Info-Mac-Request@SUMEX-AIM.STANFORD.EDU (The Moderators) (12/12/89)
Info-Mac Digest Mon, 11 Dec 89 Volume 7 : Issue 218
Today's Topics:
AUTOMATIC SEQUENCES OF OPERATIONS
Coming Soon: SwitchBeep
Conversion MS-Word <-> TeX
Disinfectant 1.4
GML <--> MacWord
ImageWriter sheetfeeder
Info-Mac Digest V7 #215
InitShare
Inserting TABs in files
Looking for a calendar
Mac, Unix resource sharing
Macros Macros (InfoMac Digest V7 #212)
Memory Info
MS Word 4.0 and next page number .../n
NumberCrunch DA
OneSpace INIT
On the Meta-Level: SUGGESTIONS FOR INFO MAC
Removeable Hard Drives
Security for MacOS
Shortening word menus
SigmaEdit 1.12.SIT
Your Info-Mac Moderators are Bill Lipa, Lance Nakata, and Jon Pugh.
The Info-Mac archives are available (by using FTP, account anonymous,
any password) in the info-mac directory on sumex-aim.stanford.edu
[36.44.0.6]. Help files are in /info-mac/help. Indicies are in
/info-mac/help/recent-files.txt and /info-mac/help/all-files.txt.
Please send articles and binaries to info-mac@sumex-aim.stanford.edu.
Send administrative mail to info-mac-request@sumex-aim.stanford.edu.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 5 DEC 89 12:51 N
From: RONCHETTI%ITNVAX.CINECA.IT@forsythe.stanford.edu
Subject: AUTOMATIC SEQUENCES OF OPERATIONS
Hi folks! Sometimes there are sequences of operations that one would like to
group in a sensible way. For instance: how many time have you gone through
the slow process of downloading a file, binhexing it and unstuff the result?
Would'nt it be nice to be able to do all that sequence with a simple command?
(I'm interested in the philosophy, not in the specific example).Macros like
MacroMaker or AutoMac are nice but do not do the job, (because some answers
are not universal, like -what is the name of the file which came out from
binhex-), and moreover they are not really robust. In a more conventional
environment, like Unix or VMS one would be able to easily program sequences of
instructions (using control languages, batch jobs, some piping where available
and so on), and also to pass commands to running programs, to discover names
and the like. I thought that Hypercard might help, but there I can just pass
the control to other programs, and no more. Any idea?
Please answer to me, I'll summarize for the net.
RONCHETT@ITNCISCA.Bitnet
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 6 Dec 89 10:43:11 PST
From: PUGH@ccc.nmfecc.gov
Subject: Coming Soon: SwitchBeep
I'm looking for someone with a 512 or 512E (with any amount of memory) that is
running 6.0.n and CANNOT get the Sound cdev or the Map cdev to work to test a
new INIT of mine that also won't work on your machine. I just want to make
sure that it doesn't crash on such a system before releasing it to the world.
It's short, it's sweet and everyone will want it. I guarentee it. ;^)
Now that I've said that, I guess I should give a teaser. My new INIT is
SwitchBeep, and it changes the beep you have selected with the Sound cdev
every time you boot. Like I said, short and sweet. I'll post it as soon as I
can get it tested on a 512 or 512E without the extended parameter RAM.
AdvTHANKSance
Jon
N L pugh@ccc.nmfecc.gov
M A L National Magnetic Fusion Energy Computer Center
F T N Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
E L PO Box 5509 L-561
C Livermore, California 94550
C (415) 423-4239
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 5 DEC 89 12:51 N
From: RONCHETTI%ITNVAX.CINECA.IT@forsythe.stanford.edu
Subject: Conversion MS-Word <-> TeX
Does anyone know of an utility/application able to convert a Word-4 file in a
TeX file (and possibly vice versa?) I know something like that was available
with Word 1, but it did not include formulas. RTF seems close enough to a TeX
form...
Please answer to me, I'll summarize for the net.
RONCHETT@ITNCISCA.Bitnet
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 9 Dec 89 20:42:04 PST
From: jln@acns.nwu.edu
Subject: Disinfectant 1.4
Disinfectant 1.4 is a new release of our free Macintosh
virus detection and repair utility.
Version 1.4 detects and repairs infections by the new
WDEF virus (see below).
In version 1.4 we no longer refer to the various clones
of the nVIR B virus by name. We refer to them simply
as generic "clones of nVIR B." All references to the
individual clone names have been removed from both the
document and the reports generated by the program.
We feel that the creators of these clones do not
deserve the publicity they receive when they see the
names they have chosen in print, especially since
some of the names are offensive.
Disinfectant 1.4 is available now via anonymous FTP
>From site acns.nwu.edu [129.105.49.1]. It has also
been posted to comp.binaries.mac, info-mac, and
CompuServe, and should be available from those
sources soon.
The following text is extracted from the new section
on WDEF in Disinfectant's online document. It
describes what we know to date about this new virus.
The WDEF virus was first discovered in December, 1989 in
Belgium and in one of our labs at Northwestern University.
It has also been reported at several other major US
universities, so we fear that it may be widespread.
We also have reason to believe that the virus has been
in existence since at least mid-October of 1989.
WDEF only infects the invisible Desktop files used by
the Finder. With a few exceptions, every Macintosh disk
(hard drives and floppies) contains one of these files.
WDEF does not infect applications, document files, or
other system files. Unlike the other viruses, it is not
spread through the sharing of applications, but rather
through the sharing and distribution of disks, usually
floppy disks.
WDEF spreads from disk to disk very rapidly. It is not
necessary to run a program for the virus to spread.
Although the virus does not intentionally try to do any
damage, WDEF contains bugs which can cause very serious
problems. In particular, one bug in the virus causes the
Mac IIci to crash. We have also noticed unusually frequent
crashes on infected Mac IIcxs, and severe performance
problems with infected AppleShare servers. Several people
have also reported frequent crashes when trying to save
files, and we have two reports that the virus can damage
disks.
When using Disinfectant to repair WDEF infections, you
must use Finder instead of MultiFinder. Under MultiFinder
the Desktop files are always busy, and Disinfectant is
not able to repair them. If you try to repair using
MultiFinder, you will get an error message.
Unfortunately, none of the current versions of the most
popular virus prevention tools are effective against the
WDEF virus. This includes Vaccine 1.0.1, GateKeeper 1.1.1,
Symantecs SAM Intercept 1.10, and HJCs Virex INIT 1.12.
However, by the time you read this, it is very likely that
new versions of these tools will have been released.
Symantec and HJC are preparing new releases of their products,
and we expect that a free prevention tool or tools will also
be available soon.
This version of Disinfectant is being released only a few
days after the discovery of the WDEF virus. We do not yet
understand it as thoroughly as we do the other older viruses.
We have disassembled it completely, and we understand the basic
replication mechanism. We know that it can cause serious
problems, and we know why it causes some of the problems.
Research into the behavior and adverse effects of this virus
will continue for some time.
You should keep in touch with your local Mac user group or
bulletin board for more information about this new virus as
it becomes available. Commercial online services like
CompuServe and Genie and the Macintosh trade press publications
like MacWeek are also good sources of information.
John Norstad
Academic Computing and Network Services
Northwestern University
2129 Sheridan Road
Evanston, IL 60208
Bitnet: jln@nuacc
Internet: jln@acns.nwu.edu
CompuServe: 76666,573
AppleLink: A0173
[Archived as /info-mac/virus/disinfectant-14.hqx; 118K]
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 06 Dec 89 10:29:40 EST
From: Len Hatfield <ENGLISH@vtvm1.cc.vt.edu>
Subject: GML <--> MacWord
Heigh-ho again, MacNetFolk.
As promised, here's a short summary of the net's suggestions on
my query a while back regarding ways to convert Waterloo Script or GML-
tagged text files into Microsoft Word: the sum of virtually all
responses is that the ONLY way to get to MacWord formatting from a
text-formatting language such as GML is to use Microsoft's RTF (Rich
Text Format). This approach should apply to most any other formatters
(TEX, etc.) that use tags to indicate format changes in the text--but
would not work best for 'full-featured' wordprocessors (like
WordPerfect, etc.) which have their own proprietary formats and usually
come with file translation routines. RTF is quite powerful and
flexible--it should allow you to create nearly all desired format
changes, including international characters (Greek characters, mathematical
figures, and diacritical marks--all of which can be handled in RTF using
its special character routine ("\'xx", [sans the quotes] where xx is
the hexadecimal for the desired char). RTF specs are available
>From Microsoft (Microsoft Corporation, RTF/Applications, 16011 NE 36th Way,
Box 97017, Redmond, WA 98073-9717), or I can send individuals
a disk file containing the information (kindly supplied to me
by Andy Moisseff, MOISEFF@UCONVVVM).
THE BASIC CONVERSION:
For neophytes like myself, let me run down the steps for such a
conversion: you'd need to insert into a copy of the source file the RTF
header information (specifying that it's RTF, the fonts to be
available, etc.), and then to translate the text-formatter's tags into
their RTF equivalents. Then you would start up MacWord (no file), and
next Open the translated file. If the header information is correct,
then Word will stop to ask if you want to 'convert an RTF file'; and by
responding 'yep' you allow it to translate all the RTF tags into Word's
proprietary formats. To finalize these changes, then, you'd want to
save the file with a new name and in normal Word format.
SEMI-TECHNICAL BITS:
(Again for us neophytes) So long as the formatter's labels are
unique strings (i.e., not characters or strings used in other ways in
the source file) and are not context-dependent (so that the tag can
only mean one thing, regardless of its location), then you can use one
of the public domain or shareware filter programs widely available
(e.g., AsciiConverter, or SuperConverter, both in the Info-Mac
Archives). These work on the Mac and let you generate templates that
call for the translation of one set of hex strings into another, rather
in the manner of a bunch of global 'search-and-replace' changes.
If the formatter's tags are not unique or are context-dependent,
then a more complex approach is required which can respond to these
conditions before making translations. For example, in my current
project, the Waterloo Script source files mark lines containing
underlines with '.us' but then use the '-' character as a toggle for
turning this formatting off and on, and may also use the line-end
marker as another way to turn underlining off. Needless to say, this
pattern quickly creates complex, context dependent tags for underlining
that a template-based translation could not handle correctly.
UPSHOT:
(For those interested) Because of this complexity, I'm playing
about at making a mainframe REXX program that'll respond to
contextually defined tags in Waterloo Script; once that's functioning,
I'll adapt it for GML tags. This approach seems best because it'll
allow me to use the mainframe's power and memory to make the hundreds
of changes required in large files, before downloading to the Mac.
While the resulting programs will work for the Waterloo and GML tags
I've got to hand, I expect they'll need modification for other versions
of either of these formatters, and even more for different formatting
languages (TeX, Postscript, and so on).
Once they're done, I'll be happy to share these things with
interested parties--so contact me directly as desired.
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 6 Dec 89 09:50:27 PST
From: jane@rtsg.ee.lbl.gov (Jane Colman)
Subject: ImageWriter sheetfeeder
I would like to hear opinions on the quality and usefulness of sheetfeeder
attachments for the ImageWrite II and third-party lookalikes. The
prospective user has limited use of her hands and cannot use tractor-feed
paper, but she also has limited funds and does not need laser or inkjet
print quality.
Jane Colman
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 05 Dec 89 22:09:24 EST
From: mjkobb@media-lab.media.mit.edu
Subject: Info-Mac Digest V7 #215
People have mentioned various problems with EasyEnvelopes+ 1.3c and the Desk-
Writer. I tried it last night (couldn't before -- no DeskWriter :-). It
worked fine, and I printed about 10 envelopes. I thought 1.4c was supposed
to work okay with DeskWriter, but so far as I know, nobody's posted it to
Sumex yet.
One person mentioned that he gets the "now printing" box, but nothing
happens. I realize that this may sound silly, but I forgot the first time
I tried: you don't have a spooler installed, do you? SuperSpool apparently
lets the Mac think it's printing, but does nothing with the printer...
--Mike
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 24 Nov 89 12:49:06 EST
From: Clare Durst <CCD%BROWNVM.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu>
Subject: InitShare
I want to thank everyone who responded to the problem I posed
of how to run System 7 from floppy-drive SEs (assuming enough
memory). (I said I didn't want to buy everyone hard drives
because I wanted people to continue to use the server for
creation of documents, not go copying things from drive a to drive
b, etc.)
Most people said that, short of buying hard disks, the only
possibility was to upgrade to the 1.4M floppies, assuming that
THEY would be big enough.
However, one person sent me just the solution I've been
hoping for, and asked me to pass it along to the network.
It shows signs of being one of the truly great inits! Because
what it does is become almost the only init in your system folder
(or cdev), and point the way to a folder on your server which
holds all the other cdevs, inits, printer fonts, etc., etc.
If you have Suitcase in that folder, and set it to OPEN SHARED
suitcases, then you have access to however many fonts you
want to put on! I attach it below, along with the original
message from its creators.
Just in playing around one morning, I was able to reduce
the system folder by well over 100k.
There are a few things which won't work with InitShare.
Broadcast crashes. Haven't tried Public Folder. The
things which write preference files back to themselves
or to the "system folder" may get confused. So you'll
have to do a little playing with it.
Just the thing to amuse you network administrators stuck
in the office during Xmas break when the network is quiet
enough to fiddle with it (note this is being posted the
day after Thanksgiving!)
BUT IT'S GREAT. Do give it a try. And THANK YOU
JAAP SNIJDERS.
TO: ccd@brownvm.bitnet
FROM: SNIJDERS@SARA.NL
Dear Clare,
Seperately I have sent you INITShare which might solve the problems
you mention on Infomac. We have written this INIT for exactly the situation
you mention: two floppy systems with overcrowded System disks on a network
with a AppleShare fileserver. We now have a folder on the server with all
relevant cdev's and INIT's , while on the floppy's we have INITShare that
points to this folder and makes them run at startup. Actually you can put
more in this folder than INITs/cdev's, anything that is usually in the System
Folder can be there PROVIDED it can be shared in the first place (meaning
among other things that it doesn't write to its own file), you have to
experiment to see what works and what doesn't. Always lock files in this
shared folder.
I have also included the sources for INITShare (which is PD). If you think
of improvements let me know.
By the way I am unsure how to submit this to Infomac, could you send it
on my behalf?
All the best,
Jaap Snijders
Dept. of Theoretical Chemistry
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Amsterdam, The Netherlands,
Email: snijders@sara.nl
[Archived as /info-mac/init/init-share.hqx; 24K]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 5 Dec 89 12:31 EST
From: George Nassas <GEORGE%LAUVAX01.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu>
Subject: Inserting TABs in files
>I recall having seen in some early edition of the Info-Mac digest, a note
>about inserting TABs between numbers in an ascii file (eg. output from a
>FORTRAN program) so that a spreadsheet can read that data into separate
>columns. I am unable to locate that util the Sumex archives. Could
>someone point me in the right direction ? Thanks in advance.
>Sundar_Prasad@mtsg.ubc.ca
I use the "tabbit" program for this. The DA McSink also works and will
collapse multiple spaces to single tabs if you wish.
Both can be found in the Info-Mac archives.
- George
------------------------------
Date: 6 Dec 89 09:20:00 EDT
From: "Ed Verhoef" <verhoef@fsdec4.wtp.contel.com>
Subject: Looking for a calendar
Hello and help,
I'm relatively new to the world of Mac. I recently obtained a Mac II with a
40M hard drive (which has already failed and been replaced) and 2M of RAM (soon
to be upgraded to 8M). It runs 6.0.2. I would appreciate some help in the
form of suggestions regarding some software I would like to locate.
I'm looking for something that would allow me to build a list of triplets where
the elements of each triplet are a date, a time, and a text string. Then, when
the date and time occur, if my Mac is turned on, I would like it to beep and
display the triplet. It would be particularly neat if the triplet would
continue to be displayed until I take some action to acknowledge it and if, in
the meantime, any other triplets whose time has come would be added to the
display. It also would be nice if, when the date and time occur and my Mac is
turned off, that the beep-display action would take place as soon as the Mac is
turned on again.
Does anyone know of the availability of such a tool? I would prefer public
domain (read free) software but if that is not available, I probably could talk
my department into buying it. You can send your answers to me by E-Mail if you
like. My address is verhoef@fsdec.asd.contel.com. If the response justifies
doing so, I will summarize the results back to infomac.
Thanks in advance.
Ed Ver Hoef
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 6 Dec 89 09:31:29 EST
From: GPFRN%NBS.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu
Subject: Mac, Unix resource sharing
Unix work stations located on an ethernet network
can share resources such as disk space, printers, etc.
The sharing process is transparent. The user
access files on remote volumes in the same way as on local
volumes.
I would like to do the same on my Mac. I have a MacII with an
ether net card. Note that I am connected directly to the network
and not through a bridge such as the Kinetics Fast-Path.
At first KIP and CAP seemed to do what I wanted. But it appears
to me that these two pieces of software require some type of
bridge such as the Kinetics box mentioned above.
MacNFS is another contender but who knows when (or if) Apple
will bring it to market.
I would be interested in hearing from anyone who has any ideas
on how I can use my MacII with its ethernet card to share
hard drives located an inter-net address away. The mounted remote
volume should appear on the desk top in the normal Mac way.
Someone said that a piece of software named Liasons might do what
I want. Does anyone have any experience with it?
Please reply directly to me, I will post a summary of responses.
Thanks,
Glenn Forney
bitnet address: GPFRN@NBS
PHONE ADDRESS: 301-975-6884
p.s. here is something to think about. some vendors
of unix workstations allow their network users to share cpu's as well
as disk drives and printers. this works well if a problem can be
split into sub-problems and the communication overhead is small compared
to the time to solve the sub problem. how would one accomplish this
on a network of macs? think of the possibilities. Is a MacCray in sight?
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 6 Dec 89 10:17 EDT
From: <PJORGENS%COLGATEU.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu> (Peter Jorgensen)
Subject: Macros Macros (InfoMac Digest V7 #212)
>James Hammett writes:
>I have a Macintosh SE running on System 6.0.3. When I boot up off of my hard
> disk I get a rather cryptic message "Macros Macros" with an OK button.
>
>Does anybody know what it means?
>
I have seen this message trying to help someone use Turbo Pascal :-( . It turns
out that Turbo is not compatible with MacroMaker! It seems to me that one of
your INITs may not be compatible with MacroMaker. (We also got the message
"Exit Exit".)
Hope this provides a clue.
Peter Jorgensen
Microcomputer specialist
Colgate University - Hamilton, NY 13346
AppleLink - U0523
BITNET - PJORGENSEN@COLGATEU
tel - 315-824-1000 ext 742
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 6 Dec 89 12:21 CST
From: <BPB9204%TAMSTAR.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu>
Subject: Memory Info
I'd like to thank all the Mac users out there who took the time out
to send me some information about where to buy memory.
I don't know how many messages I got, but it was usually about 5-7 a day
for over a week.
Among the replies were references to vendors with $140 a meg all the
way down to $80 a meg(in quantity).
The most recommended companies?
Technology WORKS
70ns SIMMs for $98/meg
includes Torx, installation guide, etc.
(800) 622-2210
(* will send it COD; accepts visa, M/C, etc. *)
----------
MacConnection (look in magazine for address, phone)
$100 a meg for 100ns
----------
MET (Micro Electronic Technologies)
(800) 766-SIMM
80ns for $80(in quantity)
actually, $85 for say, 4.
These three companies had the most praise. Everybody who had ordered from
them had been happy with their interactions with the company, except one person
wasn't too thrilled.
I went with MET. The simms have a lifetime warranty ( to protect against
floods and/or acts of God) and were received in three days (UPS ground).
Now considering the Mac plus has 4 simms in it now(the original 1 meg @ 256K
simms), when I put the new simms in, will they require a power supply adjust-
ment and/or a cooling fan? It doesn't seem like they would, since the mac+
is designed to contain 4 simms. Do the 1meg simms make much more heat?
Inquiring minds want to know.
once again, thanks to all who respond(ed).
Brent Burton
bpb9204@tamstar
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 5 Dec 89 18:14:32 AST
From: Phil Staal <STAAL@xx.drea.dnd.ca>
Subject: MS Word 4.0 and next page number .../n
I am using MS Word 4.0 to produce many documents that must use the convention
of having ".../n" at the bottom of each page, where "n" is the *next*
page number. It is easy to produce the current page number on a page
automatically, but I cannot find a way to automatically produce the next
page number. If anyone has any brilliant ideas on this, please let
me know.
Philip R. Staal Internet: STAAL@XX.DREA.DND.CA
DREA
P.O. Box 1012 Phone: (902) 426-3100
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
CANADA B2Y 3Z7
-------
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 21 Nov 89 16:49:39 EST
From: Tom Coradeschi <tcora@pica.army.mil>
Subject: NumberCrunch DA
This is a really neat DA. I used ResEdit to cut the help text out of the DA
and put it in a text file, which is included. The beginning of it follows:
******************
NumberCrunch is a scientific calculator which can
% compute algebraic expressions,
% define variables and functions,
% graph functions and zoom in on them,
% save often used objects to disk,
and generally just crunch an awful lot of numbers.
For example, if you type
f(y) = y^2 + 1
a = 3.45e-2
sin( 9/f(2-a) )
into the parser, then it will respond with
0.6019925995,
which, of course, is just what you asked for. Simple, isn't it?
Clicking on any of the tiny icons at the top of the NumberCrunch window will
change the display to show (in left-to-right order)
% the algebraic expression parser,
% the object list,
% the graph window,
% the help window,
% the disk Input/Output menu,
% and the parameter settings.
All of these modes and disk IO menu items can also be accessed through the
main NumberCrunch menu. Holding the command key and typing 1, 2, 3, 4, or 6
is another shorthand for flipping between the modes. Each one is described
below. (The mode descriptions can also be reached by clicking the
appropriate button in the Help Window.)
- - - About - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
NumberCrunch version 1.0
(c)Jim Mahoney Nov. 14, 1988
All Rights Reserved
written in LightSpeed Pascal*
(so portions (c)Think Technologies, Inc.)
This program is completely free for non-commercial use. You are welcome to
use it and give it away, but you may not sell it for a profit. Comments or
encouragement are welcome; my address is
PO Box 347
Marlboro, VT 05344
******************
Downloaded from the CIME-ISE BBS (608) 233-5378. This BBS is sponsored by
the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Access is free to all who
register. The Mac section is really (_really_) slim, tho. If anyone has
developed any software, etc for the mac, which would be appropriate in that
sort of a venue, please upload it there. Those without Internet access could
surely use it. I believe they support 9600 baud modems on this line.
This is in stuffed format.
tom c
Electric Armaments Division
US Army Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center
Picatinny Arsenal, NJ 07806-5000
ARPA: tcora@pica.army.mil
UUCP: ...!{uunet,rutgers}!pica.army.mil!tcora BITNET: Tcora@DACTH01.BITNET
[Archived as /info-mac/da/number-crunch.hqx; 93K]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Nov 89 23:59 EST
From: Maurice Volaski <V050FN5R@ubvmsc.cc.buffalo.edu>
Subject: OneSpace INIT
The following is the OneSpace INIT. Its purpose is to primarily
prevent users from typing more than one space character in a row.
The premise for doing this is that using only one space is the rule
in typesetting and the Macintosh is a typesetting tool.
This init will be especially helpful to people who are so used to a
typewriter that they can't seem to break the two spaces after a period
habit.
The init comes with an extensively documented hypercard stack that
includes source code.
[Archived as /info-mac/init/one-space.hqx; 17K]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 5 DEC 89 13:02 N
From: RONCHETTI%ITNVAX.CINECA.IT@forsythe.stanford.edu
Subject: On the Meta-Level: SUGGESTIONS FOR INFO MAC
I have the feeling that Info-Mac is diverging. If it becomes too big, it will
eventually become unreadable, and not useful. I think one should worry about
this. I believe there is something one can do about it: two suggestions come
to my mind. I think that one reason for diverging is due to multiple answers
to questions, and a second one is due to information loss (such *I remember
that someone spoke about such problem, but I do not remember when....*)
So the suggestions are:
1- DO NOT PUT ANSWERS DIRECTLY TO THE NET!
Answers should be given directly to the inquirers, who should then summarize
for the net (many already do so, I think that everyone should be encouraged
to follow this philosophy).
2- A CUMULATIVE INDEX SHOULD BE AVAILABLE.
I know this is additional work for the moderators, but not so much (it could,
I mean, *should* be done in an automatic way): there should be a file available
for downloading, which contains the list of abstracts. This file might just be
made by the collection of the the subjects (the *TODAY's TOPICS* lines which
appear at the beginning of each issue would do the job). In such way, one could
download this index file, search through it with any wp or editor, and find on
which issue some info was published. The next step would be the retrival of the
relevant past issues, and only as last resource one would write asking for
informations which are not available. This would guarantee that each issue
contains only brand new informations, or requests.
In the meantime: thanks to the moderators for the job they already do.
*** Buon Natale !! Merry Christmas !! Frohe Weihnachten !! Joyeux Noel ***
RONCHETT@ITNCISCA.Bitnet
[The file you mention in part 2 is called /digests/00digests-abstracts.abs.
Thank Glenn Trewitt for this feature. -Bill]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 5 Dec 89 16:33:15 EST
From: "CPT Steven M. Mahoney" <smmahone@crdec1.apgea.army.mil>
Subject: Removeable Hard Drives
Hi! I saw the recent request for information on removeable hard drives,
>From France. I am unable to reach there to request information. I am
looking to buy a removeable hard disk, but have no information on what
drives are available and how good they are. If any of you can help make me
smart on this subject, my Mac would appreciate it. Thanks!
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Date: Wed, 6 Dec 89 15:14:25 EST
From: gateh%conncoll.bitnet@forsythe.stanford.edu
Subject: Security for MacOS
Norma Wiley writes:
> WE HAVE AN OPEN ACCESS STUDENT MACINTOSH LAB ON OUR CAMPUS. WE HAVE
> BEEN RUNNING WITHOUT A NETWORK AND THE MAINTENANCE PROBLEMS ARE A
> HEADACHE. STUDENTS LIKE TO PLAY AND INDIVIDUALIZE THE MACHINE.
[stuff deleted]
> IN SHORT, DOES ANYBODY KNOW OF ANY SOFTWARE SOLUTION FOR
> LOCKING THE SYSTEM FOLDER (PASSWORD?) THAT WOULD ALLOW THE
> SYSTEM TO FUNCTION PROPERLY, BOOT FROM THE HARD DRIVE, AND
> DENY UNAUTHORIZED USERS ANY SORT OF ACCESS.
In my previous position, I too was responsible for a lab of Macs, and I
suffered the same difficulties you are now experiencing. As I'm sure you
will discover from others in this group, there are ways alleviate some
of these problems, although in my mind these methods are usually less than
elegant.
As a result of my hassles I was compelled to write a letter to John Sculley
and to a number of trade journals (InfoWorld, 10/24/88, pg. 52) expressing
my concern with the lack of security in the Mac operating system. Sculley's
office acknowledged the letter, but that was the end of it.
My basic point was this: as the Mac becomes a much more widely used machine,
especially in business and government settings, and as it is at the same time
more frequently found in networked environments, there arises the need for
some basic forms of system-level security.
While I have had only brief exposure to AppleShare networks, my understanding
is that such security elements have been handled fairly nicely in this
software. This is a good thing - in short, a necessity. So why not
incorporate these security features into the standard operating system?
I simply cannot believe that it would be that difficult to add password
protection for volumes and folders in the standard system release.
I was particularly suprised and dismayed to find that (I far as I have seen)
there have been no such inclusions planned for the 7.0 release due sometime
soon. As the top end of the Macintosh lines becomes more and more powerful,
they are increasingly expected to handle tasks traditionally assigned to
minis and workstations, task which may imply multiple users and the need
for security. And *if* the next great competitors to the Mac are the
RISC/80x86 boxes running some form of Unix (and thus are more or less
equipped to handle security issues), then perhaps the MacOS will really have
to begin to look at security issues seriously.
I don't know how many folks here are readers of the RISKS forum, but the
impression I get from that group is that we are in the beginning phases
of an "Information Revolution", and that one of the primary concerns/problems
of this "Revolution" will be privacy and security. If this is indeed the
case, I would think that any machine with plans for "surviving" in such
an atmosphere would _have_ to incorporate security features in its software,
and perhaps in its hardware as well. The Mac is a wonderful machine, and at
the moment its utility far outweighs its security limitations. I would,
however, feel a good deal more comfortable about the future of the Mac if
Apple would address more seriously the issue of security.
Am I alone in my concerns? Are these concerns unfounded? Should such
security issues be handled by third-party vendors? Or is the Mac the kind of
machine which by its very nature need not and should not be overly concerned
with security (a tool to be shared)? I am very curious about the thoughts
of other Mac users on this topic.
Apologies to Norma for not being of any assistance with her problem. - Gregg
Gregg TeHennepe | Minicomputer Specialist
gateh@conncoll | Connecticut College, New London, CT
------------------------------
Date: 05 DEC 89 22:50:03
From: GAUTHIER%FRCICT81.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu
Subject: Shortening word menus
Use fedit or such like
find the name of the first menu
select the first byte before the name of each menu
replace it by the number of characters (in hexa) of the shortened name you
want to use
type that shortened name in place of the standard one
write the block
repeat operation as needed
Gauthier@frcict81
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 24 Nov 89 11:02:43 PST
From: aron@garnet.berkeley.edu (Aron Roberts)
Subject: SigmaEdit 1.12.SIT
This is SigmaEdit 1.12, dated 26 June 1988, which is a more recent
version of Leonard Rosenthal's text editor DA (based on CAPPS Prime)
than the copy in the info-mac/da directory as of 24 November 89.
Versions 1.11 and 1.12 of this DA added a number of features to
the previous version, 1.1, including:
o command key equivalents in dialog boxes;
o configurable auto-save (save after nnn keystrokes);
o optional case-sensitive find and replace;
o balancing of curly braces and parens;
o saving of type and style information with documents;
o insert file at cursor; and
o direct printing of PostScript files.
Aron Roberts Workstation Support Services . 219 Evans Hall
University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720
aron@garnet.berkeley.edu . ucbvax!garnet!aron
aronr@ucbcmsa.bitnet . (415) 642-5974
[Archived as /info-mac/da/sigma-edit-112.hqx; 70K]
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End of Info-Mac Digest
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