Debian Weekly News - November 28th, 2006
Welcome to this year's 41st issue of DWN, the newsletter for the Debian community. Due to unfortunate circumstances the weekly newsletter stopped being released weekly and will only be finalised when enough people have contributed. Thanks to Sebastian Feltel for nearly writing this issue alone. Bill Allombert began to evaluate package set upgrades from sarge to etch to find out how smooth the upgrade goes.
GNOME 2.14 in Etch. Jordi Mallach announced that the Debian GNOME team has decided to ship GNOME 2.14 with the upcoming etch release. Due to several problems with the latest version 2.16 they prefer the stabilised and well tested version 2.14 to be shipped with etch rather than an relative new GNOME 2.16 for which backports shall be provided.
Debian Conference 7. Moray Allan announced that the next DebConf will take place from June 17th to June 23rd in Edinburgh, United Kingdom. Just before the conference there will be a DebCamp starting on the 10th of June where Debian developers are invited to work together on several Debian-related projects. On the 16th of June a DebianDay is scheduled which is mainly targeted at the Debian users. All people whether Debian developers or Debian users are welcome to attend.
First Debian Installer Release Candidate. Frans Pop announced the first release candidate of the debian-installer for etch. After a long time of development this release candidate includes a lot of improvements like installing onto encrypted LVM partitions, a graphical GTK-based installation method and partition resizing. It is based on the Linux kernel 2.6.17. A second release candidate is planned which will use Linux 2.6.18, the default kernel for etch.
DebConf Registration and Call for Papers. Moray Allan announced the registration phase for the upcoming Debian Conference, which will be take place Edinburgh, UK. He also asked for submission of proposals for papers, presentations, discussion sessions and tutorials until January 31st. There is a web interface for attendees and for submitting proposals.
Etch Release Update. Steve Langasek stated that the stabilisation phase of etch is about three months behind former expectations and due to this fact the prospected release date of December, 4th could not be met anymore. Apart from that the distribution is in good shape, almost all release goals are met or in the process of being met and the number of release critical bugs is continuously going down.
Help with the Debian FAQ. Javier Fernández-Sanguino Peña called for help with the release by improving our documentation by helping to update the Debian GNU/Linux FAQ. Some content is available in the Wiki but still has to be reviewed and rewritten for the FAQ. He asked the maintainers to take a look at the current version, check if frequently asked questions of users are included and submit bug reports if they are not.
New Sparc Development Machine. Martin Michlmayr reported that Sun has donated a new Sun Fire T2000 to the Debian project. The machine will be used for the sparc port and consists of 8 UltraSparc T1 processor cores, 32 GB of RAM and two 70 GB hard disks. The machine is not in the debian.org domain to give external people access to it. Developers who want to have access to it should contact Bastian Blank. The Debian project would like to take the opportunity to thank Sun for the donation.
New Debian Archive Signing Key. For the upcoming release of etch a new GnuPG key has been created. This is the first Debian release supporting Secure APT so that users will be able to verify the authenticity of Debian packages prior to installing them on their machines. The Wiki page explains how to import the new signing key and provides an overview about the functionality of Secure APT.
Security Updates. You know the drill. Please make sure that you update your systems if you have any of these packages installed.
- DSA 1201: ethereal — Denial of service.
- DSA 1202: screen — Arbitrary code execution.
- DSA 1203: libpam-ldap — Access control bypass.
- DSA 1204: ingo1 — Arbitrary code execution.
- DSA 1205: thttpd — Insecure temporary file creation.
- DSA 1206: php4 — Several vulnerabilities.
- DSA 1207: phpmyadmin — Several vulnerabilities.
- DSA 1208: bugzilla — Several vulnerabilities.
- DSA 1209: trac — Cross-site request forgery.
- DSA 1210: mozilla-firefox — Several vulnerabilities.
- DSA 1211: pdns — Arbitrary code execution.
- DSA 1212: openssh — Denial of service.
- DSA 1213: imagemagick — Several vulnerabilities.
- DSA 1214: gv — Arbitrary code execution.
- DSA 1215: xine-lib — Arbitrary code execution.
- DSA 1216: flexbackup — Denial of service.
- DSA 1217: linux-ftpd — Access control bypass.
- DSA 1218: proftpd — Denial of service.
- DSA 1219: texinfo — Several vulnerabilities.
- DSA 1220: pstotext — Arbitrary shell command execution.
New or Noteworthy Packages. The following packages were added to the unstable Debian archive recently or contain important updates.
- afuse — Automounting file system implemented in user-space using FUSE.
- angrydd — Angry Drunken Dwarves — falling blocks puzzle game.
- antigravitaattori — Multiplayer flying saucer racing game.
- arpalert — Monitor ARP changes in Ethernet networks.
- azureus — BitTorrent client.
- bashdb — BASH debugger.
- bloboats — Boat racing game.
- bmpx — Beep Media Player eXperimental.
- bouml — UML2 tool box to specify and generate code.
- canoe — Log file aggregator and report tool for *nix systems.
- chillispot — Wireless LAN Access Point Controller.
- deluge-torrent — BitTorrent client written in Python/PyGTK.
- dissy — Graphical frontend for objdump.
- dns-flood-detector — Detect abusive usage levels on high traffic name servers.
- dolphin — File manager for KDE focusing on usability.
- dov4l — Program to set and query settings of video4linux devices.
- dsbltesters — Open proxy/relay testing utilities.
- emma — Extendable MySQL managing assistant.
- espeak — Multi-lingual software speech synthesiser.
- esperanza — XMMS2 client which aims to be as feature-full and easy-to-use as possible.
- faad — Freeware Advanced Audio Decoder player.
- gambc — Gambit-C Scheme interpreter and compiler.
- gcin — GTK+ based input method platform for Chinese users.
- hapm — Light and fast high availability port monitor.
- hatari — Atari ST(e) emulator.
- hol88 — Higher Order Logic, system image.
- iceweasel — Lightweight web browser based on Mozilla.
- jacal — Interactive symbolic math system.
- jsmath — TeX equations in HTML documents.
- kio-apt — Apt-cache ioslave for KDE.
- kredentials — KDE task bar applet to update kerberos/AFS credentials.
- kvm — Full virtualisation on x86 hardware.
- mach — Make a chroot of a rpm-based distribution.
- mediawiki-extensions — Set of extensions for MediaWiki.
- molly-guard — Protect remote machines from accidental shutdowns/reboots.
- mozilla-mplayer — MPlayer-Plugin for Mozilla.
- pbnj — Suite of tools to monitor changes on a network.
- pcopy — Multi-threaded (raw) disk copying program.
- pwman3 — Console password management application.
- renrot — Rename and rotate files according to EXIF tags.
- retty — Attach processes running on other terminals.
- secure-delete — Tools to wipe files, free disk space, swap and memory.
- setpwc — Program to set and query settings of (mainly) Philips WebCams.
- tinymce — Platform independent web based Javascript/HTML WYSIWYG editor.
- toilet — Display large colourful characters in text mode.
- xenman — Graphical Xen management tool.
- xmlindent — XML stream reformatter.
Orphaned Packages. 36 packages were orphaned last month and
require a new maintainer. This makes a total of 346 orphaned packages. Many
thanks to the previous maintainers who contributed to the Free Software
community. Please see the WNPP pages for
the full list, and please add a note to the bug report and retitle it to ITA:
if you plan to take over a package. To find out which orphaned packages are
installed on your system the wnpp-alert
program from
devscripts
may be helpful.
- adduser-ng — Add and remove users and groups. (Bug#399255)
- beep-media-player — Versatile audio player that supports Winamp skins. (Bug#396894)
- c2n — Tape transfer utility for CBM/Oric-1 machines. (Bug#396830)
- cbmconvert — Converts different Commodore file formats between each other. (Bug#396831)
- cbmlink — Transfer data to/from Commodore 8-bit computers. (Bug#396832)
- ccc — Compaq C Compiler for Linux Alpha. (Bug#399101)
- cegui-mk2 — Crazy Eddie's GUI (documentation). (Bug#398108)
- cfal — Compaq Fortran Compiler for Linux Alpha. (Bug#399352)
- cfalrtl — Compaq Fortran Run-Time Library (installer). (Bug#399353)
- cpml — Compaq Portable Math Library (installer). (Bug#399350)
- cxml — Compaq Extended Math Library (installer). (Bug#399351)
- emacs-color-themes — Color themes for Emacs. (Bug#399228)
- ethiop — LaTeX package for typesetting Ethiopian texts. (Bug#398890)
- fbdesk — Desktop icons for fluxbox window manager. (Bug#400359)
- grdesktop — GNOME frontend for the rdesktop client. (Bug#398120)
- hwtools — Collection of tools for low-level hardware management. (Bug#397723)
- id3tool — Command line editor for id3 tags. (Bug#400360)
- libapache-miniwiki-perl — Miniature Wiki for Apache. (Bug#400362)
- libclass-contract-perl — Design-by-Contract OO in Perl. (Bug#399254)
- libffm — Fast math library routines for DEC Alpha. (Bug#399354)
- libheap-perl — Perl extensions for keeping data partially sorted. (Bug#400366)
- libmath-round-perl — Perl extension for rounding numbers. (Bug#400367)
- libnet-ident-perl — Lookup the user name on the remote end of a TCP/IP connection. (Bug#400364)
- libots — Compaq Compiled Code Support Library (installer). (Bug#399349)
- librcs-perl — Frontend to revision control utilities for Perl. (Bug#400365)
- libtext-shellwords-perl — Tokenises lines of text. (Bug#400368)
- lyskom-tty-client — TTY client for LysKOM. (Bug#396833)
- plplot — Scientific plotting library. (Bug#396999)
- python-pmw — Python MegaWidgets. (Bug#395871)
- quick-lounge-applet — GNOME 2 Panel Applet to organise your preferred applications. (Bug#397777)
- rekall — Graphical database front-end. (Bug#400155)
- skribe — Scheme-based document production system. (Bug#396516)
- superd — Single-port inetd with pre-forking, suited for high-speed servers. (Bug#398115)
- tix — Tix library for Tk. (Bug#395963)
- wmmatrix — View The Matrix in a Window Maker dock application. (Bug#398122)
- xmms-kjofol — XMMS remote that uses K-Jofol's skins. (Bug#398123)
Removed Packages. 32 packages have been removed from the Debian archive during the past month:
- apr1.0 — Apache Portable Runtime Library
Bug#391845: Request of maintainer, superseded by apr. - apr-util1.0 — Apache Portable Runtime Utility Library
Bug#391842: Request of maintainer, superseded by apr-util. - bonobo — GNOME Bonobo System.
Bug#387497: Request of QA, obsolete. - directfb-0.9-22 — Frame buffer graphics library
Bug#394274: Request of maintainer, superseded by regular packages. - fox1.2 — Development files for the FOX C++ GUI Toolkit
Bug#368975: Request of maintainer, obsolete, 1.4 available, 1.6 coming. - gaim-meanwhile — Gaim plugin for Meanwhile
Bug#391569: Request of maintainer, superseded by gaim. - gal0.x — G App Libs (development files)
Bug#387489: Request of QA, obsolete. - guile-doc — Reference and tutorial documentation for guile 1.4
Bug#391524: Request of maintainer, obsolete, docs for removed package. - gnutls12 — GNU TLS library – runtime library
Bug#387653: Request of maintainer, abandoned upstream, superseded by gnutls13. - kernel-headers-2.2.25-m68k — Header files related to a specific m68k Linux kernel.
Bug#383706: Request of maintainer, obsolete. - kernel-headers-2.4.27-m68k — Header files related to a specific m68k Linux kernel.
Bug#391705: Request of maintainer, superseded by linux-2.6. - kernel-image-2.4.27-i386 — Headers for building modules for Linux 2.4.27
Bug#391707: Request of maintainer, superseded by linux-2.6. - kernel-image-2.4.27-m68k — Linux kernel image for Amiga computers
Bug#391708: Request of maintainer, superseded by linux-2.6. - kernel-latest-2.4-i386 — Linux kernel headers for version 2.4 on 386
Bug#391706: Request of maintainer, superseded by linux-2.6. - kernel-patch-2.2.25-m68k — Diffs to the kernel source for m68k
Bug#391709: Request of maintainer, superseded by linux-2.6. - kernel-patch-2.4-fasttraks150 — Promise FastTrak S150 TX Series Linux Drivers (for Linux 2.4)
Bug#384004: Request of QA, obsolete. - kernel-patch-bluez — Linux Bluetooth protocol stack kernel patches
Bug#386810: Request of QA, superseded by linux-2.6. - kernel-patch-lkcd — linux Kernel Crash Dump – kernel patch
Bug#393503: Request of maintainer, obsolete. - kernel-patch-ppscsi-2.4 — patch to support SCSI emulation over parallel port
Bug#386784: Request of QA, obsolete. - kernel-patch-relayfs — High-Speed Data Relay Filesystem
Bug#386811: Request of maintainer, superseded by linux-2.6. - kernel-patch-usagi — Improved IPv6 implementation for Linux
Bug#392463: Request of maintainer, obsolete. - kernel-source-2.4.27 — Linux kernel specific documentation for version 2.4.27
Bug#391712: Request of maintainer, superseded by linux-2.6. - linux-2.6.16 — Common header files for Linux kernel 2.6.16
Bug#396290: Request of maintainer, obsolete. - linux-kernel-di-i386 — Braille support (udeb)
Bug#390210: Request of maintainer, obsolete. - linux-kernel-di-m68k — FAT filesystem support (udeb)
Bug#390209: Request of maintainer, obsolete. - linuxtv-dvb — sources for drivers of various DVB cards (for kernel 2.4.x)
Bug#391730: Request of maintainer, obsolete, linux 2.4 only. - nslu2-firmware-installer — Configure NSLU2 firmware to boot the system (udeb)
Bug#395076: Request of maintainer, superseded by flash-kernel-installer. - nvu — Complete Web Authoring System
Bug#393065: Request of maintainer, abandoned upstream. - obexserver — Receive files with OBEX protocol
Bug#392447: Request of maintainer, superseded by obexpushd. - spca5xx-modules — Spca5xx modules for kernel 2.6 on AMD 64 generic
Bug#390718: Request of maintainer, superseded by linux-modules-extra-2.6. - translucency — Filesystem translucency module - module source
Bug#393591: Request of maintainer, abandoned upstream; superseded by unionfs. - tun — Source for TUN/TAP device driver for 2.2.x Kernels
Bug#391716: Request of maintainer, obsolete, linux 2.2 only.
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This issue of Debian Weekly News was edited by Sebastian Feltel and Martin 'Joey' Schulze.