Changing the URL of a Mailman list administrative web site
Posted on 2007-06-24 at 13:24
As I've mentioned in the past, I run several Mailman lists. On occasion, I have need to make changes, as since Mailman is a beast to configure (but powerful!) I try to keep my how-to's here for my own and others general reference.
Recently, my server IP address changed. Since my Mailman web admin site is tied to an IP and not a domain name, that means I had to regenerate the Mailman adminstrative web site so that it all pointed to the new location. Apparently, Mailman thinks it's a good idea to hardcode the full URL (with domain) in every link it creates. No relative paths here. :-\ Kind of a pain in the ass, but I'm sure there's some reason that makes sense that I can't see from my vantage point. anyway, in case you have to do the same, here is how you will regenerate the Mailman admin web site if it moves to a new web address:
- First I created a file called listconfig.txt.
nano -w /path/to/listconfig.txt
Inside that file I added one line of text:
web_page_url = 'http://70.165.74.137/cgi-bin/mailman/'
That is the new IP address I find myself on. If you are using a FQDN, you'd put that in the URL instead. In either case, make sure you type the full path al the way to the root of your mailman directory. It will not find it otherwise. - Then I moved to the mailman bin directory.
cd /usr/lib/mailman/bin - Inside that directory, I run the config_list command and feed it my new config file.
sudo config_list -i /path/to/listconfig.txt -v name_of_list_to_fix
where the "name_of_list_to_fix" is whatever name you've given your email list inside Mailman. - You must run this last comment once from each list on the box that you want moved to the new domain. You must also, of course, have moved the list to that domain otherwise the web site links will be broken...duh.
That should do it. Or, at least, that did it for me. Some notes: The config_list command will only update those properties of the list that you explicitly set in the config file to which you point. It will not affect the other list properties. If you want to see what other stuff you can change about your list via this method, try running sudo config_list -o /path/to/currentlistconfig.txt then open the created file and check out the current settings. Any of those settings can be added to the input file and updated through this command. Pretty straightforward once you are "in the know". Not so straightforward when you are hunting through mm_cfg.py files trying to figure out how to retroactively change list settings on stuff. Could be made more straightforward, but who am I to complain, It's open source and Free. I'm just glad someone is offering what I got at no charge. :) If I really don't like it, I could always submit code patches to fix things I hate or just write my own. Mailman is good enough for right now.
Truth Happens
Posted on 2007-05-06 at 15:02
Truth Happens: Get used to it.
I am a tool
Posted on 2007-02-09 at 21:53
So, I think I have something broken deep inside me in that I'm quite excited that I've written a shell script that adds new entries to my blog and calls up the text editor for me to modify them after creation. Plus, the script now makes each entry second-specific.
"Second-specific?" you ask. Yes. You see before, when I added a new entry I named it something like "2007_02_09_21_53_00.html" which basically says the entry was created on Feb 9th, 2007 at 9:53pm and "00" seconds. But NOW it will say something like "2007_02_09_21_53_12.html" which tells me that it was created 12 seconds into the 53rd minute! You see, when I named it before, I was really only typing it and just didn't care about the seconds, but with my new shell scripty goodness, I can have second-specificity without even trying. As Paris would say, "That's so hawt".
See, I'm broken inside. :-(
I'm Linux
Posted on 2007-02-09 at 07:50
I haven't blogged in a while and yet this is all I'm offering in this entry? I should be ashamed of myself.
Gnome 2.16 has been released
Posted on 2006-09-08 at 06:47
Gnome 2.16 has been released. Read a review of the new Linux Desktop. Read the release notes for this version to see what's new. Love the gnome. Hug the Gnome.
Eye Candy for Gnome
Posted on 2006-06-17 at 13:28
The workplace switcher for Gnome 2.16 is gonna be a bit blingier:
The new Gnome Dockbar bling is kinda neat too (watch it in action by clicking below):
And don't forget the wonderful new(ish) Gnome Bling Manager!:
That's among the many reasons why I say Vista is a waste of money!
Problem with Guild Wars in Ubuntu Linux
Posted on 2006-06-11 at 15:25
So, I got Cedega running nicely under the latest version of Ubuntu, but when I installed Guild Wars (a seamless install process!) it told me that my video card was undetectable and asked me if I wanted to continue or cancel. When I selected Continue, it hung indefinately. This was a problem.
The fix was straightforward, though. I set my Cedega app to run games in a window, then when I entered the game and the error popped up, I hit Continue and it showed me the screen. I set the video up manually there, then exited to save the changes to disk. Then I restarted Cedega (not sure I needed to, but I did) and changed the Cedega optiosn to open full screen again. Viola! All was fine.
What was the problem, you ask? Many modern games have all sorts of card-specific commands they utilize to take advantage of native card performance. Cedega, however, only shows them a generic card, so the game could not detect the card properly. The video was all skewed and the result was what looked like a black screen. In the window mode, however, I could see that the screen was there and running, but in a small corner of the open window. Manually setting the video options to what I want saved them to disk so that the next time the game was opened it didn't try to detect the card and change the settings. All worked fine after that.
If you have a similar problem, I hope this helps.
Fixing the Ubuntu Dapper and Cedega xlibs error
Posted on 2006-06-09 at 08:32
So you say you are having a problem installing Transgaming's Cedega on the latest version of Ubuntu (Dapper Drake or 6.06 LTS)? Me too. In short, when I tried to install the deb package, I got an error telling me "cedega depends on xlibs (>> 4.1.0); however: Package xlibs is not installed". So uncool. The issue is that xlibs has been deprecated in favor of a more modern x package. Thankfully, there is a solution.
- Go to the Transgaming site, log in, and download the latest Cedega package for your system.
- cd to the directory where the package was downloaded.
- Make a new directory in which to work:
~/downloads$ mkdir cedega - Extract the downloaded deb file top the new directory:
~/downloads$ dpkg-deb --extract cedegaXXXXXX.deb cedega - Make the package editable:
~/downloads$ dpkg-deb --control cedegaXXXXXX.deb cedega/DEBIAN - Edit the package to remove the dependency on xlibs:
~/downloads$ gedit cedega/DEBIAN/control
Remove the reference to Xlib (X.X.X) from the depends list.
Save and exit. - Build the new package that doesn't depend on xlibs:
~/downloads$ dpkg --build cedega - Install the new package:
~/downloads$ sudo dpkg -i cedega.deb
Why does this work? Well, the short answer is that though xlibs is missing and cedega does depend on it, the API functionality has been replaced, so though cedega says it depends on xlibs, it really just needs those API calls, which are present in a different package in Ubuntu Dapper in the default installation.
Enjoy
10/8/2006 Update:
A reader emailed me an example of a simpler workaround. Instead of building a new package that does not depend on xlibs, you can just using the "ignore-depends" flag to install the original package:
dpkg --ignore-depends=xlibs -i cedegaXXXXXX.deb
This will install cedega, though you'll need to do it every time you install the package. If you want the package fixed, use the original method I outline instead.
New and Improved List-O-Things That Gnome Needs
Posted on 2005-12-29 at 10:44
A while back, I wrote down a list of things I wanted to see Linux get. It's been a year and a half since I wrote that list and I wanted to revisit it to see what has been done and what needs doing now.
My first list in review:
- Money Management Engine: Not only is this not done, it's not even begun or discussed. I still think it's a good idea, but it looks like unless I'm willing to write it myself it ain't happening...unless Gnucash decides to add it to their 2.0 version and have kept that feature hidden and secret this whole time. I'll hold out hope for that.
- Music Engine: There hasn't been much movement on this front, though the discussions of Gnome 3.0 (codenamed Topaz) suggest that such a thing might be in the works for that version. In the interim, Muine and Rhythmbox, for instance, still insist on using their own back ends instead of agreeing on a standard.
- Supplyline integration with the entertainment industry: This was pie-in-the-sky when I first mentioned it. Since I put it on my list that hasn't changed, though at least now there exists iTunes support in Gnome, which is a step in the right direction.
- Better SDL/OpenGL APIs: A complete no-go.
- Better Hardware Integration: Finally a success! Since I wrote this list, hardware integration in Linux has grown greatly. Most things that I've used are simply plug-n-play (but for real, unlike what windows calls Plug-n-Play). More work needs to be done, but I can only be pleased with how smoothly hardware is being supported in Linux nowadays.
- First-Timer Wizards: I've heard it mentioned elsewhere, but so far I've not seen anyone implement such a thing. In retrospect, I'm not sure it's a must-have item as much as a would-be-nice item.
- Hot chicks: Linux still lacks the hot chicks. I hold out hope that it'll change soon, though, and us Linux geeks will be the new rock stars with our stretch limos and groupies and trashed hotel rooms.
So what about now? What do I think Linux and Gnome need now? Let me tell you:
- Money Management Engine: This idea is still good enough that I want to see it happen. Here is a quick run down of what I mean by this.
- Unified API: Linux, or at least Gnome, needs to clarify and unify the API as I describe here. This will help to bring in outside developers, which Gnome and Linux both sorely need. It's time to open this thing up to the legion of Windows-centric developers out there who would write for Linux if the API were more approachable.
- Administrative simplicity: Right now, if you use any of the mainstream linux distros, you can use linux without difficulty, but administering the box is still difficult. Gnome needs to HIGify (yes that's a word, google "Gnome HIG" to see what I mean!) the admin processes. That means, for instance, installation needs to be cleaned up (Ubuntu and Apt-Get do a lot for this but the problem still exists). But it also means we need to start seeing good, HIG-compliant admin interfaces for at least the most common of the services, like apache, bind, mailman, postfix, proftpd, and others. Sure I can install webmin and do it that way, but Webmin is hardly HIGified. I mean something as simple to use as Microsoft's Enterprise Manager to administer PostgreSQL or MySQL. I mean something as simple as Microsoft's IIS admin tool to administer Apache. We've taken care of the end users, not let's show a little love for the linux sys and network admins.
- User-loadable drivers: Let's face it. Linux can supply decent drivers for our hardware, but things like graphics cards are always going to perform better when using the closed-source drivers from their own manufacturers until we can change their minds on that issue. In the interim, how about something as simple as a directory like ~/.drivers where users can place proprietary drivers for use by the system as needed. I mean a simple schema like this: System boots up. System finds built in drivers for all hardware. System shows log in screen. When user logs in, system scans ~/.drivers for any drivers that purport to be for hardware that is currently being handled by a system driver. If a driver is found, the system driver resets with the user driver. If not, the system driver continues to work. This is brain dead simple, allows a user to decide for themselves if they want a proprietary driver running on their system, and makes it easy to make such a thing a user preference. Of course, it would be appropriate to have a way to turn this option on and off and the system level so that corporate users can't play with drivers without the admin's permission. Easy enough to add that option to an /etc/userdrivers.conf file. Each distro can decide for itself based on its target market what the defautl setting will be. Red Hat, being corp user centric might defalt to "No", Ubuntu being home user centric might default to "Yes". How hard is that? I know there are some logistical issues with swapping drivers during login, but to the best of my knowledge none of them are real showstoppers. Seems like something that would take a kernel hacker a day or two to throw together. And yes, I do understand the stability ramifications of this idea. I still think it's better than the current solution!
- Mac Menus: Yes, it's been discussed ad nauseum, but I have to side with the pro-Mac menu guys on this one. It'll free up real estate and make for a cleaner interface in general. It's a major change (in that it'll require retooling of a lot of extant apps, but the end result will be worth it. For the record, it'd be much easier to do the retooling if Gnome had a unified API already! ;-)
- Hot chicks: I'm gonna have to reinclude this item. I mean seriously, what's it all about if not being the idol of millions of screaming girl-fans?
Mailman server set up
Posted on 2005-12-13 at 08:03
I run several mailing lists from the server, so I had to set up Mailman on the new server. This was a bit more involved than the other services. Here's how I did it:
- I used apt-get to install Fetchmail (to be used to retrieve mail from the pop server).
apt-get install fetchmail - I used apt-get to install Mailman (which also installs Postfix as a dependency).
apt-get install mailman - I moved to the newly created mailman directory.
cd /var/lib/mailman - I check and fix any install problems. You may have to run this multiple times. Do it until it tells you that all is fine.
bin/check_perms -f - I edited my apache2.conf file.
nano –w /etc/apache2/apache2.conf
I added this to the bottom:
ScriptAlias /mailman/ /var/lib/mailman/cgi-bin/
Alias /pipermail/ var/lib/mailman/archives/public/ - I edited my mm_cfg.py file.
nano -w /var/lib/mailman/Mailman/mm_cfg.py
I added this to the bottom:
MTA = 'Postfix'
I changed the values of the following two settings:
DEFAULT_EMAIL_HOST = 'digitalelite.com'
DEFAULT_URL_HOST = '68.106.156.239' - I ran the genaliases script.
/var/lib/mailman/bin/genaliases - I changed the user and group owner of the generated files to 'list'
chown list:list /var/lib/mailman/data/aliases* - I edited the /etc/postfix/main.cf file to look like this:
queue_directory = /var/spool/postfix
command_directory = /usr/sbin
daemon_directory = /usr/lib/postfix
mail_owner = postfix
unknown_local_recipient_reject_code = 550
debugger_command =
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/X11R6/bin
xxgdb $daemon_directory/$process_name $process_id & sleep 5
sendmail_path = /usr/sbin/sendmail
newaliases_path = /usr/bin/newaliases
mailq_path = /usr/bin/mailq
setgid_group = postdrop
manpage_directory = /usr/share/man
sample_directory = /usr/share/doc/postfix/sample
readme_directory = /usr/share/doc/postfix/readme
default_destination_concurrency_limit = 2
alias_databases = hash:/etc/aliases, hash:/var/lib/mailman/data/aliases
local_destination_concurrency_limit = 2
alias_maps = hash:/etc/aliases, hash:/var/lib/mailman/data/aliases
home_mailbox = .maildir/
owner_request_special = no
recipient_delimiter = +
inet_interfaces = localhost
local_recipient_maps =
mydestination = $myhostname, localhost.$mydomain - I edited the fetchmailrc config file to look like this:
#wake fetchmail daemon every 60 seconds
set daemon 60
#go to the mx server
poll pop.1and1.com protocol pop3
#get members list mail
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is members;
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is members-request;
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is members-admin;
#get dnd list mail
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is dnd;
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is dnd-request;
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is dnd-admin;
#get faithlinks list mail
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is faithlinks;
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is faithlinks-request;
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is faithlinks-admin;
#get bluebook list mail
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is bluebook;
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is bluebook-request;
username [username edited out] with password [password edited out], is bluebook-admin; - I added the main mailman list (required, even thogh I don't personally use it).
/var/lib/mailman/bin/newlist mailman - I added all the other lists.
/var/lib/mailman/bin/newlist members
/var/lib/mailman/bin/newlist dnd
/var/lib/mailman/bin/newlist faithlinks
/var/lib/mailman/bin/newlist bluebook - I restarted all the appropriate services to make sure everything used the new conf files.
/etc/init.d/postfix restart
/etc/init.d/mailman restart
/etc/init.d/fetchmail restart
Not as straighforward as DNS or Apache, but easy enough for me to handle. Also, I copied over the archives from the old server to the new (they go in the /var/lib/mailman/archives/private/ directory). That seems to have worked except that Mailman doesn't see to be adding new messages to the existing archives. I suspect that it's just a permissions issue. I'll know next month. When it creates the new month's archives, everything should be back on track. I have enough archives that I'm OK with a half a month of archive blackout if it means keeping all the older stuff.
Apache web server set up
Posted on 2005-12-12 at 08:01
Setting up Apache2 Web Server in Ubuntu Linux is pretty easy stuff---almost not worth writing down---but here goes:
- I use the apt-get command to install Apache2
apt-get install apache2 - I add a .conf file to /etc/apache2/sites-enabled for each domain
touch www.kungfugamers.com.conf - I edit the .conf files to look like this for each domain (adjusting for the web root I chose and the name of the domain itself.
<VirtualHost *>
DocumentRoot "/var/www/kfg"
ServerAlias www.kungfugamers.com kungfugamers.com
ServerName www.kungfugamers.com
</VirtualHost> - I restart apache2 so it grabs the new conf settings
/etc/init.d/apache2 restart
Apache web server
Posted on 2005-12-11 at 08:02
I'll be describing my experience setting up Apache web server on Ubuntu very soon. I'm almost done with it now. I just need time to complete set up and document it.
Small correction to DJBDNS below
Posted on 2005-12-11 at 08:01
Just an fyi, I made a small mistake in the description below for setting up a DJBDNS server in Ubuntu. I've fixed the text below for the sake of anyone looking to use my text as a guidepost for setting it up themselves. Also, since this is documentation for future use and to help others, I cleaned up the formatting to be a bit clearer. Hopefully that helps others figure out what I've done. If you have quesitons about DNS setup, I'll be happy to venture a guess, but bear in mind, I kinda just muddled through it and may not be too useful to you. But I promise to try. :)
Setting up the DNS server
Posted on 2005-12-10 at 08:02
For those curious about how to set up a DNS server, here's a breif overview of how I did it on Ubuntu Server edition:
- I use the apt-get command to install DJBDNS, becuase I prefer it over BIND for many many reasons.
apt-get install djbdns-installer - I then set up the dns service in the /etc folder.
tinydns-conf tinydns dnslog /etc/tinydns 192.168.0.7 - I made a symbolic link to it in the /services folder (it uses daemon-tools, which is why it uses the /services folder).
ln -s /etc/tinydns /service - I checked to make sure it was running. At this point the DNS service is working, but I still needed to add my specific DNS entries.
svstat /service/tinydns - I moved to the service root folder.
cd /service/tinydns/root/ - I tell the dns server that I am authoritative for this IP address.
./add-ns 239.156.106.in-addr.arpa 68.106.156.239 - I tell the dns server that I am authoritative for this domain.
./add-ns kungfugamers.com 68.106.156.239 - I tell the dns server that I am authoritative for another domain.
./add-ns daystromsolutions.com 68.106.156.239 - I tell the server where this domain is hosted.
./add-host www.daystromsolutions.com 68.106.156.239 - Because this domain is hosted at the same IP I've already used, I have to treat it as an alias, but essentially, I'm just saying that this domain is also at that IP address.
./add-alias www.kungfugamers.com 68.106.156.239 - I run the make command to compile the changes I just made to the service config.
make
Just 'cause of Halloween
Posted on 2005-11-01 at 08:03
Here's a costume of someone dressed as the FreeBSD devil mascot. You're welcome.
Ubuntu 5.10
Posted on 2005-10-06 at 08:01
I'm using it. I'm loving it. You should use it too. Get it here. What is it? It's an Operating System. It competes with Windows and Mac OSX, but it's completely free and it rocks. Why is it free? For that you need to put your academic hat on and read what it means to be Free Software. Think Free Speech, not Free Beer.
VideoCD follow up
Posted on 2005-08-12 at 08:02
I've since learned that when k3b burns the video to disk it does so based on video length, not file size. Firstly, that's odd because it implies that the video is being re-encoded in some way. I may be misunderstanding what I'm seeing. Secondly, it means I can't fit one week (four episodes) of the Daily Show on 1 CD (I mean, assuming I were to illegally download and try to do such a thing, which I've not done. Nope. Not me. Never.) because the show is just over 20 minutes in length per episode and the VideoCD can only hold 80 minutes of video. That means it inches over the limit by a scant two to five minutes, depending on how many commercials were taken out. So close. Not close enough. The only way to get all of a week's episodes onto one disk would be to open it up in something like Kino to edit the video and cut out the last few minutes myself. That's kind of a pain in the butt. Putting two to three episodes on a disk seems easier to me. It's just that, it'd be so good for my OCD if the episodes could be burned at a [one disk = one week] ratio. I suspect this will be one of those many things that will not be accomodating to my OCD. I think I need some sweet tea now please.
Converting AVI files to VCD disks in Ubuntu Linux
Posted on 2005-08-07 at 08:01
Since I dropped my paid TV subscription, I've missed the Daily Show with Jon Stewart. I'm not saying that I'm gonna start downloading The Daily Show and burning it to disk to watch---because that would be wrong and bad and evil---but if I were to do it, here's how I would go about it:
1) Convert the downloaded AVI files to MPG files.
ffmpeg -i The_Daily_Show_08-03-05.avi -target vcd dailyshow1.mpg
ffmpeg -i The_Daily_Show_08-04-05.avi -target vcd dailyshow2.mpg
etc...
2) Burn the video to disk with k3b (I normally prefer native Gnome applications, but k3b is an outstanding KDE app!). To burn to disk with k3b, I just started a New Video Project, then selected the MPG files to go on the disk, then hit Burn. Simple.
One caveat, k3b gave me a "charset conversion failed" error at first. I went into the k3b preferences, and added the "--filename-encoding=iso8859-1" parameter to vcdxbuild (an app it calls internally). That solved the problem.
Multimedia in Ubuntu
Posted on 2005-07-18 at 08:02
To fix many of the problems I had with Ubuntu's multimedia, I did the following:
- Install totem-xine. This will uninstall totem-gstreamer. Fine by me. The out of sync AV sucks. Xine is a better back end for now.
- Install mozplugger. This will let me set up totem to handle embedded multimedia content.
- Add "stream noisy ignore_errors: totem "$file" </dev/null" in /etc/mozpluggerrc everywhere that the MPlayer command is currently referenced. This means changing all the defined variables at the top.
- delete ~/.mozilla/firefox/pluginreg.dat
- Restart firefox.
- In Firefox, go to "about:config" to see the mozplugger plugin shown.
- Go to http://www.movie-list.com and watch a trailer to test the setup. It worked for me! :)
- Sit back and enjoy your new system hotness!
No sound in games in Ubuntu?
Posted on 2005-07-17 at 08:04
Then make sure you install libsdl1.2debian-esd. By default it installs libsdl1.2debian-oss, which is not correct. This is more a note to myself than a general warning, but if you need the help, there it is. :)
Johnny Linuxseed
Posted on 2005-06-02 at 08:02
I added Meghan to the list of Linux converts this past weekend. Her system is now running Ubuntu 5.04. She is pleased. I am pleased. You should be pleased too. :)
Ubuntu Linux
Posted on 2005-04-15 at 08:02
I've switched my main box to Ubuntu Linux, to match what I've installed on Denise's laptop and her desktop as well. So far, I'm quite pleased with the distro. I can recommend it to anyone looking to install linux right now. The interface is clean and the developers made decisions that promote ease-of-use. It suffers from many of the same problems that all linux distros do (installing software is not newbie-friendly, there is no decent money program, some things that should work out-of-the-box don't, etc....) but it is definately the next level in linux user-friendliness. It's the first distro that I wouldn't worry about recommending to an Average Joe computer user. That's a huge step.
Dual booting
Posted on 2005-02-09 at 08:01
I got Denise's new system dual booting finally. She needed a Windows partition for gaming and some financial software. Of course, it would have taken an hour or so if Windows had been as easy to install as Linux. Instead, I had all sorts of trouble with the Windows install. Took a couple of weeks to get all the drivers and directions to get it to install on this box (no, I'm not making this up, ask if you want details!). Linux, however, was a matter of putting the disk in and clicking enter a few times. 2 weeks versus 20 minutes. Hmmm. Is linux ready for the desktop? Well, if Windows is the high water mark for desktop usage, then it's beyond ready.
Ubuntu Linux Live CD
Posted on 2005-01-31 at 08:03
Speaking of the live CD, I gave a copy to Charles at work. I got him to give Firefox a try as well, and he's considering checking out Open Office. Good!
Windows
Posted on 2005-01-31 at 08:02
So, Denise keeps one Windows partition on her box for Microsoft Money and for games. On the new box I planned on puttng a small Windows partition for the same purposes. Windows is crap. Windows XP simply won't install. It errors out during the hardware detection phase, before ever even beginning the install phase. LAME!!! Then I found that Windows offereed an upgrade to XP 64 online. I figured, "hey, I have a valid XP disk. Maybe the upgrade will allow me to boot and install." Sure it will, but only if I purchase another version of Windows. wtf? I own the dam OS legally, but it won't install and to get a disk that will install they want me to pay...again?!?! Bill Gates can kiss my ass.
Just for the record, I was able to boot up and install two different distros of linux on that same box. No problems there. It's currently running a 64-bit version of Fedora Core 3. Ubuntu Linux works as well. I tested that with the live CD. Sweet stuff. Booted up and worked just fine.
The new box
Posted on 2005-01-18 at 08:01
Denise's old system died, so we ordered a new Monarch computer. It should get hear in a few days. Athlon64, 1GB RAM, and Fedora Core 3 preloaded all add up to a sweet system. I shall be appropriately jealous.
Fedora Core 3 Wireless NIC Installation (Linksys WMP54G.v4 card)
Posted on 2004-12-11 at 08:02
For anyone who, in the future, needs to install one of these cards on a Linux box. Here are my notes on the topic. This entry, like the earlier one on the Netgear card, will change as I learn more.
1) get and install gcc if you don't already have it
2) cd /usr/src/RT2500-Linux-STA-1.4.4.0/STA/Module/
3) cp 2.6.x/Makefile .
4) make -C /lib/modules/2.6.9-1.667/build SUBDIRS=$PWD modules
5) make -C /lib/modules/2.6.9-1.667/build SUBDIRS=$PWD modules_install
6) /sbin/depmod -a
7) /sbin/modprobe rt2500
8) Start configuring it to connect to your network
Fedora Core 3 Wireless NIC Installation (Netgear WG511 PCMCIA card)
Posted on 2004-12-05 at 08:01
Fedora recognized the Netgear WG511 PCMCIA card right away. All I had to do was plug it in and then download the firmware and copy it to /lib/firmware/. Slick. I'm having some trouble with getting it to start on bootup. I'll be adding to this entry as that problem is resolved.
The Old Laptop
Posted on 2004-11-29 at 08:01
Denise and I are giving our old laptop to her brother and his girlfriend. I guess she needs something to write papers with for school. The laptop is ancient, but it'll work fine for papers and surfing the web. She'll be using Fedora Core 2 or 3. Windows would cost her a pretty penny, and it probably wouldn't run on the old laptop anyway. Fedora will run just fine if I set the desktop to XFce instead of Gnome. XFce is pretty light. I dig it.
The new laptop
Posted on 2004-11-28 at 08:03
It's a Dell Inspirion 1150 (not the best on the planet, but essentially free). It runs Fedora perfectly. It does what needs doing. I give it a solid B. Incidentally, Fedora Core 3 has installed flawlessly on 2 systems so far. I give that a solid A! In a world without limits, who needs Gates or Windows? ;-)
I spoke too soon
Posted on 2004-10-06 at 08:02
Sure, the system booted after the kernel upgrade, but the usb-storage driver no longer works with my DiskOnKey drive. wtf? Lame!
Kernel upgrade roulette (update)
Posted on 2004-10-04 at 08:01
It booted. Yea! Though the "nvidia" driver ceased working and I had to revert to the generic "nv" driver. I took the opportunity to switch to using the Livna nvidia drivers. Makes things easier anyway. :-)
Kernel upgrade roulette
Posted on 2004-10-03 at 08:02
So, I just upgraded the kernel on this systen. I wonder if it's gonna reboot? :-\
X.Org is leading the way for modernized Linux Desktop
Posted on 2004-09-08 at 08:01
X.Org just posted the latest version of it's X Server software (the windowing software that underlies Gnome and KDE). Among it's additions are a better nv driver, support for the XDamage extensions, support for Transparency via Desktop Compositing, and support for Drop Shadows. I think I'm gonna cry from glee. Now, what would it take to get this along with Gnome 2.8 in Fedora Core 3...tomorrow?!?
And speaking of .NET development in Linux
Posted on 2004-08-13 at 08:02
I've drooled and waited, and yet still after all this time still no Fedora install packages for MonoDevelop. Who do I gotta smack to get this done?!?
My First Linux App
Posted on 2004-08-13 at 08:01
Having now written an app for Linux, I am left wondering what I should use my newfound great powers for. Forthwith, I present to the world, the "Click the Damn Button!" application written in C#, using GTK#, and compiled to run in mono on Linux:
using System;
using Gtk;
public class ButtonClicker
{
public static void Main()
{
Application.Init();
Window window = new Window("Click The Damn Button!");
Label label = new Label("Name");
Entry entry = new Entry();
Button button = new Button("Click Me!");
window.DeleteEvent +=
new DeleteEventHandler(window_DeleteEvent);
button.Clicked += new EventHandler(button_Clicked);
VBox vbox = new VBox();
HBox hbox = new HBox();
hbox.PackStart(label, false, false, 12);
hbox.PackStart(entry, false, false, 12);
vbox.PackStart(hbox);
vbox.PackStart(button, false, false, 12);
window.Add(vbox);
window.SetDefaultSize(200, 100);
window.ShowAll();
Application.Run();
}
static void window_DeleteEvent(object o,
DeleteEventArgs args)
{
Application.Quit();
args.RetVal = true;
}
static void button_Clicked(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
Console.WriteLine("You clicked the button!");
}
}
Where is the proof that it works, you ask? Well, suck on this screenshot, bizzotch:
Lists are all the rage
Posted on 2004-05-31 at 08:01
And so I, too, will join in the fray with my List of Things Linux Needs Now (patent pending):
- Money Management Engine: Gnome needs to standardize on a back end financial management engine that other apps can call upon it for data. Ideally, that back end would also feed iCal files to the Evolution back end so we could show a financial calendar in Evolution as needed. Why shouldn't my calendar also show me stuff like "Pay The Light Bill" or "Rent is Due"?
- Music Engine: Gnome needs to standardize on a server back end for multimedia. I know that gStreamer is fixing to fill the spot with solid back end playback, but I mean multimedia management. There should be a standard call to show music files, stored video, etc, that other apps can use without reinventing the wheel. I recommend following Rhythmbox's lead. Let them move to a SQLLite back end for storing the data, let other frint ends attach (like Muine or XMMS) and then expand it to include multimedia beyand just music. Very cool. Frankly, why doesn't every Gnome desktop have a back end shoutcast-like service (perhaps something based on the great jReceiver app)?
- Supplyline integration with the entertainment industry: I said it recently, but it's true. The world is moving to e-delivery of all your multimedia content. No one is really looking to set standards, and Gnome could really give it a go. Make it and advertise it as an open standard for multimedia e-commerce. Who needs 15 different proprietary interfaces for buying music and video online?
- Better SDL/OpenGL APIs: Games designers ain't gonna write for Linux unless we make it as easy as they do in Windows. SDL is a good start. OpenGL needs to update itself and the SDL API needs to make it easy to access.
- Better Hardware Integration: I know it's in the works, but it bears saying anyway. We need to know that when we plug a device into the system, that the Kernel will react by telling Gnome what's happened, and Gnome needs to react by telling the user what's going on. Ideally, it'll be nothing more than a notice that a new device is now attached and ready for use. Little or no user intervention is key to this!
- First-Timer Wizards: Gnome needs to ask the user the first time they log in if they want a Gnome-like, Mac-like, or Windows-like experience and adjust the default preferences accordingly. Maybe even do it on a sliding scale from Windows to Gnome and where on the scale the user sets the defaults, determines the level of Gnomeness that is present in the defaults. That'd be kinda cool.
- Hot chicks: Linux needs more hot chicks. There is a distinct paucity of hot chicks in linux. ;-)
Fedora Core 1
Posted on 2004-03-14 at 08:02
I'm starting to really enjoy Fedora. I'm still a huge Gentoo fan, but Fedora is slowly winning me over. My system is just about where I want it now. Not sure what I'll do when Fedora Core 2 comes out soon, but I suspect I'll be tempted to upgrade.
The Sacking of Eden
Posted on 2004-03-13 at 08:01
Well, I did it. I wiped-and-reinstalled my system. I've reinstalled with Fedora Core 1 instead of Gentoo. No particular reason other than expediency, but I'm enjoying playing around with Fedora. Setting things up has kept me busy for a couple of days.
Still using the sullied machine
Posted on 2004-03-08 at 08:02
But I plan on correcting that as soon as I have free time. A reinstall is in my very near future. Maybe, just maybe, I can wait until Gnome 2.6 comes out later this month. That'd be ideal.
A Monk Moment
Posted on 2004-03-06 at 08:01
So, I decided after reading a bit about udev that I wanted it. I emerged it. Then, before rebooting, I happened across a forum entry that mentioned that udev will only work if you update to the 2.6 kernel and all sorts of other stuff, otherwise it'll just hose your system. Fuck! So now I fretted rebooting and I backed up all my stuff. I took forever, then I rebooted. Nothing. a small error on boot up but no other issues. The problem, though, is that now my system feels tainted. I know it's stupid, but it does. I need a wipe-n-reinstall to feel good about it again. I'm certifiable. Oh well.
GTKFileSelector Widget
Posted on 2004-02-24 at 08:01
The new GTKFileSelector Widget is starting to look good. It's long overdue.
Monodevelop
Posted on 2004-02-23 at 08:01
I'm really starting to drool over the upcoming release of monodevelop. Much goodness will be had.