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Re: [Wlug] more alphabet soup :-(

by Robert L Krawitz

I wound up not buying a DVD writer at all. Micro Center had a Buslink 48x12x48 (which when I opened it up turned out to be a 48x24x48) for $20, and both Micro Center and Best Buy had really good deals on CD-R's. I'm nervous enough about the mess of formats that I don't feel like spending $300 on something that might be completely worthless in 6 months. CD-R's have been around a while and are completely standard. At that price, I'll put up with the inconvenience. If I use gzip rather than bzip2 compression, I think things will be fast enough so that backups won't be that much of an annoyance. -- Robert Krawitz <rlk(a)alum.mit.edu> Tall Clubs International -- http://www.tall.org/ or 1-888-IM-TALL-2 Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- mail lpf(a)uunet.uu.net Project lead for Gimp Print -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net "Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works." --Eric Crampton

Nov. 29, 2002

more alphabet soup :-(

by doug waud

Hi again Just got the latest PC Magazine and I note that my table of CD/DVD acronyms (plagarized from PC World) is already out of date. :-) Now we have CD-MRW where the M refers to Mount Ranier. Although "there have been no specific announcements of DVD+MRW drives yet, Phillips recently proposed an addition ... The Sony DRU-500A apparently ships with Mount Ranier. (The Mount Ranier format put a Main defect table in the Lead-in area (area outside the data area) and a copy of the defect table in the lead-out area.It also sets aside some space in the data area as a "replacement area" where date which would have landed in a bad block is put. The price is somewhat slower reads/writes and slightly reduced capacity. The gain is reliability. Non-MRW drives will need custom software to read MRW data.) doug

Nov. 29, 2002

Re: [Wlug] DVD writeable media

by doug waud

Robert L Krawitz wrote: > Date: Mon, 25 Nov 2002 15:20:42 -0500 > From: doug waud <douglas.waud(a)umassmed.edu> > > Type Can be written to by drives of type > > DVD-RW DVD+RW DVD-RW/+RW DVD-RAM/-R/-RW DVD-RAM/-R > > DVD-R yes no yes yes yes > DVD-RW yes no yes yes no > > Defct Mngmt Max Rewrites Seq/Rand Data/video? > > no n/a seq video > no 1000 seq data > > Why is DVD-R listed as video only, and DVD-RW as data only? > > -- > Robert Krawitz <rlk(a)alum.mit.edu> As I implied in my first posting I am just passing this info on; I am not including any thought. :-) Seriously, I can't tell from the article why this is the case. They do note that "DVD-RW format leaves disk formatting up to the software .... must perform a full disk format --- which can take an hour --- before you can start writing to the disk". Perhaps they feel this investment of time is beyond the attention span of those who watch TV. :-) I can also speculate that the ability to rewrite the DVD-RW may have tipped them in favor of it for data. Perhaps all that we are seeing is the problems that arise when you try to force data into a tabular format. :-) Take your pick/and-or make your own guess! doug

Nov. 29, 2002

Re: [Wlug] DVD writeable media

by Robert L Krawitz

Date: Mon, 25 Nov 2002 15:20:42 -0500 From: doug waud <douglas.waud(a)umassmed.edu> Type Can be written to by drives of type DVD-RW DVD+RW DVD-RW/+RW DVD-RAM/-R/-RW DVD-RAM/-R DVD-R yes no yes yes yes DVD-RW yes no yes yes no Defct Mngmt Max Rewrites Seq/Rand Data/video? no n/a seq video no 1000 seq data Why is DVD-R listed as video only, and DVD-RW as data only? -- Robert Krawitz <rlk(a)alum.mit.edu> Tall Clubs International -- http://www.tall.org/ or 1-888-IM-TALL-2 Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- mail lpf(a)uunet.uu.net Project lead for Gimp Print -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net "Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works." --Eric Crampton

Nov. 28, 2002

quota on RH 8.0

by Aramico

Hi All, I've got a problem here..... On RedHat 8, I tried to implement quota. I have created the aquota.user on / and the other define directory. ..and I have reconfigure the /etc/fstab and wrote the tag in order to enable the quota. When I'm tryin to run quotacheck -avug, there is a notifications as shown bellow : quotacheck: WARNING - Quotafile //aquota.user was probably truncated. Can't save quota settings... quotacheck: WARNING - Quotafile //aquota.group was probably truncated. Can't save quota settings... quotacheck: Cannot remount filesystem mounted on / read-only so counted values might not be right. Please stop all programs writing to filesystem or use -m flag to force checking. what was wrong here ? can somebody tell me how to implement the quota here ? I want to know the diffrence to the thing that I've done. Thanks.

Nov. 27, 2002

Re: [Wlug] DVD writeable media

by doug waud

Andy Stewart wrote: > > The message thread about DVD writers makes me think that there are many > standards or types of writeable DVD media that not all drives can handle > - is > this true? > > Could somebody compare/contrast the different types? That PCWorld article I mentioned earlier in this thread has a nice table. The first step is to note that there are three pairs: DVD-R and DVD-RW DVD+R and DVD+RW CD-R and CD-RW plus one single, DVD-RAM which (so far) has no RW sibling. (I include CD's to emphasize the pattern) That article also has a table: Type Can be written to by drives of type DVD-RW DVD+RW DVD-RW/+RW DVD-RAM/-R/-RW DVD-RAM/-R DVD-R yes no yes yes yes DVD+R no yes yes no no CD-R yes yes yes yes no DVD-RW yes no yes yes no DVD+RW no yes yes no no DVD-RAM no no no yes yes CD-RW yes yes yes yes no and with same rows: Capac Cost Cartrige? Quick Format Data verifn 4.7GB $4 no n/a no 4.7 5 no n/a no 700MB 1 no n/a no 4.7 6 no optional no 4.7 7 no yes no 4.7* 15 yes** n/a*** yes 700 1 no no no and still with same rows: Defct Mngmt Max Rewrites Seq/Rand Data/video? no n/a seq video no n/a seq video no n/a seq video & data no 1000 seq data yes**** 1000 seq data yes 100,000 random data no 1000 seq data * double sided gives 9.4 GB ** disks also available w/o cartridges on a spindle *** DVD-RAM disks are preformatted **** only on Mount Ranier writes which are not supported by most drives Hope the formatting survives! :-) doug

Nov. 25, 2002

Re: [Wlug] DVD writeable media

by Robert L Krawitz

From: "Keller, Tim" <Tim.Keller(a)stratus.com> Date: Mon, 25 Nov 2002 12:48:44 -0500 Well the next question is... What do you want todo... The cross post in question wants to backup large amounts of data. I would think a drive that could do DVD-RW or DVD+RW would be their choice since they could setup some sorta rotation. As for supported drives you'd want to check the cdrecord website. Actually, I *don't* want to set up a rotation. I want permanent, long-term storage. These things are pretty cheap now ($5 or thereabouts); 2-4 of these per month, plus maybe one more for weekly incrementals, isn't going to bankrupt me. Now, if you want to make backups of the DVD's that you own, or convert the VHS you've got into DVD, you'll also want a drive that can author DVD disks. However you'll want to check a site like www.vcdhelper.org they've got a good matrix of what different disks DVD players supports (such as VCD/SVCD/DVD-R/DVD-RW/etc...) Personally, I'm too disgusted at the entertainment-retail complex to really even want to bother with these things in the first place (left to myself, I wouldn't even bother owning a TV these days). -- Robert Krawitz <rlk(a)alum.mit.edu> Tall Clubs International -- http://www.tall.org/ or 1-888-IM-TALL-2 Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- mail lpf(a)uunet.uu.net Project lead for Gimp Print -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net "Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works." --Eric Crampton

Nov. 25, 2002

RE: [Wlug] DVD writeable media

by Keller, Tim

Well the next question is... What do you want todo... The cross post in question wants to backup large amounts of data. I would think a drive that could do DVD-RW or DVD+RW would be their choice since they could setup some sorta rotation. As for supported drives you'd want to check the cdrecord website. Now, if you want to make backups of the DVD's that you own, or convert the VHS you've got into DVD, you'll also want a drive that can author DVD disks. However you'll want to check a site like www.vcdhelper.org they've got a good matrix of what different disks DVD players supports (such as VCD/SVCD/DVD-R/DVD-RW/etc...) Personally I've had luck making backup's of my DVD's onto DVD-R media. However this was using a mix of freeware windows utilities and Nero, I'm pretty sure that that the cdrcord-prodvd utilities it would work fine. Later, Tim. -----Original Message----- From: Brian J. Conway [mailto:bconway@alum.wpi.edu] Sent: Sunday, November 24, 2002 15:36 PM To: wlug(a)mail.wlug.org Subject: Re: [Wlug] DVD writeable media > The message thread about DVD writers makes me think that there are many > standards or types of writeable DVD media that not all drives can handle > - is this true? Yes, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, and DVD-RAM. Why share sales with a standard format when a company can make up its own DVD standard to sell and hope to take the market with? > Could somebody compare/contrast the different types? Here's a good rundown on the different types: http://www.dvformat.com/2002/03_mar/features/dvd_standards.htm Brian J. Conway bconway(a)alum.wpi.edu "LINUX is obsolete" - Andrew S. Tanenbaum, creator of Minix - Jan 29, 1992 _______________________________________________ Wlug mailing list Wlug(a)mail.wlug.org http://mail.wlug.org/mailman/listinfo/wlug

Nov. 25, 2002

Re: [Wlug] DVD writeable media

by Brian J. Conway

> The message thread about DVD writers makes me think that there are many > standards or types of writeable DVD media that not all drives can handle > - is this true? Yes, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, and DVD-RAM. Why share sales with a standard format when a company can make up its own DVD standard to sell and hope to take the market with? > Could somebody compare/contrast the different types? Here's a good rundown on the different types: http://www.dvformat.com/2002/03_mar/features/dvd_standards.htm Brian J. Conway bconway(a)alum.wpi.edu "LINUX is obsolete" - Andrew S. Tanenbaum, creator of Minix - Jan 29, 1992

Nov. 24, 2002

DVD writeable media

by Andy Stewart

HI everybody, The message thread about DVD writers makes me think that there are many standards or types of writeable DVD media that not all drives can handle - is this true? Could somebody compare/contrast the different types? Thanks, Andy -- Andy Stewart, Founder Worcester Linux Users' Group Worcester, MA USA http://www.wlug.org

Nov. 24, 2002

Re: [Wlug] DVD writer

by doug waud

Robert L Krawitz wrote: > I'm thinking of getting a DVD writer. My primary intention is to use > it for system backups; CD's just don't cut it any more (with about 18 > GB and 11 GB respectively on my two systems). The Sony DRU-500A looks > like a rather interesting one, supporting a lot of formats. Any > comments on that vs. any of the others out there? Hi First let me note that I have no direct experience here. I have been trying to follow the area and just want to tell you that the Dec 2002 PC World just reviewed it. They picked the Sony DRU-500A as their "Best buy" (and give a street price of $349). In general they note that DVD-RAM would be best if you were just doing backups. On the other hand they pick the Sony drive because it can do everything else! :-) I assume they are trying to make a recommendation for general use. They list only two drives that do DVD-RAM: Pacific Digital DVD Burner U-30116 at $299 Street and Vivastar RS-111 at $350 Both do just DVD-RAM and DVD-R They say DVD-RAM is preformatted which "manufacturers claim gives gives random access capability" and also "contain extensive defect-management and error-correction technologies, to ensure correct data storage" That's a summary, you may want to check the original article (page111) to make your own call. :-). doug

Nov. 24, 2002

Re: DVD writer

by Mark J. Dulcey

Robert L Krawitz wrote: > I'm thinking of getting a DVD writer. My primary intention is to use > it for system backups; CD's just don't cut it any more (with about 18 > GB and 11 GB respectively on my two systems). The Sony DRU-500A looks > like a rather interesting one, supporting a lot of formats. Any > comments on that vs. any of the others out there? This is for a pure > Linux system. Based on the specs, it looks like THE drive to have right now. It burns every format except DVD-RAM, it will burn DVD-R discs at 4X (assuming that you can actually find any 4X blanks; they're scarce so far), and the $350 price tag seems reasonable. But it's brand new (Sony just started shipping them this week), so you're not likely to find anyone who has actually used one just yet. On the other hand, I'd like to see the DVD-RAM camp come out with a better drive. Their format is a non-player for video, but it's the best DVD-based format for data use, though DVD+RW isn't too bad. Maybe we'll see a drive that can burn all five writable DVD standards soon.

Nov. 23, 2002

DVD writer

by Robert L Krawitz

I'm thinking of getting a DVD writer. My primary intention is to use it for system backups; CD's just don't cut it any more (with about 18 GB and 11 GB respectively on my two systems). The Sony DRU-500A looks like a rather interesting one, supporting a lot of formats. Any comments on that vs. any of the others out there? This is for a pure Linux system. -- Robert Krawitz <rlk(a)alum.mit.edu> Tall Clubs International -- http://www.tall.org/ or 1-888-IM-TALL-2 Member of the League for Programming Freedom -- mail lpf(a)uunet.uu.net Project lead for Gimp Print -- http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net "Linux doesn't dictate how I work, I dictate how Linux works." --Eric Crampton

Nov. 23, 2002

RE: [Wlug] Partition left 7 Gbs!

by dibb_jim＠emc.com

You are probably seeing the difference between 80 * 10^9 representation and 80 * 2^30 representation of GB. An "80 GB" drive usually is seen by an OS as having ~73 GB of space. But without stating why you think so, it's difficult to tell for sure. -----Original Message----- From: Aramico To: wlug(a)mail.wlug.org Sent: 11/21/02 7:37 AM Subject: [Wlug] Partition left 7 Gbs! Hi all, I've got a Baracuda 7200 RPM 80 Gbs Seagate. I've creating the partition using fdisk on Linux RedHat. Why does it always leave 7 Gbs that not partitioned ? So, Here I have 7 Gbs space useless :( Any idea to solve this ? Thanks, _______________________________________________ Wlug mailing list Wlug(a)mail.wlug.org http://mail.wlug.org/mailman/listinfo/wlug

Nov. 21, 2002

Partition left 7 Gbs!

by Aramico

Hi all, I've got a Baracuda 7200 RPM 80 Gbs Seagate. I've creating the partition using fdisk on Linux RedHat. Why does it always leave 7 Gbs that not partitioned ? So, Here I have 7 Gbs space useless :( Any idea to solve this ? Thanks,

Nov. 21, 2002

Re: [Wlug] [Fwd: Clarify: GRUB setup on RAID1]

by Charles R. Anderson

On Wed, Nov 20, 2002 at 04:18:01PM -0500, Brett Russ wrote: icycle> The goal is to get rid of the separate (non-RAID) /boot partition OR icycle> make the /boot partition into a RAID1. Either one would require GRUB to icycle> read from it successfully. That works, yes. -- Charles R. Anderson <cra(a)wpi.edu> / http://angus.ind.wpi.edu/~cra/ PGP Key ID: 49BB5886 Fingerprint: EBA3 A106 7C93 FA07 8E15 3AC2 C367 A0F9 49BB 5886

Nov. 20, 2002

Re: [Wlug] [Fwd: Clarify: GRUB setup on RAID1]

by Brett Russ

Charles R. Anderson wrote: > There are multiple RAID1 partitions on two disks, and grub is installed > to /dev/sda. I don't believe grub is mirrored across disks, though. > Since software RAID on Linux works partition-by-partition, and not on > whole disks, I don't see how you could automatically mirror the MBR > across disks. You could install grub to multiple MBR's, though, one for > each disk. It wouldn't gain you anything unless your BIOS can boot from > the other disks, though. To clarify my question, I wanted to make sure GRUB has the capability to access (for example) /boot/grub/grub.conf if /boot is not a separate partition but rather part of / which is a RAID1. As far as I know, RAID1 configured units are very similar to standard filesystems except in the superblock. It is difference between similar and the same that worries me. The goal is to get rid of the separate (non-RAID) /boot partition OR make the /boot partition into a RAID1. Either one would require GRUB to read from it successfully. thanks! Brett

Nov. 20, 2002

Re: [Wlug] Sar for Linux

by Adam Keck

I am going to try this. Thanks very much! -Adam On Wed, 20 Nov 2002, Brian J. Conway wrote: > > Those of you who use Solaris or AIX have access to a system statistics > > tool, sar. Is there any equivalent tool for Linux? > > I used Sysstat (http://perso.wanadoo.fr/sebastien.godard/) when I was > doing my MQP involving queue management with a Linux router, it's quite > good. > > -b > > > _______________________________________________ > Wlug mailing list > Wlug(a)mail.wlug.org > http://mail.wlug.org/mailman/listinfo/wlug > "lingua machinationis creo, ergo sum" _____________________________________________ Adam Keck The Mathworks 508-647-7298 Natick, Ma www.mathworks.com FreeNIX/Backup/Unix Administrator _____________________________________________

Nov. 20, 2002

Re: [Wlug] [Fwd: Clarify: GRUB setup on RAID1]

by Charles R. Anderson

icycle> I looked through all of the archives on this list as well as google icycle> searching for help. I want to make sure that GRUB supports installation icycle> on RAID1 (mirror) units. I have seen several methods to do this: Well, on a Red Hat system I have here, this works fine: #boot=/dev/sda default=0 timeout=10 #splashimage=(hd0,0)/grub/splash.xpm.gz title Red Hat Linux (2.4.9-34enterprise) root (hd0,0) kernel /vmlinuz-2.4.9-34enterprise ro root=/dev/md3 console=ttyS0,9600n8 initrd /initrd-2.4.9-34enterprise.img There are multiple RAID1 partitions on two disks, and grub is installed to /dev/sda. I don't believe grub is mirrored across disks, though. Since software RAID on Linux works partition-by-partition, and not on whole disks, I don't see how you could automatically mirror the MBR across disks. You could install grub to multiple MBR's, though, one for each disk. It wouldn't gain you anything unless your BIOS can boot from the other disks, though. -- Charles R. Anderson <cra(a)wpi.edu> / http://angus.ind.wpi.edu/~cra/ PGP Key ID: 49BB5886 Fingerprint: EBA3 A106 7C93 FA07 8E15 3AC2 C367 A0F9 49BB 5886

Nov. 20, 2002

Re: [Wlug] Sar for Linux

by Brian J. Conway

> Those of you who use Solaris or AIX have access to a system statistics > tool, sar. Is there any equivalent tool for Linux? I used Sysstat (http://perso.wanadoo.fr/sebastien.godard/) when I was doing my MQP involving queue management with a Linux router, it's quite good. -b

Nov. 20, 2002

RE: [Wlug] Sar for Linux

by Keller, Tim

I'm not sure what distro your using, but my Redhat 7.3 box has sar installed. Tim. "It's pretty hard to 'Rage Against The Machine' when you work for the Sony Corporation" -- funny slashdot sig. -----Original Message----- From: Adam Keck [mailto:akeck@mathworks.com] Sent: Wednesday, November 20, 2002 15:25 PM To: WLUG List Subject: [Wlug] Sar for Linux Those of you who use Solaris or AIX have access to a system statistics tool, sar. Is there any equivalent tool for Linux? -Adam "lingua machinationis creo, ergo sum" _____________________________________________ Adam Keck The Mathworks 508-647-7298 Natick, Ma www.mathworks.com FreeNIX/Backup/Unix Administrator _____________________________________________ _______________________________________________ Wlug mailing list Wlug(a)mail.wlug.org http://mail.wlug.org/mailman/listinfo/wlug

Nov. 20, 2002

Sar for Linux

by Adam Keck

Those of you who use Solaris or AIX have access to a system statistics tool, sar. Is there any equivalent tool for Linux? -Adam "lingua machinationis creo, ergo sum" _____________________________________________ Adam Keck The Mathworks 508-647-7298 Natick, Ma www.mathworks.com FreeNIX/Backup/Unix Administrator _____________________________________________

Nov. 20, 2002

[Fwd: Clarify: GRUB setup on RAID1]

by Brett Russ

Can anyone on this list shed some light on my question below? Thanks, Brett -------- Original Message -------- Subject: Clarify: GRUB setup on RAID1 Date: Tue, 19 Nov 2002 15:34:03 -0500 From: Brett Russ <icycle(a)charter.net> To: bug-grub(a)gnu.org I looked through all of the archives on this list as well as google searching for help. I want to make sure that GRUB supports installation on RAID1 (mirror) units. I have seen several methods to do this: Method 1) device (hd0) /dev/hde root (hd0,0) install /boot/grub/stage1 (hd0,0) /boot/grub/stage2 0x8000 (hd0,0)/boot/grub/menu.lst install /boot/grub/stage1 d (hd0) /boot/grub/stage2 0x8000 (hd0,0)/boot/grub/menu.lst device (hd0) /dev/hdg root (hd0,0) install /boot/grub/stage1 (hd0,0) /boot/grub/stage2 0x8000 (hd0,0)/boot/grub/menu.lst install /boot/grub/stage1 d (hd0) /boot/grub/stage2 0x8000 (hd0,0)/boot/grub/menu.lst ...and so on for each device--substituting each additional RAID1 member drive in the /dev/hdX line. Method 2) echo '(hd0) /dev/md0' > /boot/grub/device.map grub-install '(hd0)' ...and so on for each (hd#) that is part of the md. Method 3) root (hd0,0) setup (hd0) ...and so on for each hd# present in the RAID1. My question is whether the /dev/hdX syntax or /dev/md# or (hd#) syntax is correct and what the significance of the value 0x8000 for the Stage 2 load address. It certainly seems like method 3 is the cleanest. And, are any of these methods considered better than the others? Thanks, Brett _______________________________________________ Bug-grub mailing list Bug-grub(a)gnu.org http://mail.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/bug-grub

Nov. 20, 2002

Re: [Wlug] REMINDER: Meeting Wed. Nov. 20, 7 PM

by Scott Venier

On Sat, 16 Nov 2002, Andy Stewart wrote: > a) Does anybody want to demo their scanner under Linux? How about a live > install of SANE ? > OK. I"ll bite. I've got an HP OfficeJet K60 that works quite nicely under SANE. I'm afraid the demo of installing would be a bit boring... printing worked out of the box with redhat 7.3, and scanning required installing 1 rpm. I've been playing with a CGI to make scanning a bit more streamlined (and something that I can do from work when I don't feel like working). It's still a work in progress, but I can show it off too. All this and we should still be able to hit the Boytan by 7:30. :) Scott

Nov. 18, 2002

RE: [Wlug] REMINDER: Meeting Wed. Nov. 20, 7 PM

by Skip Gaede

Andy wrote: > This is a reminder about the upcoming WLUG meeting, to be > held on Wednesday, > November 20, 2002 at 7:00 PM in Kinnicutt Hall at WPI in > Worcester, MA. > > I'm open for topics to be discussed at this meeting. > Ideally, I'm hoping > somebody will volunteer at the last minute to talk to the > group about some > topic of interest. > e) LTSP - this one might be a bit involved if the demo was > from scratch, and > would involve around 2 or 3 computers to be useful. Does > anybody have any > experience with this? > > f) Do you have other ideas? Let the group know what they are! Hi Andy, I have, and can demo LTSP, as well as using sockets in a Linux/ Win4Lin environment to do distributed, Linux/Windows batch jobs (I have a batch job that runs perl under Linux (requires too much memory for win4lin) and three windows programs under win4lin in order to convert RTF to ThML). Rob Bellville has some Macs running LTSP at the Millbury HS, and said he'd be willing to host a WLUG meeting at the school so we could have a hands-on demo. Unfortunately, I have aconflict on Wednesdays, so can only make the Thursday meetings. Perhaps at a future date we can work something out. --Skip

Nov. 17, 2002