Linux Gazette... making Linux just a little more fun! Copyright © 1996-98 Specialized Systems Consultants, Inc. _________________________________________________________________ Welcome to Linux Gazette! (tm) _________________________________________________________________ Published by: Linux Journal _________________________________________________________________ Sponsored by: InfoMagic S.u.S.E. Red Hat Our sponsors make financial contributions toward the costs of publishing Linux Gazette. If you would like to become a sponsor of LG, e-mail us at sponsor@ssc.com. Linux Gazette is a non-commercial, freely available publication and will remain that way. Show your support by using the products of our sponsors and publisher. _________________________________________________________________ Table of Contents April 1998 Issue #27 _________________________________________________________________ * The Front Page * The MailBag + Help Wanted + General Mail * More 2 Cent Tips + Re: Help Wanted LaserJet 4L + StarOffice 4/Ghostscript + Linux and VAX 3400 and 3300 + xdm with pictures + Re: Help-Installing Linux on a FAT32 + Regarding Easter Eggs in Netscape etc. + Re: Changing XDM windows + Nice xdm and Linux PPC + Re: Help with Sound Card + Lots More * News Bytes + News in General + Software Announcements * The Answer Guy, by James T. Dennis + Regarding Compile Errors with Tripwire 1.2 + Applix Spreadsheet ELF Macro Language + Answer Guy Issue 18 -- Procmail Spam Filter + Great Procmail Article + Linux Cluster Configuration + IP Masquerading/Proxy? * Autologin with mingetty, by John Kodis * Checking Out SPARC-Linux with SLXT, by John Little * EMACSulation, by Eric Marsden * Evangelism: A Unix Bigot and Linux Advocate's Spewings, by David Wagle * A Glimpse of Icon, by Clinton Jeffery and Shamim Mohamed * Graphics Muse, by Michael J. Hammel * Linus Speaks at SVLUG Meeting, by Chris DiBona * Markup Languages and lout2, by Murray Adelman * New Release Reviews, by Larry Ayers + Using the Flame Plug-In for Backgrounds, by Larry Ayers + The Maxwell Word-Processor, by Larry Ayers + WordNet: A Fast and Flexible Word Database, by Larry Ayers + Words Within Words, New Phrases From Old, by Larry Ayers + Comparing WordPerfect and LyX, by Larry Ayers * Pattern Matching with Regular Expressions in C++, by Oliver Mueller * Book Review: Web Security Sourcebook, by Kirk Petersen * Weekend Mechanic, by John Fisk * X Window System Terminals, by Rich Kaszeta * The Back Page + About This Month's Authors + Not Linux The Answer Guy The Weekend Mechanic _________________________________________________________________ The Whole Damn Thing 1 (text) The Whole Damn Thing 2 (HTML) are files containing the entire issue: one in text format, one in HTML. They are provided strictly as a way to save the contents as one file for later printing in the format of your choice; there is no guarantee of working links in the HTML version. _________________________________________________________________ Got any great ideas for improvements? Send your comments, criticisms, suggestions and ideas. _________________________________________________________________ This page written and maintained by the Editor of Linux Gazette, gazette@ssc.com _________________________________________________________________ "Linux Gazette...making Linux just a little more fun!" _________________________________________________________________ The Mailbag! Write the Gazette at gazette@ssc.com Contents: * Help Wanted -- Article Ideas * General Mail _________________________________________________________________ Help Wanted -- Article Ideas _________________________________________________________________ Date: Mon, 02 Mar 1998 08:48:14 +0100 From: Per Wigren, wigren@mail.org Subject: Linux and CDE Hi! I want to know what makes XiG's and TriTeal's CDE different, other than price! Maybe a comparison could be something for Linux Gazette... Regards, Per Wigren _________________________________________________________________ Date: Mon, 2 Mar 1998 18:56:35 +0100 (MET) From: Scud, scud@zeus.ho.tranas.se Subject: article idea I wonder if you can write some article about linux on non x86 platforms and how long linux develelopment has come on those platforms? emir _________________________________________________________________ Date: Sat, 28 Feb 1998 18:47:55 +0100 From: Grzegorz Leszczynski, rexus@polbox.com Subject: Hurricane I would be very grateful if you could help me with my problem. I can't install Linux Red Hat Hurricane 5.0. After choosing the partitions to Linux native and for swap Linux, and after choosing applications to install program says that there is an error: mount failed: invalid argument After than i must return to menu and I don't know what to do. I look forward from hearings from you Rafal Leszczynski, POLAND _________________________________________________________________ Date: Sun, 1 Mar 1998 14:11:18 -0500 (EST) From: N. Lucent, nlucent@mindspring.com Subject: Linux on a laptop I finally convinced my girlfriend to make the switch to Linux from windows after she suffered numerous stability problems (big surprise) She currently has an HP Omni-book 600CT, I fdisked her windows partition, and when I ran the install boot disk (for both Red Hat and Slackware) it says floppy 1.44m (I assume this is from the kernel) Then it says no floppy controller found, and just keeps reading the boot disk. Is there anyway that I can force the detection of the floppy? (external floppy drive) I found a WWW page about installing Linux on that notebook, but What it said to do didn't work. Does anyone have any suggestions? _________________________________________________________________ Date: Thu, 5 Mar 1998 03:09:06 EST From: Mktnc, Mktnc@aol.com Subject: Matrox Millenium II Anyone using the Matrox Millenium II graphics board with greater than 4 Meg ram with Xfree86? The XFree86 home page is somewhat dated on this card. Also, anyone running a Voodoo 2 accelerator graphix card with Linux? Anyone using nasm (Netwide Assembler) for those hard to reach places, under Linux? Thanks - Nick _________________________________________________________________ Date: Wed, 04 Mar 1998 09:05:00 -0500 From: Dr. Scott Searcy, searcys@baydenoc.cc.mi.us Subject: X-term for MS-Windows Does anyone make an X-windows terminal emulator that will run under MS-Windows. I was hoping to find such a program so that I could use X via a network connection from various MS-windows machines that I have to use. Dr. Scott Searcy _________________________________________________________________ Date: Thu, 05 Mar 1998 23:38:29 -0700 From: Elvis Chow, elvis3@chowtech.cuug.ab.ca Subject: Hylafax printing filter? I finally got Hylafax running on a Slackware distribution. Works great. What I need to do now is to get Applixware to print a doc directly to it so it can automatically fax it to a predetermined number. Is there a way of doing this? Great work on the Gazette! Best source of practical tips I've run across in a long time. Keep it up!! Elvis Chow elvis@chowtech.cuug.ab.ca _________________________________________________________________ Date: Fri, 06 Mar 1998 18:42:43 +0100 From: Stefano Stracuzzi, stracca@comune.modena.it Subject: PPP with Linux I'm a newbie in Linux and I'd like to know how I can configure my connection to my Internet service provider with my Red Hat 5.0! My modem is internal and it is configured to on the cua1 Thank You Very Much Stefano Stracuzzi _________________________________________________________________ Date: Mon, 9 Mar 1998 10:43:30 -0800 From: jean-francois helie, jfhelie@netrover.com Subject: Help Wanted! I am a student at CEGEP T.R. I have a year end project. My project is to installed a Linux based router and a IP generator for 50 PC. I have some informations about the router but i don't have any info about IP generator. Thank you for your support. Jean-Francois Helie _________________________________________________________________ Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 15:51:30 +1000 From: Ken Woodward, ken@rich.com.au Subject: Linux for Amiga Do you know if it is possible to get a CD distribution of Linux to suit running on an Amiga 3000? It is currently running AmigaUnix, and the Red Hat version 5 copy I purchased installed flawlessly on my PC. Can I get the same for the old Amiga? Thanks Ken _________________________________________________________________ Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 12:58:10 -0800 From: Kevin Long, kevjlong@ix.netcom.com Subject: Samba Woes Here's my situation: I'm trying to set up my RH5 terrifically working system to be a PDC equivalent in an NT workstation/95 network. Basically we need to 'login' to the server, and then get access to 'shares'. I tried using NFS as an alternative (with NFS maestro) but it doesn't recognize Linux NFS. However...... I cannot get Samba to work AT ALL. In fact, I have never seen it work. If you've got it working, please help me - I can copy your installation configuration and tweak it, but I need some success. I have plenty of NT, Novel, DOS/win hardware etc. experience, and successfully use NFS exports between Linux machines, but have got nowhere with Samba in a year of trying. Is it a hoax? Kevin Long _________________________________________________________________ Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 14:55:56 +0800 From: Jason Wong, jasonw@tntexpress.com.hk Subject: Red hat 5.0 with NT Server 4 I am new to Linux, and wish to set it up at home. The problem I have is: I wish to run Windows NT + Windows 95 + DOS + Linux. How to do this? I can set it up with Linux & Windows 95/DOS, but how to make Linux co-exist with NT server4?? many thanks!! (See the Samba page, http://samba.anu.edu.au/samba/. It should be just what you need. --Editor) _________________________________________________________________ Date: Fri, 13 Mar 1998 10:18:33 +0100 (MET) From: Fabio Gregoroni, gregoron@CsR.UniBo.IT Subject: Driver For Scanner I have to write a driver for a plain scanner on the parallel port. I have following scanners: 1. PRIMAX 4800 COLORADO DIRECT 2. PLUSTEK 4830P I don't need the driver already made, but I need only the transfer protocol documentation ( what I must send and receive ). Can Someone help me ? Thanks. _________________________________________________________________ Date: Wed, 04 Mar 1998 04:53:01 +0800 From: ahyeop, ahyeop4@tm.net.my Subject: X-Windows too Big! Lastly I successful install the X-windows for my Linux box using generic chip set or Oak's OTI067 (8 physical RAM is quite slow though..). But the windows are too BIG. I tried modified its XF86Config but it's not working (besides I really doesn't know how to modified it correctly) My box spec : processor: 486 DX2 60MHz. RAM: 8 simm ram Swap memory: 16 swap ram (I think so...) memory: 256 Kbytes RAMDAC: Generic 8-bit pseudo-color DAC (what it mean ?) Linux: Linux ver. 2.0.27 (Slackware 96) monitor: SVGA monitor (SSVM's 220-240V-50MHz 500mA) video card: Oak's OTI067 mouse: MS Mouse Keyboard: 101-key Can anybody help me with problem ? Thank in advance :-) Ahyeop, Perak, Malaysia _________________________________________________________________ Date: Wed, 25 Mar 1998 11:25:32 -0100 From: BoD, M39998@lazaro.info-ab.uclm.es Subject: AGP card on Linux I like to buy a AGP card based in the nVIDIA RIVA 128 chipset. Can i use it on my Linux RH 5.0 system with Xfree86 3.3.1? Thanks _________________________________________________________________ Date: Thu, 26 Mar 1998 11:41:11 -0800 (PST) From: Lee, cit@itl.net Subject: Re: Linux Gazette I've recently been hit by the superforker problem. Someone mentioned that the LG had a script to fix the problem (by removing the directories in /tmp) Do you have such a script? I haven't been able to locate it, and I currently have a ton of directories in /tmp that rm won't remove because the filename is too long. Please respond quickly while I still have some hair left, Lee//Cit (Sorry, I don't remember all the articles we've had, but superforker doesn't sound familiar. However, in issue 18 and 20, Guy Geens has articles about cleaning up the /tmp directory. Perhaps these will be of help to you. --Editor) _________________________________________________________________ Date: Fri, 27 Mar 1998 09:06:39 +0100 From: javier ballesteros, uei0372195900@eurociber.es Subject: modem for Linux I'm a student of telecommunications in the University of Alcala de Henares in Spain, my computer is a Pentium 233 MHz and I have installed Red Hat Linux 5.0, all works properly , but I have a little problem with my modem: Linux can't recognize my modem. My modem is a HSP 336 DELUXE (I know that is very bad but is the only I have). So, is there any possible to install properly my modem? , exist any driver for this specific modem? .Please send me some information or any advice, if you can I will be pleasant. See you!.... _________________________________________________________________ General Mail _________________________________________________________________ Date: Fri, 13 Mar 1998 00:39:33 -0700 (MST) From: Michael J. Hammel, mjhammel@csn.net Subject: Late Night Radio Buzz I'm sitting here listening to C|Net radios coverage of Internet World. Dan Shafer of Builder.com talked at length about how he (and someone named Desmond) are going to do some serious investigation into what alternative OS's there are - and specifically they are looking into Linux. They mentioned Red Hat and Caldera, that there were lots of applications available and how the Linux community are very much the "just do it" community. All in all, very positive exposure. Go to http://www.news.com/Radio/Features/0,155,154,0.html and click on the 4:00 CNET Radio Late Update (where it says "Dan Shafer of Builder.com: What's Hot?"). Its a RealAudio interview and you'll have to go about 1/2 way through before they start the Linux discussion. Dan Shafer said they would be writing up the Linux results they came up with in the BuilderBuzz section of Builder.com (http://builder.com). I just checked and there is nothing there yet - I think he said it was going to start next week. Anyway, I sent him email offering to assist in anyway I could. If I get a response I'll try to get more details on where the info will be located when it becomes available. C|Net would be wonderful exposure for Linux. Just thought I'd pass this along. Michael J. Hammel | _________________________________________________________________ Date: Mon, 02 Mar 1998 23:22:14 +0500 From: Larry Taranenko, larry@partners.chel.su Subject: Re: Linux Gazette #26 You know, we are here interesting in Linux too. But we have much troubles with our unstable connection to the World - that is why I maintained LG mirror in the heart (geographically we live in the center of RUSSIA) of my country. And I have many many friends in my town (apr. 2,5 mln city named Chelyabinsk) who are crazy about Linux as I am. Mostly we use Debian. I like your publications - and think that a little note somewhere there about Linuxoids in RUSSIA will be, maybe, interesting to somebody. See in future. I hope you understand me in right manner, against my silly English... God bless you and Linus, Have a nice day! Ta-ta (I think I understand you fine. Why don't you write up an article for us about Linux in Russia? --Editor) _________________________________________________________________ Date: Fri, 27 Mar 1998 03:49:43 -0500 (EST) From: zaeb@8b28m2.net Subject: about filedudes hey, found this real fast download site www.filedudes.com, check it out! _________________________________________________________________ Date: Sat, 07 Mar 1998 22:51:10 -0800 From: Ken Leyba, kleyba@pacbell.net Subject: $0.02 Tip In issue 26 of the Linux Gazette there is a two cent tip that refers to the VAX 3400/3300's as MIPS 3000 boxes. These are indeed VAX processors as Digital (DEC) named MIPS boxes as DECStations/DECServers and VAX boxes as VAXStations/VAXServers. I worked for Digital for over 10 years in Multi-Vendor Customer Services and currently use a VAX 3300 running Ultrix, DEC's BSD based Unix for the VAX CPU. Ken Leyba _________________________________________________________________ Date: Mon, 9 Mar 1998 17:09:28 -0500 From: Tunney, Sue (IDS), STunney@ahcpr.gov Subject: Yes, Grammar does count I was so pleased to read that *someone* else out there is as aggravated as I am by the continual misuse of the apostrophe in web pages and e-mails by obvious native-born American English speakers. And for anyone who says, "What's the big deal? Doesn't everyone know what I mean?", let this old fogey respond: Does your computer understand what you mean when you make an error writing code? Doesn't it matter then? If you can't write proper English grammar and spell correctly, what makes you so sure that your computer code is correct? And if you want to spread the good news about Linux, it seems obvious that we will get more attention, and the right kind, if we take the time to write properly. I'm often impressed by how hard the "foreign" letter writers work to make their point clear when they write to LG, often apologizing for their poor English; yet they often do better than us "natives." Mike, you are absolutely right, and I thank you for saying it. I would also like to eliminate the so-called word "alot" as *there is no such word* (but note that the next letter after Mike's used it. Oh, well...) . If you can't drag out a dictionary, check it out on line; there are lots of fine dictionaries out there. _________________________________________________________________ Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 13:24:03 -0800 From: Rich Drewes, drewes@interstice.com Subject: Linux market share (news tidbit) I run an ISP that hosts a variety of customer-owned domains, most not even specifically computer related. I recently did an analysis of the agent_log files to find out how popular Linux really is as a client OS for ordinary users who access the ordinary web pages. The results are at: http://www.interstice.com/~drewes/linuxcount/main.html One interesting factoid: Linux now appears to be the #2 most popular Unix OS client! I enjoy the LG. Thanks for the work. Rich _________________________________________________________________ Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 21:38:36 -0500 (EST) From: Tim Gray, timgray@lambdanet.com Subject: Re: Getting Linux to the public... Milton, thank you for your response (see Tips)... your's was the first that was genuinely helpful, I have learned many things after posting that letter to the Gazette, one of which is that the Linux user crowd is not free of the type of person that enjoys flaming others, (I had secretly hoped that Linux users were more helpful than resentful) But thank you! It helps alot to fiddle with the settings and I was successful in getting 2 friends converted to Linux, unfortunately there are several colleagues that alas have monitors that are older than dirt itself and cannot go beyond 640X480 :-) But you have helped me migrate 2 windows users! thank you.. and thank you for your supportive letter. Tim. _________________________________________________________________ Date: Sun, 29 Mar 1998 16:09:41 -0500 From: NYACC AnyNix SIG comm mgr, sigunix@bzsys.dyn.ml.org Subject: Re: Getting Linux to the public... Timothy D. Gray wrote regarding: Getting Linux to the public: Has anyone noticed that when your friends see your neat-o Linux system with the nice 17 inch monitor, high quality video card, and fast computer that when they say, "Wow! that is nice, and you can do almost anything on that!" you cringe with the fact that they are going to want you to put it on their system? I'm glad you have a 17inch monitor and "highquality" video card. Myself, my 50-dollar video card and ten-year-old monitor let me run in 800x600 with 256 colors. I could get 1024x768 if the monitor allowed it. I could get 64K colors (16-bit) if XFree86 allowed it. This is a limitation not of the hardware, not exactly of Linux, but of the XFree86 people who don't wish to take the trouble to support the inexpensive cards on the market. My present (Oak) card seems to be limited to 8-bit color in any event, my other (Cirrus Logic) card will support 16-bit and 24-bit color, which if fully supported would allow me 64K colors at 800x600 or 16M colors at 640x480 (with a virtual 800x600 window). The people at XFree86 (one of them a Cirrus employee) have, by their own statement, chosen to spend their time on the latest and greatest cards, with the older, cheaper cards going by the board. I have tried and failed to get the necessary information from Cirrus Logic to rewrite the XFree driver to better use the card. Now mind you, I don't cringe on sharing the best O/S on the planet, In fact I want everyone to use Linux. It's just that almost all X windows software is written for 1024 X 768 or higher resolution video screens and that 99% of those wanting to use Linux and X windows only have a 14" monitor that can barely get past 640X480 at 256 colors. See above. For a cost of no more than $50 they should be able to get a 1MB video card that will handle *much* better resolution. I tried several times to get friends into Linux and X but to no avail because the software developed for X is for those that have Gobs of money for good video boards and humoungous monitors. It's not a limitation of Linux or X, it that the software that is developed for these platforms are by professionals or professional users that can afford that new 21 inch monitor at the computer store. You might try pushing different programs. My main problem (except with viewers for Adobe file formats) is getting *multiple* windows on the screen at once. Also, certain *types* of applications, by their very nature, demand lots of screen real estate. An application of that sort is going to be cramped on a small screen *regardless* of underlying OS support. I simply avoid such applications until I can acquire a larger screen (about $500, locally). We as a group might want to see software scaled back to the 640X480 crowd.. then Linux would take the world by storm.. Until then It's going to be limited to us pioneers and Scientists... Actually, the *biggest* barrier to using Linux X Apps is that so many of them are written using Motif! That's almost as bad as WinDoze. --Buz Cory :) _________________________________________________________________ Published in Linux Gazette Issue 27, April 1998 _________________________________________________________________ [ TABLE OF CONTENTS ] [ FRONT PAGE ] Next This page written and maintained by the Editor of Linux Gazette, gazette@ssc.com Copyright © 1998 Specialized Systems Consultants, Inc. "Linux Gazette...making Linux just a little more fun!" _________________________________________________________________ More 2¢ Tips! Send Linux Tips and Tricks to gazette@ssc.com _________________________________________________________________ Contents: * Re: Help Wanted LaserJet 4L * StarOffice 4/Ghostscript * Linux and VAX 3400 and 3300 * xdm with Pictures * Re: Help-Installing Linux on a FAT32 * Regarding Easter Eggs in Netscape etc. * Re: Changing XDM windows * Nice xdm and Linux PPC * Re: Help with Sound Card * Modline for TV * mpack 2 cent tip * shutdown and root * Perl Script 2 cent tip * RE: my dual pentium * RE: Changing XDM windows * RE: HELP-Installing Linux on a FAT32 Drive * Re: Apache SSL extensions... * Reply to locate tip (LG 26) * Re: Getting Linux to the public... * My 2-cents on W95/Linux coexistence * 2-cent tips in LG 26: core dumps * Perl Script 2C Tip * rxvt 0.02$ tip * Tiny patch to ifconfig * Re: Wanting HELP! * Re: Help Wanted (usershell on console without logging in) * 2 cent tip followup -- X * locate patch * locate subdirectories _________________________________________________________________ RE: Help Wanted - LaserJet 4L Date: Mon, 2 Mar 1998 14:38:43 -0500 From: Shane_McLaughlin@stream.com To: John.H.Gorman@MCI.Com Re: font sizes + points, Linux Gazette #26 I had a similar problem with an old Deskjet under SunOS and was supplied with the following info by HP support Europe. It applies to DOS but should be applicable to any Un*x system as well These are printer instruction generation wizards URLs * FOR PCL3 got to (DeskJets): http://www.hp.com/cpso-support/deskjet/tools/pcl3.html * FOR PCL5 got to (LaserJets): http://www.hp.com/cpso-support/PrinterLanguage/pclwiz.html * FOR PJL go to (printer job language - like a batch language): http://www.hp.com/cpso-support/PrinterLanguage/pjlwiz.html * Try checking entries on Horizontal Motion Index and Vertical Motion Index (HMI + VMI) - that might be what you want. I saw a posting in C.O.L.A. a few months back that someone has already done the tough work and has programmed some mostly-complete PCL 3+ 5 drivers for Linux If all else fails, HP DOS drivers exist that can customise point sizes + fonts and save them permanently to printer memory (5Si's do, i don't know about 4Ls) If you don't have a DOS partition maybe DOSEMU? Good Luck! Shane McLaughlin _________________________________________________________________ 2c tip (StarOffice 4 / Ghostscript) Date: Mon, 2 Mar 1998 18:48:51 -0500 (EST) From: Fraser McCrossan, fraserm@gtn.net I've just started using the excellent Star Office 4.0 (free for personal use - go get it now!), but have noticed that when using Ghostscript to filter its print output on my non-Postscript printer, the results were not quite as they appeared on the screen. I reasoned that this might be because the fonts supplied with SO didn't quite match those supplied with Ghostscript. However, the SO fonts are Type 1 Postscript fonts... which Ghostscript can use. To make Ghostscript use them, you need to link them to its home directory. For example, if your SO is installed in /home/fraser/Office40, change to the Ghostscript font (normally /usr/local/share/ghostscript/fonts) directory, and do the following: ln -s /home/fraser/Office40/fonts/type1/*.pf[ab] . mv Fontmap Fontmap.hide For some reason, when I tried to add the new fonts to Fontmap in the same format as the existing fonts, GS would crash, hence hiding it. I'm not a GS guru... perhaps someone else can explain why. However, GS works just fine without Fontmap for me, although it probably takes longer to start up - and everything I print looks just like the screen. --Fraser _________________________________________________________________ RE: Linux and VAX 3400 and 3300 Date: Mon, 02 Mar 1998 20:34:55 -0500 From: RC Pavlicek, pavlicek@radc17.cop.dec.com The March issue of the Gazette includes the following under 2 Cent Tips: <http://ucnet.canberra.edu.au/~mikal/vaxlinux/home.html