Re: [gentoo-desktop] Vulnerabilities on an RFC-1918 masqueraded Linux box.

[Lindsay Haisley]

On Thu, 2011-03-24 at 19:30 +0100, Roman Zilka wrote:
> > > I suggest quitting this discussion. It's getting way
> > > off-topic, too general and unfit for this mailinglist, as all these
> > > questions can be answered by checking sources someone else has
> > > previously spent their time on writing.
> >
> > Roman, are you a moderator on this list?  The Gentoo website describes
> > it as a "Mailing list devoted to Gentoo on the desktop" so I assumed
> > that Gentoo desktop security was an appropriate topic.
> >
> > That having been said, perhaps you might recommend a few of the best
> > "sources someone else has previously spent their time on writing" since
> > you seem to have knowledge of these, and I'll be happy to let the thread
> > drop.
>
> This is exactly what this mailinglist primarily isn't for: re-relling
> stories Google can tell better, answering questions Google can answer. I
> say "primarily" - an off-topic off-shot here and there can't harm
> anyone, but we've had some already. If the list didn't have this policy
> and if it didn't more or less stick to it, it would have become a chat
> room for anyone who just doesn't want to take the time to search for
> themselves and instead opts for the lazier choice: just ask others,
> it's easier.

Well I didn't see anything about this in the list description on the
Gentoo website.  I guess there's a list description that you apparently
know about that I missed.  On friendly lists, people give useful
references when asked for them and don't suggest that others are "lazy"
when asking for them.

>  I know it because I've been monitoring this list for years
> (read-only, for the most part). As you say: the list is for Gentoo on
> desktops. Not for general Linux security discussion. True, Gentoo is
> Linux, but we're here for Gentoo specifically. Otherwise we could just
> call the list "the list on everything" because, for example, Gentoo
> runs on CPUs and CPUs are in desktops, so random chat about CPU-related
> stuff is related to Gentoo on desktops. The same for any piece of
> hardware, and more than that. You get the idea.

Oh!  Well that's abundantly clear!  

> You boldly state that you'll be happy to drop this thread if certain
> conditions of yours are met. It sounds like you believe only you decide
> whether the thread is dropped or not and when. Well, it's not true.

C'est la vie.  I politely asked you for a reference or two on the
subject, which you could have given me off list, if you'd wanted, using
far fewer words than you've used here to berate me.  Others on this list
have been more generous, thoughtful and polite.

Perhaps you would also be kind enough to refrain from commenting further
on my Gentoo desktop booting problem, which is obviously a general
_Linux_ problem, and probably not appropriate for this forum either.
I've asked Jorge in private email for suggestions for a more appropriate
forum in which to pursue it.  In any event, your participation on _that_
thread, while minimally helpful, has mostly yielded more heat than
light.

And if you're not the moderator on this list, then who is, and would the
moderator please point me, via private email, to a full description of
what's appropriate and not appropriate for discussion on this list?   -
something more complete than the simple, rather general description
which I read on <http://www.gentoo.org/main/en/lists.xml>.  Roman, since
you seem to know a great deal about it, perhaps _you_ could point me
such a description.  I'm really not lazy, I just can't seem to find it.
Please excuse me if I don't just take your word for it, but I don't see
gentoo.org in your email address, and it's not clear to me that you have
any more authority than I do in the matter.

-- 
Lindsay Haisley       | "Real programmers use butterflies"
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