: #000000
*indicatorLightColor: #ffff00
*selectFillColor: #ffff00
*redColor: #ff0000
*orangeColor: #ff7e00
*yellowColor: #ffff00
*greenColor: #4fe44f
*blueColor: #0000ff
*brownColor: #743f3f
*purpleColor: #ae00ff
*errorColor: #ff0000
*warningColor: #0000ff
*informationColor: #00ff00
*alternateBackground1: #c1adad
*alternateBackground2: #a7b7a7
*alternateBackground3: #bbbbcd
*alternateBackground4: #9fbfbf
*alternateBackground5: #87aaca
*alternateBackground6: #d1d1c9
*disabledTextForeground: #aaaaaa
*layerAdjustmentTextForeground: #e56929
*lightRadioFillColor: #9e9edc
*disabledCheckColor: #dc9e9e
*highlightColor2: #0000ff
*highlightColor3: #00ff00*extraLargeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-16-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*largeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-14-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*boldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*tinyBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*plainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallPlainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-10-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*obliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallObliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*fixedWidthFont: -*-fixed-medium-r-normal--13-*-*-*-*-*-iso8859-1
*smallFixedWidthFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal--12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*basicBackground: #d9d9d9
Maya*Background: #d9d9d9
*textForeground: #000000
*textFieldBackground: #eeeeee
*readOnlyBackground: #bdbdbd
*buttonBackground: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarTroughColor: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarControlBackground: #bdbdbd
*indicatorBackground: #cbcbcb
*radioColor: #0000ff
*checkColor: #ff0000
*blueSelectBackgroundColor1: #3884c4
*blueSelectBackgroundColor2: #81a7c1
*drawingAreaBackground: #90abb1
*drawingAreaContrastColor1: #b86b6b
*drawingAreaContrastColor2: #7894bf
*drawingAreaContrastColor3: #7ba988
*drawingAreaContrastColor4: #ab7ec8
*scrolledListBackground: #bdbdbd
*textBackground: #b5b5b5
*highlightColor1: #ff0000
*highlightColor2: #0000ff
*highlightColor3: #00ff00
*highlightColor4: #a01ef0
*highlightColor5: #ffa500
*highlightColor6: #00ffff
*highlightColor7: #ff00ff
*HighlightColor8: #ffff00
*wMBackground: #aaaaaa
*wMForeground: #000000
*wMActiveBackground: #c6c1aa
*wMActiveForeground: #000000
*textSelectedBackground: #e6e6e6
*textSelectedForeground: #000000
*indicatorLightColor: #ffff00
*selectFillColor: #ffff00
*redColor: #ff0000
*orangeColor: #ff7e00
*yellowColor: #ffff00
*greenColor: #4fe44f
*blueColor: #0000ff
*brownColor: #743f3f
*purpleColor: #ae00ff
*errorColor: #ff0000
*warningColor: #0000ff
*informationColor: #00ff00
*alternateBackground1: #c1adad
*alternateBackground2: #a7b7a7
*alternateBackground3: #bbbbcd
*alternateBackground4: #9fbfbf
*alternateBackground5: #87aaca
*alternateBackground6: #d1d1c9
*disabledTextForeground: #aaaaaa
*layerAdjustmentTextForeground: #e56929
*lightRadioFillColor: #9e9edc
*disabledCheckColor: #dc9e9e
*highlightColor4: #a01ef0
*highlightColor5: #ffa500
*highlightColor6: #00ffff
*highlightColor7: #ff00ff
*HighlightColor8: #ffff00
*wMBackground: #aaaaaa
*wMForeground: #000000
*wMActiveBackground: #c6c1aa
*wMActiveForeground: #000000
*textSelectedBackground: #e6e6e6
*textSelectedForeground: #000000
*indicatorLightColor: #ffff00
*selectFillColor: #ffff00
*redColor: #ff0000
*orangeColor: #ff7e00
*yellowColor: #ffff00
*greenColor: #4fe44f
*blueColor: #0000ff
*brownColor: #743f3f
*purpleColor: #ae00ff
*errorColor: #ff0000
*warningColor: #0000ff
*informationColor: #00ff00
*alternateBackground1: #c1adad
*alternateBackground2: #a7b7a7
*alternateBackground3: #bbbbcd
*alternateBackground4: #9fbfbf
*alternateBackground5: #87aaca*extraLargeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-16-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*largeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-14-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*boldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*tinyBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*plainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallPlainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-10-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*obliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallObliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*fixedWidthFont: -*-fixed-medium-r-normal--13-*-*-*-*-*-iso8859-1
*smallFixedWidthFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal--12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*basicBackground: #d9d9d9
Maya*Background: #d9d9d9
*textForeground: #000000
*textFieldBackground: #eeeeee
*readOnlyBackground: #bdbdbd
*buttonBackground: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarTroughColor: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarControlBackground: #bdbdbd
*indicatorBackground: #cbcbcb
*radioColor: #0000ff
*checkColor: #ff0000
*blueSelectBackgroundColor1: #3884c4
*blueSelectBackgroundColor2: #81a7c1
*drawingAreaBackground: #90abb1
*drawingAreaContrastColor1: #b86b6b
*drawingAreaContrastColor2: #7894bf
*drawingAreaContrastColor3: #7ba988
*drawingAreaContrastColor4: #ab7ec8
*scrolledListBackground: #bdbdbd
*textBackground: #b5b5b5
*highlightColor1: #ff0000
*highlightColor2: #0000ff
*highlightColor3: #00ff00
*highlightColor4: #a01ef0
*highlightColor5: #ffa500
*highlightColor6: #00ffff
*highlightColor7: #ff00ff
*HighlightColor8: #ffff00
*wMBackground: #aaaaaa
*wMForeground: #000000
*wMActiveBackground: #c6c1aa
*wMActiveForeground: #000000
*textSelectedBackground: #e6e6e6
*textSelectedForeground: #000000
*indicatorLightColor: #ffff00
*selectFillColor: #ffff00
*redColor: #ff0000
*orangeColor: #ff7e00
*yellowColor: #ffff00
*greenColor: #4fe44f
*blueColor: #0000ff
*brownColor: #743f3f
*purpleColor: #ae00ff
*errorColor: #ff0000
*warningColor: #0000ff
*informationColor: #00ff00
*alternateBackground1: #c1adad
*alternateBackground2: #a7b7a7
*alternateBackground3: #bbbbcd
*alternateBackground4: #9fbfbf
*alternateBackground5: #87aaca
*alternateBackground6: #d1d1c9
*disabledTextForeground: #aaaaaa
*layerAdjustmentTextForeground: #e56929
*lightRadioFillColor: #9e9edc
*disabledCheckColor: #dc9e9e
*alternateBackground6: #d1d1c9
*disabledTextForeground: #aaaaaa
*layerAdjustmentTextForeground: #e56929
*lightRadioFillColor: #9e9edc
*disabledCheckColor: #dc9e9e

There are other fixes to do to make maya work as you expect.

If you try to work with maya now you'll notice that the mouse pointer may become an red X and won't switch back to the default white arrow. To fix that you need to edit the Maya.env file that's located inside "maya/version/" inside your home directory and copy and paste this line:

MAYA_MMSET_DEFAULT_XCURSOR=1;

The other necessary fix is the "alt" keybinding of gnome. Gnome, by default, uses the alt key to enable the window dragging, really useful on small screens but overrides the alt key function under maya. To fix that you need to change the associated key under System -> Preferences -> Windows. I normally switch this function on super key (the key with windows logo). I'm using gnome in italian language so the menu name may differ from my translation.

Now you should have maya full working on your system with some issues that we will fix in this guide. If you feel that is enough you can stop following this guide and start your work!

It could be possible that gnome menu hasn't set the proper Maya icon on the launcer. To fix that you may want to edit the menu by right-clicking it and clicking "Modify Menu". Under Graphic sub menu you'll probably find "Autodesk Maya". Edit its proprieties right clicking and choosing proprieties under the dropdown menu and then set the following path for the icon file: /autodesk/maya/icons/mayaIcon.xpm

Another fix that is really useful an will improve the aspect of maya software under xorg is the Display Size setting in the xorg.conf file. First of all we need to check the actual resolution of your monitor. Open up a terminal and write in:

xdpyinfo | grep resolution

You should get an output like thet one:

resolution: 101x108 dots per inch

This means that your display has a non quad resolution. The right values should be 96 x 96 dpi.

- NVIDIA -

If you got a Nvidia video card you should be happy cause you only need to force the right value of dpi writing under "device" section in xorg.conf.
Open up a terminal, type:

sudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Then write under device section these two lines:

Option "UseEditDpi" "FALSE"
Option "DPI" "96 x 96"

Save and quit. After a reboot you should get the right output from xdpyinfo.

- ATI -

With ati videocards is a little more tricky but with a little of patience you will get the right result.
Edit your xorg.conf typing from terminal the following command:

sudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Then find the monitor section and put inside this row:

DisplaySize Val.x Val.y

Val.x and Val.y are two values that you need to calculate using your monitor specifications. These values are simply the width and height values of your screen in millimeters unit. If you bought a good monitor you'll probably find these values on the manifacturer website. On my old laptop i did a mix of manual measuring with a ruler and a simple formula:

val.x=(horizontal_resolution/96)*25.4
val.y=(vertical_resolution/96)*25.4

I was using a 1440*900 resolution and i obtained these values:

val.x=381
val.y=238.125

Then i used the integer part of these numbers in xorg.conf:

DisplaySize 381 238

After the xorg reboot (ctrl+alt+backspace) i got this output from "xdpyinfo | grep resolution": resolution: 95x96 dots per inch, So i tried some manual tweak to obtain the right resolution. I got the right output using DisplaySize 380 238.

If you plan to work with maya you surely need to disable the window compositing of xorg so write these lines at the end of xorg.conf

Section "Extensions"
Option "Composite" "Disable"
EndSection

Then there are other settings that usually fixes some window issues. I wrote down these settings from forum threads so i don't really know if those are useful for you! These settings could be written in the Screen section of your xorg.conf:

Option "AddARGBGLXVisuals" "True"
Option "DisableGLXRootClipping" "True"
Option "DamageEvents" "True"
Option "RenderAccel" "on"
Option "XAANoOffscreenPixmaps"

The last really useful thing to do is to rule the focus stealing prevention. What does it mean? If you worked with maya on windows you surely noticed that maya on linux has a strange windows behaviour. Maya main window will be on top of the other sub-windows like hypergraph or connection editor. To fix that we can use a simple program called "Devil's Pie".
Open up a terminal and install this program:

sudo apt-get install devilspie

Than we need to create a folder where devilspie will read its rules.

mkdir ~/.devilspie

And then we create a file containing the rules for maya;

sudo gedit ~/.devilspie/Maya.ds

Paste into this empty file the following line:

(if (is (window_name) "Maya") (below))

Then open System->Preferences->Sessions and add a startup program. Call it Devil's Pie and under command insert the following:

devilspie

On next login Devil's pie would automatically start and everytime you launch maya the main window will stay behind the others (all the others!). Is not perfect but it could be a solution.

Maya 2008 (e precedenti) su Ubuntu

2008-04-11T09:46:00.000+02:00

Ciao a tutti,
questa guida nasce sul forum di renderglobal. Da un anno a questa parte è stata discussa, migliorata e integrata grazie all'interesse di molteplici utenti e soprattutto grazie al supporto del forum. Questa guida dovrebbe permettere a tutti gli utenti di Ubuntu di installare Maya 2008 sul proprio sistema. Sul mio computer questa procedura ha funzionato su tutte le versioni di ubuntu da Edgy 32 bit e 64 bit in poi. Alla facciazza di tutti quelli che mi hanno detto "Ma maya non è certificato per ubuntu!"

PRIMA DI TUTTO VI VOGLIO DIRE CHE QUELLO CHE HO SCRITTO QUA SOTTO HA SEMPRE FUNZIONATO PER I MIEI PC (e non solo) E NON MI ASSUMO ALCUNA RESPONSABILITA' SU DANNI CHE POTRETE FARE AI VOSTRI! TOCCANDO FERRO PROSEGUITE PURE!

Il primo passo è quello di convertire i pacchetti rpm di maya in deb. Secondo un recente post su UbuntuForums esiste il metodo per installare direttamente da rpm ma non ho ancora collaudato il sistema quindi non mi sento di pubblicarlo ancora.

Copiate sull'hard disk la cartella linux (o linux-amd64) e entrateci via terminale. A questo punto digitate:

sudo apt-get install alien csh
sudo alien -cv *.rpm

Una volta che alien ha fatto il suo lavoro troverete nella stessa cartella un tot di files .deb.

IMPORTANTE!!! Creiamo due link simbolici per evitare casini durante l'installazione. Vi assicuro che conviene farlo!

sudo ln -s /usr/aw /aw
sudo ln -s /usr/autodesk /autodesk

Ora siamo pronti per installare Maya.
Avrete 4 rpm e 4 deb. Gli rpm potete pure eliminarli (rm *.rpm).
a questo punto dovete scegliere cosa installare in base alle vostre esigenze.

awcommon e maya sono i fondamentali, awcommon-server serve solo per la networked license e poi c'è maya-help che guardacaso è l'help di maya.
da terminale quindi installate i pacchetti scelti con il comando:

sudo dpkg -i nomefile.deb

Dopo aver fatto questo sarà necessario copiare la vostra licenza nella cartella /var/flexlm con:

sudo cp /path_della_vostra_licenza/aw.dat /var/flexlm

Maya cercherà di salvare i files temporanei in /usr/tmp che in ubuntu non esiste, Una delle possibili soluzioni è di crearla e di dare i permessi in lettura e scrittura, Quindi:

sudo mkdir /usr/tmp
sudo chmod 1777 /usr/tmp

Oppure, da un thread postato sul forum di RenderGlobal "hdd" suggeriva un piccolo script per risolvere il messaggio di errore della cartella /usr/tmp.
Create un documento vuoto (click dx -> crea documento -> file vuoto) editatelo e copiateci dentro queste righe:

#!/bin/bash
export TMPDIR=/tmp/
export XLIB_SKIP_ARGB_VISUALS=1
maya

Salvate il file (ad esempio "maya_launcher") e da terminale date un:

chmod +x maya_launcher

A questo punto maya è pronto a funzionare semplicemente facendo doppio click su quest'ultimo file.

Non vi basta?! Allora facciamo di più!

Maya purtroppo ha qualche problemino con l'interfaccia grafica almeno sotto gnome. Per ovviare a questo problema bisogna creare nella propria home una cartella chiamata app-defaults e dentro ci va messo il file MayaScheme personalizzato. Ecco quello che uso io:

*extraLargeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-16-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*largeBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-14-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*boldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*tinyBoldLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*plainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallPlainLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal-*-10-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*obliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*smallObliqueLabelFont: -*-clean-medium-i-normal-*-8-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*fixedWidthFont: -*-fixed-medium-r-normal--13-*-*-*-*-*-iso8859-1
*smallFixedWidthFont: -*-clean-medium-r-normal--12-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
*basicBackground: #d9d9d9
Maya*Background: #d9d9d9
*textForeground: #000000
*textFieldBackground: #eeeeee
*readOnlyBackground: #bdbdbd
*buttonBackground: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarTroughColor: #bdbdbd
*scrollBarControlBackground: #bdbdbd
*indicatorBackground: #cbcbcb
*radioColor: #0000ff
*checkColor: #ff0000
*blueSelectBackgroundColor1: #3884c4
*blueSelectBackgroundColor2: #81a7c1
*drawingAreaBackground: #90abb1
*drawingAreaContrastColor1: #b86b6b
*drawingAreaContrastColor2: #7894bf
*drawingAreaContrastColor3: #7ba988
*drawingAreaContrastColor4: #ab7ec8
*scrolledListBackground: #bdbdbd
*textBackground: #b5b5b5
*highlightColor1: #ff0000
*highlightColor2: #0000ff
*highlightColor3: #00ff00
*highlightColor4: #a01ef0
*highlightColor5: #ffa500
*highlightColor6: #00ffff
*highlightColor7: #ff00ff
*HighlightColor8: #ffff00
*wMBackground: #aaaaaa
*wMForeground: #000000
*wMActiveBackground: #c6c1aa
*wMActiveForeground: #000000
*textSelectedBackground: #e6e6e6
*textSelectedForeground: #000000
*indicatorLightColor: #ffff00
*selectFillColor: #ffff00
*redColor: #ff0000
*orangeColor: #ff7e00
*yellowColor: #ffff00
*greenColor: #4fe44f
*blueColor: #0000ff
*brownColor: #743f3f
*purpleColor: #ae00ff
*errorColor: #ff0000
*warningColor: #0000ff
*informationColor: #00ff00
*alternateBackground1: #c1adad
*alternateBackground2: #a7b7a7
*alternateBackground3: #bbbbcd
*alternateBackground4: #9fbfbf
*alternateBackground5: #87aaca
*alternateBackground6: #d1d1c9
*disabledTextForeground: #aaaaaa
*layerAdjustmentTextForeground: #e56929
*lightRadioFillColor: #9e9edc
*disabledCheckColor: #dc9e9e

Copiate il testo e incollatelo in ~/app-defaults/MayaScheme

Ecchissono io? Babbo natale?

Ci sono ancora due dritte per ovviare a dei problemi noti.

Un problema è quello del puntatore che all'uscita di maya rimane a forma di X nera. Per risolverlo basta cercare nella vostra home sotto la cartella maya/versione/ il file Maya.env e copiarci dentro questa riga:

MAYA_MMSET_DEFAULT_XCURSOR=1;

Un altro problema è che il tasto alt, per default su gnome, abilita lo spostamento della finestra selezionata. Per eliminare questo inconveniente basta andare nel menù Sistema->Preferenze->Finestre e selezionare il tasto super (o logo windows) per attivare lo spostamento.

Ultima, ma questa lo ammetto è una C _ _ _ ATA, non è settata l'icona nel menù di gnome. Se proprio non vi è apparsa probabilmente dovete semplicemente dare da terminale:

killall gnome-panel

oppure riavviate il serverX (ctrl+alt+backspace) o l'intero sistema.
Se invece vi è apparsa avrà molto probabilmente l'icona dell'applicazione generica. Per impostarla correttamente basta fare click col tasto dx sul menù applicazioni -> modifica menu e sotto grafica andate a trovare maya. Clikkateci sopra col tasto dx -> proprietà e andate a pescare l'icona in /autodesk/maya/icons/mayaIcon.xpm

Non era veramente l'ultima!

A quanto pare linux non va daccordissimo con la stragrande maggioranza dei monitor in commercio. Infatti c'è una funzione di questi che permette di dire via hardware alla scheda video quale è la reale dimensione del monitor per calcolare la corretta risoluzione in dpi da usare per il desktop environment.
se da terminale date il comando:

xdpyinfo | grep resolution

Vi darà un output del tipo:

resolution: 101x108 dots per inch

Per le schede nvidia si risolve aggiungendo alla sezione device del file /etc/X11/xorg.conf le seguenti righe:

Option "UseEditDpi" "FALSE"
Option "DPI" "96 x 96"

Per le schede ATI è un po' più macchinoso ma si può fare lo stesso!
Editate come sopra xorg.conf e mettete nella sezione monitor questa riga:

DisplaySize valore.x valore.y

Valore.x e Valore.y sono i due valori in millimetri delle dimensioni del vostro schermo. Di solito per i monitor decenti li trovate nelle specifiche. Nel mio caso ho usato una semplice formula:

valore.x=(risoluzione_orizzontale/96)*25.4
valore.y=(risoluzione_verticale/96)*25.4

Nel mio caso sono usciti fuori questi valori per la risoluzione 1440*900
valore.x=381
valore.y=238.125

Ho usato solo la parte intera, quindi ho aggiunto a xorg.conf la seguente riga:

DisplaySize 381 238

Dopo il riavvio ho però notato che il comando "xdpyinfo | grep resolution" dava come output 95x96dpi. Dopo qualche tentativo e riavvio di xorg ho stabilito che il valore di mio interesse è DisplaySize 380 238.

Altre modifiche a xorg.conf

Il composite deve essere disabilitato oppure avrete dei problemi di visualizzazione. Aggiungete in fondo a xorg.conf le seguenti righe (magari le avete di gia).

Section "Extensions"
Option "Composite" "Disable"
EndSection

Mentre per la sezione "Screen" potrebbero tornarvi utili questi settings, usateli solo se vi capita di avere finestre nere oppure con strani pattern colorati.

Option "AddARGBGLXVisuals" "True"
Option "DisableGLXRootClipping" "True"
Option "DamageEvents" "True"
Option "RenderAccel" "on"
Option "XAANoOffscreenPixmaps"

Ultima modifica molto utile è quella di regolamentare un po' il comportamento delle finestre di Maya sotto gnome. Infatti, a differenza di quello che succede sotto Winzozz la finestra di Maya non rimane sotto le sue sottofinestre. Per ovviare a questo problema useremo il comodissimo "Devil's Pie".

Installiamo Devil's Pie:

sudo apt-get install devilspie

Poi creiamo la cartella che conterrà le regole:

mkdir ~/.devilspie

E poi creiamo un file al suo interno con la nostra regola:

sudo gedit ~/.devilspie/Maya.ds

Dentro questo file incollateci la riga qui sotto, chiudete e salvate.

(if (is (window_name) "Maya") (below))

A questo punto aprite il menu Sistema->Preferenze->sessioni e inserite un programma d'avvio. Nel campo nome metteteci:

Devil's Pie

e nel campo comando mettete:

devilspie

Devil's Pie sarà attivo dal prossimo riavvio di gnome. Per riavviare rapidamente premete "Ctrl+Alt+Backspace" oppure avviate manualmente il programma dando "Alt+F2" e inserite il comando devilspie.

Concludo con dei link utili ai thread di renderglobal da cui nasce questa guida:

Post sull'installazione
Installazione da RPM (mai collaudata)
Ubuntu@work
Devil's Pie