Slackware on a Sony Vaio V505: Sony PI
Compile sonypi as a module in your kernel and type the following to create the device and set the permissions:
#mknod /dev/sonypi c 10 63add to modules.conf or modprobe.conf:
#chmod 777 /dev/sonypi
alias char-major-10-63 sonypi
options sonypi minor=63 fnkeyinit=1
Install sonyfxd or sonykeyd for the fn keys to work. spicctrl is a program you can use to change brightness and get battery info via the terminal. use sonypid to detect that the fn keys generate events or you can set klaptop to notify you on screen. in kde 3.2.0, klaptop gives options to set screen brightness manually or automatically. it can be set to detect whether the computer is running on batteries, change the brightness to a level you specify and then change back when the power supply is plugged back in. for more indepth details and further instructions click here.
