BerZerker Account FAQ

1. What's my basic account information?
2. How do I change my password?
3. Do I have a shell account and, if so, how do I access it?
4. How do I transfer files to my account or website?
5. How do I read my email?
6. How can I easily display pictures on my website?
7. What special features are available to me?
8. How do I get in touch with you quickly?
9. Why can't I login to my account? I swear it worked last time i tried!
1. What's my basic account information?

Well you should already know your username and password, if not contact me via email (see another FAQ question for how to reach me.) Otherwise, here is some basic but important information about your account, assuming your username is "foo":
  • Your web address is http://www.berzerker.net/foo.
  • To view your email, visit http://www.berzerker.net/webmail
  • To login to your shell, use ssh and login to ssh.berzerker.net
  • To ftp to your account, use secure ftp and login to ftp.berzerker.net
  • FTP web files to the "public_html" folder in your home directory

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2. How do I change my password?

Currently, the only secure way for you to change your password is to login to your BerZerker shell account (see next question) and use the "passwd" command. Here are the basic steps:
  • Login to ssh.berzerker.net using putty.exe (see Q3 below)
  • type "passwd" when logged in.
  • Follow prompts to enter your old and new password (twice).
  • type "exit" or close the putty window to quit.
I will be looking into a secure way to change passwords using BerZerker's Webmail page, but that's not in place yet. Alternatively, if you don't care that I know your password, you can email me and have me change it for you.
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3. Do I have a shell account and, if so, how do I access it?

You do indeed have your own shell account on BerZerker. By default, it is setup as a bash shell, but that can be changed if you'd rather have another type. If you don't know what a shell account is, you probably don't need to worry - but it is basically an interactive, command-based interface to your remote account on the BerZerker server (similar to XP Command Window).

To access your shell account, we recommend that you use putty.exe. You can go to www.berzerker.net/share to get a copy of putty.exe and to read about how to use it (see the readme file there).
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4. How do I transfer files to my account or website?

For security reasons, You'll need to use an FTP program that supports "secure FTP" (also known as "FTP over SSH"). The standard ftp protocol transmits passwords as clear text which could be intercepted, so it is not supported. If you don't already have a favorite FTP program that supports Secure FTP, we have a free one available for download at www.berzerker.net/share. You can read the Readme file there to get more details about how to use the program.
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5. How do I read my email?

That's easy. Go to www.berzerker.net/webmail and do what seems natural. There is also a link on berzerker's main website in case you forget where to go to read your mail.
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6. How can I easily display pictures on my website?

I wrote a php script called ImgDir which can be used to very easily display images on BerZerker. An example was setup for you already in a "pics" subfolder (e.g. http://www.berzerker.net/userfoo/pics). Once ImgDir.php is in a folder, you merely upload pictures to that folder or to subfolders within that folder. The pictures will automatically be converted to thumbnails whenever someone visits that web folder. The idea was to make the program VERY easy to use -- all you have to do is transfer pics. But there are also numerous hidden options which will eventually be exposed via an options page. For now, if you want to do something like captions or more compact thumbnails, just ask me how.

Oh. If you want to install imgdir in another web folder, just login to your BerZerker shell and type "getimgdir [pathname]" where pathname is the path to an existing directory where you want ImgDir installed. You can also "cd" to the directory and type "getimgdir ." (since "." in linux represents the current directory).
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7. What special features are available to me?

Well if there's anything you want, just ask and I might can work it ouf or you. But some specific examples of special requests that i've been able to accomodate include:
  1. Hosting a domain using Berzerker's DNS.
  2. Setting up pop/imap access for email .
  3. Setting up password-protected web folders.
  4. Providing IRC access via BitchX, screens, eggdrops.
  5. Providing additional web space for specific projects.

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8. How do I get in touch with you quickly?

Via email. Currently the best one to use is berzerkerscum at gmail dot com. The "durwood" and "scum" berzerker email addresses are getting so much spam that I've had to stop using them. Last check, I have over 33,000 unread emails in the "durwood" account, and 18,000 in the "scum" account -- so good luck reaching me on those! The gmail address goes directly to my Blackberry, so i'll read your email almost instantly.

If you're a high-maintenance user or want to be, just ask for my cell phone number and you can text msg me also!
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9. Why can't I login to my account? I swear it worked last time i tried!

We've recently added some additional security layers to the server and removed some older, inactive accounts. One of the new security measures requires that users be added to a list for authorization to connect via ssh; perhaps your account wasn't added to this list since it was built based on accounts that had recently connected. If this is the case, or if you think your account was deactivated by mistake, just email me at berzerkerscum at gmail dot com and I'll resolve the issue ASAP. Sorry for the inconvenience.
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