Wine-ing on about Linux

Isn't it always like this - a simple idea - I'd like to have all my CD's ripped in FLAC on a central server.

I mean, what could be simpler?

What occurs as a server is either a NAS box or a proper Linux desktop or tower. While Macs and Windows have and allow network access to their disks, it is a stretch to consider these 'servers' in the sense that I need.

So, now - what ripping software is best on Linux? Is Exact Audio Copy available on Linux? I always used that when I was back in the dark'ol Windows days. (Little aside - why would you want to operate a computer from behind a window, of all things? Much better to just get to it with all its nuts and bolts, levers and knobs, in the raw, so to speak. Not just through the little window which only lets you access a constrained view of what is going on. If you must have a dressing, then make one up of your own choosing, preferably one you can open, or look past, or replace...- edisa elttiL)

Alas, the elves in the google cloud could find no EAC for Linux, some valiant Linux bred attempts, but not any with the pedigree I was looking for. But Hallelujah - a slim sliver of hope were some reports that EAC did work on Linux in WINE. And, I need WINE soon for another project, so two stones with one bird, is what I thought, so lets take the WINE plunge.

Herewith my experience getting WINE to work on Linux Ubuntu Studio , and then, getting EAC to work in WINE.

First stop - https://wiki.winehq.org/Ubuntu - there are some fine instructions there, and I am pasting some here to track what *I* actually did for this process. But go there to see why and wherefore.

So my Ubuntu is 64 bit, of course. Speed bump #1 , allow 32bit architecture libraries and app to run.

sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386 

Then add the winhq repository so I can easily get and add it to my system using the handy-dandy apt-getter.

wget -nc https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/winehq.key

sudo apt-key add winehq.key

Argh, mistyped the URL for the add-repository, so now there is an incorrect one in the list of my added repos. (Hint - you add it again with the '--remove' option - logical, right?)

sudo apt-add-repository 'deb https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/ubuntu/ eoan main'

sudo apt update

sudo apt install --install-recommends winehq-stable

fore!

The Wine User's Guide says that Wine should work without any additional configuration, and try 'wine notepad'

Which does something, and then shows a dialog box asking to install wine-mono. Which wine can do, or I should do using my distribution package manager instead. But not my distribution package manager - the wine distribution package manager, but not clue what to do if I did want to do that. Sigh - so let wine do it from the dialog box that alerted me in the first place. Then, as I was messing about trying to figure all that out, the Notepad window pops up - it had given up waiting for .net to start, apparently, and went ahead anyway. Seems to be functional without the missing parts.

But, exiting and starting it again has no error dialog show up, and the window does pop open in short order. So wine is up and running.

Now, how to add EAC to this environment... it seems to be as simple as prefixing the name of the app with the wine command... can it be that simple???

wine eac-1.4.exe 

like that!

It does install, and even creates a usable desktop icon on the Linux desktop. However, the CDDB is not accessed, and if I start a rip, it asks for the destination folder, then spins up the CD, and gets an Unhanded Exception, and unceremoniously exits.

Ah, yes - there is an entry in the AppDB that states that EAC does not work EXCEPT with the NATIVE .NET 2.0 libraries. (Here it is https://appdb.winehq.org/objectManager.php?sClass=version&iId=34535&iTestingId=106762)

So, off I go to install winetricks, and run that. I use it to un-install wine-mono, and then tell it to install dotnet20 vcrun2008. However, I fail to do it as WINEARCH=win32, so I will see if it works as such. Many warnings that mixingf 64 and 32 bit architecture is 'bad news'

However, it all seems to complete, and voila, EAC now works as expected.