315 lines
15 KiB
Plaintext
315 lines
15 KiB
Plaintext
Chaos Corner, V01, N06, 04 September 1991
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--------------------------------------------------
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X11R5
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The big news, of course, is the pending release of X11R5 at 9 am EDT. Dr
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Chaos has had difficulty sitting in one place he is so eager to LET THE
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FTPs ROLL! The network people have distributed copies strategically
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across the network and you can expect some interesting statistics will be
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gathered as a number of sites try to FTP 100 MB of data from the
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distribution site farthest from them (doesn't it always work that way?).
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The newest version is supposed to be smaller, faster, better, easier to
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maintain, and just more wonderful in every way. Dr. chaos is glad he
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never quite got around to updating his RS/6000 to run X11R4, now he can
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just skip to the next level and see how it works (or doesn't). Tune in
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next time for the updated report on where things stand.
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--------------------------------------------------
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NetNews on RS/6000
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Speaking of putting things on his RS/6000, Dr. Chaos spent some real fun
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time bringing up a Usenet newsfeed on his RS/6000. Many thanks go to
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Mike Shappe of Network Resources in CIT for helping to find the
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configuration file problems. Dr. Chaos used the excuse that he was
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losing access to the Cornell Theory Center system as a reason to attempt
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running the news feed himself. He doesn't where some of the more pungent
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material is being archived, tho.
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Mailbag (Send cards and letters to rdc@cornella.cit.cornell.edu)
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--------------------------------------------------
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Unix script for accessing CWIS
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Bob Blackmun at UNCCVM points out that there is a very nice Unix package
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available for Internet access to Libraries, Campus Wide Information
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Systems (CWIS), etc. In all, the shell script provides menued access to
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over 200 libraries and databases. It does require that the Unix system
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have tn3270 available and that it is running BIND on the same host. If
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you want to take a quick look at the facilities offered, telnet to
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bbs.oit.unc.edu. If you would like to get a copy of the package, it is
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available on ftp.oit.unc.edu as file libtel.unix in the pub/docs
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directory.
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--------------------------------------------------
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HYTELNET - Library access and much more
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Also from Bob Blackmun is information about a utility that gives a PC
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user information on Internet accessible library catalogs, Freenets,
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CWISs, Library BBSs, etc. The latest version (3.0) includes many more
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libraries as well as info on the "Weather Underground" (where you can
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get current weather forecasts for all major US cities), National Science
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Foundation, Ham Radio Call Boos, and much more. Look for file
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hyteln30.zip in the mirrors/msdos/hypertext directory of
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wuarchive.wustl.edu, or in the library directory on vaxb.acs.unt.edu.
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--------------------------------------------------
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Internet BBSs
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Tom Boggess of CIT forwarded a listing of Internet BBSs and information
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services that came originally from Richard Holbert at Texas A&M
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(X075RT@TAMVM1.BITNET). Additions and expansions on the list in the last
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Chaos Corner are (you should use the "telnet" or "tn" commands to
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reach these sites):
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CONRAD.APPSTATE.EDU (login as info) - Contains world news obtained by
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monitoring short wave broadcasts from BBC and other global sources.
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TECHINFO.MIT.EDU - CWIS for MIT provides menus of Boston area
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restaurants and documents how to use the database of song lyrics.
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PSUPEN.PSU.EDU (login as pnotpa) connects you to PENpages containing
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reports, newsletters, and fact sheets on research based consumer-
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oriented and agricultural reports.
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Other BBS systems include: QUARTZ.RUTGERS.EDU (login as BBS - lots of
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discussions), ISCA.ICAEN.UIOWA.EDU (login as ISCABBS - much public
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domain software), and ATL.CALSTATE.EDU (login as LEWISNTS -
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Electronic Journals and the Art World).
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--------------------------------------------------
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Chaos Corner re-distribution
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Walter Wehinger at Uni Stuttgart asks if Dr. Chaos allows posting of
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Chaos Corner in their publication or infoserver. The findings are really
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appreciated and Walter wishes to spread them out in his user community.
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Dr. Chaos is pleased to have Chaos Corner carried by or quoted in other
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publications. He only asks that the document be completely included, or
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, if quoted, that information be provided on requesting complete copies
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or subscriptions to Chaos Corner (send request to
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rdc@cornella.cit.cornell.edu).
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Random and Self-Similar Things
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--------------------------------------------------
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PC Kermit
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The next major release of Kermit for the PC is due out Real Soon Now
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(RSN). Possibly at the end of this week or next week. From the early
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information it appears that some nice features have been added,
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including: TCP/IP network support; VT220 support; simplified dialing
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directory; and improved help and status screens. If you want to try out
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a test copy, get mstibm.exe from the kermit/bin directory of
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watsun.cc.columbia.edu -- remember to specify "binary" before
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transferring the .exe file. Look for documentation and in the
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kermit/test/ms* files. Dr. Chaos asks you to send all bug reports
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(and/or fixes) promptly to Dr. Joe R. Doupnik (he's probably a real
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doctor) at Utah State (JRD@USU.BITNET with a cc to Info-
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Kermit@watsun.cc.columbia.edu.
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--------------------------------------------------
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OS/2 Kermit
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Those of you looking for an OS/2 PM version of Kermit can find one (along
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with a lot of other OS/2 software) at mims-iris.waterloo.edu stored as
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(both source and binary) the of2/volume1/ckpm5xe/*.zoo files. There is
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also a report of the file in /pub/of2/ckpm5xe.zip on ugle.unit.no (yes,
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that machine is in Norway).
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--------------------------------------------------
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German Word lists (other languages too)
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Those of you interested in words may be interested in online dictionaries
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that Henk Smit has made available in German (160,000 words), French
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(138,000 words), Dutch, Italian, and English (53,000 words). Since Dr
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Chaos is taking a German class, the German lists or words have already
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been moved to his Unix home - pelican.cit.cornell.edu. The other lists
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are on ftp.cs.vu.nl (Amsterdam) in the dictionaries directory.
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--------------------------------------------------
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Words and more words
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The BITNET group on which the above information appeared (WORDS-
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L@UGA.BITNET) has been the location of an elaborate hoax that was
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recently disclosed. It seems that some graduate students at the TIFR
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(Bombay) University in India created a persona of Virupaksha Mokshagundam
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that consisted of output from a knowledge-base-and-natural-language
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program that had been developed at the University named Vagvilasini.
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They had originally only meant to send one letter to the list, but it
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turned out to be so funny that they sent some more. All but two of the
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letters were entirely written by the computer except for some slight
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"touch-ups" performed by the students. They are now leaving the
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University and so told the list what had been happening. The number of
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people who couldn't believe that it was a hoax was really interesting --
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it looks like the discussion of that prank will go on for some time on
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that list. Dr Chaos wonders how long it will take before any of you
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suspect .....
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--------------------------------------------------
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Freedom of speech and other paradigms
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In the Usenet group alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk there is a hot discussion
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about the policies/rationales for carrying or not carrying such
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newsgroups as alt.sex. Glenn A. Malling of Syracuse University
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(SYSGAM@SUVM) made a observation recently that the old paradigms about
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communication (freedom of the press, freedom of speech, common carrier,
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etc.) don't fit with computer communication because it is something new.
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He asks, "What is this new thing? Should it be public, private, mixed,
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regulated, unregulated? Who pays for it? And how? ... Who gets to use
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it? And under what terms?" He rightly points out that the network we
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have today is not the network we'll have tomorrow so we have to be
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careful that our answers are equally applicable in the future.
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--------------------------------------------------
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Security checking and crack
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As a follow-up to an article from the last edition of Chaos Corner, the
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new version of the password checking program, Crack. is available for FTP
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from uxc.cso.uiuc.edu in the file named pub/crack-3.2b.tar.Z (don't
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forget to specify "binary" before the transfer).
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--------------------------------------------------
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Convert pictures for sending via fax
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For those of you with Unix systems, fax boards, and a desire to fax your
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favorite pictures (stored in almost any format), the recommendation in
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the newsgroup comp.dcom.fax is to use a program called pbmplus. The
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program is on sun.soe.clarkson.edu in pbmplus.tar.Z in the pub/src
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directory. (It's over 500K uncompressed, so be sure you have plenty of
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free space.) Many black&white, grayscale, and color image formats are
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handled by the program.
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--------------------------------------------------
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IMDISP to view satellite images on a PC
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A new version of the IMDISP program for PCs is now available (Dr. Chaos
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asks me to remind you that it is the program used to display the images
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sent from the Voyager and Magellan spacecraft. The big enhancements seem
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to be in the area of image processing (smoothing, edge processing, 3D
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perspective, power filtering, etc.), and in support for the GIF image
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format. You will need a screen that is at least 800x800 and several MB
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of memory. The file can be obtained from ames.arc.nasa.gov in the
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pub/SPACE/SOFTWARE directory under the name imdisp74.zip. Included in a
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separate file, imdispd.zip, is a collection of images and batch files
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used to perform a demo. Ron Baalke, one of the programmers, would
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appreciate any feedback (baalke@kelvin.jpl.nasa.gov).
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--------------------------------------------------
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vi macros
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Dr Chaos has real news for those vi-fans out there (for those of you who
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don't know what vi is, don't worry, it's a text editor). Anthony Howe of
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the University of Waterloo has been collecting vi macros and related
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files ... and has now made his collection available. Take a look at
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ftp.ai.mit.edu in the file pub/vi-macros.tar.Z (in Europe, check
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alf.uib.no in the pub/lpf/misc and pub/lpf/misc/macros areas).
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--------------------------------------------------
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Kerberos Version 5
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For those interested in authentication and in obtaining a copy of the
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most recent version of Kerberos (Version 5), Dr. Chaos reminds you that
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it is available (as are the other athena software products) from athena-
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dist.mit.edu. For Kerberos, look in the directory /pub/kerberos5. (Once
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there, you will have to read the README file to get the real code --
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either the USA version or the export version). A certain number of
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clients for the Kerberos authentication services are provided as examples
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to enable installations to add clients of their own. Discussions about
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Kerberos take place on the mailing list kerberos@mit.edu (requests to be
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added go to kerberos-request@mit.edu), and are reflected to the Usenet
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newsgroup comp.protocols.kerberos.
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--------------------------------------------------
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PC games
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The big find for PC computer games is at ulowell.ulowell.edu. In the
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msdos/Games/Apogee directory are the first in a series of a number of
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games: Jump Man, Commander Keen, Duke Nukem, Artic Adventure, Pharaoh's
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Tomb, Monuments of Mars, and Dark Ages. The distribution mechanism is a
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new one that Dr. Chaos found intriguing. You get the first of a series
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of games for free. If you like the action in the game, you can order
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more of the games for a very reasonable amount of money (e. g. $10).
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Apogee is betting that you will get hooked enough on at least some of the
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games that you will want to get more. Dr. Chaos claims that the games
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are worth trying out --- but he won't divulge which one is his favorite -
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- any guesses?
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--------------------------------------------------
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Sounds on a PC
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If you would like your PC to say things to you, you need to get
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playbwc.zip from wuarchive.wustl.edu (it's in the mirrors/msdos/sound
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directory). Dr. Chaos was amazed at the sound quality that came from the
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crummy internal speaker normally found on the PC or PS/2 family. A sound
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editing system is also included, so you can do much more than just play
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sounds.
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--------------------------------------------------
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OS/2 Software
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THE site currently (as Dr. Chaos reports) for OS/2 software is
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novell.com. Lots of stuff in the /of2 directory. Please don't access it
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during business hours (8am to 5:30pm). Once again, Dr Chaos promises a
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more detailed report on OS/2 - huh, would you believe Real Soon Now?
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--------------------------------------------------
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OS/2 beta test
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Speaking of OS/2. The Early Evaluation Program is now open to all. It
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appears that if you call the IBM BBS in Atlanta (404-835-6600) you can
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type in "OS/2 BETA" at the main menu and place an order. There are a
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limited number of copies, but Dr. Chaos thinks the program is still open.
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Of course, the catch is as follows -- you pay $58.95 per version of the
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EEP code you receive (that covers cost of diskettes and duplicating).
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There is a new version due out in mid-September. Sooo..., you might want
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to wait before ordering (but not too long)!
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--------------------------------------------------
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FTP tricks
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Ever want to look at a text file while you are in a FTP session and
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wonder how to do it? The key is to specify the proper thing for the new
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file name. On Unix, you would specify "-" or "|more" to read a text file
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or "'|zcat - |more'" to read a compressed text file (notice that if there
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are any blanks it must be a quoted string). On a PC you could issue "get
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<filename> CON: to have the file written to your screen (or LPT1: instead
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of CON: to send it directly to a printer).
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--------------------------------------------------
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Satellite tracking
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If you are interested in tracking satellites, the orbital information is
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updated weekly (and some documentation and software is available) on
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blackbird.afit.af.mil in the directory pub/space.
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--------------------------------------------------
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Directory of people on Usenet
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The nearest thing that anyone has come up with as a directory of people
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on the Internet is a list of people who have contributed Usenet articles
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and have an Internet mail address. The list can be accessed through a
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mail server as follows: send mail to "mail-server@pit-manager.mit.edu"
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with the subject line or body of the mail file being "send usenet-
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addresses/<name>" <name> is case-insensitive but you should leave out
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nonalphabetic characters like apostrophes. A date on the response line
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back will indicate how recently the address was found.
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--------------------------------------------------
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Network reading list
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As this issue winds down to a close ... take a look at the new version of
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the document "Network Reading List: TCP/IP, UNIX, and Ethernet" now
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available from the Network Information Center at the University of Texas
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- Austin. Look for it on ftp.utexas.edu - the text version is in
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/pub/netinfo/docs named net-read.txt and the PostScript version is in
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/pub/netinfo/ps named net-read.ps. What you will get back is an
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annotated list of books and other resources focusing on those three
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networking technologies.
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Read! - Dr. Chaos ... (I have a Masters Degree)
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