LWN.net posts the latest weekly summary of Python-related news. In this issue: “The PEP 245 (interface syntax) discussion continues” … “Neal Norwitz announces PyChecker, a source checking utility” … “Python 2.0 ports to OS/2 using the EMX+GCC compiler and runtime.”

LinuxSecurity.com: “The version of xntp3 that shipped with Slackware 7.1 as well as the
version that was in Slackware -current contains a buffer overflow bug that
could lead to a root compromise. Slackware 7.1 and Slackware -current
users are urged to upgrade to the new packages available for their
release.”

LinuxPlanet reviews Kylix: “Kylix is not difficult to learn, but neither is it intuitively simple. Nor is it suitable for a true novice programmer, in my opinion. This reality, though, does
not diminish its value as a serious tool for a professional developer. If you are moving to Linux from a Windows environment, using either Delphi or
Visual BASIC, then buying Kylix should be a no-brainer.”

The Register: “NEC Electronics is to issue pink slips to 700 staff at its Roseville, California fab.

It is also rejigging production at the plant away from DRAM and into more lucrative
LSI and logic devices for the communications sector. The company has scrapped
its test and management facility at the plant.”

ZDNET.co.uk: “Norman Inkster, president of KPMG Investigation and Security, said
studies by KPMG over the last decade had found that 70 percent of
fraud was carried out by insiders. “Most security breaches are carried
out by individuals who possess intimate knowledge of the systems
which they are attacking,” he added.”

Wired: “Digital archiving may be the wave of the future, but it’s costly, new and untested. How do we preserve history in an electronic age?”

The Register: “AMD’s Thunderbird Athlon core will be taken to 1.5GHz over the coming months,
with a part at that speed and another at 1.4GHz to fill the gap between the
top-of-the-line chip and the current 1.3GHz Athlon.”

PRNewswire: “At a maximum speed of 480 Mbps, USB 2.0 technology is forty times faster
than USB 1.1 and also maintains forward and backward compatibility with USB
1.1.”

LinuxSecurity: “This week, the Adore worm is something that Linux users should be on the outlook for. Sans released a good paper on the
specifics of this particular worm. Also this week, you may want to spend time reading “Detecting Loadable Kernel Modules,”
“The Process of Network Security,” and “Lion Internet Worm Analysis.”

– By Jeff Field –

Recently, I found myself in need of a Network Card, and decided to go with the 3c905TX-C from 3Com. The 3Com 3c905TX-C is the same card as the TX-B except with “remote management” features, in other words “wake-on-LAN.” Here are my findings.
The board
The board is a very simple network card, and that’s a good thing, because it does its job with little hastle. The 3c905TX-C I purchased came in nothing more than a static bag with the remote wakeup wire and the driver disc, as well as a quick start guide. The board itself has little to talk about physically — it has a link indicator for 10 megabit connections and one for 100 megabit connections. It also has an activity light to show when there is network activity — useful sometimes for diagnosing network problems.

Documentation and installation
The paper documentation included with the 3C905TX-C was simply the quick start guide, with the manuals residing on the included disc. The practice of doing this has grown very common, and I am not sure what my opinion is — sure, it is cheaper for a company to include documentation on a disc it would have to include anyway. But sometimes it is nice to be able to sit back and read something on paper, especially if the PC you need to read the document on is inoperational because you are installing the very card you need help with. The 3Com documentation is certainly adequete, telling you how to physically install the card, and connect the wake-on-LAN cable if you so desire.

The instructions also go into detail about how to install the Windows drivers, but that is a non-issue because the Linux kernel supports the 3Com card. You need only compile the driver into the kernel or compile the module and load it into the kernel for the card to show up. I’ve used this card in several systems, including one system where it temporarily replaced a TX-B, and there was no problem with the card on any of them.

Conclusion
The 3c905TX-C is an excellent network card, and is a blessing compared to some of the ISA NICs I am used to. Install it in a system, plug in the network cable, setup the card and let DHCP do the rest. You will be up and running in no time with very little hastle.

The 3Com works reliably in a variety of environments, from a relatively empty PC that serves as a firewall to my main Linux machine, which has many devices and which I regularly abuse heavily. And, perhaps the 3c905TX-C’s (and -B’s, which I highly recommend if you do not need the management features of the -C) best feature is its price — an all around good PCI 10/100 network card which can be had for $30 according to Pricewatch. It’s manufactured by 3Com.

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