This item is for system problems.  If something on Grex isn't working 
right (line noise on a modem, weird behavior from a program, etc.), 
this is the place to announce it.  Except for security holes.  If you 
find a hole in system security, mail information about it to "staff".

291 responses total.

Yup.

This isn't a grex "problem", but there being no other item for discussing
grex operations (and this item isn't getting much use): 

I discovered that CAEN (UM engineering computer network) has the option to
read and reply to one's unix box mail via the web. This does not require a
client - any browser will do. The functionality is quite limited, though: 
for example, one cannot use one's addressbook (but can create a new one). 
The mode has some other awkward properties - but for logging in to read
and reply to one's mail when one is travelling and has access only to the
web (not telnet) it is quite useful.

Could grex implement a similar mode?

This has been discussed before and rejected.  The argument against is that
grex's primary mission involves getting people into the conferences.  A
web-based mail client (also POP and IMAP) would remove an incentive (and
opportunity) to discover the conferences.

Free web-based email sites tend to be popular, as well...possibly too
popular for our connection and hardware to handle.  I suspect it's
unlikely web-based email would attract enough new paying members to pay
for the upgrades that would be necessary.

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This could be a nice feature to offer members.

Except that we don't offer special privileges to members.  The only exception
is outgoing internet, and that's because of the validation issue.

Oh well, it could make a nice incentive.

as much as I'd like web-based email, I'd rather not start creating incentives,
priveleges, etc for members.

I agree.

I brought it up because I'd like to be able to access my e-mail on grex
when I am travelling. Telnet capability seems to be disappearing from
publically accessed computers (the one I tried was at WMU). I'm  not seeking
special privileges as a member - just remote e-mail access. 

At one site I was able to download and install a telnet client on a
public computer, but this capability seems also to be becoming rarer:
I think more public sites don't want their users running telnet. 

This doesn't seem "fair". 

What really is the difference between accessing e-mail on grex via
a telnet client vs via a browser? (Especially if the browwser access is
as lame as the one on CAEN, at which one cannot access much e-mail
functionality - at CAEN, in addition to not having access to the
addressbook, one also cannot delete mail from the inbox.)

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Did you install it? I've only done that on Apple computers, for which I
am familiar with telnet clients (and installing such).  

you could always create a .forward file to hotmail while you are traveling.

That's  a thought - I could do the same thing to my CAEN account. Now,
why didn't I think of that.....(probably because I've not used the
.forward function on grex for a long time, and it slipped from my mind). 

Rane - the arguments against allowing web access to email are

1) Grex doesn't want to compete with HotMail, and we're afraid if we
offered web-accessable mail, we'd be swamped. 

2) Grex would like to be a community, where people come to interact with
people, and not just a mail drop.  So we require people to log in to get
their mail, in the hopes that they will decide to look around and get
involved.

Am I a problem in that regard?    8^}

Grex hasn't tried (lame) e-mail access by web, so you  don't know what
the consequences would be. 

No, it's nothing personal, Rane.  But I think if we just gave access to you,
and no one else, that would be a little unfair. :)

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        Another solution would be to carry one of those jump drives
in your pocket that would have a USB interface and your choice of
software on it.  Then plug in and run your software on the public
machines (install it to the jump drive and that way you take it 
with you).

 re #12, 13, 19:  Rane probably missed the fact that you were talking about
 a Java applet that loads from a web server and runs in the browser.  

 On machines which are locked down to disallow the system telnet app but not
 so locked down to prevent running applets, Java ssh and telnet client applets
 are a boon to those of us who prefer our e-mail the old-fashioned way.

  re #20:  machines where the system telnet app is locked out almost never
  allow you to install your own applications or run them from removable media.

I just switched over to the Yale Java ssh applet. It gave me a bunch of stuff
about "do you want to install stuff on this machine" which I answered yes,
but chickened out and said No when it wanted to create a directory. It's
running anyway, though I got some wierd "File functions disabled" message.

Most Lib machines seem to have Java and JS turned on; there are ample pop-up
ads to testify to this. This might be a feasible option, and with password
security as a bonus.

I've only run applets from web sites, so I don't  quite know what is
being talked about. For the dummies here (like me), what does one do
to get telnet access with an applet on a public machine?

  You go to the web site with the applet and the applet loads and runs
  on the JVM already installed on the machine and most likely displays
  in the browser.

  It's somewhat more complicated than this, but you can think of an applet
  as a specially restricted type of Java program.  Unlike a Java application,
  applets have some substantial restriction on the types of things that they
  can do -- they can only open certain kinds of windows, can only open net
  connections according to certain rules, etc.  The trade-off you get in
  exchange for these restrictions is that an applet is allowed to run in
  most Java-capable web browsers.

How does the Yale SSH applet get around the Java security model that
only allows connections back to the machine that the applet was served
from?  Are they also doing port forwarding?

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Where is a website that provides an applet for making a telnet connection
from a browser?

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What use is that?  It won't let you telnet to another host, even if you 
login to mnet first.

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Rane: cross gave the address http://www.yale.edu/ssh/ in #12.

Unfortuneately, I can't test it from here as "This applet also does not
function on Macintosh computers.". However I will make note of it for
the next time I seek to use a PC while traveling (after first trying
telnet://....).

Is there a version somewhere for Macs?

"Due to differences in Java security implementations on the Macintosh, the
Yale-signed web-based SSH applet will not work on a Macintosh."

  That's what I love about Java.  It really lives up to the promise of
  "write once, run everywhere.."

Should be revised to "Write once, run most places maybe if you're lucky"?

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Re #31: I think that's an excellent idea.  (In the mean time, someone
who wanted to use it could *probably* just install it in their own
public_html directory, I imagine.)

re 33
Who the hell taught you to spell words like "Unfortuneately" ??

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