Subject: Info-Mac Digest V16 #351 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="Info-Mac-Digest" --Info-Mac-Digest Info-Mac Digest Thu, 14 Oct 99 Volume 16 : Issue 351 Today's Topics: (A) VPN Client for Mac 4 int HDs into 1 ext scsi unit, part 2 [A] scientific calculator [A] Weird problem with letter 'd' [Q] 56k Voice modem? [Q] Software VCR? Action Utilities GoMac 2.0.3 buggy How can you change default browser? Solved! How can you change default browser? Solved! IE JVM security breach Info-Mac Digest V16 #350 My experience trying to fix Apple Multiscan monitor NORTON ANTIVIRUS 6 S-Video to RCA cables turning int. HD into ext. HD and Linux turning int. HD into ext. HD and Linux The Info-Mac Network is a volunteer organization that publishes the Info-Mac Digest and operates the Info-Mac Archive, a large network of FTP sites containing gigabytes of freely distributable Macintosh software. 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We'd also like to thank AOL for the main Info-Mac machine. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- --Info-Mac-Digest Content-Type: multipart/digest; boundary="----------------------------" Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="Info-Mac Digest V16 #351" ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 23:12:10 +0900 From: "Kumeda's" Subject: (A) VPN Client for Mac In response to my query on the VPN client software for Mac, I received many responses from experts. For the rest of the subscribers, I summarized them here. I thank you very much to all the net friends. Forgive me that I have not checked the following information, as I have just returned from my business trip. ------ We use IntraPort Client by Compatible Systems Corporation. I'm just a user so I don't know anything about it, but from my point of view it works fine. Once you're logged in, I can't tell any difference in speed at all. The latest version of the US PGP 6.51 has a VPN client, PGPnet. Unfortunately the Japanese PGP commercial version is still at 6.02i which I don't believe had the feature. I suspect that the unlocalized freeware international version will be released fairly soon and will include the new functionality. Other than PGPnet I don't think there are any other solutions out there at the moment. If you hear of one would you let me know? Thanks. I am using LAN Tunnel Builder 2.0. You can find more detail at www.nts.com. I too am looking for VPN client software. I must be able connect to a server using Microsoft's PPTP Tunneling with full 128 bit encryption. I found TunnelBuilder by NTS. http://www.nts.com/products/vpntnnlbldr.html I am planning on calling them today. It appears that this is very expensive, approximately $400. I also found a Mac implementation for the Alta-Vista tunneling client, but it appears to be restricted to connecting to a server running an Alta-Vista server. I am considering using Connectix Virtual PC with Windows 98. Do you have any hope that this would result in tolerable performance. I am running a Power Mac 7500 with a 250mhz 604e. It is a pretty fast machine, but I fear the overhead of Virtual PC and the Tunneling Client Software would be unbearable. I installed Alta-Vista tunnel on Softwindows 95 running on a Powerbook G3/400. When I accessed our intranet sites and a mail server, I see no performance penalty against PPP connection from a normal Mac software. Maybe, modem connection is too slow compared with G3's CPU power. I believe it is worth a try. <> You may want to check out the following web-site: http://www.macwindows.com/ This website deals with Mac-Windows networking. In response to your comp.sys.mac.digest question: Actually Altavista makes a Macintosh version of it. http://www.altavista.software.digital.com Found the link on http://guide.apple.com If they stopped support, just search for VPN on http://guide.apple.com. At least twenty different vendors make similar products for the Mac. I have also made the search engine available on: http://www.index-site.com/parallelmac.html ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 13:48:17 +1000 From: Richard Measham Subject: 4 int HDs into 1 ext scsi unit, part 2 FWB's Hard Disk Toolkit lets you set up a raid array ... can't remember which level adds all the drives end-to-end but the manuals and online help are great! >Assuming that I can join all 4 drives into 1 unit, is there a hardware >(or software) solution to make them all look like 1 2GB drive? Or must >it always appear to be 4 500MB drives? > >TIA, >Carolyn >carolynb@mindspring.com Cheers! Richard ============================================================ I was thrown out of college for cheating on the metaphysics exam; I looked into the soul of the boy next to me. -- Woody Allen I don't want yes-men around me. I want everybody to tell me the truth even if it costs them their jobs. -- Samuel Goldwyn ============================================================ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 00:40:06 -0400 From: Ken Laskey Subject: [A] scientific calculator In response to Ezra Nathan's question about a calculator, I use CalcWorks. It is available in the Info-Mac archive. Ken Laskey kenneth.j.laskey@saic.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 18:06:22 +0100 From: me@none.co.uk (Lobo) Subject: [A] Weird problem with letter 'd' >In Eudora (4.2) every time I type the letter 'd' it opens the control panel >folder!!!!!!!!! >To type 'd' I have to open and use PopChar pro. I tried closing Euxora and >restarting it but no difference. So far I don't know whether it affects any >other applications but it also happens when >I'm in the Finxer and type the letter 'd'. It does not happen if I type a >uppercase 'D'! > >PowerMac5500; OS8.6. > >Any suggestions that could point me in a direction? SOLVED... I finally tracked it down to a badly mapped key in One Click! I did not set this up and can not explain how it happened. At least it is solved and that is the main thing. Awrabest Lobo. ta reply, rub oot -Lobo- from... peter@plalp.-Lobo-freeserve.co.uk ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 13 Oct 1999 22:37:51 -0400 From: Marlon Deason Subject: [Q] 56k Voice modem? I am awaiting my new iMac and I am already planning the upgrades :-) I would love to get an internal Global Village modem which supports voice. In the past, support for voice communications was a hot option. Today, you hardly see it at all. I have a fantastic 33.6 GV external speakerphone at work. It is great for faxing and making speaker phone calls and conferences. But that's not all, this modem supports voice *and* Macintalk. This means that you can call your Mac from a remote location and give it commands that it will interpret using speach recognition. I want to have this feature on my new iMac. Does the internal GV modem support Macintalk? Does any 56k modem do this? Thanks Marlon Deason marlond@earthlink.net ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 13 Oct 1999 23:18:53 -0400 From: Marlon Deason Subject: [Q] Software VCR? I am making the move to a new Mac and I am planning to get the most out of it. I am looking for a software application which does the same thing as the new Tivo and Replay PVRs (Personal Video Recorders). Basically, I am looking for software that makes it easy to record and playback television shows. Support for VCR+ and preset recording start and stop times would be nice. I believe that both Aklaim and ATI make PC software that does this for bundling with video capture cards. Does any one make such software for the Mac? Thanks Marlon Deason marlond@earthlink.net ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 00:55:29 -0400 From: Edward Cantrell Subject: Action Utilities GoMac 2.0.3 buggy I don't think it is Buggy.. I think it is other extension that you have installed is causing the conflict.. GoMac does not have the cursor that twirl like beachball.. It don't have any cursor of any kind.. It sound like AIM which does have the cursor that can spin like beachball.. try to disable other extension or update all extension to latest version. Cheers... >------------------------------ > >Date: Wed, 13 Oct 1999 00:30:40 -0400 >From: a brody >Subject: Action Utilities GoMac 2.0.3 buggy > > >Dear Digest readers, >Action Utilities GoMac 2.0.3 has a very serious problem. While being >a nice alternative to the windows 95/98/NT toolbar on the Mac, if the >toolbar is active you can't quit from many open applications. This >is regardless of if auto-hide is enabled or not. If I try to quit >from many applications, the cursor starts to twirl a clock, and then >"The Finder has unexpectedly quit" error appears on my screen. I >even tried renaming the GoMac extension to ZGoMac to no avail. So >load order of INITs doesn't matter in this case. I've tried e-mailing >action utilities but all I get is an automated reply. Turn off the >toolbar, or disable the extension, the error doesn't happen in the >same programs. >Please somebody help. >Thank you. >Sincerely, >abrody@smart.net >Check out over 700 internet sites updated monthly at: >http://www.index-site.com > ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 10:11:49 -0400 From: "Adam C. Engst" Subject: How can you change default browser? Solved! > >How can you change the default browser from Netscape to MSIE >>after both are installed, you know, the one which launches >>when you double-click an URL? I know that when you first >>install either browser, you can choose to make it the default, >>but is it possible to change it later? >> >>I have MacOS 8.1, so I can't switch it from the Control Panels. >> >>Thanks......Larry > >The solution is to change the HTTP HELPER in Internet Config and then >to choose "Read from Internet Config" in Eudora's Miscellaneous >Settings. That's more work than is necessary. Instead, just Option-double-click an http URL in Eudora and choose a new helper app from the dialog box that appears. cheers... -Adam -- Adam C. Engst -- Check out my latest book: "Eudora Pro 4.2 for Windows & Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide" ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 13:51:04 +1000 From: iSite Internet Ventures Subject: How can you change default browser? Solved! The other way of doing it is to hold down option in Eudora when you 2click on the URL... Eudora will then ask you which application you want to use to handle http. >Thanks to those who responded to my post: > > >How can you change the default browser from Netscape to MSIE > >after both are installed, you know, the one which launches > >when you double-click an URL? I know that when you first > >install either browser, you can choose to make it the default, > >but is it possible to change it later? > > > >I have MacOS 8.1, so I can't switch it from the Control Panels. > > > >Thanks......Larry > >The solution is to change the HTTP HELPER in Internet Config and then >to choose "Read from Internet Config" in Eudora's Miscellaneous >Settings. Cheers! Richard Measham --------------------------------------------------------------- iSite Internet Presence Development Level 1, 80A Mercer Street Geelong 3220 http://isite.net.au --------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 00:36:28 -0400 From: Ken Laskey Subject: IE JVM security breach Alan Stein wrote recently about using Microsoft's JVM with IE. I just got this information about a new JVM security breach. A bug in Microsoft's bytecode verifier allows the construction of code sequences that illegally cast values of one Java type to values of another unrelated type, in violation of Java's typing rules, without detection by Microsoft's verifier. A malicious applet can exploit this flaw to breach the JVM's security, and can then proceed to do anything it wants to do on the victim's computer. For example, a malicious applet might exploit this flaw to read private data, modify or delete files (has been specifically demonstrated), or eavesdrop on the user's activities. This affects all recent versions of JVM for Windows. I do not know if the same problem occurs in the Mac version, but beware. Ken Laskey kenneth.j.laskey@saic.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 12:36:15 -0500 From: punster@canville.com (Barry M. Austern) Subject: Info-Mac Digest V16 #350 info-mac@starnine.com writes: >In Eudora (4.2) every time I type the letter 'd' it opens the control >panel >folder!!!!!!!!! >To type 'd' I have to open and use PopChar pro. I tried closing Euxora >and >restarting it but no difference. So far I don't know whether it affects >any >other applications but it also happens when >I'm in the Finxer and type the letter 'd'. It does not happen if I type a >uppercase 'D'! Are you running some sort of Macro program like QuickKeys that might be taking over? That's the only thing I can think of. I'm still using Eudora 3, so I don't know if 4.2 has a scripting language built-in that might be doing it itself. If so then look carefully at alll the scripts and macros you might have written. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 11:58:41 -0400 From: "Michael J. Longo" Subject: My experience trying to fix Apple Multiscan monitor I had asked a few days ago for help in repairing my 15" Apple Multiscan monitor. In particular, I couldn't figure out how to open the case. Thanks for the many who sent help and suggestions. I did manage to open it. I did go over the solder joints. However, I did NOT succeed in fixing it. It still has the same symptoms---When first turned on, it shows a very faint image, usually in pastel green. After being on for 20 min. or so, it comes back pretty much to normal. I do not think the problem is a simple bad solder joint. For any other brave souls who may want to attempt repairs on theirs, I am summarizing the info. It is a messy job. If anyone with similar symptoms succeeds in fixing it, let us know. Here's the info on opening the case from John Schroeder. _______ > Given that you have removed the two screws direct your attention to >the top of the monitor. On the top surface toward the rear are two holes >for access with a screw driver to pry gently on a tap that will release the >rear cover from the front bezel if you will. The tab is part of the front >bezel assembly. If you insert your screw driver and feel for the tab and >make sure you are on top of it and press down slightly the cover should >release. You have to do both tabs on the top of the monitor. If you pry >too hard you will break the tab off. That's not too bad because you can use >a long screw through the hole to secure it when you are done. Apple uses >the screws when they repair the monitor. The screw goes through the hole >and sinks into the plastic of the front bezel right next to the tab. I hope >this makes sense. Just take your time and it will come apart. ______ [I was able to do this with some difficulty. One tab broke off.] Here's some suggestions for what to do once inside-- ___________ > Remove the video board from the CRT and unsolder some of the >shielding that covers the CRT socket pins. Take a magnifing glass and check >the solder joints. You may spot an irregular solder joint on the CRT pins. >If that isn't the case just touch up the solder joints again and give it a >try. That's what I did and it fixed the tint issue that I was having. Good >Luck! _________ I found that unsoldering the metal shield box around the circuit board to be quite difficult. Interestingly enough the circuit board with socket is glued to the neck of the CRT and can't easily be removed. Once I removed the metal box, I did carefully inspect all solder joints and went over many of them with soldering iron and fresh solder. I really did not spot a definitely bad connection or crack in any trace. I managed to get things back together and had high hopes it would be okay. However, as already mentioned it behaved in exactly the same way. Again I emphasize this is a messy job. The usual precautions about wearing eye protection and being careful about contacting HV should be followed. Michael J. Longo, Professor Department of Physics; University of Michigan; Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Office: 354 West Hall; Phone: (734)764-4445 FAX: (734)936-1817 http://www-personal.umich.edu/~mlongo ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 11:05:47 -0400 From: Louis Bergeron Subject: NORTON ANTIVIRUS 6 Again, Symantec posted a MUST HAVE upgrade in the form of Norton Antivirus 6. The pattern will probably be that virus definitions for Version 5 will stop in a few months. They did that with version 4. The upgrade can be bought online for 26.95$. This is 4.9 megs. If you ask the CD, they you have to pay for UPS which is expensive if you ask a shipping in Canada. Is this an upgrade which is good or should we stay with 5 until they stop support? The bug I have with 5 is scanning a partition in which there is a Virtual PC drive. They NAV will crash. Other then that, the product is fine. Louis Louis Bergeron C.P. 936 Rouyn Rouyn-Noranda Qc Canada J9X 5C8 Telephone personnel - Personal phone (819) 764-3862 Centre de service aux entreprises du Cegep de Granby - Haute-Yamaska 385 Principale Granby (Quebec) J2G 2W5 Telephone travail Office phone (450) 372-6614 #172 Telecopieur public Public fax (450) 777-5842 E-mail tiwi@lino.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 08:44:06 -0700 From: Paul Brians Subject: S-Video to RCA cables If like me you have acquired a Mac with a DVD player in it and want to use the S-Video output to feed your TV, but don't have S-Video inputs on your video equipment, you're stuck unless you have the S-Video to RCA patch cord recommended by Apple. Only problem is--they don't make or sell one. Hardly anybody does. Both our local Radio Shacks says they can't get 'em. You can get one for a hundred bucks from Monster Cable. Or you can get one from VideoWare for $22 bucks plus shipping. See . I have no connection with VideoWare other than as a customer. Paul Brians, Department of English Washington State University Pullman, WA 99164-5020 brians@wsu.edu http://www.wsu.edu/~brians ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 08:27:54 -0400 From: JEFF_BILLMAN@HP-USA-om41.om.hp.com Subject: turning int. HD into ext. HD and Linux Carolyn, You should be able to daisy chain the four drives together into one external case. As long as the power supply can handle them and you can find the right data cable. You will probably need to get a special cable made. You need to make sure you have set all four drives to different SCSI ID's. There are some RAID solutions out there that may do what you need but you will not be able to use all the disk space. Some of the disk space will be used to error checking and correction. I don't know if there is a software RAID solution for the Mac or if you will need to buy a SCSI RAID controller to do it. I am most familiar with RAID on PeeCee's and Unix boxes. If you want to make all the drives look like one big disk there is a package called LVM (logical volume manager) for Linux that will do it. I don't know if it has been ported from Intel to PPC though. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1999 08:45:11 -0400 From: Saint John Subject: turning int. HD into ext. HD and Linux At 15:26 -0400 10/13/99, carolynb@mindspring.com wrote: >Hello, > >I have 4 500 MB internal HD's that I would like to combine into 1 >external HD scsi device. >1. Can I do this? Is it OK to run 4 hd's off of 1 power supply? Yes; hard drives aren't extreme power-suckers, and a decent power supply should work for four of them. If the case that you're using has four bays and the power supply has four "tentacles," it'll be sufficient. >2. Can I daisy chain 4 hds together like this? ( There must be hd to hd >cables?) Yes, as long as they have distinct SCSI IDs. You get a connector that has an external connector (DB-25 female, probably) and four of the 50-pin inline connectors for the drives. It's a lot like the SCSI cable inside your Mac. Make sure that the last drive is terminated, if you aren't continuing the chain (which some cases are built for). Some drives allow termination by setting one of the jumpers; you can also buy a 50-pin inline terminator (unfortunately the Trenton ComputerFest is the only place I know to get them!). >3. What do I need, and need to know to do this? (I've swapped HDs and >installed RAM, so I know how to be careful, and how to plug things in.) >I also would appreciate knowing if there are brands to either look for >or stay away from. I know that I need the power suppy (but what wattage >or other details?), cables, mounting brackets and a box. I feel that I >am quite capable of doing this if it is really a reasonable thing to do. I haven't run into a bad case yet. A company called California PC Peripherals (not exactly sure of the name, but it does start with "California") has some good quality cases. You can even use a IBM-PC clone cabinet as a hard drive case-- MacAddict had a story about this in a back issue. APS Technologies sells cases and everything else you'll need, but [1] their prices are comparatively high and [2] I had a disastrous experience with their service. Still, others haven't, and you may be one of the lucky ones. The back pages of computer magazines, MacAddict among them, have lots of ads for such components. It might be better to flip through that than to do a Web search-- you're likely to be overwhelmed. You can even use one targeted at IBM-PC users, as even they have SCSI, after a fashion. The power supply, as long as it's one of the standard modules, will be the least of your worries. You can get them in higher capacities, but 200w will be more than adequate, even for eight drives. The biggest thing to remember is to keep the internal SCSI cable as short as you can, as that counts toward the length of the whole SCSI bus-- and long cables make for trouble. >4. Is this a really dumb idea? ie-dumb, it simply won't work; or dumb, >that I should have a professional do this? It's rewarding, and fun too! (though it takes a special sort of person to admit that they find hooking up hard drives fun :) Populating a hard drive cabinet is well within the capabilities of the moderately experienced computer user, and your experience sounds like you qualify. Heck, if you have an extra bay, you can even put in a CD-ROM drive! These days, 500 Mb drives are kind of tiny, though, and you may actually spend more money on a cabinet, PS, and cables for the project than you would on a new 2 Gb drive. Sad but true. However, once you get the unit working, you can replace the older drives with more recent ones-- as larger drives become available, smaller ones drop way down in price. >5. I assume that I can reformat them as HFS+ drives (if they are to be >used for back-up purposes)? I mean, is there a difference in the actual >HD media for HFS vs HFS+? None whatsoever. You'll lose the data on them, of course, if that matters to you. Another question you asked was whether you could make them look like one 2 Gb drive, or if you had to have 4 volumes of 500 Gb. The answer is yes, but it takes some extra work and money. However, you may wind up with a better setup than you would otherwise have. To combine drives, you need to make a "RAID Array." This is a special way of formatting and handling a number of hard drives so that they appear to be a single unit. You can have your four drives add up to one, which will also allow a theoretical 4x speed boost, as each drive gets its buffer filled at SCSI speeds before the relatively slow writing is done. You can have a 1 Gb drive that's automatically backed up, or "mirrored," onto the other 1 Gb worth of space. There are other combinations, too. One such product is SoftRAID, which you can get from . Alas, there isn't a trial version; anyone who is putting a RAID array together will know that they need the drivers already, and will pay the money. But if you get an Initio Miles Fast/Wide SCSI card, you get a version of Conley SoftRAID bundled with it-- at least I did, a little more than a year ago. Your mileage may vary. And I've never actually had a need to put a RAID array together, though if I get some cheap drives that may change. I'd suggest making and populating the cabinet first, with four distinct devices. You can always make it into an array later, if you so choose. I don't know much about Linux, but I would strongly suspect that it has RAID capability, or that someone sells a driver for that. +- Saint John | | | The opinions expressed above are not necessarily my employer's, or | mine, or anyone else's for that matter. They're pretty much just +-- random words. -------------------------------- --Info-Mac-Digest-- End of Info-Mac Digest ******************************