[Gllug] Shutting down Linux? + Inappropriate flaming and a suggestion to the list.

[William Palfreman]

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On Sun, 9 Dec 2001 James.Rocks at equant.com wrote:

> Next question :-)
> 
> Windows (anything) can shutdown the OS from GUI straight to "off" and I was
> about to ask if there was a way (or utility) that can completely shutdown
> Linux from my GUI desktop. I then thought why not create an application
> shortcut (symobolic link?) on the desktop that's command line was "shutdown
> -r now" which worked fine (except it restarted because I used '-r' ... duh,
> I think that should have been '-h'!) so that's OK.
> 
> However ... would such a command take precedence over all other Linux
> activities i.e. what would happen if such acommand were run and some other
> (important?) task were running? Is there a better way to achieve this?

Hi James.  What I do is map CTRL-ALT-DEL to shutdown (as in halt),
rather than its more normal meaning of reboot.  This is because I have
flatmates using my machines and I want an easy way for them to power
down the machine without screwing over the file system. So they know that
ctrl-alt-del means shutdown safely.

This is how you set this.  The action of ctrl-alt-del is controlled by a
setting in the /etc/inittab file.

Become root, e.g:

[user at host dir]$ su -

(enter root password at prompt)

[root at host /root]# vi /etc/inittab

Search and locate the line you want (using / to search) by entering
/ctrl from within the vi editor.  You get to:

ca::ctrlaltdel:/sbin/shutdown -t3 -r now

Use the w and b keys to skip along the line, and position the cursor
under the r in -r:

Press r then h to do a character replace above the cursor, to h.  The
line should now read:

ca::ctrlaltdel:/sbin/shutdown -t3 -h now

Save and exit vi by pressing ZZ (i.e. shift with zed twice)
Now do:

[root at host dir]# init q

to make init re-read its config file.  Then exit at the root prompt to
return to your normal user account.  CTRL-ALT-DEL should now shut the
machine down to stop anywhere.

As regards flaming and all that, no one on this list has any excuse
flaming you or going into rant mode.  As a newbie you *can't* be
expected to be familiar with UNIX/Linux conventions regarding when or
when not to reboot, or anything else you've been flamed for.  If a newer
user gives you a piece of advice that is either incorrect or based on
inexperience (as seems to be the case regarding reinstalling for mouse
config changes) then more experienced users should step in and make
helpful corrections.  Because several people thoughtlessly flamed at
you, it is easy for you to get the impression that that is how things
are done.  This isn't the case at all.  It is very bad practice to get
drawn into a flame war on a Linux list.  You can't be expected to know
that, especially with random people flaming you for nothing more than
Linux inexperience.  But all the same, don't get drawn into it.  

People on Linux forums can be excessively touchy (ucol is/was worse) as
status is drawn from skill as perceived by other members.  As you have
to have a bit of experience just to be able to tell who's who, sometimes
someone will get offended if they think someone less knowledgeable isn't
taking their greater experience seriously.  It's just something you have
to be careful of, mainly by staying out of things you aren't confident
on.  Apart from that, you should find people remember being newbies
themselves and are anxious to help.

One suggestion I do have to the list in general, is that it might be
time to fork off a gllug-newbie list.  The fact is, for a newbie this
list is a lion's den of highly experienced, and technically combative,
hardcore Linux types.  A gllug-newbie list populated by newbies and
people who actually have a genuine interest in helping newbies would
provide a much more constructive environment while people found their
feet with Linux.  The fact there has just been a flame war against an
experienced w32 admin, who is just learning the Linux alternative,
should be triggering big warning signals in people's heads.  It's
definitely no way to encourage widespread Linux adoption (which a lot of
our livelihoods depend on).

Gllug-newbie would allow people over here to flame each other as much as
they liked over the proper use of domain sockets in a client/server app,
while gllug-newbie members could learn USB mouse config on a list where
people were actually interested in the subject and Version 7 means SuSE
and not AT&T.  Sounds like an idea?

Bill.

- -- 
W. Palfreman. 		http://www.palfreman.com/william/
Tel: 0771 355 0354	PGP ftp://ftp.palfreman.com/pub/wfpkey.asc
			PGP id: 0x26C72581


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