To:	linux-tape@vger.rutgers.edu (Linux Tape Mailing List)
Subject: ANNOUNCE: ftape-4.03-pre-2
From:	Claus-Justus Heine <claus@math1.rwth-aachen.de>
Date:	05 Nov 1998 01:49:46 +0100


I have just uploaded ftape-4.03-pre-2 to my web site. The info-systems
mirror has been upgraded already, the mirror at torque.net will be
upgraded automagically when somebody will hit the "reload" button.


1) ftape-4.03-pre-2 fixes the "header segments are mysteriously erased"
   problem with external Ditto 2GB tape drives (which affected
   external Ditto 800 tape drives, too)

   If unsure, contact me for further explanations.

2) The MTSEEK/MTTELL interface has changed. The previous schem was to
   treat the first block of the current volume as "block 0"; the new,
   superior, better, brighter, compatibility breaking scheme is, to
   treat the first block of a _cartridge_ as block zero, and then
   enumerate every following block contiguously, without resetting the
   counter when a file mark is hit. Each file mark counts as one
   block. This way ftape should be compatible with the "st" SCSI tape
   driver.

3) Few the file "ChangeLog" for further information, if any.



Plans:

Fix some bugs in the ftape-tools package, add some "expect" tests to
ftape-tools' test suites to check the new MTSEEK/MTTELL interface. Add
a test to ftape-tools' testsuite to check that header segment erasure
problem (can be done in a way that the cartridge is NOT damaged ...)

Fix some configuration problems with the ftape-4.x-doc package where
Redhat users suffer from the absence of the sgml-tools package (which,
in fact, is not really needed as ftape-4.x-doc containes preformatted
documentation)

Track down the problems with Seagat parallel port tape drives.

I plan to set-up a gnats bug-track server for ftape and my NFS-Swap
hacks.

Maybe set up a public read-only CVS repository for ftape.

Release 4.03, create kernel patches and submit them to Linus (once
more ...)

Do someting with v2.0 kernels. Somehow the v2.0 driver should be
upgraded or disabled completely. At least I should prepare some README
script to point users to the newer versions of ftape.

Claus

-- 
  Claus-Justus Heine             
  heine@math1.rwth-aachen.de
  http://www.math1.rwth-aachen.de/~heine/

  Ftape - the Linux Floppy Tape Project
  WWW         : http://www.math1.rwth-aachen.de/~heine/ftape/
  Mailing-list: linux-tape@vger.rutgers.edu