Subject: Linux Projects-FAQ
From: [email-masked] (Harald Milz)
Date: 17 Jul 1994 21:41:46 GMT
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce

Archive-name: linux/Projects-FAQ
Last-modified: 09 Jul 1994
Maintained-By: Harald Milz ([email-masked])

                  Linux Projects-FAQ

This is the Projects-FAQ for Linux. Here you'll find
some information concerning popular projects that are
currently in the design or coding stage. Code for these
projects is not publicly available yet. However, the
software is being worked on and will be eventually
available. Please DO NOT send tons of questions to the
developers but instead let them spend their time
working on the project. This FAQ will be updated
regularly and available on sunsite.unc.edu as
/pub/Linux/docs/faqs/Projects-FAQ .

If you are about to develop a certain piece of software
and if you think it would be good to let people know,
please send me an entry according to the template shown
below. The fields "AuthorEmail" and "ETA" are optional;
if you don't believe people won't drown you in email or
don't think it's wise to tell a potential release date,
simply leave these fields empty. Please don't forget to
send me updates if the status of your project changes,
or I'll have to query you. ;^)

If you are not working on a specific project yourself
but know someone else is, please drop me a note.

After the initial release of code to the public, I
intend to leave the respective entry in the list for
some weeks or so, adding a comment where the code can
be found, then delete the entry to avoid redundancy
(with the LSM). 

This FAQ is for non-commercial Linux projects only. If
there is enough interest, then maybe someone should set
up a separate list covering commercial products some
time later. Any additional volunteers?

Sample entry follows (similar to an LSM entry, thank
you Jeff). Some sample entries (e.g. "Assistance")
don't cover every possible item - feel free to enter
what you like, but don't create new fields. Field
lengths are now arbitrary, but avoid an overall length
of more than 80 characters.

Field:          Description
-----------     ------------------------------------------------------
Title:          The name of the package.  example: "Linux for DEC 21064"
Desc1:          5 lines of text describing the package's function or purpose
Desc2:          The more descriptive you are the more useful the entry 
Desc3:          will be.
Desc4:        
Desc5:        
Author:         Who is going to write the package.
AuthorEmail:    The author's email address (optional)
InfoSources1:   Some hints where to get additional information such as 
InfoSources2:   mailing lists or local newsgroups
InfoSources3: 
Assistance:     assistance needed? {required | appreciated | not required }
CurrentStat:    {still in the design phase | first code runs | approaching 
                 ALPHA status | in ALPHA | code is available on (FTP path)}
ETA:            Estimated time of arrival (optional & conservative ;) 
Remarks1:       Other info of value (up to the developer), 5 lines.
Remarks2:       Additional info that won't fit in one of the above fields.
Remarks3:       
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:     

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          "Xtbackup" 
Desc1:          a tcl/tk interface to Koen Holtman's tbackup 
Desc2:          tape backup software. 
Desc3:          
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         Jon Madison writing the tcl/tk interface 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   just email me. 
InfoSources2:   http://indyunix.iupui.edu/~jmmadiso/tktbackup.html 
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     assistance not required. 
CurrentStat:    coding is going on as you read. it looks kinda pretty. :) 
ETA:            I'd give it another 1-2 months before ALPHA, but i think... 
Remarks1:       ALPHA will be stable enough to be final. my "final" 
Remarks2:       release will probably be just clean up of the code; 
Remarks3:       I hope to have learned tcl/tk pretty well by the end of the 
Remarks4:       summer. XF's making things a little less painful. & FUN! 
Remarks5:       thanks to Koen's HUGE suggestion on the interface. 
Entered:        09 Jul 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          ALT - Administrators little tool 
Desc1:          ALT is a Motif-based system administrators tool which 
Desc2:          can be used for dealing with Software-packages, Users, 
Desc3:          configuring Networks, etc. 
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         Thomas Woerner 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   Email & WWW-page at 
InfoSources2:   WWW: http://134.2.172.13:4711/alt.html/ 
InfoSources3:   Email: [email-masked] 
Assistance:     not required 
CurrentStat:    first code runs 
ETA:            maybe August 1994 until ALPHA 
Remarks1:       Co-author: Christian Huettermann 
Remarks2:       ([email-masked]) 
Remarks3:       
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:       
Entered:        21 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          Caching file system, benfs 
Desc1:          This will be a file system that will cache files from 
Desc2:          another directory structure (that is currently mounted) 
Desc3:          onto the local hard disk. Thus if you have a slow CD-ROM 
Desc4:          drive you would mount it normaly, then mount its directory 
Desc5:          structure using benfs and access the files via the cache. 
Author:         Ben Frank 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   Mail me if your interested :) 
InfoSources2:   or if you want me to include something 
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     not required 
CurrentStat:    still in the design phase 
ETA:            Alpha code in October/November 94 
Remarks1:       The file system will prob only be able to mount read only 
Remarks2:       directories, but this may change depending on how things 
Remarks3:       go ;) 
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:       
Entered:        24 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          Generic Linux System Admin Tool 
Desc1:          A package of tools, accessed through a user-freindly 
Desc2:          menu system for adminstrating, installing, and 
Desc3:          configuring Linux distributions. Done in cooperation 
Desc4:          with Linux International. 
Desc5:          
Author:         Pat Spinler, Ross Becker, others whom I forget right now :( 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   linux-config channel mailing list 
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     assistance appreciated 
CurrentStat:    in design 
ETA:            optimal: Sept 94, conservative: Dec 94. 
Remarks1:       Targeted to work with the major Linux distributions 
Remarks2:       and probably any distrib conforming to the FSSTND. 
Remarks3:       Might optionally be extended for different OS's such as 
Remarks4:       Net/Free BSD later. 
Remarks5:       
Entered:        23 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          Linux driver for Qlogic FAST!SCSI boards 
Desc1:          VESA and ISA versions are anticipated. PCI is not 
Desc2:          currently planned because it differs significantly 
Desc3:          from the other designs. 
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         Michael A. Griffith 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   anon-ftp from cs.ucr.edu:/pub/linux/qlogic 
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     Assistance actively sought. 
CurrentStat:    Skeleton written, but no runnable code exists. 
ETA:            
Remarks1:       
Remarks2:       
Remarks3:       
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:       
Entered:        20 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          Linux/PowerPC 
Desc1:          A port of the Linux 1.0 kernel to the PowerPC platform. Our current 
Desc2:          hardware is an Apple PowerMac 7100/66, but we intend it to run 
Desc3:          on all PowerPC/PCI/SCSI platforms (essentially, the current 
Desc4:          PReP hardware plus some Power Macs.) 
Desc5:          
Author:         A team of five people; contact Charlton Wilbur or Jem Lewis. 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked]; [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   None yet; mailing list/WWW site on the way. You can sometimes 
InfoSources2:   read interesting speculation on comp.sys.powerpc. 
InfoSources3:   PowerPC news mentions us every now and again. 
Assistance:     not required 
CurrentStat:    some development tools ported; kernel in 1st code runs 
ETA:            kernel, Sept 94; device drivers, good question. 
Remarks1:       The biggest FAQ we've run into: 
Remarks2:       This runs *instead* of System 7, not on top of it or 
Remarks3:       on top of SoftWindows. Although I don't think it's been 
Remarks4:       tried, Linux probably won't run on top of SoftWindows because 
Remarks5:       it only emulates a 286 at the moment. 
Entered:        18 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          NCR53c7,8xx SCSI driver 
Desc1:          SCSI driver for NCR53c810 chips used in many PCI 
Desc2:          systems, as well as other chips in the NCR53c7,8xx 
Desc3:          family 
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         Drew Eckhardt 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   Watch comp.os.linux.announce 
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     not required 
CurrentStat:    (ed's note: first code available from Jun 25, 1994) 
ETA:            now 
Remarks1:       (ed's note: 
Remarks2:       look in sunsite.unc.edu:/pub/Linux/Incoming 
Remarks3:       this is a patch for 1.1.19 which will probably move to 
Remarks4:       /pub/Linux/kernel/patches/scsi ) 
Remarks5:       
Entered:        26 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          Network Accounting Kernel Patch 
Desc1:          Aquisition of network traffic for the purpose of user accounting. 
Desc2:          Data is collected per program and logged thru syslogd mechanism. 
Desc3:          Logged data: user, bytes in, bytes out, host, starting and 
Desc4:          ending time of connection, type of transfer (UDP, TCP, RAW), 
Desc5:          name of program, pid 
Author:         Hubert Weikert 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   First version (1.1.8.0) posted on de.comp.sources.unix 
InfoSources2:   [email-masked] managed by Majordomo 
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     appreciated 
CurrentStat:    code is available (de.comp.sources.unix for 1.1.8 kernel) 
ETA:            30jun94 for 1.1.13+ kernel 
Remarks1:       New versions are mainly driven by changes in kernel networking 
Remarks2:       code. The present version (1.1.8.0) based on kernel 1.1.8 
Remarks3:       runs stable at an internet site. The packacke doesn't include 
Remarks4:       any post-processing, you are at your own. Contributions 
Remarks5:       are higly appreciated. 
Entered:        18 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          Trantor T130B (NCR 53C400) SCSI drivers. 
Desc1:          This is an extension to Drew Eckhardt's generic NCR5380 SCSI driver 
Desc2:          It will be merged into a common NCR5380/53C400 driver. 
Desc3:          They will support PSEDUO DMA on the T130B. 
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         Kevin Lentin 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     not required 
CurrentStat:    approaching ALPHA status 
ETA:            Possibly July 1994. 
Remarks1:       Pseudo DMA reads currently work. Writes are causing trouble. 
Remarks2:       Attempting to identify write problems to software or hardware. 
Remarks3:       
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:       
Entered:        19 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          Visual-Bell HOWTO 
Desc1:          A standard-format howto with instructions to disable the 
Desc2:          audible and a kernel patch as a catch-all solution 
Desc3:          
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         Alessandro Rubini 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     not required 
CurrentStat:    
ETA:            now 
Remarks1:       see the HOWTOs in the standard directories. 
Remarks2:       
Remarks3:       
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:       
Entered:        02 Jul 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          Xu-lib & Widget Set 
Desc1:          A library & widget set to "emulate" the look&feel and 
Desc2:          the programming interface of OSF/Motif (R) 
Desc3:          The title is likely to change sometimes 
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         Udo Baumgart 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     appreciated 
CurrentStat:    first code runs 
ETA:            first beta: end 1994 
Remarks1:       I hope i can compile mosaic in autumn 1994 so there 
Remarks2:       will be a non Motif version of mosaic. 
Remarks3:       I would like to have public available source for Motif 
Remarks4:       to test the stuff. BUT: Please ask via e-mail before 
Remarks5:       posting anything >20 KB. My disk is full enough 
Entered:        18 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          aic7770 SCSI driver 
Desc1:          driver for all scsi controllers using the aic7770 chip, 
Desc2:          such as Adaptec's AHA-274x and AHA-284x models, 
Desc3:          as well as some motherboards. 
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         aic7770: Scott M. Ferris, aha274x: John Aycock 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked], [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   Announcements will be made in comp.os.linux.announce 
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     accepted, as are hardware donations (2840AT, 2742AT) 
CurrentStat:    aic7770: working on microcode, 274x: pre-alpha 
ETA:            
Remarks1:       John Aycock ([email-masked]) has a seperately 
Remarks2:       developed aha-274x driver in pre-alpha. It is available 
Remarks3:       via FTP at: ftp.cpsc.ucalgary.edu /pub/systems/linux/aha274x 
Remarks4:       His 274x driver may be merged into the generic aic7770. 
Remarks5:       Which way development will proceed has not yet been decided. 
Entered:        01 Jul 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          bochs 
Desc1:          Portable Intel x86 emulator. 
Desc2:          multi-platform emulation of the Intel 80486 & 
Desc3:          associated PC hardware suite. support for graphics via 
Desc4:          X11R5 & text mode via curses. 
Desc5:          
Author:         Kevin P. Lawton 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   to join mailing list: 
InfoSources2:   mail to [email-masked], with body of: 
InfoSources3:   subscribe bochs-developers FirstName LastName 
Assistance:     appreciated 
CurrentStat:    still in the design phase 
ETA:            few months to bare 8086 version 
Remarks1:       Creating modular interface for developers to add emulation 
Remarks2:       support for favorite hardware. Framework being coded 
Remarks3:       for 80486, though currently adding support only for 
Remarks4:       real-mode instruction set, protection model, etc. 
Remarks5:       Shareware licensed. Source will be ftp'able. 
Entered:        18 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          gpm-Linux 
Desc1:          Gpm is general purpose mouse server for the linux text 
Desc2:          console. Applications can register as clients and get 
Desc3:          cooked mouse events. I'll provide sample clients as well. 
Desc4:          Gpm is based on "selection" and "selection" is the default 
Desc5:          behaviour when no clients are there. 
Author:         Alessandro Rubini 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     slightly appreciated (to test mouse types) 
CurrentStat:    
ETA:            beta: august; 1.0: october (conservative) 
Remarks1:       Andrew Haylett can be regarded as co-author. 
Remarks2:       The server will be presented at the Linux symposium. 
Remarks3:       
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:       
Entered:        18 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          x2600 
Desc1:          An atari 2600 emulator for xwindows. Graphics, but no 
Desc2:          sound. Could turn out VERY SLOW! 
Desc3:          
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         Alex Hornby. 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] 
InfoSources1:   file /computing/systems/atari/umich/8bit/Vcs/2600doc.zip 
InfoSources2:   at src.doc.ic.ac.uk 
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     assistance appreciated 
CurrentStat:    65xx emulator running, TIA a nightmare 
ETA:            2001 
Remarks1:       Due to the wierd memory mappings an all i/o being 
Remarks2:       memory mapped it runs very slow. If you have written 
Remarks3:       a 6502/6510 based emulator I'm interested in your ideas. 
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:       
Entered:        18 Jun 1994

------------------------------- snip -------------------------------

Title:          xdoom 
Desc1:          An X port of the DOS game DOOM. Supports keyboard 
Desc2:          and net play. Should be able to play with DOS data file. 
Desc3:          Sound support included, perhaps music. 
Desc4:          
Desc5:          
Author:         id Software (Linux port by Dave Taylor) 
AuthorEmail:    [email-masked] (Linux), [email-masked] (otherwise) 
InfoSources1:   For info on DOOM: alt.games.doom, alt.games.action, WWW 
InfoSources2:   
InfoSources3:   
Assistance:     Not required 
CurrentStat:    Missing music & pixel doubling. Needs integration w/ v1.4. 
ETA:            No date. Extremely low priority. Sorry. 
Remarks1:       Will release it sometime after the Irix 5.0 port. 
Remarks2:       (This release will be free. hm) 
Remarks3:       
Remarks4:       
Remarks5:       
Entered:        24 Jun 1994

--
Mail submissions for comp.os.linux.announce to: [email-masked]
PLEASE remember Keywords: and a short description of the software.