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<nowiki> Configuration HOWTO</nowiki> <nowiki> By Guido Gonzato, guido@ibogeo.df.unibo.it</nowiki> <nowiki> v1.2.6, 19 January 1999</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This HOWTO aims at making the fine--tuning of your newly installed</nowiki> <nowiki> Linux box quicker and easier. Here you will find a set of configura­</nowiki> <nowiki> tions for the most common applications, so you can start to work with</nowiki> <nowiki> a well-usable system.</nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Table of Contents</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 1. Introduction</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 1.1 Why This HOWTO</nowiki> <nowiki> 1.2 What We Will Be Configuring</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2. General System Setup</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.1 Keyboard</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.2 Kernel Matters</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.3 Sendmail Lock</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.4 Hard Disk Performance</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.5 Parallel Port Zip Drive</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.6 Device Drivers</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.7 Login Messages</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.8 Hostname</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.9 Mouse</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.10 Mount Points</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.11 lilo(8) and LOADLIN.EXE</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.11.1 Security Tip</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.12 Mail Capabilities</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.13 Printer Configuration</nowiki> <nowiki> 2.14 SVGATextMode</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3. Software Configuration</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.1 bash(1)</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.2 ls(1)</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.3 less(1)</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.4 emacs(1)</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.5 joe(1)</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.6 jed(1)</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.7 efax(1)</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.8 TeX and Friends</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.9 Avoid PPProblems!</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.9.1 A Quick Start with eznet</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.10 POP Client</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11 X Window System (XFree86)</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11.1 Setting Up the X Server</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11.2 Keypad</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11.3 Graphical Login with xdm</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11.4 Window Manager</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.12 Users' Configurations</nowiki> <nowiki> 3.13 Upgrading</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 4. Configuration Software</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 5. The End</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 5.1 Copyright</nowiki> <nowiki> 5.2 Feedback</nowiki> <nowiki> 5.3 Disclaimer</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 1. Introduction</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 1.1. Why This HOWTO</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> I have installed Linux on many PCs and noted that current</nowiki> <nowiki> distributions are terrific but, annoyingly, lack some basic</nowiki> <nowiki> configuration. Most applications will work out of the box, but others</nowiki> <nowiki> won't. Moreover, I have noted that the same questions crop up on</nowiki> <nowiki> c.o.l.setup over and over again.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To try and remedy this situation, and to have a memorandum for fresh</nowiki> <nowiki> installations, I wrote a do--this--and--that list that I later</nowiki> <nowiki> expanded to this HOWTO. Here you will find a handful of configuration</nowiki> <nowiki> examples for the most common applications, programs, and services,</nowiki> <nowiki> which should save you a fair amount of time and work.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> A few of the examples outlined in this HOWTO depend somehow on the</nowiki> <nowiki> distribution. I only have access to Red Hat, Caldera OpenLinux, and</nowiki> <nowiki> S.u.S.E. installations, so don't take any of my tips as gospel if you</nowiki> <nowiki> have Slackware, Debian or other distributions. In any case, reading</nowiki> <nowiki> documentation and the HOWTOs always pays off, so you're advised to do</nowiki> <nowiki> so anyway. My reference distribution is Red Hat; to avoid repetitions,</nowiki> <nowiki> ``AT2YD'' stands for ``Adapt This to Your Distribution''.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> A final note: I hope that this HOWTO becomes obsolete as soon as</nowiki> <nowiki> possible. The current trend in Linux distributions is to provide</nowiki> <nowiki> configuration tools rather than leave the sysadm alone with a pile of</nowiki> <nowiki> docs. Therefore, whenever possible I'll point you to the right tool.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> The most recent revision of this document, including some</nowiki> <nowiki> translations, is available on <http://sunsite.unc.edu/mdw/HOWTO>.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 1.2. What We Will Be Configuring</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> There can be endless hardware configurations for a PC, but in my</nowiki> <nowiki> experience one is quite common: a PC fitted with a large HD split into</nowiki> <nowiki> three partitions (one for DOS/Windows, one for Linux, one for the</nowiki> <nowiki> swap), sound card, modem, CD--ROM drive, printer, mouse. A parallel</nowiki> <nowiki> port Zip Drive is also very common.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This is the hardware I'll assume you want to configure, but it's easy</nowiki> <nowiki> to adapt the following tips to different configurations. It's</nowiki> <nowiki> implicitly assumed that you'll be root when editing/fixing/hacking.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> And now, lads, sleeves up.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2. General System Setup</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.1. Keyboard</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> First of all, how to configure the keyboard. If you missed this step</nowiki> <nowiki> during installation or have changed your keyboard, you'll have to:</nowiki> <nowiki> · choose a suitable key table from /usr/lib/kbd/keytables/; for</nowiki> <nowiki> example, it.map selects the Italian keyboard;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · edit the file /etc/sysconfig/keyboard so as it reads:</nowiki> <nowiki> KEYTABLE="/usr/lib/kbd/keytables/it.map";</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · to set up the keyboard repeat rate and delay time, add this line to</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/rc.d/rc.sysinit (Red Hat) or /etc/rc.d/rc.boot (Caldera) or</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/rc.d/boot (S.u.S.E.):</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> /sbin/kbdrate -s -r 16 -d 500 # or whatever you like</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To load the key table, issue /etc/rc.d/init.d/keytable start (AT2YD).</nowiki> <nowiki> Other special keys will be considered in the following sections.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To enable NumLock on by default, add these lines to</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/rc.d/rc.sysinit (AT2YD):</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> for tty in /dev/tty[1-9]*; do</nowiki> <nowiki> setleds -D +num < $tty</nowiki> <nowiki> done</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.2. Kernel Matters</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> IMHO, the first thing to do next is build a kernel that best suits</nowiki> <nowiki> your system. It's very simple to do but, in any case, refer to the</nowiki> <nowiki> README file in /usr/src/linux/ or the Kernel HOWTO. Hints:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · consider carefully your needs. Choosing a kernel configuration,</nowiki> <nowiki> applying the patches, and compiling it once and for all is more</nowiki> <nowiki> productive than reconfiguring and recompiling each month; this is</nowiki> <nowiki> especially true if your Linux box is a server. Don't forget to</nowiki> <nowiki> include support for all the hardware you might likely add in the</nowiki> <nowiki> future (e.g. SCSI, Zip, network cards, etc);</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · if your PC is based on a Cyrix CPU that is not properly recognised</nowiki> <nowiki> as such by the kernel, apply appropriate patches to improve its</nowiki> <nowiki> performance. Information on</nowiki> <nowiki> <http://www.linuxhq.com/patch/20-p0591.html> ;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · notebook users will want to improve their LCD screen legibility. I</nowiki> <nowiki> used to suggest that a kernel patch should be applied, but</nowiki> <nowiki> SVGATextMode (see Section ``SVGATextMode'') is probably the best</nowiki> <nowiki> solution. Anyway, the Big Cursor kernel patch is on</nowiki> <nowiki> <http://www.linuxhq.com/patch/20-p0239.html> ;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · again for notebook users, if you plan to use a PCMCIA modem/fax</nowiki> <nowiki> don't compile serial support as a module; compile it in the kernel,</nowiki> <nowiki> otherwise your PCMCIA modem won't work;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · if you use PCMCIA cards, remember to compile those modules as well;</nowiki> <nowiki> also, don't forget to edit /etc/pcmcia/network.opts if you use a</nowiki> <nowiki> PCMCIA network card;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · if you get those pesky messages from modprobe indicating that some</nowiki> <nowiki> modules can't be located, that means that your /etc/conf.modules</nowiki> <nowiki> needs mending. For instance, if you don't use the ipx and appletalk</nowiki> <nowiki> modules, add these lines:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> alias net-pf-4 off</nowiki> <nowiki> alias net-pf-5 off</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · to save time the next time you reconfigure and recompile the</nowiki> <nowiki> kernel, it's a good idea to save your configuration on a file and</nowiki> <nowiki> keep it in a safe place. Beware: if you upgrade your kernel this</nowiki> <nowiki> config file is bound to be useless, because it doesn't contain the</nowiki> <nowiki> features of the new kernel.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.3. Sendmail Lock</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> On some systems, sendmail hangs the machine for a couple of minutes at</nowiki> <nowiki> boot time. There are two cases: 1) the machine is not directly</nowiki> <nowiki> connected to the Internet, 2) the machine is connected, and has a</nowiki> <nowiki> permanent IP address.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Quick fix for the first case: make sure your /etc/hosts contains a</nowiki> <nowiki> line that reads</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 127.0.0.1 localhost</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> For the second case: the lock is caused by /etc/hosts containing a</nowiki> <nowiki> line like</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 127.0.0.1 localhost your_host_name</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> which you will split this way:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 127.0.0.1 localhost</nowiki> <nowiki> w.x.y.z your_host_name</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> See also Section ``Hostname''.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.4. Hard Disk Performance</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Your (E)IDE hard disk's performance can be greatly enhanced by</nowiki> <nowiki> carefully using hdparm(8). If your Linux distribution doesn't include</nowiki> <nowiki> it, you'll find on <ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/Linux/system/hardware></nowiki> <nowiki> ; look for a file called hdparm-X.Y.tar.gz.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Since many details depend on your hard disk and HD controller, I can't</nowiki> <nowiki> give you a general recipe. As you risk to toast your filesystem,</nowiki> <nowiki> please read the man page carefully before using some of the options.</nowiki> <nowiki> At its simplest, you could add the following line to</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/rc.d/rc.sysinit:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> /sbin/hdparm -c1 /dev/hda # first IDE drive assumed</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> which enables (E)IDE 32-bit I/O support. As for the `-m' option, this</nowiki> <nowiki> is what hdparm author Mark Lord emailed me:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> (...) if your system uses components from the past couple of</nowiki> <nowiki> years [< 1997], it will be fine. Older than that, there</nowiki> <nowiki> *may* be a problem (unlikely). The really buggy chips were</nowiki> <nowiki> the CMD0646 and RZ1000 chips, used *extensively* on 486 and</nowiki> <nowiki> (early) 586 motherboards about 2-3 years ago.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.5. Parallel Port Zip Drive</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To use the parallel port version of the Zip drive you can use the</nowiki> <nowiki> default driver that comes with recent (2.x.x) kernels. During kernel</nowiki> <nowiki> configuration, make sure that SCSI support and SCSI disk support are</nowiki> <nowiki> enabled. Remember, there can be conflicts between the printer and the</nowiki> <nowiki> Zip drive on the same parallel port, so you will want to use kernel</nowiki> <nowiki> modules.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Zip disks are sold preformatted on partition /dev/sda4. To enable the</nowiki> <nowiki> Zip, all you have to do is issue</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> #~ chmod 666 /dev/sda4 # everyone can access the Zip Drive</nowiki> <nowiki> #~ insmod ppa</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> and the Zip can now be mounted as usual (better write the last line in</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/rc.d/rc.sysinit). You also access the Zip drive via mtools adding</nowiki> <nowiki> this line to your /etc/mtools.conf:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> drive z: file="/dev/sda4" exclusive</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> There's a better ppa driver than the standard one, though: have a look</nowiki> <nowiki> at <http://www.torque.net/~campbell> .</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.6. Device Drivers</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Devices in /dev (or better, links to the actual device drivers) may be</nowiki> <nowiki> missing. Check what devices your mouse, modem, and CD--ROM drive</nowiki> <nowiki> correspond to, then do what follows:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~# cd /dev</nowiki> <nowiki> /dev# ln -s ttyS0 mouse</nowiki> <nowiki> /dev# ln -s ttyS1 modem</nowiki> <nowiki> /dev# ln -s hdb cdrom</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Tip: in some notebooks the mouse device is /dev/psaux: take this into</nowiki> <nowiki> account when configuring X11.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> If you want, do chmod 666 to such devices as /dev/cdrom, /dev/floppy,</nowiki> <nowiki> /dev/modem, etc. to make them fully accessible by every user. Security</nowiki> <nowiki> problems ahead! Alternatively, create the ``cdrom'' group, make</nowiki> <nowiki> /dev/cdrom owned by root.cdrom, then add users to this group. A</nowiki> <nowiki> similar procedure applies to other devices.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.7. Login Messages</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> If you want to customise the login messages, check whether your</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/rc.d/rc.local overwrites /etc/issue and /etc/motd. (RedHat does.)</nowiki> <nowiki> If so, get on with your editor.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.8. Hostname</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Issuing the command hostname new_host_name may not be enough. To avoid</nowiki> <nowiki> the dreaded sendmail lock, follow these steps (only valid for a</nowiki> <nowiki> stand--alone machine):</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · edit /etc/sysconfig/network and change the hostname therein (e.g.</nowiki> <nowiki> new_host_name.localdomain);</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · edit /etc/HOSTNAME appropriately;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · append the new hostname in the line in /etc/hosts:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 127.0.0.1 localhost new_host_name.locadomain</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.9. Mouse</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> gpm mouse services are useful to perform cut and paste in tty mode,</nowiki> <nowiki> and to use the mouse in some applications. For Red Hat, check that you</nowiki> <nowiki> have a file called /etc/sysconfig/mouse and that it reads:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> MOUSETYPE="Microsoft"</nowiki> <nowiki> XEMU3=yes</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Moreover, you must have a file /etc/rc.d/init.d/gpm, where you'll put</nowiki> <nowiki> additional command line parameters. Mine reads:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ...</nowiki> <nowiki> daemon gpm -t $MOUSETYPE -d 2 -a 5 -B 132 # two-button mouse</nowiki> <nowiki> ...</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Obviously, make sure this configuration is right for your mouse type.</nowiki> <nowiki> In most notebooks, MOUSETYPE is ``PS/2''.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> For Caldera, all you have to do is append this line to</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/rc.d/rc.boot:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> /usr/bin/gpm</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> On S.u.S.E., gpm options go in /etc/rc.config; on Debian, you'll edit</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/gpm.conf.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> If you like to use menus in console with Ctrl-button, then configure</nowiki> <nowiki> gpm-root. Edit the default menu in /etc/gpm-root.conf , then launch</nowiki> <nowiki> gpm-root from /etc/rc.d/rc.local (AT2YD).</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.10. Mount Points</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> It's handy to have mount points for the floppy, other devices and NFS-</nowiki> <nowiki> exported directories. For example, you can do the following:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~# cd /mnt</nowiki> <nowiki> /mnt# mkdir floppy; mkdir cdrom; mkdir win; mkdir zip ; mkdir server</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This creates mount points for a DOS/Win floppy, an ext2 floppy, the</nowiki> <nowiki> CD--ROM, the Windows partition, the parallel port Zip drive, and a NFS</nowiki> <nowiki> directory.</nowiki> <nowiki> Now edit the file /etc/fstab and add the following entries:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> /dev/fd0 /mnt/floppy vfat user,noauto 0 1</nowiki> <nowiki> /dev/cdrom /mnt/cdrom iso9660 ro,user,noauto 0 1</nowiki> <nowiki> /dev/sda4 /mnt/zip vfat user,noauto,exec 0 1</nowiki> <nowiki> /dev/hda1 /mnt/win vfat user,noauto 0 1</nowiki> <nowiki> server:/export /mnt/server nfs defaults</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Obviously, you must use the correct device in the first field. Recent</nowiki> <nowiki> kernels support fat32 partitions natively; for older ones, there's a</nowiki> <nowiki> kernel patch on <http://bmrc.berkeley.edu/people/chaffee/fat32.html></nowiki> <nowiki> . man mount for further information.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> You're strongly advised to install mtools for accessing DOS/Windows</nowiki> <nowiki> floppies!</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.11. lilo(8) and LOADLIN.EXE</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Many users run both Linux and DOS/Windows on their PC, and want to</nowiki> <nowiki> choose at boot time which os to use; this should be done at install</nowiki> <nowiki> time, but in case, do what follows. Let's suppose that /dev/hda1</nowiki> <nowiki> contains DOS/Windows and that /dev/hda2 contains Linux.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~# fdisk</nowiki> <nowiki> Using /dev/hda as default device!</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Command (m for help):a</nowiki> <nowiki> Partition number (1-4): 2</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Command (m for help):w</nowiki> <nowiki> ~#</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This makes the Linux partition bootable. Then write this basic</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/lilo.conf file:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> boot = /dev/hda2</nowiki> <nowiki> compact</nowiki> <nowiki> delay = 50</nowiki> <nowiki> # message = /boot/bootmesg.txt # write your own, if you will</nowiki> <nowiki> root = current</nowiki> <nowiki> image = /boot/vmlinuz # boot linux by default as this entry comes first</nowiki> <nowiki> label = linux</nowiki> <nowiki> read-only</nowiki> <nowiki> other = /dev/hda1</nowiki> <nowiki> table = /dev/hda</nowiki> <nowiki> label = dos</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Now issue /sbin/lilo and you're done. Being lilo a crucial part of</nowiki> <nowiki> your installation, you're strongly advised to read its documentation</nowiki> <nowiki> anyway.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To boot Linux from DOS/Windows without resetting, put LOADLIN.EXE in a</nowiki> <nowiki> directory (in the DOS partition!) included in the DOS path; then copy</nowiki> <nowiki> your kernel to, say, C:\TEMP\VMLINUZ. The following simple .BAT file</nowiki> <nowiki> will boot Linux:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> rem linux.bat</nowiki> <nowiki> smartdrv /C</nowiki> <nowiki> loadlin c:\temp\vmlinuz root=/dev/hda2 ro</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> If you use Windows 9x, set the properties of this .BAT so as it starts</nowiki> <nowiki> in MS--DOS mode.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.11.1. Security Tip</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Making a backup copy of your MBR before installing Linux is a safe</nowiki> <nowiki> move. Use restorrb (included in the FIPS package) before</nowiki> <nowiki> installation, or a Linux rescue floppy to issue this command:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> rescue:~# dd if=/dev/hda of=MBR bs=512 count=1</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> then make at least two copies of the file MBR on floppies. Should</nowiki> <nowiki> disaster strike, you'll be able to restore your old MBR by issuing:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> rescue:~# dd if=/mnt/MBR of=/dev/hda bs=446 count=1</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> assuming that a floppy containing MBR is mounted under /mnt.</nowiki> <nowiki> Alternatively, use a DOS rescue floppy to issue FDISK /MBR.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.12. Mail Capabilities</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> You will want to be able to read mail messages written in HTML or</nowiki> <nowiki> containing exotic file formats. Make sure you have two files:</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/mime.types and /etc/mailcap. The first one lists file types and</nowiki> <nowiki> related extensions, like:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> application/postscript ps eps</nowiki> <nowiki> image/jpeg jpe jpeg jpg</nowiki> <nowiki> text/html html</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> while the second one tells the mail client how to display that file</nowiki> <nowiki> type.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> You may receive mail from people who use Microsoft Outlook, whose</nowiki> <nowiki> messages are in multi--part MIME format. These two lines, put in</nowiki> <nowiki> etc/mailcap, should let you read those messages:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> text/plain; less %s; needsterminal</nowiki> <nowiki> text/html; lynx -force_html %s; needsterminal</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.13. Printer Configuration</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> All distributions I know have a configuration tool for setting up the</nowiki> <nowiki> printer (printtool, yast, or magicfilter); if you don't have it, this</nowiki> <nowiki> is a basic manual configuration.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Let's suppose you have a non--PostScript (non ``Windows-only'' too!)</nowiki> <nowiki> printer you want to use to print raw text (e.g., C source files) and</nowiki> <nowiki> PostScript files via Ghostscript, which is assumed to be already</nowiki> <nowiki> installed.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Setting up the printer involves a few steps:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · find out which one the parallel print device is: try</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~# echo "hello, world" > /dev/lp0</nowiki> <nowiki> ~# echo "hello, world" > /dev/lp1</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> and take note which one works.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · make two spool directories:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~# cd /var/spool/lpd</nowiki> <nowiki> /var/spool/lpd/# mkdir raw ; mkdir postscript</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · if your printer exibits the ``staircase effect'' (most inkjets do),</nowiki> <nowiki> you'll need a filter. Try to print two lines with</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~# echo "first line" > /dev/lp1 ; echo "second line" > /dev/lp1</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> if the output is like this:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> first line</nowiki> <nowiki> second line</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> then save this script as /var/spool/lpd/raw/filter:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> #!/bin/sh</nowiki> <nowiki> # This filter does away with the "staircase effect"</nowiki> <nowiki> awk '{print $0, "\r"}'</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> and make it executable with chmod 755 /var/spool/lpd/raw/filter.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · make a filter for PostScript emulation. Write the following filter</nowiki> <nowiki> as /var/spool/lpd/postscript/filter:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> #!/bin/sh</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> DEVICE=djet500</nowiki> <nowiki> RESOLUTION=300x300</nowiki> <nowiki> PAPERSIZE=a4</nowiki> <nowiki> SENDEOF=</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> nenscript -TUS -ZB -p- |</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ "$DEVICE" = "PostScript" ]; then</nowiki> <nowiki> cat -</nowiki> <nowiki> else</nowiki> <nowiki> gs -q -sDEVICE=$DEVICE \</nowiki> <nowiki> -r$RESOLUTION \</nowiki> <nowiki> -sPAPERSIZE=$PAPERSIZE \</nowiki> <nowiki> -dNOPAUSE \</nowiki> <nowiki> -dSAFER \</nowiki> <nowiki> -sOutputFile=- -</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> if [ "$SENDEOF" != "" ]; then</nowiki> <nowiki> printf "\004"</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> (in this example an HP DeskJet printer is assumed. Fix it to suit your</nowiki> <nowiki> printer).</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · finally, add the following entries in /etc/printcap:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # /etc/printcap</nowiki> <nowiki> lp|ps|PS|PostScript|djps:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :sd=/var/spool/lpd/postscript:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :mx#0:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :lp=/dev/lp1:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :if=/var/spool/lpd/postscript/filter:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :sh:</nowiki> <nowiki> raw:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :sd=/var/spool/lpd/raw:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :mx#0:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :lp=/dev/lp1:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :if=/var/spool/lpd/raw/filter:\</nowiki> <nowiki> :sh:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> For more complex or exotic printing configurations, the Printing-HOWTO</nowiki> <nowiki> awaits you.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> If you use printtool, be aware that the GSDEVICE chosen by Printtool</nowiki> <nowiki> will work, but not necessarily at its best for your printer. You may</nowiki> <nowiki> consider fiddling a bit with the file postscript.cfg; for instance, I</nowiki> <nowiki> changed GSDEVICE from cdj500 to djet500 and now my prints come out</nowiki> <nowiki> much quicker.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 2.14. SVGATextMode</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This utility, available on</nowiki> <nowiki> <ftp://tsx-11.mit.edu/pub/linux/sources/sbin> , can be used to change</nowiki> <nowiki> the console screen resolution, font, and cursor shape. Users whose</nowiki> <nowiki> language include accented characters will be able to use them in</nowiki> <nowiki> console applications, while notebook users may change the cursor shape</nowiki> <nowiki> to make it more visible.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Edit /etc/TextConfig or /etc/TextMode, starting with the default VGA</nowiki> <nowiki> definition. Europeans should be happy with this ``LoadFont'' section:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Option "LoadFont"</nowiki> <nowiki> FontProg "/usr/bin/setfont"</nowiki> <nowiki> FontPath "/usr/lib/kbd/consolefonts"</nowiki> <nowiki> FontSelect "lat1u-16.psf" 8x16 9x16 8x15 9x15</nowiki> <nowiki> FontSelect "lat1u-14.psf" 8x14 9x14 8x13 9x13</nowiki> <nowiki> FontSelect "lat1u-12.psf" 8x12 9x12 8x11 9x11</nowiki> <nowiki> FontSelect "lat1u-08.psf" 8x8 9x8 8x7 9x7</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Once you're done, try your configuration with a command like</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~# SVGATextMode "80x34x9"</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> and if everything appears to be working fine, remove the warnings from</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/TextMode and include this line in etc/rc.d/rc.sysinit (AT2YD):</nowiki> <nowiki> # SVGATextMode</nowiki> <nowiki> /usr/sbin/SVGATextMode "80x34x9"</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Please note that the block cursor only works with some modes; on one</nowiki> <nowiki> of my machines, "80x32x9".</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3. Software Configuration</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> These are the the configuration files we are going to custimise:</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/profile /etc/bashrc .bashrc .bashrc .bash_profile .bash_logout</nowiki> <nowiki> .inputrc .less .lessrc .xinitrc .fvwmrc .fvwm2rc95 .Xmodmap</nowiki> <nowiki> .Xmodmap.num .Xdefaults .jedrc .abbrevs.sl .joerc .emacs . Don't add</nowiki> <nowiki> users until you have completed your system configuration; you'll put</nowiki> <nowiki> the dot files in /etc/skel.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.1. bash(1)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Arguably, the most important piece of software after the kernel. To</nowiki> <nowiki> tailor bash's behaviour, these are the main files to edit:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · /etc/bashrc contains system wide aliases and functions;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · /etc/profile contains system wide environment stuff and startup</nowiki> <nowiki> programs;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · $HOME/.bashrc contains user aliases and functions;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · $HOME/.bash_profile contains user environment stuff and startup</nowiki> <nowiki> programs;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · $HOME/.inputrc contains key bindings and other bits.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Examples of these files are shown below. First, the most important:</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/profile. It's used to configure a lot of features in your Linux</nowiki> <nowiki> box, as you will see in the following sections. Please look out for</nowiki> <nowiki> reverse quotes!</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki> # /etc/profile</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # System wide environment and startup programs</nowiki> <nowiki> # Functions and aliases go in /etc/bashrc</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # This file sets up the following features and programs:</nowiki> <nowiki> #</nowiki> <nowiki> # o path</nowiki> <nowiki> # o prompts</nowiki> <nowiki> # o a few environment variables</nowiki> <nowiki> # o colour ls</nowiki> <nowiki> # o less</nowiki> <nowiki> # o rxvt</nowiki> <nowiki> #</nowiki> <nowiki> # Users can override these settings and/or add others in their</nowiki> <nowiki> # $HOME/.bash_profile</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # set a decent path (including Kde)</nowiki> <nowiki> PATH="$PATH:/usr/X11R6/bin:/opt/kde/bin:$HOME/bin:."</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # notify the user: login or non-login shell. If login, the prompt is</nowiki> <nowiki> # coloured in blue; otherwise in magenta. Root's prompt is red.</nowiki> <nowiki> # See the Colour-ls mini HOWTO for an explanation of the escape codes.</nowiki> <nowiki> USER=`whoami`</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ $LOGNAME = $USER ] ; then</nowiki> <nowiki> COLOUR=44 # blue</nowiki> <nowiki> else</nowiki> <nowiki> COLOUR=45 # magenta</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> if [ $USER = 'root' ] ; then</nowiki> <nowiki> COLOUR=41 # red</nowiki> <nowiki> PATH="$PATH:/usr/local/bin"</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ESC="\033"</nowiki> <nowiki> STYLE=';1m' # bold; choose which one to use</nowiki> <nowiki> # STYLE='m' # plain</nowiki> <nowiki> PS1="\[$ESC[$COLOUR;37$STYLE\]$USER:\[$ESC[37;40$STYLE\]\w\\$ "</nowiki> <nowiki> PS2="> "</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # no core dumps, please</nowiki> <nowiki> ulimit -c 0</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # set umask</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ `id -gn` = `id -un` -a `id -u` -gt 14 ]; then</nowiki> <nowiki> umask 002</nowiki> <nowiki> else</nowiki> <nowiki> umask 022</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # a few variables</nowiki> <nowiki> USER=`id -un`</nowiki> <nowiki> LOGNAME=$USER</nowiki> <nowiki> MAIL="/var/spool/mail/$USER"</nowiki> <nowiki> NNTPSERVER=news.iol.it # put your own here</nowiki> <nowiki> VISUAL=jed</nowiki> <nowiki> EDITOR=jed</nowiki> <nowiki> HOSTNAME=`/bin/hostname`</nowiki> <nowiki> HISTSIZE=1000</nowiki> <nowiki> HISTFILESIZE=1000</nowiki> <nowiki> export PATH PS1 PS2 USER LOGNAME MAIL NNTPSERVER</nowiki> <nowiki> export VISUAL EDITOR HOSTNAME HISTSIZE HISTFILESIZE</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # enable colour ls</nowiki> <nowiki> eval `dircolors /etc/DIR_COLORS -b`</nowiki> <nowiki> export LS_OPTIONS='-s -F -T 0 --color=yes'</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # customize less</nowiki> <nowiki> LESS='-M-Q'</nowiki> <nowiki> LESSEDIT="%E ?lt+%lt. %f"</nowiki> <nowiki> LESSOPEN="| lesspipe.sh %s"</nowiki> <nowiki> LESSCHARDEF=8bcccbcc13b.4b95.33b. # show colours in ls -l | less</nowiki> <nowiki> export LESS LESSEDIT LESSOPEN VISUAL LESSCHARDEF</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # fix the backspace key in rxvt</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ "$COLORTERM" != "" ] ; then</nowiki> <nowiki> stty erase ^H # alternative: ^H</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> for i in /etc/profile.d/*.sh ; do</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ -x $i ]; then</nowiki> <nowiki> . $i</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki> done</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # call fortune, if available</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ -x /usr/games/fortune ] ; then</nowiki> <nowiki> echo ; /usr/games/fortune ; echo</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This is a sample /etc/bashrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki> # /etc/bashrc</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # System wide functions and aliases</nowiki> <nowiki> # Environment stuff goes in /etc/profile</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # For some unknown reason bash refuses to inherit</nowiki> <nowiki> # PS1 in some circumstances that I can't figure out.</nowiki> <nowiki> # Putting PS1 here ensures that it gets loaded every time.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> USER=`whoami`</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ $LOGNAME = $USER ] ; then</nowiki> <nowiki> COLOUR=44 # blue</nowiki> <nowiki> else</nowiki> <nowiki> COLOUR=45 # magenta</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> if [ $USER = 'root' ] ; then</nowiki> <nowiki> COLOUR=41 # red</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ESC="\033"</nowiki> <nowiki> STYLE=';1m' # bold</nowiki> <nowiki> # STYLE='m' # plain</nowiki> <nowiki> export PS1="\[$ESC[$COLOUR;37$STYLE\]$USER:\[$ESC[37;40$STYLE\]\w\\$ "</nowiki> <nowiki> export PS2="> "</nowiki> <nowiki> export CDPATH="$CDPATH:~"</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> alias which="type -path"</nowiki> <nowiki> alias ls="ls $LS_OPTIONS"</nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This is a sample .bashrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki> # $HOME/.bashrc</nowiki> <nowiki> # Source global definitions</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> if [ -f /etc/bashrc ]; then</nowiki> <nowiki> . /etc/bashrc</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # this is needed to notify the user that they are in non-login shell</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ "$GET_PS1" = "" ] ; then</nowiki> <nowiki> COLOUR=45; ESC="\033"; STYLE=';1m'; # STYLE='m'</nowiki> <nowiki> USER=`whoami`</nowiki> <nowiki> export PS1="\[$ESC[$COLOUR;37$STYLE\]$USER:\[$ESC[37;40$STYLE\]\w\\$ "</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # aliases</nowiki> <nowiki> alias cp='cp -i'</nowiki> <nowiki> alias l=less</nowiki> <nowiki> alias lyx='lyx -width 900 -height 700'</nowiki> <nowiki> alias mv='mv -i'</nowiki> <nowiki> alias rm='rm -i'</nowiki> <nowiki> alias x=startx</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # A few useful functions</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> inst() # Install a .tar.gz archive in the current directory.</nowiki> <nowiki> { tar -zxvf $1 }</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> cz() # List the contents of a .zip archive.</nowiki> <nowiki> { unzip -l $* }</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ctgz() # List the contents of a .tar.gz archive.</nowiki> <nowiki> {</nowiki> <nowiki> for file in $* ; do</nowiki> <nowiki> tar -ztf ${file}</nowiki> <nowiki> done</nowiki> <nowiki> }</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> tgz() # Create a .tgz archive a la zip.</nowiki> <nowiki> {</nowiki> <nowiki> name=$1 ; tar -cvf $1 ; shift</nowiki> <nowiki> tar -rf ${name} $*</nowiki> <nowiki> gzip -S .tgz ${name}</nowiki> <nowiki> }</nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This is a sample .bash_profile:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki> # $HOME/.bash_profile</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # User specific environment and startup programs</nowiki> <nowiki> # This file contains user-defined settings that override</nowiki> <nowiki> # those in /etc/profile</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # Get user aliases and functions</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ -f ~/.bashrc ]; then</nowiki> <nowiki> GET_PS1="NO" # don't change the prompt colour</nowiki> <nowiki> . ~/.bashrc</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # set a few `default' directories</nowiki> <nowiki> export CDPATH="$CDPATH:$HOME:$HOME/text:$HOME/text/geology"</nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This is a sample .inputrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki> # $HOME/.inputrc</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # key bindings</nowiki> <nowiki> "\e[1~": beginning-of-line</nowiki> <nowiki> "\e[3~": delete-char</nowiki> <nowiki> "\e[4~": end-of-line</nowiki> <nowiki> # (F1 .. F5) are "\e[[A" ... "\e[[E"</nowiki> <nowiki> "\e[[A": "info \C-m"</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> set bell-style visible # please don't beep</nowiki> <nowiki> set meta-flag On # allow 8-bit input (i.e, accented letters)</nowiki> <nowiki> set convert-meta Off # don't strip 8-bit characters</nowiki> <nowiki> set output-meta On # display 8-bit characters correctly</nowiki> <nowiki> set horizontal-scroll-mode On # scroll long command lines</nowiki> <nowiki> set show-all-if-ambiguous On # after TAB is pressed</nowiki> <nowiki> ______________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To make the backspace and delete keys work correctly in xterm and</nowiki> <nowiki> other X11 applications, the following is also needed:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · put this in your .xinitrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> usermodmap=$HOME/.Xmodmap</nowiki> <nowiki> xmodmap $usermodmap</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · then your .Xmodmap will contain:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 22 = BackSpace</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 107 = Delete</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> this fixes the console. To fix xterm:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · put this in your .Xdefaults:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> xterm*VT100.Translations: #override <Key>BackSpace: string(0x7F)\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> <Key>Delete: string(0x1b) string("[3~")\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> <Key>Home: string(0x1b) string("[1~")\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> <Key>End: string(0x1b) string("[4~")\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> Ctrl<Key>Prior: string(0x1b) string("[40~")\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> Ctrl<Key>Next: string(0x1b) string("[41~")</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> nxterm*VT100.Translations: #override <Key>BackSpace: string(0x7F)\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> <Key>Delete: string(0x1b) string("[3~")\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> <Key>Home: string(0x1b) string("[1~")\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> <Key>End: string(0x1b) string("[4~")\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> Ctrl<Key>Prior: string(0x1b) string("[40~")\n\</nowiki> <nowiki> Ctrl<Key>Next: string(0x1b) string("[41~")</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> rxvt is a wee bit more complicated, as some compile--time options</nowiki> <nowiki> influence its behaviour. See the above /etc/profile.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> More info in bash(1) and readline(3) man pages.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Don't expect every application to work correctly! If you run joe in</nowiki> <nowiki> xterm, for instance, some keys won't work; the same holds for versions</nowiki> <nowiki> of rxvt older than 2.4.5.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.2. ls(1)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ls can display directory listings using colours to highlight different</nowiki> <nowiki> file types. To enable this feature, you just need a couple of lines in</nowiki> <nowiki> /etc/profile as seen above. However, this won't work with rxvt older</nowiki> <nowiki> than v. 2.21; use some flavour of xterm instead. It looks like rxvt</nowiki> <nowiki> has a bug that prevents it from inheriting the environment correctly</nowiki> <nowiki> in some circumstances. rxvt 2.4.5 upwards is OK.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Caldera's ls doesn't have colours, but there's an equivalent color-ls.</nowiki> <nowiki> Add this in /etc/bashrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> alias ls="color-ls $LS_OPTIONS"</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.3. less(1)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> With this excellent pager you can browse not only plain text files,</nowiki> <nowiki> but also gzip compressed, tar and zip archives, man pages, and what</nowiki> <nowiki> have you. Its configuration involves a few steps:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · to use it with the movement keys, have this plain ASCII file</nowiki> <nowiki> .lesskey in your home directory:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[A back-line</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[B forw-line</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[C right-scroll</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[D left-scroll</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[OA back-line</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[OB forw-line</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[OC right-scroll</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[OD left-scroll</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[6~ forw-scroll</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[5~ back-scroll</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[1~ goto-line</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[4~ goto-end</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[7~ goto-line</nowiki> <nowiki> ^[[8~ goto-end</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> then run the command lesskey. (These are escape sequences for</nowiki> <nowiki> vt100-like terminals.) This creates a binary file .less containing the</nowiki> <nowiki> key bindings.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · write the following file as /usr/local/bin/lesspipe.sh:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ___________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki> #!/bin/sh</nowiki> <nowiki> # This is a preprocessor for 'less'. It is used when this environment</nowiki> <nowiki> # variable is set: LESSOPEN="|lesspipe.sh %s"</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> lesspipe() {</nowiki> <nowiki> case "$1" in</nowiki> <nowiki> *.tar) tar tf $1 2>/dev/null ;; # View contents of .tar and .tgz files</nowiki> <nowiki> *.tgz|*.tar.gz|*.tar.Z|*.tar.z) tar ztf $1 2>/dev/null ;;</nowiki> <nowiki> *.Z|*.z|*.gz) gzip -dc $1 2>/dev/null ;; # View compressed files correctly</nowiki> <nowiki> *.zip) unzip -l $1 2>/dev/null ;; # View archives</nowiki> <nowiki> *.arj) unarj -l $1 2>/dev/null ;;</nowiki> <nowiki> *.rpm) rpm -qpil $1 2>/dev/null ;;</nowiki> <nowiki> *.cpio) cpio --list -F $1 2>/dev/null ;;</nowiki> <nowiki> *.1|*.2|*.3|*.4|*.5|*.6|*.7|*.8|*.9|*.n|*.man) FILE=`file -L $1`</nowiki> <nowiki> FILE=`echo $FILE | cut -d ' ' -f 2`</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ "$FILE" = "troff" ]; then</nowiki> <nowiki> groff -s -p -t -e -Tascii -mandoc $1</nowiki> <nowiki> fi ;;</nowiki> <nowiki> *) file $1 | grep text > /dev/null ;</nowiki> <nowiki> if [ $? = 1 ] ; then # it's not some kind of text</nowiki> <nowiki> strings $1</nowiki> <nowiki> fi ;;</nowiki> <nowiki> esac</nowiki> <nowiki> }</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> lesspipe $1</nowiki> <nowiki> ___________________________________________________________________</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> then make it executable with chmod 755 lesspipe.sh.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · put the necessary variables in /etc/profile as seen above.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.4. emacs(1)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> I rarely use emacs, so I have only a couple of tips for you. Some</nowiki> <nowiki> emacs distributions don't come preconfigured for colours and syntax</nowiki> <nowiki> highlighting. Put this in your .emacs:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> (global-font-lock-mode t)</nowiki> <nowiki> (setq font-lock-maximum-decoration t)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This only works in X11. Moreover, to enable accented characters you'll</nowiki> <nowiki> add this line:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> (standard-display-european 1)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> I'll leave it to you to peruse all of emacs' documentation to find out</nowiki> <nowiki> how to tailor it to your needs---potentially, it can take months of</nowiki> <nowiki> hacking. The Dotfile generator (Section ``Configuration Software'')</nowiki> <nowiki> is a good helping hand.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.5. joe(1)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Some versions of joe don't work with colours in console, and some</nowiki> <nowiki> special keys don't work either. To my knowledge, no one has found a</nowiki> <nowiki> solution to these small nags. A quick and dirty (and inelegant)</nowiki> <nowiki> solution to the former problem is this:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~$ export TERM=vt100</nowiki> <nowiki> ~$ joe myfile</nowiki> <nowiki> (edit your file)</nowiki> <nowiki> ~$ export TERM=linux</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Configure joe editing .joerc, .jstarrc or your favourite emulation;</nowiki> <nowiki> you can start from the system-wide config files in /usr/lib/joe.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.6. jed(1)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This is my favourite editor: it does what I need, it's lighter and</nowiki> <nowiki> easier to configure than emacs, and emulates other editors quite well.</nowiki> <nowiki> Many users at my university use jed to emulate EDT, VMS' system</nowiki> <nowiki> editor.</nowiki> <nowiki> jed's configuration files are .jedrc and /usr/lib/jed/lib/*; the</nowiki> <nowiki> former can be adapted from jed.rc in the latter directory.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · to make jed use the special keys correctly, write the file</nowiki> <nowiki> /usr/lib/jed/lib/defaults.sl whose only line reads:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> () = evalfile("linux");</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · if xjed apparently doesn't recognise the DEL key, add these lines</nowiki> <nowiki> to your .jedrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> #ifdef XWINDOWS</nowiki> <nowiki> x_set_keysym (0xFFFF, 0, "\e[3~");</nowiki> <nowiki> setkey (``delete_char_cmd'', "\e[3~");</nowiki> <nowiki> #endif</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · edit /usr/lib/jed/lib/linux.sl to specify Info_Directory =</nowiki> <nowiki> "/usr/info"; and /bin/mail after /UCB_Mailer = "/bin/mail";;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · to make jed emulate EDT (or other editors) all you have to do is</nowiki> <nowiki> edit a couple of lines in .jedrc. If you want the numeric keypad</nowiki> <nowiki> `+' to delete words instead of a single character, add this in</nowiki> <nowiki> .jedrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> unsetkey("\eOl");</nowiki> <nowiki> unsetkey("\eOP\eOl");</nowiki> <nowiki> setkey("edt_wdel", "\eOl");</nowiki> <nowiki> setkey("edt_uwdel", "\eOP\eOl");</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> after the line that reads () = evalfile("edt") (or similar);</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · to make xjed use the numeric keypad for EDT emulation, insert the</nowiki> <nowiki> following in .Xmodmap:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 77 = KP_F1</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 112 = KP_F2</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 63 = KP_F3</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 82 = KP_F4</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 86 = KP_Separator</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · colour customization for xjed is done adding lines like these in</nowiki> <nowiki> .Xdefaults:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> xjed*Geometry: 80x32+150+50</nowiki> <nowiki> xjed*font: 10x20</nowiki> <nowiki> xjed*background: midnight blue</nowiki> <nowiki> # and so on...</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · the ``abbreviation'' feature is an invaluable timesaver. Write a</nowiki> <nowiki> file like the following as $HOME/.abbrevs.sl:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> create_abbrev_table ("Global", "0-9A-Za-z");</nowiki> <nowiki> define_abbrev ("Global", "GG", "Guido Gonzato");</nowiki> <nowiki> create_abbrev_table ("TeX", "\\A-Za-z0-9");</nowiki> <nowiki> define_abbrev ("TeX", "\\beq", "\\begin{equation}");</nowiki> <nowiki> define_abbrev ("TeX", "\\eeq", "\\end{equation}");</nowiki> <nowiki> % and so on...</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> and type ESC x abbrev_mode to enable it. To have the abbreviation</nowiki> <nowiki> enabled by default, add entries like these to your .jedrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> define text_mode_hook ()</nowiki> <nowiki> {</nowiki> <nowiki> set_abbrev_mode (1);</nowiki> <nowiki> }</nowiki> <nowiki> %</nowiki> <nowiki> define fortran_hook ()</nowiki> <nowiki> {</nowiki> <nowiki> set_abbrev_mode (1);</nowiki> <nowiki> use_abbrev_table ("Fortran");</nowiki> <nowiki> }</nowiki> <nowiki> % and so on...</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.7. efax(1)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This package is probably the most convenient for simple</nowiki> <nowiki> sending/receiving of faxes. You'll have to tailor the script</nowiki> <nowiki> /usr/bin/fax; easy job, but a couple of quirks caused me quite an</nowiki> <nowiki> headache:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · DIALPREFIX: chances are that simply putting `T' or `P' won't work</nowiki> <nowiki> in some countries (in Italy, at least). Put `ATDT' or `ATDP'</nowiki> <nowiki> instead;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · INIT and RESET: these strings contain the initialisers `-i' and</nowiki> <nowiki> `-k', needed by efax. If you want to add an AT command, add it to</nowiki> <nowiki> the appropriate string leaving out `AT' and preceding the rest with</nowiki> <nowiki> either `-i' or `-k'. Example: to add the `ATX3' command to INIT,</nowiki> <nowiki> you'll append `-iX3'.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.8. TeX and Friends</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> I'll assume you have the teTeX distribution. Just a couple of things</nowiki> <nowiki> here:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · to configure the hyphenation pattern for your language, edit the</nowiki> <nowiki> file /usr/lib/texmf/texmf/tex/generic/config/language.dat, then do:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ~# texconfig init ; texconfig hyphen</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · if you add a LaTeX package, after adding the files under</nowiki> <nowiki> /usr/lib/texmf/texmf/tex/latex/ run the command texhash so that</nowiki> <nowiki> teTeX recognises the new package;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · to tailor dvips, the file to edit is</nowiki> <nowiki> /usr/lib/texmf/texmf/dvips/config/config.ps. Be aware that the</nowiki> <nowiki> fields regarding the default resolution also affect xdvi's</nowiki> <nowiki> behaviour; if you experience annoying attempts to create fonts each</nowiki> <nowiki> time you run it, put the line</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> XDvi*mfmode:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> in .Xdefault. This should help.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.9. Avoid PPProblems!</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> I'll take it for granted that your kernel has PPP + TCP/IP support</nowiki> <nowiki> compiled in, that loopback is enabled, and that you already have the</nowiki> <nowiki> pppd package correctly installed and, if you will, suid root.</nowiki> <nowiki> Obviously, your ISP must support PPP.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> There are now two ways to get PPP to work: a) manual configuration,</nowiki> <nowiki> and b) a configuration program that automagically sees to it.</nowiki> <nowiki> Whichever option you choose, have the following information on hand:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · your ISP's telephone number;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · your ISP's name, mail and news server address;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · your ISP's domain;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · your username and password.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Manual configuration is a drudgery. It's about editing files and</nowiki> <nowiki> writing scripts; not too much work, but it's easy to make mistakes and</nowiki> <nowiki> newcomers are often intimidated. The PPP HOWTO is there for you.</nowiki> <nowiki> Alternatively, there are tools that ask for the information above and</nowiki> <nowiki> do all the work.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> You'll be surely better off if get hold of one of the following nice</nowiki> <nowiki> tools:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · an X11--based tool is EzPPP, whose home page is</nowiki> <nowiki> <http://www.serv.net/~cameron/ezppp/index.html> . Very easy to</nowiki> <nowiki> use, almost self--explanatory, but requires you to write the</nowiki> <nowiki> connection script;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · for tty--based connections, theere are tools available on</nowiki> <nowiki> <ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/Linux/system/network/serial/ppp>. One</nowiki> <nowiki> of the finest is pppsetup-X.XX.tar.gz. Script required here;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · the simplest configuration tools to date are surely wvdial and</nowiki> <nowiki> eznet. You feed them your ISP's phone number, your username, your</nowiki> <nowiki> password, and you're in business. Their home pages are at</nowiki> <nowiki> <http://www.worldvisions.ca/wvdial> and</nowiki> <nowiki> <http://www.hwaci.com/sw/eznet>. My preference goes to the latter.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.9.1. A Quick Start with eznet</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> First of all, create an /etc/resolv.conf like this:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> nameserver w.x.y.z</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> where you'll insert the address of your ISP's nameserver. To create an</nowiki> <nowiki> account with eznet, issue the following command:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> #~ eznet add service=YOUR_ISP user=NAME password=PASSWORD phone=PHONE</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> then try to dial your ISP with eznet up YOUR_ISP. If the modem waits</nowiki> <nowiki> for the dial tone and won't connect, then try this command:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> #~ eznet change YOUR_ISP init0=atx3</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To hang up, the command is eznet down. That's all!</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.10. POP Client</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To retrieve your mail from a POP server, you use a POP client like</nowiki> <nowiki> fetchpop or fetchmail. The latter is more advanced, and is probably</nowiki> <nowiki> the only option if your ISP's PPP server can't deal with the command</nowiki> <nowiki> LAST. They're available on</nowiki> <nowiki> <ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/Linux/system/mail/pop>.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To configure these clients:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · fetchpop: the first time you run it, you'll be prompted for some</nowiki> <nowiki> information. Answer the questions and you're set.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · fetchmail: adapt this sample .fetchmailrc:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> # $HOME/.fetchmailrc</nowiki> <nowiki> poll mbox.myisp.com with protocol pop3;</nowiki> <nowiki> user john there with password _Loo%ny is john here</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> One user reported that adding ``smtphost localhost'' to the second</nowiki> <nowiki> line improved performance dramatically.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> You must set the permissions to this file with the command chmod 600</nowiki> <nowiki> .fetchmailrc, otherwise fetchmail will rightly refuse to start. This</nowiki> <nowiki> example is very basic and assumes that you have a running sendmail;</nowiki> <nowiki> there are endless possibilities of configuration. Check out on .</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11. X Window System (XFree86)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11.1. Setting Up the X Server</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Come on, it's not difficult as it used to be... All major</nowiki> <nowiki> distributions include a tool for setting up X11 (e.g. XConfigurator,</nowiki> <nowiki> sax, XF86Setup, or at least xf86config). X configuration is virtually</nowiki> <nowiki> automatic these days, but a few video cards may refuse to work. Each</nowiki> <nowiki> time I experience problems setting up X on a system, I resort to a</nowiki> <nowiki> simple method that has always worked:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · make sure that the plain VGA server is installed;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · go to <ftp://ftp.XFree86.org/pub/XFree86/current/binaries> , cd</nowiki> <nowiki> to the proper Linux subdirectory, and download the archives</nowiki> <nowiki> X_version_bin.tgz, X_version_set.tgz, and all the servers. Amongst</nowiki> <nowiki> other programs, the first one contains the most up-to-date</nowiki> <nowiki> SuperProbe;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · unpack X_version_bin.tgz to a temporary directory, cd to it, and</nowiki> <nowiki> run ./SuperProbe. If your video card is recognised, chances are</nowiki> <nowiki> that you'll be able to set it up. Otherwise, hard luck;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · install the servers and X_version_set.tgz from /usr/X11R6/, then</nowiki> <nowiki> run XF86Setup.</nowiki> <nowiki> This has always worked for me, but your mileage may vary. Please note</nowiki> <nowiki> that most times X11 won't configure because the specs you choose for</nowiki> <nowiki> your monitor are too low! Start with conservative settings, i.e.</nowiki> <nowiki> 800x600 and 256 colours, then pump it up. Warning: these operations</nowiki> <nowiki> are dangerous and your monitor might be damaged!</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11.2. Keypad</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> We have seen above how to make a few special keys work. The sample</nowiki> <nowiki> file .Xmodmap works well if you want to use Xjed, but it makes the</nowiki> <nowiki> keypad unusable. You'll then need another config file, which we'll</nowiki> <nowiki> call .Xmodmap.num:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ! Definitions can be found in <X11/keysymdef.h></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 77 = Num_Lock</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 112 = KP_Divide</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 63 = KP_Multiply</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 82 = KP_Subtract</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 86 = KP_Add</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 79 = KP_7</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 80 = KP_8</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 81 = KP_9</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 83 = KP_4</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 84 = KP_5</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 85 = KP_6</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 87 = KP_1</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 88 = KP_2</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 89 = KP_3</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 90 = KP_0</nowiki> <nowiki> keycode 91 = KP_Decimal</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Make sure that your /etc/X11/XF86Config does not contain these three</nowiki> <nowiki> lines:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ServerNumLock</nowiki> <nowiki> Xleds</nowiki> <nowiki> XkbDisable</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> and in case, comment them out. To re-enable the keypad, you'll issue</nowiki> <nowiki> the command xmodmap .Xmodmap.num.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11.3. Graphical Login with xdm</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> To be greeted by a graphical login, edit the file /etc/inittab, which</nowiki> <nowiki> should include a line like this:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> x:5:respawn:/usr/bin/X11/xdm -nodaemon</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> where 5 is the runlevel corresponding to X11 (S.u.S.E. uses 4). Modify</nowiki> <nowiki> the line that defines the default runlevel (usually 2 or 3), changing</nowiki> <nowiki> it as above:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> id:5:initdefault:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> The number of colours is specified in /etc/X11/xdm/Xserver (AT2YD):</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> :0 local /usr/X11R6/bin/X -bpp 16 # 65k colours</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> If you already have .xinitrc, copy it to .xsession and make the latter</nowiki> <nowiki> executable with chmod +x .xsession. Now issue the command telinit 5</nowiki> <nowiki> and you're in business.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.11.4. Window Manager</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Once you've managed to make X work, there are endless possibilities of</nowiki> <nowiki> configuration; it depends on the window manager you use - there are</nowiki> <nowiki> tens to choose from. Mostly, it's all down to editing one or more</nowiki> <nowiki> ASCII files in your home directory; in other cases you don't have to</nowiki> <nowiki> edit a thing, and use an applet or even a menu.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Some examples:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · the fvwm family: copy /etc/X11/fvwm/system.fvwmrc (or similar) to</nowiki> <nowiki> your home using the appropriate name, browse it and start</nowiki> <nowiki> experimenting. You may waste a lot of time before you get the</nowiki> <nowiki> precise look and feel you like;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · WindowMaker: it has several config files that live under</nowiki> <nowiki> $HOME/GNUstep, and a cool configuration applet;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · KDE: nothing to edit manually here: everything can be done via the</nowiki> <nowiki> menu.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> In short: if you don't mind editing config file, choose something like</nowiki> <nowiki> icewm, fvwm*, blackbox etc; if you do mind, the choice is currently</nowiki> <nowiki> restricted to KDE and WindowMaker.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> It's important to have a good .xinitrc. An example:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> #!/bin/sh</nowiki> <nowiki> # $HOME/.xinitrc</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> usermodmap=$HOME/.Xmodmap</nowiki> <nowiki> xmodmap $usermodmap</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> xset s noblank # turn off the screen saver</nowiki> <nowiki> xset s 300 2 # screen saver start after 5 min</nowiki> <nowiki> xset m 10 5 # set mouse acceleration</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> rxvt -cr green -ls -bg black -fg white -fn 7x14 \</nowiki> <nowiki> -geometry 80x30+57+0 &</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> if [ "$1" = "" ] ; then # default</nowiki> <nowiki> WINMGR=wmaker</nowiki> <nowiki> else</nowiki> <nowiki> WINMGR=$1</nowiki> <nowiki> fi</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> $WINMGR</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Although it doesn't appear to be strictly required, make it executable</nowiki> <nowiki> with chmod +x .xinitrc.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This .xinitrc lets you choose the window manager: try</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> $ startx startkde # or other w.m.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> (it doesn't work with some S.u.S.E. versions, though).</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.12. Users' Configurations</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> When you're done editing the dot files, copy them to /etc/skel as seen</nowiki> <nowiki> in Section ``Software Configuration''. Note that .pinerc can't be</nowiki> <nowiki> fully tailored; make sure that at least the fields user-domain, smtp-</nowiki> <nowiki> server, and nntp-server are properly set up.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 3.13. Upgrading</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> If you upgrade your machine, do your backup as usual and remember to</nowiki> <nowiki> save a few additional files. Some could be /etc/X11/XF86Config,</nowiki> <nowiki> /usr/bin/fax, all the stuff in /usr/local, the kernel configuration,</nowiki> <nowiki> the whole /etc, and all the mail in /var/spool/mail.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 4. Configuration Software</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> There are several programs that make Linux easy to setup and</nowiki> <nowiki> configure. Some are becoming sort of standard: Red Hat, Caldera and</nowiki> <nowiki> other distributions ship with apps like printtool, netcfg, usertool,</nowiki> <nowiki> etc, while S.u.S.E. ships with a comprehensive configuration program</nowiki> <nowiki> called YAST. Other useful programs are:</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · The Dotfile Generator: fine X app with modules to configure</nowiki> <nowiki> packages like emacs, bash, procmail and more. Its page is on</nowiki> <nowiki> <http://www.imada.ou.dk/~blackie/dotfile> ;</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> · Linuxconf: the ultimate configuration tool. It can do everything,</nowiki> <nowiki> both in console and under X. Go to</nowiki> <nowiki> <http://www.solucorp.qc.ca/linuxconf> at once.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 5. The End</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 5.1. Copyright</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Unless otherwise stated, Linux HOWTO documents are copyrighted by</nowiki> <nowiki> their respective authors. Linux HOWTO documents may be reproduced and</nowiki> <nowiki> distributed in whole or in part, in any medium physical or electronic,</nowiki> <nowiki> as long as this copyright notice is retained on all copies. Commercial</nowiki> <nowiki> redistribution is allowed and encouraged; however, the author would</nowiki> <nowiki> like to be notified of any such distributions.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> All translations, derivative works, or aggregate works incorporating</nowiki> <nowiki> any Linux HOWTO documents must be covered under this copyright notice.</nowiki> <nowiki> That is, you may not produce a derivative work from a HOWTO and impose</nowiki> <nowiki> additional restrictions on its distribution. Exceptions to these rules</nowiki> <nowiki> may be granted under certain conditions; please contact the Linux</nowiki> <nowiki> HOWTO coordinator at the address given below.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> In short, we wish to promote dissemination of this information through</nowiki> <nowiki> as many channels as possible. However, we do wish to retain copyright</nowiki> <nowiki> on the HOWTO documents, and would like to be notified of any plans to</nowiki> <nowiki> redistribute the HOWTOs.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> If you have questions, please contact Tim Bynum, the Linux HOWTO</nowiki> <nowiki> coordinator, at tjbynum@sunsite.unc.edu via email.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 5.2. Feedback</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Perhaps even more than other HOWTOs, this one needs and welcomes your</nowiki> <nowiki> suggestions, criticisms, and contributions. Not only is feedback</nowiki> <nowiki> welcome: it's necessary. If you think something is missing or wrong,</nowiki> <nowiki> please email me. If you have a distribution other than Red Hat or</nowiki> <nowiki> Caldera and your config files are different or placed in other</nowiki> <nowiki> directories, please tell me and I'll include your tips. My aim is</nowiki> <nowiki> making life with Linux as easy as possible.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Linux has a huge number of packages, so it's impossible to include</nowiki> <nowiki> directions for all of them. Please keep your requests/suggestions</nowiki> <nowiki> pertinent to the ``most reasonable'' programs---I'll leave it to your</nowiki> <nowiki> common sense.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> 5.3. Disclaimer</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> ``Configuration HOWTO'' was written by Guido Gonzato,</nowiki> <nowiki> guido@ibogeo.df.unibo.it. Many thanks to all other HOWTO authors and</nowiki> <nowiki> man pages writers/maintainers, whose work I've shamelessly pilfered;</nowiki> <nowiki> and to all people who provided me with feedback.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> This document is provided ``as is''. I put great effort into writing</nowiki> <nowiki> it as accurately as I could, but you use the information contained in</nowiki> <nowiki> it at your own risk. In no event shall I be liable for any damages</nowiki> <nowiki> resulting from the use of this work.</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> I hope you'll find this work useful, though. Whenever I install a new</nowiki> <nowiki> Linux box, I actually do...</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Enjoy,</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki> Guido =8-)</nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> <nowiki></nowiki> [[Category:Computer_Technology]] [[Category:Linux]]

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