Posts by kc0arf

Hello,

OS X has always been a bit IFFY on SCSI support... I have a G3 powerbook, the Lombardi, and certain things on SCSI do not work, and certain things do work. I typically go into OS 9 if I need to do SCSI work.

Will your iBook load OS9? If so, give it a try. Your Jazz might work properly.

If memory serves, a Jaz removable disk held 1 GB of data or so.

Christian

Hello,

Couple of things here. You might be connected to the Airport Extreme (AE), but the AE might not be routing to the internet properly.

Not ever owning one, I am not sure how they are setup. I would bet there is a webpage in the AE that you may use to configure the settings. It is possible that the AE is not routing protocol information properly to and from the internet. Without a network diagram, and seeing the data in front of me, it would be hard to go further.

You can try re-setting the AE and see what that does for you.

Christian

Hello,

I believe Netscape under the days of OS 8 - 9 kept the emails inside a folder called Profiles. You might have to go to backups, and retrieve them from there. I am trying to think if I have an OS 8 computer to test that theory out on.

I think your best bet is backups.

Christian

Hello,

Apple has improved their Disk utility software on the CD-ROM, and that is all I have needed for OS X.

Whatever you do, DO NOT use an OS 9 utility for OS X. That is a great way to force a machine rebuild.

Christian

Hello,

I would do a re-install of the OS. Why? because you do not know what the initial owner may have installed, or left behind on it. There could be some personal data on there, or some wierd control panel, or some software you are not properly licensed to have.

I do this for all computers that come new into my possession... either direct from Apple, or from eBay.

Christian

Hello,

Just so that I understand the question correctly.... you are having the users of OS X log into an Active Directory domain, and then when they make a print out, you wish them to re-authenticate?

I am not certain this is possible, unless you force the user to logout after each printout, and that is dangerous, as if they have any files open on the file server, they will be abruptly closed and not saved. When Windows issues you a login credential from AD, it remains until the user logs out, or an explicit logout is defined.

Christian

Hello,

A RAM Disk is a "disk" that is setup in RAM (memory). It behaves just like a traditional disk, with the following thoughts:

* It is in RAM, so a strict RAM disk will be lost if the computer crashes or reboots
* It is small in size, because it has to compete with other programs in memory
* It is REALLY REALLY FAST
* It is ideal for things that are temporary, and / or placing files that will have a lot of I/O interactions with their programs (such as compiling a program, or lots of little writes to a file).

More information may be found here:

http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20020530084607311

Also, if you are looking for a quick program that does this, take a look at

http://www.clarkwoodsoftware.com/rambunctious/ramb2.html

By the way, Linux can use RAM disks too!

Christian

Hello,

Quark is a Nightmare. There is a lot of anger and frustration in the industry about the lack of Quark customer care.

Best bet is to do the searching for your quark documents, and consult your backups.

Christian

Hi,

As an addendum... you could also try a USB flash drive (the little USB thumbdrive things that hold 256 MB or something like that) or you could put an external USB/Firewire drive. I like the Thumby idea. New-age and portable.

In the day, I had a Syquest EZDrive that had removable 128MB cartridges that I used.

Christian

Hello,

What I used to do in the day was make a floppy disk that had a Ram Drive available, so that I could boot with the floppy disk, and then move the system folder to the Ram drive, from where I could eject the floppy disk out, and load other things.

Today, you might wish to make that CD-ROM, and also burn along with it a utility that you can make a RAM disk on the fly. Copy Norton to that Ram Disk, and then run from there. Granted, this means you are going to need some higher RAM in order to store and work with all this data, but that is what you are going to need to do if you need to write temp files and work on the hard drive.

Christian

Hi,

Now might be a good time to look at computer markets for a used 386 / 486 laptop (color). That way you have a computer that is nice and easy to store, and you can play your games with it. It should have a video out if the LCD ever dies.

Nothing lasts forever though. Then again, my Apple IIc still works!

Christian

Hello,

Assuming that you mean e as that math constant e, I found:

e = 2.71828182845904523536028747135266249775724709369995

But, you should really write a program as described by:

http://www.gwydiondylan.org/gdref/gdlibs/libs-transcendental-e.html

And really figure it out for yourself.

I had Mathematica crunch out PI to 100,000 places for me on my Mac LC once. That took a little while.

Christian

Hello,

Be very careful with Partition Magic. Personally, i would do it right and move all the data off the computer, and re-partition it and re-build it from scratch. Install Windoze first, as it will clobber and not respect any pre-installed linux partitions. Linux looks for Windoze, and will accomidate it within GRUB.

Christian

Hello,

From the Linux environment, type in /sbin/ifconfig Let us know what you see.

Christian

Hello,

What speed is your WAN connection to the remote office? We have a VPN here that connects our two offices, and it moves along just fine.

As for your orig question concerning mirroring the drives... that would be fun even in a pure NOS environment, where you had both boxes Linux or both boxes Windoze. Data is data, and in order to sync anything, you will need to have it fire over the VPN in real time, unless your SLA will allow you nightly updates / syncs.

Describe more your vision, and your goals.

Christian

Hi,

I am thinking your computer doesn't like to sleep with the ISDN attached. Remove the USB cable, and try your steps a few times. Write back and let us know,

Christian

Hello,

When you purchased the computer off Ebay, did you re-format it and start over? You might have morsels leftover from the last guy, and it is always advisible to clean house when starting a new setup / environment. Think of buying a car-- you would want the dealer to vacuume it out, right?

I am leaning towards a software problem here.

You might also have a hardware problem. RAM could be dirty/flaky and needing a cleanout, or it could be the hard drive.

Let us know,

Christian

Hi,

Typically to remove something from the dock, all you need to do is drag it off of the dock. If the application is OPEN, it will not remove until you close it.

I am curious as to why your Installer keeps on opening, and why you cannot quit it. Can you elaborate?

Christian

Hello,

I have the Bachelor's of Science, Microsoft Certified Professional, Certified Netware Administrator (4.1.1), and an Amateur Radio License.

Christian

Hi,

When talking with Dani this past week or so on ICQ, I found out that on the East Coast, where she lives, they do a lot of eating out, and not much cooking. As the conversation unfolded, I found out that Dani hasn't cooked much at all, and decided that she should learn a few dishes in order to try and learn how to cook. In this thread, I would like to have the community pass along serious, delicious things to make.

Cooking, after all, is science. It is eatible chemistry.

So to start it off, I'll write about Brown House Burgers. This is a hamburger that my roommate Brian and I started making back in college around 1993. We enjoyed cooking, I would grill on the Webber (charcoal) and he would make something inside to go with it. Always ate well.

To make Brown House Burgers, you need about a pound and a half of lean hamburger -- want it to be 85 - 95 percent lean, but not the leanest stuff, or the burger will fall apart on the grill. You also want more than 80 or so, or the grease from the meat will start a fireball in your grill.

You want to have an egg, some Lawery's seasoning, a can of mushrooms, and a bottle of Southern Comfort (this is liquer, and if you are < 21, there is risk). You will also want a handful of potato chips. We …

Hello,

IN the future, please do not hijack another conversation in the threads. To do so is bad manners. I have created this new thread for you.

If you are brand new to Linux, your best bet is a good book. SUSE, RedHat, Mandrake, etc are going to share the basic command concepts; each flavor is going to have a slight variation.

Go down to the Barnes and Noble and look for a good book on SUSE. You might find one that is Yellow and Black and part of the "unleashed bible" series. I found them for RedHat, and will be looking at one for SUSE too.

Christian

Hello,

You have a protocol problem. XP does not listen to AppleTalk; only Windows 2000 Server and 2003 Server do (Well, NT 4 does too). When you check the box to share the printer on XP, you are setting up a SMB sharepoint... SMB <> Appletalk. This is one of several fundamental differences between a Workstation OS, and a network server OS.

You MIGHT be able to use OS X to share the printer using SMB protocols, but I am not sure that is supported.

You might also need a solution on the Mac side to see the printer, such as Thursby Software's Dave product. What you are trying to do is enable a print server.

P.S. Epson gives Macintosh tech support. Never had a problem with it.

Let us know,

Christian

Hello,

It is possible that your Microsoft Office is corrupted. I would re-install it. If memory serves, Office is a drag-and-drop application, that sets up everything on it's own when you run it for the first time.

Christian

** ANNOUNCEMENT **

Symantec has identified a Mac OS X Virus.

Virus Name: MacOS.Renepo.B
OS Threatened: Macintosh OS X
Date of Detection: October 22,2004

Sources of Information: Symantec Website... http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/macos.renepo.b.html

Brief Summary of what the Virus Does: This virus is a script that installs several pieces of software to record keystrokes made into the computer (very bad) and it also steals passwords, attempts to compromise the internal firewall, and become the root user. Once it becomes a root user, the script can do anything to that computer. The computer will also slow down, with a process called JOHN consuming most of the CPU time.

Links to steps on how to Remove: See the Symantec Website

Brief steps for protection: Watch what you download. Maintain firewalls, especially if you are on a Cable/DSL connection. It doesn't hurt to have two firewalls handy. Avoid using the root user for normal tasks, and also avoid using an administrator account for normal daily tasks. Check your file permissions out using the Disk Utility, and also update your computer and keep it updated often. Also, make backups of any data files.

I'd like to create a Virus Log describing each virus that becomes known for the Macintosh Platform. Inside each announcement, the following information shall be included:

Virus Name:
Mac OS threatened:
Date of Detection:
Sources of Information:
Brief Summary of what the Virus Does:
Links to steps on how to Remove:
Brief steps for protection:

Hi Tas,

Yep, in order to help you out, we need to know what OS you were working with, and where these images are stored. It would also be a good idea to locate your backup materials.

Where did you get Firefox as 10.3.5 / 3.3? Firefox is a web browser; OS X is an operating system.

What did you do before you lost the files? How did you access them in the past?

Christian

Hello,

I think you have a MIME-encoded email message. Couple things to consider....

1) IE on the Mac has been unsupported for a couple years. You might want to try and use a different browser, such as Safari or Mozilla's Firefox.

2) You mentioned this was an email, and you got it through IE. That implies it is some sort of email attachment that you got through a webmail client. If this is the case, then IE is responsible for converting that attachment when it saves it to the hard drive. If that is not working properly, you need to work the settings in IE to read the email properly.

What I would do is try it with a different web browser. Stuffit will not decode a .mim(e) file, as this is not a compression algorithm, rather a conversion of binary data to text format (may have heard of binhex, or uuencode) so that the internet can handle the file.

Christian

Hello,

OS X does have a "safe mode". It is triggered with a keyboard sequence, of which I need to go look up and get back to you with.

Christian

Hello,

Do you have a second keyboard around? Try that out, and see if there is a failure too. If an external keyboard has the same problems (highly unlikely), then it could be software. The external keyboard (USB) would be a good short term fix.

But I would put my money on a busted keyboard. You were fortunate; a keyboard is rather inexpensive. It is the LCD screen that would send you screaming.

Christian

Hi,

.DS_Store is a system file. Mac OS X leaves these files around as part of the OS management implementation. You will see them on servers, and if you go looking around hidden files and so forth.

This is not a virus.

I have changed the name of the thread to reflect that you do not have a virus, and make the title more technically accurate.

Christian

Hello,

The OS might be looking for the same type of media.... you mentioned that you named a CD the same name as the volume that is missing (In Mac Speak, a volume is any storage media... a floppy disk is a volume, a hard drive partition is a volume, a server mount is a volume). I am thinking you might need to do the floppy disk thing, as the floppies are traditionally the easiest bad habit forming in terms of pre-mature ejection.

Don't have a floppy disk? Try someone's USB one. That might work for you.

Now, it might be possible to start tossing preferences files out, and see if that breaks the problem for you. I am thinking of Finder preferences. There is a danger doing that, however. I have also been too far away from OS 9 to remember the common culprits.

Let us know,

Christian

Hello,

It depends on what distro you are trying to work with. For example, I know that RedHat allowed me to do a floppy disk --> FTP installation. You might want to go and find a older, more compatable NIC card. I have had great success with 3Com cards, such as the 3C5x9 (ISA) and the 3C90x (PCI) families.

Or, borrow a CD-ROM drive from someone, or better yet, replace it. They are not that $$ anymore, and if your "time" is worth much, you could be spending a lot more time trying to get around the problem then actually going out to a computer store and getting the direct solution.

Oh -- you don't need a fast CD-ROM. Any old IDE 4x or better would work fine (I am assuming you are on a desktop and not a laptop).

And if you are really into the exotic, you could, I suppose, put that hard drive into another computer that has a working CD-ROM. Use some partitioning utilities to move the .iso images over to the hard drive, and install from there, but that too is a lot of work!

Christian

Hello,

Why is it bad to install everything, and then disable what you don't need, and firewall it to be sure? If you have the space to do it, why not install it and then keep them all upgraded as time goes on?

If you don't, there is a risk of needing to install it later, and running into dependancy problems. I'll admit that I have been RedHat-ized, in that I have fought various dependancy hell wars, and won them after lots of grief. So other distros may have a better upgrade procedure; that is for me to discover and find out. RedHat does not.

Now, I would strongly agree that Microsoft has a broken installation methodology. Installs it all, and enables it all (although Win 2003 Server does come with things installed, but disabled, or not installed.... it is a step in the right direction). The Problem with M$ though is the multiple places to define a group policy, and the order that those policies are defined... one says yes, another says no, another says yes, and the forth says yes, but the one that says no "wins" due to some OS design found in Chapter 17 of "the Hidden Microsoft Mess". Linux does not have that armada of policy decisions... so you have a much better management of the daemons (services for you Windoze folks) and can control them.

As for me, I am going to go and study SUSE now. Granted, Fedora is …

Hello,

When booting from the XP CD, the software should ask you where to install it. In that screen, you should see the partions available listed. You should be able to delete the partition, effectively forcing you to re-partition and implied re-format.

If you are having troubles booting from CD, then there is something else at work. Does your system give you a message saying "Press any key to boot from CD..." or something to that effect? If so, you need to tap a key to get into the OS and boot from there.

If this doesn't work, you may need to go to another computer, and make boot floppies. I know you can do that for 2000; I am not sure (but betting you can!) do it for XP. Look for a folder called BootDisks or the like on the root level of the CD-ROM. There should be a utility and some image files.

ENjoy,

Christian

Hello,

If the service starts up and then dies out, you might be able to look in the Event Viewer, and see if there are log entries associated with your problem. That may hint if something is out of whack or not.

Christian

Hello Zach,

I run my internet www and ftp applications on their own 27 GB partition called /internet. It gets backed up, and is moving along just fine. The orig writer was looking for a small compact installation, and not a server class setup. I always move the internet applications to their own partition so that they are isolated, and I can spec out different tar commands.

Cup, did you try RedHat? You mentioned this is smaller hardware... perhaps 7.3?

Christian

Hi,

The big question is: Do you have backups? If so, re-partition and start it over.

This is precisely why I do not recommend people use Partition Magic or any other partitioning modification schemes. The partition is the core of your volume... and by moving it around, you are changing the disk structures installed.

If it was that easy to do, and risk free, don't you think the major distros (Win, Mac, Linux) would come with this simple free utility? Nope.

I think your drive is cooked. Re-reading that you didn't backup, well, you are cooked too.

Don't mean to be a smarty, but prepare for a long night ahead as you rebuild the computer from scratch. I have unfortunately seen this too many times. You will know next time to backup and then check those backups before proceeding.

Christian

Hello,

I was a longtime supporter of RedHat... am still running 7.3 in places, and 9.0 in other places. I have not worked long with Fedora to comment, but what RedHat did disturbs me, and I am looking at other options.

So far SUSE has loaded fine on my box; I am also wanting to test FreeBSD. Am told that FreeBSD is a lot of compiling on the machine... not sure if I want to take my marbles and do that. SUSE has worked well though.

I do suggest you install *everything* from your distro, so that you have the various compilers, header files, and so forth. If you are going to do dev work, you don't want to have a limited environment (software, memory, hard drive). Don't cause a problem by selectively installing the meat and potatoes of the OS. (then again, if you don't need a news server, don't install it, but do install MySQL -- you might get an SQL project, and need it later!).

Christian

Hello,

Do you mean /var as it's own partition? That is what you want, actually! Your log files and other variable information will go into /var, and an out of control log can fill that volume before you get a chance to repair it. No computers like it when the root volume fills up on the hard drive. Errors galore. Give /var her own sizable partition if you can!

I have had Linux in the field for years, and have always had /var separated. Not a problem.

Also -- an .iso image is meant to be burnt onto a CD-ROM, and from there you will use that disk during the installation. I have heard of people installing from a hard drive to a hard drive, but I don't think that is what you are trying to do. Typically, the .iso image is going to be anywhere from 600M - 640M or so. That size should not be counted towards the installation size -- the pieces of the OS on that .iso image are compressed, and not configured for "realtime" use.

Christian

Hi,

The Mac is also a wonderful platform.

Linux could use a nice Photoshop equivalent. Yes, there is GIMP out there, but I believe it is limited to 256 colors. I'd like to see thousands / millions myself.

FreeCiv is a nice Linux game, along with Chess and the one my fiancee likes... the matching chinese symbols thing that she plays. I think there are a few other games out there for Linux that are Role Playing based. I wouldn't mind seeing a port of Diablo series to Linux.

There are some things that I have to keep my Mac for.... Linux is getting close to Desktop Completion, but not quite there yet. Then again OS X is really a wonderful Unix, although I concede that some things are laid out in a unique fashion. The important thing is that the spyware and bugs just bounce off our environments.

BUT

Any computer system can be compromised. Some a lot easier than others. But a wide open Linux box can cause problems too. Firewall out things that you do not need. If you are running samba internally, make sure your external firewall blocks the ports Samba desires. Don't run an FTP site. Don't run WebDAV externally. Use SSH instead of telnet. Make sure that you have a firewall, and are not running as the root user. And make backups, because hard drives and powersupplies do fail.

Christian

Hello,

The problem with BPL is that it is really noisy electro-magnetically (meaning radio waves), and could interfere with AM, Ham Radio, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Administration), Citizen's Band, and Military communications.

BPL in the United States, so far, is destined to splatter anywhere from 1 - 80 MHz with noise on poorly-shielded cables. This means that this noise will interfere with radios, and when someone transmits in your neighborhood, it will interfere with your BPL connection.

It really is *crappy* technology that can potentially destroy the communications freedoms Americans have had since the development of radio in the early 1900's. And because signals below 30 MHz like to bounce around in Earth's atmosphere (signals below 30 tend to reflect back to the ground... for example, you could not use a CB @ 27 MHz to talk to someone on the moon, even if it was right on top of you, whereas 140 MHz would work just fine) with all the bouncing around, we are going to pollute other countries as well.

This is like light pollution vs. the backyard astronomer who wants to look at stars, because the empty Stadium a few miles away has their lights on (for no reason) and the glare kills the view.

This BPL also stands to put Neighbor vs. Neighbor because someone is going to transmit, and cause your computer to not respond. But the transmitter has a license; you don't. Yet you do not understand the legal …

Hello,

I have boycotted Linksys equipment due to their Windoze Superiority Complex(tm) and their equipment is pooly shielded to RF radiation (My ham radio gear picks up their hubs, whereas other hardware folks does not get into my radio).

You are going to want a router that has an option for an external antenna. The one I purchased is from Buffalo Technologies, and it will support an external antenna, and also has 4 or 5 local hub ports for wired machines & printers.

As it stands, your Airport Extreme 802.11(g) card in the G4 should work fine with the Linksys, as long as the signal makes it through the house. Ideally, you would have the wireless hub on the second floor, so that your radio signals don't have to travel as far. Depending on the materials used in the house's construction, your setup may or may not work.

Next question: do you need detailed help configuring the router? If so, please write back and let us know.

Christian

Hello,

I was killing some bugs on a user's system, and found one with a License.txt file. I find this particularly amusing that someone would write something. Here it is:

THE DELFIN PROJECT, INC. END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT ("EULA")
FOR THE PROMULGATE® CLIENT SOFTWARE

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING BEFORE USING THIS SOFTWARE: THIS IS A LEGAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE END USER, AND THE DELFIN PROJECT, INC. PRIOR TO INSTALLING OR USING THIS SOFTWARE, YOU MUST READ AND ACCEPT ALL THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO ALL OF THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT, PROMPTLY DESTROY OR RETURN THE SOFTWARE AND ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTATION TO THE DELFIN PROJECT, INCORPORATED. ("DELFIN").

This End-User License Agreement ("EULA") is a legal agreement between YOU (either an individual or a single entity) and DELFIN for DELFIN software product identified above, which includes DELFIN developed and licensed computer software and may include associated media, printed materials, and "online" or electronic documentation ("SOFTWARE PRODUCT"). By installing, copying, or otherwise using the SOFTWARE PRODUCT, YOU agree to be bound by the terms of this EULA. If YOU do not agree to the terms of this EULA, do not install or use the SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

COMPUTER SETTINGS ON YOUR COMPUTER.

YOU UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THE SOFTWARE PRODUCT WILL MODIFY, REMOVE, AND ADD ENTRIES TO YOUR COMPUTER OPERATING SYSTEM, NETWORK PARAMETERS, AND OTHER INSTALLED FILES THAT WILL CHANGE THE PRIOR DEFAULT SETTINGS, AND/OR INSTALL SOFTWARE FROM THIRD PARTIES WITHOUT …

Hello,

With 1.2 GB, you will be hard pressed to install *everything*. Where you go will depend on what you want the computer to do. Since it is a laptop with limited space, I would suggest the following:

256 MB SWAP partition
/var 300 MB partition (this is where the logs are kept, and will prevent logs overwriting the main volume
/ partition with the rest.

Avoid --
* don't need FTP / WEB / NEWS / MAIL server software
* If you can squeeze the compilers in, do it.
* Choose one X manger -- GNOME or KDE. I prefer GNOME for simplicity... KDE is great if you want more bells and whistles on desktop
* Don't need to install source trees if you don't have compliers
* Choose one set of office programs -- either KOffice or Open Office, not both

You can also consider an older Linux distro, such as RedHat 7.3. With your laptop only having a 1.2 GB hard drive, you might also have RAM restrictions. I know RH 9 wants 64 MB RAM for starters, and the RH 7.3 only needs 24 MB. Might want to consider going older distro, so that it is smaller (although less features), but more efficient as the software would closer match the hardware (in terms of year of release).

Christian

Hi,

This belongs in a different thread, so I have split them.

You are going to need what is called a router. Properly installed and configured, it will also help protect your system.

I should write an article on it for the Tutorial section.

Basically, you plug in the internet on the WAN side of the router, and your internal devices on the LAN side. There is software inside the router that regulates traffic, and by doing so, protects your network. This will also allow you to share that internet connections with other computers.

I'll write a tutorial on it.

Christian

Hello,

Filesharing requires 4 basic things: Network connectivity, Firewall permissions, NTFS Permissions, and Sharing Permissions. I think your Network and firewall is working properly, so let's look at NTFS and File Sharing.

1) Did you format the new drive? Is it FAT32 or NTFS? If NTFS, did you allow the local users group access to the drive? To test, go to the computer that has the drive attached to it, login as the user, and see if you can create a folder there. If so, permissions are fine. If it is a FAT32 drive, do not worry about this part at all.

2) Did you setup sharing permissions properly? You should right-click on My Computer, and go into Manage. Go into the Shared Folders... and find your share. Check the share permissions to make sure the group/users is enabled properly.

Let us know what you find.

Christian

Hello,

The following weblink might assist you. SED is a tremendously complex piece of work that requires the finest care.

http://www.student.northpark.edu/pemente/sed/sed1line.txt

Christian

Hello,

Did you by chance make the fedora Emergency Boot Disk? if so, you might be able to edit that text file on the disk,and then boot to Linux, and then run the grub utilities from within your linux environment.... wait... you had this working, so your emergency disk should already be ready to go.

Christian

Hello,

Your question is now shifting to the DOS / Windoze forums. Might want to call this topic done, and open a new question over there.

glad this all worked for you.

Christian

Hi,

As a followup, I would make all the connections with both computers turned off. Just in case.

Christian