|
Convert your VHS tapes to DVD! Video tapes have an average
shelf-life of about 10-15 years before they really start to wear
down. And that's if you never watch them! Keep your old videos
around for years to come by converting all those old tapes to DVD.
It's easier than you think! Using this electronic guide will show
you how. We cover the equipment you need and the steps to get you
from VHS to DVD in a matter of a few brief lessons. Start saving
your old VHS tapes now. Download your copy of Lockergnome's Guide to Converting VHS
to DVD.
The Lockergnome staff is in a frenzy of preparation. If you're going to Gnomedex, have a great time! I won't be there this year since I'm so busy churning out material (and didn't know early enough to leave the time open in my schedule), but maybe next year. However, I'll have friends and compatriots there, so I'll be virtually with you.
Not that much else to say this week. Workin' hard, hopin' Canada Post doesn't go on strike in the morning, and I'll talk to you folks next week. Anything you want to see in particular? Gimme a shout and I'll see what I can do.
Digitally Yours,
Dee-Ann LeBlanc
GnomeEGGS |
Finding Out What You're Running
Brad B. asks:
I'm such a geek. I like working at the console. Of course, you can
also open a terminal window in your GUI and not completely leave
the GUI if you're not comforable when faced with only a black
screen with white letters. I've decided to cover this in EGGS
instead of MAN because there's a number of ways to do this,
partially depending on what distribution you're running.
If you're running an RPM-based distribution, such as Red Hat,
Mandrake, or SuSE, you can get a package's version number by using
the
This gives me the results:
The last item in the version number, the -26, is probably related
to the distribution's version of the Python package. This one
would be the 26th variant on Python 2.2.2. Don't worry about this
issue. What matters is the 2.2.2.
If you're running a DEB-based distribution, like Debian or
Knoppix, then you can find out what version of the package in
question is using the
This gives me the following results when I type it in Knoppix:
If you're not utilizing RPM or DEB, don't worry. There's a number
of ways you can find out what version you're running. If you're
running the version that came with your distribution, you can use
the filesystem movement commands (
Finally, you can usually ask a program itself what version it is.
Just like you can find this information in a GUI tool by clicking
So, I get out with
"When I look for software online and they list requirements like
'must have Python x.xx,' how does one find out if their
distribution came with 'Python x.xx' or some other such library?
Is it a Find File thing, or do I need to go to the dreaded
Console?"
Dee-Ann responds:
rpm command. I'll use
Python as the example, since you mentioned it specifically. If you
have Python installed on your system, you can type: rpm -q python
python-2.2.2-26
apt-cache utility. In this case, you'd type: apt-cache show python
Package: python
Status: install ok installed
Priority: standard
Section: interpreters
Installed-Size: 52
Maintainer: Matthias Klose
Notice the bolded pair of lines, there's the information you're
looking for.
python2.1-base
(<= 2.1.1-1.1), python-tk (<= 1.5.2-17), python-gdbm (<= 1.5.2-17), python-mpz
(<= 1.5.2-17), python-examples (<= 1.5.2-17), python-elisp (<= 1.5.2-17),
python-regrtest (<= 1.5.2-17), idle (<= 1.5.2-17), forg (<= 0.03-1), grc (<= 1.0.1),
ipcheck (<= 0.132-1), muttzilla (<= 0.40-9),plwm (<= 2.3-1), pms (<= 0.2.17-1),
pycmail (<= 0.1), python-pyqt (<= 2.5-1), python-stats(<= 0.5-1), python-xlib
(<= 0.8-1), pythondoc (<= 0.6-2), sip (<= 2.5-2), snappea (<= 3.0d3-8), twisted
(<= 0.10.2-1), python-ssl
Description: An interactive object-oriented scripting language (default version)
Python, the interpretive, interactive object oriented language,
includes an extensive class library with lots of goodies for
network programming, system administration, sounds and graphics.
This package is a dependency package, which depends on Debian's default
Python version (currently v2.2).
ls for listing the contents of a directory, and cd for changing directories) to
look through its packages on the CD-ROM, which likely have the
version number in the name. For example: python-2.2.2.tar.gz Help | About, there are a
number of ways to ask a command-line program. In the case of
Python, our example, I type python and look what I get:
$ python
Python 2.2.2 (#1, Feb 24 2003, 19:13:11)
[GCC 3.2.2 20030222 (Red Hat Linux 3.2.2-4)] on linux2
Type "help", "copyright", "credits" or "license" for more information.
>>>
Oddly, if I type exit or
quit to get out, I'm told:
'Use Ctrl-D (i.e. EOF) to exit.'
Ctrl-D.
What if I want to know what version of Perl I'm running? Just
typing perl gets me into "the
program's expecting input" territory. I Ctrl-C out of there and look at the man page (typing man perl). No
information on how to get the version in there. So, I type perl -h, which is a commonly-used
format for getting help information (another is command -h). Now we're getting somewhere! I get
a long list of options. I cut these down to just what I want and
use a pipe to send the output of perl -h as input to grep, which is a program that will search for the
text I specify:
$ perl -h | grep version
-v print version, subversion (includes VERY IMPORTANT perl info)
Great! So, I can finally get the version information:
perl -v
This is perl, v5.8.0 built for i386-linux-thread-multi
(with 1 registered patch, see perl -V for more detail)
Copyright 1987-2002, Larry Wall
Perl may be copied only under the terms of either the Artistic License or the
GNU General Public License, which may be found in the Perl 5 source kit.
Complete documentation for Perl, including FAQ lists, should be found on
this system using 'man perl' or 'perldoc perl'. If you have access to the
Internet, point your browser at http://www.perl.com/, the Perl Home Page.
Hope that helps!
Submit a Resource | Discuss | Recommend It!
Already, these have created quite a buzz online. Robert Skobel
says: "I love these white tees!" John P. Dvorak claims: "I predict
that in one month, everyone will have one." Dave Wyner notes:
"Yes, but are they RSS compatible?" Gnome-Girl exclaims: "Yo,
dawg! They be fly and all that sh*t." Joey Ito writes: "I stuck
one on my wiki." Slashdoft cheers: "There's no other t-shirt like
it - anywhere." Jayson DeFillippo scribbles: "I wash mine in
SOAP." Menah Trott proclaims: "I love #FFFFFF stuff." Jason Blair
extols: "It's the one thing I dare not say is mine."
UPDATE: Mark Kanter spews: "I'll wait for someone else to
review it, and then quote them heavily in my blog - which has an
impossible URL to remember." Anvil Dash screams: "I'd rather go
naked." Even Williams asserts: "I'd rather see Anvil Dash go
naked." Halley Suit interjects: "All the alpha males are wearing
them." Dock Surls laments: "I lost mine last year." Don Boxx
giggles: "I wear it when I code." Metaflitter chimes: "This is
your worst post yet, Chris." Lowernce Lessig laughs: "I've already
copywritten mine." Tim O'Rally records: "We're already writing a
'Gnomedex T-Shirts Hacks' book." 
What's this summer's hottest fashion trend? Gnomedex T-Shirts! Order yours today
to ensure that you get the proper size for your body. "Will I be
able to pick up my shirt(s) up at the convention
center?" you ask? Well, the answer is YES. When ordering, on
the page where you can put in your shipping address you will be
given the option to have the shirt shipped to you ($5) or you can
pick it up at Gnomedex in Des Moines (FREE).
GnomeCHICKS |
Compiling Software from Source, Part IV
So, I grabbed the latest non-beta TIFF libraries from ftp://ftp.remotesensing.org/pub/libtiff (tiff-v3.5.7.tar.gz), the latest PNG
libraries from ftp://swrinde.nde.swri.edu/pub/png/src/ (libpng-1.2.5.tar.bz2) and the latest
JPEG libraries from ftp://ftp.uu.net/graphics/jpeg/ (jpegsrc.v6b.tar.gz).
I start with tiff, uncompressing and unpackaging it. It's an
Autoconf setup so I type
Now, I cross my fingers and type
Finally, I'm out of the detour. I go back and look at last week's
article (isn't that sad?) to find that it was gtk+ that I was
trying to build when I had to go off chasing libraries. Again, I
cross my fingers and type
Next week: I continue with the valiant struggle that
is compiling GNOME from source.
(I'm sure the GNOME team would laugh at me. They've got a special
method for doing this that's a lot easier. But that's not the
point, as I said before. This is a learning "workshop.")
./configure and I'm off to the races. Then it's make, then I su over to root, and then make install. What a relief, something worked
with no complaints. Just so you'll know what it looks like, here's
the end of this make install:
cd ..; /bin/sh ../port/install.sh -m 444 -F /usr/local/man/man3
-idb tiff.man.dev -src lib/TIFFWriteTile.3t -O
TIFFWriteTile.3t
make[2]: Leaving directory '/home/dee/Downloads/GNOME2.2.1/tiff-v3.5.7/man/lib'
make[1]: Leaving directory '/home/dee/Downloads/GNOME2.2.1/tiff-v3.5.7/man'
libpng has a much uglier
installation routine. First, I have to find two files: zlib.h and zconf.h. I already have zlib installed on my system but apparently I need to
copy them or add a symlink into the libpng directory. I type locate zlib.h and get:
$ locate zlib.h
/usr/X11R6/include/X11/extensions/lbxzlib.h
/usr/include/zlib.h
/usr/include/mozilla-1.4/zlib/zlib.h
/usr/include/mozilla-1.4/nss/jzlib.h
/usr/src/linux-2.4.20-18.9/arch/ppc/boot/include/zlib.h
/usr/src/linux-2.4.20-18.9/arch/ppc64/boot/zlib.h
/usr/src/linux-2.4.20-18.9/include/linux/zlib.h
I make a zlib directory in
the same directory that libpng is in (~/Downloads/GNOME2.2.1), and then I copy the /usr/include/zlib.h file into that
directory. Next, I use locate
zconf.h and get:
$ locate zconf.h
/usr/include/zconf.h
/usr/include/mozilla-1.4/zlib/zconf.h
/usr/include/mozilla-1.4/nss/jzconf.h
/usr/src/linux-2.4.20-18.9/include/linux/zconf.h
After soft linking (ln -s)
/usr/include/zconf.h into
~/Downloads/GNOME2.2.1/zlib,
I return to the libpng
directory and, after reading the INSTALL file yet again, change to the scripts subdirectory. Here, I copy
the file makefile.linux into
the main libpng directory, renaming it along the way: cp makefile.linux ../Makefile
make to start the library build process. If you think
this whole routine is a pain, remember that this was the only way
to do it "way back when!" It builds with no problem, so I type
make install to finish it
off. Phew. Now where in the heck was I? Oh yeah, I have to still
compile the JPEG libraries. I uncompress and unpackage them, and
discover in the install file
that I'm back to ./configure,
make, make install. The nice thing is that libraries are
relatively small, usually, so this process goes pretty fast. ./configure, hoping that this time it won't complain.
But it does. After banging my head on my desk for a moment, I look
back to see where the JPEG library installed its files:
# make install
/usr/bin/install -c cjpeg /usr/local/bin/cjpeg
/usr/bin/install -c djpeg /usr/local/bin/djpeg
/usr/bin/install -c jpegtran /usr/local/bin/jpegtran
/usr/bin/install -c rdjpgcom /usr/local/bin/rdjpgcom
/usr/bin/install -c wrjpgcom /usr/local/bin/wrjpgcom
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 ./cjpeg.1 /usr/local/man/man1/cjpeg.1
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 ./djpeg.1 /usr/local/man/man1/djpeg.1
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 ./jpegtran.1 /usr/local/man/man1/jpegtran.1
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 ./rdjpgcom.1 /usr/local/man/man1/rdjpgcom.1
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 ./wrjpgcom.1 /usr/local/man/man1/wrjpgcom.1
Uh oh. No source code was installed, just binaries. I look back in
the Makefile and down into the rules, and sure enough, the install target doesn't include the
libraries or the headers. Here are the items I need:
install-lib: libjpeg.$(A) install-headers
$(INSTALL_LIB) libjpeg.$(A) $(libdir)/$(binprefix)libjpeg.$(A)
install-headers: jconfig.h
$(INSTALL_DATA) jconfig.h $(includedir)/jconfig.h
$(INSTALL_DATA) $(srcdir)/jpeglib.h $(includedir)/jpeglib.h
$(INSTALL_DATA) $(srcdir)/jmorecfg.h $(includedir)/jmorecfg.h
$(INSTALL_DATA) $(srcdir)/jerror.h $(includedir)/jerror.h
I've bolded the interesting lines above. If I just do the headers,
I'll have to then do the libraries, but I can do both at once by
using install-lib first. So:
# make install-lib
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 jconfig.h /usr/local/include/jconfig.h
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 ./jpeglib.h /usr/local/include/jpeglib.h
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 ./jmorecfg.h /usr/local/include/jmorecfg.h
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 ./jerror.h /usr/local/include/jerror.h
/usr/bin/install -c -m 644 libjpeg.a /usr/local/lib/libjpeg.a
Much better. Back over to the GTK+ source code directory. A quick
./configure and if the fates
shine upon me ... yay ... they do! Now I can type make and compile GTK+, then make install to put the files in
place, and leave this week's part on a perkier note.
Submit a Resource | Discuss | Recommend It!
GnomePENGUINS |
Introduction to DocBook, Part III
So far, I have the file:
Now, rather than having my numbered list embedded in the
paragraph, I want to break it up. For that, I need a procedure:
That wraps up your introduction to DocBook. Go forth and make
documentation!
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?>
<!DOCTYPE article PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.2//EN"
As usual, markup languages are really easier to follow if things
are indented within their container tags, so I'll change this to:
"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.2/docbookx.dtd">
<article class="journalarticle">
<articleinfo>
<author>
<firstname>Dee-Ann</firstname>
<surname>LeBlanc</surname>
</author>
</articleinfo>
<para>This is my very first DocBook article.</para>
</article>
<articleinfo>
<author>
<firstname>Dee-Ann</firstname>
<surname>LeBlanc</surname>
</author>
</articleinfo>
<para>This is my very first DocBook article.</para>
</article>
Much better. Now I go back to the listing of how an article is
laid out at http://www.docbook.org/tdg/en/html/article.html ... this lets me look at
the various elements I might want to use. Let me add just some
general text first:
</articleinfo>
<para>This is my very first DocBook article.</para>
<para>Being a technical writer, I'm kind of anal about formatting. If I find
This isn't going to come out very pretty. How about I put the word
"anal" in Italics. To do this, I need the emphasis tag:
myself listing steps, for example, then I'll often want to use a numbered list.
For example, when writing a DocBook article, you have to: 1. Start with the XML
version tag. 2. Add the DOCTYPE declaration. 3. Start the article container tag.
4. Fill in some article info. 5. Write the article. 6. Close the article.
</article>
<para>Being a technical writer, I'm kind of <emphasis>anal</emphasis> about formatting.
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?>
<!DOCTYPE article PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.2//EN"
Notice that I closed my paragraph before beginning the procedural
list. Also, I removed the manual numbering. Now let's take a look
at what we have. Copy the text above into a document, say,
"mysecond.docbook." Now:
"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.2/docbookx.dtd">
<article class="journalarticle">
<articleinfo>
<author>
<firstname>Dee-Ann</firstname>
<surname>LeBlanc</surname>
</author>
</articleinfo>
<para>This is my very first DocBook article.</para>
<para>Being a technical writer, I'm kind of <emphasis>anal</emphasis>
about formatting. If I find myself listing steps, for example, then I'll
often want to use a numbered list. For example, when writing a DocBook article,
you have to:</para>
<procedure>
<step><para>Start with the XML version tag.</para></step>
<step><para>Add the DOCTYPE declaration.</para></step>
<step><para>Start the article container tag. </para></step>
<step><para>Fill in some article info. </para></step>
<step><para>Write the article. </para></step>
<step><para>Close the article.</para></step>
</procedure>
</article>
$ docbook2html mysecond.docbook
Using catalogs: /etc/sgml/xml-docbook-4.2-1.0-17.cat
Using stylesheet: /usr/share/sgml/docbook/utils-0.6.12/docbook-utils.dsl#html
Working on: /home/dee/docbook/mysecond.docbook
Done.
View the HTML file and there it is, our nicely formatted article.
Submit a Resource | Discuss | Recommend It!
GnomeVOICE |
Unlimited Access - 200,000+ MP3s to choose from. Full Albums - Download complete albums or individual songs. Known Artists - 900+ of the world's best record labels. Real MP3s - Burn, transfer, make multiple copies. Guaranteed Quality - MP3s hosted at EMusic, not someone's bedroom.
"Might be a little belated, but 'Welcome!' to the Gnome crew. Seems like you're settling in well. I'm a Linux-user wannabe (it is part of my new job's responsibilities), and the newsletter has been helpful for information. I look forward to the future.Dee-Ann responds:"I couldn't help but notice in the July 4 article you sent that you mentioned 'sometimes there just aren't enough computers.' Could I make a suggestion?
"VMWARE. Randy Nieland should be able to back me up on this - VMWARE (as you may already know) allows you to emulate different PCs on one platform. It's available in Linux and Windows, and I use it personally for dabbling in the different OSes. This might help you in the future. Price is a little steep - about $300-400, but worth it. I have a 1.5GHz AMD CPU + 1 GB RAM, and it runs well with two or three systems emulated at once. This may minimize the hardware that you may need to have around the house. There's a bit of a learning curve, but it's slick and definitely worth it."
I have used VMWare on occasion, but I find it cumbersome and often not as reliable as I'd like. Where it comes in really handy is when I need to get screenshots of things where it's otherwise almost impossible to do so! It's hard to get a BIOS screenshot, for example, since the computer isn't even really running. :)
However, one of you readers might find VMWare quite useful!
Submit a Resource | Discuss | Recommend It!
Author Morris Rosenthal has taken the boot failure diagnosis flow charts from his latest book, Computer Repair with Diagnostic Flowcharts - ISBN 0972380116 ($14.95). You can get the free poster through the book's main page.
Submit a Resource | Discuss | Recommend It!
In response to the problem regarding SuSE Linux and the CD player,
Joe Joseph says: "I had the same problem. KSCD has a
configuration file - click the tiny hammer and screwdriver symbol
on the panel of the player. Set the CD-ROM device as applicable;
mine was set to /dev/cdrom when it is actually /dev/dvd. There
should have been a reference to this in the SuSE manual."
Hope that helps!
Cool Tools:
GnomeDomains
GnomePortable
Gnomies.com
GnomeSavings
GnomePersonals
GnomeJobs
Reading Materials:
CPU Magazine
Computing Guides
Internet Business
PayPal Library
HOT! Wi-Fi Help
Current Content:
Windows Daily
Digital Media
Tech Specialist
Penguin Shell
Apple Core
Web Weekly
Technology News
File Of The Day
Our Community:
Gnomedex Conference
The Forums
Live Chat Room
Tell a Friend!
Watch The Webcams
About Lockergnome
Contact Us:
General Feedback
Sponsorships
Submit a Link
Ask a Question
E-mail the Editor
The Editor's Site
Question: which group is 250,000+ strong and always looking for stuff to make their personal and professional lives run smoother?
©1996-2003, Lockergnome LLC. ISSN: 1095-3965. All Rights Reserved. Please read our Terms of Service. Web site hosted by DigitalDaze. Domain registered at DNS Central. Powered by Lyris ListManager. Chris Pirillo fueled by Peet's Coffee. Headers provided by Habeas. Statistics provided by Urchin.