RX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
TX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
collisions:0 txqueuelen:1000
RX bytes:0 (0.0 b) TX bytes:0 (0.0 b)
The GUI network configuration program ( system-config-network ) will sometimes refuse to configure interfaces that start with wlan ; after renaming the interface, you can use the GUI configuration tool to permanently set up the interface.
3.2.4. Where Can I Learn More?
The manpages for ifconfig , route , netstat , iwconfig , iwlist , resolver , resolv.conf , hosts , dhclient , NetworkManager , NetworkManagerDispatcher , nm-applet , nm-tool , and modprobe .
The home pages for wireless firmware projects on SourceForge, including http://ipw2100.sf.net/ , http://ipw2200.sourceforge.net/ , http://ipw3945.sf.net/ , and http://linux-lc100020.sourceforge.net/
RFC1918, Address Allocation for Private Internets: http://tools.ietf.org/html/1918
Documentation on the files in /etc/sysconfig : /usr/share/doc/initscripts*/sysconfig.txt
3.3. Configuring a Touchpad
Many laptops use a Synaptics TouchPad (or an Alps GlidePoint, which can use the same driver). By default, a touchpad will emulate a PS/2 mouse, so it should work fine with the default driver, but if you use the Synaptics-specific driver, you can exquisitely fine-tune the touchpad's extended features.
3.3.1. How Do I Do That?
You will need to manually edit the X server configuration file, /etc/X11/ xorg.conf , to make two changes.
It's a good idea to get into the habit of making a backup of configuration files before modifying them, just in case something goes wrong:
# cp /etc/X11/Xorg.conf /etc/X11/Xorg.conf.backup
First, add an InputDevice line to the ServerLayout section:
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Default Layout"
Screen 0 "Screen0" 0 0
InputDevice "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "TouchPad0" "AlwaysCore"
InputDevice "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
EndSection
Next, add a new InputDevice section (you can add this to any part of the file that is not between Section and EndSection lines):
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Touchpad0"
Driver "synaptics"
Option "SHMConfig" "on"
EndSection
When you restart the X server by restarting the system or pressing Ctrl-Alt-Backspace (save any work first!), the Synaptics driver will be loaded with a default configuration that will permit you to:
Click the left mouse button by tapping one finger in the middle area or by tapping the upper-left corner.
Drag with the left mouse button by tapping and then dragging one finger (touch-release-touch, then drag).
Click the middle mouse button by tapping two fingers in the middle area or by tapping the upper-right corner (this will usually perform a fast-paste of selected text).
Click the right mouse button by tapping three fingers in the middle area or by tapping the lower-right corner.
Scroll up and down by running your finger up and down the right side (if supported by your application).
Scroll left and right by running your finger across the bottom (if supported by your application). Some web browsers, such as Firefox, use this for history navigation (left for previous page, right for next page).
These default options work well for most users, but the driver is incredibly customizable. It's also one of the few X drivers that can be adjusted without restarting the X server, through the use of the synclient program.
Running synclient with the -l option will list the current driver settings:
$ synclient -l
Parameter settings:
LeftEdge = 1900
RightEdge = 5400
TopEdge = 1900
BottomEdge = 4000
FingerLow = 25
FingerHigh = 30
MaxTapTime = 180
MaxTapMove = 220
MaxDoubleTapTime = 180
ClickTime = 100
FastTaps = 0
EmulateMidButtonTime = 75
VertScrollDelta = 100
HorizScrollDelta = 100
MinSpeed = 0.09
MaxSpeed = 0.18
AccelFactor = 0.0015
EdgeMotionMinZ = 30
EdgeMotionMaxZ = 160
EdgeMotionMinSpeed = 1
EdgeMotionMaxSpeed = 400
EdgeMotionUseAlways = 0
UpDownScrolling = 1
LeftRightScrolling = 1
UpDownRepeat = 1
LeftRightRepeat = 1
ScrollButtonRepeat = 100
TouchpadOff = 0
GuestMouseOff = 0
LockedDrags = 0
RTCornerButton = 2
RBCornerButton = 3
LTCornerButton = 0
LBCornerButton = 0
TapButton1 = 1
TapButton2 = 2
TapButton3 = 3
CircularScrolling = 0
CircScrollDelta = 0.1
CircScrollTrigger = 0
CircularPad = 0
PalmDetect = 1
PalmMinWidth = 10
PalmMinZ = 200
CoastingSpeed = 0
These parameters are fully explained in the manpage for synaptics , but the most commonly altered values are described in Table 3-3 .
Table 3-3. Commonly altered Synaptics driver values
| Options | Description | Reason for change |
|---|---|---|
| LeftEdge, TopEdge, RightEdge, BottomEdge | Define the border between edge/corner and middle regions of the touchpad | Used to shrink or expand the regions used for scrolling and corner-taps. |
| PalmDetect, PalmMinWidth, PalmMinZ | Configure the touchpad to ignore broad touches | Prevents accidental touches of the user's palm from registering as touchpad events. PalmDetect enables/disables, PamMinWidth sets the minimum touch diameter that will be considered a palm, and PalmMinZ is the minimum pressure required to register a palm. |
| RTCornerButton, LTCornerButton, LBCornerButton, RBCornerButton | Define the mouse-button clicks that will be registered when the user touches the corner of the keypad | By default, the top-right corner can be tapped to produce a middle mouse click, and the bottom-right corner can be tapped to produce a right mouse click. If you are finding that these clicks are being accidentally registered, set these button values to zero (0); alternately, you can select a specific button you wish to associate with a corner tap (1=left, 2=middle, 3=right, 4=down, 5=up, 6=left, 7=right) |
| TapButton1, TapButton2, TapButton3 | Define the mouse-button clicks that will be registered when the user taps in the middle region of the touchpad with one, two, or three fingers | If you find that you accidentally tap the touchpad with more fingers than you intend to use, you can change the two- and three-finger tap buttons. To disable a tap altogether, set the appropriate value to 0. |
| VertScrollDelta, HorizScrollDelta | Define the amount of finger motion required to register a scroll event. | Set these values to adjust the scroll rates, or set them to 0 to disable scrolling altogether. Note that smaller values increase sensitivity. If you're finding that Firefox keeps moving back and forth in its History when you accidentally sweep your finger across the touchpad, try setting HorizScrollDelta to 0. |
| MaxTapTime | Defines the maximum time (in milliseconds) in which to detect a tap (which is interpreted as a left mouse click). | If tap-to-click drives you bonkers, set this to 0. Otherwise, you can use it to adjust how sensitive your touchpad is to tapping. |