Re: Newbie wants Firefox and Tbird

[Kent West <westk@acu.edu>]

Steve Lamb wrote:

>Kent West wrote:
>  
>
>>And when you need to run an X app? Ah, gotta muck around with Xauthority
>>files now.
>>    
>>
>
>    I've yet to see an X app that needs me to have root.  Chances are if such
>a beast exists I don't need it.
>  
>
/usr/bin/synaptic, at least on my box.
(Granted, I don't use synaptic, but the point is that some X apps
require root; this is just an example.)


>>And when you've got several xterms open, and only one of which is logged
>>in as root, and you're switching back and forth and forget which one
>>you're in when you type that "rm -rf" command? Sure, you can change your
>>root prompt to be red and flashing, to help avoid this, but I'd prefer
>>to intentionally do the extra step of typing sudo to prevent this sort
>>of mishap.
>>    
>>
>
>    Come now Kent, let's cut the hyperbole.  You know as well as I do that
>this is just as problematic with sudo.  You have several xterms open and you
>hit "sudo rm -rf" in the wrong one which is in a completely different path
>than the one you intended....  Typing sudo doesn't prevent you from being in
>the wrong xterm in the slightest.
>
I disagree.

If I have two xterms open; one seated in /etc/X11 and logged in as root
via "su", and one seated in /home/westk and logged in as "westk", and I
want to delete /home/westk/fonts, I can type "rm -rf fonts"; if I'm in
the wrong window, I've just messed up.

However, if the first xterm is not logged in as root, I can type "rm -rf
fonts" in either window without hurting myself. If I intend to delete
the X11 fonts, I have to do the extra typing of "sudo rm -rf fonts".

>  In fact it makes it more likely.  Doesn't
>take a red flashing prompt, just the same information you'd have with sudo.
>
>{grey@mania:~} root
>Password:
>root@mania:~# exit
>{grey@mania:~}
>
>    My prompt tells me the user, machine and path.
>
Yes, you're right. Still, for me, I find that the small difference in
the above prompts is more likely to lead to a mistake than either a
garish root prompt or the extra step of using sudo.

So for me, sudo does have a benefit on a single-user machine, which is
all I'm trying to say.

-- 
Kent