[2939] in SIPB_Linux_Development
draft announcement of linux athena for activities midway
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Camilla R Fox)
Tue Aug 29 01:01:53 2000
To: linux-dev@MIT.EDU
Date: Tue, 29 Aug 2000 01:01:29 -0400
From: Camilla R Fox <cfox@MIT.EDU>
I'm anticipating questions about linux, from the freshmen, and trying
to draft something that we can give them. There's money allocated for
photocopying it.
Please comment on the following. It doesn't feel to me like it's
complete. I'd like to add something warm and fuzzy, but I can't think
of how to phrase it.
I'd also like to add a note about buying hardware, since there are
often people asking what they should buy. I don't know if we just want
to pull up the list of ethernet cards recommended for resnet, or if we
want to point at linux hardware list documentation.
Linux is a freely distributable implementation of UNIX, available for
Intel x68-based machines. You may have noticed Linux-Athena
workstations in the public clusters. These workstations are running a
Red Hat Linux based port of Athena (a set of software and
configurations added to the underlying operating system), and
maintained by Information Systems, and while the software they are
running is freely available, it's not currently easy to install it on
hardware which is not identical to that which is in the clusters.
However, SIPB is working to correct this, but modifying the installer
shipped with Red Hat linux to install the appropriate packages for our
environment. We had hoped to have this installer ready in time for the
start of the academic year, but in fact it is still in testing, and
should be ready in a few weeks.
If you'd like to hear about it when the installer is ready, subscribe
yourself to the mailing list, {\tt linux-announce}, by running, at the
{\tt athena%} prompt, {\tt blanche linux-announce -a $USER}.
Meanwhile, we'd still like to hear from you. Feel free to stop by the
office and ask any questions you might have, or email {\tt sipb@mit.edu}.
