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Linux & openlink
by Paul 23 Nov '06

23 Nov '06

Having recently spent vast sums on a brand new WiFi card (a netgear WG511T Atheros based card), I've been trying to connect to Norfolk's Openlink network. I appear to get a reasonable signal strength from within the Forum, and can detect three or more access points... However, dhcp refuses to pick up an address, and the hell desk is of little use. Has anyone within the group been able to connect a Linux powered device to Openlink, and if so, what settings did you use ?? I've tried both madwifi and ndiswrapper drivers with a SuSE 10.0 install to no avail. Regards, Paul.

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FW: Re: [linux-users] Software in schools
by Ted.Harding＠nessie.mcc.ac.uk 23 Nov '06

23 Nov '06

Hi Folks, Version of the following have been kicking around on the man-lug and linux-users mailing lasts (up in Manchester) for the last day or two. The following version is clear and helpful, so I'm forwarding it to you all for your consideration! It originated from the UKUUG, I understand. Best wishes to all, Ted. -----FW: <45655993.6030904(a)cairnlin.co.uk>----- Date: Thu, 23 Nov 2006 08:19:31 +0000 Sender: linux-users-admin(a)lists.manchester.ac.uk From: Iain <iain(a)cairnlin.co.uk> Subject: Re: [linux-users] Software in schools Cc: linux-users(a)lists.man.ac.uk Dave Love wrote: > Perhaps you could get Fletcher to provide info on where to read what > this motion says -- I assume it's online somewhere. I don't see how > you can ask an MP to sign something when you don't know its contents. > Here's the rest of the email that Leslie sent out (don't know why only the first para made it onto the list). An Early Day Motion is a marker, giving MPs the opportunity to sign it. This one only appeared yesterday and most MPs won't sign unless lobbied to do so, so three sigs is good. If we can get to 30-40 sigs over the next few weeks we'll be very happy. Iain. ================================== Dear LUG member, John Pugh MP has tabled an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons entitled Software in Education, number 179. Please write to, or email, your MP within the next week with a request that (s)he add his/her name to this motion. I would be grateful if you could keep me informed about the letters you send and replies you receive. You can find more information below and at www.openschoolsalliance.org. Yours sincerely Leslie Fletcher +++++++++++++BACKGROUND INFORMATION++++++++++++++++++++ The text of the motion is : That this House congratulates the Open University and other schools, colleges and universities for utilising free and open source software to deliver cost-effective educational benefit not just for their own institutions but also the wider community; and expresses concern that Becta and the Department for Education and Skills, through the use of outdated purchasing frameworks, are effectively denying schools the option of benefiting from both free and open source and the value and experience small and medium ICT companies could bring to the schools market. http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=31752&SESSION=885 CONTACTING YOUR MP An easy way to contact your MP is by email using the step-by-step guide at: http://www.writetothem.com/ The Open Rights Group (ORG) have sensible and practical information on how to write to, or email, MPs: http://www.openrightsgroup.org/orgwiki/index.php/Letter_writing If you decide to follow up your letter with a visit to your MP's constituency surgery, please look at ORG's advice: http://www.openrightsgroup.org/orgwiki/index.php/MP%27s_surgery POINTS TO COVER IN A LETTER You may wish to cover some of the following points * Schools receive questionable advice on IT procurement from BECTA, the government agency responsible for the use of IT in education. * BECTA's framework agreements look only at the long-term financial performance of suppliers, seriously hampering the involvement of SMEs and ignoring the risk that schools could become locked into expensive and restrictive contractual arrangements. * Lists of approved suppliers are very limited both in number and variety - only only fifteen suppliers for non-curriculum software for example, none of which has any commitment to open source software. * BECTA's own case studies found considerable savings in cost for schools using open source software. * Government policy claims to promote a level playing field for open source software. This is not happening in schools because BECTA's advice is partial and inconsistent. If you have some connection with an SME (proprietor, partner, employee, ... ) please make this clear in your letter as the impact on SMEs in their constituency is something MPs can relate to. If you are involved with a school, on the staff, a governor, parent, ... , mention that also. Again the wellbeing of schools in their constituency is something MPs are keen to be seen promoting. MAKE SURE YOU FINISH OFF WITH A SENTENCE LIKE THIS BECAUSE THIS IS WHAT YOU WANT YOUR MP TO DO! : "John Pugh MP has tabled Early Day Motion number 179, entitled Software in Education expressing concern about this and I urge you to add your name to it." SOFTWARE, PARTICULARLY MOODLE, BEING USED BY THE OU AND OTHERS You can read about the OU's innovative use of FLOSS and about the lukewarm support from the DfES here: http://www.ukuug.org/mediawatch/?p=789 There is a Wikipedia entry for Moodle: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moodle BECTA AND ITS FRAMEWORKS There is a Wikipedia entry on this topic; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Becta This ZDNet article, referred to in the Wikipedia entry sets out the issues for FLOSS very clearly: http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/0,1000000121,39256053,00.htm EARLY DAY MOTION An Early Day Motion is a parliamentary device to introduce an issue to MPs and to gauge support; you can find out more from the Wikipedia entry about EDMs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_day_motion HOW WE GOT HERE This EDM is the first parliamentary result of the Open Source Consortium's work to raise the political profile of free and open source software. Several other groups are involved, particularly UKUUG, SchoolForge UK and FFII-UK; you can find more information on the website of the Open Schools Alliance, a newly-formed pressure group: www.openschoolsalliance.org http://lists.manchester.ac.uk/mailman/listinfo/linux-users --------------End of forwarded message------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- E-Mail: (Ted Harding) <Ted.Harding(a)nessie.mcc.ac.uk> Fax-to-email: +44 (0)870 094 0861 Date: 23-Nov-06 Time: 08:35:27 ------------------------------ XFMail ------------------------------

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Re: [linux-users] Software in schools
by Ted.Harding＠nessie.mcc.ac.uk 23 Nov '06

23 Nov '06

Hi Folks, Regarding the origins of the Early Day Motion, there are some interesting exchanges on the UKUUG "Advicacy" mail archives. See: http://lists.ukuug.org/pipermail/advocacy/2006-November/date.html Best wishes to all, Ted. -------------------------------------------------------------------- E-Mail: (Ted Harding) <Ted.Harding(a)nessie.mcc.ac.uk> Fax-to-email: +44 (0)870 094 0861 Date: 23-Nov-06 Time: 08:40:29 ------------------------------ XFMail ------------------------------

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Recommendations sort on good TFT Displays
by Ashley T. Howes, Ph.D. 20 Nov '06

20 Nov '06

I'm in the process of considering upgrading one or two of my 19" CRTs to flatscreen TFTs in order to get more screen space and a higher resolution. Back when I used to buy CRTs, some monitors were known to be better than others. I went for a Sony Multiscan 400PS CRT many years ago and it is still clear, accurate, has excellent colour definition and strength. Who would you recommend as good TFT suppliers these days? I did look at an Apple 23 inch display a few days ago (1900x1200 approx), having seen some of the originals about 5 years ago. To be blunt, it was crap. I don't know what they had happened to it, but the image was hazy, the text unclear, even when calibrated. I'll be using the TFT for coding, text-work and general programming stuff. Maybe a bit of graphics editing as well. It will be moved between a Mac, PC and Linux box, so multiple inputs would be cool. I look forward to your comments. -- Ashley T. Howes, Ph.D. http://www.ashleyhowes.com/ "What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Ubuntu and Linksys
by Dave Briggs 20 Nov '06

20 Nov '06

Hi chaps Finally got round to installing the latest Ubuntu on my desktop machine. It's dual booting with Windows at the moment, but once I'm sure everything is working I'll be removing the Windows partition. All I have to connect with the internet at the moment is the cruddy Sagem modem I got with my Tiscali broadband, so I'm looking for an ethernet one to use instead. I spotted this one [ http://tinyurl.com/yyyb7j ] on ebay (I have some money on paypal to spend...) - is it a good choice? I'm not fussed about wireless at this stage, so this looks a good solution. Any views would be gladly received! -- Dave Briggs

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Re: Recommendations sort on good TFT Displays
by Peter Alcibiades 19 Nov '06

19 Nov '06

I've bought two in the last 18 months. A Xerox 19 inch glass fronted with digital input. Very nice but not super bright, and a bit reflective if there is light behind you. An Acer AL1922, which is very nice tho not glass fronted, bright and good colours. A little before that I bought an AG Neovo for a writer friend, also with digital input, also 19 inch. Very nice indeed. This was very cost effective at the time, and he's been very pleased with it to write on. Very bright indeed - we turned it down quite a bit. Don't know about current Apple models, but my neighbour has a PPC iMac and the screen on that is bigger, but certainly no better in quality than any of these. The only one to have any dead pixels was the Neovo, and its barely noticeable. The first Xerox died after a few months but was promptly replaced under warranty and the replacement is fine. Of the three I would most recommend the Acer. The Xerox looks nicest, with a sort of oval heavy metal foot. I have noticed no difference at all between digital and analogue modes. Don't know whether many people really need 23 inch screens. I usually tell friends considering larger than 19 inch screens to get two and run them side by side and put the savings into the card. Maybe two 17 inch ones would be an option also. Be interested to hear what you end up with. Peter

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RE: Recommendations sort on good TFT displays
by David Noble 19 Nov '06

19 Nov '06

Hi The Eizo FlexScan S2410 looks very nice. The one I saw in real life had impressive colour definition; good contrast, good black levels, a very sharp image and was bright. Regards Dave.

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PowerBook Ubuntu
by Simon Royal 18 Nov '06

18 Nov '06

Hi I have a couple of queries with a Ubuntu 6 installation. System: Apple PowerBook G3 333Mhz (Lombard) 384MB RAM Dell TrueMobile 1300 PCMCIA wireless card. The machine dual boots Mac OSX Tiger and Ubuntu 6 and I choose the Dell TrueMobile 1300 because it works as an Airport card under Mac OSX. I didn't give my Ubuntu installation a second thought when I purchased it. I have read a few 'how-tos' and last time I attempted to remove the broadcom driver and set it up with ndiswrapper I broke my Ubuntu installation. Any ideas how I can get my Dell card to work. Second question, how do I change the boot order as Yaboot works fine, but it defaults to Linux and I would like the default OS to be Mac OSX. Any help would be greatly appreciated, I am not a newbie to Linux but not very experienced either and would like to delve further into Linux. Regards Simon --- www.simonroyal.co.uk The box said requires Windows 2000 or better, so I bought an Apple Mac There are only 10 kinds of people in this world, those who understand binary and those who don't

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Resuming from suspend2 hibernation
by vi5u0-alug＠yahoo.co.uk 16 Nov '06

16 Nov '06

Is anyone successfully resuming from hibernation with suspend2 2.2.8 on kernel 2.6.18.2? If so, how, please? I guess the solution will have something to do with what's in the "init" file of the initrd. Mine is appended below: as you can see, it contains three attempts at resuming: by putting a file in /sys, by putting a file in /proc, and by using the (undocumented) nash command "resume." None of them work, I just get a fresh boot. The middle one works fine with suspend2 2.2.7 on kernel 2.6.17.2, but with the newer software, it produces an error message about not being able to open the file in /proc for writing, because there's no such file or directory. Thanks very much, Dan Hatton Here's that init file: #!/bin/nash mount -t proc /proc /proc setquiet echo Mounting proc filesystem echo Mounting sysfs filesystem mount -t sysfs /sys /sys echo Creating /dev mount -o mode=0755 -t tmpfs /dev /dev mkdir /dev/pts mount -t devpts -o gid=5,mode=620 /dev/pts /dev/pts mkdir /dev/shm mkdir /dev/mapper echo Creating initial device nodes mknod /dev/null c 1 3 mknod /dev/zero c 1 5 mknod /dev/systty c 4 0 mknod /dev/tty c 5 0 mknod /dev/console c 5 1 mknod /dev/ptmx c 5 2 mknod /dev/rtc c 10 135 mknod /dev/tty0 c 4 0 mknod /dev/tty1 c 4 1 mknod /dev/tty2 c 4 2 mknod /dev/tty3 c 4 3 mknod /dev/tty4 c 4 4 mknod /dev/tty5 c 4 5 mknod /dev/tty6 c 4 6 mknod /dev/tty7 c 4 7 mknod /dev/tty8 c 4 8 mknod /dev/tty9 c 4 9 mknod /dev/tty10 c 4 10 mknod /dev/tty11 c 4 11 mknod /dev/tty12 c 4 12 mknod /dev/ttyS0 c 4 64 mknod /dev/ttyS1 c 4 65 mknod /dev/ttyS2 c 4 66 mknod /dev/ttyS3 c 4 67 echo Setting up hotplug. hotplug echo Creating block device nodes. mkblkdevs echo "Loading libata.ko module" insmod /lib/libata.ko echo "Loading ata_piix.ko module" insmod /lib/ata_piix.ko echo Making device-mapper control node mkdmnod mkblkdevs echo Scanning logical volumes lvm vgscan --ignorelockingfailure echo Activating logical volumes lvm vgchange -ay --ignorelockingfailure VolGroup00 echo > /sys/power/suspend2/do_resume echo > /proc/suspend2/do_resume resume /dev/VolGroup00/LogVol01 echo Creating root device. mkrootdev -t ext3 -o defaults,ro /dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00 echo Mounting root filesystem. mount /sysroot echo Setting up other filesystems. setuproot echo Switching to new root and running init. switchroot

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Open Standard recognised
by Ian bell 15 Nov '06

15 Nov '06

Thought you might be interested in the following: ==================================================================== [5] Audio cores add Ogg Vorbis support Tensilica has added an Ogg Vorbis decoder for its popular Xtensa HiFi 2 audio engine and Diamond 330HiFi processor core. The Xtensa HiFi 2 audio engine is the most popular audio processor core on the market, designed into devices ranging from cellular phone handsets to prosumer audio. This year, Tensilica's customers will ship tens of millions of products using the Xtensa HiFi audio engine. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ >> Click here to be sent free information on this: http://www.electronicstalk.com/rdx/da/tey/144/5 Ian

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