Procmail filtering notes

Configuring a mail server with Postfix-Procmail-Fetchmail-SpamAssassin

Good series of notes, on a home setup

Configuring Postfix to use SpamAssassin
Detailed instructions on how to get spamassassin to filter your email via postfix BEFORE its delivered. Handy.

css plugin for Xine

Now you can view ALL encrypted and locked dvds on Linux.

From comp.windows.x.kde:

> 2. I have heard that the Windows fonts are pretty good.
> Which ones should I use and how do I install them?

Put the .ttf font files in a dir ~/.fonts
run fc-cache -f -v
you should be able to use all those new fonts in kde apps.

What works best for me, (I don't like small antialiased fonts; I think
they look bold)
is to rebuild the freetype2 lib with the bytecode hinter turned on -
it can not be turned on by default because of a patent issue.

Learn how to do that from the README.UNX file that comes with freetype, after you run ./configure; make, then cp and symlink your new libfreetype.so.6.3.2 in /usr/lib
restart X, it makes a huge difference.

Bash - complex commands for advanced users
Handy reference.

Is your sendmail DNS aware?

/usr/lib/sendmail -d0.1 -bt < /dev/null

Look for NAMED_BIND in the "Compiled with" box.


1997 paper on tuning Sendmail for mailing lists
Old paper, but a good read and still applicable.

SendMail book by O'Reilly
Web version. 1997 edition.

Kernel Newbies
Good site. Cute logo.

Dyers - setting up a Linux server
Easy going introduction to setting up a Linux box - Samba, Firewalling, DNS cacheing are covered.

Your Open Source Plan
Good article from a corporate CIO perspective with lots of examples of using Linux in a corporate environment.

HOWTO - Run KazaaLite using WINE

Origins of the word "spam"

Installed Mandrake 9.1 on my Win 98 machine today, as dual-boot. Gave Mandrake 40 gig, Win 98 80 gig - install went like a breeze. Partitioning was very straightforward - the new Mandrake install wizard is extremely slick.


Some fun - take this quiz!
Which OS are you?

Installing nano and pico on Mandrake 9.1

NANO and PICO missing from Mandrake 9.1

Here's a way of installing Nano easily once you've installed Mandrake 9.1

Go to http://plf.zarb.org/~nanardon/urpmiweb.php

Select plf, texstar, main, contrib, updates and the mirror servers nearest to you. (I had problems with the UK mirror recently, so dont select that one)

Hit the send button - you'll get a list of urpmi commands.

Open up a Konsole and su as root.

Highlight the commands and cut and paste them into your root Konsole.

The urpmi commands will go off and download RPM package databases to a local urpmi database on your box.


Once this has finished, type into the Konsole

urpmi nano

And you'll get something like this - nano will be then installed:
ftp://ftp.ibiblio.org/pub/Linux/distributions/contrib/texstar/linux/distributions/mandrake/9.1/rpms/i586/./nano-1.2.0-1tex.i586.rpm
installing /var/cache/urpmi/rpms/nano-1.2.0-1tex.i586.rpm

Preparing... ##################################################
1:nano ##################################################


Type 'nano' from the command line - and you'll now have a Pico-like text editor in Mandrake.

It could be just me, but the Mandrake Forum is sometimes hard to find (maybe that's because theres so many Mandrakesoft websites??). Here's the direct link straight into the forum - non-club members can post questions in certain areas.

KVM Switch & Erratic Mouse Behaviour

This only applies to wheeled mice - switching to other boxes on a 4 port KVM switch and back to your Linux box results in erratic mouse behaviour.

Here's the solution (for Mandrake - probably applies to other distros too) - your wheel will stop working, but at least you'll be able to switch via KVM without your mouse going crazy.

Edt /etc/X11/XF86Config-4

Go to the "Section 'Input Device' "

Change the IMPS/2 in Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" to "PS/2"

Restart X (ctrl-atl-backspace)

I found a very useful Sendmail tuning document here.

Interview with Gael Duval of Mandrakesoft

Why I Hate Microsoft
Despite the shrieking title, this is actually a very articulate and detailed attack on Microsoft and its business practises. Well worth reading.

ISO Recorder
This is a completely free ISO recorder for Win XP - quite useful for burning Linux ISO images if all you have access to is an XP box. Unlike XPs built in CD recording, this does not create a temporary file before burning to disk.

Win XP annoyingly does this by default (700mb ISO + 700mb temp file = a 1.4 Gig free space needed to burn an image!!)

Mandrake 9.0 Upgrade To KDE 3.1

Problem: Lost desktop icons , can't change background

Issue: Probably didnt download all of the Texstar rpms.

Good answer by Texstar:
"Boot into gnome and remove previous kde and rename your .kde in your home
directory to .kde-old then urmpi:

libqt3.1
arts
libarts
kdelibs
kdelibs-common
kdebase
kdebase-servicemenu
kdebase-nsplugins
mandrake-mime-0.3.1
xinitrc-2.4.4-70

This will get you a basic kde desktop.Log out of gnome and log into kde.
From here you can add the rest of the rpms such as kdenetwork, kdeadmin,
kdemultimedia etc.

These rpms were built on a stock Mandrake 9.0 install so there are no funny
or wierd libraries to contend with.

Goodluck,
Texstar"

Gateway 1450 laptop Linux config notes
Includes instructions on getting the i830 Intel video chipset to work - this chipset is also found in some Dell laptops and can cause problems for X - the chipset grabs normal system memory for its own use, and to compound the issue, Intel have refused to release the technical specs to the open source word.


More info on the Intel i830 chipset issue
Extract:
"Since version 4.2.0, XFree86 includes support for the Intel i830 family of graphics controllers. Unfortunately, Intel has decided that - in contrast, to previous chipsets in the i810 series - they do not publicly release detailed programming information for the i830 (and it's successor, the i845). This is rather disappointing and should be noted by all users of open-source operating system, as this policy slows down the development of reliable device drivers, as the example of the i830 has clearly demonstrated. In fact, Intel's i830 page is actually misinforming. As of 4 Sep 2002, it says in a note that ``[t]here is currently no Linux driver to bypass legacy memory limitations. The Linux drivers for the Intel 830M/MG chipset graphics do not currently support full video memory usage; that is, you will always be limited to the BIOS pre-determined memory amount. This is due to the dual-pipe graphics architecture of the Intel 830M/MG chipset graphics.'' As a matter of fact, this doesn't have anything to do with dual-pipe graphics architecture, but is entirely due to Intel withholding, on purpose, crucial technical information about the chipset"

Dell Inspiron - Mandrake 8.1 Installation Notes
Linux On Laptops - Dell Page
Yahoo Linux Dell Laptop Page

Over at distrowatch.com , there's a tongue-firmly-in-cheek article on the "Windows" distro...
Windows XP - An Operating System You Can Trust