- wlug - list.wlug.org.nz

Nearly fully open source phone
by Ian McDonald 08 Nov '06

08 Nov '06

http://lwn.net/Articles/208298/rss I want one! -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Re: [wlug] Problems with sending email
by David 08 Nov '06

08 Nov '06

Date: Tue, 07 Nov 2006 18:49:26 +1300 From: "Ron Dean" <rvdean(a)ihug.co.nz> Subject: [wlug] Problems with sending email To: "Waikato Linux Users Group" <wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz> Message-ID: <op.tims4o04uq6lqx(a)ron-desktop> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; delsp=yes; charset=utf-8 I have thuderbird and Evolution Installed on Ubuntu 6.10 and am able to receive mail but am unable to send inspite of giving them the correct password. When I type it in it just re asks me for the password. I wondered if it was a bug that the two programs had in common as I am able to send Email with Opera in Ubuntu 6.10. This problem seemed to come after I had upgraded from the upgrade icon a few days ago. Ron Dean Read their home page status report. (Ihug) They have had problems due to a large quantity of spam being received. You have to chane some setting in the E-mail client. Below is their instructions for Thunderbird, Evolution was similar Thunderbird: Go to “Tools” --> “Account Settings”, click on the "Outgoing server (SMTP)" field. Depending on your version you will either then un-tick “Use name and password” or click edit then un-tick “Use name and password”. Then “OK” out of those screens.

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Warren Hughes (IBM) is on leave Wed Nov 7
by Warren Hughes 07 Nov '06

07 Nov '06

I will be out of the office starting 08/11/2006 and will not return until 09/11/2006. Hi, thanks for your email. I'm out of the office today and returning tomorrow Thursday Nov 8. Talk to you then, Warren

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Integration with Active Directory and Exchange 2003
by Ian McDonald 07 Nov '06

07 Nov '06

This might be of interest to some people: http://www.osnews.com/story.php?news_id=16412 I had a quick look at it. Never heard of most of it in the Active Directory parts and don't know what license etc it is using. Might be of interest to people working with AD though. -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Problems with sending email
by Ron Dean 07 Nov '06

07 Nov '06

I have thuderbird and Evolution Installed on Ubuntu 6.10 and am able to receive mail but am unable to send inspite of giving them the correct password. When I type it in it just re asks me for the password. I wondered if it was a bug that the two programs had in common as I am able to send Email with Opera in Ubuntu 6.10. This problem seemed to come after I had upgraded from the upgrade icon a few days ago. Ron Dean -- Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/

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Giveaways & freecycling
by Craig Box 07 Nov '06

07 Nov '06

I have one XL Software Freedom Day 2006 t-shirt from September. If anyone wants it, please let me know. Preference will of course be given to those who were there on the day. I also have an Epson Color Stylus 760 printer, free to a good home. Pick up from Hillcrest. Please e-mail me off list for both items. Craig

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Re: [wlug] [SPAM] Re: Two flavour install partioning?
by GJB 06 Nov '06

06 Nov '06

Wanker here again. Okay, thanks a lot Chris, that's really helpful. I admit I was suprised no one suggested I do a e2fsk before disk partioning since this used to be standard practice back in the day when I last fuzzily recall doing this kind of thing. So everything seems to be set-up for the disk partioning exercise now and I've got the go ahead on disabling the DMA but the question I now have is there seems to be two options; Do I i) merely make some free space available for Xubu (i.e. just shrink current root (/) and let the Xubu installation decided how to do the actual pationing and naming or ii) set up some partions for Xubu and a boot sector for it (actually will I even need two boot sectors for two linux flavours?) and tell it where to go? If/when a new root directory is made for Xubu will it named root (/) also? Can you have two sector named root(/) on the same hard drive? Thanx for any and all suggestions, Greg > -------- Original Message -------- > Subject: [SPAM] Re: [wlug] Two flavour install partioning? > From: "Chris O'Halloran" <cmoman(a)gmail.com> > Date: Sun, November 05, 2006 8:48 pm > To: "Waikato Linux Users Group" <wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz> > > On 05/11/06, GJB <balle(a)auspira.com> wrote: > > > > Okay, it seems I should apologise, I expect whoever called me a wanker to do > > the same of course. > > > > There seems to be a huge misunderstanding here, my apologies for that. My > > comment to Matt wasn't intended as a "bite" (what does that mean?). > > I merely said in a somewhat rural vernacular that it was a "bum stare" (we > > are in waikato right?), i.e. the advice didn't work for me, not any > > reflection on Matt. > > And yes I know all about the "free advice is worth what you pay for it" > > thingy, I have picked up a few useful tips lurking here and that is > > appreciated. > > Messing with disk partions is hair raising stuff for the DIYer, once in a > > decade partitioner, linux user who values his data for his livelihood, it > > was late, etc. > > Anyway no-one, except Matt, has actually offered any useful suggestions on > > what the problem maybe or even queried what my hardware maybe really be as > > to where to go from here so I'm not expecting anybody to come up with > > anything. I cannot for the life of me see how armchair sysadmin types can > > diagnose harddisk partioning problems without knowing the hardware of the > > drive they are advising towards. If I have any criticism of anybody, this > > would be it. No malice intended, just a technical point and that perhaps > > there should be some more caution on that side of it. > > > > Back to the technical issue at hand. So yes Matt I did check the md5sum of > > the CD image before the burn but had become skeptical of the burn itself, is > > there anyway of checking the md5sum of the iso image once it is on the CD? > > From > http://www.g-loaded.eu/2006/10/07/verify-a-burned-cddvd-image-on-linux/ > > The method below assumes the iso image is called sep2006.iso > > <quote> > So, getting back to the md5 sum calculations, you can get the on-disk > image's md5 sum with the following: > $ cat sep2006.iso | md5sum > cc363de222ba6fe7455258e72b6c26ca - > > The final step is to calculate the md5 sum of the burned data. The dd > command can be used to read the DVD, but the crucial part is that dd > must read as much data as the size of the ISO image. Otherwise, it is > almost certain that you'll get a false negative about the quality of > the copy. > Data is written on a CD/DVD in blocks of size: 2048 bytes. The number > of the written blocks is the number of extents mkisofs had printed to > the stdout when creating the ISO image. The following command > instructs dd to read 169383 blocks, 2048 bytes each, and pipe it to > md5sum: > $ dd if=/dev/hdc bs=2048 count=169383 | md5sum > 169383+0 records in > 169383+0 records out > cc363de222ba6fe7455258e72b6c26ca - > > </quote> > > Similary the method above assumes the CD/DVD drive is /dev/hdc. > > > > > > > > Regardless of that, I found the problem with sysrescdd was I had to disable > > the DMA for the sysresccd to boot up cleanly. Others may want to note this, > > maybe not. This raises the further questions now: > > > > i) Is disabling the DMA before doing hard disk partitioning a safe thing to > > do? Qtparted seems to give me a GUI and recognises my current partion so > > that's encouraging. > > Disabling DMA is generally safer, it's just slower and in the case of > partitioning I can't see it making the slightest bit of difference. > It's a technology that allows disk data to be loaded directly into the > RAM bypassing the CPU. If DMA is causing problems, then disabling DMA > won't make them worse. The CPU will just have to manage the transfer > of the data. > > > > ii) Oh yeah, shouldn't I be doing an e2fsck before doing any disk > > partioning? > > I can't advise if is necessary but its probably a sensible precaution. > > But, have you made backup of your critical data? If you aren't > prepared to do that it might be better looking to install Xubuntu on a > separate harddrive. > > > > > > > > For now I'm getting up the gumption to screw around with the partions and > > make room for Xubu. > > Thnx for any help so far, particularly Matt. > > > > Greg > > > > > > > -------- Original Message -------- > > > Subject: Re: [wlug] Two flavour install partioning? > > > From: "Chris O'Halloran" <cmoman(a)gmail.com> > > > Date: Sun, November 05, 2006 2:50 pm > > > To: "Waikato Linux Users Group" <wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz> > > > > > > Similarly, > > > > > > Greg, LUG's are voluntary associations of people with a common > > > interest in Linux and more generally open source software. Technical > > > questions to the list are welcome because we all share a general > > > interest in promoting and enjoying the use of open source software. > > > There are no commerical interests or obligations within the WLUG. > > > > > > You volunteered a question. Matt, a well established and knowledgeable > > > member of the WLUG (possibly a founder?) tried to assist you. Your > > > criticism of his advice is unwarranted. I would encourage you to > > > reconsider your criticism and offer an apology if you would like > > > anyone to consider responding to your questions in future. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On 05/11/06, jaytee(a)clear.net.nz <jaytee(a)clear.net.nz> wrote: > > > > I Agree, > > > > It serves no purpose biting people who are trying to > > > > be helpful. > > > > Regards John > > > > > > > > ----- Original Message Follows ----- > > > > > I think you owe Matt an apology, your reply was rude and I > > > > > honestly don't think you will be getting better free > > > > > support from anywhere else.. > > > > > > > > > > Matts suggestion was completely on par with what you would > > > > > get from anyone else.. id suggest an apology and no longer > > > > > being such a wanker to people who are trying their best to > > > > > help you. > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > wlug mailing list | wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz > > > > Unsubscribe: http://list.waikato.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/wlug > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > wlug mailing list | wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz > > > Unsubscribe: http://list.waikato.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/wlug > > > > _______________________________________________ > > wlug mailing list | wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz > > Unsubscribe: http://list.waikato.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/wlug > > > > _______________________________________________ > wlug mailing list | wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz > Unsubscribe: http://list.waikato.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/wlug

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Re: [wlug] Two flavour install partioning?
by GJB 05 Nov '06

05 Nov '06

Okay, it seems I should apologise, I expect whoever called me a wanker to do the same of course. There seems to be a huge misunderstanding here, my apologies for that. My comment to Matt wasn't intended as a "bite" (what does that mean?). I merely said in a somewhat rural vernacular that it was a "bum stare" (we are in waikato right?), i.e. the advice didn't work for me, not any reflection on Matt. And yes I know all about the "free advice is worth what you pay for it" thingy, I have picked up a few useful tips lurking here and that is appreciated. Messing with disk partions is hair raising stuff for the DIYer, once in a decade partitioner, linux user who values his data for his livelihood, it was late, etc. Anyway no-one, except Matt, has actually offered any useful suggestions on what the problem maybe or even queried what my hardware maybe really be as to where to go from here so I'm not expecting anybody to come up with anything. I cannot for the life of me see how armchair sysadmin types can diagnose harddisk partioning problems without knowing the hardware of the drive they are advising towards. If I have any criticism of anybody, this would be it. No malice intended, just a technical point and that perhaps there should be some more caution on that side of it. Back to the technical issue at hand. So yes Matt I did check the md5sum of the CD image before the burn but had become skeptical of the burn itself, is there anyway of checking the md5sum of the iso image once it is on the CD? Regardless of that, I found the problem with sysrescdd was I had to disable the DMA for the sysresccd to boot up cleanly. Others may want to note this, maybe not. This raises the further questions now: i) Is disabling the DMA before doing hard disk partitioning a safe thing to do? Qtparted seems to give me a GUI and recognises my current partion so that's encouraging. ii) Oh yeah, shouldn't I be doing an e2fsck before doing any disk partioning? For now I'm getting up the gumption to screw around with the partions and make room for Xubu. Thnx for any help so far, particularly Matt. Greg > -------- Original Message -------- > Subject: Re: [wlug] Two flavour install partioning? > From: "Chris O'Halloran" <cmoman(a)gmail.com> > Date: Sun, November 05, 2006 2:50 pm > To: "Waikato Linux Users Group" <wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz> > > Similarly, > > Greg, LUG's are voluntary associations of people with a common > interest in Linux and more generally open source software. Technical > questions to the list are welcome because we all share a general > interest in promoting and enjoying the use of open source software. > There are no commerical interests or obligations within the WLUG. > > You volunteered a question. Matt, a well established and knowledgeable > member of the WLUG (possibly a founder?) tried to assist you. Your > criticism of his advice is unwarranted. I would encourage you to > reconsider your criticism and offer an apology if you would like > anyone to consider responding to your questions in future. > > > > > > On 05/11/06, jaytee(a)clear.net.nz <jaytee(a)clear.net.nz> wrote: > > I Agree, > > It serves no purpose biting people who are trying to > > be helpful. > > Regards John > > > > ----- Original Message Follows ----- > > > I think you owe Matt an apology, your reply was rude and I > > > honestly don't think you will be getting better free > > > support from anywhere else.. > > > > > > Matts suggestion was completely on par with what you would > > > get from anyone else.. id suggest an apology and no longer > > > being such a wanker to people who are trying their best to > > > help you. > > > > _______________________________________________ > > wlug mailing list | wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz > > Unsubscribe: http://list.waikato.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/wlug > > > > _______________________________________________ > wlug mailing list | wlug(a)list.waikato.ac.nz > Unsubscribe: http://list.waikato.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/wlug

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Re: [wlug] Two flavour install partioning?
by GJB 05 Nov '06

05 Nov '06

actually, now I think about it, the correct turn of phrase is spelt "bum steer" ... as in a bad animal that one might buy at the sales from time to time. which it wasn't thus far ... so no harm done, yet.

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Re: [wlug] Two flavour install partioning?
by jaytee＠clear.net.nz 05 Nov '06

05 Nov '06

I Agree, It serves no purpose biting people who are trying to be helpful. Regards John ----- Original Message Follows ----- > I think you owe Matt an apology, your reply was rude and I > honestly don't think you will be getting better free > support from anywhere else.. > > Matts suggestion was completely on par with what you would > get from anyone else.. id suggest an apology and no longer > being such a wanker to people who are trying their best to > help you.

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(no subject)
by Leslie Katz 05 Nov '06

05 Nov '06

What about a Knoppix live cd as a way into repartitioning? It may work even if sysrecord doesn't.

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Two flavour install partioning?
by GJB 04 Nov '06

04 Nov '06

Well Matt, the sysresccd was a bum stare. How many times have you actually used this utility on pre-Millenial Dell laptops? Segmentation Fault untarring the hotplug firmware and unceremoniously hung. Perhaps some more caution before bandying advice about third party disk tools? I was expecting at least a hardware question or two but your misplaced confidence spurred me on. Anybody else got ideas for disk partioning utilities for a Dell '99 era laptop, only ever had linux redhat on it? See previous discussion for what I'm wanting to do. Greg

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Two flavour install partitioning?
by GJB 04 Nov '06

04 Nov '06

Hello all, a longtime lurker here, I have an old Dell Laptop that has faithfully run various versions of Redhat over the years. The current hardrive in it has Rh7.3 that I'd like to keep on there for a while yet but I'd also like to put Xubuntu on the same hard drive, tried out the CD test and like it. The drive is currently partitioned with a separate boot, swap space and rest on root (/), all ext3 and no other system has ever been near it ;). Several questions arise: i) can I adjust the partitions of the hardrive to shrink the current root (/), create a new partion to install the Xubunutu on and set-up GRUB bootloader to give me a choice of which system to boot from? Is the best tool to do this fdisk or is there something else out now? ii) will I risk losing any of the current data in "/"? (As always will do a full system back-up first but what's the chances?) iii) will the systems need separate swap drive partitions or will Xubunutu recognise the current swap partition set-up? (No idea if or where config for this would be) iv) can i also partition a new section for to mount the current /home that both systems will then recognise as the new /home? (Just mount table config here I'm picking) Thanx for any help, Greg

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Ubuntu 6.10 login problem
by John Torrance 03 Nov '06

03 Nov '06

Thanks for the advice I tried alt control F1 which gave me a command line - and allowed me to log in to a console, however, as I was typing the commands, it then automatically went back to the graphical interface. I then loggin in using the recovery mode which allowed me to run the sudo aptitude update sudo aptitude dist-upgrade this seemed to run until it listed a syntax error with "freemed" which might be an application I tried to install in the past - it then exited back to the command line. When I rebooted, it gave me the same screen - however, it tried to go past it, the screen would flash blank then white and then back to the cream blank screen. Eventually it popped up a box with: "The greeter application appears to be crashing - attempting to use a different one" After I clicked OK, the same thing happened - eventually sticking on the blank cream screen again. Any ideas?

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Microsoft and Novell sign agreement
by Ian McDonald 03 Nov '06

03 Nov '06

Seems to be about patent protection etc. Haven't had a good read but this shows Linux is moving to next level in my opinion! (i.e. proprietary vendors have to co-operate) http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&ObjectID=10409018 -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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ubuntu 6.10 login problem
by John Torrance 03 Nov '06

03 Nov '06

John Torrance wrote: > > I have upgraded my ubuntu to 6.10. The problem is that after the logo, > > the login freezes with a blank cream coloured screen prior to the login > > stage. Does anyone know how to remedy this? > > > Does it eventually get to the login screen or not? It's not obvious from your post. Sorry, I should have been more specific - no, it just hangs - I am unable to log on hence my concern. I could do a fresh install but then I would loose everything on the computer. Thanks for the advice John, but I am an illiterate and the logs, even if I could work out how to boot into safe mode, would be meaningless. With regard to the Graphics card however, the computer has always run fine with all the previous Ubuntu releases that I have used Cheers John

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Fwd: Looking for prospective contacts within Hamilton IT
by Chris O'Halloran 02 Nov '06

02 Nov '06

Greetings. I have a flatmate who is becoming rather disallusioned with his present job. He is from the UK and came here to work in transport planning. The job hasn't materialised quite the way it was sold to him when he first applied for the position. So he's looking to move on and so he's looking for contacts within the IT sector/transport planning Waikato realm. Briefly he lists his skills as: Software testing - Manual and automated Developing user and process guides training prototyping code in Delphi 6 basic Delphi 6 Extensive MS Excel Spreadsheet development Extensive VBA Macro Code in MS Excel VBA Macros in Powerpoint Visual Basis 6 MAP Info GIS software IT support for MS office IT support for MS Windows various manipulations using text editors Database development in MS Access custom pedestrian simulation software EMME2 Transport modelling software Consultancy Proposal writing to win work I am really looking for potential contacts in various organisations that could use his skills. Thoughts appreciated. Chris

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Comparing GIMP and Krita
by Ian McDonald 01 Nov '06

01 Nov '06

Krita (KDE graphics editor) has had a bit of publicity recently so this is worth having a look at comparing the features. http://www.linux.com/article.pl?sid=06/10/25/1950242 I'm starting to like KOffice a bit now as the different applications in it start to mature. Ian -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Countdown to linux.conf.au 2007: 75 DAYS TO GO
by Craig Box 01 Nov '06

01 Nov '06

The programme for LCA2007 has been published, and registrations are open. Here's the e-mail on the subject. - Craig Countdown to linux.conf.au 2007 =============================== 75 DAYS TO GO News: 1) Registrations have opened, with early bird discounts available until mid November! Due to issues with our payment gateway that have delayed this announcement, we will not be able to accept payment immediately. Please register, and as soon as our credit card facilities are up and running, we will contact you for payment. http://lists.linux.org.au/archives/lca-announce/2006-November/msg00000.html http://lca2007.linux.org.au/Registration 2) The linux.conf.au 2007 programme has been published! By all accounts, it is completely awesome. We've tried very hard to avoid terribly obvious clashes, but with so many exceptional topics and speakers, there will be the inevitable desire to see three or more things at once. Do *not* try this at home. Complete information about the talks and speakers will be up soon -- we just wanted to whet your appetite first. :-) http://lists.linux.org.au/archives/lca-announce/2006-November/msg00001.html http://lca2007.linux.org.au/Programme 3) Our first round of sponsors have confirmed their support! Sponsorship is crucial for a volunteer-run, non-profit conference such as ours, to ensure that we can fly in excellent speakers from around the world, to have fantastic venue, and for all the... extra-curricular activities! http://lca2007.linux.org.au/Sponsors Join the linux.conf.au announce mailing list for important announcements: http://lists.linux.org.au/listinfo/lca-announce Thanks, - Jeff Waugh The Seven Team -- linux.conf.au 2007: Sydney, Australia http://lca2007.linux.org.au/ _______________________________________________ linux-aus mailing list linux-aus(a)lists.linux.org.au http://lists.linux.org.au/listinfo/linux-aus

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Help Please
by John Torrance 01 Nov '06

01 Nov '06

I have upgraded my ubuntu to 6.10. The problem is that after the logo, the login freezes with a blank cream coloured screen prior to the login stage. Does anyone know how to remedy this? Much appreciated John

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WebMail - broken url
by stephen＠heyste.com 01 Nov '06

01 Nov '06

Hi, Webmail url - https://secure.wlug.org.nz/squirrelmail/ looks to be broken. TIA, Stephen

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Introducing 'Iceweasel' and 'Icedove'
by Simon Green 01 Nov '06

01 Nov '06

>From this weeks Debian Weekly News: "Firefox becomes Iceweasel. Due to trademark [47]issues the Debian project felt impelled to rename the Firefox web browser to Iceweasel and the Thunderbird mail client to Icedove. Roberto Sanchez [48]explained that the new packages don't contain non-free artwork from the [49]Mozilla Foundation and that security updates will be properly backported. The trademark [50]policy requires that such packages are not distributed under the original name, hence the new names. 47. http://lists.debian.org/debian-legal/2004/12/msg00328.html 48. http://lists.debian.org/debian-devel/2006/10/msg00665.html 49. http://www.mozilla.org/foundation/ 50. http://www.mozilla.org/foundation/trademarks/policy.html " Personally, I see this as the death of debian as a desktop distribution. Ubuntu 6.10 (which includes the non-free logo for the first time) suggests Ubuntu won't be following Debian footsteps in the renaming, thankfully. -- simon

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Lost property at the last meeting
by Jamie Curtis 01 Nov '06

01 Nov '06

Hi, I've just been asked by the University if anyone from WLUG left a small suitcase at the last meeting on Monday. If it's yours and you would like to claim it, message me off list and I'll put you in contact with the right person. Cheers, Jamie

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Ubuntu 6.10
by John Torrance 31 Oct '06

31 Oct '06

I have upgraded my ubuntu to 6.10. The problem is that after the logo, the login freezes with a blank cream coloured screen prior to the login stage. Does anyone know how to remedy this? Much appreciated John

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XFN
by Chris O'Halloran 31 Oct '06

31 Oct '06

interesting link regarding hyperlinks on blogs or any personal website to assisted in identifying social networks http://gmpg.org/xfn/and/

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Article on Ubuntu server setup
by Ian McDonald 30 Oct '06

30 Oct '06

This article claims to help you setup the "perfect" Ubuntu server: http://www.howtoforge.com/perfect_setup_ubuntu_6.10 -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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REMINDER: WLUG meeting tonight!
by Meeting Reminder Bot 29 Oct '06

29 Oct '06

There's a WLUG meeting tonight: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 7:30pm, TW.2.07 (http://www.wlug.org.nz/TW) as usual. PerryLorier will talk about http://www.wlug.org.nz/Plan9 (from BellLabs), the follow-up to http://www.wlug.org.nz/UNIX worked on by the original http://www.wlug.org.nz/UNIX authors and other luminaries.

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Announcing Ubuntu 6.10
by Simon Green 27 Oct '06

27 Oct '06

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Tollef Fog Heen <tfheen(a)ubuntu.com> Date: 26-Oct-2006 23:11 Subject: Announcing Ubuntu 6.10 The Ubuntu team is proud to announce the release of Ubuntu 6.10, codenamed "Edgy Eft". This release includes both installable Desktop CDs and alternate text-mode installation CDs for several architectures. Ubuntu is a Linux distribution for your desktop or server, with a fast and easy install, regular releases, a tight selection of excellent packages installed by default, every other package you can imagine available with a few clicks, and professional technical support from Canonical Limited and hundreds of other companies around the world. Ubuntu 6.10 will be supported for 18 months on both desktops and servers. Note that the previous stable release (6.06 LTS) is a long-term support release, and so users requiring a longer support lifetime may choose to continue using that version rather than upgrade to or install 6.10. To Get Ubuntu 6.10 ------------------ Download Ubuntu 6.10 here: New Zealand: http://nz.releases.ubuntu.com/ubuntu-releases/6.10/ ... To burn these CD images, you will need 700MB media. Ubuntu 6.10 media can also be purchased from a number of retailers. For more information, visit: http://www.ubuntu.com/products/GetUbuntu About Ubuntu 6.10 ----------------- Highlights of this release include: On the desktop This version introduces a host of new features, an improved interface and a wide variety of new applications and desktop tools making Ubuntu 6.10 flexible and user-friendly. Enhancements include: * Tomboy, an easy-to-use and efficient note-taking tool * F-Spot, a photo management tool that enables tagging, photo editing and automatic uploading to on-line web management sites such as Flickr * GNOME 2.16, which in addition to new features such as enhanced power management, makes the GNOME desktop more secure, faster and more stable * Substantially faster startup and shutdown with eye-catching high-resolution graphics * The latest Firefox web browser, version 2.0, which offers inline spell check support in web forms, easy recovery of crashed sessions, built-in phishing detectors, enhanced search engine management with built in OpenSearch support, and better support for previewing and subscribing to web feeds * Proactive security features, preventing many common security vulnerabilities even before they are discovered * Evolution 2.8.0, which brings new features such as vertical message panes On the Server The Ubuntu server edition builds on the functionality from the previous release simplifying common Linux server deployment processes. It also includes a pre-release of the upcoming LTSP-5 (Linux Terminal Server Project). LTSP-5 offers clients a lower TCO (total cost of ownership), simpler installation and easier maintenance than typical IT deployments. With all data stored on the server, administrators have substantially eliminated the cost of updating individual workstations to ensure their security. Enhancements to LTSP-5 include: * Automatic network configuration with DHCP service for servers with two or more network cards attached -- available with the alternate CD installer * Language and session selection from the LTSP login manager -- allowing a user to choose from any of the languages and desktop sessions installed on the server * Support for locally attached devices on thin clients -- allowing users to access cameras, iPods or USB sticks on the thin client * Printing support - enabling printing on a local printer from the thin client * Full support for Etherboot Localization * Automatic setup of non-Latin input methods * Menu item translations included in language packs, for faster integration of new and updated translations provided through Rosetta * Ongoing translation updates from the Rosetta web service: https://launchpad.net/distros/ubuntu/edgy/+translations Installation and Upgrades Under the hood * GCC 4.1 * Glibc 2.4 * Linux 2.6.17 As always, Ubuntu includes the very best of the 100% Free / Libre application software world, and each new release incorporates countless new features and bug fixes from the global development community. More detailed release notes are at http://wiki.ubuntu.com/EdgyReleaseNotes Helping Shape Ubuntu -------------------- If you would like to help shape Ubuntu, take a look at the list of ways you can participate at http://www.ubuntu.com/community/participate/ If you have a question, or if you think you may have found a bug but aren't sure, try asking on the #ubuntu channel on IRC.FreeNode.net, on the Ubuntu Users mailing list, or on the Ubuntu forums: http://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-users http://www.ubuntuforums.org/ More Information ---------------- You can find out more about Ubuntu and about this release on our website: http://www.ubuntu.com/ To sign up for future Ubuntu announcements, please subscribe to Ubuntu's very low volume announcement list at: http://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-announce

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REMINDER: WLUG meeting is on Monday
by Meeting Reminder Bot 26 Oct '06

26 Oct '06

There's a Waikato Linux Users Group meeting on Monday: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 7:30pm, TW.2.07 (http://www.wlug.org.nz/TW) as usual. PerryLorier will talk about http://www.wlug.org.nz/Plan9 (from BellLabs), the follow-up to http://www.wlug.org.nz/UNIX worked on by the original http://www.wlug.org.nz/UNIX authors and other luminaries.

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Oracle doing a CentOs (rebadging RedHat)
by Ian McDonald 25 Oct '06

25 Oct '06

For those that haven't heard Oracle is rebadging RedHat and providing support. http://weblog.infoworld.com/openresource/archives/2006/10/with_friends_li.h… Things that I see significant are: - Download RedHat EL clone for free - Cheaper support costs - Full compatiablity support - More support for older versions. - Don't have to be a Oracle customer Oracle have contributed a lot of kernel patches recently so I think they are fairly serious about that. I think this may well reduce CentOs installs and some corporates will go with Oracle. Interesting times. -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Debate around ndiswrapper in the kernel
by Ian McDonald 25 Oct '06

25 Oct '06

People who are interested in such things might find this interesting: http://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/205644/f12f60903303d835/ (Yes it is a link you can read - SubscriberLink refers to the fact I am a subscriber and sharing a story) -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Firefox 2 features
by Ian McDonald 25 Oct '06

25 Oct '06

And on a similar note to the last post here is what's new in Firefox 2: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/features.html -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Organisation needed for Free & Open Source Software study
by Nigel Nguyen 25 Oct '06

25 Oct '06

Hi all, I am Nigel Nguyen, currently doing a dissertation that study about FOSS movement in New Zealand that focused on SME (small & medium size enterprise - that is business that have less than 19 staffs). I wonder if anyone from the list that run a business or the main decision maker / technology people that could help me to have an insight study in FOSS. Following are information about the study: ----------------- Overview This research is conducted to examine the status of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) adoption within New Zealand context, particularly the small and medium enterprises community. The report of this research is a compulsory dissertation for my Postgraduate of Electronic Commerce qualification. This research also aim at provide literature ground for later study on FOSS in New Zealand as well as to provide chance for FOSS developers learn about New Zealand business requirements. Who’s responsible? My name is Dung Trung (Nigel) Nguyen who undertake the responsibility for this entire research. You can contact me at 021 78 6769, email me at nigel(a)nigelnguyen.org. This research is supervised by Professor Robert J. McQueen who contact details is available on requested. What will you as a participant have to do and how long will it take? There will be a single interview which should take approximately half hour. The interview will be unstructured (non-directive), unbiased, yet still focus on the recent FOSS implementation in your organization. What will happen to the collected information? The interview responses will be used by the researcher to write a descriptive research report. Only the researcher and the supervisor of the study will be privy to source materials. Afterwards (30 days after final submission of the report), all physical material (notes, recorded tape) will be destroyed and/or erased. Some information, however, will be trimmed to be unidentifiable and transferred to digital format for later reference. No participants will be named in research reports unless explicit consent has been given, and every effort will be made to disguise the identity. Declaration to participant If you take part in the study, you have the right to: - Refuse to answer any particular question, and to withdraw from the study (all collected information will be destroyed immediately in this case) within 21 days from the interview day. - Ask any further questions about the study that occur to you during your participants. - Be given access to a summary of the findings from the study when it is concluded. - The Privacy Act 1993 will be applied in order to protect the interest of participants. -------------- If you are interested, please contact me off the list. I will then forward you some further (formal) documentation. Thank you for your help, time and attention, Nigel Nguyen

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Fedora Core 6 out
by Craig Box 25 Oct '06

25 Oct '06

http://fedoraproject.org/static-tmp/FC6ReleaseSummary.html The main Fedora server has melted under the load, so find another mirror for the release notes. A good summary and BT links are on that page though. Craig

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Review of Gaim 2
by Ian McDonald 24 Oct '06

24 Oct '06

I know a few people use this so might find this interesting - review of the beta of Gaim 2. http://www.linux.com/article.pl?sid=06/10/24/1634247 -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Good little tutorial on permissions, users and processes
by Ian McDonald 24 Oct '06

24 Oct '06

I learnt a few things from this and it helps explain quite a few concepts: http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/aix/library/au-speakingunix4/?ca=dgr-… -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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ANNOUNCE: WLUG meeting is one week away
by Meeting Reminder Bot 22 Oct '06

22 Oct '06

The Waikato Linux Users Group have a meeting in one week from today: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 7:30pm, TW.2.07 (http://www.wlug.org.nz/TW) as usual. PerryLorier will talk about http://www.wlug.org.nz/Plan9 (from BellLabs), the follow-up to http://www.wlug.org.nz/UNIX worked on by the original http://www.wlug.org.nz/UNIX authors and other luminaries.

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Copying from one hard drive to another
by Glenn Ramsey 20 Oct '06

20 Oct '06

I have a hard drive that contains several ext3 partitions an NTFS partition and a FAT32 partition. Is it possible to copy it's contents to another drive of a different type but nominally the same capacity (one drive is 2.5" the other 3.5") using some sort of bitwise copy? If so then what commands do I need to do it? I could do it manually by creating the right partitions on the second drive and copying the files, but I'm wondering if there's a less tedious way? Glenn -- Glenn Ramsey <glenn(a)componic.co.nz> 07 8627077 http://www.componic.co.nz

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Flashplayer 9 beta out now
by Ian McDonald 19 Oct '06

19 Oct '06

For all of those people who haven't been able to use MySpace and YouTube fully under Linux you might want to check this out: http://blogs.adobe.com/penguin.swf/2006/10/beta_is_live.html I haven't had a play yet but looking forward to trying it. I've also tried gnash which is an open source alternative to flash but unfortunately it doesn't really work very well at all - the sites I tried on it crashed or did nothing. -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Openfiler
by Chris O'Halloran 19 Oct '06

19 Oct '06

Hello, The company I work for is about >< this close to setting up Openfiler as a file server. The IT guys have setup 1.1 and liked what they saw but were waiting for OpenFiler 2 to be released as stable for use. It is now, so our IT guy downloaded the ISO file, cut it to CD but it won't boot. He came to me and I suggested that we check the md5sum to verify the image. I've looked high and low on the site, googlged around, searched wikis and mailing lists and even hooked on to a few mirror sites to see if I could find a text file with the md5sum. But I am stuck for an answer on this one short of posting to the openfiler discussion list. Any other suggestions? Cheers Chris

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Linux on the Playstation 3
by Ian McDonald 19 Oct '06

19 Oct '06

Interesting article here: http://arstechnica.com/articles/columns/linux/linux-20061018.ars -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Ubuntu 7.04 planning begins
by Ian McDonald 18 Oct '06

18 Oct '06

Folks, Efty Edge is not quite out and Feisty Fawn is getting underway. I like the sound of multimedia enablement and improving the end user experience. From: Mark Shuttleworth <mark-AT-canonical.com> To: ubuntu-devel-announce-AT-lists.ubuntu.com Subject: Planning for Ubuntu 7.04 - the "Feisty Fawn" Date: Wed, 18 Oct 2006 20:48:22 +0100 Salve, Ubuntero's With the final release of Ubuntu 6.10 approaching, and apparently set to be spot on schedule October 26th, we're starting to look beyond it to Ubuntu 7.04, scheduled for release on 19 April 2007. In the next cycle we'll expand on the brand new infrastructure that has landed in Edgy as well as branching out in some exciting new directions. This combination of courage and restlessness is also found in a young deer that sets out to explore a world that is new and exciting - seeing the world through eyes unprejudiced by what has gone before. In that spirit, the release will be be code named "The Feisty Fawn". The main themes for feature development in this release will be improvements to hardware support in the laptop, desktop and high-end server market, and aggressive adoption of emerging desktop technologies. Ubuntu's Feisty release will put the spotlight on multimedia enablement and desktop effects. We expect this to be a very gratifying release for both users and developers. Detailed planning will take place at the developer summit next month in Mountain View, California. Please join us there to help shape the Feisty Fawn! https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuDeveloperSummitMountainView This will be our sixth release, marking the third anniversary of the project's inception, and will be a return to our standard six-month release schedule following the shortened catch-up cycle used for 6.10. Edgy has been a wild ride, with some remarkable achievements (nothing like re-inventing and substantially improving on init!). Feisty will be a little more focused on features that are very visible to end-users. We welcome new participants in our community - whatever your talent we look forward to working with you! Jono Bacon, our new community lead, will find a way to make sure your contribution is well received. Mark -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Slackware 11 review
by Ian McDonald 18 Oct '06

18 Oct '06

Given the recent interest in this I'm posting this review I've just seen: http://www.linux.com/article.pl?sid=06/10/16/2045208 -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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NTP syncing on a local network
by Ian McDonald 18 Oct '06

18 Oct '06

I'm wanting to sync two machines to within 1 msec for my research using ntp. Questions: - is this realistic given how clocks drift? Has anybody done this? - is there a quick way to force them to converge I've had a quick read of the ntp pages and made one of my machines a broadcast server and the other broadcast clients I think but they seem to be taking a while to converge. The man pages say they will fix at 0.5ms/sec but I'm not seeing that. Comments appreciated. NB I don't want my clocks to be deadly accurate to the "real world", just to each other. Ian -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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Suggestion for meeting topic next year
by Denise Bates 15 Oct '06

15 Oct '06

Hello folks, At last months meeting there was a call for suggestions for meeting topics for next year. I would like to propose the following..... As I am in the process of upgrading my stable of computers to Slackware 11.0, I remain puzzled why the BS about Slackware being hard to use has any traction at all. While I expect _any_ discussion of Slackware will probably be branded as a distro war, I think that I could deliver a constructive, informative talk on the _underlying essence_ of text-based installation, package management, and configuration. I would invite the audience to engage in _constructive_ discussion of whether the extra demands made by GUIs on computer resources justifies any ease of installation, package management, and configuration (if any). I would like to have a newbie actually install and configure a computer as part of the presentation. I realise that time will be tight, but I should be able to keep it around the one-hour mark. I suggest the following parameters- ** The installer does not have to be experienced with Linux, but it would be helpful if they were savvy with the computing basics on any operating system. I can give them a printed copy of Slackware Basics and the Slackware Manual. If they get stuck and cannot find the information that they require within one minute, then I could tell them what to do (to keep the presentation moving along). ** The computer to be used should be representative of current modest-specced machines available- no Winmodems, odd-ball, or defective components. ** The installation should be a typical one for a typical home user - no esoteric networking or overly specialised hardware. I would have the installers machine hooked up to the projector, so to show how she/he is progressing. Given these parameters, the newbie should be able to complete the installation/configuration in well under an hour on a reasonably fast machine. I could offer up a few Slackware CDs if any member of the audience also wants to do an install during the presentation. I would welcome the participation of other Slackers as co-presenters. I would also like to attend equivalent presentations by other folk who prefer a substantially different distro (I am particularly curious about Gentoo and LFS). Again, I stress that I am not attempting to start a distro-war. I would be attempting to discuss the underlying philosophy behind the oldest surviving Linux distro and to question whether the purported user-friendliness of GUI-based administrative suites can be justified. regards, ********************************************* Dr Denise J. Bates, PO Box 50, Meremere New Zealand E-mail: dbates(a)iconz.co.nz Telephone 09-2336433 Mobile 021-2541330 *********************************************

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Memory module information
by Leslie Katz 12 Oct '06

12 Oct '06

I've acquired half a dozen old memory modules. I've been able to identify them from Googling as two 72 pin SIMMS and four 168 pin DIMMS. The DIMMS have PC speeds varying between 66 and 133. It may be that one or more of the modules will fit into a friend's computer, which is itself pretty old. Is there some command I can ask the friend to run which will give us information about the installed memory modules now in her computer--such things as type and PC speed--so that I can find out now whether I should even try to install any of them for her?

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Date for October meeting
by Ian McDonald 11 Oct '06

11 Oct '06

Folks, Normally the meeting for October would be on October 23rd being the fourth Monday. This is also labour day. We are trying to decide whether to have it on that day or the 30th. If anybody can't make either day can you send me an e-mail off list please? The speaker will be Perry Lorier on Plan 9 which is an alternative operating system with some really interesting concepts. Ian -- Ian McDonald Web: http://wand.net.nz/~iam4 Blog: http://imcdnzl.blogspot.com WAND Network Research Group Department of Computer Science University of Waikato New Zealand

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[Fwd: FW: Signing up for an account on the new Genesis Energy website TMS 43752]
by Dominic Tennant 09 Oct '06

09 Oct '06

FYI, this is Genesis' response to my email :)

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Splitting an image file over CR ROMs
by Chris O'Halloran 08 Oct '06

08 Oct '06

Hello, I have a disk image of about 8.4G that I took from a friends computer about 18 months ago. Since then the harddrive has been reformatted and that data lost. I would like to send disk image via CD's to the UK where the disk image can be reassembled. I imagine that might take about 12-13 CD's the file is recognised as a xxxxxx.dat file and I am sure I made it using something like dd if=/dev/hda5 of=/mnt/hdb11/image_name.dat Would people be prepared to offer any hints on how to do that? Cheers

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Linux Installation
by Sahil Gupta 08 Oct '06

08 Oct '06

Hi Wlug, Long time no see! This is slightly off-topic. I'm currently located in Australia and need a couple of boxes installed with Linux. The machines are located in Hamilton at present and can be dropped off/picked up by someone, along with a Slackware 11.0 install disc. Would anybody like a quick job on installing a distro on a bunch of machines? Cheers! Please reply off-list. Regards, Sahil Gupta VoiceValley

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