Re: LYNX-DEV source size, source reorganization

[Nelson Henry Eric]

My original reply was sent 9 days ago, but it hasn't appeared at my
site.  Apologies if it shows up.  I want to get this off my chest
and move on.

> You are mixing several things in this (is it a?) proposal.

Yes, two proposals: 1) Some kind of distribution that is less, and kept
less, than 1MB in size, and 2) a top level directory with fewer files
and simpler directory structure.  I'll respond to the first in this
post, and make a concrete suggestion for the second in another post.

> First you are talking about "the distribution".  I assume you mean the

I meant any one of these:
Sep  7 00:47  compress         [3]lynx2.7.1ac-0.60.tar.Z  2056Kb
Sep  7 00:47  GNU Compr. Tar   [4]lynx2.7.1ac-0.60.tar.gz  1338Kb
Sep  7 00:47  zip              [5]lynx2.7.1ac-0.60.zip  1509Kb,
and I still would like to see a `tgz' file offered that is less than
1MB (actually 700-800Kb would be better), even if it means providing
a `bare-bones', `essentials' distribution for compiling only.

OTOH, the demand is obviously too low to have the developers waste
time on preparing such an animal.  So no more whining.  People with
very slow connections might wish to try either one of the following
methods (assumes un*x, csh shell).

1) Use "webmail" (but only if you _really_ don't have web access) to
patch up to the current level.  Chances of successfully downloading
the patch grow increasingly slim if you get too far behind.  I notice
Bela was able to get one to patch up about 20 images, but probably
about 10 is more realistic.  You need to update frequently.  The
problems you run into with upgrading from a very old image are that
webmail only allows 1 minute for the transaction to take place and
the mail may be cut off if it is larger than 700-800Kb, quite possible
if you've not updated for a couple of months.  You can help with the
first problem by probing for a time when www.slcc.edu is not busy.

        a) write up an appropriate alias, e.g.,

alias lypatch 'echo "mail -s request address@hidden <$HOME/webmail.request" | 
at -m 04:00 tomorrow'

        b) prepare your request in a file, which as an example I name
           "webmail.request", the contents of which read:

GET 
http://144.35.10.96/cgi-bin/lynx/patch?old_level=2.7.1ac-0.50&new_level=2.7.1ac-0.@&compressed=y

        c) cut out the garbage (mail portion) from the patch that is
           mailed to you, save the file in the directory right above
           lynx2-7-1, and apply it, assuming it was not compressed, with
           a command like "cat address@hidden | patch -p0".

I use `at' (read the man pages, but right off the bat make sure your
sysadmin allows users to execute it - check the at.deny and at.allow
files) to be sure mail from my end gets sent right away, and is received
by www.slcc.edu when everyone seems to be `out to lunch', i.e., not
overly busy.  I use the IP address (144.35.10.96) rather than the name
(sol.slcc.edu) whenever possible to speed things up and prevent timeouts.


2) Use ftp at whatever time your line is least busy.

        a) write up an appropriate alias, e.g.,

alias getlynx 'echo "ftp 144.35.10.96 <$HOME/getlynx" | at -m 03:00 Saturday'

        b) prepare your ftp commands in a file, which as an example I
           name "getlynx", the contents of which read:

cd /pub/lynx/current
binary
get lynx2.7.1ac-0.61.tar.gz
quit
[on this line I enter ^D]

           This assumes that you know the image number.  It is also
           possible to use a wildcard, but that adds considerably
           to the response time.

mget lynx2.7.1ac-0.*.tar.gz
y

           Also, be sure you have the necessary login info in the
           file $HOME/.netrc:

machine 144.35.10.96
login anonymous
password address@hidden     <== your email address here


If anyone should need more help on getting either of these methods
to work, I'll see what I can do to help.

__Henry
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