Personal SVN Repository

After a few days of intensive testing (importing, deleting, and committing), I finally have a stable Subversion Repository. I'll be using this to manage my and Jucato's codes. Yeah, we're code-buddies - if there's such a term.
It's stored on my /var partition with around 7GB of free disk space and can be accessed using the Command-line or by using a client. The address is:

• http://dax.mydyn.net/svn
• or svn://dax.mydyn.net

However, after three weeks, you should access it using http://knightlust.com/svn or svn://knightlust.com since I'll be linking my domain name to my box.

This has a few drawbacks though, since I don't have a dedicated server, the site will go offline whenever I go to sleep. Hey, I can't afford a 24/7 workstation *slash* server since my box eats a lot of power... Translation? Electricity bill! But after a few months time, I'll go get myself a mini-itx fanless box that'll act as my server. It only eats up less than 18 watts and will greatly help with my utility bills. Until that time though, I cannot provide a 24/7 uptime. Heh!

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TP-Link TL-R860 Screenshots

Here's a few (actually a lot) of screenshots regarding my router, a TP-Link Model No. TL-R860. It's a wired 8-port router. I've posted screenshots so people would have an idea of its' features.

The manual for the router is in the mini/business-card CD that comes with the package - a long with a lot more manuals for their other products. If for some reason you misplaced it, you can download a copy by clicking on the link below.

TL-R860 User Guide.pdf 2.4 Mb

Default router address is http://192.168.1.1/


This is the router home page.


And this is actually my favorite part. The router supports only three configurations... Dynamic IP, Static IP, and PPPPoE. If you have PLDT, select Dynamic IP and click on Next. You'll be connected right after. But if your ISP supports PPPoE, then you have to select it, then enter your Username and Password. Don't worry, it just works(tm)... And lastly, if you have a business account and subscribed to two or more IP Address, select Static IP and input the necessary details. The details SHOULD be provided by your ISP... NOT ME! So please don't bug me regarding this!
I know this is common sense - but trust me, a lot of people don't know and expect those that have the same hardware to have the same configuration as theirs.














One of the main features of this router is Security. My Kubuntu's moonlighting as a multi-purpose server, and I need to open a few ports so my friends can access my box from the outside. Oh, this router is like Ubuntu, it has no open ports by default making your network un-crackable from the outside.
This feature right here would direct incoming traffic to my workstation. It won't affect my other two system.




You do have to be careful with this though. Since enabling DMZ would open a workstation to the world with all ports open. If you decide to use this feature, don't forget to install a firewall. I recommend GuardDog, FWBuilder, or Firestarter. I for one uses Firestarter because of one feature - real-time monitoring - that GuardDog and FWBuilder doesn't have.












If you want to administer this page from the outside, you have to configure it here. But if you have a Dynamic IP, then I'm afraid it won't work.






I'm using EditDNS, too bad it's not included in the list of Service Providers. I might sign up with DynDNS soon, but I still have to compare features. For now, EditDNS would suffice.








If you make any changes, Back it up from this page. You won't regret it. Especially if you "accidentally" reset the router. At least you wouldn't have to start from reconfiguring it from scratch.




And oh, don't forget to change Username and Password. People tend to overlook this, what they don't know is that a simple configuration would help a great deal securing their network.

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TP-Link TL-R860

Two weeks ago, I got myself a shiny new router so I can maximize my 1Mbps connection. I've been looking for a cheap one, and I managed to find one at Enigma Technologies. When shopping here in Baguio, I only go to two shops, Sigmatex and Enigma Technologies. I got my router at Enigma because it's only walking distance from my house.


It costs PhP1,800 and it's a wired router with 8 ports - plenty of room for upgrades. I might even resurrect my old P166 and P200 PC's if I need it. Nah, I didn't get a wireless router for one reason - I don't need it. So even though friends kept on pushing me to buy a wireless, I still settled for an 8-port wired one. And I haven't regretted it.



And here it is with my PLDT router (Zyxel P-600 Series - Model No. P-660R-D1)









I'll be posting my route configuration next, for FYI purposes.

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New Setup

I've had a new setup two weeks ago. I just wanted to experiment with the arrangement first before I decide to publish this. But, as usual, I didn't have the time to redecorate and just decided to stick with my new and current setup/arrangement.

I placed all of my computers in the living room. This way, I have access to all three of them. This is my main machine, two weeks ago, I installed Gutsy Tribe 3.


And this is my other workstation, it's right beside my main one. I reinstalled Xubuntu Feisty on this one. Needed it for testing and advocacy stuff.




This is how it looks like if I step back.


And yeah, that's my kid watching something in YouTube and browsing Disney.com.
And she's also using Xubuntu! Now tell me again, you don't want to use Linux because it's hard? Then how come my 3 year old daughter's using it. Don't tell me you're just too damn stupid!

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SVN, Dancer-IRCD, Dictd, Autoconf, and Flashplugin-Nonfree!

I just got back from hunting fanless PSUs in our city. And I just can't find one. But I did manage to setup subversion. Too bad i can't make it work to connect via svn://. I guess I have to use webdav. This is the first time i'll extensively use a version control system to store my codes. But I'm sure it'll be worth the extra effort i put into it. Once I'm done setting it up. I'll start reading the book Practical Subversion and the ebook svnbook from red-bean.com.

Dancer-IRCD's also setup and working fine. I just can't make Dancer-Services' recognize me as an Operator. I probably need to open more man-pages to get it to recognize me. And no, it's not the password. Heh!

I also uninstalled Dictd. I don't find any need for it now or in the near future. It'll free up some much needed resources.

Oh, and autoconf & autoconf2.13 shouldn't be installed at the same time on Gutsy. KDevelop won't work with v2.13 and my system prioritizes v2.13 over v2.61. I'm curious though, shouldn't Ubuntu be smart enough to know that newer versions gets priority over older ones? And shouldn't it be smart enough to tell me that I don't need it.

And lastly, I found out Opera 9.23 doesn't work with flashplugin-nonfree (v9). It seems that the said plugin only works with GTK browsers like Firefox and SeaMonkey/IceApe. No matter what we do, it just won't load in Konqueror and Opera - both Qt browsers.

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Packaging and Testing in Ubuntu Gutsy

I've been wanting to dabble in Packaging for Ubuntu. Especially after seeing that Flock - my favorite social browser - isn't available. So I took my printed copy of Ubuntu Packaging Guide and started following the instructions there. I managed to Debianize the Hello, world! program, but it's not enough! I need Flock.

I've searched for Flock's source code but found that it's already Debianized. Too bad, but I won't give up. Especially since it's not yet avaible for Ubuntu. I'll probably work with Firefox and compare my work with the production copy. That'll get me going. Then I'll start working with Flock. I'll be using Debian's copy for comparison. Well, I'll get right on with it once I'm done with Igobot, Irssi, and Vim. Probably after a day or two.

So for those who want to contribute by Packaging applications, I suggest you look into this two guides:

1. The Ubuntu Packaging Guide and
2. The Debian New Maintainers' Guide

Look no further. Don't pollute your mind and waste your time with other references, manuals, and guides. These two guides are the only thing you need when starting out. Why? Because it's comprehensive and will point you to another manual When you're ready and When you need it. Focus! Just focus on these two guides.

And for those with slow Internet connection, download the packaged guides by issuing this command:

sudo aptitude install packaging-guide maint-guide

And then access them using Firefox here:

1. The Ubuntu Packaging Guide
2. The Debian New Maintainer's Guide

To prevent Dependency issues, setup a Chroot(ed) Environment. Go through the manual and package the Hello, world! program, but once you're done, set it up immediately. Trust me, you'll need it. You don't want to mess up your system now, do you? It can be accessed here:

Chroot Environment



Next up is Testing Gutsy. I've started testing out development versions of Ubuntu starting with Feisty Beta 2. With Gutsy, I installed Tribe 3. And I think I'll make it a habit from now on. I'll probably start with Tribe 2 everytime a new release is out.

Why do I want to do this? Let's face it, Ubuntu needs testers. We need you. In order to make sure that Ubuntu's final release is stable, we need Ubuntu tested on different hardware with different conditions and environments. I've used Windows, and I found that Alpha releases are reminiscent of Windows. I'm not kidding. There are even times when it's stable(r) than Windows. Point here is, I wanted to make sure that the Ubuntu you'll install on your system works. By installing development releases, I get to discover bugs which I'll be reporting, and which will get fixed before the next release.

This is how I contribute to the community. Besides, since I'm starting development work, the exposure is beneficial for me. If you're interested in helping out Gutsy, check out this forum post here. It's very informative.

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Shellshock shell, Vim, Igobot, and Irssi!

Got myself a spankin' new shell from Daniel Arbogast at http://shellshock.homeunix.net/ and I've been pretty busy setting up Igobot. It actually took me an hour to setup Dancer-IRCD and a day to setup Dancer-Services on my system (so I can test and configure Igobot without disrupting Freenode). Then another 2 days to get Igobot and the plugins right. I know, a day setting up Dancer-Services is too much, and I'm glad I found The Golden Ear which helped me out. But I still took a few more hours to set it up correctly. I'm clueless about it's authentication. And you know me, I'm not a fan of manpages.

As for Igobot, after two days of testing it on my Dancer, I'm happy to say that my new eggdrop's ready for #support-ph and #ubuntu-ph. But then again, Murphy's Law in effect. My shell won't let me run it. Keeps on saying "No config file or Error" or something like that. That's it, no other errors except that! I asked #egghelp for help but only got unhelpful replies. I checked out the forum but I didn't get answers there either. So I asked Daniel if he's had users running eggdrop - he replied that it's working fine with his users - and then asked permission if I could compile my own Eggdrop - and he said yes! (a fine guy and very helpful). So there it is, I compiled and got Eggdrop running in a matter of minutes. Didn't take me long to get it to #support-ph and #ubuntu-ph. But I changed my mind, I have to recompile it so I could bypass the 9-character limit on usernames. I killed the first one, then recompiled, and then got the 32-character limit bot!

Then I saw two Igobots on the two channels. WTF? Damn, I should've deleted my crontab since it resurrected Igobot. PS aux doesn't show, so I let it run hoping it'll get killed somehow. I ghosted it in Nickserv, but it keeps on coming back! Damn freakin' ghost! After a few minutes, me and Glitch were surprised that Igobot logged off. Boo-Yah! I got my Igobot, configured it to recognize me as its owner and configured it the Google and Weather plugin to work. Then I added voiced users (#support-ph is moderated) and Ops (Dekoy, Mangz74, Pepesmith, and Jucato for #support-ph and Jsgotanco, Zakame, Irvin, Jucato, Dous, and Ulinskie for #ubuntu-ph - that is if they'll ever need Igobot for administrative purposes) I'm done! I'll be configuring and documenting the other plugins once I have time.

Now on with Vim. Vim is Shellshock's default editor. And I gotta learn Vim. It'll be a pain in the ass, but I'm sure it's worth it. Sure, I can always Fish the file in Konqueror and edit it using Kate on my system, but I know it'll be faster if I edit it directly on the shell. Beside's it'll conserve Shellshock's system resources if I do it there. And I get to learn Vim.

Shellshock has Screen, and I've been using it for IRC purposes too. Most notably IRSSI. This way, I'm on Freenode's nine channels 24/7 - the 10th channel is reserved for Igobot, you know, admin purposes. I'm starting to like IRSSI. The split window, the plugins, and those damn aliases. I do need to figure out though how to alias /msg chanserv to /cs and /msg nickserv to /ns. heh! It's very modular and intuitive. I like it more than BitchX - which ignores flooders like chanserv and nickserv's informative help replies.

So, a toast to Shellshock. You've been very helpful to me. I'll surely donate a few bucks to help the this excellent service.

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Port Scans

I've honestly never used a firewall before in Kubuntu (or on my Xubuntu system), frankly because I don't need it. Well, at least I've never found any reason to use it. But now that my system's open to anyone (used SmartBro before that forces subscribers behind NAT), I don't want to risk a break-in, especially after being informed that Ubuntu is indeed crack-able for systems with open ports... and I've been hosting servers on my system (for learning purposes mostly- LAMP, IRCD, Jabber, Telnet, SMTP, POP3, etc. etc.).

I first installed Guardog but uninstalled it the next day since I found TSL'd SMTP connection via port 465 and/or 587 - Gmail!

I next installed FWBuilder. It's a really nice application and it did secure my system, but lacks graphical monitoring capability that'll allow me to see who's logged in to what port.

I next tried Firestarter - whoa! Really nice piece of software and it does fit my needs. I've been using it for a few days now and haven't regretted it. I'm just quite concerned that Firestarter replaces IPTables with its own script (or something), but it won't matter as long as it secures my system - and it really did. Look at the log below - it blocked port scans:



For added security, I've setup my router to only forward specific ports. I don't like DMZ so I used Virtual Server. This way, I know exactly what ports are open.

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Another Convert & Gem GL-821A Reconfiguration

Kubuntu has another convert, and his name is Cyrus Nazareno. He's sick and tired of Windows' run32dll problems and installers that keeps on failing and resuming every 10mins consuming precious system resources.

He's my kid sister's boyfriend. So he asked me for help. I laughed at his problem and suggested he use Ubuntu. But since he liked my desktop, he requested that I install Kubuntu on his machine.

So there it is. He came by our house with his CPU. I used the Recovery Disks that came with his HP system to restore Windows, then resized HDD using Knoppix - Ubuntu Live CDs aren't really equip with the tools for recovery and forensics, that's why I always download Alternate CDs.

So there it is, after 2 hours, I got Windows and Kubuntu working side by side. I gave Kubuntu 120GB of disk space, that left windows with 60GB.

After that, I downloaded Media Codecs, Flash, Java, Media Players, Firefox & Thunderbird, DVD Rippers, VLC, GTK-Gnutella, KOffice, Abiword & Gnumeric, KMyMoney, etc. etc. etc. Oh, and I also downloaded the upgrades.

After a few hours, we tested it and everything's working well. He's particularly impressed with Package Management and how everything's stored in the repository. So he packed up his CPU and went home at around 6PM.

By 6:30, he called me up and asked why he's having some weird problems with his monitor. I asked for the Manufacturer and Model Number (which is Gem GL-821A) and assisted him in reconfiguring xserver-xorg through the phone. It seems that by default, the refresh rate's at 80-85Hz and his monitor can't handle it. Reconfiguring xserver-xorg didn't work so I asked him to come over tomorrow with his CPU and Monitor and see what I can do.

Today, I got to work on his (w00t w00t) 17" Monitor and again tried to reconfigure xserver-xorg. I tried again, but this time going advanced. I tried searching Google for a User Manual because I need the Horizontal and Vertical Sync Ranges. No Luck!

But I did come across this page, it says; HKR,"MODES\1024,768",Mode1,,"30-60,50-75,+,+".

What the... Oh well, I used 30-60 and 50-75. Then started KDM.

That fixed it!

Woohoo! Kubuntu's pretty slick on this monitor - and I'll be getting me one of those soon. He brought his CPU and Monitor home after thanking me. It's been over 3 hours and he hasn't called for any problems.

Kubuntu works! Nice job Devs!

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Guarddog and Gmail

I just finished setting up Gutsy only to find out that I can't send emails via
Gmail - TLS/587. Found out it's because of Guarddog. Configured it for an
hour, got tired, and replaced it with Firestarter.

I'm now getting fond of Firestarter. Guarddog is too restrictive for me since
I've been launching and pulling out services every now and then. At least for
Firestarter, I can easily create and/or delete rules. It also features
real-time monitor on who's logged in to my PC - which has been moonlighting
as a multi-purpose server, who got blocked with what service, etc.

Maybe I'll work with Guarddog and incorporate some features I like once I'm
done with my little project. But for now, I gotta focus on my packaging
skills and Flock.

Got my 1Mbps DSL service

Ayt! Been surfing the whole day when I realized that everything seems faster. I thought it's because of my Gutsy upgrade, but when I did a speedtest, I found out that my service has indeed been upgraded.... not because of Gutsy.



It's time I get a router. I'm getting a cheap one by the way. One from TP-Link. It costs only PhP 1,000 and it's just a regular router. Nope, I don't need a Linksys or a D-Link, which costs PhP 2,000, since I'll be upgrading this soon anyway to a wireless... That is, once I have money for a PCMCIA card for my laptop and 2 PCI 802.11g's for my other desktops.

I'm currently setting up my Postfix, LAMP, QPopper, Squirrelmail, and GForge. I'll also go purchase another domain, probably umaming.com for the family. Now, I only need a fanless machine I can leave on 24/7.

Woohoo! DSL.... Good!

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PLDT, SmartBro, and a Web Server

I just got confirmation from PLDT regarding my DSL. I'll be getting my 1Mbps line in 3 weeks time.



I already have the Plan 888 which is around 88Kbps for testing purposes to see for myself if the rumors are true that PLDT DSL is unreliable. In my case, my PLDT has never suffered downtime for 3 straight months. This is the first reason why I'm switching providers and dumping SmartBro which has been kicking me off for a few hours every morning this past month.

I also need a web server, my second reason, because SmartBro just won't allow IP Passthrough or Port Forwarding. Well, actually, I already have a web server (my laptop and my PC - but my laptop's the only one accessible from the outside world) but I'm still looking for a _quiet_ server that I can leave on 24/7. It has to be efficient, not powerful, since I don't want a power hog eating up my wallet.

I have 2 more spare PC's at home, a Compaq 200Mhz with 64MB of RAM and 2 GB of HDD and a generic P3 733MHz with 384MB and 20GB HDD. But they're not quiet, and they're definitely not "power-saving". I've been using my P3 for testing purposes (mostly when testing out Ubuntu's Alpha/Beta releases) and I guess it'll remain that way. My Compaq, however, is too underpowered... Maybe if I could upgrade it's RAM but I can't locate a shop selling SIMMS. Oh well, back to the closet for you Compaq!

This piece of hardware caught my attention. It's from Mini-ITX.com and seems to fit my needs. It's silent (no fans), low-powered (can consume less than 20W of electricity), small (ITX = very small footprint), and it's powerful enough (800MHz/523MB/60GB SATA). And I get a little bit of extra, a WinTV PVR-150 TV Card. All of this for (more or less) PhP 11,000.00. Ok, I'm getting obsessed with this. It'll be my 24/7 server that'll host my Moodle, Drupal, Igobot, and a POP3-SMTP Mail server. And for my friends, an IRC server - if they want, that is. Hell, I could also use this as a Jabber server.

Damn, too many ideas... and I'm starting to get a headache!

But first things first... gotta go get a router in preparation for my DSL line! SmartBro... goodbye!

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Project List

A friend asked me "what have I been doing with my time lately". Well, I've been pretty busy with OSS stuff. Mostly on re-learning C++ and Gutsy Gibbon's testing. But here's a list:
Development
- C++
- Java
Packaging (or at least learning how to package):
- Flock Browser v0.9.0.1
- Drupal (will try to maintain this once I know how since I've been told that it seems to be abandoned)
- Moodle (same as Drupal)
Ubuntu
- Kubuntu Gutsy Testing
- BugSquad-QA stuff
- Server Team stuff
Advocacy
- still working with Our Lady of Lourdes College Foundations' Open Source Initiative.
I'm mostly into designing their network, call center classroom, and justifying costs. Will probably integrate OCW into their course as well and deliver it via Moodle. Also implement ERP into their process.
- I'll be working with a utility company in Baguio soon, mostly ERP stuff to pull up their efficiency... will give updates once I get to have a talk with the director.
- The now "almost" abandoned knightlust.com - heh!

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Amazon: Still won't ship to the Philippines

It's been over 6 months now since I last tried ordering books from Amazon.com, but I still can't. Damn, I thought they've fixed this or at least contracted a shipping company (Air 21 is preferred by most) to deliver their packages. I badly want my books. Besides, Powerbooks and National Bookstore - although sufficient for most (except National Bookstore) - lacks them books I want.

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SMTP, NNTP, and SSH

I just noticed that I can't post to Gmane, Eclipse, and Trolltech. WTF!!!
I figured it must be because my outgoing server is Gmail, which uses a
non-standard port, 587, via TLS. Ok, I may be wrong on my this, but I got it
working after setting up my outgoing to SmartBro's smtp.smartbro.net

NNTP - Solved!

I setup LAMP previously and installed a few CMS (Drupal, Joomla, Mambo,
Wordpress, e107, Coppermine, PHPFusion, MediaWiki, Geeklog, GForge, and
Joomla RC1 - yes that's still considered few), LMS (Moodle and Claroline),
Knowledgebase Script (KBPublisher, APHPKB, and DanPHPSupport), CRM (SugarCRM,
Hipergate, VTiger, Compiere, and CentricCRM), and Groupware/ERP suites
(eGroupware, PHPGroupware, TinyERP, and OrangeHRM) for personal use and
learning. But I can't fully utilize its' capabilities since it won't allow me
to send emails via Postfix. Fixed it by reconfiguring postfix and set it up
to just relay emails to smtp.smartbro.net.

SMTP - Solved!

SSH, got it working. I can now connect, login, and do stuff from a remote (and
I mean remote) location using my laptop to my main computer at home. I
configured it weeks ago, but this is the only time I got to test it.

SSH - Solved!

Oh, and I'm coming back home in 2 days. woo hoo!

Igobot

It's been a while since we've had a good (and fun) bot at #ubuntu-ph. Changes made at Spunge affected butiki, a bot by JM Ibanez based on Supybot, and thus rendered it, well, useless. I liked its Google search and RSS abilities the most, but it's been over 4(?) months since we last saw butiki.
Zakame inspired me to create a bot after he made Morphlogger from scratch using Perl. I wanted my bot to have the same functionalities as butiki so I downloaded Eggdrop and Supybot and tried to figure out how to make them work.
Well, Eggdrop proved difficult for me. I made sure that everything was configured but I just can't make it work. Needless to say, I gave up.
Then came Supybot, woo-hoo. The wizard was very friendly and the plugins abundant (that's when I figured out that butiki is a Supybot). It took me three retries (all three worked, just wanted to familiarize myself with the wizard and the three bots each with different plugins).

Igobot has all the plugins Supybot came with, the only plugin I can't configure is Google, which required a Web Services Certificate. Too bad they closed down WS Cert registration since they replaced it with Web APIS from Google Code.

Kankana-ey has every plugins except Google, Factoids, Games, and MoobotFactoids. Again, I'm not satisfied, that's why I created another.

Igorot-bot, my third creation, has the plugins I know I'll personally need. Admin, Channel, ChannelLogger, ChannelStats, Config, Dict, Factoids, Games, Herald, Internet, Karma, Math, Misc, Note, Owner, Praise, RSS, Seen, Todo, User, Utilities, and Web. It's lean and does it's job well.

After a few hours configuring and testing Igorot-bot on my locally-hosted Dancer IRC server, I decided - with a smile on my face - that , and hopefully, what #Ubuntu-PH needed. I ran it and tested it out. Nice!



After 2 hours, I started to have doubts as to whether Igorot-bot is a nice name for an IRC bot. I first changed it to Ibaloi, and then Kiangan, and finally chose Igobot... the first bot-name I came up with. It represents my heritage and my people's pride. It will suffice, at least for now. If not, I'll just add another plugin and optimize its code.

Another dilemma to tackle, I regularly boot from Xubuntu Gutsy to Kubuntu Feisty to Kubuntu Gutsy... I needed a server. My laptop, which I've been using as a basic web/file/smtp/pop3 server should fit my needs, _but_ it runs hot and I have to turn it off for 2 hours every day to cool it down. As for my P3 and P1 machines, they're too noisy and like to keep them in an 'off' state until I need them for testing. I should invest in a liquid-cooling solution or a bigger fan.

The only thing I can think of right now is a shell account from servers willing to host benign IRC bots. I'll be spending the next few hours looking for one.

And for you "#Ubuntu-PH-ers", here's a few commands you can use with igobot.

List Available Plugins: !list
List Plugin's Functionality: !list <plugin>

Registration: !register <name> <password>
Identify Yourself: /msg igobot identify <name> <password>
Channel Statistics: !channelstats
User Statistics: !stats <name>

Dictionary: !dict <word>

Learn Facts: !learn <key> as <value>
Fact: !<key>
Forget Fact: !forget <key>
What Is: !whatis <key>

Herald: !herald add <nick> <message>
Remove Herald: !herald remove <nick>

Calculate: !calc <math expression>
Convert: !convert <number> <unit> to <another unit>
Set Unit: !unit <type>

Tell: !tell <nick> <message>
Send Note: !send <recipient> <message>
View Unread Notes: !note list
View Note: !note <note id>

Add Praise: !praise add <text>
Give Praise: !praise <praise id> <nick> for <reason>

Add RSS: !rss add <name of service> <feed url>
View Announcement: !rss announce
Announce Service to current channel: !rss announce <name of service>
Get RSS Feed: !rss rss <name of service or Feed URL> <number of feeds>
Remove RSS: !rss remove <name of service>

Seen: !seen <nick>

Add Todo: !todo add <text>
Add Todo with Priority: !todo add --priority=<number> <text>
Remove Todo: !todo remove <task id>
Set Todo Priority: !setpriority <task id> <number>
View Todo List: !todo
View Specific Task: !todo <task id>

Eightball Game: !eightball <question>
Coin Toss Game: !coin
Russian Roulette: !roulette
Dice Game: !dice <number of dice>d<number of sides per dice>
Monologue: !monologue

And of course, if you want details, you can visit Supybot's plugins documentation page.

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Solution to my Spam - Gmane Newsgroups

Every single day I receive around 1,000 emails... nah, I'm not that popular. It's mostly emails from the mailing lists I signed up with. The bulk of my emails comes from the Linux Kernel Mailing List (around 45%), 10% from Ubuntu, 10% from KDE, 10% from Anjuta/Gambas/KDevelop/Qt/Mono lists, and 13% from the other lists (including some websites). So, I really only need around 2% of them..... those are the personal emails.

The other day, I think I found my answer.... Gmane. Gmane archives all posts and replies and makes it available via NNTP... newsgroups. And guess what, you can reply from there too. Heh, now this is the answer to my spam problem.

This is my dillema, I need all those posts, but I don't want them to be 'that' intrusive. Ok, I can always create another Gmail account and register it, this way I don't get 'spammed' at by the list. That's the problem, my knightlust account is my primary email address, and I want every single one of 'em on that account! Now I've been using Kontact/Kmail, even on my Xubuntu... and every single one of my emails are filtered. Filters would solve my problem right? Nope, 'coz I still have to download every single one of my emails. Gmane actually solved my problems. Gmane archives every single posts, which I can access via Thunderbird, which means I don't miss anything. And the way newsgroups work, I can (and I just did) set it up to only download Headers... conserving 60% of my bandwidth. So now, I only download a message or post only when I click on the post itself. No need to download 1000 emails.

I just disabled Global Email Delivery from Ubuntu, and KDE, Xfce, etc. etc. etc. would follow suit. Everything else but Vger 'coz I don't think it'll allow me to disable email delivery, and unless I find an answer to that, I guess I'll continue receiving LKML.

So now, everything's setup on my Thunderbird, I'l be using KNode soon once I figure out how to disable email delivery on Vger, and everything works just the way I want it to work. I almost forgot, I said that Gmane archives the list.... so that means I have access to all the posts as far back as 10 years ago.

Ahhh, the power of open source.

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