Return-Path: engineering-request Return-Path: smlieu Received: (from smlieu@localhost) by cygnus.com (8.6.9/8.6.9) id SAA06464 for engnews-distrib; Wed, 22 Jun 1994 18:53:55 -0700 Date: Wed, 22 Jun 1994 18:53:55 -0700 From: Sun Ming Lieu Message-Id: <199406230153.SAA06464@cygnus.com> To: engnews-distrib Subject: Inside Cygnus Engineering - Vol 3 #6 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vol 3 No 6 INSIDE CYGNUS ENGINEERING June 1994 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Inside Cygnus Engineering (ICE) is published monthly for customers of Cygnus Support. Our objective is to provide a relevant but informal summary of news and ongoing activities. Please send all comments, suggestions, and subscription requests to engnews@cygnus.com. TABLE OF CONTENTS ----------------- . C Compilers Review . Cygnus Network Security V5 Update . Shared Library Support Update . Software Maintenance Status . Cygnus Support Information Gallery Update . Documentation in HTML Format . Cambridge Office Move PRODUCTS AND RELEASES --------------------- 1. C Compiler Review Gcc from Cygnus Support was among the six C compilers that were reviewed in the June issue of Advanced Systems magazine. We were ranked at the top in terms of support and documentation, but did less well in terms of functionality due to a lack of symmetric multiprocessing and multithread support. The reviewers also praised gcc for its support for multiple platforms, a key capability in the Open Systems market. We were in the middle of the pack in terms of performance; this is of particular interest to us, as improving performance is an area of engineering focus for gcc in 1994-1995. NEW AND ONGOING DEVELOPMENTS ---------------------------- 1. Cygnus Network Security V5 Update MIT has just released the Beta-4 release of Kerberos Version 5. Cygnus Support contributed to this release by converting the source tree so that it can now be configured and built using `autoconf'. Like all software packages intended for a broad range of workstations, Kerberos faces the challenge of easy configurability and builds for different target platforms. Autoconf is a free software package that characterizes the target environment through feature tests (rather than by using #ifdef macro definitions to describe the operating system and hardware platform). This allows code and makefiles to be written more cleanly and portably, and is considered a major improvement over the `Imake' software configuration tool (built by the X consortium) that has been in use. As part of this conversion, we also `cleaned up' much non-portable code in Kerberos 5. These changes will make it much easier to port Kerberos 5 to run on a wide variety of hardware and software platforms. We expect that this will lead to wider acceptance and use of Kerberos (and thus of cryptographic security technology in general). Cygnus also integrated its implementation of DES, derived from the work of Dennis Ferguson, into this release. This implementation is both faster and more portable than the original one in the MIT release. Kerberos Version 5 offers greater security than Kerberos Version 4, standardization as an Internet standard (RFC 1510), modularity, as well as compatibility with Distributed Computing Environment (DCE) from the Open Software Foundation (OSF). It will provide the foundation for a future version of the Cygnus Network Security product. Cygnus Support's policy is to work only on free software. As with the other free software packages that we productize and support, e.g., gcc, a key part of our cooperative software development process involves merging bug fixes and improvements back into a set of master sources. This allows timely sharing and leverage of work by other developers and users. We greatly appreciate the excellent working relationship we have with the Kerberos team at MIT, and look forward to a continued partnership in the development and dissemination of security technology. 2. Shared Library Support Update Our customers have expressed increasing interest in shared library support in the Cygnus Developer's Toolkit. We have now enhanced the GNU linker, ld, enabling it to link binaries with existing shared libraries to create executables that run on SunOS4, Solaris 2, UnixWare, and SGI Irix 5.x systems. This will be part of the Progressive Release in the third quarter (94Q3). General support for linking position independent code (PIC), and the creation of shared libraries, are not yet supported. Please contact us if you have a need for these features. SUPPORT ACTIVITIES ------------------- In addition to new development, a significant part of our engineering resources is devoted to answering questions, fixing problems in the GNU software, and providing a range of support services to our customers. 1. Software maintenance status The following table shows the maintenance statistics for the last five weeks. We continue to need your help: please let us know when you agree that a problem has been fixed so that we can move it from a "feedback" state to a "closed" state. # # # # # # Date Open Analzd Fdback Closed Suspnd Total ------------------------------------------------------------ 05/23/94 433 287 934 3,065 155 4,874 06/20/94 394 270 853 3,339 148 5,004 ------------------------------------------------------------ Change -39 -17 -81 +274 -7 +130 2. Cygnus Support Information Gallery Update Our World Wide Web page, the Cygnus Information Gallery, continues to be popular. In the last five weeks, there were about 14,000 items (or almost 300 megabytes) downloaded. It also received the following mention in PC Week's list of best commercial sites. `Possibly the future form of software companies, once we finally get it through our heads that software itself is just too damn easy to copy.' The Cygnus staff directory is one of the most popular pages. We now have photographs of almost every Cygnus employee in the directory. Since we work together so much across the Internet rather than in person, we like the opportunity to let you, our customers, know what we all look like. Practically speaking, it also helps the staff at our different sites. You can access the Information Gallery at http://www.cygnus.com/ 3. Documentation in HTML Format A number of our customers have commented that they like to use World Wide Web (WWW) browsers to view our documentation in preference to the `info' browser that we currently ship with our software. We currently do not offer a WWW browser and documentation package. However, we would like your inputs in terms of whether you would like to see our documentation shipped regularly in HTML format along with the existing info format. This would enable you to access the documents more quickly and effectively at your site, using the local WWW browser(s). OTHER ITEMS ----------- 1. Cambridge Office Move We are moving our Massachusetts office from Kendall Square in Cambridge to Davis Square in the neighbouring town of Somerville. The new address and telephone numbers are as follows: Cygnus Support 48 Grove Street Somerville MA 02139 Tel: +1 617 629 3000 FAX: +1 617 629 3010 All email addresses remain unchanged. This move will take place over the weekend of June 25, so the new address and numbers will be effective Monday, June 27. Although we anticipate slower transit times for email for about a week until our full network bandwidth to this office is restored, we do not anticipate any interruption to support services, --------------------------------------------------------------------- Cygnus Support 1937 Landings Drive 48 Grove Street Mountain View, CA 94043 Somerville, MA 02139 +1 415 903 1400 voice +1 617 629 3000 voice +1 415 903 0122 fax +1 617 629 3010 fax ---------------------------------------------------------------------