December 2009 - wlug - list.wlug.org.nz

Remote adminstration
by cmoman 05 Oct '10

05 Oct '10

Hello all, Is there a tool in ubuntu that a user can start that reports the real world ip address and configures a home router to open a port to allow remote administration? I have a friend or two for whom it would nice to get them to start a program, report to me the details via MSN or Skype or telephone etc and allow me to log in and fix or make a configuration change to their machine. I know how to set things up using ssh etc but that relies on some initial configuration at the their end. KDE has a nice VNC invite function but it won't do the router config part. It appears the likes of KTorrent and Azuereus have the ability to do some to the router via UPnP to open ports up on the router dynamically so I am guessing all this is possible. Cheers

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Rsync and Samba
by Cameron Rangeley 21 Dec '09

21 Dec '09

Hi Guys I am running two RHEL boxes, each day I am rsyncing some data from my primary server to my secondary server. I am rsyncing the entire /home partition. On my primary server there are about 8 samba shares for data that the clients can access all the samba shares point to various sub-directories within /home. My issue is that on my secondary server I cant connect to the shares from a windows workstation. My smb.conf file is exactly the same as my primary server and to test I have created a test mount in /mnt/test and I can connect to that fine. It appears that the issue is all around the fact that these directories that have been created with rsync. My rsync command is: rsync -arzgopulv --delete /home root(a)192.168.9.2:/ My smbd.log file says: '/home/folder/folder/folder does not exist or permission denied when connecting to [akemail] Error was Permission denied. I can see the folder in samba I have forced the user as root and I have chmodded the folder to 777. Access from the console to these files and folders works fine. Has anyone got any other ideas that I can try? Thanks Cameron

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Multi function scanner permissions
by Ron Dean 15 Dec '09

15 Dec '09

I have a Brother MFC-260c multifunction printer scanner fax It prints OK but the scanner only operates under root What steps do I take to alter the permissions on the scanner and how do I find out the correct path when I change permissions it is connected through usb -- Ron Dean 2 Shannon Place Nawton Hamilton Ph 8493904

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Python syntax
by Chris O'Halloran 14 Dec '09

14 Dec '09

Hello all, Here is a bit of code that I am getting my head around. It's out of a book that I am using to teach myself matplotlib, a python library for making graphs etc. The following code is using an object-orientated approach in preparation for embedding the graph within an GUI application. <code> #!/usr/bin/env python # -*- coding: utf-8 -*- import matplotlib.pyplot as plt import numpy as np x = np.arange(0, 10, 0.1) y = np.random.randn(len(x)) fig = plt.figure() ax = fig.add_subplot(111) l, = plt.plot(x, y) t = ax.set_title('random numbers') plt.show() </code> The line l, = plt.plot(x, y) has got me slighty confused because l = plt.plot(x, y) also works, without the trailing comma after the l I was wondering if any Python coders might comment to the comma's significance. I've scanned my four books on Python and can't find any reference. Cheers, Chris

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Knoppix
by jaytee＠clear.net.nz 11 Dec '09

11 Dec '09

Hello all, Here is a question from another forum that no one seems to be able to answer. Does any of our know what can be done as I have had similar issues with knoppix of late. Tried no acpi with difference.. Regards John Hi, I've had a copy of Knoppix for years. I think it is version 3, anyway it is several years old and works well. I thought i'd update it and so downloaded 6.2 CD. When it booted up it goes to a text interface.I looked through the options and it had a graphical version of firefox listed so I tried that and it started loading but then the monitor went into standby. So I then downloaded the DVD. It started booting, started loading the interface and the same happened. The monitor went into standby. It loads the first screen with the linux logo in the top left and starts loading things like Hal and Sound with a green loading bar. Then it had a couple of lines of text (root(a)....) Then it goes to a black sreen with the cursor in the top left and after a couple of seconds the monitor turns off. The disk is still loading. I've had a surf and tried a few cheatcodes (screen=800x600, vga=0, vsync=60 etc) but i'm not really sure what i'm doing. Is it a known issue and does anyone know how to fix it? __________________ Cheers, Degs

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Openmoko Freerunner A6 for sale
by Matt Brown 06 Dec '09

06 Dec '09

Hi, Is anyone interested in buying one of the Openmoko open source phones to play with? I know they've been hard/expensive to get in NZ, so this may be your chance... I'm selling my Freerunner. I purchased it from Pulster over a year ago and used it for several months before I received an Android phone and sadly my Freerunner has been sitting gathering dust since then. I'd rather someone who had the time was using it for something useful, so I'm putting it on the market. It's in excellent condition: GTA02 A6 - Serial 8A8810247 - Original box - Charger with foreign adaptors - 512MB microSD card and SD card adapter No USB cable (missing in shipment from Pulster) No Stylus/Laser pen (lost) I purchased the phone for around 400 euro a year ago, and have barely used it. I'll consider any reasonable NZD offer for it. I'm in Hamilton until the end of the year and can deliver to the local area or arrange for you to pick up the phone. Replies by private mail please. -- Matt Brown matt(a)mattb.net.nz Mob +353 86 608 7117 www.mattb.net.nz

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HP laptop power socket needed
by Bryce Utting 05 Dec '09

05 Dec '09

Hi all, Finally got around to poking around in my dead nx5000. just a wild guess here, but I kinda suspect that if a plug has 18+V on it yet the socket only meters at 0.56V across its terminals when the plug's in it, then there's possibly a -slight- chance the socket needs replacing... (especially since I noticed arcs from the socket shortly before it stopped booting) Anyone have any useful parts? should be able to get a photo up once I've charged some batteries. would prefer not to drop a DSE part in, since while the plug's a standard 2.5mm-ish one, the socket's got two ground lugs to each side, and are probably needed for structural reasons. (yep, will stop by Jaycar. would like to close it all back up reasonably soonish though so I can get my table back!) ta, butting

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Digital Cameras and Linux
by Chris O'Halloran 03 Dec '09

03 Dec '09

Hello all, I know there are some photography enthusiasts on this list. I am considering purchasing a digital SLR camera. I bought a film based SLR camera about 6 years ago but it would seem it is time to move on. The previous camera was a Nikon F55 and I had purchased a few filters and a 300mm telephoto lens. Even though it was an entry level camera, I was generally happy with the quality of the images. In previous reading on this topic, I understand the opinion varies amongst manufacturers on the various file formats and how well they allow the RAW file formats to be extracted from the camera. The two brands I am mostly considering at this stage are Nikon and Canon. Would anyone care to comment if a Linux user is likely to have a preference for either and/or if there is another brand that is very Linux friendly? I like the idea of a camera that uses SD cards and possibly conventional batteries but that requirement isn't hard n fast. Additionally if there is some way to use my legacy 300m telephoto lens, that would also be cool but I'm resigned to it being incompatible. Thanks for any thoughts offered, just thought I'd ask. Cheers, Chris

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performance difference between a swap partition vs a swap file >>>>>
by Narender 03 Dec '09

03 Dec '09

I have done a lot of research, but I do not have any real world experience so I'm hoping you can help me understand the real world differences in performance. The research tells me that if you create a swap file on an empty disk and on a OS using kernel 2.6 then the performance differences are minor, but that the swap partition is a slight favorite in terms of pure performance. Our Scenario: Raid 1 146GB partition 33GB Swap File created on / (Note: the swap file was created when the OS was built, so the hard drives were not full and they were very empty) Kernel 2.6 Best Regards N

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