1999 System Changes
1999Dec29: Mail Server Moved
The mail server moved from ocean to minke so that ocean can be
retired from server duties and turned into a standard client. All
references to the mail server should point to mailhost.stat.ufl.edu which serves as the
incoming and outgoing mail host and the IMAP server. There should be
no noticeable difference in mail handling unless you are trying to use
a server name other than mailhost.stat.ufl.edu for sending or receiving
mail.
1999Nov23: Upgraded Ghostscript 5.50
Upgraded Aladdin ghostscript to version 5.50. The ghostscript program
converts images into and out of PostScript format. The newer version includes
a copy of ps2pdf for creating cross-platform Portable Document Format (PDF)
documents which are acceptable to the NSF for electronic grant requests.
1999Oct06: Removed POP Server
The POP (Post Office Protocol) server on mailhost.stat.ufl.edu was
turned off. POP has a variety of security problems, including
plain-text passwords and potential exploits of the server to gain
illicit access to a server running POP.
If you use a POP client at home, or have your office Netscape set up
for POP, you will need to switch to Netscape Communicator with IMAP or
forward your email to another server which supports POP. There are instructions for configuring your home
copy of Communicator for IMAP on the web. Do this after we have
changed your office mail setup if you're using POP here. Please
contact system@stat.ufl.edu
if you have questions about the email system.
1999Oct06: Upgraded AcroRead 4.0
Upgraded Adobe AcroBat Reader (acroread) to version 4.0. Acroread is a
viewer for portable document format (PDF) files.
1999Sep24: Upgraded Less 340
Upgraded less to version 340. Less is a Gnu alternative to the Sun
more command.
1999Sep24: Installed StarOffice
5.1
Installed StarOffice 5.1 suite. StarOffice can read and write
Microsoft Office files, as well as it's own formats. StarOffice
includes a word processor, spreadsheet, database, presentation
program and web browser. Start StarOffice by typing
soffice at a unix prompt. The first time you run it, there
is an installation sequence which has the correct default
settings. You may enter your personal information (used for templates)
or leave it blank and enter it later as needed.
Please contact system@stat.ufl.edu
if you have questions about StarOffice.
1999Sep24: Upgraded gcc 2.95.1
Upgraded gcc to version 2.95.1. The Gnu cc compiler is an alternative
to the Sun cc compilers for C and C++.
Please contact system@stat.ufl.edu
if you have questions about the new gcc.
1999Sep13: Upgraded Emacs 20.4
Upgraded Emacs to version 20.4. The Emacs distribution includes most of the
helper modes which used to be installed separately, so they should run
better together. The new Emacs replaces both the older Emacs and Xemacs.
Please contact system@stat.ufl.edu
if you have questions about the new Emacs.
1999Sep04: Installed TeTeX 1.0
New versions of TeX, LaTeX, Dvips, Xdvi and all the other programs associated
with TeX have been installed. There are lots of new things available.
If you're interested to see what some of them are, you can look at the
"TeX and related programs" link under the department's online software
documentation page http://web.stat.ufl.edu/system/man/. Please contact
system@stat.ufl.edu
if you have questions about the new TeX.
1999Sep03: Upgraded Splus 5.0r3
Currently, both Version 3.4 (v3.4) and Version 5.0, Release 3 (v5.0r3)
of Splus are installed on all systems in CLAS, and Biostat. Under this
setup, the default (what you get if you type "Splus" on the
command line) is the new version, v5.0r3. To run v3.4, you can type
"Splus3".
Most users should go ahead and use v5.0r3, however, there is a catch
that you should be aware of. Splus v5.0 will read objects created by
v3.4, but the converse is not true. So if you create or modify any
Splus object in a .Data directory (and basically you do this all the
time when running Splus) using v5.0, you will not be able to go back
to using v3.4 on those objects.
So, who among us might want to stick with v3.4? Although
there are noticeable differences between v3.4 and v5.0, the only
reasons I can think of that you would not want to switch are the
following:
- You use one of the special libraries (display, fig, GEE, psfonts,
MASS, nnet, or spatial) that we have locally installed, and it
hasn't been upgraded yet (and none of them have).
- You have your own library of compiled Fortran and/or C code that
you load into Splus, or some other special setup, and you aren't
ready to test that it all works under v5.0.
If you're not sure whether this applies to you, please ask Brett and he'll
look into it. Otherwise, you should probably go ahead and use v5.0.
If you know that you want to stick with v3.4 for now, and you normally
run Splus from the command line, then you can just go on as before,
except that you will need to type Splus3 to start Splus. If you are
afraid that at some point you might accidentally type Splus, you can
always alias the Splus command to Splus3. To do this, just add the
following line to the bottom of your .cshrc file:
alias Splus Splus3
If you run Splus in emacs S-mode, and wish to continue using v3.4, you
need to add the following line to your .emacs file:
(setq inferior-S-program "Splus3")
If you have any questions about any of this, please email system@stat.ufl.edu.
Version 5.0 had previously only been installed on the
computational server, orca.
1999Aug08: Upgraded Computation Server
Upgraded the computation server, orca.stat.ufl.edu, to four 400MHz
processors and 1GB of RAM. The change required a restoration of user data
from tape, which took all day August 8 and part of the August 9. No data
or email was lost during the downtime.
1999Aug04: Installed Consed
Installed Consed 8.0 and helper applications. Consed is a gene modelling
tool used in genetic research. The genetic models are created with phrap,
which is also installed on our system. Documentation is available on the
web at http://www.phrap.org/.
1999Jul28: Separated Statistics Network
On Wednesday, July 28, the departmental computer network separated
into subunits for additional security and reliability. Groups of machines and
users were divided based on their primary location. Initially, the division
is between the main campus, the communicore and the health center. The new
Networks are:
Further subdivision of the Stat and/or Biostat networks may occur in
the future. Each network has its own users and authentication system, though
several individuals hold accounts on multiple networks. Wherever possible,
applications and authentication options will be similar. Users of any network
who desire accounts on another network should contact system@stat.ufl.edu for an account.
1999Jul14: Upgraded Network Connection
Upgraded the building network to 100-FX fiber for the
connection to the campus core network.
1999Jul05: Installed Ethernet Switch
Installed a Cabletron 10/100 Ethernet switch with 100-FX fiber for the
connection to the campus core network. Network traffic is better partitioned
for performance and security. Future wiring plant upgrades will allow 100-TX
connections to servers and individual desktop workstations.
1999Jun17: Added User Directory Quotas
Stat user's home directories are currently limited to 750MB, with a
temporary allowance of up to 1000MB before file writes are refused. This
limit is not intended as a fixed upper bound. The quota protects all
users from accidental filling of the partition by any one user. Any user who
needs more than 750MB may contact system@stat.ufl.edu for an increase.
1999Jun11: Moved User Directories
User's home directories formerly on Manatee have been moved to another
host in preparation for the upgrade of the file server, Manatee. The files
will be returned to Manatee after a new operating system and more RAM are
installed.
1999May25: Installed Splus wavelets
Installed the wavelets module for Splus. Wavelets is only licensed to
the computational server, orca. Wavelets is available in both the new
version, "Splus" and the previous version, "Splus3".
1999May25: Upgraded Splus 5.0r3
The latest update of Splus for unix, 5.0, is installed on the
computational server, orca. The new version is "Splus" and the previous
version is "Splus3". Both versions are available because of transition
issues associated with version 5. Any program run by version 5.0, whether
written for version 3.x or 5.0 originally, will be converted to version 5.0
format. This change is not reversible. Please make a copy of your older
programs before running them under version 5.0.
1999May18: Upgraded Ox 2.10
Installed an updated version of the Ox statistical package.
There was no new documentation but the version 2.00 HTML
documentation is available on the web. Notes on what's
new in the incremental version are also available on the web.
1999Apr13: Telnet turned off
For security reasons, the telnet login protocol has been turned off
for all Griffin-Floyd machines at the CLASNET router. Machines in other
buildings should have telnet turned off on a per-machine basis.
Connections from one machine to another should all use SSH now. Please
see the SSH
information or contact
system@stat.ufl.edu if you
have questions about SSH.
1999Apr08: Ocean's power supply died
The power supply for ocean, a.k.a. stat.ufl.edu, died and was replaced
with one borrowed from another machine. A new power supply is scheduled to
be installed Monday, April 19, 1999 at 5:00 p.m.
1999Mar24: Installed Apache 1.3.4
The web server has been moved from Netscape SuiteSpot server software
running on ocean to Apache 1.3.4 software with SSL running on mullet. All
URLs and references should be functioning as before. If you notice any
differences, please contact
system@stat.ufl.edu
for assistance.
1999Mar23: Upgraded Server Brain
The operating system on the GCRC server, brain, was upgraded from Solaris
2.5 to Solaris 2.6 to improve performance and prepare for Y2K readiness. All
services should be functioning as before. If you notice any differences, please
contact system@stat.ufl.edu for
assistance.
1999Mar11: Upgraded Communicator 4.08
At the request of several users, we've updated our netscape configuration.
The new default version of netscape is Communicator 4.08. This version is
more robust at handling sites with java and new HTML (eg. cnn.com) and it
supports 128-bit encryption for those of you who want to use it for online
banking.
You can get to communicator by clicking on the Netscape icon on the CDE
toolbar and from the pop-up Workspace Menu which appears when you right-click
outside of a window. The Netscape Mail button will also take you to the new
Communicator 4.08 Messenger mailbox.
The first time you launch Communicator 4.08 you'll be asked to accept the
license. Click accept, and you won't be bothered by it again.
The new Messenger supports the IMAP protocol, as
well as local and POP mail. If you wish to convert to IMAP so that you can
read your email from home or elsewhere with a Netscape client, please contact
system@stat.ufl.edu for assistance
in converting your current mail folders.
If, for any reason, you desire to use the older version of Netscape Navigator
3.04, you can type nsgold
at a prompt or
choose Netscape 3.0 Gold from the Workspace Menu.
1999Jan30: CMS Machines Renumbered
The statistics department machines in the Children's Medical Services
(CMS) building lost their old IP addresses this weekend. Any references to
their old addresses by number will fail. Due to a lack of fore-warning, the
CMS machines were offline from sometime Saturday when HealthNet changed
the numbers until Monday when HealthNet provided us with the new numbers.
Any user who has difficulty reaching the CMS system should contact system@stat.ufl.edu for information
on what host name to use for connecting.
1999Jan21: Installed SSL-IMAP
Installed SSL-IMAP, the secure email server which can be accessed from
office and home machines. See the instructions on configuring Netscape Communicator for IMAP on the system pages. If you
are currently using a different mail reader, please contact system@stat.ufl.edu about converting
your old mail folders to the IMAP system.
Previous years' changes:
[1998]
[1997]
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Last modified: Mon Jun 5 08:41:10 EDT 2000