[Scottish] Authentication methods

[Kyle Gordon]

hey all

In a futile attempt to learn something worthwhile, I've decided to have a shot 
at an alternative authentication system.

Now, I know there's NIS and LDAP, but which one is best and in what scenarios 
should they be used? Which is more complex to set up? And which will scale 
well and stay secure?

I've lived with /etc/passwd and /etc/shadow for long enough, and would like to 
play around and see what's out there. Any other suggestions?

Regards

Kyle