-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

Ben Reser wrote:
> On Wed, Jul 16, 2003 at 07:01:06PM +0200, Buchan Milne wrote:
>
>>I think, going back to it, the users would prefer some tool that is more
>>interactive.
>
> If they want interactive they'd be running MandrakeUpdate on their own
> IMHO.  However, on my todo list is the possiblity of making urpmc prompt
> to go ahead and install the packages it lists if being run
> interactively.  But I haven't implemented it because I'm not sure I want
> to open that can of worms.
>

By interactive, I meant not a single-run application (like urpmi,
MandrakeUpdate), but a tray applet (like the kgpg thingy in KDE). So the
user doesn't ever have to actually start it up, or have to log in, but
can remove it if they want.

> The problem with doing this interactively is how?  fpons suggested
> putting MandrakeUpdate on xinit.d...  That assumes the user logs in and
> out of X on a regular basis.

And if they do so often, it gets irritating (says someone who transports
a removable IDE disk between two machines most days).

>  So let's say we put something on a cron
> that looks for updates, pops up and says hey there are updates.  Which
> user should we display that for?  We strongly suggest that users not run
> as root.  We can't assume that any user that is logged in is an
> appropriate person to display this to.  We could use the security
> administrator from msec, but that field could also be an email address
> not on the same machine.
>

This is not a good solution, mostly for the reasons you mention, but
what about a multi-user machine (ie terminal server).

> Ultimately, what we want is something that lets users know that there
> are updates and that they ought to run MandrakeUpdate.

Yes, or offers to do so for them if they take an interest in whatever it is.

>  urpmc on a cron
> job mailing the security administrator selected during the install seems
> like the simplest solution at the moment.

And probably 75% of new users will only find the emails when their
partition overflows with mail.

> It may not be ideal but it's
> better than nothing.  And if we're going to go into beta soon now is not
> the time to try and write a new program.
>

Well, there are some open-source examples around.

>>Is that a bit clearer??? If you are still in doubt, install either RH9
>>or Windows XP (your choice ;-)) ...
>
> *nod* that's why I suggested integrating it into msec.  And making msec
> send the report to the security admin for all security levels.  draksec
> is already easy to find in mcc.

But an idiot might make a mistake. And I know many users don't find out
about cron/msec mail until a few months after having used the machine,
and it may only get delivered if they start up postfix etc etc etc.

I think an applet is the best solution. Any non-admin user can remove
it. msec could also set who has it running by default, but relying on a
user getting mail sent to root or the security admin isn't going to be a
user friendly approach (enough people complain about msec already).

Regards,
Buchan

- --
|--------------Another happy Mandrake Club member--------------|
Buchan Milne                Mechanical Engineer, Network Manager
Cellphone * Work            +27 82 472 2231 * +27 21 8828820x202
Stellenbosch Automotive Engineering         http://www.cae.co.za
GPG Key                   http://ranger.dnsalias.com/bgmilne.asc
1024D/60D204A7 2919 E232 5610 A038 87B1 72D6 AC92 BA50 60D2 04A7
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: GnuPG v1.2.2 (GNU/Linux)
Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org

iD8DBQE/FZ44rJK6UGDSBKcRAmN9AJ9+3TAH8bPYBnw+HixZ3lgPCzTb9wCfbPl3
kpnmJtNBWQ4kevzKe115DLU=
=8BGI
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

******************************************************************
Please click on http://www.cae.co.za/disclaimer.htm to read our
e-mail disclaimer or send an e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] for a copy.
******************************************************************

Reply via email to