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• Remove Local Folders from Thunderbird
• Join Movie Clips together
• Customize the Firefox Installer

Recent Articles

• Setup Virtual Users and Directories in VSFTPD
• Send SMS messages from Linux
• Poweroff an old PC in Debian
• Use an SMB printer in Xubuntu
• Build your own PC
• PXE Booting a Laptop
• Get Started with User-Mode-Linux
• Make a Video DVD
• Reduce Webserver Bandwidth
• Measure your Websites Performance
• Configure Spamassassin
• Run MPlayer on Windows
• Build a Lightweight Browser Appliance
• Run SpamAssassin with Postfix
• Initialize Roving Profiles
• Install a PNP modem in Linux
• Join Movie Clips together
• Remove Local Folders from Thunderbird
• Customize the Firefox Installer
• Get Thunderbird to hangup on exit
• XP Direct Cable to Linux

Latest Guides

Howto.gumph.org for simple step by step guides to solving IT problems. If you have any questions or suggestions then please contact us.

Setup Virtual Users and Directories in VSFTPD

Setup virtual users instead of local users and configure user specific home directories for each user, or shared between a handful of users.

Send SMS messages from Linux

Send SMS messages using a standard dialup modem from Linux, without needing a GSM card/phone plugged into your PC. Setup automatic alerts to your cellphone using command-line sms software.

Poweroff an old PC in Debian

If you've just installed Debian onto an old PC, then you may notice that when you shutdown it doesn't actually turn the computer off. We try the options for getting it to poweroff properly.

Use an SMB printer in Xubuntu

If you want to print to a windows printer in Xubuntu, you may notice you are missing a 'Manage Printers' application. We walk through using the simple CUPS web admin instead to setup a printer.

Build your own PC

If you've never put a PC together before, then it can seem quite daunting. We try to demistify the process showing what needs to be done each step of the way.

PXE Booting a Laptop

Turn an old laptop with a pcmcia network card into a thin client instead of thowing it out. They make ideal thin clients, as they are small, low power and can run quietly.

Get Started with User-Mode-Linux

UML (User-Mode-Linux) is probably the easiest of the current virtualization sytems to use on Linux. We walk through step by step to running your first UML client.

Make a Video DVD

If you've ever wanted to make a DVD with your own menus, then we walk through the simple steps to authoring your first DVD. Using free software and tools, anyone can now make their own DVDs with just a DVD writer (obviously), some blank DVDs and the video clips you want to use.

Reduce Webserver Bandwidth

Most hosting and server leasing suppliers only provide a limited amount of bandwidth for your webserver, usually through a monthly cap, with extra bandwidth costing significantly more. By reducing your bandwidth your pages require, you can support more users while keeping your costs down. You'll also improve the load times of your pages.

Measure your Websites Performance

If you've ever wanted to know how many users your webserver can handle, or if it could survive a slashdotting then you need to accurately measure how many complete pages it can deliver a second.

Configure Spamassassin

Once spamassassin is installed and running with your mail server, you need to configure the settings so it runs smoothly for your network setup.

Run MPlayer on Windows

Running MPlayer on windows to watch video clips instead of windows media player can save a lot of time and effort ensuring you have the correct codecs installed, and provides such a clean and simple interface to watch the movie clips with.

Build a Lightweight Browser Appliance

Building a browser appliance, has never been easier or quicker. Using the VMware player, EasyVMX and a linux liveCD you can have a virtual appliance up and running in just minutes.

Run SpamAssassin with Postfix

For filtering spam on a mail server, the best option is probably SpamAssassin. We walk through getting SpamAssassin installed and running on a Postfix mailserver.

Initialize Roving Profiles

If you don't want new users to always be prompted whether they want to retain their settings every time they use a machine they've never logged onto before, then you need to initialise everyone's profiles on all your computers. Luckily it's easy to do, and doesn't require a complete copy of everyone's user profile directory.

Install a PNP modem in Linux

Installing a Plug-and-Play card in a modern linux distro is usually quite painless, but if something goes wrong, or if you are using an older distro, then configuring it manually may be the only option. We walk through the steps installing an old PNP modem in linux by hand, including configuring a dialup connection to your ISP.

Join Movie Clips together

If you've ever needed to join film clips (avi,wma,mpg,divx,xvid) without having to install an expensive editing program, then mencoder may just do what you want. It's a free media encoder, part of the free media player mplayer, and best of all it makes joining film clips together a breeze.

Remove Local Folders from Thunderbird

If you use Thunderbird to access an IMAP mailbox then there really is no need for Local Folders in Thunderbird, as all your mail and drafts can be stored on the IMAP server. There is no setting for removing the Local Folders, but they can be removed by just a few simple edits of thunderbirds prefs.js file.

Customize the Firefox Installer

If you have to deploy Firefox to lots of machines, then it is often a good idea to build a custom setup for Firefox, with your own prefered bookmarks, homepage and default settings, rather than having to manually tweak each installation.

Get Thunderbird to hangup on exit

If you are used to Outlook Express and Internet Explorer asking you if you want to Stay Connected whenever you exit the application then you may have been frustrated that Mozilla Thunderbird (and Firefox) don't do the same. We explain how to get a Disconnect prompt whenever you exit Thunderbird or Firefox.

XP Direct Cable to Linux

A not-so-hard guide to linking an XP box to a Linux box with a serial cable ( null modem ) using XP's direct cable connection.

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