Virtual OS/2 International Consumer Education
VOICE-Homepage: http://de.os2voice.org
April 2004

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March 13

WPS-Wizard V0.5.1

"WPS-Wizard V0.5.1. free WPS classes to add different custom menus to any filesystem object, info area and toolbars to folders. REXX interface to the WPS and much more.

WPS-Wizard adds configurable context menus to every filesystem object of your system. You may have different menus for every class in addition to a set of standard menu items. Configuration is done using drag and drop. Freely programmable object fly over help, folder toolbars and folder info area. Change the toolbar using your mouse and drag and drop. Gadgets for displaying information on the desktop graphically or as text. These gadgets are small and easy to create REXX scripts. Image files are shown as their icon when the CW-MM classes are installed. Bar showing free space on drive icons. A REXX interface is provided which gives access to the WPS from user scripts. Modify functions of WPS classes using REXX (similar to subclassing). Help and tutorial included."

Developed by Chris Wohlgemuth. There are English and German versions available.

Operating System/Version: Warp 4 and above or eCS
Additional requirements: EMX runtime libraries 0.9d fix 4

Web site: http://www.os2world.com/cdwriting/
Incoming English: http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/pub/incoming/wpswizard-0_5_1-eng.zip
Incoming German:http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/pub/incoming/wpswizard-0_5_1-ger.zip
Search: http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/cgi-bin/h-search?key=wpswizard-0_5_1


March 13

rdesktop 1.3.1

I have uploaded an updated rdesktop client to hobbes.
Incoming: http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/pub/incoming/rdsktp1-3-1.zip
Search: http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/cgi-bin/h-search?key=rdsktp1-3-1.zip

rdesktop is a windows terminal server client. "OS/2 port of rdesktop, a free client for the RDP protocol. This version is now free for (non-)commercial use and can emulate a Windows 2000 Professional CAL license. rdesktp2 ws actually 1.2 and this is 1.3.1"

I wanted the updates that 1.3.1 for rdesktop gave for clipboard use over the 1.2 version. I had to do very little here as I just built on Jacco de Leeuw's work. I had 3 rejects I had to reconcile in the patch and one addition. Unfortunately I don't know how to create a patch so I am including the sources I updated. I also included the reject files so the differences from the patches can be found. The piece I added was ffs() in xwin.c I found the code through a Google search and added a prototype based on the way the code seemed to be being used and the code itself.

This was built using Xfree86 4.4 libs so I don't know if it will run on any previous builds of Xfree as I don't have anything older installed and don't have the inclination to try to get the older versions running.

The source was obtained at: http://www.rdesktop.org http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/rdesktop/rdesktop-1.3.1.tar.gz?download This apparently included Jacco's patches because when I ran configure the reject files were created and I saw that he had submitted the patches. The configure file had a which command that I couldn't find an OS/2 equivalent so I edited it to just report gcc. I then manually edited the makeconf file so I included it, not really changed from Jacco's. I make no promises to the suitability of this software no guarantees it will work on your system nor do I promise it won't blow it up or cause you to get warts. In other words, use at your own risk.

Andy

P.S. I was also hoping it would work better with Hoblink than 1.2.0 did but whenever I drag it or drag something over it the screen area goes black just as 1.2 did. Version 1.1 did not do this but it gives me alot of broken pipes when connecting to my winserver that this version doesn't.


March 13

OS/2 ssh client and MC under FreeBSD

Hi!

There is a bug in ssh client - fresh mc under FreeBSD 4.6 breaks os/2 ssh client sending some broken esc sequence to it. Here is the hotfix for that problem : ftp://ftp.os2.kiev.ua/openssh/ssh.zip


March 12

Call for articles

Have some new hardware or software working under OS/2 or eComStation? Why don't you tell the rest of the community about how well (or not) it works? Have an opinion about something related to OS/2, let's hear it. Are you doing something really useful under OS/2? Then how about a step-by-step How-To article so others can learn how to do it also? Our small user community relies heavily on all our users to share their knowledge so we can all continue to learn and enjoy our platform of choice.

So if you have an idea for an article please send it to:

editor@os2voice.org for the VOICE Newsletter

or

os2editor@yahoo.ca for OS/2eZine.

Without articles we can't continue to serve our readers, so please consider finding some time to do some writing. Or consider helping with editing articles, or translating articles (The VOICE Newsletter always needs German/English editors/translators, and is currently investigating the possibility of both Russian and Spanish language editions).

For information on writing articles for the VOICE Newsletter, see the article submission guidlines http://www.os2voice.org/newsletter_submission.html and for OS/2eZine see the Pressroom page http://www.os2ezine.com/pressroom.html


March 12

CDS (developer of BackAgain/2) Acquired

http://www.cds-inc.com/new/030104.html

"IntraDyn Acquires Software Firm CDS Strategic Acquisition Follows IntraDyn's Successful Launch of RocketVault? Data Backup Appliance

Edina, MN and Woodbury, MN (March 1, 2004) IntraDyn Inc. and Computer Data Strategies Inc. (CDS) today announced that they have completed an agreement under which IntraDyn has acquired key assets of CDS.

The acquisition adds CDS' well-established data backup software - Back Again II? - to IntraDyn's existing product line for small to midsized businesses (SMBs). The CDS software will now be marketed by IntraDyn as a stand-alone offering, and also integrated into IntraDyn's RocketVault? data backup and archiving appliances. Most significantly, CDS's Microsoft Exchange Server and SQL Server data protection capabilities will further enhance IntraDyn's products, extending the market for them."


March 11

InnoTek Runtime for OS/2 1.07 Build 14

http://www.innotek.de/products/innowin/

"InnoTek Runtime for OS/2

The InnoTek Runtime for OS/2 is a software runtime environment used by several InnoTek Products which are based on Win32 applications. The use of a common runtime as opposed to shipping custom runtimes with each products reduces the memory footprint and improves application interoperability.

InnoTek products based on the InnoTek Runtime for OS/2 will indicate this requirements. In general, the latest version available of the InnoTek Runtime for OS/2 should be used."

2004-03-11

InnoTek Runtime for OS/2 1.07 (Build 14) available.
To download, click on the following link:
InnoTek Runtime for OS/2 1.07 Build 14 (2MB)
http://download.innotek.de/innowin/107b14/InnoTekRuntime_107b14.exe

7. List of Changes
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2004-03-11: 1.07 (Build 14)

- fixed problems with long OS/2 printer names

- fixed a hang situation

- maintenance fixes


March 10

HtmlBook v. 0.11

HtmlBook groups documentation made up by multiple html files, images and other files into a unique file which can then be viewed by any html viewer. PM program, drag & drop support."

Runs on: OS/2 Warp 3, 4, MCP, eCS
Requires: ZIP.EXE and UNZIP.EXE installed in a %PATH% directory
Contact: Alessandro Cantatore
Program source: http://xoomer.virgilio.it/acantato

Hobbes Incoming: http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/pub/incoming/htmlbook011.zip
Hobbes Search: http://xoomer.virgilio.it/acantato


March 10

DrBMW - 'Backup My Way, 2nd. Edition v1.0'

"DrBMW - 'Backup My Way, 2nd. Edition' Provides: a PM frontend for your custom backup commands. Backup commands are stored in a configuration file, and through the program interface, the user selected source and target drive letters are merged into the backup commands. A Rexx program is generated to perform the backup. The Rexx program can be scheduled to run at a specific time, or can be run immediately. Another Rexx program to backup another drive can be created and 'stacked' for execution when the previous backup completes. A history of backups is generated which shows date, time, commands used, and elapsed time for the backup. File level details of a backup are available until the drive is again backed up. A separate window shows all drives on the system, with file capacities and file systems used by the drive. Real and virtual drives are available for DrBMW to use as source or target drives."

Hobbes: http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/pub/incoming/drbmw-1.0.0.zip
Hobbes Search: http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/cgi-bin/h-search?key=drbmw-1.0.0.zip

Runs on: OS/2 version 4.5
Requires: RexxLib, RexxIni
Contact: Stan Pokorney


March 10

new JFS released on IBM Testcase

For those of you who aren't following the "trap in JFS" thread but who are using JFS, it's worth noting that you can (for now) download ftp://tes tcase.boulder.ibm.com/ps/fromibm/os2/jfs20040308.zip as of yesterday. This has all the currently-integrated JFS fixes, including at least two trap 3 and two trap e fixes that are not in the latest fixpack (I think).

[Moderator note: As always items posted on IBM'S Testcase FTP site are transient, remaining there only for 3 days or so. If you have comments on this please post them to the comp.os.os2.bugs Usenet group so the appropriate people can see them. If you have any qualms about using unofficial builds, then don't use this. Also be sure to back up any modules before replacing them, and don't use Testcase files on production systems without first testing them if at all.

FInally here is the Readme from this new JFS package:

This JFS has all the tested fixes as of 2004/03/08. Since ACP2, that includes (but may not be limited to):
APAR:
PJ29386 trap 0003 in jfs_write doing a write to a directory
PJ29664 trap 000e trying to open a filename containg a wildcard (* or ?)
PJ29204 trap 0003 in jfs_rele
PJ29665 trap 000e running large file stress test
NO APAR:
- Add bldlevel strings to jfs.ifs

And as always a big thanks to Scott G. for making these fixes known to us non-corporate users of the best PC operating system around.]


March 09

ePDF v.2b12
new: + support for encrypted PDFs (req. GhostScript 8.14 or higher) + new PDF startup features: fit to page, width or height + hotkeys for the properties note book pages + user interface is now DragText compatible + latest RXU.DLL added

http://www.subsys.de/ePDF/

ePDF is a PM tool for PostScript to PDF conversion, which uses GhostScript as back-end. With ePDF you are able to create PDF files with user definable document informations and bookmarks from any application which supports printing.


March 09

SciTech SNAP Graphics/se Version 2.1.7, build 430

SciTech SNAP/SE General Availability Release GM17, (SciTech Version 2.1.7, build 430), IBM Build Level f.098, released by IBM on March 4 on IBM DDPakOnline http://www7.software.ibm.com/2bcprod.nsf/186d96ebef23e6438625689c007ac1ef/c1673d5ade9043a587256cfe00535715?OpenDocument which requires an IBM Software Choice subscription. Also now available on http://www.ecomstation.com for registered eCS users.

The SciTech System Neutral Access Protocol (SNAP) Graphics for OS/2 IBM Special Edition (a.k.a. SNAP Graphics/se) is a set of graphic adapter device drivers (GRADD) supporting a variety of chip sets from the leading chip set manufacturers. SNAP Graphics/se is the new compatible replacement for previous versions of SciTech Display Doctor for OS/2 IBM Special Edition (SDD/se). SNAP Graphics/se supports many video features, including:

* CRT Resolutions of 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x1024, 1600x1200, 2048x1536, plus user-specified custom modes
* All LCD (Flat Panel) Resolutions supported by the hardware
* 16:9 HDTV-like Resolutions, including 848x480, 1072x600, 1280x720, 1360x768, 1600x900, 1800x1012, 1920x1080, 2048x1152
* Support for all color depths
* Unlimited Refresh Rates
* DDC Plug and Play monitor detection
* Full hardware 2D acceleration
* Hardware cursor
* Limited Feature support, including Zooming, TV Out, and Multi-Head (on selected graphic chip sets)

Recent additions include:

* GM17:
o ATI Radeon 9100
o ATI Mobility Radeon 9600
o Matrox MGA-P650
o NVIDIA GeForce4 Ti 4200 8x
o S3 ProSavage DDR (VIA KM266)
* GM16:

o ATI Radeon 9200
o NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200

* GM15:

o ATI Radeon 9000 Pro
o NVIDIA GeForce4 MX440 8X

* GM14:

o Intel i865 Springdale-G


March 08

Complete set of OS/2 Magazines -- free

Alan Zeichick, who was the editor in chief of OS/2 Magazine, is reducing the number of magazines he has stuffed into his storage shed. (Why keep three copies of each magazine, he figured. Why not two?)

As a result, Alan has a complete set of OS/2 Magazines, in pristine condition, available for the taking. He's told me that he's willing to ship it to anybody that gives him a FedEx number (or, second choice, Airborne)... and if he doesn't get any takers, it'll head out to the recyling bin.

Initially he wanted to know if I wanted the magazines, but I already have a full set of my own. So I will forward to Alan the message from the FIRST PERSON who gives me a mailing address (in North America, please) with a Fed Ex account number (or Airborne account number). If you want to estimate your shipping cost, the package will probably be a "full sized FedEx box," Alan says -- what were there, 30 or 40 issues? -- so FedEx Ground is probably the sensible choice to make. If you're in the Bay Area, you can probably arrange to pick them up personally; he's in San Bruno.

Contact me at esther@bitranch.com. If you're the "lucky winner," I'll let you know. And if you reply too late, I'll let you know that, too.

Esther Schindler


March 08

Tim's Warped Bargains: Brother Color Laser Printer

Dear Bargain Hunters,

If you've been reading Tim's Warped Bargains, you probably know by now that I keep a close eye on prices for color laser printers. My idea of the perfect printer starts with eComStation and OS/2 Warp compatibility (of course), then compatibility with other operating systems (especially Linux), then low consumables costs, then features/functions/capabilities, and finally the price of the printer itself. On the feature/function front I like having both USB and parallel connectors (with bonus points for ethernet) and an automatic duplexer. I also like having a small printer that handles at least a half package of paper (250 sheets), preferably a full package.

Well, I've found a pretty good deal to pass along which hits just about all of these marks with the exception of the automatic duplexer. It's the Brother HL-2600CN.

- Color laser printer
- 250 sheet paper input capacity
- Optional automatic duplexer (costs extra)
- Postscript, PCL, Epson FX, and HPGL print languages (wow!)
- parallel, USB, and ethernet connectors
- reasonable consumables costs (but do your own math!)
- reasonable size/weight as these printers go

This model is not explicitly listed at the OS/2 Device Driver Pak web site, but no worries. Just pick something close from the LaserJet or Postscript driver. Heck, you can even print from your old DOS application that outputs Epson FX protocol!

TheNerds.Net has this printer listed for $665.91 plus $28.97 shipping. No rebates or coupons to worry about.

Here are some other models I like, although their prices don't look quite as attractive at the moment:

Panasonic KX-CL500
Hewlett-Packard LaserJet 2500L (or any 2500 series)
Minolta-QMS Magicolor 2350EN
Okidata C5300n
almost anything from IBM (but I'm biased :-))

The Panasonic and Minolta have rebates right now, but even that doesn't get the price competitive with the Brother model.

There are some cheaper printers, notably the Minolta-QMS 2200 and 2300 series. Please avoid those (as well as the Okidata C5100n and HP 1500L). They don't support industry-standard printer datastreams like PCL and Postscript. Kudos to Brother for doing such a great job in that department. I'd much rather have a factory refurbished HP LaserJet 2500L than a new Minolta 2200 or 2300. (And rotten eggs to PC Magazine, PC World, CNet, Ziff-Davis, etc. for totally ignoring the printer datastreams in its reviews. Guys/gals, what are you smoking? It matters, even for Windows-only. What happens when the printer manufacturer decides they're not going to write a driver for, say, Windows 2005? The proprietary drivers are also more likely to be buggy and hog CPU. I thought you guys/gals are supposed to be pro-consumer? That's not the only problem with your printer reviews, but it's a big one.)

If you do find a laser printer you like that doesn't have an ethernet port, I wouldn't worry too much. You can find lots of parallel-to-ethernet (and even some USB-to-ethernet) print servers at fairly reasonable prices. The former fall below $50 right now, while the latter start below $100.

Finally, when you do shop, here are some places I like to check for prices: eBay (hard to find deals, but sometimes you can), FatWallet.com (and FatCash.com), rebateshq.com (great source for current rebates), linuxprinting.org (pretty good information on Postscript and PCL capabilities for many printers), Froogle (froogle.google.com) and other price comparison web sites such as shopping.yahoo.com, and the manufacturer web sites of course.

Happy shopping!

P.S. Please don't e-mail for support. I'm not very good at it. The comp.os.os2.* newsgroups are much better. Thanks.


March 07

LDBkup -- Large Drive Disk Backup

ANNOUNCING LDBkup - Large Drive Backup
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FINALLY, there is a simple backup program that SMASHES the 2GB barrier! LDBkup will back up an 80 GB volume as easily as a 1 G partition.

Although this version of LDBkup is a first-release product, with updates planned at regular intervals, it already has a surprising number of powerful features:

1) LDBkup is a disk backup, (as opposed to a tape backup) program. This provides better speed, more flexibility, and lower operational cost.

2) LDBkup supports backing up to a local volume as well as a remote (networked) volume on a peer-to-peer LAN.

3) LDBkup permits specifying the archive volume as a UNC specification (e.g. \\Remote\DNAME ) as well as a drive letter. This provides additional flexibility in setting up the backup.

4) LDBkup automatically handles backing up volumes spanned over multiple partitions or even drives!

5) LDBkup supports FULL and DIFFERENTIAL backups, automatically handling archive bits in the traditional fashion.

6) LDBkup supports backing as many as 24 logical drives, specified by drive letters, in a single session!

7) LDBkup utilizes the ultra-high compression scheme developed by Eugene Roshal for the RAR (copyright) archiver.

8) LDbkup utilizes RAR and its unique drive-spanning feature to do the actual backup. However LDBkup has been considerably enhanced in order to make it easier to use, to provide differential backup, archive bit handling, and several other features.

9) LDBkup creates both log and error files on disk. Errors are also displayed on the screen for the user's convenience.

10) Best of all, LDBkup is free! However an email would be appreciated if you find the program useful.

REQUIREMENTS

eComStation 1.1 (Warp 4, with fixpaks 15 and 16, or eCS 1.0x should work as well, but I have not tested LDBkup on these platforms). Note that if you want to use LVM volumes on Warp 4 to get partition spanning, you will need to install the LVM package.

You should install the latest LVM, JFS, TCP/IP, and peer fixpaks.

Warp 3 and lower systems will probably cause LDBkup grief because of their limited network support, and so are not supported.

A fast processor, preferably > 1GHz, to handle the high compression rate. LDBkup will run, however, with any AMD Athlon/Duron-compatible processor; it will just take longer. :-)

A drive supporting long filenames (HPFS or JFS) to hold the archives.

As mentioned previously this is a first release version, and I have already planned some enhancements. However if this program becomes sufficiently popular, I may add still more enhancements according to your suggestions.

So try it out; let me know if you like it, and how I can make it more useful to you. Note that in order to run LDBkup you need to download and install RAR. If you find yourself using RAR regularly, you should register it. :-)

To download RAR, go to: http://www.rarlab.com/rar/rarx330.exe

To download LDBkup, go to: http://www.warpdoctor.org/walter.metcalf/ldbkup.zip

I plan to upload LDBkup to Hobbes in the next few days.



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