thanks for the replies to this dumb question -
looks like it showed quite a lack of understanding,
sorry!

> You're supposed to install binary packages with "pkg_add" 
> from within NetBSD

explains a lot - so the same goes for fvwm-2.2.4.tar.gz?

what files can the MacOS installer utility be used for?
my NetBSD system isn't networked to anything - all the 
files have to come via the MacOS partition.

> You need an "/etc/ld.so.conf" to tell ld.so where to look for
> shared libraries

done

does the O'Reilly <What To Do If Your Unix Administrator is Away> 
book explain what I need to know?

cheers

Richard