How to get started with Tao Framework using C#

The Tao Framework is a .Net wrapper library for the OpenGL, GLU, FreeGLUT and Cg libraries. It is now deprecated and its functionality has been superseded by the OpenTK project. However, it is perfect for writing simple OpenGL or GLUT programs in .Net languages like C#.

Getting started on the Tao Framework using C# is easy:

  1. Download and install the last version of Tao Framework from here. The installer will add its .Net assemblies to the GAC.
  2. Create an empty C# console application project in Visual Studio.
  3. Add references to Tao.OpenGL.dll and Tao.FreeGLUT.dll to the project. These files can be found in C:\Program Files (x86)\TaoFramework\bin
  4. Paste the source code given below into the C# source file.
  5. Copy FreeGLUT.dll from C:\Program Files (x86)\TaoFramework\lib to directory of the generated EXE file.
  6. Run the program. You should see a grey teapot!
  7. Whether you are porting an existing C or C++ OpenGL application or writing your own, it should be easy to build upon this program.


Tried with: Tao Framework 2.1.0, Visual Studio 2012 and Windows 7 x64

My Weather Indicator for Ubuntu

Ubuntu ships with a weather indicator application. But, there has been at least one computer I’ve used on which it would just not accept any city as input to show its weather. Also, you may be interested in seeing more weather statistics than the simple ones shown by the default weather application.

My Weather Indicator is a good alternate weather application and indicator for Ubuntu. It shows far more statistics, for example dawn and dusk times and many more like that. It is also far more customizable with many settings.

To install it, first add the repository ppa:atareao/atareao. Do an update and install it using the package name my-weather-indicator.

Tried with: My Weather Indicator 0.6.3 and Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

MediaInfo

mediainfo is a commandline program that can be used to find out information about audio and video files. It displays all the information about the codec, format and bitrate. It also displays information like the title, album and so on, if it is present in the metadata or tags of the file.

It can be installed easily by using the package name mediainfo.

Tried with: MediaInfo 0.7.52 and Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

The file program

file is one of those Linux utilities that is not popular, but useful to know. It reads the magic pattern of a file and determines the type of the file. It might be useful to try on files that you come across with no extensions or with extensions that you are not familiar with.

Tried with: Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

How to get started with OpenTK using IronPython

OpenTK is a .Net library that provides a wrapper to OpenGL, OpenCL and OpenAL. Here are the first steps to get started using it with IronPython:

  1. Download and install OpenTK. The .Net assembly files of OpenTK can be found in its OpenTK\1.0\Binaries\OpenTK\Release directory.
  2. Create an empty IronPython solution in Visual Studio.
  3. Place OpenTK.dll in the directory of the Python source file.
  4. Paste the source code given below into the Python source file.
  5. Run. You should see a colored triangle. Press ESC to quit.


Tried with: OpenTK 1.0, IronPython 2.7.3, Visual Studio Express 2012 and Windows 7 x64

Mount ISO files on Windows 7 using Virtual CloneDrive

A lot of software is available as ISO files and most folks would like to install this directly without having to go through the hassle of burning a DVD. This can be done by mounting the ISO file as a drive and installing from that drive.

Windows 7 does not include the capability to mount a ISO file, but there are tools that offer this feature. The best I have found is Virtual CloneDrive. Download it, install it and any time you need to mount a ISO file, right-click it and choose Mount. When you are done and unmount it by clicking on the Virtual CloneDrive icon in the system tray.

Tried with: Virtual CloneDrive 5.4.6.0 and Windows 7 x64