Linux Gazette

   ...making Linux just a little more fun!

November 2004 (#108):

     * [1]The Mailbag
     * [2]The Answer Gang
     * [3]News Bytes, by Michael Conry
     * [4]GRUB boot diskette for Knoppix, by Anonymous
     * [5]Using a Non-Default GUI (in RHEL and kin), by Brian Bilbrey
     * [6]Preparing For My Interviews Part 1: MySQL and Perl, by Mark Nielsen
     * [7]Advanced Features of netfilter/iptables, by Barry O'Donovan
     * [8]Laptop review: Averatec 5400 series, by Ben Okopnik
     * [9]Outliners and Mind mapping, by Jimmy O'Regan
     * [10]Screen scraping with Perl, by Jimmy O'Regan
     * [11]Bash Shell and Beyond, by William Park
     * [12]Setting the Clock on Linux, by William Park
     * [13]Design Awareness, by Mark Seymour
     * [14]An Introduction to JSPWiki, by Neil Youngman
     * [15]The Linux Laundrette, by Jimmy O'Regan

The Mailbag
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                        HELP WANTED : Article Ideas
   Submit comments about articles, or articles themselves (after reading
   [16]our guidelines) to [17]The Editors of Linux Gazette, and technical
           answers and tips about Linux to [18]The Answer Gang. 
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     * [19]Linux and Oracle
     * [20]We Want Your Tips!
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Linux and Oracle

   Fri, 22 Oct 2004 14:39:53 -0700
   Jeff Rohloff ([21]J5494R from LVMPD.com)

   My name is Jeff Rohloff, and I am the IT manager of the detention center
   here in Las Vegas, NV. I am involved in a project that uses Oracle DB and
   application servers. We have investigated the deployment of this app on a
   server running Linux, and have been very excited what we have found so far.
   We have presented this to the executive staff and they too are excited. My
   last hurdle is do a risk assessment of the deployment of Linux into our
   environment that is primarily Microsoft. Do you know of a site, or do you
   have info that you maybe able to share that might help me put this document
   together. Thanks in advance..

     This is extremely situation dependent. You should at least ensure that the
     people that'll be using this database are trained to do so. -- Thomas

     In my experience, Oracle in a mixed Windows/Linux environment works quite
     well. I recently taught a class on Linux implementation at the CapitalOne
     bank headquarters where they're converting to exactly that setup. Their
     tech people were highly positive in their reactions to my questions about
     the integration process; it eliminated several of the problems they'd
     experienced under Wind0ws (I can't recall exactly what the former problems
     were, but they had something to do with failing to service a query during
     high traffic periods.)

     You're definitely not riding the bleeding edge with this; many companies
     have implemented this configuration by now, and you could certainly
     benefit from their experience. Oracle themselves probably have case
     studies on file that you could examine, although it may require a bit of
     digging and prodding. -- Ben

     Perhaps our readers could point out some specific resources that Jeff
     could use while making his decision about their Oracle setup.

     But  it does raise a neat idea for an article. The core of any good
     advocacy (in my not too humble opinion) is the ability to take the other
     viewpoint(s) and examine all the data from a broader perspective - what
     will really serve the needs best from the options available. Soooo... a
     good  article on risk analysis, itself, with managers like Jeff and
     businesses in mind, would be a welcome sight. Any takers? Read our Author
     Guidelines - then contact our articles@ staff. -- Heather
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We Want Your Tips!

   Fri, 29 Oct 2004 17:49:23 -0800
   Heather Stern ([22]The Answer Gang's Editor Gal)

   Sorry if we're a bit light on the tips this month, folks.

   As mentioned in a past issue, people have been asking us for more Tips that
   are the little bitty tidbits you can nibble on, the quick answer, the really
   handy pencil to tuck in your Linux pocket. Some of our meatier tips come
   from The Answer Gang, maybe a little too meaty for some tastes. The fact is
   the  very  best  of the tidbit-style Two Cent Tips come from you, dear
   readers...

   Send 'em in! mail your tip to [23]tag@linuxgazette.net. Ideally, they aren't
   faq's, aren't obvious (until you see them, at least), but give you a "wow! I
   wish I'd known that a few weeks ago" feeling.
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