I have a question about copying files to the hard disk from a cdrom. When I try to copy files/folders to the disk, they always show up as read-only, because it also transfers the settings for the files as read only (that's what it is with my /etc/fstab file). I realize that I could just go in and make everything 777, but if you make the folder 777, it doesn't make the contents 777, and so you have to go in and make all the files 777, and anyway it's really a hassle and isn't worth the time. Anyway, I was looking for a way to make it so anytime you copy anything from a CD, it's automatically 777 or whatever it is for read only. I figure that I could edit my /etc/fstab file so it doesn't say "ro" under /dev/cdrom, but I don't know whether it could screw up my system or not. Any suggestions?

Alex Ultima

It wouldn't work in the first place.

the solution to your problem is to run
find </path/to.copied/stuff> -exec chmod ug+w {} \;

Or chmod -R go+w </path/to.copied/stuff>


Cheers,
Tink

P.S.: Anyone who refers to slack as bloat ain't right in the head ;)

Either you're a genius, or you're a genius.

Alex Ultima

P.S. I wasn't the one who called Slackware bloat. My friend (Martin Ultima) simply hates GNOME and loves E (enlightenment). I put GNOME on mine. For more info go to http://ultimalinux.cjb.net.

Also to mount iso filesystems, there is the mode option to change
the default permissions

Gnome won't be in Slackware anymore, but you can't make
a case for E17 being anything more than a big old bug :-D

Slackware doesn't have to have anything you don't want it
to have...my 4 year-old Slackers install is about 150MB, and
she runs a X server.

We are grinding on you because you put it in your sig...

So you're saying that I "ain't right in the head," are you? Some respect you give your fellow hackers.

Well, it wasn't his original idea, so don't blame him.

Just to clear up a few things:

First of all, yes, E17 currently sucks. That's why it's a separate download; Ultima includes DR16 by default, and that's what I personally use.

Second of all, when I created Ultima, GNOME was still around in Slackware.

Third of all, yes, I know that it can be custom-installed almost to a fault. I've done that myself.

Now, here's my reasoning behind Ultima.

Slackware's a good system, and I really like it. But there's a lot of stuff I never use (especially those old programs that have been around since the original version that are never updated: JOVE, X3270, XV... and don't get me started on emacs) that's included, and a lot of things I do use (OpenOffice.org, Mozilla Firefox, Frozen Bubble...) that aren't included. So I hacked together my own distribution to solve those problems once and for all.

Now, yes I do know that they are available separately and that Slackware sometimes does have packages included. However, often I have to do a custom build to get it done right because i486 support is a major priority; my main computer's brand-new, but my laptop's an old 1997 i586 that I use quite a lot and I need Firefox on that. And since Slackware's packages are i686 builds from Mozilla.org I can't use them, so I do a custom compile.

[Yes, by the way, I did speak with Mr. Volkerding and Mozilla.org about the custom builds, and they've been given the official thumbs up.]

So if you think I'm mad, fine. But trust me, once you've seen Ultima you'll fully understand everything.

By the way, you could just do chmod 777 * -R which is the recursive version. However, that would still leave a major problem. Obviously you don't understand the whole permissions thing; if you have everything 777, it's not only a security hole, but also an easy way to become the laughingstock of Linux users everywhere.

Here's my tips for this:
* Use 755 for most directories and executable files only
* Use 644 for all other files, which is the default anyway
* Use 777 for directories and executable files that you want anyone in the entire world to be able to edit
* Use 666 for any other file you want the entire world to edit, or if you're trying to send a file to Hell ;-)

I'd get into groups as well but we don't want your head falling off...

By the way, if you're copying off of a Micro$oft disk and you want everything to be given the proper permissions on Linux, I usually just run chmod a-x * whenever downloading from say my digital camera's memory card or my favorite USB memory key. That way everything works right.

Oh, and one more thing: You can switch to KDE any time you'd like. Besides, I have yet to see anything else support a cool transparent taskbar - everyone knows I only run it for the eye-candy and JuK ^_^ (Hint, KDE is best with Enlightenment as the window manager)