Topic: Control Panel Not Accessable

Got my chumby one today and have had a ball playing with it so far. 

Only problem I have had (3 times now) is that I'll be listening to internet radio, and go back to the control panel and let my widgets play.  I walk away and come back - hit the top button to get back into the control panel to turn the stream off - and the button does nothing.

Only way to get back in is to restart the device.

Do I have a defective Chumby?

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

I've had that issue a number of times as well. Seems to be a common bug but nobody's been able to track down what triggers it. If you've had that happen 3 times today, maybe you've finally found the exact trigger for what causes it.

Perhaps you could shut it down, turn it back on, and try to remember the things you've done with it until the point when you can't get back to the control panel again? What widgets are playing? I know I'd sure like to find a fix for it wink

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Well, I've been messing with internet radio - specifically the "my streams" and "shoutcast".  I guess I will try to keep an eye on it and file a trouble ticket if it continues.

It's odd - cause the widgets continue to play, the stream keeps streaming - but the control panel button doesn't work.  I thought at first it might be the beta control panel, but I switched back to the original and it still is doing it.

Just happened again - I was just testing the night mode (again my stream playing in the background) and after I turned it on, I hit the CP button and nothing.

Is there a way to wipe out all our custom widgets and default back to the set that is there when the unit is set up?

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Yeah, I'm actually stuck in that situation right now. Widgets are churning along as usual (but performance is really bad, glitchy). But I can't get to the control panel by hitting the top button. It's really infuriating... I mash the top button a hundred times, Pandora keeps playing and the photos keep flipping through the widget it's on, then it switches widgets, loop continues, ad infinitum.

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Definately something with streaming radio.  I can make it happen almost without fail on the my streams section so I am going to submit that thru support for sure.  Hopefully something that can be addressed with a software update if enough people report it.

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

I am having this problem also.  It happens after streaming.  It happened for me after streaming Pandora, My Streams, Shoutcast, etc.  A very frustrating problem when currently the only fix is to reboot.  Potentially, if a user streams an alarm every morning, a reboot may be required every morning!  A fix is needed pronto!

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

adforthu wrote:

I am having this problem also.  It happens after streaming.  It happened for me after streaming Pandora, My Streams, Shoutcast, etc.  A very frustrating problem when currently the only fix is to reboot.  Potentially, if a user streams an alarm every morning, a reboot may be required every morning!  A fix is needed pronto!

Good point - that could be a huge hassle...  Didn't think of that.

8 (edited by levelbest 2009-12-21 20:43:20)

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

BTW, I have created a trouble ticket with support and pointed them to this thread.

Oh, and CONFIRMED - this happens with the SHOUTCAST app in the MUSIC section as well.  Just happened here.

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Thanks for the info guys.  levelbest, I got your email and looking into it now.
Have not yet been able to reproduce the fault but will keep at it.
Which SW version is everyone on?  Has anyone tried reloading SW 1.0.3?
http://www.chumby.com/pages/latest_software#usbupdate
Matt

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

I'm on 1.0.3 and have tried reloading it as well, but 3 usb memory sticks of different brands later, and I still cant get it to see the update.

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Just wanted to share that so far, I have had good luck after doing the manual update - no freezes thru about an hour or so.  Oh, and once I figured out windows was renaming the update file's extention, I got it loaded just fine.

I'll report back later....

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

levelbest wrote:

Oh, and once I figured out windows was renaming the update file's extention, I got it loaded just fine.

I'll report back later....

Always show file extensions in Windows! lol That's the first thing I switch off, "Hide file extensions for known file types". Not only is it a huge security risk (giving a virus a TXT file icon and people think it's a text file), it also makes it near impossible to change/check a file's extension tongue

Mine hasn't done it in a while, but it's still confusing as all hell to not be able to get back to the control panel from Pandora by hitting the button...

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Better yet, just don't use windows!  (it's icky!)

Linux Guy - Occasional Chumby Hacker

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

For someone that hasn't been hacking it to little tiny threads for the past 10 years, I'm sure. ^-^

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Hey Falcon - yeah I always switch that off as well.  Just didn't notice when I was saving that explorer was changing the file extension from three letters to two. wink

Still working a day later - so I have to wonder if the software update that happened ota when I got the chumby somehow didn't finish properly or something.  The flash drive instal appears to have cured things for now.  Will keep an eye on it...

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

I'm surprised more people haven't reported this problem.  The Control Panel button on top of Chumby has failed to bring me to the Control Panel at least once every time I've tried to use Chumby.  The only way to get to the Control Panel is to power off Chumby.  This is a serious flaw and deserves immediate attention from the Chumby.com programmers.

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Have you tried reloading the latest update from a usb stick?  Seems to have fixed the issue for me so far....  just checked again - still going.

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Okay, here's the terminal log from when my Chumby just failed to load the control panel... hopefully this helps!

2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE: WidgetMode.pressBendSensor()
2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE: BendSensor.onKeyUp(): getCode=36
2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE: WidgetMode.releaseBendSensor()
2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE: Bend sensor polling stopped
2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE: Changing mode from hidden to fullscreen
2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE:  - entering controlPanelMode
2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE: WidgetPlayer.setState(): setting widget player state to paused from playing
2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE: - halting advance timer, remaining time 30000 ms
2009-12-24 01:27:00 TRACE: ScreenManager.controlPanelMode()
2009-12-24 01:27:01 TRACE: VolumeSlider()
2009-12-24 01:27:01 TRACE: Battery()
2009-12-24 01:27:01 TRACE: Battery.load():Battery(toString:[type Function],load:[type Function],POWER_SUPPLY_STATUS:Not charging,POWER_SUPPLY_PRESENT:0,POWER_SUPPLY_CAPACITY:100,)
2009-12-24 01:27:01 TRACE: BatteryIndicator.gotFirstBatteryData(): Battery(toString:[type Function],load:[type Function],POWER_SUPPLY_STATUS:Not charging,POWER_SUPPLY_PRESENT:0,POWER_SUPPLY_CAPACITY:100,)
2009-12-24 01:27:01 TRACE: XMLPool.checkOut(): creating new XML object _root.__xml2
2009-12-24 01:27:05 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:09 TRACE: (AlarmSet heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:09 TRACE: IHR Memory: 6.21875 of 12 MB
2009-12-24 01:27:10 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:11 TRACE: (Master heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:15 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:20 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:24 TRACE: (AlarmSet heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:25 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:26 TRACE: (Master heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:30 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:35 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:39 TRACE: (AlarmSet heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:40 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:41 TRACE: (Master heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:45 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:50 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:54 TRACE: (AlarmSet heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:55 TRACE: (Advance timer heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:27:56 TRACE: (Master heartbeat)
2009-12-24 01:28:00 TRACE: ControlPanelMain.timeout()
2009-12-24 01:28:00 TRACE:  - timed out, exiting
2009-12-24 01:28:00 TRACE: main done

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Interesting - according to that log, the Control Panel *did* come up, then timed out, and returned to widget mode because nothing was touched.

So during the period, all you saw were widgets?  If so, were the widgets running, or were they "frozen", ie clocks not ticking, etc.?

20 (edited by FalconFour 2009-12-24 14:19:16)

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

It was frozen and totally unresponsive. To be precise, the last time it happened (from that log), the widget it was stuck on was completely locked up after that - it didn't continue rotating through widgets, and that one didn't even continue playing. It was the Chuck Norris Facts widget and it stayed on the one about Chuck Norris being a vegetarian for something like 5 minutes tongue

However, as I watched the log, I saw that it still noticed every time I mashed the button. It would rotate through a series of messages each time I pushed it, and after I hit it like 10 times in a row, the control panel finally did come up.

Curiously, I wasn't playing any music at all on it during that session. Just playing widgets and pulling up the SSH and USB shell for show-n-tell. Curiously, on a reboot prior to that one, when I plugged in my USB keyboard, it did switch to shell mode, but the shell was blank! Just a black screen. Unplugging the keyboard left the black screen up. That was kinda embarrassing wink

edit: And yes, this is with the original power adapter! (LOL)

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

OK, that's useful information. Hopefully we'll be able to reproduce this.

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Duane wrote:

Interesting - according to that log, the Control Panel *did* come up, then timed out, and returned to widget mode because nothing was touched.

So during the period, all you saw were widgets?  If so, were the widgets running, or were they "frozen", ie clocks not ticking, etc.?

This seems to be a variant of the problem. When my top button goes AWOL, it exactly nothing happens when I press it.

Usually after or while playing a stream, and I think returning to the widgets screen triggers it then.

C1 user in Germany

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

FalconFour wrote:

It was frozen and totally unresponsive. To be precise, the last time it happened (from that log), the widget it was stuck on was completely locked up after that - it didn't continue rotating through widgets, and that one didn't even continue playing. It was the Chuck Norris Facts widget and it stayed on the one about Chuck Norris being a vegetarian for something like 5 minutes tongue

However, as I watched the log, I saw that it still noticed every time I mashed the button. It would rotate through a series of messages each time I pushed it, and after I hit it like 10 times in a row, the control panel finally did come up.

Curiously, I wasn't playing any music at all on it during that session. Just playing widgets and pulling up the SSH and USB shell for show-n-tell. Curiously, on a reboot prior to that one, when I plugged in my USB keyboard, it did switch to shell mode, but the shell was blank! Just a black screen. Unplugging the keyboard left the black screen up. That was kinda embarrassing wink

edit: And yes, this is with the original power adapter! (LOL)

I saw an almost exact situation happen the other day.  I am leaning toward blaming the keyboard plug/unplug udev events for the fancy shell framebuffer.  I think it wasn't froxen.  I was able to see things in the log when touching the screen, so I knew it was doing something.  In my case, running switch_fb.sh to display the control panel fixed my problem, as the framebuffer wasn't showing, but it was registering clicks...  I'm wondering if it has to do with the olfade binary and the controlpanel not realizing the framebuffer isn't the one it thinks.

I was able to "recover" my chumby

Linux Guy - Occasional Chumby Hacker

24 (edited by FalconFour 2009-12-26 15:02:00)

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

Good point! I was able to recover mine with the same trick. I think it MAY have been because I hit the top button trying to get back to the control panel while I was in the terminal. When I unplugged the KB, I got a comatose widget screen. But when I switched back with "switch_fb.sh 1" to switch to fb1, I found myself dropped in the control panel searching for an iPod. Quite likely by me trying to tap something on the widget that was really mashing buttons on the control panel on the other framebuffer tongue

Since "Done" is usually in the same place on all control panel screens, maybe next time I'll try tapping that corner several times, then the general area of the "hide control panel" button, and see if it comes out of its daze. But I think we've pretty much pinned down the cause of this particular issue smile

Re: Control Panel Not Accessable

This has happened to me a couple of times as well.

- redfox1160