[KLUG Members] KLUG Meeting Notes for 04/15/2003
magoo
members@kalamazoolinux.org
15 Apr 2003 22:55:22 -0400
KLUG Meeting Notes: Tuesday - April 15, 2003 7:00PM
I. PRESENTATION RECAP
II. NEXT WEEK'S MEETING INFO <=== Floppyfw Demo!!!
III. KLUG MAILING LISTS
IV. KLUG & LINUX NEWS FLASHES
V. KLUG CONTACT & MEETING INFO
Tonight's Meeting Moderator: KLUG Chairperson Todd Pillars
I. PRESENTATION RECAP
THIS WEEK'S KLUG PRESENTATION: (25 REAL active KLUG participants)
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The GIMP
by Andrew Thompson
As most Linux artists already know, the GIMP has become THE paint
program for the serious open-source artist. While not (yet) the
PhotoShop killer we hope to see one day, it offers many of the
same features for a much nicer price, and adds good scripting
facilities 'That Other Paint Program' still only dreams of.
Andrew Thompson demonstrated the features of the program... THAT
IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT!!!
The GIMP is the GNU Image Manipulation Program!
http://www.gimp.org
PRESENTATION SUMMARY:
************************
Andrew Thompson used his laptop running Red Hat v8.0 and the KLUG
SVGA projector to give us a tour of the GNU Image Manipulation
Program... better known to Linux lovers as THE GIMP! He began by
showing us a cartoon panel he had created. He suggested that you
get a drawing tablet for doing the freehand work. Linux supports
several of these artist accessories and we heard recommendations
from the audience.
The second phase of our GIMP exploration entailed Andrew deftly
showing us the program's tool set. It was a live demo in which
he created a graphic as he explained how the tools worked. We saw
how it uses layering to build the images into a unified graphic.
We saw special effects like how to use patterns and gradients. He
added text and then demonstrated what you can do to make the text
more dramatic. Andrew told us about the control/command keys and
how to invoke program features to do amazing graphical tricks!
The third act of this insightful and artistic performance brought
out a graphic of M$'s Wm. Harold Gates III! We saw how to import
an existing graphic and alter it in amusing ways. We ended up with
a picture of Bill Gates' face with a dashed line encircling it and
the instructions - PIE HERE! A KLUG member hijacked the KLUG SVGA
projector at this point (he just happened to have video cables and
an Apple i-Book) and displayed a picture of an annoyed Bill Gates
after he actually DID receive an unexpected cream pie in the face!
The crowd was interested and participatory... to say the least!
Andrew was getting questions coming at him like cruise missiles
landing in Baghdad during the "shock and awe" campaign. He did
not get to do his prepared presentation as the crowd clamored to
see the tricks that they knew were possible but never figured out.
There are so many features and functions in The GIMP that it looks
like you could learn the basics in a week and master the remainder
in about 5 years! Who needs PhotoShop? NOT... Linux users who
can learn how to use The GIMP!
KLUG meeting attendees were operating their laptops along with
Andrew as he did his presentation. You could see the delight on
their faces as they experienced "AH HA!" after "AH HA!" with their
own GIMP application and Andrew's experienced guidance and patient
directions. After a two hour frenzy of attendees expressing a
voracious appetite for learning the GIMP... Andrew was awash in
spontaneous applause from his grateful students. Many are well
on their way to learning the basics and understanding the power
that The GIMP can impart to a Linux user with a creative mind.
Andrew Thompson is a contract draftsman currently employed at Denso
Manufacturing Michigan in Battle Creek, and installmaster for the
Kalamazoo Linux Users Group. An amateur cartoonist of some (very)
small renown, he keeps a small sampling of his work at his own
little hole-in-the-net gallery at The Imagerie.
http://www.imagerie.com
II. NEXT KLUG MEETING - TUESDAY 04/22/2003
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A Floppyfw Demonstration
BY Bill Hollett
Floppyfw is a Linux firewall. It enables a PC to act as a router
with the advanced firewall-capabilities in Linux that fits on one
single floppy disk. He'll be demonstrating the ease of set-up using
a Windows computer to download and create the floppy to use on a
blank pentium box with two NIC cards and no HD. The firewall will be
automatically configured. He'll also show how to overcome the size
limitations of the floppy while adding packages using Brian Freeman's
new post-wpk package. Copies of this package will be made available.
Requirements & features of Floppyfw include: - Works on a 386sx or
better with two network interface cards, a 1.44MB floppy drive and
12MByte of RAM - Very simple packaging system, can be used for
adding editors, PPP, VPN, traffic shaping, etc. - Logging through
klogd/syslogd, both local and remote. - Serial support for console
over serial port. - DHCP server and DNS cache for internal networks.
Bill Hollett is the owner of Billtron Services, an independent
contracting entity specializing in web site development and
programming and information interchange via the web.
III. K L U G M A I L I N G L I S T S -
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Diversified mailing lists can be found on the KLUG web site.
http://kalamazoolinux.org/listserv/
Facilitated by - John Bridleman listmaster@kalamazoolinux.org
Sign up and participate to serve the Open Source community!!!
IV. K L U G & L I N U X N E W S F L A S H E S ! ! !
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RED HAT APPLIES OPEN SOURCE TO ENTERPRISE APPS
Richard Li, director of enterprise applications at Red Hat, said:
"We're taking our successful open source model that has worked with
our Red Hat Enterprise Linux family of solutions and applying this
to enterprise applications.
http://www.pcw.co.uk/News/1140079
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LINUX KERNEL V2.6: CAN YOU BREAK IT?
A preview of the 2.6 kernel and the audio excellence of Linux.
http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/6683
http://www.linux-mag.com/2003-01/kernal_01.html
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A REVIEW OF RED HAT V 9
"First, I will list a few things of what you can actually find in
the new release: you will find a good choice of apps on Red Hat
Linux 9, from office to fax apps, some entertaining games, a fully
featured web suite and more. The NPTL library offers better
responsiveness of the system taking care of how the Linux kernel is
dealing with threads, there is a cleaned up start menu, a bug fixed
Nautilus (however it still has disabled the ability to edit Gnome's
menus), Mozilla's good looking AA font rendering and more. KDE 3.1
and Gnome 2.2 are included, in addition to a number of servers like
Apache, Postgresql, mysql etc..."
http://linuxtoday.com/infrastructure/2003041200226RVRHSW
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OPEN-SOURCE BATTLE RAGES IN OREGON [submitted by TAZ]
A group of open-source advocates and critics will meet behind closed
doors Wednesday afternoon, in the first of at least two meetings in
search of a compromise on what could be the first bill in the United
States to encourage the use of open-source software by a state
government.
http://news.com.com/2100-1012-996210.html
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THE GIMP V 1.3.14 (DEVELOPMENT) RELEASED
About: The GIMP is the GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely
distributed piece of software suitable for such tasks as photo
retouching, image composition and image authoring. It can be used as a
simple paint program, an expert quality photo retouching program, an
online batch processing system, a mass production image renderer, a
image format converter, etc. Changes: This development release
features improved transform, text, and vector tools, a plugin to save
animations in the MNG format, image templates, and lots of enhancements
to the user interface.
http://freshmeat.net/projects/thegimp/?topic_id=108
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PROJECT OF THE MONTH: SQUIRRELMAIL
The popularity and prevalence of always-on home network service (via
DSL or cable modem) has changed the notion of what an Internet Service
Provider (ISP) needs to provide. In the old days, an ISP hosted your
Web site and email on their servers. You used their network to browse
the Web, read newsgroups, and POP your email. Since your connection
was temporary, there wasn't a way to get email delivered directly and
reliably to your computer.
http://www.linux-mag.com/2003-01/potm_01.html
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CAN OPEN SOURCE WIN BIG BUSINESS?
"Getting Fortune 500 companies to adopt open source would be a lot
easier if open-source advocates put their business hats on."
http://linuxtoday.com/it_management/2003041401126OSBZDP
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LINUX GAINING INTEREST FROM WALL STREET
The wealthy brokerage houses and financial companies in the heart of
Manhattan can buy just about any IT hardware and software they want,
so why is Linux gaining users and drawing interest?
http://www.idg.net/ic_1303907_9677_1-5047.html
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OPENOFFICE.ORG V 1.0.3 RELEASED [submitted by Bruce Smith]
A maintenance release of OpenOffice.org has been announced. Details,
links within.
http://linuxtoday.com/infrastructure/2003041100826NWDTSW
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MYSQL V4.X REVIEWED
MySQL powers countless databases and data-driven Web sites. MySQL 4,
the latest release of the Open Source database, includes features
that put it on par with products from database stalwarts Oracle and
Microsoft. Unbelievable? Believe it.
http://www.linux-mag.com/2003-01/mysql_01.html
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LYCORIS BECKONS FOR WINDOWS MIGRATION [submitted by TAZ]
"Lycoris has released a new Beta, Build 71. Lycoris is not a Linux
distro for those who already know Linux, but more for the masses, for
those who want to migrate from Windows, and don't really want anything
to do with the command line. Lycoris Desktop/LX equipped computers are
available from Wal-Mart starting at $268.00 (build 46). It's a great
OS for the masses, $30 or less, $19.99 from the company if you
download your own and just want the Product ID. Registered users get
REAL e-mail support and full access to IRIS, an RPM-based
click-to-install program base."
http://slashdot.org/articles/03/04/14/0413241.shtml?tid=190&tid=163
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OPERA V7.10 FOR LINUX BETA RELEASED [submitted by TAZ]
Opera Software today released Opera 7.10 for Windows and Opera 7.10
for Linux Beta with features that are not only new to Opera, but
also completely new to the world of browsing.
http://www.opera.com/pressreleases/en/2003/04/11/
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/04/12/2248223&mode=thread
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AN INTRODUCTION TO OPEN SOURCE COMMUNITIES
"Open source software communities are one of the most successful, and
least understood, examples of high-performance collaboration and
community-building on the Internet today. Other types of communities
could benefit enormously from understanding how open source
communities work."
http://linuxtoday.com/developer/2003041200426OSCYDV
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THE ECONOMIST ON THE RISE OF LINUX [submitted by TAZ]
"The Economist is telling the business world that Linux is a worthy
adversary to Windows and Unix. It is free, runs on almost any hardware,
and generally more secure than Windows As result it is dividing the
industry into winners that offer Linux and losers that don't,
(e.g. Microsoft). Sun is probably doomed."
http://www.economist.com/business/displayStory.cfm?story_id=1699434
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/04/13/1455205&mode=thread&tid=163
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IBM SHOWS FAITH IN LINUX
IBM demonstrated its commitment to open source and the Linux platform
by highlighting developer successes at the company's annual
DeveloperWorksLive conference last week in New Orleans.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,3959,1023147,00.asp
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IBM DIVES DEEPER INTO LINUX
IBM next month will extend the reach of its Directory Server and
Directory Integrator across additional Linux hardware platforms
when it adds versions for the IBM i-Series and p-Series servers.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,3959,1022818,00.asp
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LINUX ON THE DESKTOP
Virtual desktops and evolving e-mail clients make Linux an
increasingly viable desktop option.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/04/11/15osource_1.html
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NEW SAMBA FLAW COMPROMISES LINUX SERVERS
The second major Samba security flaw in a few weeks is already being
exploited by attackers, a security firm has said. And accidentally
released code makes an attack still easier.
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2133095,00.html
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OPEN SOURCE HELPS KEEP PROGRAMMING JOBS IN AMERICA
Open source can help U.S.companies retain American programmers.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/04/04/14osource_1.html
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AUTOUPDATE V 4.8.4 RELEASED
AutoUpdate is a Perl script which performs a task similar to Red
Hat's up2date or autorpm. It can be used to automatically download
and upgrade RPMs from different HTTP(S) or (S)FTP sites, while also
handling dependencies. Moreover, it can also be used to keep a server
with a customized (Red Hat) distribution plus all clients up to date.
http://freshmeat.net/projects/autoupdate/?topic_id=41%2C253
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APACHE URGES UPDATE AHEAD OF DOS RISK ALERT
The Apache Software Foundation has updated its popular Web server
software to guard against a serious, as yet unspecified, denial of
service risk. Users of version 2.x of the Web server on all platforms
are urged to upgrade to version 2.0.45. Sites running 1.x aren't
affected.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/30126.html
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I T I S P A R T Y T I M E ! ! !
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KLUG 4TH OF JULY P A R T Y IS POSTED ON THE WEB SITE - RSVP ASAP!
Go to the KLUG web site for the details and to sign up if you are
planning on attending the KLUG 4TH of July party this year. PARTY!!!
THE DETAILS
http://kalamazoolinux.org/party/p-details.php
RSVP
http://kalamazoolinux.org/party/rsvp.php
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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[ *** N O T E D A T E C O R R E C T I O N *** ]
BUSINESS EXPO IS PLANNED FOR THURSDAY MAY 22ND AT THE RADISSON HOTEL.
The Kalamazoo Chamber of Commerce will be holding another business
exposition in the Grand Ballroom at the Radisson Plaza Hotel. There
will be an "IT Zone" designated that will highlight digital technology.
A KLUG speaker is also needed to make a presentation in the IT Zone's
program. Please contact Bob at publicitydirector@kalamazoolinux.org
if you can volunteer as a presenter for this event.
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KLUG NEEDS VOLUNTEERS TO FILL SEVERAL VACANT POSITIONS
Nutrimaster and Education Director volunteer slots are still
vacant. We need additional volunteers to act as the "Meeting
Firewall" to handle Chamber access control and security issues.
The Chamber has asked us to safeguard their assets as KLUG
members come and go from the meeting room each Tuesday night.
Bob and Zac need help with this function which requires that
you get to the meetings early and see that the everything is
locked up as the last person leaves. This means being at the
Chamber at 6:30pm and hanging around until 10:00pm. We have
other volunteer positions available and many of these duties
could be shared if you have an interest. GET INVOLVED IN KLUG!
Volunteers are needed for Beginner's Nights and Installfests.
Please contact installmaster@kalamazoolinux.org for more details.
See http://kalamazoolinux.org/organize for position descriptions.
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********* - ********* - ********* - ********* - ********* - *********
KLUG NEEDS SPEAKERS FOR THE WEEKLY LINUX RELATED PRESENTATIONS!
********* - ********* - ********* - ********* - ********* - *********
Contact Adam if you can give a presentation on any area of Linux
related subject or application. He would also like to hear your
suggestions for topics and possible speaker referrals. Do you
know anyone who is using Linux in Southwest Michigan and might
be willing to share their Linux expertise by making a technical
presentation? Professional, individual, or commercial speakers
on Linux accepted. Contact programdirector@kalamazoolinux.org
with your referrals and ideas. See the meeting schedule for open
dates. http://www.kalamazoolinux.org/meetings/schedule.php3
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V. K L U G C O N T A C T & M E E T I N G I N F O
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KLUG WEB SITE http://kalamazoolinux.org
MEMBERS AND GUESTS - COME JOIN US FOR A MEETING!!!
http://kalamazoolinux.org/meetings
WE MEET WEEKLY, EACH TUESDAY AT 7:00PM.
Our meeting site is the Kalamazoo Chamber
of Commerce office building downtown.
346 W. Michigan Ave. - Kalamazoo, MI 49007
http://kazoolug.org/meetings/maps.php3 <=== MAP!
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Kalamazoo Linux Users Group, Inc.
6749 South Westnedge Avenue
Suite K-288
Portage MI 49002
e-mail address: chair@kalamazoolinux.org
Copyright 2003
Kalamazoo Linux Users Group, Inc.
>><< send corrections, additions, flames to the KLUG scribe >><<
Ralph Worick
recordingsecretary@kalamazoolinux.org
= or =
KLUG Meeting Notes Assistant Editor
Bruce Atherton
Taz <htgage3@chartermi.net>