Leveraging the Power of Chrome OS: Crouton and Linux

As I discussed previously, Chrome OS has a lot of potential beyond its web-centric interface. If you're willing to tinker, you can switch any Chromebox or Chromebook into developer-mode and enable "deeper" access to the Linux underpinnings of the OS. From here, one can install crouton, which is a shell script that places a Linux chroot at your disposal. In short, a chroot is a segregated environment wherein one can run a guest OS inside the main OS. This lets us run a full-fledged Linux distro like Ubuntu right on top of Chrome OS.

To learn how to install crouton, take a look at this excellent guide: http://www.howtogeek.com/162120/how-to-install-ubuntu-linux-on-your-chromebook-with-crouton/
For more information on crouton and all of its features take a look at David Schneider's (crouton's developer) GitHub page: https://github.com/dnschneid/crouton

For Chromeboxes, I would suggest installing the crouton script with the following targets:
sudo sh ~/Downloads/crouton -t xiwi,extension,xfce -r trusty

This will install a chroot running Ubuntu Linux with the XFCE interface (which is very lightweight on system resources, although not as pretty looking as Unity). It also sets it up to run Ubuntu in a window in the Chrome OS interface, much like using a remote-desktop application. (that's the xiwi target). The extension target allows for cool things like universal copy-paste, etc.

If everything goes well, you get something that looks like this:

Ubuntu Linux running in a window inside Chrome OS

This "Linux in a Window" makes for a nice dual-monitor setup.


So now that we have Linux installed, our next step is to get the right apps to make it worth our while.

The first set of apps I recommend installing is WPS's office suite. Chrome OS' biggest lacking feature is a robust native editor for MS Office files. While Google's purchase of Quick-Office and subsequent absorption of its native MS editing capabilities into the Drive suite of apps is a good start, its quite lacking for complex and necessary features such as 'track changes.' The WPS suite fills this gap. http://www.wps.com/linux/

WPS Word Editor

For those of you who make use of the Citrix suite of apps to access applications at work, you'll be pleased to know that the Citrix ICA client can be installed in crouton. It works rather well with the Firefox browser.  You should note, however, that it can be a bit of a pain to get up and running.
For instructions, see here: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/CitrixICAClientHowTo or here: http://kenfallon.com/installing-citrix-reciver-on-ubuntu-14-04-lts-trusty-tahr/

Other useful apps include:

• Photo/Image Editing: GIMP
• PDF Viewing: EVince
• PDF Editing: (unfortunately, there aren't any good Linux apps for this)
• Video Editing: Pitvi

Of note, Wacom tablets will work in the chroot, now that Chrome OS has basic Wacom tablet support. I think pressure sensitivity is still off the table, however.

Hopefully, this is of some help in enhancing your Chromebox. The next in this series will discuss how to get Virtualbox up and running in crouton so you can run a full instance of Windows inside your chroot! (A bit inception-like, but hey, it works!)

Leveraging the Versatility of Chrome OS

If you take a quick glance at the general feeling towards Chrome OS, it sums up to "inexpensive, browser based operating system that looks cool, but can't do much." That's been the public's perception for the last few years, and while the outlook is positive, its not particularly reassuring. With Microsoft "reinventing" Windows at every turn, I think it's important to point out how versatile Chrome OS can be for both the average and the power user.

Chrome OS has been improving by leaps and bounds. We're up to version 41 on the stable channel and 43 on the bleeding-edge developer channel. We've got offline, fully functional web-apps (including the google office suite), a well rounded file manager, a number of system tools, several re-purposed Android apps and of course, the power of the Chrome Browser. For the casual user of a Chromebook, this is probably more than enough to exist and work on-the-go. But is it enough to be your daily driver?

I consider myself a "sort-of" power user. I scope the internet looking for all of the hardware and software tweaks I can install, but don't quite have the greatest understanding of the nitty-gritty code behind them. It makes for a somewhat dangerous undertaking (for my hardware, at least); so please be cognizant of that and your own computer skills. Modifying your hardware and installing custom software can cause loss of data and your computer itself.

Over the next few posts, I'll go over how I took my two Chromeboxes from a simple Chrome OS system to a team which runs Chrome OS, Ubuntu Linux, and Windows-- all without needing to fall back on a separate Windows computer. These Chromeboxes are my daily driver; and I don't think I'll ever need a different setup again.

How to Print With Your Chromebox (or Chrome OS Device)

Introduction

Printing from a Chromebox, or other Chrome OS device can at times be fairly frustrating. I find printing out documents to be less of an issue with my Chromebook, but I absolutely need to be able to print at home. Hence this (short) guide for the Chromebox!

Option 1: The Chrome OS way.

Chrome OS devices don't print to printers in the old-fashioned way that we are used to. Since you can't exactly install printer drivers in Chrome OS, you have to use the Google Cloud Print (GCP) method. Essentially, you take your printer and either (a) connect it directly to Google Cloud Print or (b) connect it to a computer that runs the GCP extension in Chrome (browser).

(a) There area  number of printers on the market that will connect via the internet/cloud directly to Google, including a variety of Epson and HP models. These "cloud-ready" models allow a device using GCP (like ChromeOS) to print directly to the printer via the web. This is the best way to connect a printer to your Chromebox, especially if your printer is GCP compatible.

http://www.google.com/cloudprint/learn/

(b) So your printer isn't fancy and cloud ready...  No need to worry. If you're running a separate Win/Mac/Linux computer, you can install Google Chrome and set up GCP from that device. It will locate your locally connected printer and add it your GCP list. As long as the computer that is connected to the printer is on, you can print to the attached printer.

While this works pretty well, it requires another computer to be on whenever you wan't to print. If you want to try and save power... (and computer startup time!), this method is inconvenient.

Option 2: The Tinkerer's Way

If you like to modify your devices, you've probably already upgraded the RAM or HD in your chromebox, or even installed Crouton or ChrUbuntu. For those not in the know, these are the two methods by which one can run Ubuntu Linux on a Chrome OS device. I personally am more partial to the Crouton method, primarily because it allows one to run Chrome OS and Ubuntu simultaneously.

The method described below uses this "dual nature" of Crouton.

For this method to work, you will need to have Crouton installed and have your device in developer mode.
http://www.howtogeek.com/162120/how-to-install-ubuntu-linux-on-your-chromebook-with-crouton/


The idea here will be to:
1. Have Ubuntu Linux (raring ringtail/13.04) or greater running via crouton
2. Set up a local printer in Ubuntu (USB or network printer) using CUPS (linux printing manager)
3. Install Google Chrome and set up Google Cloud Print
4. Connect your printer to GCP
5. Switch back to Chrome OS and print! Note that you will have to have Linux up and running in the background to be able to print from Chrome OS.

Once you've set up crouton and have linux up and running, set up CUPS and your printer.
The following guide is helpful: https://github.com/dnschneid/crouton/wiki/Printing
This commentary also adds more clarity: https://github.com/dnschneid/crouton/issues/143

Note that you may have to do some leg-work to find the right Linux drivers for your printer. Additionally, not all printers will play nice with Ubuntu. Google search is your friend here!

To set up GCP, install google chrome in linux (go to the chrome website and download and install the .deb package for your distro-- don't use the repositories!), then set up GCP as you would on any windows or mac computer and associate your connected printer with GCP.

Once back in Chrome OS, if you have crouton running, you should be able to print!


--------------
A yet third approach is this option, but I haven't tried it, so i personally can't comment on how it works (i'm sure it works well too!) http://brimborium.net/chromebook-crouton-ubuntu-and-printing-with-the-epson-wf-3540/

Chromebox Setback!

The process of configuring the ASUS chromebox continues!

In my previous post, I outlined my ultimate goal to convert one of my 2 ASUS chromeboxes into a dedicated linux server. Unfortunately, the article today in Ars Technica (http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2014/03/review-asus-brings-chrome-os-to-mini-pcs-in-a-low-power-inexpensive-package/) puts a bit of a damper on that.

SeaBIOS seems to be the issue here, where one can get to the boot menu but is unable to initiate booting from a USB to install a new OS. Ars notes that the issue is likely related to SeaBIOS not properly supporting xHCl (see reference above). Regardless, this is a setback to my original plans.

Time to see how much I can do with just Crouton alone...

ASUS Chromebox Review, Initial Impressions

Hmm, it's actually been close to a year since I've posted anything. But that doesn't mean my fondness for Chrome OS has ended! The past few months have seen an upgrade to the HP Chromebook 11, and now most recently, an ASUS Chromebox.

The Facts

The ASUS Chromebox is a fantastic little device. Specs are sharp and priced competitively when compared to other small-form PCs such as the Intel NUC, etc. You are looking at an Intel Celeron 2955U processor (Haswell), along with 2GB ram and a 16GB SSD. It has the usual bevy of ports- HDMI, DisplayPort, 4 USB 3.0 ports and an SD slot. WiFi and BT are also built in. It seems to be fairly easy to upgrade the internals too. (see: http://liliputing.com/2014/03/upgrade-asus-chromebox-memory-storage.html). And it is really small. Saves a ton of space on the desk.

First Impressions

I've been using the Chromebox for about a week now. I'm running a dual display setup (HDMI to one monitor and DP to DVI to the other). Sound is hardwired to a pair of Jembe Speakers, and I've attached an HD Logitech webcam and some usb port extenders. My wireless Logitech keyboard/mouse work great with it. Setup was a breeze, as is usual with Chrome devices. I enabled developer mode immediately (there is a hard switch, as compared to the keypress encoded ones on your typical chromebook), and set it up running on the beta channel (more on that later).

Chrome OS runs smoothly. Start-up time is speedy, it takes me longer to type my password in. As I write, this, I have 8 tabs open across the two screens and have Google Play music running in the background. I have noticed the occasional stutter, but this seems to occur with a lot of tabs and some of the heavier websites (the Verge,  occasionally Google +). I think that this may be  reflection of only 2GB of RAM...the Haswell processor on here should have enough juice to pull all of it off. Extended desktop works nicely and is auto-detected (no fiddling around as in earlier versions of the OS).  Standard functions such as the file manager, Google Drive, and Chrome remote desktop work smoothly as well. I've seen no issues with Pushbullet, MightyText and other extensions.

Crouton

In my mind, Chrome OS still needs a bit of backup, especially if you're a power-user like myself. There are just some things that the OS can't do yet, and so this is where Crouton comes into play. In short, Crouton is a script/tool that installs Ubuntu Linux in a 'chroot' (think of it like a virtual OS, but not), which allows you to run it alongside Chrome OS. With this, apps such as OpenOffice, GIMP, and Citrix become part of the Chrome OS experience.

Normally I run Chrome on dev channel, but I kept running into issues installing Crouton on the dev . Turns out there is a known bug, so for now, crouton only works on stable or beta. (https://github.com/dnschneid/crouton/issues/711#issuecomment-38237951). Crouton defaults to the 'Precise' flavor of Ubuntu, but I selectively installed Ubuntu 13.04 (Raring). Note that Precise does not recognize dual monitor extended displays! I don't know why this is (something to do with the X-server), but Raring works exceptionally well with dual monitor displays.

Additionally, there seems to be no noticeable change in how Chrome OS runs with Crouton running in the background, and Ubuntu flies on this device.

Summary

I highly recommend this Chromebox (if you can find it-- sold out at most places!). If you are a Chrome junkie like myself or just want a lightweight desktop experience that is web focused, this is the device for you. At $179-$200, it is a steal.

Future plans

I definitely am going to upgrade the RAM. (Have 2-2GB PC312800S DIMMs coming from amazon in a few days, so once i pop them in, I'll provide an update.) Also, I've got another one of these guys coming from Newegg-- the plan is to turn it into a linux box that will run in the background and act as a print/dropbox/gdrive server and back up files. Hopefully i'll figure out how to get a full Ubuntu install on it--- may be able to set up a chrome remote desktop into a Virtual Box install of windows-- useful for those few moments where you might need it!

My Chromebook, One Week Later

Well, its been one week with the Samsung Series 3 Chromebook, and I'm having a great time with it. In fact- its become my go to computing device.

In my last post, I described what I hoped I would be able to do with the Chromebook, and what I thought I would need to do to make it fit into my workflow.

(this is going to get lengthy, so bear with me)

Hardware Review

I won't spend too much time on this, as there are tons of reviews out there that talk about the positives and negatives of the hardware. Personally, I enjoy the small and light structure of the device. The keyboard and the trackpad are very responsive, comfortable, and easy to use. I wish the screen was brighter, but the matte coating is actually quite nice (especially outdoors). I do wish this were a Chromebook Pixel though-- the display on my Nexus 10 makes the Chromebook a bit tough to go back to after reading on it for while. Sound quality from both the speakers and the headphone jack is mediocre, but does well enough playing Pandora and Google Music.

User Interface

The Chrome Aura UI and the setup of the ChromeOS deskop is a pleasure to use. I love having the ability to pin multiple apps to launch quickly.

Google's new Hangouts extension integrates right into the taskbar, which makes multitasking and chatting that much easier. Apps (both native and web) load quickly, and I've only run into a bit of lag once or twice.

Software

Most of the Google apps work well- Gmail, Drive, Calendar, Keep etc.  As long as I have an internet connection, working on documents in Google docs is a very streamlined experience. I find I actually prefer Docs UI to Office...the ribbon interface has always turned me off. Offline editing isnt too bad... but the lack of offline spreadsheet editing is a serious negative. I've otherwise ported completely over to Drive and the Google Docs interface. Pixlr is great for your average image editing, and has helped me realize that I don't need Photoshop except for big projects.

And for everything else, there's Remote Desktop, which works acceptably well.

Summary

Despite its drawbacks, I find myself reaching for the Chromebook all the time. ChromeOS is already extremely functional and has definitely improved my daily workflow. It is leagues ahead of Android in terms of productivity, and will only continue to improve. I think Android will catch up eventually, but for now, Chrome holds the edge with document composing, editing and overall processing capability. 

My Chromebook Challenge

There is a small but steadily growing population of people who are embracing the concept of the Chromebook. The Samsung Series 3 model has been quoted as the #1 selling laptop on Amazon.com several times over the past few months; and there has been a lot of talk surrounding Google's new Chromebook Pixel.

But the question still remains: How useful is Chrome OS as a daily driver for a clinician-student? 

Over the next few weeks, I'm going to try to shed some light on that by writing about my own impressions of using the Samsung Chromebook. I emphasize that this will be MY impression-- this OS may not work as a daily driver for many people (although I think it could), and in fact, it may not even work for me. 

Starting point-- who am I and what do I need my Chromebook to do?  I'm a resident-- still living in that gray area between independently practicing medicine and learning how to do it. There is still quite a bit of studying, reading, and writing (papers, research). I was primarily using a Nexus 10 tablet with a bluetooth keyboard as my go-to device, but it felt lacking from a productivity standpoint. I strongly considered the Surface RT, but I didn't want to shell out another $500+ on a device. The Samsung Chromebook ($249) seemed like a good option to boost productivity while using my Nexus for content consumption.

My plan for the transition:

• The basics- email/calendar/tasks/ideas- already in the Google ecosystem
• Documents- mostly have been using MS Office. I'm planning to port to Google Drive, and maybe use InSync to keep local converted copies on my home computer.
• Image Editing- we will see how Pixlr works... May still need to remote desktop to Photoshop...
• PDF/reading articles- reading should be easy enough, but will have to look into what is available for PDF manipulation, annotation.
• Accessing our hospital systems-- We use Citrix, so figuring out how to get that to work on the Chromebook will be a work in progress.

For those of you already in the Chrome OS world-- I welcome your input on how best to make the transition!


(As a side note...Blogger works really well on Chrome OS)