Re: [VANILLA-LIST:2532] Why are we packaging?

[Bob Tanner <tanner@real-time.com>]

Quoting James Cameron (quozl@us.netrek.org):
> - newstartd -> netrekd ... needs to be done, and I have probably chosen
> a wrong way to go about it.  I figured it was easy just to add a
> symbolic link from netrekd to newstartd in the LIBDIR.  Although that
> works, it needs to be in the PATH of the shell that starts it unless I
> can figure out a way to change the output of ps.  Exactly how we
> implement this is probably irrelevant, so long as;

Do you want it in the path so the games user can just type "netrekd"?
Otherwise I do not understand why it is important to have it in the path.
Using the daemon function and not the newly created daemon_user function,
allows you to get the binary from any path and run it.

> 	*  /etc/rc.d/init.d/netrekd is present and works properly,

I need to alter this to work with the pre-distributed set of keys (as
discussed below). Otherwise this is working now.

> 	*  ps shows netrekd as the process name.

ps shows the process running as "netrekd", if you start the server via the rc
scripts.

> - starting server before initial key load ... we should distribute a
> baseline set of keys with the server kit.  We should not require the
> user to be connected to the net at the time they start their at-home
> practice server to try the game out with.  I want them to just type "rpm
> -i Vanilla*" and off it will go.  Remember that since we also intend to
> package a client at the same time, that client's keys must be in what we
> distribute.

I'll make the changes to the rc scripts.

> - logging ... as I said earlier, is a difficult one.  Our naming
> currently matches the .tar.gz packaging.  Logging to /var/log/netrek/*
> is more sensible for a distribution specific packaging.  We should
> probably do better to fix this by adjusting the .tar.gz packaging to log
> to ${prefix}/var/log/, and make a "proper" tree with bin, and lib,
> within our current "LIBDIR".  Crossfire did this recently.

For the interim, I have made changes to symlink all the log files that default
to the LIBDIR to /var/log/netrek. I am still perfecting a couple of things,
but I think I'll have it completed tonight.

> - how do you change what "ps" sees about your process?

In the %post section, I symlink /usr/bin/netrekd to
/usr/games/netrek/newstartd. The rc scripts then run /usr/bin/netrekd.

> - can anybody else who uses any of the Linux distributions suggest any
> other credibility increasing changes we can make?

I went to the Redhat Revolution tour last night and they talked about GNOME
and how ISV use GNOME to help users use their applications. I do not know if
anyone has used GNOME, but I have a couple of ideas.

I think we should add gum and netrek features to the GNOME panel (which is
like the Windows task bar). A pretty icon for gum on the GNOME panel might be
nice as well as some icons for the various clients. 

Also, stick the gum and the clients under the GNOME button (similar to the 
start button on windows) in Games->Action->Netrek.

GNOME also has online help, tool tips, etc. Using gtk, you can help user out
with tool time and context help.

Finally, there is a really nice system stats applet (that is what GNOME calls
programs that run in the task bar) for GNOME. Very nice 2D graphs of CPU,
netowrk I/O, disk space, etc. I think something like the "biff" program for
netrek as a GNOME applet would be cool. Something queue counts, Tmode status,
etc. Click on it and xsg comes up of something like that.

Just my thoughts.


-- 
Bob Tanner <tanner@real-time.com>       | Phone : (612)943-8700
http://www.real-time.com                | Fax   : (612)943-8500
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