INFO-VAX Wed, 02 Apr 2008 Volume 2008 : Issue 186 Contents: Re: Bracknell (Berkshire, UK) and VMS Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Re: GnuPG 1.4.9 for VMS OT: Information about La Carly Fiorina Re: Scripting SET HOST/DUP with Kermit (or other)? Re: Scripting SET HOST/DUP with Kermit (or other)? Re: Scripting SET HOST/DUP with Kermit (or other)? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 09:17:43 -0700 (PDT) From: etmsreec@yahoo.co.uk Subject: Re: Bracknell (Berkshire, UK) and VMS Message-ID: <62030b23-b779-44be-ba72-2915120c8557@b5g2000pri.googlegroups.com> On 27 Mar, 00:07, Martyn wrote: > On Wed, 26 Mar 2008 09:40:17 -0700, etmsreec wrote: > > There may be support people for HP in Bracknell, but the labs got > > migrated up the M4 to a site near an old airfield IIRC. =A0that's why > > India support calls get directed through a Swindon number (01793)... > > > Steve > > That site is just a datacentre with Operations staff onsite, not VMS > techies, most of their VMS support went out to Bangalore. Sorry, that was my intention to write but not what I wrote. You are, of course, correct that there's no support people in Wroughton, just a data centre. Steve ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 02 Apr 2008 08:36:14 +0100 From: "R.A.Omond" Subject: Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Message-ID: John Wallace wrote: > [...big snip...] > One of the more interesting VMS sites in this sector was the national > company which did the remote meter reading for large users. Large > electricity users have their meters read automatically very frequently > (every few minutes) and are charged not just by how many MWh they use, > but also by their "maximum demand" (maximum MW) in an interval. This > national meter reading systems was a VMS cluster, and rightly so, > there was serious money at stake. Wow! OK, John, I have been very involved in the site of which you speak. Sadly the meter reading systems were all ported over to Tru64, and are probably on HP-UX by now. However ... They need to store just about every darned little piece of data to do with the meter readings for a minimum of 7 years (in order to be able to allow for the resolution of any disputes e.g. Big Customer says he didn't use that much electricity 4 years ago). The storage and automatic retrieval of all of this (and it's a lot of information) is taken care of by a 2-node DS10 VMScluster, with a 3rd DS10 at a disaster recovery site - the link between the main site and the DR site wasn't fast enough to have a split-site cluster when I set this up). This has been running pretty much uninterrupted since, let's see, early 1998 (it migrated with no end-user interruption from VAX 4000-700's to Alphas at some point). Originally there was a multi-level hierarchy of storage (disk, 144-slot optical jukebox, multiple DLT jukeboxes), but I think it's all based on SAN storage now. As far as I know, they didn't bother deleting the stuff that dropped off the 7 year window, since storage costs are so cheap. And just to throw in a little non-relevant factoid: the cluster is referred to as the Dollie cluster, the 2 nodes being Barbie and Kennie, and the DR DS10 is called Cindie :-) How come we haven't met, as far as I'm aware ? ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 07:51:35 +0000 (UTC) From: helbig@astro.multiCLOTHESvax.de (Phillip Helbig---remove CLOTHES to reply) Subject: Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Message-ID: In article <47f10ca6$0$5650$607ed4bc@cv.net>, VAXman- @SendSpamHere.ORG writes: > >See http://www.darksky.org/ > > 'Twould be fine with me too Right, a good goal but a completely different topic. > but the power-hour wasn't about light pollution, > it was a gesture about conserving energy. Power companies generate electric > based on average demands. I really doubt that they made any fuel consumption > changes based on a minor brief hour dip on the grid. Indeed. Also, unexpected changes in load can lead to problems with the grid. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 07:53:06 +0000 (UTC) From: helbig@astro.multiCLOTHESvax.de (Phillip Helbig---remove CLOTHES to reply) Subject: Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Message-ID: In article <47f15559$0$3857$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com>, JF Mezei writes: > VAXman- @SendSpamHere.ORG wrote: > > > 'Twould be fine with me too but the power-hour wasn't about light pollution, > > it was a gesture about conserving energy. Power companies generate electric > > based on average demands. I really doubt that they made any fuel consumption > > changes based on a minor brief hour dip on the grid. > > Not sure how authoritative, but I heard the city of Toronto noticed an > 8% drop in electrical consumption during that hour. Even if authoritative, it's not very significant. The total savings are negligible. The problem with such events is that people get the feeling that they are doing something significant when really they aren't. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 02 Apr 2008 04:02:53 -0400 From: JF Mezei Subject: Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Message-ID: <47f33e26$0$23904$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com> Phillip Helbig---remove CLOTHES to reply wrote: > Even if authoritative, it's not very significant. The total savings are > negligible. The problem with such events is that people get the feeling > that they are doing something significant when really they aren't. The electrical savings for 1 hours are not very significant. What is significant is that a group of sheep loving aussies were able to start a movement that resulted in enough people in many cities around the world to make a single gesture that registered onto the grids. It is more a gesture to sensitise people to the need to save energy. Baby steps. ------------------------------ Date: 02 Apr 2008 12:12:16 GMT From: VAXman- @SendSpamHere.ORG Subject: Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Message-ID: <47f37820$0$15182$607ed4bc@cv.net> In article <47f33e26$0$23904$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com>, JF Mezei writes: >Phillip Helbig---remove CLOTHES to reply wrote: > >> Even if authoritative, it's not very significant. The total savings are >> negligible. The problem with such events is that people get the feeling >> that they are doing something significant when really they aren't. > >The electrical savings for 1 hours are not very significant. What is >significant is that a group of sheep loving aussies were able to start a >movement that resulted in enough people in many cities around the world >to make a single gesture that registered onto the grids. > >It is more a gesture to sensitise people to the need to save energy. >Baby steps. The gas guzzler, also knows as the automobile, seems to be the biggest offender; not the electric light. How about getting the 'sheep loving aussies' to push for a Walk-Week or Moped-Month! Of course, da 'rats' in proNJ don't believe saving gas is important! In order to push their agendas and throw a hissy fit because they did't get their way on budget referendum, they've pulled school bussing here. So, instead of mass transportation of 60+ kids/school bus, mom and/or dad go to and fro two times a day to transport Junior and/or Missy to school! Therefore, if the school is 10 miles away, I go on a 40 mile a day round trip! Multiply that by 60 kids per bus and that's a lot of wasted fuel! 60 kids * 40 miles = 2400 aggregate miles! Figuring an average of 20MPG and that's 120 gallons of fuel. One bus going on a 20 mile pickup loop, even if it gets *only* 1 MPG, is saving fuel. The same economy goes for all the business suits in Hummer SUVs trekking into NYC each morning. Gawd fordid they'd take the train or bus or even car pool! I took the bus when I trekked into the NYC area each morning. It was less stress too save for those days when my furosemide, zaroxolyn and enalapril kicked in and there was no toilet on the bus. Why didn't I bring along a jug? ;) Anyway, while we little mice were saving electric crumbs during the hour- of-power, all of the fat-cats were having us for lunch. -- VAXman- A Bored Certified VMS Kernel Mode Hacker VAXman(at)TMESIS(dot)COM "Well my son, life is like a beanstalk, isn't it?" http://tmesis.com/drat.html ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 13:03:59 +0000 (UTC) From: david20@alpha2.mdx.ac.uk Subject: Re: Does POWER_OFF really work ? Message-ID: In article <47f2b9f4$0$5610$607ed4bc@cv.net>, VAXman- @SendSpamHere.ORG writes: >In article , "John Wallace" writes: >>{...snip...} >> >>Incidentally, could I have 7% of your assets and income please? You said >>yourself 7% wasn't significant, so presumably you wouldn't notice. Maybe. > >7% of nothing is nothing. Have at it. In fact, if you want, I'll toss in >3% of nothing to round out the figures. > > >>Are we nearly done yet? > >I was the only one, outside of perhaps JF who first mentioned it, who knew >what the 'hour of power' was and was about, and answered the initial query. >I didn't see that 7% topple any prices on the oil market so I'll conclude, >whether you like my conclusion or not, that Earth Hour was inconsequential. You didn't notice the price of crude falling in the last week see http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7324356.stm after it had reached $108 on the 27th March 2008 see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7316138.stm (for a monthly graph see http://oil-price.net/index.php?lang=en ) Forget what the analysts are saying this fall was obviously the result of Earth Hour :) David Webb Security team leader CCSS Middlesex University > >-- >VAXman- A Bored Certified VMS Kernel Mode Hacker VAXman(at)TMESIS(dot)COM > > "Well my son, life is like a beanstalk, isn't it?" > >http://tmesis.com/drat.html ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 09:40:43 -0500 (CDT) From: sms@antinode.org (Steven M. Schweda) Subject: Re: GnuPG 1.4.9 for VMS Message-ID: <08040209404352_2020CE0A@antinode.org> From: sms@antinode.org (Steven M. Schweda) > GnuPG 1.4.9 exists now. Looks like a minor bug-fix release. I made > no new VMS-specific changes: > > http://antinode.org/dec/sw/gnupg.html That page now leads to version 1.4.9b, where I _have_ made some new VMS-specific changes. I believe that I've located the major file open operations, and have added the usual access callback function to adjust some RMS parameters to bigger values (unless the user overrides using SET RMS_DEFAULT). The callback function also sets the SQO (sequential access only) bit for output files, which should make the program a better citizen on a disk with highwater marking enabled. I also changed the file locking code for the random seed file (normally, "/SYS$LOGIN/gnupg/random_seed"). I believe that this will stop the annoying accumulation of multiple versions of this file. Using a 2.5GB test file (four copies of a VMS V7.3-2 installation CD-ROM image) on a zx2000 (IA64) workstation (more idle, and less CPU-bound, than anything else here), I got some detectable speed improvements. The (compressed and) encrypted file is about 1GB. Typical SHOW PROCESS /ACCOUNTING results follow. Encrypt: 1.4.9a Accounting information: Buffered I/O count: 33807 Peak working set size: 8944 Direct I/O count: 608383 Peak virtual size: 182512 Page faults: 491 Mounted volumes: 0 Images activated: 2 Elapsed CPU time: 0 00:54:41.24 Connect time: 0 01:13:58.02 1.4.9b Accounting information: Buffered I/O count: 865 Peak working set size: 9392 Direct I/O count: 136807 Peak virtual size: 182832 Page faults: 519 Mounted volumes: 0 Images activated: 2 Elapsed CPU time: 0 00:49:01.18 Connect time: 0 00:51:31.75 Decrypt: 1.4.9a Accounting information: Buffered I/O count: 80047 Peak working set size: 8160 Direct I/O count: 383534 Peak virtual size: 182064 Page faults: 442 Mounted volumes: 0 Images activated: 2 Elapsed CPU time: 0 00:05:35.05 Connect time: 0 00:55:03.79 1.4.9b Accounting information: Buffered I/O count: 1016 Peak working set size: 8624 Direct I/O count: 57116 Peak virtual size: 182672 Page faults: 468 Mounted volumes: 0 Images activated: 2 Elapsed CPU time: 0 00:04:53.99 Connect time: 0 00:08:57.77 With two points, a line always fits, but it looks as if the reduction of "Connect time" in this case is roughly proportional to the size of the output file. I haven't tested this kit much more than usual, but simple encrypt-decrypt operations seem to have survived, so what could go wrong? Complaints are always welcome. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Steven M. Schweda sms@antinode-org 382 South Warwick Street (+1) 651-699-9818 Saint Paul MN 55105-2547 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 02 Apr 2008 07:34:56 -0400 From: JF Mezei Subject: OT: Information about La Carly Fiorina Message-ID: <47f36fd9$0$23941$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com> You may wonder where Carly is today. Well, wonder no more: She is "RNC Victory 2008 Chair". (She had openly outed her orientation towards republicans before, so this is no surprise.) More at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/03/25/mccains-housing-crisis-s_n_93324.html What is ironic in this most serious article :-) is the fact that she is said to be advising McCain on how to handle the housing crisis. When He got hired by HP, she had a housing crisis of her own and HP helped with her mortgage and relocation to the tune of 1.6 million... so she is definitely well versed on how to handle a housing crisis :-) ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 06:48:25 -0700 (PDT) From: Jim Subject: Re: Scripting SET HOST/DUP with Kermit (or other)? Message-ID: On Apr 1, 7:12=A0pm, Ken.Fairfi...@gmail.com wrote: > On Apr 1, 4:00 pm, Rob Brown wrote: > > On Tue, 1 Apr 2008, Ken.Fairfi...@gmail.com wrote: > > > I tried the following without success: > > > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > $ type tryit.ksc > > > set take echo on > > > set take error on > > > set input echo on > > > @Set Host/Dup/Server=3DMscp$Dup/Task=3DCli HSJ2 > > > input 5 HSJ2 > > > output show unit\13 > > > input 5 HSJ2 > > > output exit\13 > > > exit > > > $ > > > $ kermit =A0tryit.ksc > > > =A02. set take error on > > > =A03. set input echo on > > > =A04. @Set Host/Dup/Server=3DMscp$Dup/Task=3DCli HSJ2 > > > %HSCPAD-I-LOCPROGEXE, Local program executing - type ^\ to exit > > > ... > > > Is what I'm attempting to do possible with Kermit? > > > I suspect not. > > > I am hardly an expert at this, but it seems to me that if Kermit does > > not know how to talk the particular protocol of SET HOST/DUP then you > > are out of luck. =A0The Kermit scripts I have written all start out with= > > SET LINE or TELNET, with Kermit initiating and controlling the serial > > or telnet session. =A0Is there a way that you can SET LINE to a SET > > HOST/DUP? > > I see your point. =A0If I had the console serial connections hooked > up to a terminal server, I could open a telnet session to the > given port on the TS. =A0But I don't and I'm not inclined to expend > the resources needed to go that route... :-( You'll want to check out HSDSA-SCRIPT-ALPHA or HSDSA-SCRIPT-VAX . See http://forums11.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/questionanswer.do;HP-FORUMS-S-WPA= -IDX=3DHphLBJ3pXqk0yZTJw7lGBqjFcKL8zqHZcyYG3J4h1gpfLy0m1811!990885628!109613= 0382?threadId=3D1063886 or use google and search for the name of your choice. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 08:30:08 -0700 (PDT) From: Ken.Fairfield@gmail.com Subject: Re: Scripting SET HOST/DUP with Kermit (or other)? Message-ID: On Apr 2, 6:48 am, Jim wrote: [...] > You'll want to check out HSDSA-SCRIPT-ALPHA or HSDSA-SCRIPT-VAX . Seehttp://forums11.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/questionanswer.do;HP-FORUM... > or use google and search for the name of your choice. Thanks for the pointer(s). I found Hoff's VMS_CHECK.ZIP via Google for HSDSA-SCRIPT-ALPHA on the ITRC System Management forum and have downloaded it. I'll try later today to extract HSDSA-SCRIPT-ALPHA from it (I'm not sure I want to install the whole kit yet...). Thanks again, Ken ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 08:45:20 -0700 (PDT) From: Jim Subject: Re: Scripting SET HOST/DUP with Kermit (or other)? Message-ID: On Apr 2, 11:30=A0am, Ken.Fairfi...@gmail.com wrote: > On Apr 2, 6:48 am, Jim wrote: > [...] > > > You'll want to check out HSDSA-SCRIPT-ALPHA or HSDSA-SCRIPT-VAX . Seehtt= p://forums11.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/questionanswer.do;HP-FORUM... > > or use google and search for the name of your choice. > > Thanks for the pointer(s). =A0I found Hoff's VMS_CHECK.ZIP > via Google for HSDSA-SCRIPT-ALPHA on the ITRC System > Management forum and have downloaded it. =A0I'll try later > today to extract HSDSA-SCRIPT-ALPHA from it (I'm not > sure I want to install the whole kit yet...). > > =A0 =A0Thanks again, Ken I think that HSDSA-SCRIPT-ALPHA alone will be adequate for what you're doing. - Jim ------------------------------ End of INFO-VAX 2008.186 ************************