response 1 of 33:

Nov 1 05:05 UTC 2016

I'll go out on a limb a little, and try to get something started that I'm
interested in seeing on Grex: another CLI bbs option. I'm new here, so go easy
on me if I'm overstepping, stepping on toes, or otherwise offending anyone.

My plan is to extend an existing project that I created a few months ago,
which is slightBBS. Rather than try to explain the vision in that, I'd like
to get it going with the ideas that I currently have, and see what it develops
into. My plan is to create an experience that like-minded *nix CLI users might
enjoy.

To get started, I'll need some help. Now, if I'm asking for too much, please
let me know, but I'm only asking for basic things that I feel I'll need to
accomplish a secure-ish setup on OpenBSD. I don't know who to ask, nor how
to ask, so I'll post my requests here. If I'm barking up the wrong tree and
you know where/what the right tree is, let me know and I'll bark there.

Here's what I feel I need to get started:

- A user specifically for the board s/w to run under with setuid, so that all
  of the board files are owned and controlled by that user. Perhaps "gboard"
  any username will do of course. The user won't need a shell in the end, but
  I'll need the ability to doas or to become that user.

- A shell script that is in a location, and with sufficient permissions so
  that any user on grex can read and execute it. I'll need permission to edit
  said script, even if it's with the gboard user. The script itself needs to
  NOT have setuid, the process should be owned by the user running it. It 
  could be called "gboard"

- Another script that is also in a locate where anyone can run it, a PHP
  script, that is setuid as the gboard user. This will be started by that
  script. The reason for the two is to identify the process owner as a way
  to authenticate the user to the board without giving them any permission
  to modify any of the boards files (beyond what the script allows of course.)

And that's all I think I need. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe
I'm asking for any elevated permissions, nor access to anything on the server
beyond the self-contained second user. All of the code would be open to any
and all, if that's the way you prefer it from a sysadmin point-of-view. If
you'd prefer it to be closed off, I'm ok with that too, though I feel the
userbase would appreciate the access perhaps.

Thanks for listening, and I hope to hear from those who might be able to help
me get this setup!

response 3 of 33:

Nov 1 12:52 UTC 2016

For a user, just go ahead and great a new account and shoot a mail saying what
it is. That's as good a way as any to start.

Put a script anywhere in that user's directory you like ($HOME/bin or
something) and let me know the location and I'll put a wrapper that executes
it into /cyberspace/bin, which is in all $PATH's.

response 5 of 33:

Nov 8 23:45 UTC 2016

Dan was great about helping me get the php version going, and patching up some
security issues. On his recommendation, I'm creating a Perl version, which
may hopefully get more participation/interest from the grex community. I'll
post here with an update when I have one.

response 7 of 33:

Nov 15 18:51 UTC 2016

I've tried the php version. I even left feedback, ;)

response 9 of 33:

Nov 28 22:31 UTC 2016

If you want to try the work-in-progress perl version of gboard, the client
can be run by anyone in the 'people' group. It is located in:

/z/g/b/gboard/bin/gboard.pl

Right now, it doesn't use the same board data as the php version, so
the board names and message content will not be the same. It would be trivial
to make them both use the same data, but since they're both experimental, and
one alone will probably survivie on grex, I figured it didn't matter too much.

Thanks for testing!

response 11 of 33:

Dec 9 01:11 UTC 2016

I'm glad people are trying it out... now we just have to find a way to get
the discussion kickstarted. Between bbs, gboard, and party, I'm not seeing
a lot of activity, though I am checking them all regularly. What can we do
to get more participation in the social side of things, or is that not a focus
for the grex audience?

response 13 of 33:

Dec 13 19:23 UTC 2016

Sorry, I need to respond to several of your emails, Joseph! I apologize; I
had a cold that really laid me out for a few weeks and then a succession of
visitors.

response 15 of 33:

Dec 21 21:03 UTC 2016

I wonder, could we get gboard listed on 'menu'? New users seem to hit party
and a few even come in here to bbs, but none make it all the way through to
gboard. Might be a helpful test, see if new users are more willing to post
on there.

response 17 of 33:

Jan 6 02:34 UTC 2017

Pretty neat Perl BBS. Reminds me of the old modem days.

response 19 of 33:

Mar 19 13:22 UTC 2017

So far so good. It's usable and provides nice UI.

The downsides are:
1. Missing $EDITOR configuration.
The built in gboard editor is just readline based 
text input. It would be better to use 'ed' as 
the editor and make it configurable.

2. The long output doesn't get piped to the $PAGER
Sometimes, post in a thread can be very long that 
it can't be viewed in a single terminal window. It's 
rather inconvenient to scroll the terminal to view 
post. There is $PAGER, such as 'less' to overcome this
inconvenience. Why don't just use that?

3. No 'man gboard' available
Great program comes with manual page so that users 
can view the manual page when they get lost instead 
of wandering around in confusion.

response 21 of 33:

Apr 26 05:21 UTC 2017

gboard is no where close to perfect, but would there be value in adding it
to 'menu' so that new users could join in without having to be directed? What
is the protocol for getting things modified in the menu program here on Grex?

response 23 of 33:

Apr 26 15:59 UTC 2017

I guess I'd suggest something like:

1. Modify /cyberspace/lib/omenu/dialogs/mainmenu.tpl:

 Change:
   B:P:/cyberspace/bin/bbs:BBS (very, very cool!!)
 to
   B:M:/cyberspace/lib/omenu/templates/bbsmenu.tpl:Bulletin Board Systems

 and Remove:
   Z:P:/cyberspace/bin/bbsguide:View BBS introductory info


2. Add the file /cyberspace/lib/omenu/templates/bbsmenu.tpl containing:

** BBS MENU **
%
B:P:/cyberspace/bin/bbs:Grex FrontTalk BBS (Main BBS)
I:P:/cyberspace/bin/bbsguide:FrontTalk BBS introduction
G:P:/cyberspace/bin/gboard:Grex GBoard BBS (Experimental BBS)
%