From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Received: from pigeon.gentoo.org ([208.92.234.80] helo=lists.gentoo.org) by finch.gentoo.org with esmtp (Exim 4.60) (envelope-from ) id 1QPmKz-000706-Pw for garchives@archives.gentoo.org; Fri, 27 May 2011 01:59:42 +0000 Received: from pigeon.gentoo.org (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by pigeon.gentoo.org (Postfix) with SMTP id 6EB791C031; Fri, 27 May 2011 01:57:57 +0000 (UTC) Received: from mail-wy0-f181.google.com (mail-wy0-f181.google.com [74.125.82.181]) by pigeon.gentoo.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 079731C031 for ; Fri, 27 May 2011 01:57:51 +0000 (UTC) Received: by wyi11 with SMTP id 11so1256673wyi.40 for ; Thu, 26 May 2011 18:57:46 -0700 (PDT) DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=gmail.com; s=gamma; h=domainkey-signature:mime-version:in-reply-to:references:from:date :message-id:subject:to:content-type; bh=Rm5hjlTLePJ0bP1K8DqlCyGZMVoMz3kKWpw+wAzUSfc=; b=whJqZSm6V0l7e/9xT8C4M3dUGvZ1KlVqfr5mhrH+O9Syamx9APNf2mVQWtFGYYWMIL HxYrgaTHnT12BjNpA8So++4fcffUP5QcMZ6NQjvNKU6ultd5x6PJxzsMmf94ej4uAjxQ qSQhwEcOIW8T8gFgP7mk/l5arVNx6ZMnxd1Rw= DomainKey-Signature: a=rsa-sha1; c=nofws; d=gmail.com; s=gamma; h=mime-version:in-reply-to:references:from:date:message-id:subject:to :content-type; b=MGFfxBxq6WqQ5mmAXlgmY0Ehfae9bXqvi+5AyNqCtyHg5ajDmuPeNXKyFrA3/Nm6FR dNHUPQ31x8Ydt4aG30G5LeCF0coXMpJeu+Icmp46q7Hkt/BEwqiA1DolL4dssudXqBnE 0S+HdUOIr368UGq7BLueUmfm/L2X/DyGcP2Hw= Received: by 10.227.197.83 with SMTP id ej19mr1446764wbb.105.1306461466073; Thu, 26 May 2011 18:57:46 -0700 (PDT) Precedence: bulk List-Post: List-Help: List-Unsubscribe: List-Subscribe: List-Id: Gentoo Linux mail X-BeenThere: gentoo-user@lists.gentoo.org Reply-to: gentoo-user@lists.gentoo.org MIME-Version: 1.0 Received: by 10.227.21.165 with HTTP; Thu, 26 May 2011 18:57:26 -0700 (PDT) In-Reply-To: References: From: Mark Shields Date: Thu, 26 May 2011 20:57:26 -0500 Message-ID: Subject: Re: [gentoo-user] Goodbye, Gentoo To: gentoo-user@lists.gentoo.org Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary=0015174bf018991c6c04a438432e X-Archives-Salt: X-Archives-Hash: b8a4518323a3113a464bbabb12f8b03a --0015174bf018991c6c04a438432e Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 On Thu, May 26, 2011 at 6:28 PM, Kevin O'Gorman wrote: > It looks like it's time to take Gentoo off of my main machine. I feel a > little sad about it, or I'd just quietly go away. > > A few months ago, an update made the machine headless -- well, it could no > longer bring up X but I could use the console-mode for admin, and log in via > SSH from my laptop and run GUI programs. I was busy at the time, first > deciding and then implementing my retirement, so I let it go. > > Now, a couple of months into my retirement, I'm trying to fix things up, > and the latest Gentoo live disk cannot talk to my monitor at all. Whatever > it's trying is unacceptable to the HD monitor I've had on there for a year, > and I can't even run the consoles. The video card is an ATI Rage XL on the > motherboard. Like the rest of the machine, it's vintage 2000, so maybe > support got dropped. But I'm not inclined to drop the machine -- it was the > ballyhooed thing in Linux Journal in 2002 when I finished my PHD, so I put > together these pieces: > * Two XEON chips. I didn't know it right away but that means 4 cores. > They are old Pentium IV-based 32-bit chips. I got the slowest still being > made, so the clock speed is 1.6 GHz. On 4 cores, it's not bad at all. > * 2GB of DDR ECC memory > * about a dozen hard drives (some old, but mostly 500GB - 2TB Sata drives), > I feel it's still worthy of respect. Some of these are in EZ-Dock docking > stations and are used for rotating backups (including off-site). The main > directories are on hardware RAID 1 so I have ongoing redundancy. > * a Smart UPS 1500 for everything except the laser printer. > > So, since I am familiar with Ubuntu from work, and have it on a couple of > laptops, I'm installing from the Ubuntu 11.04 live disk (video is just > fine). > > The real headache is all the stuff I'm going to have to port. > > 1) Apache and dynamic (Python CGI) web site. > 2) Postfix > 3) About a dozen accounts that just do wget(1) data gathering triggered by > the cron daemon. > 4) DNS (I run my own domain on a commercial DSL account) > 5) NTP client and server > 6) Whatever else I forgot I set up over the years. > > My original reason for using Gentoo is that this machine was pretty exotic > when I bought it, and I wanted to be able to tweak the compiler to get the > most out of it. I can still do that for specific applications I'm working > on, but otherwise it's really a non-issue now. I have gotten pretty tired > of updates that take over 48 hours to compile, and the occasional mess-up > that once or twice led me to rebuild with empty-tree and took a week or so. > > > So I guess I shouldn't complain (and I'm not). I'm just not in the target > market for Gentoo any more. It was fun, though. > -- > Kevin O'Gorman, PhD > > You let a small problem like the latest live cd not booting your system scare you away? Have you tried using an older live cd? If it's a video issue, maybe detecting your monitor wrong, how about turning on the framebuffer (there's an option for that)? It's doable man, don't give up. --0015174bf018991c6c04a438432e Content-Type: text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
On Thu, May 26, 2011 at 6:28 PM, Kevin O'Gor= man <kogorman@gm= ail.com> wrote:
It looks like it's time to take Gentoo off of my main machine.=A0 I fee= l a little sad about it, or I'd just quietly go away.

A few mont= hs ago, an update made the machine headless -- well, it could no longer bri= ng up X but I could use the console-mode for admin, and log in via SSH from= my laptop and run GUI programs.=A0 I was busy at the time, first deciding = and then implementing my retirement, so I let it go.

Now, a couple of months into my retirement, I'm trying to fix thing= s up, and the latest Gentoo live disk cannot talk to my monitor at all.=A0 = Whatever it's trying is unacceptable to the HD monitor I've had on = there for a year, and I can't even run the consoles.=A0 The video card = is an ATI Rage XL on the motherboard.=A0 Like the rest of the machine, it&#= 39;s vintage 2000, so maybe support got dropped.=A0 But I'm not incline= d to drop the machine -- it was the ballyhooed thing in Linux Journal in 20= 02 when I finished my PHD, so I put together these pieces:
* Two XEON chips.=A0 I didn't know it right away but that means 4 cores= .=A0 They are old Pentium IV-based 32-bit chips.=A0 I got the slowest still= being made, so the clock speed is 1.6 GHz.=A0 On 4 cores, it's not bad= at all.
*=A0 2GB of DDR ECC memory
* about a dozen hard drives (some old, but mo= stly 500GB - 2TB Sata drives), I feel it's still worthy of respect.=A0 = Some of these are in EZ-Dock docking stations and are used for rotating bac= kups (including off-site).=A0 The main directories are on hardware RAID 1 s= o I have ongoing redundancy.
* a Smart UPS 1500 for everything except the laser printer.

So, sinc= e I am familiar with Ubuntu from work, and have it on a couple of laptops, = I'm installing from the Ubuntu 11.04 live disk (video is just fine).
The real headache is all the stuff I'm going to have to port.
1) Apache and dynamic (Python CGI) web site.
2) Postfix
3) About a = dozen accounts that just do wget(1) data gathering triggered by the cron da= emon.
4) DNS (I run my own domain on a commercial DSL account)
5) NTP client a= nd server
6) Whatever else I forgot I set up over the years.

My original reason for using Gentoo is that this machine was pret= ty exotic when I bought it, and I wanted to be able to tweak the compiler t= o get the most out of it.=A0 I can still do that for specific applications = I'm working on, but otherwise it's really a non-issue now.=A0 I hav= e gotten pretty tired of updates that take over 48 hours to compile, and th= e occasional mess-up that once or twice led me to rebuild with empty-tree a= nd took a week or so.=A0

So I guess I shouldn't complain (and I'm not).=A0 I'm just = not in the target market for Gentoo any more.=A0 It was fun, though.
--
Kevin O'Gorman, PhD



You let a small problem l= ike the latest live cd not booting your system scare you away?

Have = you tried using an older live cd? =A0If it's a video issue, maybe detec= ting your monitor wrong, how about turning on the framebuffer (there's = an option for that)?

It's doable man, don't give up.
--0015174bf018991c6c04a438432e--