The Journal of AUUG Inc. Volume 23, Number 2 July 2002
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The Journal of AUUG Inc. Volume 23, Number 2 July 2002 Features: Dynamically Tune up a File System 9 Wine: Raising a Toast to your Windows Apps 10 Barrel Patrol 3D 12 The Penguin and the Hare 14 Cracking Open Proprietary Envelopes 16 Setting up a Squid Proxy Server 18 Building the Lo-fat Linux Desktop 22 Writing Documentation, Part 1: POD 26 Bookreview: The qmail Handbook 31 Compiler Design with Python 32 Configuring GDM 2.2 35 Improving Hard Disk Performance with hdparam 36 Discovering the Universe: Celestia and Open Universe 38 Mandrake 8.2: First Impressions 41 GUI Programming in C++ using the QT Library, Part 1 43 A Linux Fax Server for a Windows Network 45 Securing a Heterogeous Network with Free Software Tools 47 Graphic Pro~amming with libtif 53 News: Public Notices 5 AUUG: Corporate Members 10 AUUG: Chapter Meetings and Contact Details 59 Regulars: President’s Column 3 /var/spool/mail!auugn 4 My Home Network 5 ISSN 1035-7521 Print post approved by Australia Post - PP2391500002 AUUG Membership and G.eneral Correspondence The AUUG Secretary PO Box 366 Editorial Kensington NSW 2033 Con Zymaris Telephone: 02 8824 9511 [email protected] or 1800 625 655 (Toll-Free) Facsimile: 02 8824 9522 Emaih [email protected] We are in the midst of one of the most economically challenging periods in the history of the IT industry. AUUG Management Committee It’s the worst I’ve seen, while tracking it for the past Email: au u.qexecL~au u~q.org.au 23 years. In the brief precipice afforded by this space, I wanted to broach and review some pertinent President Greg Lehey questions which likely interest us all: Why are we in IBM Australia this current state? Does it affect the consumers and PO Box 460 purveyors of the advanced computing platforms Echunga, SA, 5153 which constitute the AUUG community? What do we Bus. Tel (08) 8388 8286, Mobile 0418 838 708, Fax (08) 8388 8725 <[email protected]> do about it? Immediate Past President Why we are here. In my view, a number of factors. David Purdue Sun Microsystems Illogical exuberance on the part of the Wall Street Level 6, 476 St Kilda Road types, who helped inflate the tech stock bubble to Melbourne, Victoria, 3004 such an extent, that servicing the expectations of Phone: +61 3 9869 6412, Fax: +61 3 9869 6288 return on investment became the equivalent of the <David.PurdueL~auu~q.o rg.au > Herculean effort needed to clean the Augean stables. Vice-president This had the flow-on effect of releasing the ’inner- Malcolm Caldwell child’ in too many otherwise dour CEOs worldwide, Bus. Tel (08) 8946 6631, Fax (08) 8946 6630 allowing them to see and invest heavily in supposedly <[email protected]> viable over-reaching projects in IT within their own Secretary organisations, many of which became software David Bullock Titanics, oft-times sinking without a trace, sometimes 0402 901 228 taking the whole company with them. The result of all <David.Bullock~auu~q.org.au> this Sisyphean toil is to create the current vibe which Treasurer permeates many of our employers or clients, namely Gordon Hubbard that IT has taken them for a ride, that we, the Custom Technology Australia Pry Ltd purveyors of IT are living the undeserved high-life, Level 22, 259 George Street, Sydney NSW 2000 and that they will not be duped in this manner ever Bus Tel: 02 9659 9590, Bus Fax: 02 9659 9510 <[email protected]> again. Committee Members The shocking truth is that they have a point. Our Sarah Bolderoff industry’s delivery of successful projects, reliable FourSticks Suite 2, 259 Glen Osmond Rd, products and measurable return on investment are Frewville, South Australia, 5065 sub-par at best, and verging on mischievous <Sarah.Bolderoff~auu~q.or~q.au> negligence at worst. How can these employers and clients not feel ripped ff they are hit with new viruses Adrian Close Fernhill Technology each and every day of the year; when they are Level 1, 3 Colman Road, Warranwood VIC 3134 repeatedly told by vendors that the latest and greatest Mobile: +61 412 385 201, <adrianL~.auu~q.or~.au> of their products are now, finally reliable and secure, only to be proven wrong days or weeks later, and Stephen Rothwell IBM Australia, Linux Technology Center when the biggest supplier of IT, and the richest 8 Brisbane Ave, Barton ACT 2600 company in the history of mankind, is extorting its Business phone: 02 62121169 500 million clients worldwide through an effective <Stephen.Rothwell(~au u~q.org.au> doubling of the cost of licencing its software? Andrew Rutherford lagu Networks, 244 Pirie St What do we, in AUUG do about this? The answer, my Adelaide, SA, 5000 friend, is streaming down the ether; deliver the best Bus. Tel (08) 8425 2201, Bus. Fax (08) 8425 2299 value-for-money our employers and our clients have <[email protected]> ever seen in systems solutions, practice and delivery. Mark White Solutions that are increasingly robust and secure. apviva technology partners Solutions that are based on solidly engineered P. O. Box 1870, Toowong QLD 4066 technologies: Unix and Linux. Bus Tel 07 3876 8779, Mobile 04 3890 0880 <Ma rk.Wh ite@au ug.org.au> Cheers, AUUG Business Manager Elizabeth Carroll PO Box 366 Kensington NSW 2033 Con <bu smg rL~a u u ~q.or~q.au> AUUGN Vol.23 ® No.2 - 1 - July 2002 AUUGN Editorial Committee Contribution The AUUGN Editorial Committee can be reached by sending email to: auu~n@auu~.or~.au Deadlines AUUGN [email protected] in 2002 Or to the following address: AUUGN Editor PO Box 366 Kensington NSW 2033 Volume 23 * Number 3 - September 2002: August th, Editor: 30 2002 Con Zymaris Volume 23 ® Number 4 - December 2002: November Sub-Editors: Frank Crawford 15tl~, 2009. Public Relations and Marketing: Elizabeth Carroll AUUGN Submission Guidelines AUUG Incorporated gratefully acknowledges the support of its corporate sponsor: Submission guidelines for AUUGN contributions can be obtained from the AUUG World Wide Web site at: www.auug.org.au Alternately, send email to the above correspondence address, requesting a copy. AUUGN Back Issues A variety of back issues of AUUGN are still available. For price and availability please contact the AUUG Secretariat, or write to: AUUG Inc. Back Issues Department PO Box 366 Kensington NSW 2033 Conference Proceedings A limited number of copies of the Conference Proceedings from previous AUUG Conferences are still available. Contact the AUUG Secretariat for details. Mailing Lists Enquiries regarding the purchase of the AUUGN mailing list should be directed to the AUUG Secretariat. Disclaimer Opinions expressed by the authors and reviewers are not necessarily those of AUUG Inc., its Journal, or its editorial committee. Copyright Information Copyright © 2002 AUUG Inc. All rights reserved. Portions © by their respective authors, and released under specified licences. AUUGN is the journal of AUUG Inc., an organisation with the aim of promoting knowledge and understanding of Open Systems, including, but not restricted to, the UNIX® operating system, user interfaces, graphics, networking, programming and development environments and related standards. Copyright without fee is permitted, provided that copies are made without modification, and are not made or distributed for commercial advantage. AUUGN Vol.23 ¯ No.2 - 2 - July 2002 This will have many benefits - it provides AUUG with President’s Column the income stream needed to support new activities, it David ~u~due, <[email protected]~9.au> increases the value of AUUG membership since there are more AUUG members to network with, and it farewell n. I a wish of well-being at provides a larger pool of volunteers to organise parting. 2 a an act of departure, b a formal activities. occasion honouring a person about to leave I will still be around AUUG, since AUUG provides me or retire. --Merriam-Webster Collegiate with a lot of benefit and I wish to put something back. Dictionary This year I will serve as Immediate Past President - keeping an eye on the board without too much active So now I have come to the end of four years as the involvement. I have also taken a post on the President of AUUG Incorporated, and so I want to Victorian Chapter Committee. reflect on what has been done, what has been missed, and where we should go from here. In closing I would like to thank all the AUUG board members who have supported me over the last four I think it would be overstating the case to say that the years - in particular I would like to thank Michael organisation has turned around under my leadership. Paddon who has fed me ideas and advice, and Luigi However, I do think we have focused on what we do Cantoni who has rationalised the way AUUG handles well and that AUUG does deliver improved member money. Thanks, of course, to Liz Carroll, without benefit. whom AUUG could not function. One of the main reasons for AUUG’s existence is to Best of luck to Greg Lehey, your incoming President, provide information to member, to let them learn - and I hope to see many of you at our conference in primarily to learn from each other. And we have September. dramatically improved our performance here in two main areas: events and AUUGN. The introduction of the one-day symposia has increased the opportunities for AUUG members to network and exchange ideas - in particular the Australian Open Source Symposium and the AUUG Security Symposium have gained a life of their own.