Gentoo Weekly Newsletter 24 January 2005

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Gentoo Weekly Newsletter
http://www.gentoo.org/news/en/gwn/current.xml
This is the Gentoo Weekly Newsletter for the week of 24 January 2005.
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1. Gentoo News
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 =20
Gentoo/OpenSolaris
------------------
 =20
Only few hours ahead of the first of many components[1] of the complete=20
Solaris source code being publicly released under Sun's brand new,=20
OSI-approved CDDL open-source license, Gentoo is pleased to announce plan=
s=20
to add OpenSolaris[2] support to Portage. Gentoo Senior Manager and=20
OpenSolaris pilot program participant, Pieter Van den Abeele, has been=20
working closely with Sun's management, legal and engineering teams to=20
prepare this move. Gentoo will be leveraging the hard work of long-time=20
Solaris users and Gentoo Developers-in-training Sunil Kumar and Jason=20
Wohlgemuth, whose "Portaris" project has been running on top of Solaris 9=
=20
and 10 builds for quite a while already[3].
 1. http://www.newsforge.com/article.pl?sid=3D05/01/23/0349259
 2. http://www.opensolaris.org
 3. http://www.gentoo.org/news/en/gwn/20040202-newsletter.xml#doc_chap4
=20
Figure 1.1: OpenSolaris + Looking Glass - an interesting alternative for=20
the open-source desktop market
http://www.gentoo.org/images/gwn/20050124_looking-glass.jpg
=20
With "Sun going back to its roots by open-sourcing the code," Pieter=20
expects OpenSolaris to have a huge impact on the open-source market. "Wit=
h=20
their service and support network and their expertise, they can redefine=20
at least part of the open-source landscape in the enterprise," says=20
Pieter. And he expects Gentoo to become an important factor for=20
OpenSolaris' success: "We're able to build on prior experience with Gento=
o=20
ports to non-Linux operating systems, we've had the technology preview of=
=20
Gentoo for Mac OS X[4], we've got developers working full-time on=20
Opendarwin support, and we're well out of the starting blocks for the rac=
e=20
to Gentoo-ifiedBSD kernels and userland applications[5]," he says. "But=20
even I wasn't quite prepared for my Sparc booting with a Gentoo=20
bootsplash," laughs Pieter.
 4. http://www.metadistribution.org/macos
 5. http://www.gentoo.org/proj/en/gentoo-alt/bsd/
=20
The unofficial Portaris[6] or "Portage for Solaris" project has been=20
maintaining Gentoo's package management system on top of Solaris 9 and 10=
=20
systems. Its two biggest contributors, Sunil Kumar and Jason Wohlgemuth=20
(who, like Pieter, is a member of Sun's pilot program for open-sourcing=20
Solaris), have invested a tremendous amount of their time in this project=
,=20
culminating in a veritable installer for Solaris[7] that has been=20
available to a small, knowledgeable Solaris user community for several=20
months already.
 6. http://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic.php?t=3D113387
 7. http://dev.gentoo.org/~pvdabeel/solaris9/
   =20
New kernel profiles for 2005.0
------------------------------
 =20
In view of the 2005.0 release date, the Gentoo developers on the kernel=20
team have been working very hard amalgamating the sources in the Portage=20
tree. Since the 2.6 kernel tree will become the default for all supported=
=20
architectures except Sparc, the separate kernel categories in Portage are=
=20
being abolished and replaced by the same generic names formerly used for=20
the 2.4 versions of the same sources. This is the first time that the new=
=20
"cascading profiles" feature in Portage has been used to manage the=20
dependancy requirements of a package. In essence, this means that the sam=
e=20
package - say, gentoo-sources - will automatically decide whether its 2.6=
=20
or 2.4 version is being requested, based on the specifications in the=20
chosen sub-profile. By linking /etc/make.profile to either the 2.4 or 2.6=
=20
subprofile (whichever may exist for your profile)=20
in/usr/portage/profiles/default-[OS]/[arch]/2005.0/, you can choose which=
=20
one you want as your personal default, while the other version will be=20
masked.If you don't choose a subprofile, 2.6 will automatically become th=
e=20
default, where applicable.=20
=20
"If you're currently still running 2.4 kernels, but don't care all that=20
much about staying, this would be a perfect moment to switch," suggests=20
Gentoo kernel devJohn Mylchreest[8]. "We do recommend switching to 2.6=20
wherever possible, and you can catch up on what's involved by reading our=
=20
kernel migration guide[9]." Sparc being the only architecture with a=20
number of unresolved issues preventing a move to 2.6 as default, the newe=
r=20
version will become the standard for virtually everybody else. Users with=
=20
any of the following kernel sources currently installed on their systems=20
need to be aware that these are going to be removed at the same time as=20
the 2005.0 release. Their replacements are also listed:
 8. [email protected]
 9. http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/migration-to-2.6.xml
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 * development-sources will become vanilla-sources =20
 * gentoo-dev-sources will become gentoo-sources =20
 * rsbac-dev-sources will become rsbac-sources =20
 * hardened-dev-sources will become hardened-sources =20
=20
The switch is going to be automatic for users who follow a steady rsync=20
and emerge world diet. When the next version of their kernel sources=20
becomes available, an emerge --update will pull in the source tarball=20
under its new name, and update accordingly. While the Gentoo kernel team=20
recommends switching, this also works for users with specific reasons to=20
keep their 2.4 series: They just have to make sure they link to a 2.4=20
subprofile, and emerge --update for them will consequently only fetch and=
=20
install newer versions in the 2.4 tree, not 2.6.
=20
The move on to the new profile that sets 2.6 by default will involve=20
changing from the old linux26-headers to linux-headers at the same time.=20
An emerge glibc - or emerge system - may be a good idea at that point.
=20
Except for the pegasos-dev-sources that have already been moved=20
topegasos-sources, the changeover will occur at the same time as the=20
2005.0 release. More detailed information, including specific instruction=
s=20
for linking /etc/make.profile to the right subprofile will be made=20
available at that time.
   =20
Genesi Open Desktop Workstation sales - Gentoo Linux pre-installed
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 =20
From 1 March 2005, Luxembourg-based Genesi[10] will start selling their=20
Open Desktop Workstation in a configuration with Gentoo Linux=20
pre-installed - for a price of $999 USD, ten percent of which will be=20
donated to the Gentoo Foundation! Bill Buck, CEO of Genesi, explains the=20
new sponsoring deal: "For every workstation we sell thanks to a referral=20
from Gentoo's website, we'll donate 100 USD to the Foundation." As many=20
Gentoo users have been looking for attractive opportunities to support=20
Gentoo financially, sales are expected to soar now that the ODWs are=20
clearly benefitting the project as a whole. Moreover, Genesi is offering=20
their Gentoo-ified models at a considerable rebate compared to their own=20
standard offers of desktop and server configurations for $1399 and $1799=20
USD.
 10. http://www.genesi.lu
=20
Figure 1.1: Open Desktop Workstations with Gentoo Linux/PPC, shipping soo=
n!
http://www.gentoo.org/images/gwn/20050124_odw.jpg
=20
The Open Desktop Workstation is configured as follows:
=20
 * Pegasos II with 1GHz G4 processor=20
 * 256MB of PC2100 DDR RAM=20
 * CDRW drive=20
 * 40GB ATA100 Hard Disk=20
 * Radeon 9200SE 128MB AGP Graphics with DVI, VGA, and TV-Out=20
 * Low profile small footprint case - tower or desktop orientation=20
=20
Thirteen of these ODWs had previously been donated to Gentoo developers=20
for thorough testing and feature development, and consequently Gentoo=20
fully supports the PegasosPPC. The pre-installed version is based on the=20
2004.3 release of Gentoo Linux/PPC.
=20
Pre-ordering is available right away. Sales will begin on 1 March 2005 -=20
detailed information about how to order will be sent to everyone=20
expressing interest. To be alerted when orders for the ODWs with Gentoo=20
Linux can be placed, send a message to [email protected].
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2. Future Zone
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 =20
Renovating the Forums - phpBB brush-up and other changes
--------------------------------------------------------
 =20
Something's afoot in the Forums, and we asked one of the admins,Christian=
=20
Hartmann[11] (ian), what was going on. The following interview sheds some=
=20
light on what we can expect to happen in the very near future:
 11. [email protected]
=20
Q: The Forums footer says: Powered by phpBB 2.0.x =C2=A9 2001, 2002 phpBB=
=20
Group. What version are we actually using at the moment?
=20
A: At the moment we are using a heavily patched version of the phpBB 2.0=20
branch. All security related bugs have been patched. Furthermore we=20
applied some performance tweaks and other modifications[12].
 12. http://www.gentoo.org/news/en/gwn/20040920-newsletter.xml#doc_chap1
=20
Q: Why aren't you just using a vanilla phpBB 2.0.11 instead?
=20
A:That's a very frequently asked question. First of all we will indeed=20
switch to the latest stable phpBB release soon. Backporting all the=20
patches we applied to their 2.0.x codebase will almost be done by the tim=
e=20
you read this.
=20
Q: What about all the feature requests in Gentoo Forums Feedback[13]?
 13. http://forums.gentoo.org/viewforum.php?f=3D5
=20
A: We look at every post in Gentoo Forums Feedback and know exactly what=20
our users demand. After installing the new forums software we will have a=
=20
look at implementing a lot of new and exciting stuff. Expect a period=20
where we'll have something new almost every week...
=20
Q: Does that mean that you will also make use of mods?
=20
A: Exactly! That is one of the reasons why we are switching to the latest=
=20
phpBB release. This will make adding modifications much easier.
=20
Q: Adding modifications to the forums were a "no-no" for a long time.=20
Whatmade you change your mind?
=20
A: Gentoo is project based entirely on the work of volunteers, and so is=20
its Infrastructure team. We just didn't have the resources to do any of=20
the more sophisticated things. Now that we do, it was about time we=20
changed our policy and started working on it.
=20
Q: Talking about modifications and additions, what can we expect to see?
=20
A: We'll have to move the forums web service to a different server soon,=20
and we'll start making use of the new forums software when switching to=20
that new server. The user hopefully will not even realize that we switche=
d=20
to different software. It will be mostly the same as it is now, just with=
=20
a clean codebase, and with some of the earlier itches like the search=20
bug[14] ironed out. More corrections will be made to the language packs,=20
and after that we will add two more forums, one each for our Turkish and=20
our Arab users. There's a lot more on our todo-list, but we can talk abou=
t=20
those additions once we're done with the first batch.
 14. http://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic.php?t=3D279845
   =20
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3. Gentoo security
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 =20
Squid: Multiple vulnerabilities
-------------------------------
 =20
Squid contains vulnerabilities in the the code handling NTLM (NT Lan=20
Manager), Gopher to HTML and WCCP (Web Cache Communication Protocol) whic=
h=20
could lead to denial of service and arbitrary code execution.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[15]=20
 15. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-25.xml
   =20
ImageMagick: PSD decoding heap overflow
---------------------------------------
 =20
ImageMagick is vulnerable to a heap overflow when decoding Photoshop=20
Document (PSD) files, which could lead to arbitrary code execution.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[16]=20
 16. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-26.xml
   =20
Ethereal: Multiple vulnerabilities
----------------------------------
 =20
Multiple vulnerabilities exist in Ethereal, which may allow an attacker t=
o=20
run arbitrary code, crash the program or perform DoS by CPU and disk=20
utilization.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[17]=20
 17. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-27.xml
   =20
Xpdf, GPdf: Stack overflow in Decrypt::makeFileKey2
---------------------------------------------------
 =20
A stack overflow was discovered in Xpdf, potentially resulting in the=20
execution of arbitrary code. GPdf includes Xpdf code and therefore is=20
vulnerable to the same issue.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[18]=20
 18. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-28.xml
   =20
Mailman: Cross-site scripting vulnerability
-------------------------------------------
 =20
Mailman is vulnerable to cross-site scripting attacks.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[19]=20
 19. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-29.xml
   =20
CUPS: Stack overflow in included Xpdf code
------------------------------------------
 =20
CUPS includes Xpdf code and therefore is vulnerable to the recent stack=20
overflow issue, potentially resulting in the remote execution of arbitrar=
y=20
code.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[20]=20
 20. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-30.xml
   =20
teTeX, pTeX, CSTeX: Multiple vulnerabilities
--------------------------------------------
 =20
teTeX, pTeX and CSTeX make use of vulnerable Xpdf code which may allow th=
e=20
remote execution of arbitrary code. Furthermore, the xdvizilla script is=20
vulnerable to temporary file handling issues.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[21]=20
 21. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-31.xml
   =20
KPdf, KOffice: Stack overflow in included Xpdf code
---------------------------------------------------
 =20
KPdf and KOffice both include vulnerable Xpdf code to handle PDF files,=20
making them vulnerable to the execution of arbitrary code.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[22]=20
 22. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-32.xml
   =20
MySQL: Insecure temporary file creation
---------------------------------------
 =20
MySQL is vulnerable to symlink attacks, potentially allowing a local user=
=20
to overwrite arbitrary files.
=20
For more information, please see the GLSA Announcement[23]=20
 23. http://www.gentoo.org/security/en/glsa/glsa-200501-33.xml
   =20
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4. Gentoo International
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 =20
Belgium: Gentoo Developer Meeting at FOSDEM (
---------------------------------------------
 =20
Gentoo will again be present at FOSDEM[24] in Brussels, the annual=20
non-commercial Free and Open Source Software Developers' European Meeting=
.=20
It will take place at the Universit=C3=83=C2=A9 Libre de Bruxelles[25] on=
 the=20
weekend of 26 and 27 February. The Gentoo community will be represented b=
y=20
more than 25 developers from Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Germany,=20
Denmark, Spain, Italy, and even the U.S. This time we have our own=20
Developers' Room[26], an amphitheatre with 59 seats, open on Saturday and=
=20
Sunday.
 24. http://www.fosdem.org/
 25. http://www.ulb.be/
 26. http://www.fosdem.org/2005/index/dev_room_gentoo
=20
A full schedule of presentations[27] has been set up by Gentoo's Fosdem=20
organizer for the Developers' room, Lars Weiler[28]. In addition to this,=
=20
one of Gentoo's portage developers, Marius Mauch[29], will give a=20
presentation about portage as part Fosdem's main track.
 27. http://dev.gentoo.org/~pylon/fosdem-2005.html
 28. [email protected]
 29. http://www.fosdem.org/2005/index/speakers/speakers_mauch
=20
As usual we will also show hardware which is supported by Gentoo, like=20
Genesi's[30] PegasosPPC, an UltraSparc and an SGI Octane. Several MacMini=
s=20
are also expected to get thrown in the mix. Gentoo LiveCDs will be=20
available for purchase at FOSDEM.
 30. http://www.genesi.lu/
   =20
USA: CPLUG Security Conference (5 March)
----------------------------------------
 =20
Central PA Linux Users Group[31] will be hosting a Security Conference[32=
]=20
at Messiah College near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on 5 March 2005. The=20
all-day event will feature several speakers covering topics with a=20
technical focus on Linux-related networking and security, including Gento=
o=20
Hardened developer Brandon Hale[33] who will make a presentation on=20
"Advanced Memory Protections with Linux". Registrations have already=20
started and accomodation is provided by the organizers upon request.=20
Admission to the event is $5 USD, including lunch.
 31. http://cplug.net/
 32. http://cplug.net/conference
 33. [email protected]
   =20
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5. Gentoo in the press
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 =20
Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2004
--------------------------------------
 =20
Gentoos are "busily coming and going, squabbling and fighting, raucously=20
greeting each other," and - before you start thinking we're reporting fro=
m=20
a developer conference here - "stealing stones from their neighbours'=20
nests." Nah, we'd never do that, of course. Swedish photographer Lars-Olo=
f=20
Johansson received a "Highly commended" mention at the BBC Wildlife=20
Magazine's and The Natural History Museum's "Wildlife Photographer of the=
=20
Year" contest, for his extraordinarily intimateshot of two Gentoo chicks=20
and their mother[34]. Disclaimer: We don't do that, either...
 34.=20
http://internt.nhm.ac.uk/jdsml/wildwin/2004/ad_picnumb.dsml?catdescrip2=3D=
abb&posdescrip2=3Dhc&picnumb=3D24
   =20
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6. Bugzilla
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 =20
Summary
-------
 =20
 * Statistics =20
 * Closed bug ranking =20
 * New bug rankings =20
   =20
Statistics
----------
 =20
The Gentoo community uses Bugzilla (bugs.gentoo.org[35]) to record and=20
track bugs, notifications, suggestions and other interactions with the=20
development team. Between 16 January 2005 and 23 January 2005, activity o=
n=20
the site has resulted in:=20
 35. http://bugs.gentoo.org
=20
 * 990 new bugs during this period=20
 * 546 bugs closed or resolved during this period=20
 * 35 previously closed bugs were reopened this period=20
=20
Of the 7976 currently open bugs: 109 are labeled 'blocker', 230 are=20
labeled 'critical', and 593 are labeled 'major'.=20
   =20
Closed bug rankings
-------------------
 =20
The developers and teams who have closed the most bugs during this period=
=20
are:=20
=20
 * Gentoo KDE team[36], with 41 closed bugs[37] =20
 * OpenOffice Team[38], with 27 closed bugs[39] =20
 * Gentoo Games[40], with 26 closed bugs[41] =20
 * AMD64 Porting Team[42], with 21 closed bugs[43] =20
 * Vim Maintainers[44], with 20 closed bugs[45] =20
 * Java team[46], with 20 closed bugs[47] =20
 * media-video herd[48], with 19 closed bugs[49] =20
 * Gentoo's Team for Core System packages[50], with 17 closed bugs[51] =20
 36. [email protected]
 37.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DRESOLVED&bug_status=3DCLO=
SED&chfield=3Dbug_status&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chfieldto=3D2005-01-23&=
resolution=3DFIXED&[email protected]
 38. [email protected]
 39.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DRESOLVED&bug_status=3DCLO=
SED&chfield=3Dbug_status&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chfieldto=3D2005-01-23&=
resolution=3DFIXED&[email protected]
 40. [email protected]
 41.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DRESOLVED&bug_status=3DCLO=
SED&chfield=3Dbug_status&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chfieldto=3D2005-01-23&=
resolution=3DFIXED&[email protected]
 42. [email protected]
 43.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DRESOLVED&bug_status=3DCLO=
SED&chfield=3Dbug_status&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chfieldto=3D2005-01-23&=
resolution=3DFIXED&[email protected]
 44. [email protected]
 45.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DRESOLVED&bug_status=3DCLO=
SED&chfield=3Dbug_status&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chfieldto=3D2005-01-23&=
resolution=3DFIXED&[email protected]
 46. [email protected]
 47.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DRESOLVED&bug_status=3DCLO=
SED&chfield=3Dbug_status&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chfieldto=3D2005-01-23&=
resolution=3DFIXED&[email protected]
 48. [email protected]
 49.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DRESOLVED&bug_status=3DCLO=
SED&chfield=3Dbug_status&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chfieldto=3D2005-01-23&=
resolution=3DFIXED&[email protected]
 50. [email protected]
 51.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DRESOLVED&bug_status=3DCLO=
SED&chfield=3Dbug_status&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chfieldto=3D2005-01-23&=
resolution=3DFIXED&[email protected]
   =20
New bug rankings
----------------
 =20
The developers and teams who have been assigned the most new bugs during=20
this period are:=20
=20
 * Gentoo Sound Team[52], with 17 new bugs[53] =20
 * Gentoo Linux Gnome Desktop Team[54], with 17 new bugs[55] =20
 * Gentoo X-windows packagers[56], with 16 new bugs[57] =20
 * Gentoo's Team for Core System packages[58], with 14 new bugs[59] =20
 * Gentoo Kernel Bug Wranglers and Kernel Maintainers[60], with 13 new=20
bugs[61] =20
 * AMD64 Porting Team[62], with 13 new bugs[63] =20
 * Gentoo KDE team[64], with 12 new bugs[65] =20
 * media-video herd[66], with 11 new bugs[67] =20
 52. [email protected]
 53.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DNEW&bug_status=3DASSIGNED=
&bug_status=3DREOPENED&chfield=3Dassigned_to&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chf=
ieldto=3D2005-01-23&[email protected]
 54. [email protected]
 55.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DNEW&bug_status=3DASSIGNED=
&bug_status=3DREOPENED&chfield=3Dassigned_to&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chf=
ieldto=3D2005-01-23&[email protected]
 56. [email protected]
 57.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DNEW&bug_status=3DASSIGNED=
&bug_status=3DREOPENED&chfield=3Dassigned_to&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chf=
ieldto=3D2005-01-23&[email protected]
 58. [email protected]
 59.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DNEW&bug_status=3DASSIGNED=
&bug_status=3DREOPENED&chfield=3Dassigned_to&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chf=
ieldto=3D2005-01-23&[email protected]
 60. [email protected]
 61.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DNEW&bug_status=3DASSIGNED=
&bug_status=3DREOPENED&chfield=3Dassigned_to&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chf=
ieldto=3D2005-01-23&[email protected]
 62. [email protected]
 63.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DNEW&bug_status=3DASSIGNED=
&bug_status=3DREOPENED&chfield=3Dassigned_to&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chf=
ieldto=3D2005-01-23&[email protected]
 64. [email protected]
 65.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DNEW&bug_status=3DASSIGNED=
&bug_status=3DREOPENED&chfield=3Dassigned_to&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chf=
ieldto=3D2005-01-23&[email protected]
 66. [email protected]
 67.=20
http://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=3DNEW&bug_status=3DASSIGNED=
&bug_status=3DREOPENED&chfield=3Dassigned_to&chfieldfrom=3D2005-01-16&chf=
ieldto=3D2005-01-23&[email protected]
   =20
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
7. Tips and Tricks
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
 =20
Watching logfiles on your desktop: root-tail
--------------------------------------------
 =20
A good sysadmin should be able to take care of what's going on his system=
=20
at any time. To keep up with what's going on it would be best to see the=20
logfiles just scrolling by on the desktop, but most utilities, like tail=20
-f, cannot handle more than one file at a time. Moreover, it's a little=20
tricky to configure a terminal so that it becomes borderless and=20
transparent.
=20
Enter x11-terms/root-tail[68]. This handy utility opens a window on your=20
desktop and lets you look at any given logfile's entries as they're made.=
=20
There is only one problem: Most modern Window Managers occupy the desktop=
=20
and show a background-image on it. But there are workarounds, and one (fo=
r=20
xfce4) is shown here:
 68. http://packages.gentoo.org/search/?sstring=3Droot-tail
=20
-------------------------------------------------------------------------=
--
| Code Listing 7.1:                                                      =
 |
|Script for starting root-tail in                                        =
 |
xfce4--------------------------------------------------------------------=
--
---
|                                                                        =
 |
|#!/bin/bash                                                             =
 |
|deskid=3D`xwininfo -int -name 'Desktop' | grep 'Desktop' | awk -F' ' '{ =
   |
print $4 }';`
|root-tail -g 900x150+50+575 -font 6x10 -outline -minspace -id ${deskid} =
 |
-f \
|   /var/log/emerge.log,yellow \                                         =
 |
|   /var/log/messages,lightblue                                          =
 |
|                                                                        =
 |
-------------------------------------------------------------------------=
--
=20
This script will find out the PID of xfce4's desktop-process, then=20
forkroot-tail into the background with a given size, place and font upon=20
the desktop where the ID is now known, and will show two logfiles,=20
printing messages in different colours. Bear in mind that if you are usin=
g=20
a localized environemnt, Desktop could be named differently, of course.
   =20
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D
8. Moves, adds, and changes
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D
 =20
Moves
-----
 =20
The following developers recently left the Gentoo team:
=20
 * None this week =20
   =20
Adds
----
 =20
The following developers recently joined the Gentoo Linux team:
=20
 * Fernando J. Pereda (ferdy) - net-mail=20
   =20
Changes
-------
 =20
The following developers recently changed roles within the Gentoo Linux=20
project:
=20
 * None this week =20
   =20
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
9. Contribute to GWN
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
  =20
Interested in contributing to the Gentoo Weekly Newsletter? Send us an=20
email[69].
 69. [email protected]
   =20
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
10. GWN feedback
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
  =20
Please send us your feedback[70] and help make the GWN better.
 70. [email protected]
   =20
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
11. GWN subscription information
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
  =20
To subscribe to the Gentoo Weekly Newsletter, send a blank email to=20
[email protected].
=20
To unsubscribe to the Gentoo Weekly Newsletter, send a blank email to=20
[email protected] from the email address you are=20
subscribed under.
   =20
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
12. Other languages
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
  =20
The Gentoo Weekly Newsletter is also available in the following languages=
:
=20
 * Danish[71] =20
 * Dutch[72] =20
 * English[73] =20
 * German[74] =20
 * French[75] =20
 * Japanese[76] =20
 * Italian[77] =20
 * Polish[78] =20
 * Portuguese (Brazil)[79] =20
 * Portuguese (Portugal)[80] =20
 * Russian[81] =20
 * Spanish[82] =20
 * Turkish[83] =20
 71. http://www.gentoo.org/news/da/gwn/gwn.xml
 72. http://www.gentoo.org/news/nl/gwn/gwn.xml
 73. http://www.gentoo.org/news/en/gwn/gwn.xml
 74. http://www.gentoo.org/news/de/gwn/gwn.xml
 75. http://www.gentoo.org/news/fr/gwn/gwn.xml
 76. http://www.gentoo.org/news/ja/gwn/gwn.xml
 77. http://www.gentoo.org/news/it/gwn/gwn.xml
 78. http://www.gentoo.org/news/pl/gwn/gwn.xml
 79. http://www.gentoo.org/news/pt_br/gwn/gwn.xml
 80. http://www.gentoo.org/news/pt/gwn/gwn.xml
 81. http://www.gentoo.org/news/ru/gwn/gwn.xml
 82. http://www.gentoo.org/news/es/gwn/gwn.xml
 83. http://www.gentoo.org/news/tr/gwn/gwn.xml
  =20
Ulrich Plate <[email protected]> - Editor
AJ Armstrong <[email protected]> - Author
Christian Hartmann <[email protected]> - Author
Patrick Lauer <[email protected]> - Author
Daniel Ostrow <[email protected]> - Author
Lars Weiler <[email protected]> - Author



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