January 2005 - KCLUG

RE: Live CD for Windows Users (must have WINE, default WINE configuration comparison question)
by bkelsay＠comcast.net 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

Knoppix is the only one I know has it, but I've never used wine, so I don't know that it is working correctly. A problem with this anyway would be running out of memory or swapping a lot while running from LiveCD. > > -----Original Message----- > > From: David Nicol > > > > so which ones have WINE installed and ready to go without a > > lot of configuring?

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RE: Live CD for Windows Users (must have WINE, default WINE configuration comparison question)
by Brian Densmore 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

> -----Original Message----- > From: David Nicol > > so which ones have WINE installed and ready to go without a > lot of configuring? I'm fairly certain Linspire does. You could check http://www.distrowatch.com to see others.

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RE: Live CD for Windows Users
by Brian Densmore 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

> -----Original Message----- > From: Jonathan Hutchins > > Is Linspire still supposed to be the easiest distro for an entrenched > Windows user to transition to? Do they have a live CD? Well, that depends. Remember they like to charge for "add on" software that other distros include by default. Mandrake, Fedora, Mepis or Knoppix are probably all just as easy to install and use and all have live cds. > > My Dad is still running 98, and he's having the normal accumulation of > problems that 98 develops over time. He's thinking of > "upgrading" to XP, > and I'd like to show him a better way. A I would say never upgrade to XP. Also I was surfing yesterday and came across a report that showed that W2K was the most stable of all the Windoze versions. If I were to upgrade someone's PC with any Version of Windoze this is the one I would use. > > More important than compatibility with Windows software, I > think, would be > something that worked smoothly without a lot of patching and > updating. > That might bring him over, especially on a Live CD. > > (Evangelism is wasted here - if he has to work too hard to do it the > "right" way, he won't.) In that case I'd say Mepis. Although, installation should be left for at least a PC literate person. Mepis powered by Debian and has a lot of functionality built in. I'm not thrilled that they use a unstable/testing configuration, which means that there is frequent updates available. But Debian has pretty good default answer built in. As far as patching. You could choose any distro and it would be great if you never patched it. It's not until we start mucking around with the internals that Linux distros start acting up (generally speaking). Evangelism is never wasted ... in the mind of the Evangelist. ;')

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Live CD for Windows Users
by Jonathan Hutchins 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

Is Linspire still supposed to be the easiest distro for an entrenched Windows user to transition to? Do they have a live CD? My Dad is still running 98, and he's having the normal accumulation of problems that 98 develops over time. He's thinking of "upgrading" to XP, and I'd like to show him a better way. More important than compatibility with Windows software, I think, would be something that worked smoothly without a lot of patching and updating. That might bring him over, especially on a Live CD. (Evangelisim is wasted here - if he has to work too hard to do it the "right" way, he won't.)

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Re: OT: Win98 rumors
by Brian Kelsay 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

I could say the same about SP2 for XP causing a destabilization. What a pain. Brian Kelsay >>> "Jonathan Hutchins" <> 01/25/05 01:49PM >>> There are rumors floating on the Hampshire (UK) LUG list that many of the recent patches for Win98/ME are destabilizing. They have been ported from XP patches without adequate checking - and there are a LOT of different combinations of patches possible between the original relase of 98, OEM2E, and ME. Some people are suggesting that Microsoft is deliberately sabotaging this platform because they want to get it off their backs and migrate people to XP. Microsoft would never do something like that, would they?

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RE: DSL Modem/Router wanted
by Brian Densmore 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

> -----Original Message----- > From: Brian Kelsay > > ... The inclusion of the phone call cost is that if he has to > call her and walk her thru some long procedure or fix, it can > get expensive quick. He probably wants a drop in solution. I got that point. The part I don't get is how the $0.05/min keeps out competitors. It is quite easy to "rent" an 800 number to use to get quite cheap communications with people in foreign countries. He could rent the 800 number and she could call it for free. However $0.05/min ($3/hr) isn't all that expensive, and perhaps that was what he meant about keeping out the competition. Sorry ,I can't provide a link to the rent-a-800-number services. If I recall correctly, I could call Russia/Ukraine for $0.029/per minute back when I was using it. A quick google didn't turn it up. It might require some google hacking to find it again. Brian Densmore

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RE: DSL Modem/Router wanted
by Brian Kelsay 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

He said it was a laptop. It would have to be a USB PCMCIA card. The inclusion of the phone call cost is that if he has to call her and walk her thru some long procedure or fix, it can get expensive quick. He probably wants a drop in solution. He should know from his own time over there whether or not their phone lines are wired the same. We use 2-wire into a RJ-11 here, do they use some funky plug requiring an adapter? Is their ethernet wired to a different standard and if so, will it still work w/ US equip.? IEEE is supposed to be an international standards body, but they still use different electrical voltages than us, so anything is possible. Brian Kelsay >>> "Brian Densmore" <> 01/25/05 10:18AM >>> Why not just install a USB card in an open slot in the existing PC? > > her thing. What she has is an older, pre-USB IBM laptop with > Windows98 and > Mandrake 9.x on it, and a working ethernet card. An older IBM laptop with no USB? Wow, that's old! I have an older IBM laptop (originally with Windows 98) and it has USB. > > Local phone calls in the U.K., including calls to a dial-up > ISP, are usually > charged at 5¢/minute - one of the ways British Telecom tries > to clamp down on > the competition. Lost me on that one. Guess you need to have the context.

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Re: DSL Modem/Router wanted
by Brian Kelsay 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

I didn't realize you were not going over there with it. But, as with anything, where there is a will, there is a way. If you knew she could get a basic PC that had USB on it over there, you could build IPCop on a HDD here and just send her the HDD and NICs from the PC you built it on. Label each NIC as to what it connects to (e.g. Red NIC, internet, Green NIC, local Network). If she is capable of following some basic directions and using a screwdriver, it is doable. Another alternative might be, looking to see if there is a Linksys device that can connect to a USB DSL modem. Just a thought. Ethernet based DSL modems can be had for less than $50 on ebay I think. You could even buy from a person in England and have it shipped directly to her. Just trying to give a complete picture of your options. Brian Kelsay >>> Jonathan Hutchins <> 01/25/05 10:04AM >>> On Tuesday 25 January 2005 07:33 am, Brian Kelsay wrote: > What is the brand of the modem? It may be supported by the IPCop firewall > distro. IPCop is used in the US and in Europe and they have some fixes > added for specific modems. You would just have to use an old PC that has > USB on it. Trying to remotely build a new PC with firewall just to support a stupid USB modem isn't a good idea. What I need is something that will connect to the existing, working Ethernet card. We had some new clothing that was a Christmas gift shipped there, and the import duties were about 30%. The town we're in is _very_ rural. Think middle o' Kansas. More cows than computers. I have a couple of PII 400's there that could be built into firewalls, but no monitors for them - I was going to use an ATI All-in-Wonder and a TV, but I found out that it's not easy to get the TV-Out working, let alone make it the primary video. My wife is a Microbiologist. She's no dummy, but building computers is not her thing. What she has is an older, pre-USB IBM laptop with Windows98 and Mandrake 9.x on it, and a working ethernet card. Local phone calls in the U.K., including calls to a dial-up ISP, are usually charged at 5¢/minute - one of the ways British Telecom tries to clamp down on the competition. _______________________________________________ Kclug mailing list Kclug(a)kclug.org http://kclug.org/mailman/listinfo/kclug

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RE: DSL Modem/Router wanted
by Brian Densmore 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

> -----Original Message----- > From: Jonathan Hutchins > > On Tuesday 25 January 2005 07:33 am, Brian Kelsay wrote: > > > Trying to remotely build a new PC with firewall just to > support a stupid USB > modem isn't a good idea. What I need is something that will > connect to the > existing, working Ethernet card. Why not just install a usb card in an open slot in the existing PC? > ... The town we're in is _very_ > rural. Think > middle o' Kansas. More cows than computers. They still have cows in England? Are they still mad? ;') > > her thing. What she has is an older, pre-USB IBM laptop with > Windows98 and > Mandrake 9.x on it, and a working ethernet card. An older IBM laptop with no USB? Wow, that's old! I have an older IBM laptop (originally with Windows 98) and it has USB. > > Local phone calls in the U.K., including calls to a dial-up > ISP, are usually > charged at 5¢/minute - one of the ways British Telecom tries > to clamp down on > the competition. Lost me on that one. Guees you need to have the context.

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Re: DSL Modem/Router wanted
by Brian Kelsay 25 Jan '05

25 Jan '05

What is the brand of the modem? It may be supported by the IPCop firewall distro. IPCop is used in the US and in Europe and they have some fixes added for specific modems. You would just have to use an old PC that has USB on it. Brian Kelsay >>> Jonathan Hutchins <> 01/25/05 07:28AM In case you were wondering: Yes, I would be getting RoadRunner if I could, but they don't have service in Andover, England. I'm not even sure a U.S. spec DSL modem will work in the U.K., but it's worth a shot. My wife got DSL from British Telecom, who's customer service policy is "we don't care, we don't have to, we're not only the phone company we're the government". They gave her a USB modem, and the older IBM laptop she has won't support it under either Windows98 or Mandrake 9.x.

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