Is there ANYWHERE a novice can get hand-holding step-by-step tutorials on all this stuff?
Python, scripts, configs, mailman, MTAs, what the hell does it all mean?
Is there ANYWHERE this is in plain English - where it isn't written as if to be read by people with years of programming experience. I need: "you do this... and then you do that... and this is what should happen..." etc!
Sorry.
PeteBell. UK
Pete, There may be a web-based tutoral out there, but I found the README and INSTALL text files from the installation the best instruction set available. Some software has very tech oriented instructions, assuming you are an expirienced user, Mailman's instructions are some of the best I have used in open source.
If you are fairly comfortable in command line, and can get Mailmandownloaded and untarred, you will find the install very straight-forward.
Some tips: Take your time. Have both the README and INSTALL files printed or available for reference. Have a browser open to Google for answers for things you may not understand. Use this list when stumped.
Best of luck, Jon
----- Original Message ----- From: "PeteBell" macbantam@ntlworld.com To: mailman-users@python.org Sent: Saturday, November 20, 2004 12:23 PM Subject: [Mailman-Users] Anywhere for novices?
: Is there ANYWHERE a novice can get hand-holding step-by-step tutorials : on all this stuff? : : Python, scripts, configs, mailman, MTAs, what the hell does it all mean? : : Is there ANYWHERE this is in plain English - where it isn't written as : if to be read by people with years of programming experience. I need: : "you do this... and then you do that... and this is what should : happen..." etc! : : Sorry. : : PeteBell. UK : : ------------------------------------------------------ : Mailman-Users mailing list : Mailman-Users@python.org : http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/mailman-users : Mailman FAQ: http://www.python.org/cgi-bin/faqw-mm.py : Searchable Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/mailman-users%40python.org/
Just to add to Jon's comments. I used two sets of Mailman install manuals. Combined, the instructions were clearer. Another tip is to get the prerequisites going before installing Mailman. Get your mail system working and make sure Python and the C compiler are installed. Pay attention to the ./configure section, this is important to get right. Finally, it is not as hard as it looks :).
Best, Robert Toronto
-----Original Message----- From: mailman-users-bounces@python.org [mailto:mailman-users-bounces@python.org] On Behalf Of Jon Krause Sent: Saturday, November 20, 2004 1:11 PM To: mailman-users@python.org; PeteBell Subject: Re: [Mailman-Users] Anywhere for novices?
Pete, There may be a web-based tutoral out there, but I found the README and INSTALL text files from the installation the best instruction set available. Some software has very tech oriented instructions, assuming you are an expirienced user, Mailman's instructions are some of the best I have used in open source.
If you are fairly comfortable in command line, and can get Mailmandownloaded and untarred, you will find the install very straight-forward.
Some tips: Take your time. Have both the README and INSTALL files printed or available for reference. Have a browser open to Google for answers for things you may not understand. Use this list when stumped.
Best of luck, Jon
----- Original Message ----- From: "PeteBell" macbantam@ntlworld.com To: mailman-users@python.org Sent: Saturday, November 20, 2004 12:23 PM Subject: [Mailman-Users] Anywhere for novices?
: Is there ANYWHERE a novice can get hand-holding step-by-step tutorials : on all this stuff? : : Python, scripts, configs, mailman, MTAs, what the hell does it all mean? : : Is there ANYWHERE this is in plain English - where it isn't written as : if to be read by people with years of programming experience. I need: : "you do this... and then you do that... and this is what should : happen..." etc! : : Sorry. : : PeteBell. UK : : ------------------------------------------------------ : Mailman-Users mailing list : Mailman-Users@python.org : http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/mailman-users : Mailman FAQ: http://www.python.org/cgi-bin/faqw-mm.py : Searchable Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/mailman-users%40python.org/
Mailman-Users mailing list Mailman-Users@python.org http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/mailman-users Mailman FAQ: http://www.python.org/cgi-bin/faqw-mm.py Searchable Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/mailman-users%40python.org/
"PeteBell" == PeteBell macbantam@ntlworld.com writes:
PeteBell> Is there ANYWHERE a novice can get hand-holding
PeteBell> step-by-step tutorials on all this stuff?Yes ...
PeteBell> Python, scripts, configs, mailman, MTAs, what the hell
PeteBell> does it all mean?... but they are not indexed under those names, and probably not for your platform.
What you are looking for is books or tutorials with names like "Unix for Mac OS X Users" and "Linux Administration for Dummies". "Yes, Virginia, Mac OS X is different from Linux." But at the level you're interested in the difference is a minor annoyance compared to all the new stuff you need to know, and there's a lot more Linux stuff for Unix neophytes than there is Mac OS X stuff with the same target audience.
Any Linux distro has a pile of documents called HOWTOs. These are available online somewhere, Google sez www.tldp.org. There's probably a Mailman-HOWTO, a Sendmail-HOWTO, a Postfix-HOWTO, a Python-HOWTO, etc. You probably won't find anywhere near as much for your platform; Mac users generally would rather spend money than thought on their computers. (An honorable choice, but not one that leads to production of HOWTOs for other people to follow.)
PeteBell> Is there ANYWHERE this is in plain EnglishWell, all the names above are translations from the Japanese titles my bookstore offers.<wink> I did try to be idiomatic; there _may_ be English books by those names!
PeteBell> - where it isn't written as if to be read by people with
PeteBell> years of programming experience. I need: "you do
PeteBell> this... and then you do that... and this is what should
PeteBell> happen..." etc!_That_ probably doesn't exist, period. This is approximately on the order of complexity of learning to walk on your hands by moving exactly one muscle at a time. Yes, such scripts do exist, and they do often work ---but when they do, they get packaged and sold as "solutions" by vendors like Apple, or even bundled with Mailman (ie, setup.py). IIRC you've already tried Apple's Mailman, and it didn't work for you.
Really, go read the Linux docs. The fact that they're for Linux will help you remember that you're trying to learn enough "general background" to troubleshoot your own problems. If that sounds unattractive, maybe you should hire somebody else to do it for you. Alternatively, maybe there's another packaged MLM that's not as good a fit for your needs as Mailman, but would work out of the box in your environment.
-- Institute of Policy and Planning Sciences http://turnbull.sk.tsukuba.ac.jp University of Tsukuba Tennodai 1-1-1 Tsukuba 305-8573 JAPAN Ask not how you can "do" free software business; ask what your business can "do for" free software.
participants (4)
-
Jon Krause -
PeteBell -
Robert F. Kennedy -
Stephen J. Turnbull