Re: Seeking Linuxy hardware to rejig my life to digital convergence....
On the phone side of things, routers exist that include not only a built-in ATA, but also built-in DECT base-station. Any ATA can be "plumbed" into your legacy phone wiring provided your phone wiring is disconnected from your Telco. This way your jacks around the house still have dial-tone, but coming from your ATA rather than POTS from your Telco. In case of ATA failure, make sure your incoming line can be patched back to your legacy phone wiring to by-pass a broken ATA. Yuri
Re: Blocked sight
> I found I could not get through to the piratebay so I did a trace > route on it and got this. > > > # traceroute thepiratebay.org > traceroute to thepiratebay.org (194.71.107.15), 30 hops max, 60 byte packets > 1 RTA1335.home (192.168.1.1) 1.004 ms 1.469 ms 1.923 ms > 2 wn-cisco-r5-lo-5.connections.net.nz (202.49.152.169) 49.764 ms > 50.279 ms 52.526 ms > 3 wn-sum-1-wnlan7.connections.net.nz (202.49.152.161) 53.566 ms > 54.546 ms 55.002 ms > 4 192.168.100.45 (192.168.100.45) 56.862 ms 58.906 ms 59.294 ms > 5 p1-telstra-int-pri.connections.net.nz (202.154.157.88) 69.991 ms > 70.476 ms 71.236 ms > 6 * * * > 7 * * * > 8 * * * > 9 * * * > > > > > Just wonedring > who is p1-telstra-int-pri.connections.net.nz. > are they blocking pirate bay > are they allowed to do that I get: # traceroute thepiratebay.org traceroute to thepiratebay.org (194.71.107.15), 30 hops max, 60 byte packets 1 dsldevice.lan (192.168.1.254) 30.769 ms 30.190 ms 29.571 ms 2 125-237-80-1.jetstream.xtra.co.nz (125.237.80.1) 39.818 ms 40.670 ms 42.316 ms 3 * * * 4 ae4-10.akbr5.global-gateway.net.nz (202.37.244.221) 63.094 ms 63.985 ms 64.839 ms 5 * * * 6 * * * 7 * * * 8 * * * 9 * * * 10 * * * Piratebay provides torrent links to some legit content too that I'd like to access some day. I don't recall opting in to censorship. Yuri
Re: OT: Free 17" monitor Philips 107S5 (slightly defective or misadjusted?)
Helmut Walle wrote: > Free to good home: one 17" CRT monitor Philips 107S5 > (slightly defective or misadjusted?). It works in principle, but > there are some diagonal stripes going across the top [snip] > Pick-up South New Brighton. Well that may explain it. South New Brighton air is corrosive to electronics. Yuri
Re: serious X problem
Currently downloading PClinuxOS 2010. The best Mandrivative around. Barry, would you like to try it? It has all the Mandriva goodness and none of the toxins :-) Yuri
Re: Ditto: OT: Free external 56k modem
Craig Falconer wrote: >>> no matter what conditions the copper cables submerged >>> below the water table for 30 years or Telecoms coal >>> fired exchange threw at it. >> >> Pity the poor cable jointer who has to dig up a cable to >> repair it, and the hole keeps filling with water. > > They have pumps in the truck for that, and spanky wee > tents to keep the rain off. Tents don't stop the water table. > I'd be more worried about the lead and tar sheathe they > use to waterproof the bundles. Using a gas blowtorch to > soften the lead and make it watertight again... Those old guys who started in the Post Office have decades of lead wiping experience. Let's hope all lead sheathed cables are replaced with plastic before those guys retire :-) Yuri
Re: Ditto: OT: Free external 56k modem
On St Paddy's Day at 13:15, Ross Drummond wrote: > no matter what conditions the copper cables submerged > below the water table for 30 years or Telecoms coal > fired exchange threw at it. Pity the poor cable jointer who has to dig up a cable to repair it, and the hole keeps filling with water. Yuri
Re: Monthly drinks
>> But it is St Paddy's day (on the 17th I mean)! > > Does that mean we want a different date? No! We decided on 17th so let's stick to it. I moved appointments around to make it this time. What time are most folks turning up at the twisted hop? Yuri
Re: twitter clients?
>>> What do people recommend? I'm sick of gtwitter crashing for no apparent >>> reason! Ubuntu 9.10 64 bit platform... >> >> nothing. >> >> Twitter is so insanely pointless. > > and I thought I was the only one! What's this twitter thing everyone keeps talking about? Yuri
Re: cable testing?
> More expensive boxes are called scanners and cost thousands - they can do > things like testing all OSI layers (ie speak a full smtp session with a > remote host) as well as testing actual voltages, cable lengths, noise > factors, etc. There's a Dynatel subscriber loop analyser in my work van that can, among other things, test longitudinal balance, insulation resistance, cable length. If everything is within spec then you'll know the cable's OK. I guess you might want to test SNR at frequencies used by 100baseT and 1000baseT, but I don't think the Dynatel does that (not the model I have). Yuri
Re: This years format.
> I'll be at the Twisted Hop on Wednesday next week 17-Feb-2010 > and having something to eat during the evening. > > See folks there then? Can't do wenzdays but I'll be there on St Paddy's day. Actually, no. That's a wenzday too. I'll see if I can skip my wenzday commitment for my favourite saint. Yuri
Re: This years format.
> Many Linux user groups have mogrified into geek > oriented social clubs which meet informally in licensed > premises. Christopher's suggestion is that we > follow that horde. One LUG with which he had a very > brief contact had their meeting on the same day of the > month by date. This means that the day in the > week changes continually, thus avoiding continuous > clashes with other activities. > > How does that sound to other CLUG list members? I vote we do this. Including the fixed date thing so we don't clash every time. Yuri
Re: Netbook recommendations?
Nick Rout wrote: > Like all tech purchases you might be annoyed if you buy > the current generation only to find something better > available at the same price in N months time. With any tech purchase, avoid looking at shop shelves and catalogs and tech mag ads for a few months after the purchase. Otherwise it'll do your head in. Unless you have a crystal ball or are waiting for a just announced tech feature that you actually need, you just have to take a plunge sometime and like the Apostle Paul, learn to be content in all situations. Yuri
Re: Completely Offtopic: Any recommendations for computer technicians in Rangiora?
Robert Fisher wrote: >> Nothing is more soul destroying than doing work for >> someone and it goes to custard. >> > Recently I backed up data on a friend's PC to my USB > portable HD, repaired the PC and a few days later went > back to restore from the backup only to find the backup > HD stuffed. Even a forensic expert could not recover > anything. (I suspect that they had dropped the drive as it > was in a different place from where I had left it but that > did not help the situation.) Lesson - if you're doing a pre-fix back-up to restore on a later visit, back it up on media that you take away with you. I'm currently visiting a friend most Thursday evenings and helping him get up to speed with his new computer in return for a meal (which wife and kid come along to too). He's impressed with the whole idea of FLOSS and the software-as-a-service paradigm as opposed to software-as-an-expensive-product. He also has a lot to say about apps being over-complicated for a normal user whose expertise is in a field other than computers. (IT gurus laugh at "dumb users" but can you prep someone for surgery or brew a beer that people will actually buy?) Yuri
Re: List stats
Christopher Sawtell wrote: >> He was thrilled, despite the fact that wireless stopped working an >> hour after starting to use Kubuntu due to a stuff-up in the firmware >> that came with the Linux driver and I haven't been able to fix that >> yet. > > A few more details would be appreciated. His laptop uses broadcom bcm4312. The free drivers have a show-stopping bug whereby the act of uploading the supplied firmware in DMA mode locks up the card. The card needs to be removed and pins shorted to reset it. There's a work-around that involves re-compiling the driver to load the firmware in pio mode instead of dma mode. I have located some how-tos on how to do all this, but it's involved and I haven't gotten round to it yet. Yuri
Re: List stats
> .what he said. > > I am in the middle of using Linux to recover a Windows PC for a friend. > > Happy New Year. Towards the end of the year a 53 year old friend who had never owned a computer acquired a laptop with Windows Vista. He found it confusing, cluttered and the IE was cluttered with toolbars and adware and overall it was not easy and intuitive. I installed Kubuntu with just a few icons on the desktop for browser, skype, home folder and wordprocesser. Browser defaults to nice uncluttered Google as a homepage. He was thrilled, despite the fact that wireless stopped working an hour after starting to use Kubuntu due to a stuff-up in the firmware that came with the Linux driver and I haven't been able to fix that yet. Yuri
Re: firewall computer to give away
Yes please if no-one else has replied yet. 2009/12/26 Volker Kuhlmann : > Is this any use to someone: > > K6-233, 64M RAM, 2.4GB hard disk, 3 network cards (1 of them ISA). > Used to run pfsense, functional when turned off some time ago, don't > remember when - kept it as a spare. > > Free, pick up in Hoon Hay. > > Volker > > -- > Volker Kuhlmann is list0570 with the domain in header > http://volker.dnsalias.net/ Please do not CC list postings to me. >
Re: power board issue
Roger Searle wrote: > lol - reminds me of the time i picked up a 3 pack of power boards from > there, was like $8 or something, couldn't believe what a deal that must be - > woohoo! got home, tried first one, didn't go, threw it out, one worked on > all 4 outlets, the third works on 3, though one of those can be a bit dodgy > depending on orientation of board/cable. definitely got what i paid for > that day . . . When that sort of thing happens, you *must* for the good of society take it back for a refund. Even for a few dollars. The only way to get crap of the market is to make it unprofitable. Otherwise they'll keep making crap that they know doesn't work because they also know that very few people will ask for their money back. Yuri
In keeping with tradition
Every year around this time someone has to post this:
better !pout !cry
better watchout
lpr why
santa claus town
cat /etc/passwd >list
ncheck list
ncheck list
cat list | grep naughty >nogiftlist
cat list | grep nice >giftlist
santa claus town
who | grep sleeping
who | grep awake
who | egrep 'bad|good'
for (goodness sake) {
be good
}
Hehehe
Yuri
Re: OT, Re: Good broadband provider in Christchurch
Andrew Errington wrote: > Ummm, I have no phone line, but I get up to 100Mbps via FTTH with no data > cap. I pay about $30 per month. > > This is in a small rural town in South Korea. Compare apples with apples! NZ is waaay behind places like South Korea. It may be economies of scale, or Korea might have better laws. Or did you just post that to make us bitterly jealous? It worked. Yuri
Re: OT wallwarts/power adaptors
On 2009/9/14 Nick Rout wrote: > Anyone know where to find a higher rated switchmode 5v ower supply? Probably overkill, but a PC power supply has a 5V rail IFAIK. Yuri
Re: measurement software for electrical networks?
On 2009/8/22 Wesley Parish wrote: > I'm just wondering if there are any for Linux, that I could use to get hard > copy of actual voltage and amperage levels on my Internet connection via > Telecom's oh-so-wonderful lines. > > They cycle from useable to useless in between half=a=minute to a quarter of an > hour, and I'd like to document that. I may well decide to start a > class-action suit against Telecom for defrauding the general public, and > having hard evidence is likely to be vitally important. First, I just want to say: Never ascribe to malice that which is adequately explained by incompetence. (Hanlon's Razor) > Oh, and by the way, Google is indeed my friend in this - when Telecom's lines > permit me to ask. Telecom's mastered the art of punishing people for > preferring to use someone else, after it mastered the art of punishing them > for using Telecom. As a contractor who does some work for Telecom, there is a number I can dial that will report things like earth impedence, capacitance, voltage etc on your line, provided it comes from a Neax in the exchange and not from a mux cabinet. When you call 120 to report a problem with your phone they perform the same test. It gives better results if you unplug *everything* from all your phone jacks first. If you have an alarm, that can cause problems on your line. Even if it is not monitored, it may still be connected to the phone line for "future-proofing". Also, any phone jacks installed by sky installers can cause problems (they do dodgy stuff like leaving an unprotected joint lying on the damp dirt under your house, among other things). Reply to me off-list and I'll see what I can do. Yuri
Re: Linux and RAM size
2009/7/23 Craig Falconer wrote: > 640 is a funny number - do you have 128 MB on the motherboard or something > weird? Apparently the NEC Versa E400 can only take up to 640MB. It had 2x 128MB SODIMMS in it. I replaced one of them with a 512MB SODIMM. I was hoping to upgrade to 1GB. Yuri
Linux and RAM size
What kind of performance boost should I expect when upgrading from 256MB of RAM to 640MB? This is with KDE 3.9.10, running Firefox 3.5.1 most of the time and also Amarok 1.4.10 playing music in the background. We often have myself logged in on VT7 and Julia logged in on VT8 also running Firefox. I assume Alt-Tabbing between apps should be faster with more RAM. I'd also expect Ctrl-Alt-F7 / Ctrl-Alt-F8 to switch between my login and Julia's should be faster, and they seem to be but it's all subjective. What should I be looking for? Yuri
Re: Linux and ModBus
2009/7/12 Wayne Rooney wrote:
> On Saturday 11 July 2009 10:17, yuri wrote:
>
>> Yep. I just want to turn relays on and off from a Linux server. The
>> less assembly required the better - my solder joints look terrible.
>
>
> Considered using one of these?
>
> http://www.jaycar.co.nz/productView.asp?ID=KV3595
Yes thanks, I did come across that one in my searching.
Don't know how easy[1] it is to craft the correct sequence of cruft to
emulate clicking a button on a web page.
Hopefully it also has the ability to process commands directly eg:
echo "relay 2 on" | nc {ip of relay board}
Yuri
[1] easy for me, that is. I know you gurus can do it with your eyes shut.
Re: Linux and ModBus
2009/7/11 Chris Hellyar wrote: > Hi... > > http://www.ohmark.co.nz/news090120.html > > etc... > > :-) > > Using libmodbus from launchpad (There's two libmodbus's around, one is crap, > the other is the one I've contributed some bug fixes to. :-) ). > > If you're pic-aware You're welcome to have some of my test code, I've not > done any work on this for a while, but I have a fully functional modbus RTU > (rs485) setup, and sample code for GCC on linux, and VB/windows that has > survived a fair bit of testing. Very good. Your project seems to be a temperature logging thing. Could it be *easily* modified to relay control? No, I'm not pic-literate. Thanks Yuri
Re: Linux and ModBus
2009/7/11 Hadley Rich wrote: > On Sat, 2009-07-11 at 11:07 +1200, yuri wrote: >> Anything more complex than >> echo Relay 1 On > /dev/ttyS3 >> is more than I'm prepared to put time and effort into. > > Perhaps Arduino is not what you want then, it does involve some sort of > script/code writing. As long as it's in a high level language like python I could handle it. Just not device driver stuff. Yuri
Re: Linux and ModBus
Andrew Errington wrote: > There are so many levels in the 'stack' from Linux app to actually > closing a relay. Where do you want to start? I wrote: > I'd like to sit down with someone who's done it and pick their brain > over a few beers. My shout. Andrew Sands wrote: > > When and where for the beer. > > Google for any of the following. > > Comedi > Classic ladder > libmodbus > > otherwise suggest a suitable venue for the shout I'm starting to think ModBus might be overkill. I'm not interested in talking to DAQs. Just turning relays on and off. When is our next get-together at the Twisted Hop? Yuri
Re: Linux and ModBus
2009/7/11 Cheetor wrote: > Have you considered a jaycar parallel port interface kit, I believe they > still come in under $100? The server will be a small profile box that is being given to me. I don't think it has a parallel port. > they do require direct hardware access to work, but considering the software > is written in BASIC it couldn't be hard to whip together a quick kernel > module for it. I wrote one once, but I think that was back in the days of > kernel 2.2.26. I can barely write scripts. I'm not prepared to attempt a kernel module. Anything more complex than echo Relay 1 On > /dev/ttyS3 is more than I'm prepared to put time and effort into. Yuri
Re: Linux and ModBus
2009/7/11 Hadley Rich wrote: > I don't really know much about Mosbus, but, if you just want to be able > to control relays and things from a Linux server, and aren't phased by > the protocol, then I would look at the Arduino boards as an easy, open > source way of doing things. Yep. I just want to turn relays on and off from a Linux server. The less assembly required the better - my solder joints look terrible. I'm also looking at an NCD ethernet relay board. I'll consider pre-assembled Arduino stuff too. Looking to spend under NZ$200 for eight relays on a board that can talk to a linux server. Prefer under $150. The server will decide when relays are on and off. There needs to be an easily scriptable way for the server to send commands like: Relay X on Relay Y off Relay Z, are you currently on or off? (ie read status) I considered ModBus because I gather there are Linux drivers for it. The NCD ethernet relay board can be used with a driver that maps the IP address of the board to a COM port (there is a Linux version, which I suppose would map to /dev/ttySX). If I go with an ethernet board, the server will have a separate ethernet interface directly connected to the board, since the board will take commands from anyone. Yuri
Re: Linux and ModBus
2009/7/10 Andrew Errington wrote: > There are so many levels in the 'stack' from Linux app to actually closing > a relay. Where do you want to start? I'd like to sit down with someone who's done it and pick their brain over a few beers. My shout. Yuri
Re: Linux and ModBus
2009/7/10 Andrew Errington wrote: > Google gives plenty of hits for "linux modbus", so what exactly do you > want to know? I want to be able to turn things on and off from a linux server. I am competent with the wiring side of things from the relay to the appliance. I know nothing about the control side from the computer to the relay board. Someone suggested ModBus. I googled, but was overwhelmed with hits, none of which seem to be a good beginners' starting point. Yuri
Linux and ModBus
Does anyone on this list know anything about controlling ModBus relay boards from a linux box?
Re: Have a safe trip Chris...
I can't let Chris go without adding my best wishes also. All the best for Aberdeen, Chris. I look forward to seeing you again, and your beloved too. Yuri
Re: OT Telstra Cable Grey box on side of house
Volker Kuhlmann wrote: > Heh, I'd like to know too. The key for it has the same shape as a socket > from the usual socket sets, except it is square, not hexagonal. In fact > it looks very identical to those old square-socket-on-a-handle keys > railwaymen carried to open all the doors passengers aren't usually > supposed to go into. A large screw driver can usually spin those. > For the SaturnTelstraClear(TM) box I think the major difference is that > the key is also somehow magnetic. This pulls a couple of levers inside > the grey box out of the way which then allows the square bolt to turn. > Can anyone confirm this kind of principle being used? If Nick does the 4WD bullbar trick he can let us all know. >> Secondly I assume this is the same cable as one would use for a sky >> dish? (I have plenty of rg6) > > Yes it's RG6, but DO NOT USE JUST ANY RG6. Make sure you get sky-rated The Beldin stuff is sky rated. Yuri
Re: OT Telstra Cable Grey box on side of house
Nick Rout wrote: > I'd like to disconnect the second cable and run another one to the > cupboard but I am damned if I can get the cover off. Does anyone know > how to get inside the grey box? It must have some clever catch. It is > about 6" by 3" with a Saturn logo on the front. Look all around for small screws. Sometimes it's hard to see a screw on the bottom. Perhaps you need to squeeze somewhere to release some clips. Failing that, if you have to rip it off, make it look like the bullbars on your 4WD clipped it so they'll come and fix it for free. > Secondly I assume this is the same cable as one would use for a sky > dish? (I have plenty of rg6) I believe so. Call Downer, they're the contractors since they bought out Astute. Yuri
Re: M$oft and the NZ government
2009/5/30 Josh James wrote: > hey guys do u think this is good news or bad news? > > > > http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/05/26/microsoft_new_zealand/ In the interest of maintaining a mature and professional image let's keep the dollar sign out of Microsoft's name. I used to think it was funny, but now we (the Linux and F/LOS communities) are trying to win over politicians and non-techie decision makers who might be referred to our forums we need to be careful of the image we portray. Yuri
Re: Farewell to Chris @ Twisted Hop - 2nd. June 6:30pm onwards.
Rob wrote: > yuri wrote: >> Is the Twisted Hop suitable to have Bubs on my lap while I imbibe an ale >> or two? > > Not if she is grunting and/or crying. What if she just sits on my lap looking wide eyed at all the strange geeky people playing with their laptops? If no-one fills my glass I'll let her push some buttons :-P Yuri
Re: Linux Meetup Groups near Christchurch
> There's a growing group of us that show up at the Twisted Hop on > Fridays from 12:30 onwards to work due to the wifi access :) Nice for you desk jockeys. You can take your work to the pub. How to I park a 50 metre lattice tower on a table to rig it with MW dishes and GSM/UMTS antenas? Yuri
Re: Farewell to Chris @ Twisted Hop - 2nd. June 6:30pm onwards.
> So that everybody knows: All the "She who must be obeyed"s would be > very welcome too. There are two "Shes who must be obeyed" in my household. The younger makes her wishes known be various chortles, grunts and sometimes (not often, surprisingly for her age) crying. Is the Twisted Hop suitable to have Bubs on my lap while I imbibe an ale or two? Yuri
Re: Farewell Meal and Drinks for Chris
2009/5/25 David Kirk wrote: >> OK then well have it on the 2nd. June 6:30pm onwards @ Twisted Hop. >> >> Folks should take the above line as the 'Official Announcement'. >> >> I'll book a table. > > I won't be able to make the meal, but I will probably come by a bit > later and have a drink with you. I'll be there for drinks about 7:30-ish. Yuri
Re: OT: Introductions...
Ryan McCoskrie wrote: > I hope this isn't to off topic but I thought that it would be a good idea to > introduce my > self and make some warnings about what I'm like. Welcome to the list. > WARNING: > One major thing to take into account when dealing with me is that I only > really > have use of the literal language parts of the brain. This can make things > awkward > if you use implied elements of language[1] or even worse if I try expressing > any emotions. Personal question: Is the above warning due to aspergers? It's a common condition among tech-oriented people. Yuri
Re: OT: Cabling to a shed
Kerry Mayes scribbled: > I'm wanting to connect up my shed for power (3 phase), water and data > (phone & network). I have (with significant help) dug the trench to > the shed and will be organising the connections in the next few weeks. > > However, if I run the network cables next to the power cables I'll > have issues, yes? Is there any way around that? Can I get shielded > ducting for underground use (at reasonable cost)? (I was initially > just intending to run the cat5e cable through irrigation hose until I > remembered the potential interference issues.) Also get a quote for fibre and media converters. Yuri
Re: OT: Telecom (Monopoly) Problem
2009/5/11 Ross Drummond wrote: > Typically your Telecom cable pair travels down your street and is > terminated at the end of the street. If for example you live half way down > the street your cable pair is tapped at the junction box on the street > outside but not terminated. > > This means that if the fault is downstream of your tap, terminating the > cable pair at your tap will isolate you from the fault. > > Telecom do not usually do this as it means extra work if they need to use > the cable pair downstream in the future. What Ross refers to is no longer the current practice as it slows down ADSL when there are multiples on the line. If you have an underground RLG system (the grey phallic pillars) then you won't have the pair continuing past your house. If you have an old overhead system, with an undergound cable going up a pole every few houses, then cutting away the pair as it heads downstream involves digging up a joint, probably in lead casing with paper insulated conductors. Fat chance of that happening. You're not worth it to them. With any luck though, you will find a moisture effected jack somewhere in you house and replacing this will fix things. Yuri
Re: Home Automation Dealers in Chch?
Chris Hellyar commented: > Home automation systems are not attractive to home buyers unless they are > geeks, and lets face it, we're a minority. Even having comprehensive > structured cabling in a house can be seen as a negative by realestate agents > and a fair percentage of 'Average' buyers. That depends on how it is presented. *Any* alteration that looks amateurish/DIYish will detract from the value. This applies to geeky wiring, lean-to sunrooms, DIY carports/sheds, whatever. The advantage of getting the sparky to install it when the house is being built is that it will look like it belongs there and not tacked on as an afterthought. It also depends on how it is marketed. When you describe the features of a house you are selling, don't use terms that make non-geeks' eyes glaze over. Instead market it in terms of useful things you can do, eg turn on heaters half an hour before you get up. The simplest form of automation is a bunch of timers in the 2nd switchboard (you can get DIN mounted timers the width of 2 MCBs that are easy to set). The set-up I outlined in my previous email can start with something as simple as timers, and be expanded to relays controlled by computer, or the relay outputs on a security alarm, or anything you like. Note on safety: Most DIN mounted relays provide 400V insulation between the extra-low-voltage coils and the mains terminals, so it is safe to connect the outputs of any Arduino-type device to the relay coils. Just make sure any wires from your device going into the switchboard are rated for mains voltage, even though you are using extra-low-voltage (eg double insulated conduit wire). Yuri
Re: Home Automation Dealers in Chch?
Brett Davidson re-opened this thread with the words: > I am building a new house at present and am looking at what control systems > are out there worth considering implementing as this will help me what and > where I should pre-wire and where I can use IR or bluetooth, etc. I want to > do it all - switch audio/video along with control of appliances and > monitoring of energy usage, etc. As far as turning lights and certain power outlets on and off automagically: Install a separate 45 or 60 way switchboard which will house relays/contactors/timers/PLCs/whatever. >From each light switch that you want control, get Sparky to run a three-core[1] electrical cable from the light switch to the control switchboard. For each power socket that you want to control, get Sparky to run a four-core[2] (3C+E) from the power socket to the control switchboard. The controlled power sockets can have an extra switch[3] to select between manual and auto, hence the extra cores to carry the "always on" (manual) feed and the "controlled" (auto) feed. The advantage of the above set-up is that if you automation system fails, everything has manual override wired in so lights and controlled power sockets can operate as normal lights and power sockets. Also, you can rip out whatever is in the control switchboard and replace it with something else. Relays can have 12V coils that are controlled by your linux box, with the proper isolation if required. Yuri [1] Three core has the same number of conductors as twin & earth, but the colours are different. 3C has red/white/blue while T&E has red/black/green. The reason this matters is that the green can't be used for anything other than protective earth. [2] 3C+Earth has red/white/blue/green. Blue & Green can be used for neutral & earth, while red and white can be used for "Always On" and "Controlled" feeds. [3] eg PDL 691X is a socket outlet with room for an extra switch.
Re: "Couples to test 'intimacy' device "
Aidan Gauland wrote: > Christopher Sawtell wrote: >> >> Couples in long distance relationships are being sought to try out a >> prototype device designed to communicate intimacy from their bedrooms. > > Hands up, those of you who are wondering if this thing is scriptable! /me raises hand. Yuri
Re: Force install of deb even though missing dependency
2009/4/20 Steve Holdoway wrote: > Does 3.10 ( http://support-my.canon-asia.com/contents/MY/EN/0100187702.html ) > work any better??? That's for the MX680 series. I have a MP240. The drivers I installed reproduce on paper what I have on screen. I don't ask any more than that. Cheers Yuri
Re: Force install of deb even though missing dependency
2009/4/20 Steve Holdoway wrote: > dpkg -i --force-depends cnijfilter-common_3.00-1_i386.deb That worked. Package is installed. New printer has printed test page successfully. Thanks very much. Yuri
Force install of deb even though missing dependency
I need to force the installation of a file cnijfilter-common_3.00-1_i386.deb but it complains that it needs libcupsys2 The functions of libcupsys2 are now taken over by another package and libcupsys2 is no longer in the repos (ubuntu). How the F#$% do I force ubuntu to install the file cnijfilter-common_3.00-1_i386.deb ?!?!?!? I am very frustrated. TIA Yuri
Re: Gnome convert
2009/4/6 Nick Rout: > Have you tried xubuntu with xfce? Very capable desktop manager. I assume I could just run sudo apt-get install xfce and then choose xfce as my default session in the kdm login dialog? Am I right in thinking that kde and gnome only chew up resources when actually running? Or do they preload libs on boot-up? I would rather not install different distro just to try a different gui. That would not be the *nix way of doing things. Yuri
Re: Gnome convert
2009/4/6 Dale DuRose: > Well i remember a few years ago that gnome had a major rewrite. I also > remember that it was pretty slow before the rewrite. Now its runs exceptable > speed. But KDE was always slower and a memory hog. My laptop still has only 256MB. One quarter of a gig - sounds puny when you say it like that. Memory hogging software is becoming a problem and upgrade funds are being diverted to nappy wipes, new cot, baby clothes (they grow so fast) etc. > The trouble is that both kde and gnome are badly designed user interfaces > which try and mimic another badly designed user interface which linux users > tend to hate. -1 Flamebait Yuri
Gnome convert
The list is quiet so I'll throw in my $MINIMUM_CURRENCY I'm using gnome now until KDE 4.x rewrite is at a stage where it's as usable as 3.x was. I'm not blaming Kubuntu, the KDE team, or even Trolltech for changing QT. I'm just sharing my experience. I used to hate gnome, like the Dr Suess character who kept refusing to try green eggs and ham. On the last page he tries it and likes it. I was like that with gnome. Maybe one day I'll learn emacs Yuri
Re: Migrating to a new hard drive
2009/2/26 Gauland, Michael wrote: > First Question: What’s the current ‘best practice’, partition-wise, for a > new GNU/Linux install? Definitely put /home in its own partition. *And* when you create the user accounts, write down in your diary what user number is associated with each user name, eg on my system "yuri" is user 1000 and "julia" is user 1001. When you re-install for whatever reason (eg distro change) make sure you assign the same numbers when you re-create the user accounts. Also, whenever you re-install, you will be given the option to manually partition. Do this and make sure you *de-select* the option to format the /home partition. My /home partition has survived about half a dozen distro changes. Yuri
Re: Kubuntu - good bad and ugly
2009/2/21 Phill Coxon wrote: > On Sat, 2009-02-21 at 10:59 +1300, Roger Searle wrote: > >> I'm sure google will tell you how to get to 4.2 and would be worth the >> effort. > > http://www.kubuntu.org/news/kde-4.2 Those instructions include adding a repository with the word "experimental" as part of the URL. I believe this sort of thing is what hosed my PCLinuxOS install (which prompted me to switch in the first place). It also warns that 4.2 is beta and may break things. I don't want to break things again. I'd rather go to bed early tonight and enjoy my wife than stay up late fixing things again. Hey, I'll probably cave in to peer pressure and give 4.2 a try. I'm coming to the next meeting with a big rubber mallet if it turns to custard though. Yuri
Re: Kubuntu - good bad and ugly
2009/2/21 Don Robertson wrote: >> The bad: >> KDE 4.1 seems less configurable than KDE 3.5. Maybe the options are >> just better hidden. I need to play around a bit more to find my way. > > KDE 4.2 is a lot better than 4.1. I found 4.1 was not too stable. In > 4.2 you can choose themes for wigets from different themes ? 4.2 is not in the repos > There are a few things that I do not like - but I don't play about > with setting as much as I used to - well, not for desktop settings. The things I usually adjust are for productive workflow, not aesthetics. I usually only do it immediately after an install. e.g. put shortcuts to the apps that I use on the panel, remove taskbar from panel (to make room for shortcuts) and put a separate task bar at the top of the screen. KDE 4.1 let me put a separate taskbar at the top and remove the taskbar from the bottom panel, but won't let me add app shortcuts to the panel. On 3.5 I could drag a menu item from the "start" menu onto the panel to create the shortcut. Why oh why have the developers gone *backwards!* in functionality? > It is worth upgrading. And the X.n+1 release is going to be great :-))) Unless they go even more backwards. Wasn't there a fuss when gnome did the same a few years back? Yuri
Kubuntu - good bad and ugly
I hosed my PCLinuxOS install by running an update and playing around with stuff. It just stopped booting into kdm and all I got was a console login from which I was unable to recover the GUI. So I picked up Kubuntu 8.10 and gave it a whirl. The good: Installing new stuff is very fast compared to PCLinuxOS. Close to the maximum ADSL speed that I pay for from my ISP. I attribute this to the fact that there are good NZ mirrors for *buntu repositories. There also seems to be lots of community support for *buntu derivatives. The bad: KDE 4.1 seems less configurable than KDE 3.5. Maybe the options are just better hidden. I need to play around a bit more to find my way. The ugly: Gotta jump thru hoops to get W32codecs and libdvdcss. The only DVD player in the house is this laptop. I *need* libdvdcss. For future reference, here are the hoops thru which one must jump: Add the repo: sudo wget http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/intrepid.list --output-document=/etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list Add the GPG key: sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install medibuntu-keyring sudo apt-get update Install the codecs: sudo apt-get install w32codecs libdvdcss2 I admit google was my friend and helped me to find that info quickly, after I discovered that automatix, which I used for my brother's Kubuntu a few years ago, seems to have disappeared. Once again, I am glad I had /home on a separate partition. Most apps are now using the configuration files they found in my home dir, even though they were from a different distro. Yuri
KDE based distro install CD/DVD wanted
Hi folks, does anyone have a KDE based distro on a CD or DVD I could swap for a blank disk or cash? I'd like to pick it up on Monday (tomorrow). I won't be at a computer so please text me on 021 217 5329 if you can help. Thanks Yuri
Re: OTish: Any experiences with EoP?
2009/2/13 Steve Holdoway wrote: > That's what I'd heard as well. It's to network the gottage - or should I say > goffice? - which I've thrown up a bit of ordinary cat5 for the moment, which > won't last the winter. With those data rates, I might as well put in a > wireless > bridge - much cheaper, too (: Putting cat5 in walls with RJ45 sockets on a nice wallplate is not difficult. Floor - concrete or wooden floorboards? Roofspace? Roof - steel or concrete rooftiles? Outer cladding - brick? Weatherboard? other? On brick houses there is a gap between the timber framing and the brick which is good for dropping cable down from the roofspace to a wall socket. Internal walls - gib or lathe-and-plaster? Lathe-and-plaster walls are often dwang-less which makes dropping wires down them quite easy. Dwangs can be drilled straight down from the top-plate but this is a pain. There are options. Yuri
Way OT Rules and laws (Was: Searchable web comics)
2009/1/16 Christopher Sawtell wrote: > imho, ( and I'm not a lawyer ) you are making a specialised index to images > on the web. Not copies of the images. Google do that every day by the tens of > millions. They have no legal problems, so why should you? After all what is > good for the Corporate is also good for the Little Fellow, because we live > under a Common Law jurisdiction. In theory, yes. In practice, we live under the Golden Rule: ie. those who have the gold make the rules. This is especially true with regard to copyright law. Yuri
Re: New ISP Suggestions
2008/12/28 Christopher Sawtell wrote: > I have been using Telstra broadband since they arrived in Ch-ch. > I can recommend them unreservedly. > 2008/12/29 Bernard Frankpitt wrote: >> for Linux-friendly dial-up or broadband services in Christchurch? My >> telephone provider is Telstra. Define "Linux-friendly". I used to work for TelstraClear. The folks who answer the phones in their call centres are mostly not Linux-savy. The folks who run the servers, however, must know *something* about Linux because some of the servers use it. Paradise was originally on a FreeBSD platform, and Clear.net was Solaris based when the ISP started. They may have migrated, but 3 years ago those were still their platforms. In the distant past, I have used both Paradise and Clear.net dial-up from Linux with no problems, provided your Linux box supports your modem. TelstraClear cable just plugs straight into your Linux box's ethernet port or into the WAN port of your router. You need to manually enter the IP, Gateway, Netmask and DNS servers, but once you've done that it really does Just Work. Disclaimer: all the above may be up to 3 years out of date. YMMV etc. Yuri
Re: OT: CLUG Get together next week?
2008/12/6 dave wrote: > God i can see it now CLUG members showing up a the grumpy mole or some such > place all cam'd up and bellachavered with the paintball guns and taking out > all the other patrons in site, then with the alert out and Wesley pluged into > the CCC traffic system creating haoc on the roads to slow down the AOS (armed > offenders squad) and Rob patched into the CCTV system to assist Wes, steve > having hacked into the air force's system creates some critical emergency > that grounds all choppers and finally those who attacked the patrons settle > down for a few pints before slipping away uncaught. > > well the story leads down this path (Iknow i'm sick also - hahaha) I'm in!
Re: Oh my GOD - is Obama serious - LOL
You're about 4 months early for April Fools day. 2008/12/4 dave lilley wrote: > We have a new president elected, and Change is coming to > America. One of the first things the US government will > change is the methods by which terrorists use computers to > destroy targets. > > Once Obama gets into office in January 09, Linux will be > banned by the Federal Government. Linux is a threat to > national security, and is most often used by terrorists to > detonate bombs. Obama has already enacted a law to entirely > ban Linux in the United States. Anyone who continues to use > Linux after a specified date, will be prosecuted and charged > as a felon for threatening the American government. > > Linux is a bigger threat to National security than Osama Bin > Laden. > The reason that Linux is used to anhilate nations is because > Linux has too many variations, and contains secret embedded > codes which are too difficult to crack by authorities. > Additionally, all versions of Linux contain subliminal > anti-American messages, which is proof in itself that Linux > has been authored by terrorists and terrorist organizations. > > If you are currently using Linux, now is the time to begin > to use another operating system before the ban on Linux > becomes law. > > Linux users are anti-American. If you want to continue to > use Linux, please leave America and move to any foreign > nation where terrorism thrives. > > America, Love it, or Leave it !!!
Newest Penguinista
On 2008-11-15 at 14:53 the newest Penguinista arrived: Marijke Aroha Anne de Groot 3.47kg (don't ask about lbs and Ozes - ~$ man units) Mother and baby are both happy. I reckon she'll probably chose kwrite over both vi and emacs. She definitely looks like a kde user. Yuri
Re: mail readers
2008/10/22 Derek Smithies wrote: > I am told that you can send email by telnetting to the mail port on the box > and typing the raw sendmail commands You can. I've done it. Yuri
Re: OT: Re: mail readers
>>>> b)Holden vs Ford [snip] > ford also stands for > forgotton on race day > failed on race day > found on rubbish dump Holden: Hold On Love, Darn Engine's Nackered. How about KDE vs Gnome, vi vs emacs, dunny roll over vs dunny roll under, etc. Yuri
Re: paradise dicey
2008/9/20 Wesley Parish wrote: > 64 bytes from 203.96.152.127: icmp_seq=1458 ttl=55 time=4608 ms [snip] > 64 bytes from www.paradise.net.nz (203.96.152.127): icmp_seq=37 ttl=55 > time=14956 ms > > Anybody else getting this sort of crap from paradise.net.nz? > > I've been getting it for two nights now, and I'm getting sick of it. I get: PING www.paradise.net.nz (203.96.152.127) 56(84) bytes of data. 64 bytes from www.paradise.net.nz (203.96.152.127): icmp_seq=1 ttl=53 time=78.7 ms 64 bytes from www.paradise.net.nz (203.96.152.127): icmp_seq=2 ttl=53 time=80.1 ms 64 bytes from www.paradise.net.nz (203.96.152.127): icmp_seq=3 ttl=53 time=78.3 ms 64 bytes from www.paradise.net.nz (203.96.152.127): icmp_seq=4 ttl=53 time=81.5 ms --- www.paradise.net.nz ping statistics --- 4 packets transmitted, 4 received, 0% packet loss, time 3017ms rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 78.349/79.713/81.578/1.309 ms I'm with Orcon. They're OK when my ADSL connection isn't down (which is too often but I haven't tested with another router). Yuri
Re: Kubuntu on Vista machine
Others wrote: >>> 0. back up your data Backup is for wimps. Just let the world mirror it ;-) >>> 1. download kubuntu cd & burn it (if vista has a way to do that) >>> 2. boot it. > 2a. Play with Kubuntu applications so you are certain that this is > what you want to do. Dipping your toes in the water is for wimps. Real men dive right in. >>> 3. run the installer >>> 4. choose "use whole hard drive" >>> 5. restore data. Hopefully the mirrors are complete :-P >> You missed the ??? step here >>> 6. profit. profit schmofit. Real men do it for kicks. Yuri, a real ma- yes dear I'm getting off the computer right away 83$%gsg$$Ysgshs3no carrier
Re: Home networking cable question
2008/9/1 Craig Falconer wrote: > Any wiring is possible... but you've got to be creative. At last resort, > you can lift the edge of carpet and run one length of cat5 between the > skirting board and the smooth-edge. Or you can take the skirting off and route a groove into it. Requires a router (the power tool, not the network device). May also require painting touch-up. If anyone following this thread is building their own home in the future, I hope you haven't underestimated the merit of pre-wiring for LAN, home theatre, speakers, etc. Yuri
Re: Home networking cable question
2008/8/31 Ross Drummond wrote: >> While pulling this cable alongside power cable, it is possible (and if >> the holes are tight, likely) that some insulation will rub/scrape off >> both the power and and the data cable, thus livening the foil screen >> on the data cable to 230V. >> >> A person handling the data cable is then at risk of shock, possibly >> leading to burns or ventricular fibrillation - an often fatal >> condition. > > I am a big fan of earth continuity after my toaster threw me backwards into > the refrigerator. The shielding will be earthed. Even so, it is against regulations to run the data together with the power. AS/NZS 3000:2000 "Wiring Rules" clause 3.9.9.3 [snip] > A concrete pad floor unfortunately. Crawl space in roof or monopitch? If there's a roof space it can be done from there. Requires drill extensions and some skill. Yuri
Re: Home networking cable question
2008/8/31 Ross Drummond wrote: > Someone suggested that this product, a shielded combined data TV phone cable, > may be suitable for a home network by pulling it through the existing > electrical cable pathways in the walls. > > http://www.pdl.co.nz/product-details.aspx?rcat=products&catid=0&id=1741 > > The hope is this product being shielded will eliminate the interference that > network cable suffers when it is run alongside electrical cables. While pulling this cable alongside power cable, it is possible (and if the holes are tight, likely) that some insulation will rub/scrape off both the power and and the data cable, thus livening the foil screen on the data cable to 230V. A person handling the data cable is then at risk of shock, possibly leading to burns or ventricular fibrillation - an often fatal condition. If your house has a crawl space underneath the floor (ie not poured concrete floor) then it would be trivial for someone like myself (I would charge for my time) to drill through the bottom plate of the the walls at each data socket location, cut out a flushbox hole in the gib, drop cat5e down the wall and through the hole in the bottom plate, fit easy-fix flushbox and data socket and voilá, job done. Requires overalls, drill and good sense of direction. Yuri
Re: dvd ripping
2008/8/26 John Mallett wrote: > I am trying to rip a babylon 5 dvd but it is only recording the first 10 > minutes of the episode. > I used lsdvd to find the chapters I've had the same problem with Bab 5 when other DVDs ripped without any problem. I suspect some kind of copy protection. Try downloading a bittorrent. Yuri
Re: Slightly OT: ADSL routers...
2008/8/9 Daniel Hill wrote: >> I had a Dlink 504G outside my pfsense firewall, (Note, FOSS >> reference...) with a bunch of servers inside the firewall, ie: multiple >> pinholes in the ADSL router. >> >> The spare I had sitting here, a Dlink 504T only supports one IP address >> for a virtual server/pinhole.. ARGH. > how is a router suppose to portward the same port to two (or more) different > IP > addresses? or am I missing what you mean? I think you're missing what he means. Different ports to different servers, eg port 80 to his web server, port 25 to his mail server. Yuri
Re: suitable router and video card
2008/7/17 Matthew Whiting wrote: > started looking for a second-hand router but am unsure what to look for Any router will do as long as the WAN port is ethernet rather than ADSL. Most people selling a router on TradeMe live in ADSL-only locations and probably don't realise that there is a difference. Plug the cable modem into the WAN port, your computers into the LAN port and point your browser to 192.168.0.1 or 10.0.0.1 (if one doesn't work, try the other). Make sure the seller tells you the admin password to access the settings page. On the settings page enter your IP address, gateway address, subnet mask and DNS servers as supplied by your friendly TelstraClear helpdesk. If you have to press the small "factory reset" button on the router (the button that requires a pen nib or match stick to push it) then your password will probably be "password" or "admin". Change it before you go online. Yuri
Re: Email problems
> Just loaded the Fisher Family Home Page here. I'm with Orcon. *ahem* www.fisher.net.nz works but fisherfamily.net.nz doesn't. Yuri
Re: Email problems
2008/6/29 dave: > On Sunday 29 June 2008 7:06:18 pm Robert Fisher wrote: >> www.fisher.net.nz > > works from clear/telstraclear ISP boardband connection. Just loaded the Fisher Family Home Page here. I'm with Orcon. Yuri
Re: OT: Top Posting.
Best to continue posting style on a thread by thread basis. If first reply is top, stick to top. If first reply is bottom, continue that. Trimming the quote is, as Don says, the courteous thing to do. 2008/6/22 Don Gould: > I wish people would top post or delete all the crap they're responding to. > > Makes the messages longer which uses up more of my data cap, uses up > space on my server - at 24c/gb (posted yesterday) you might think I can > afford an upgrade... then I went to put petrol in the car again!
Re: A quick quiz for fun
I guessed poorly. 70%. The ones I got right I knew. The ones I got wrong I guessed but missed. Yuri
Re: The Linux Distro A
2008/4/29 Christopher Sawtell > I'm just wondering whether it's worth keeping the Distro archive going? > > It needs updating with new material, but if it's not being used there > is little point, and the best thing to do is to give it a dose of > euthanasia. Maybe it just needs an incubation period. If you kill it now for lack of patronage, chances are in a few months time a bunch of people who were "just getting round to it" will be frustrated to find they were too late. Yuri
Re: Troubleshooting Samba
Is there any advantage to using samba in a Linux-only environment? At the moment if I want to browse any other machine on the LAN I use the "fish:" url in konqueror. 1) from a user's point of view, is "smb:" any easier to use than "fish:" in konqueror? 2) from an admin's POV, is samba any better than running sshd on every box? Or, are we talking six of one, half dozen of the other? I understand that samba also shares other resources, but I have CUPS for the only shareable resource on my LAN. Yuri On 11/03/2008, John Carter wrote: > Say "troubleshooting samba" to Google... and you will be Lucky. > > http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/samba/chapter/book/ch09_01.html > > On Sat, 8 Mar 2008, David Lowe wrote: > > > I know it's quite low-level in the geek stakes, but would someone be able > to > > present something on configuring Samba? I'm tearing my hair out... cant > > figure out why it works on one machine and not another...
Re: Unrecognised USB device
On 29/02/2008, Stephen Irons wrote: > When connecting a Vodafone 715 mobile phone to a PC running Ubuntu > Gutsy...nothing happens. Well, nothing visible. lsusb reveals that the > kernel sees the device plugged in: [snip] > Just USB mass-storage support (to speed up transfer of files to the > device) would be enough: it costs too much to access the internet via > mobile phone. Does the connectivity menu on the phone give an option to activate USB mass storage? Some phones have two modes for USB. Yuri
Re: How did last night's meeting go?
On 13/02/2008, Roy Britten wrote: > Special thanks to non-geek Julia for giving a talk on Linux to a bunch > of geeks. I was disappointed SWMBO couldn't make it last night to hear > Julia. Forwarded to Julia who isn't subscribed to the list. I'm pleased people came to humour Julia and me. Questions, comments and discussion from the floor turned a half hour talk I prepared into nearly two hours. The Methodists usually give me only fifteen minutes for lay preaching. I guess Geeks have more endurance than Methodists ;-) Yuri
Re: Tomorrow night at St Alban's
On 11/02/2008, Christopher Sawtell wrote: > 1) We have been using Rik's projector in the recent past. Rik, are you still on the list? May I please use your projector tomorrow night. > 2) 7:30 guaranteed. It all depends if the Indian Dancing Girls still > have the previous booking. Hmmm ... dancing girls. > 3) Yes, I have told a friend. Good on you. Yuri
Tomorrow night at St Alban's
Hi all, Some housekeeping about tomorrow night. 1) Can I assume projector will be there? I'm not sure who organises that. 2) What time is the earliest that I will have access to the venue for setting up etc? 3) Have folks told their Linux-curious friends and clients about this talk? Thanks Yuri
Re: usb headset...
On 09/02/2008, Nick Rout wrote: > pardon me but why are people on this list supporting proprietary skype > when open standards are so important to linux users (not to mention life > the universe & everything)? What he said! The industry wide standard VoIP protocol is SIP, which is an open standard well support by all serious players in the VoIP market. You can even get SIP phones that plug straight into your router, so you can use the service even when your computer is turned off. Give it some thought. Yuri
Re: Tuesday 12 Feb: Is Linux Right For Me?
On 03/02/2008, Nick Rout wrote: > > yuri, please update the Planned Meetings page on the wiki. *blush* not sure how :-) As for advertising - yeah, I was hoping folks would invite their linux-curious friends. Now I sound like a pastor telling his congregation to bring their friends to church :-) Yuri
Tuesday 12 Feb: Is Linux Right For Me?
On Tuesday 12 Feb, Julia and I will be presenting a talk aimed at Linux-curious folk entitled "Is Linux Right For Me?". I will be presenting some pros and cons and considerations to help people decide whether Linux is the right choice for them. Julia will be talking about her experiences as a non-techie using Linux because it happens to be the only operating system available in her household (because her husband can't/won't maintain Microsoft software). I will be covering the normal tasks most people want from their computer - email, browsing, wordprocessing, playing music, playing video. I will also mention (briefly) some of the philosophical reasons for using Linux. I will be honest and mention special cases where I think people should stick to Windows or MacOS. I will not be covering gaming. If any Linux gamers want to give a short spiel about gaming on Linux please let me know ASAP and I'll slot you in. Caleb? Any other tasks I should cover? Julia will talk about her successes and failures in trying to Get Things Done the way most non-geeks just want to Get Things Done. Yuri
Re: can't change desktop wallpaper
On 22/01/2008, Roger Searle wrote: > I should add at this point that this installation of kubuntu made use of > the previous SuSE home folder which basically went without any problem > at all, aside from some minor reconfiguration of email etc. So this > would lend support to the theory that it is a permissions thing. Are the numerical user IDs and group IDs the same under kubuntu as they were under SuSE? Just having the same name is not enough. Yuri
Re: Anyone else use TelstraClear for broadband internet access
On 01/01/2008, Roger Searle wrote: > > Keep it quiet, but put the corresponding amount of money aside each month. > > Their billing system could catch-up (delayed billing). > > IANAL but I believe that legally they can still charge you quite a few > > months later. There may be a statute of limitation, but that is > > probably a matter of years. > > > > Yuri > > > Oh yeah, that reminds me of getting just such an account from said > company 18 months ago - I changed plans at one point and the higher > payment didn't go into effect until they realised (when I changed plan a > second time). I knew nothing of it all until one day the normal monthly > account was a few hundred dollars more than usual - and yes I had to > pay, at some point in the past I had clicked a Yes button or agreed to > some sort of terms and conditions . . . Any reasonable ISP (or power company or any other utility) would in such a circumstance allow the sudden extra payment to be spread out over the next few months to ease the customer's cashflow burden. It would be nice if billing systems actually worked properly. Most companies I've worked for have very sucky billing systems, with delayed charging and overly convoluted user interface for call centre staff, thus being error prone and adding to training costs. The worst one I used was based on a horrid thing called SAP. Yuri
Re: Anyone else use TelstraClear for broadband internet access
On 29/12/2007, david taylor wrote: > On Sat, 29 Dec 2007 11:38:39 +1300, John Hyde wrote:- > >I have not been charged yet for any of these - each month I just pay the > >normal monthly charge for internet access. > > If you're not being charge then keep it quite, we all might want the > same treatment. Keep it quiet, but put the corresponding amount of money aside each month. Their billing system could catch-up (delayed billing). IANAL but I believe that legally they can still charge you quite a few months later. There may be a statute of limitation, but that is probably a matter of years. Yuri
Format shifting DVD to HDD
Hi, assuming it is legal to format shift a DVD which I have bought to my hard disk for convenience and not for allowing others to view How? Which apps do I need to install? TIA Yuri
Re: simulating a slow internet connection
On 22/11/2007, Nick Rout wrote: > > On Thu, November 22, 2007 5:07 pm, Matthew Whiting wrote: > > Kia ora everyone, > > > > I'm trying to suss a way to simulate a slow internet connection. > > Move to NZ and you won't need to simulate it. Darn, you beat me to it. Yuri
Re: Meeting Topics
On 15/11/2007, Christopher Sawtell wrote: > Yes. Julia and Yuri are booked. It will be a good show as they are > both seasoned public speakers. Essentially an 'outreach' talk for > folks who are at the 'about to take the plunge' stage. We should > organise some advertising for this one. Publicity will be good. Basically is will be along the line of "Is Linux right/ready for me?" using my own household as a case study. Julia is a non-techie (but otherwise intelligent) wife of a geek, forced[1] into using Linux because that is what happens to be installed on computers in our household. I will show what apps we use to Get Things Done[2], and Julia will share what it's like from a non-techie's POV. Yuri [1] "forced" may be the wrong word. Nothing stops her from installing Windows if she was prepared to maintain it herself. She actually doesn't care about the OS as long as it works. [2] Things that we need to Get Done are the normal home user stuff - wordprocessing, web, email, playing music & DVDs, uploading from cameras. I am open to suggestions of what to add to this list.
Re: Meta - Spam vs Ham in Job postings on Cantlug?
On 12/11/2007, Christopher Sawtell wrote: > In principle I have no problems. [snip] > I don't fancy having to wade through dozens of either type of posting. [snip] > Difficult to know how to draw the line. Let's tolerate for now and monitor the situation. If Christopher's worst fears come true we can clamp down on it. Yuri
Re: Fixed wiring with stranded core cable
On 01/11/2007, Volker Kuhlmann wrote: > Thanks Andrew and Chris for relating your experiences and suggesting > that mixing types is a bad idea long term. I missed this thread until today, so most has been said. All I can add is - use a proper punchdown tool, not those cheap bits of plastic. Yuri
Re: Future talk: mythtv?
On 30/10/2007, Ross Drummond wrote: > few dollars worth of the right cable & connectors we can setup a temporary I have crimpers and crimps for f-type connectors on RG6. I can also scrounge some RG6 cable. (I would have to pay my boss for the crimps and cable, at wholesale price hopefully). Yuri
Re: Future talk: mythtv?
On 30/10/2007, Ross Drummond wrote: > I have in the past set up a satellite dish on the lawn to watch Freeview > temporarily. > > Can the list locate a friendly installer or electrician to provide a dish, LNB > and dish mounting stuff? If so, with a metal upright to mount the dish and a > few dollars worth of the right cable & connectors we can setup a temporary > installation. This is outside the scope of most electricians' expertise. Yuri
Re: Future talk: mythtv?
On 30/10/2007, Christopher Sawtell wrote: > Programme to come:- [snip] > Feb - Yuri and Julia on "Why we use Linux". It's not "Why we use Linux". It's "Is Linux right for me" - a night to invite Linux-curious friends to see whether Linux is right for them, using my own household as a case study. I won't cover gaming, so if someone would like to do a small talk on that side of things (Caleb?) after our small talk that would be good. Yuri
Re: LaTeX IDE application Kile
On 24/10/2007, Ross Drummond wrote: > I am a fan of LaTeX, using it for banging out contracts and other business > documents. Its superior document layout overcome the subconscious resistance > we all have to reading long complicated documents. What is the advantage of hand coding LaTeX rather than using LyX? Yuri
Re: Would knoppmyth be useful in the St Albans archive
I'm still a good 8-12 months away from buying the bits to assemble a myth box, but when I do I'll need something like this. I imagine there will be a newer version by then. Yuri On 20/10/2007, Nick Rout <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Would there be any demand for the latest Knoppmyth (R5F27) at the > archive? I just downloaded the .iso and could provide a copy. > > knoppmyth is a one cd install cd for MythTV, and also works as a live cd > mythtv frontend. >
PCLinuxOS - a few comments
Hi Cluggers, For a few months I have been using PCLinuxOS. I did something to stuff up Gentoo so I grabbed a computer magazine from the supermarket and installed whatever distro featured on the cover disk - which happened to be PCLinuxOS. Impressions: Overall good. All codecs where there right at the start, without having to add repositories and manually apt-get/emerge/urpmi them. KDE default - my preferred desktop (although there's nothing wrong with gnome if that's what works for you). I read somewhere that it's RPM based, but uses Synaptic as the package manager. Synaptic seems to work okay. Meets my needs. Can't compare with other distros coz I haven't kept up with the latest trends. So this distro meets all my needs for now. Nice and easy. I'd recommend it to anyone wanting to give Linux a go. Yuri
