ru.linux

 
 - RU.LINUX ---------------------------------------------------------------------
 From : Sergey Lentsov                       2:4615/71.10   25 Oct 2001  16:45:15
 To : All
 Subject : URL: http://www.lwn.net/2001/1025/
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 

    [1][LWN Logo] 
    
                                [2]Click Here 
    [LWN.net]
    
              Bringing you the latest news from the Linux World.
    Dedicated to keeping Linux users up-to-date, with concise news for all
                                  interests
    
    Sections:
     Main page
     [3]Security
     [4]Kernel
     [5]Distributions
     [6]Development
     [7]Commerce
     [8]Linux in the news
     [9]Announcements
     [10]Linux History
     [11]Letters
    [12]All in one big page
    
    Other LWN stuff:
     [13]Daily Updates
     [14]Calendar
     [15]Linux Stocks Page
     [16]Book reviews
     [17]Penguin Gallery
    
     [18]Archives/search
     [19]Use LWN headlines
     [20]Contact us
    
    TUCOWS.com:
     [21]linux.tucows.com
     [22]Ext2
     [23]Themes
    
    Recent features:
    - [24]O'Reilly Open Source Conference
    - [25]OLS 2001
    - [26]Gael Duval
    - [27]Kernel Summit
    - [28]Singapore Linux Conference
    - [29]djbdns
    - [30]LinuxWorld NY
    - [31]Jason Haas
    - [32]Larry Wall
    - [33]Bruce Momjian
    - [34]2000 Timeline
    
    Here is the [35]permanent site for this page.
    
    See also: [36]last week's LWN.
    
 Leading items and editorials
 
    Kernel changelogs to be censored? Alan Cox stirred things up this week
    with his [37]announcement of the eleventh 2.2.20 prepatch. Along with
    the usual set of fixes and updates, the changelog included the
    following:
 o Security fixes
   Details censored in accordance with the US DMCA
 
    When pressed for details, Alan responded that "file permissions and
    userids may constitute and be used for rights management" and that he
    wasn't willing to risk lawsuits and/or prison terms by releasing
    information that could be used for circumvention. When it comes to
    security problems, [38]says Alan, "US kernel developers cannot be
    told. Period." He has not, as yet, responded to questions on how he
    can work with (US-based) Linus under such conditions.
    
    The details, apparently, may appear on a web site that is inaccessible
    from the U.S. before the official 2.2.20 release happens.
    
    Alan, of course, is trying to dramatize a point: U.S. laws on these
    issues are seriously messed up. It is also true that the U.S. has
    little reluctance to try to apply its laws to foreign nationals doing
    things that are legal at home. Even so, one might be forgiven for
    wondering if Alan is taking things a little too far here. Censored
    changelogs will attract a bit of attention, but are unlikely to really
    change much. Besides, as readers of NTK know, [39]the U.K.'s laws are
    not much better than those in the U.S. with regard to things like
    "circumvention devices."
    
    Also true is the fact that most of the vulnerabilities fixed have
    already been published: see [40]this week's LWN security page. Even
    though, as Alan says "there are other security related changes" in
    this prepatch, the information is already out there.
    
    Still, one can not make these points too often. That is especially
    true in times like these, where civil liberties are in increased
    danger, and proposed laws like the SSSCA could make Linux itself
    illegal in the U.S. The presence of the DeCSS code on the net has not
    shielded those who have republished it. There are dangers out there
    for those who work with or discuss security vulnerabilities.
    
    There is an interesting question, here, though: if a description of a
    Linux kernel security vulnerability potentially violates the DMCA,
    what about the patch that fixes it? The patch doesn't just describe
    the problem, it does so in exact technical terms that will point a
    would-be exploiter in just the right direction.
    
    So, for example, it is considered OK to publish a patch containing:
     -#define MAX_QUOTA_MESSAGE 75
     +#define MAX_QUOTA_MESSAGE (PAGE_SIZE + 256)
 
    but it is a violation to put "fix potential buffer overrun in the
    quota code" into a changelog. Even though this problem was
    [41]publicly discussed on the linux-kernel list back in September.
    These are, shall we say, strange times. In the long run, if the Powers
    That Be are determined to prevent the discussion of security
    vulnerabilities, they will seek a way to block the exchange of the
    code as well.
    
    Sooner or later, this situation has to resolve itself. The kinds of
    restrictions that corporations and governments wish to put into
    software (and discussions about software) are in conflict with free,
    source-available code. Historically, in the U.S., freedom has a
    reasonable chance - especially where freedom of speech is involved.
    But we live in interesting times, to say the least.
    
    Emacs 21 is here. The Free Software Foundation this week [42]announced
    the availability of version 21.1 of the famous emacs editor. The emacs
    development process has been, until now, relatively invisible to the
    free software community as a whole, so new releases tend to bring a
    number of surprises with them. Your reporter, being an emacs user, was
    naturally curious as to what was in the new release; being also a
    Debian user, he was able to satisfy his curiosity with a single
    apt-get command. If only more disk space could be had so easily.
    
    So what's up with version 21? Richard Stallman is quoted as follows in
    the announcement:
    
      Emacs 21 is a big step forward in our long-term plan to take Emacs
      from a programmable text editor to a programmable word processor.
      
    FSF development plans do tend toward a long-term nature. Those wanting
    to [43][emacs splash screen] use emacs 21 as a true word processor
    will be disappointed, it's not there yet. It has, however, made some
    definite steps in that direction. The first signs can be seen in the
    initial splash screen, shown on the right (click the image for a
    full-size version). Emacs can now display images in buffers; it is
    also capable, finally, of using proportional fonts. There is little
    user-level support for either, but elisp programmers can now get at
    that functionality.
    
    Also present in the new emacs is a toolbar that appears below the
    standard menubar. It is, of course, customizable for emacs's various
    modes. It is also easily dispensed with, happily, for those of us who
    prefer to use the screen space for editing. And, of course, what would
    a toolbar be without tooltips? Emacs will now happily pop up little
    help windows all over the place. Perhaps more interestingly, the
    tooltips mechanism can also be turned on in the GUD debugger mode:
    move the pointer over a variable name, and a little window with the
    variable's value pops up.
    
    It wouldn't be an emacs release, of course, without a ton of new
    features. Here's a subset, with occasional screen shots:
      * How about [44]an ASCII art mode, which allows mouse-based creation
        of ASCII diagrams?
      * Color fonts are now supported outside of window mode if the
        underlying terminal can do it.
      * Emacs can now play audio files, though the documentation does not
        say much about just why one might want to do that.
      * The modeline is now mouse-sensitive.
      * Emacs now features a blinking cursor in window mode. Happily, you
        can turn it off.
      * There is a new confirm-kill-emacs variable that will cause the
        editor to ask before shutting itself down. Users who have found,
        to their chagrin, that it doesn't take much fat-fingering to turn
        C-X into C-X C-C will be pleased.
      * Buffers can now have "header lines" that remain at the top of the
        window, independent of scrolling. Info mode [45]uses this feature
        to present a navigation bar.
      * Emacs now has wheel mouse support.
      * There is, of course, a new, improved cc-mode with a lot of fancy
        features. Surprisingly, they appear to have managed not to break
        too many user configurations this time around. In general, elisp
        code from version 20 seems to work well in the new release.
      * There's [46]a nice new "diff" mode, most useful for picking the
        security patches out of kernel updates.
      * The gnus newsreader now handles MIME postings. It also turns
        smileys into cute little images that are amusing for the first
        couple of messages.
      * A new highlight-regexp command can be used to mark all occurrences
        of a given string in a buffer.
      * Incremental search now [47]highlights upcoming matches so you know
        where you're going next.
      * The "zone out" mode implements a sort of internal screen saver for
        emacs windows.
      * A new "woman" mode exists which can format up man pages without
        having to resort to external programs. There is also a new shell
        mode that has no need for an actual shell. A compile mode with its
        own built-in compiler has not yet been implemented, however.
      * Cool feature: the [48]regular expression builder allows
        interactive creation of complicated search strings with immediate
        feedback on what is matched.
      * A "C warning mode" points out things it thinks are incorrect or
        dangerous in C code.
      * There is a new postscript mode for those who like to talk to their
        printers directly.
        
    On the other hand, the rumor that one can now boot directly into emacs
    from LILO or GRUB, and thus avoid the need for an operating system
    entirely, proves to be unfounded.
    
    The full list of new features is far more extensive than the above -
    and we have not even begun to talk about the elisp-level changes.
    Suffice to say that emacs 21 is a major release, with a lot of cool
    new stuff.
    
    The best thing of all, however, may not be an editor feature at all.
    As of this release, it is now possible to get the development version
    of the code via a CVS server on savannah.gnu.org. Opening up the emacs
    development process can only be a good thing for both developers and
    users.
    
    The latest word from Gartner. Those of us who have followed Linux for
    a while have grown accustomed to hostile opinions published by the
    Gartner Group. Recently, though, Gartner has shown signs of coming
    around. The latest pronouncement from that group, published in ZDNet
    as [49]What's the future of Linux?, shows continued progress in this
    area. Consider this quote:
    
      Linux is being viewed as an opportunity to enable users to get out
      from under the yoke of proprietary platforms and high software
      license fees and into a much more flexible and evenhanded
      negotiating position. But vendors will always seek new
      opportunities to wedge users into proprietary solutions, so users
      must remain vigilant to avoid past mistakes that led to lock-in.
      
    Licensing fees and "negotiating positions" are only a small part of
    what make free software worthwhile. Nonetheless, it looks like Gartner
    is beginning to figure out what free software really means. There may
    yet be hope...
    
    Inside this LWN.net weekly edition:
      * [50]Security: Responses to Scott Culp; possible ssh exploit.
      * [51]Kernel: A new driver model; looking for faster pipes.
      * [52]Distributions: More from the CLIG; Melon: Japanese Linux for
        the iPAQ.
      * [53]Development: Mozilla 1.0 Manifesto, Ogg Traffic, Parma
        Polyhedral Library, Simple Web Service API, Crystal Space 0.90
        r001, GCC 3.02.
      * [54]Commerce: MontaVista releases high availability framework; Red
        Hat adds Linux Desktop Productivity Essentials training course;
        The new 'Lindows' operating system.
      * [55]History: OpenBSD project founded in 1995; Red Escolar project
        founded in 1998; Tcl/Tk looks for a new corporate home.
      * [56]Letters: Project Liberty, free BIOS implementations,
        information anarchy.
        
    ...plus the usual array of reports, updates, and announcements.
    
    This Week's LWN was brought to you by:
      * [57]Jonathan Corbet, Executive Editor
        
    October 25, 2001
    
                               [58]Click Here 
    
                               [59]Click Here 
    
    
                                                        [60]Next: Security
    
    [61]Eklektix, Inc. Linux powered! Copyright Л 2001 [62]Eklektix, Inc.,
    all rights reserved
    Linux (R) is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds
 
 References
 
    1. http://lwn.net/
    2. http://ads.tucows.com/click.ng/pageid=001-012-132-000-000-001-000-000-012
    3. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/security.php3
    4. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/kernel.php3
    5. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/dists.php3
    6. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/devel.php3
    7. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/commerce.php3
    8. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/press.php3
    9. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/announce.php3
   10. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/history.php3
   11. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/letters.php3
   12. http://lwn.net//2001/1025/bigpage.php3
   13. http://lwn.net/daily/
   14. http://linuxcalendar.com/
   15. http://lwn.net/stocks/
   16. http://lwn.net/Reviews/
   17. http://lwn.net/Gallery/
   18. http://lwn.net/archives/
   19. http://lwn.net/op/headlines.phtml
   20. http://lwn.net/op/Contact.html
   21. http://linux.tucows.com/
   22. http://news.tucows.com/ext2/
   23. http://unixthemes.tucows.com/
   24. http://lwn.net/2001/features/oreilly2001/
   25. http://lwn.net/2001/features/OLS/
   26. http://lwn.net/2001/features/MandrakeSoft.php3
   27. http://lwn.net/2001/features/KernelSummit/
   28. http://lwn.net/2001/features/Singapore
   29. http://lwn.net/2001/features/djbdns.php3
   30. http://lwn.net/2001/features/linuxworldny/
   31. http://lwn.net/2001/features/JHaas/
   32. http://lwn.net/2001/features/LarryWall/
   33. http://lwn.net/2001/features/Momjian/
   34. http://lwn.net/2000/features/Timeline/
   35. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/
   36. http://lwn.net/2001/1018/
   37. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/a/2.2.20-pre11.php3
   38. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/a/ac-period.php3
   39. http://www.ntk.net/index.cgi?back=2001/now1005.txt
   40. http://lwn.net//2001/1025/security.php3
   41. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/a/quota-overrun.php3
   42. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/a/emacs-21.php3
   43. http://lwn.net//2001/1025/splash.php3
   44. http://lwn.net//2001/1025/artist.php3
   45. http://lwn.net//2001/1025/info.php3
   46. http://lwn.net//2001/1025/diff.php3
   47. http://lwn.net//2001/1025/isearch.php3
   48. http://lwn.net//2001/1025/re-builder.php3
   49. http://www.zdnet.com/techupdate/stories/main/0,14179,2819787,00.html
   50. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/security.php3
   51. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/kernel.php3
   52. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/dists.php3
   53. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/devel.php3
   54. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/commerce.php3
   55. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/history.php3
   56. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/letters.php3
   57. mailto:lwn@lwn.net
   58. http://ads.tucows.com/click.ng/buttonpos=lwnbutton125top
   59. http://ads.tucows.com/click.ng/buttonpos=125-001-016
   60. http://lwn.net/2001/1025/security.php3
   61. http://www.eklektix.com/
   62. http://www.eklektix.com/
 
 --- ifmail v.2.14.os7-aks1
  * Origin: Unknown (2:4615/71.10@fidonet)
 
 

Вернуться к списку тем, сортированных по: возрастание даты  уменьшение даты  тема  автор