On changing Linux server configurations...

Today's reboot was a success. The TV tuner card is now firmly embedded in my network. Thus far not a single frame of video has appeared. I'm saving the configuration for another day. Reason being: I need to recompile the modules (drivers) for it. That sounds really scary but it's just a matter of knowing the special incantation to make it work. This will require some browsing of my notes from the ol' kernel compiling days.

Once I've run the commands to compile the modules I will just need to load them into the system and the card should become active. At least that's my expectation. Rebooting should not be required unless a core-level kernel change is required. If that's the case I will likely take the opportunity to get a new kernel to run the drivers. Should everything go according to plan the next step will be adopting the ALSA subsystem for my environmental audio.

Music rotation is now being handled by "moosic", a free program that can slice and dice a playlist any way you like. A few of my script wrappers are getting updated to reflect the changes. This system should allow me to create multiple ongoing streams, like radio stations, and push them out on any device (to multiple sets of speakers) or to the Internet in real time.

UPDATE! The server experienced it's first crash ever. The user space halted as a result of either overheating or electrical disturbances caused by the tuner card. This card is pretty much junk, so it has been removed from the network. Good thing I didn't invest all day in this. Whew!