Contents - Tropical Reader
TROPICAL  READER FOR WINDOWS

Version 1.30

PROMOTION: You can register Tropical Reader for Windows for US 39 for a limited period! First 5,000 registrations get FREE lifetime upgrades!

	Introduction How can Tropical Reader for Windows make it easier to manage your messages?		How to get started Tips and hints on how to get started with Tropical Reader for Windows
	Message Packets and Online Mail How to download and unpack message-packets from BBSes and Internet and access mail online.		Folders, filters and tools Manage your messages and other information using the built-in power of a database
	Read Mail How to read, browse and manage your messages?		Configuration Configure the program the way you want it to work.
	Write Mail Write new mail, reply, forward, attach files and encrypt your messages!		How to register Support the author with your generous donation!
© MIRON INTERNATIONAL 1996

Email: miron@ksc.au.ac.th

WWW: http://taygate.au.ac.th/web/miron/


Introduction

See also

Get started

Workplace

Tropical Reader for Windows is an off-line reader and database manager for the two most popular mail formats, QWK and SOUP. In addition to read mail and messages off-line, you can define filters which will scan file packets and transfer messages to the folders automatically. The folders are 100% compatible with the Microsoft Access 2.0 database file format. You can also import messages from offline readers, such as YARN and CmpQWK.

You can also send and receive Email over an Internet host online, using the SMTP and POP3 protocols over a SLIP or PPP connection. This is sometimes called a graphical account.

Tropical Reader for Windows has most of the functions you would expect from an off-line reader, such as:

Read, write, reply and forward messages

Print and save messages

Attach files to messages (documents, spreadsheets, picturefiles, etc.)

Automatically detach files

Encrypt and decrypt messages using PGP

Topic-sensitive online help

We will also consider to include a spell checker, but until then, you can use Spell checkers for edit boxes or other available spell checkers for Windows programs.


Get Started with Tropical Reader for Windows
 Get started with Tropical Reader

There are some very basic steps you need to follow in order to manage your messages using Tropical Reader, or almost any other offline reader.

Here are a few basic suggestions on how to get started with Tropical Reader:

	Set correct directories in the configuration screen	Select Tools | Configurations from the menubar. and click directories.
	Download a message packet	Use your communication program, such as Procomm, Wincomm, Telix, etc, to your designated download directory. See also How to use uqwk to process your SOUP mail
	Open the message packet	Select File | Open Packet from the menubarto open the message packet.
	Read Messages	Click the conference or newsgroup name and then click the message in the message list.
	Write a new message or reply to a message	Select Message | Enter New or Message | Reply from the menubar. and use the message editor to write a message.
	Close the message packet	Select File | Close Packet from the menubar.
	Create reply message packet	Select File | Create Reply Packets from the menubar.
	Upload reply message packet	Use your communication program to upload the outgoing message packet from your designated upload directory. See also How to use uqwk to process your SOUP mail

Later you should customize the program as it suits your specific needs:

	Create signatures	Select Tools | Signatures from the menubar to create/update signatures.
	Create quote headers	Select Tools | Quotes from the menubar to create / update quotes to use when you reply or forward a message.
	Create folders	Select Tools | Folders (Maintain) from the menubar to create or modify folders.
	Create Contact Addresses entries	Select Tools | Addresses from the menubar to create / update contact address information, such as Email addresses.
	Create filters	Select Tools | Filters (Maintain) from the menubar to create / modify filters to be used when importing messages automatically.
	Import a packet to the folders	Select File | Import to Folders from the menubar to import messages based on the filters you have defined.


Workplace

The Tropical Reader workplace is what you see on the screen when opening the program:

 Folder Manager Window

 Conference & Newsgroup Window

 Message List Window

 Message Display Window

 Menubar

 Toolbar

 Statusbar.


Workplace: Menubar
Menu bar

The horizontal bar below the title bar. You can click a menu name to display the list of commands. Some of the menus are only available when the Folder Manager is active or when a QWK-packet is open.

File  Edit  Packet  Message  Tools  Windows  Help


Workplace: Toolbar
Toolbar

The buttons on the built-in toolbar enable you to perform common tasks quickly, often providing shortcuts to choosing menu commands. The buttons are visible, but unavailable until you open a file packet with messages.

Click the buttons on the toolbar above to find out more about the features available.

When you move the cursor over one of the buttons you will see a short description of the function each button will perform.


Workplace: Status bar
Status bar

The status bar displays instant information about the function or the screen element you are touching with the mouse cursor. The second field is a progressbar which shows how many percent is done of a task you are performing or the current position of a list. The last field shows the current time.


File

Open Packet	CTRL+O

Close Packet

Connect to Internet Host	CTRL+H

Open Internet Mail Box	CTRL+M

Open Folder Manager

Import to Folders

Print Setup

Compact Database

Repair Database

Exit


Edit

Cut	CTRL+X

Copy	CTRL+C

Paste	CTRL+V

Select All


Packet

(Only available when a QWK packet has the focus)

Bulletins

New Files

Other Information


Message

First message

Previous message

Next message

Last message

Create New message

Reply to message

Forward message

Edit

Delete Reply

Search

Export to File

Add to Folder

Print message

Miscellaneous


Tools

Address

Tag Lines

Signatures

Quotes

Folder (Maintain)

Filter (Maintain)

Configuration


Windows

Cascade

Tile Horizontal

Tile Vertical

Arrange Icons

Set Default Windows Layout

Active Windows


Help

Contents

Search for Help On...

Order Tropical Reader

Register Tropical Reader

About


Message Packets

The two most commonly used file packet formats in the on-line community are the QWK and the SOUP format. QWK is usually used on PC-based BBSes Bulletin Board Services (BBSes), while the SOUP format is the universal standard at the Internet. From version 1.3 you will also be able to access your Internet Email online using a SLIP/PPP connection. Tropical Reader uses the SMTP protocol to send Internet Email and the POP3 protocol to receive Email.

In addition of being a traditional off-line reader, Tropical Reader lets you scan all messages in a file packet and import messages according to the filters you have defined.

 Open File Packet

 Close File Packet

 Import File Packet

See also

How to use uqwk to process your mail

Connect to online host

How to set default packet extensions for SOUP and QWK

Configure service information for a new packet

Configure your network setting for a SLIP/PPP connection


Open Message Packets
Open Message Packet

You can view the available file packets with messages in them, by choosing File | Open Packet from the menubar, or click the Open Icon from the toolbar. It shows you a list of the packets available in your download directory. The download is where your communication program will save downloaded files from BBSes or Internet hosts.

Be aware that file packets will be deleted, depending on the number of days you have decided to keep them.

Screen elements

Packet list

You can click any of the entries in the packet list to highlight it. Double-click to open a packet.

Name of Source

This is either the name of the BBS if your are viewing a packet in the QWK format, or the packet name of a SOUP file (without the .SUP extension).

File Packet

This is the actual file packet name in the download directory.

Date / Time

This is the date and time of the packet file.

Size

Shows the size of the packet file.

UnZip

Indicates if you have previously unzipped the files in the packet file. If you have, they will be placed in a subdirectory under the work directory in Tropical Reader.

Import

This column is marked with a symbol if you have already imported the messages to the folder, based on the filter criterias.

Read

Shows how many percent of the messages in the packet you have read.

Use previous Unzipped Files in Working Directory

If you already have opened a file packet previously without deleting the work files, and need to re-unzip the packet, disable this option. If the packet is not unzipped, the option will be grayed out. When you have opened a packet once, you can choose when closing it if you want to keep the working files or not. The working files contain the actual messages and indexes. This will take up some extra disk space, but it will be faster when you decide to open the same packet later as the program doesnt have to unzip the packet again.

Delete

Highlight the packet you want to Delete and click the Delete button. This will remove the file packet in your download directory as well as any unzipped working files in the work directory.

Rename

Highlight the packet you want to Rename and click the Rename button.

Packet Format

You can choose if you want to view the QWK packets or the SOUP packets by clicking QWK Format or SOUP Format at the bottom of the screen.

Open Message Packet

Double-click the file packet you want to open, or click the Open Button. Tropical Reader will - if necessary - unzip the file packet and start reading conferences or newsgroups. It will also rename the file packet, by changing the last character in the extension of the file. Any file packet you download with the QWK extension, will be renamed to QW[A-J, L-Z, 0-9], while packets with the SUP extension, will be renamed to SU[A-O, Q-Z, 0-9].

See also

How to set default packet extensions for SOUP and QWK


Close Message Packet

This will close the packet you are currently reading.

Remove working files?

Answer Yes if you want to remove the unzipped files in the file packet. The work directory will also be removed as well as the file keeping the status pointers.


Import File Packets
Import Message Packet

Tropical Reader for Windows lets you import incoming messages directly to the folders, based on filter criterias you have set.

You need to follow these steps in order to import messages:

Select the source and format of the message packet

Choose selection method

Start reading messages based on the selection method

Delete or accept the result of the selection

Import the selected messages from the source

Click the Import Button to start importing messages to the folder according to the filter criteria you have set.

Message Format

QWK Format

Choose QWK Format if you want to import an existing QWK packet from your download directory.

SOUP Format

Choose SOUP Format if you want to import an existing SOUP packet from your download directory.

Internet Mailbox

Choose Internet Mailbox to filter messages you have received using the Internet online module.

Click the checkbox if you want to delete imported messages from the Internet mailbox.

YARN Folder

Tropical Reader allows you to import messages you have saved in YARN 0.83 compatible folders to the Tropical Reader Folders. You can not use the filters when importing from YARN. All messages will be selected for import.

QWK Folder

Some QWK-based off-line readers, such as CmpQWK, uses the QWK format to save messages in folders. You can import messages from these folders. If you are using CmpQWK, the name of the folder file is usually FOLDERS.DAT and resides in your CmpQWK directory. You can not use the filters when importing QWK Folders. All messages will be selected for import.

Select the file you want to import from the list before choosing a selection method.

Selection Method

Use filters

Click this option to use the defined filters. Only messages that fit within the criterias you have set in the filters, will be selected for import.

Use filters, copy remaining messages to default folder

Click this option to use the filters as the primary selection method and copy the messages that fit within the criterias you have set in the filters to the corresponding folder. Remaining messages will be selected for later import to the default folder you select.

Copy all messages to default folder

Click this option to select all messages in the source packet/folder and use default folder name.

Folder

Select default folder you want to use. Not available if you are only using filters to select messages for import.

Start Reading Messages

After you have chosen the file with messages you want to import and selection method, click Start Reading Messages. Tropical Reader will read and analyze the messages in the file and display them in the list for selected messages.

List of selected Messages

The list will show selected messages, based on the selection method you have chosen. The list will show parts of the Subject, From, To, Date and the name of the folder where each message will be transferred.

Delete

If you dont want to include one or several of the messages the program selected, you can highlight a message header and click the Delete button or press Delete on the keyboard.

Import

Click Import to start importing messages to the folders.


Using the UQWK program
How to use the uqwk program?

UQWK is a program which collects all a users unread mail or news and formats it into a packet for off-line reading, saving telephone and connect charges. The program also accepts reply packets, so replies can be mailed to another contact or posted to a usenet group.

These are the most common switches you will need to use in order to create a SOUP packet  of the messages and download it to your PC.

+m

Do mail. UQWK will process all mail in the users mail spool file and convert it into an off-line packet. This is the default.

-m

Dont do mail.

+n

Do news. Using the users .newsrc file and the news systems active file, uqwk will collect all unread news articles in all subscribed newsgroups into the packet. This can generate a large number of messages and large packet files.

-n

Dont do news. This is the default.

+r

Read only. Normally, uqwk will empty the users mail spool file and update the users .newsrc file to reflect the fact that mail and news have been read. If this switch is specified, uqwk will not touch these files. This is useful for testing.

-r

Dont execute in read-only mode. This is the default.

+L

Operate in SOUP mode. The files comprising a Simple Off-line usenet Packet (SOUP), specifically, AREAS and *.MSG, will be created. The reply file, if any, will be interpreted as an SOUP replies file.

-L

Do not operate in SOUP mode. This is the default.

-Rreplyfile

Process reply-file as a reply packet. Messages and articles created by Tropical Reader must be uploaded as a reply packet and then processed by this switch to be mailed to another user or posted to a usenet group. The name of the reply-file will always be REPLIES when you use Tropical Reader.

Example - Download Only EMail

This example will show you how to download your incoming EMail from the UNIX-based Internet host to your own PC. News from usenet  will not be included in the example.

Login to your account as usual.

Create mail files with uqwk.

Type the following command from the UNIX-prompt:

uqwk -n +m +L +r

The -n switch indicates that news will not be affected, the +m switch tells that any mail will be included, +L is the switch which will generate the necessary files in the SOUP format, and as a precaution we have added the +r switch so the program will not empty your incoming mail-box. Later you should not add the +r switch.

Zip the files into a mail packet

This will generate the necessary mail files and they need to be zipped into a mail packet.

zip hostname.sup AREAS *.MSG

where hostname is the name of your Internet host. The same name will automatically be used when Tropical Reader creates the reply packet. If the name of your Internet host is comnet the following statement would do fine:

zip comnet.sup AREAS *.MSG

Download the file packet

The next step is to download the file packet with the messages. Under most UNIX systems, you can use the sz command.

sz hostname.sup

Hostname is the same name as the name you chose when creating the zip packet above.

Example: Download Email and Newsgroups

This example will show you how to download your incoming EMail from the UNIX-based Internet host to your own PC. News from usenet will also be included in the example.

Login to your account as usual.

Create mail files with uqwk.

Type the following command from the UNIX-prompt:

uqwk +n +m +L +r

The +n switch indicates that news will be included, the +m switch tells that any mail will be included, +L is the switch which will generate the necessary files in the SOUP format, and as a precaution we have added the +r switch so the program will not empty your incoming mail-box. Later you should not add the +r switch.

Add Configuration file for Newsgroups

Tropical Reader will need to keep the configuration file for all available newsgroups on the PC. The file is available on your Internet host as .newsrc. Make a copy of this file by typing

cp .newsrc NEWSRC.BKP

This is very important if you want to post to newsgroups. Otherwise, Tropical Reader will not know which newsgroups are available on your host.

Zip the files into a mail packet

This will generate the necessary mail files and they need to be zipped into a mail packet.

zip hostname.sup AREAS *.MSG NEWSRC.BKP

where hostname is the name of your Internet host. The same name will automatically be used when Tropical Reader creates the reply packet. If the name of your Internet host is comnet the following statement will do fine:

zip comnet.sup AREAS *.MSG

Download the file packet

The next step is to download the file packet with the messages. Under most UNIX systems, you can use the sz command.

sz hostname.sup

Hostname is the same name as the name you chose when creating the zip packet above.

Example: Post Replies

If you want to post replies, you need to first upload the reply packet from your own PC. Use the rz command and start upload from your communication program.

rz hostname.zip

The next step is to unzip the reply packet. The syntax is:

unzip -U hostname.zip

The -U switch will change the filenames in the packet from lowercase to uppercase. Depending on the version of unzip you are using, this switch may not be necessary.

When issuing the uqwk command, you must add -RREPLIES. So if you want to download mail and news as well as post your replies, the following command will work:

uqwk +n +m +L +r -RREPLIES

Once again, the +r switch is as a precaution when you test it out and dont want to remove the mail from your incoming spool file.

Problems

If you have any problems with uqwk or down/up-loading your mail, ask your Internet host for assistance. The help file for uqwk , zip, rz and sz are usually available on your Internet host.


Connect to online host

This section is under construction.

In order to receive/send Email messages over an Internet host, you need a SLIP account. Tropical Reader uses the SMTP protocol to send mail and POP3 to receive Email. You also need to set the permanent settings in the Network section of the configuration screen.

Before connecting Tropical Reader to an online host, you must already have established a SLIP connection, usually by dialling the Internet host using Trumpet or another WINSOCK compatible communication program.

You can later view the mail box.

See also

Configure your network setting for a SLIP/PPP connection

View Mail Box


View Internet Mailbox

This section is under construction.

The mail box will view in- and outgoing Email messages received through the SLIP connection. The screen elements are the same as if you were opening an ordinary message packet.

See also

How to read mail


Conferences & Newsgroups

List of Conferences and Newsgroups in the packet

You can move through the conferences by either using the mouse or the keys on the keyboard. Select a conference by clicking the conference name or highlight it and then press Enter or click the left mouse button. If you have chosen use of a temporary swap file for the message headers, you can still re-read the message headers by double-clicking the conference name.

The message list window will open, and display a list of all messages in the selected conference.

Out Mail

This conference lists all the mail you have written, replied to or forwarded to another user using the Message Editor. These messages have not yet been sent out. You must create a reply message packet before sending out these messages.

Out Post

This conference lists all the messages you have written for usenet newsgroups. This is public messages and they will be posted to potentially millions of users worldwide. The messages listed here have not yet been sent out. You must create a reply message packet before sending out these messages.

Personal Mail

This conference will lists your incoming personal mail. If the open packet is a QWK packet, both private and public messages addressed to your userid on the BBS will be listed here. If it is a SOUP packet downloaded from an Internet host, mail addressed To: your EMail user-id as entered in the general section of the configuration screen, will be listed here.

Incoming EMail messages are not always to you personally. If you subscribe to a List the same message will be distributed to several users. This function will make it easier to distinct between private and public EMail.

Search Result

This conference lists the result of your latest search.


Reading Mail
Read Mail

When you have opened a packet to read - or folders - you double-click a conference/folder to view the messages. From here you can reply to a message, forward to another user, print it, save it or transfer it from the packet to the folders.

 Message List

 Message Display

 How to navigate


Message List

The message list will show the messages in the conference or folders. You can change the way the messages are displayed and sorted in the Program Configuration.

Screen Objects

The following fields will be visible in the header of the message list

Subject

This is the Subject field of the message listed.

From

This is the From field of the message. If the open packet is in the SOUP format, the information in this field can either be the Internet EMail address or the Internet EMail name, if it is available. It depends on the configuration you have set

To

This is the To field of the message. If the open packet is in the SOUP format, the information in this field can either be the Internet EMail address or the Internet EMail name, if it is available. It depends on the configuration you have set. Keep in mind that messages received from a mailing list are usually not addressed to you in the message header.

Date

The is the date the sender wrote the message. All times are local.

Status Information

If you are using high resolution on your screen (800 * 600 or better), you will also be able to view the status-information of the current message:

Private (icon)

Icon indicating if message is private to you or not. If the open packet is a QWK packet, both private and public messages addressed to your userid on the BBS will be listed here. If it is a SOUP packet downloaded from an Internet host, mail addressed To: your EMail user-id as entered in the general section of the configuration screen, will be listed here.

Incoming EMail messages are not always to you personally. If you subscribe to a List the same message will be distributed to several users. This function will make it easier to distinct between private and public EMail.

Read

Icon indicating if the message has been read previously or not.

Replied

Icon indicating if you have replied to the message or not, using Tropical Reader.

Forwarded

Icon indicating if you have forwarded the message or not.

Folders

Icon indicating if you have saved the message to the folders in Tropical Reader.

Printed

Icon indicating if you have printed the message.

Printed

Icon indicating if you have saved the message to a text file.

Troubleshooting

Blank message with no subject

If you get a blank - or part of a message - in the message list with a blank subject, you should not blame Tropical Reader! The functions in the reader are based on the official SOUP format, where the four bytes of the message indicates the length of the message. Unfortunately, it seems like uqwk is scanning the messages in your mail file and wherever it finds a new paragraph that starts with From it will treat everything from there on as a new message. We have discussed this with the author of uqwk and he says that this is the UNIX standard.

In a later release Tropical Reader will work around this problem.

See also

Configuration of Read

Configuration of Folders


Message Display Window
Message Display

The Message Display Window is where you can read the message text itself. When a message is active, you can also reply to it, forward it to another contact, transfer a copy of it to the folders, print it and save it!

Overview: How to navigate

First message

Previous message

Next message

Last message

Enter New message

Reply to message

Forward message

Edit

Delete

Search

Export message

Add to Folder

Print message

Miscellaneous

You can move within the message by clicking on the scroll bars to the right. Tropical Reader also uses the same key combinations as most other off-line readers. Most important: the space bar. Press it to move down within the message, and as soon as it reaches the end of the current message, it will open the next.

 You can double-click the message itself if you want to switch from graphical view to text view or text view to graphical view. To make the settings permanent whenever you start the program, you need to make these changes in the configuration screen.


Overview: How to navigate

Message List	Message Display

has focus	has focus

Next message	DOWN CURSOR	+, >, SPACE or RIGHT CURSOR
Previous message	UP CURSOR	-, < or LEFT CURSOR
First message	HOME	CTRL+HOME
Last message	END	CTRL+END
Enf of active message		HOME
Beginning of active message		END
New message	CTRL+N	N
Reply to message	CTRL+R	R
Forward message	CTRL+F	F
Print message	CTRL+P	P
Export message	CTRL+X	X
Add message to folder	CTRL+A	A
Search messages	CTRL+S	S
Edit message (reply or message in folders)	CTRL+E	E
Add message to folder	CTRL+A	A


First Message

Move to the first message in the active conference/Newsgroup by one of the following methods:

Press Home while in the Message List window

Press [Ctrl]+Home while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | First from the menubar

A popup-menu is also available.


Previous Message

Move to the previous message in the active conference/newsgroup by one of the following methods:

Press the Up arrow key if you are in the Message List window

Press the Left arrow key if you are in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Previous from the menubar

Click the Previous Message Icon on the toolbar

A popup-menu is also available.


Next Message

Move to the next message in the active conference/Newsgroup by one of the following methods:

Press the Down arrow key if you are in the Message List window

Press the Right arrow key if you are in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Next from the menubar

Click the Next Message Icon on the toolbar

A popup-menu is also available.


Last Message

Move to the last message in the active conference/Newsgroup by one of the following methods:

Press End while in the Message List window

Press [Ctrl]+End while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Last from the menubar

A popup-menu is also available.


Enter Message
Enter New Message

Enter a New Message to any of your subscribed BBSes or Internet hosts by one of the following methods:

 Press [Ctrl]+N in any of the message windows

Press N while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Enter New from the menubar

Click the New Message Icon on the toolbar

A popup-menu is also available.

See also

Write Mail


Reply to message

Reply to a Message by one of the following methods:

 Press [Ctrl]+R in any of the message windows

Press R while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Reply Message from the menubar

Click the Reply Message Icon on the toolbar.

A popup-menu is also available.

See also

Write Mail


Forward Message

Forward the Message to another user or usenet group by one of the following methods:

 Press [Ctrl]+F in any of the message windows

Press F while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Forward Message from the menubar

Click the Forward Message Icon on the toolbar.

A popup-menu is also available.

See also

Write Mail


Export Message

Export the contents of a message to a text file and later edit the file itself. If you view the message with the Internet headers, these will also be included in the message. One of the following methods are available:

 Press [Ctrl]+X in any of the message windows

Press X while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Export to File  from the menubar

Click the Save to File icon on the toolbar.

The program will ask you to confirm if you want to export the headers as well, or just the message body.

A popup-menu is also available.


Add Message to Folder
Add to Folder

You can copy any message to an existing Folder. One of the following methods will work:

 Press [Ctrl]+A in any of the message windows

Press A while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Add to Folder  from the menubar

A popup-menu is also available.


Print Message

You can print the message to your printer by using one of the following methods:

 Press [Ctrl]+P in any of the message windows

Press P while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Print from the menubar

Click the Print icon on the toolbar.

The program will ask you to confirm if you want to print out the header, or just the message body.

A popup-menu is also available.

See also

Print Fonts


Delete Message

Delete the selected outgoing message by one of the following methods:

 Press Del in any of the message windows

Choose Message | Delete Message from the menubar

A popup-menu is also available.


Edit Message

Edit the selected outgoing message by one of the following methods:

 Press [Ctrl]+E in any of the message windows

Press E while in the Message Display window

Choose Message | Edit Message from the menubar


Miscellaneous

Add FROM: to Contact Address

The program will add the FROM field in the active message to the Contact Address database. You will be asked to confirm the new entry.

Add Tagline from active message

The program will add the Tagline at the end of the active message to the Tagline database. If you have selected text in the message, it will be imported as the new tagline. If no text is highlighted / selected, the program will try to figure out where the tagline start according to the common QWK standard.


Search

Lets you search through the messages in the active packet for specific text.

Packet

When searching a packet, the result of the search will appear in a new conference called Search Result. If you close the packet without removing the working files, the Search Result will be there the next time you open the packet.

Folders

When searching the Folders, it will scan a selected folder or all, and the result will appear in the Message List Window.

Search for

Enter the text you want to search for.

If you searching a SOUP message with international characters, Tropical Reader will not be able to find these characters.

In conference / newsgroup

Select the conference or Newsgroup you want to search.

Search Message Fields

Click one or more fields you want to search.

To

From

Subject

Message Text

The search procedure does not distinguish between uppercase and lowercase characters.


Create Reply Packet
Create Reply Message Packet

Tropical Reader for Window keeps your replies in the work directory, using a subdirectory with an identical name as the mail service you use to send the mail.

To create a reply packet, select File | Create Reply from the menubar. Please note that you can not create a reply packet while you are reading or editing replies.

From the Create Reply Packet screen, you must highlight the mail service you want to create a reply packet for.

Click Build to start creating the reply packet. Tropical Reader will process the messages and create the reply packet in your Upload directory.

Use your communication software to upload the packet to the designated mail service.

The next time you a message packet from this mail service, you will be asked if you want to delete the reply packet - or open it. If you have already uploaded and processed the messages, you should choose Delete. If you choose Open, the messages will be read and categorized in the Out Mail/Post conferences.


Print Setup

Default Printer

Displays the name of the default printer and shows the printer connection.

Printers

Select the printer you want to use; Word lists only printers installed by using either Windows Setup or the Windows Control Panel.

For information about installing printers, see your Windows documentation.

Set As Default Printer

Changes the default printer that Word uses to print documents. Select the printer you want to use in the Printers list, and then choose this button.

Options

Controls printer settings for the printer you select in the Printers list. The available options vary depending on the printer driver.

To get Help for the selected printer, choose the Options button, and then choose the Help button.


Database Maintenance

Compact Database

Makes a copy of the database file, rearranging how the database file is stored on disk if it is fragmented. File storage can become fragmented when you make many changes to a database. The compacted database file is usually smaller and often provides better performance.

The compact operation succeeds only if you have enough storage space on your disk for both the

original and compacted versions of the database. You can't compact a database when it is open. In a multi-user environment, the compact operation fails if another user has the database open.

The name of the database file is TROPREAD.MDB and it is stored in the data directory.

Always keep a backup of the datafiles if something unexpected happens.!

Repair Database

Repairs a corrupted database file.  The database may become corrupted if Tropical Reader for Windows quits unexpectedly: for example, if there is a power outage or your computer experiences a hardware problem.  The database will not become corrupted if you quit Tropical Reader for Windows normally.

In some situations, the MS Access 2.0 engine, which Tropical Reader folders and databases are based on, may not detect that a database has become corrupted.  If a the folders behaves unpredictably, use the Repair Database command to repair it.

Always keep a backup of the datafiles if the program cant repair the database!


Exit Tropical Reader for Windows
Exit

Whenever you quit Tropical Reader for Windows, it automatically closes all the files and deletes temporary files. You will also be asked if you want to remove any working files.

See also

Close Filepacket


Writing Mail
Message Editor

In the message editor you can write new messages, reply to incoming messages or forward messages and include your own comments - as well as edit messages you have written. You can also attach a file (document, spreadsheet, database, etc.) to a message and the recipient can detach the file when he receives it, assuming he uses a MIME or UUENCODE compliant reader, such as Tropical Reader, Eudora or Pegasus for SOUP messages or standard QWK-based readers.

Menuline

Insert  Format Message

Message Header

Message Body


Message

Send Message

Cancel Message

Attach File to Message

Save as Text file

Encrypt (PGP)


Format

Italic

Underline

Use Mime Quoted Printable

Receipt

Urgent

Private

View Extended Header

View Header Fields


Insert

Insert Text File

Date

Time

Carbon Copy

Blind Carbon Copy

Subscribe

Unsubscribe

Catchup


Send Message

After you have filled out all the header fields (Subject and To), you must send the message itself. This is a somewhat misleading term, as it will not be sent before you create the reply packet. It will be created and saved in the proper message format.


Cancel Message

Cancel Message will delete the active message you have written.


Message Editor: File attachment
File Attachment

You can attach any file to a message and the recipient will be able to access it on his own computer.

QWK

Tropical Reader will attach a file to a QWK-message according to the official QWK-specifications for Wildcat/QSO where an index file called ATTXREF.DAT will be created and processed by the mail door.

SOUP

When attaching a file to a SOUP-based message, it will either be encoded using the UUENCODE scheme or MIME BASE 64, depending on the settings you have made under in the configuration. Both of these formats are supported by Tropical Reader. If posting binary images to usenet groups, the unofficial standard is UUENCODE. For individual EMail, most SLIP-based readers supports MIME.


Save as Text File

Lets you save the message text - without the message headers - to a text file.


Edit

From the Edit menu can you can select, cut, copy and paste text in the message body.


Message Editor: Format
Format

Italic

Messages can not contain any formatting, such as underline, bold, italic, etc. In the net community, it has become the non-facto standard to use the * symbol before and after the word you want to italicize. Highlight the text you want set in italic, and choose Format | Italic from the menu in the Message Editor.

Underline

Messages can not contain any formatting, such as underline, bold, italic, etc. In the net community, it has become the non-facto standard to use the *_* symbol before and after the word you want to italicize. Highlight the text you want set in italic, and choose Format | Underline from the menu in the Message Editor.

Use MIME Quoted Printable

Use MIME Quoted Printable encoding of messages if your message contain non-standard characters (8 bits) or long lines. MIME Quoted Printable is becoming a standard over the Internet - even for plain English messages.

Receipt

You will get a confirmation when the message has been delivered to the recipient.

QWK

Usually this mean that when the recipient has downloaded the message packet from his service provider, a receipt will be generated and sent to you as a confirmation.

SOUP

You will receive a confirmation when the mail drop host received the message. If the recipient is using Pegasus, the program will generate a receipt when he or she has actually read the message.

Urgent

QWK

Not available

SOUP

An extra header field indicating a high priority to the message will be added.

Private

QWK

The message will be marked as private.

SOUP

Not available.

View Header Fields

Tropical Reader lets you define and edit header fields in Internet EMail and Usenet posts. As a default the program will show the fields based on the RFC 822 and RFC 1036 documents, but if you need to define your own header fields, you can do that. Be careful when trying to change these values.

The default fields will be stored in a file called FIELDS.DTA in your Tropical Reader data directory. This field can be edited using a standard text editor. The EMail section starts with the [MAIL] header and you are not able to change these fields. You can change the fields in the [MAIL - OPT] section. The Usenet Post section starts with the [NEWS] header and optional fields start with [NEWS - OPT].

View Extended Header

Click extended header to view additional message header features, such as use of quotes, signatures, taglines and choosing a folder for the outgoing message.


Message Editor: Insert
Insert

Text File

Let you insert a text file in the body of the message. You can only insert files smaller than 30K. If you need to send more information, we suggest you make a file attachment of the file and attach the entire file to a message.

Insert Date

Inserts the current date in the body of the message.

Insert Time

Inserts the current time in the body of the message.

Subscribe / Unsubscribe / Catchup

Both BBSes and Internet gateways let you send control messages to change some of the settings, such as conferences (QWK) or newsgroups (SOUP) you are subscribed to. The syntax of these messages may differ from one BBS to another and one Internet host to another. The following three control messages seems to work with Wildcat BBSes (QWK) and Internet hosts using the uqwk program to process messages.

Subscribe

Subscribe to a conference or Newsgroup.

BBS

1. Select the conference you want to subscribe.

2. Choose Insert | Insert Control | Subscribe

Answer yes on the question: Do you want to subscribe?

The message will automatically be created/sent for you.

Internet

1. Choose Usenet Post in the Conference list.

2. Enter the name of the Newsgroup you want to subscribe to, e.g. alt.test.

3. Choose Insert | Insert Control | Subscribe

Answer yes on the question: Do you want to subscribe?

The message will automatically be created/sent for you

Unsubscribe

Unsubscribe to a conference or Newsgroup.

BBS

1. Select the conference you want to unsubscribe.

2. Choose Insert | Insert Control | Subscribe

Answer yes on the question: Do you want to unsubscribe?

The message will automatically be created/sent for you.

Internet

1. Choose Usenet Post in the Conference list.

2. Enter the name of the Newsgroup you want to subscribe to, e.g. alt.test.

3. Choose Insert | Insert Control | Subscribe

Answer yes on the question: Do you want to unsubscribe?

The message will automatically be created/sent for you

Catchup

Mark all messages in the conference/Newsgroup as read.

BBS

1. Select the conference you want to subscribe.

2. Choose Insert | Insert Control | Subscribe

Answer yes on the question: Do you want to catch-up?

The message will automatically be created/sent for you.

Internet

1. Choose Usenet Post in the Conference list.

2. Enter the name of the Newsgroup you want to subscribe to, e.g. alt.test.

3. Choose Insert | Insert Control | Subscribe

Answer yes on the question: Do you want to catch-up?

The message will automatically be created/sent for you


Message Editor: View
View

Carbon Copy / BlindCarbon Copy

You can send a carbon copy (CC:) or a blind carbon copy (BCC:) to a number of users. The main difference between CC: and BCC: is that when using BCC: that the recipients will not know if you have sent a carbon copy to other recipients.


Message Body

The message body is where you enter the text you want to include in the message. There is an upper limit of approximately 32,000 characters. If you want to send a longer message, you can always write it using a text editor/word processor and attach the entire file to the message. There is no limit on the size of a file you can attach if you are a registered user of Tropical Reader.


Message Editor: Header
Message Header

There are certain fields that MUST be filled out in a message. The To and Subject Field are the most crucial. In the header section of the Message Editor you can change this information, as well as attach files or send carbon messages to additional users.

Choose View | Extended Header to view all the options you have for the header section.

To

You can enter any valid contact-address in this field, or you can click the check-box to the left to get a list of registered contacts in the contact address database.

QWK

If you are writing a message to be processed on a QWK-based system (usually a BBS), you are limited to a total of 25 characters in the TO: field, all of which must be in uppercase. If you are sending Internet EMail on a QWK-based system, the first line in the text body of the message must be a separate line, in the following format:

To: user@site.com

(the space after the colon is important.)

If you have chosen a mail service that supports QWK and click the check box to the left, the program will search the BBS Name in the contact addresses database.

SOUP

There is no limit on the number of characters if you are writing an Internet EMail or USENET Posting. The information you enter in this field, will depend on the choice you have made in the field Conference. If this is an EMail, Tropical Reader expects to get a valid Internet EMail address. If you have chosen USENET, you must enter the name(s) of the Newsgroup(s) you want to post to.

If you want Tropical Reader to list all available newsgroups from your Internet host, you need to download separately a file called newsrc from your Internet host and place it in the main working subdirectory for that hosts ID. If the Service ID for the Internet host is inet, you need to place newsrc in the /TROPREAD/WORK/INET/ subdirectory and rename the file newsrc.bkp!

Subject

Enter a description of the message.

Mail service

Choose which mail service you will use to process this message from the list. The entries in the list will automatically be updated whenever you open a new packet.

Conference

QWK

Choose in which conference you want to post the message. As a default the list will only contain entries of conferences you have already subscribed to. Click the box to the left to get a list of all available conferences for this mail service.

SOUP

For SOUP-based messages, you only have two choices here: EMail or USENET. If you click EMail, the message will be sent to an individual user (or listserver), depending on the entry you enter in the To: field. If you click Usenet, the message will be posted to the Newsgroup(s) you enter in the To: field.

Quote Header

Select a quote header to start the message with. If the recipient is registered in the contact address database, this quote header selection will be used or the default setting from the configuration screen.

Signature

Select a predefined signature to add at the bottom of your message.

Tagline

Click All to view all the taglines in the database. Click Random to choose one randomly or search for a word or phrase in a tagline in the database.

Attach File

Click the check-box to attach a file.

Save to Folder

Tropical Reader can automatically make a copy of your outgoing messages to the folders. Choose which folder you want the message to be saved to. If you dont want to save the message to a folder, click ESC.


Encrypt (PGP)

You can use the DOS-based encryption program PGP to encrypt outgoing messages. It is important that the recipient of the message is already registered in the contact address database with a reference to an existing public key signature.

Select the text in the message body you want to sign/encrypt by highlighting it or the program will sign/encrypt the entire message.

Select Tools|Encrypt (PGP) from the Menubar in the Message Editor.

Sign Message Only

This will only sign the message using the public key you have set in the configuration screen.

Encrypt Message Only

This will encrypt the message by using the recipient public key. Select the recipients public key ID from the listbox.

Encrypt and Sign Message

This will sign your message using the public key you have set in the configuration  screen and encrypt it using the recipients public key. Select the recipients public key ID from the listbox.

PGP Command

You can always add edit the PGP command before actually signing/encrypting the message.

Read Keys

In order to increase the speed when encrypting a message using PGP, Tropical Reader saves the contents of the public key ring in a datafile called pgpkey.dta in the Tropical Reader data directory. Whenever you make changes to the public key ring, you should also update the pgpkey.dta file by pressing Read Keys. The same command is also available in the Configuration screen.

We suggest you read the documentation that comes with PGP to get a better understanding of the program, its technology and possibilities in general.

See also

Configuration: Processing external tasks

Configuration: Your PGP Key

Program Configuration: PGP Location


Folders
 	Folders, filters and tools

 Folder Manager

 Maintain Folders

 Maintain Filters

 Contact Addresses

 Tagline Manager

 Signature Manager

Quote-Header Manager


General Information about Folders
Folder Manager

The Folder Manager is a tool you can use to organize your messages, both incoming and outgoing.  The folders in Tropical Reader are compatible with the MS Access 2.0 database format so you can store and retrieve messages in a common format. If you have your own version of MS Access 2.0 you can open and edit the messages from within the database program or export the messages to another database format, such as FoxPro, dBase, Paradox,, Excel, etc.

Do not change the structure of the database itself (TROPREAD.MDB)

Open Folders

You can open the Folders by clicking the Folders icon or choose File | Open Folders from the menubar.

A new screen, not unlike the Conference Screen, will appear with the all the folders. The folders are organized hierarchically, with a main folder and subfolders below. Messages can only be stored in the subfolders.

View Folders

After you have opened the Folder Manager, you will see the name of the main folders. If the main Folder has subfolders, you will see the plus symbol in front of the name. Double-click the name of the Main Folder to view Subfolders.

Show Messages

Double-click the name of the Sub-Folder to get a list of all the messages in the sub-folder dumped to the Message List.


Maintaining Folders
Maintain Folders

Choose Tools| Folder (Maintain) on the menubar to create a new folder, modify an existing folder or delete a folder. This is also where you delete batches of expired messages.

Show Folder Information

Highlight a main folder and double-click to show subfolders. Double-click any subfolder to see a description of the folder, default number of days to keep the messages in the folder, number of messages and how many messages have expired.

New

 Click the new button to create a new folder.

This is how you create both main folders as well as subfolders. Remember that you can only store messages in the subfolders, so the main folder must exist before creating a subfolder.

Folder Name

Enter a short name of the folder. If it is a subfolder, you must seperate the the name from the main folder name with a backslash symbol \.

Visual Folder Structure	Valid Folder Names

Out Mail	Out Mail

Bill	Out Mail\Bill

Greg	Out Mail\Greg

Rhonda	Out Mail\Rhonda

Steven	Out Mail\Steven

In Mail	In Mail

Bill	In Mail\Bill

Greg	In Mail\Greg

Rhonda	In Mail\Rhonda

Steven	In Mail\Steven

Projects	Projects

Taiwan	Projects\Taiwan

China	Projects\China

Jakarta	Projects\Jakarta

Description

Enter a more descriptive name or details of the nature of the messages you want to store here.

Level

Click the folder level you want to assign for this message.

Top Level

This is the main folder level.

Subfolder of

If you want to create a subfolder, you must also choose the name of the main folder in the list below. Dont choose a subfolder to be the parent of another subfolder as you will only create an error.

Set Expire Date (to # of days):

Set the number of days you want to keep the messages in this folder as a default. The program will automatically add the number of days you enter as a default to the message date and create an expire date. This date will be used to suggest when to delete messages from the folders.

Remove Messages in Folder

If you run the this option, Tropical Reader will delete ALL expired messages. Please let me repeat, it will DELETE, KILL, REMOVE, DESTROY, ERASE ALL expired messages in the subfolder you have highlighted/selected without any further warning. The only way you can recover lost messages in the folders is to reinstall a backup copy.

Remove Expired Messages

If you run the this option, Tropical Reader will delete ALL expired messages. Please let me repeat, it will DELETE, KILL, REMOVE, DESTROY, ERASE ALL expired messages in the subfolder you have highlighted/selected without any further warning.

Please note: Several users have reported an undefined error message when attempting to run the expire function when a large number of messages have expired. If you get the same undefined error, you should increase the value of SHARE in your autoexec.bat file.

Modify

 Click the modify button to modify an existing folder.

Make necessary changes in the fields as described above.

Delete

 Click the delete button to permanently remove a folder.

WARNING: All messages in the chosen folder will be deleted.


Filters

The filters in Tropical Reader lets you pre-define to which folder(s) you want to import your incoming messages. You can make selections on the mail service, the conference, as well as from the From, To, Subject fields and the message body itself.

Choose Tools | Filter (Maintain) from the menubar to create a new filter, modify an existing filter, rename the name of an existing filter or delete a filter.

New

 Click the new button to define a new filter.

Mail service

Choose the mail service you want to use as the source of messages. Click to the right of the list box to view all the mail services you have accessed previously or select All on-line Services.

Conference

Select one of the available conferences of the mail services you want to scan.

Message Selection

If you dont want to check each individual message, just click No Message Selection.

If you want to select a message based on the From, To, Subject fields or a word/phrase in the message body, click Use Message Selection.

From Field

Enter a search criteria for the From field. Do not use wildcard (* and ?) characters. If you want to include all messages from a specified host, such as @internet.org, just enter @internet.org in the from field, and messages from bill@internet.org, andrea@internet.org will be copied in the designated folder when importing messages.

To Field

Enter a search criteria in the From field.

Subject Field

Enter a search criteria in the Subject field.

Message Body

Enter a search criteria in the message body itself field.

Copy to Folder

Select the folder where you want to filter the message(s) to.

Delete Msg after # of days

The default setting will be the same as the settings in the selected folder. The program will add the number of days in this field to the original date of the message, and this will become the suggested expire date.

Modify

 Highlight the filter you want to modify and click the Modify button.

Make changes in the filter criterias. The fields are the same as when defining a new filter, as described above.

Rename

 Highlight the filter you want to change the name of and click the Rename button.

Delete

 Highlight the filter you want to delete and click the Delete button.


Contact Addresses

Tropical Reader requires an address to be able to send your electronic mail. The Contact Address Manager is a database where you can store names and their EMail addresses over the Internet and on the local BBS. You can add, modify and delete records in the database.

Fields

First Name

Enter the first name of the contact address. The maximum length is 50 characters.

Last Name

Enter the last name of the contact address. If the address is a company, and not an individual user, enter the company name in this field and leave the First Name field blank. This field is required. The maximum length is 50 characters.

Home phone

Enter the phone number of the contact address. This field is just for information purpose. The maximum length is 30 characters.

Telefax

Enter the fax number of the contact address. This field is just for information purpose. The maximum length is 30 characters.

Email

The Internet EMail address must be in the format username@hostname. If your Internet host does not recognize the Internet EMail address, the mail will be returned to you when you process it on the Internet host. The maximum length is 128 characters.

BBS Mail

The BBS Mail address for QWK-compatible BBSes MUST be entered in uppercase. The maximum length is 25 characters.

Out Folders

The program can automatically save all your outgoing EMail to the contact to the folder. Choose an existing folder where you want the EMail for this contact to be saved. If no folders exists, you must create a new folder name first.

PGP Keys

If you are using PGP and you have already imported the Public Key for this contact, you can add the contacts public key to the contact address database. When writing a message to the contact, you can automatically encrypt the message with his/her key.

Quotes

You can choose which quote header you want to use for this contact. The quote header must already exist. This will override the default setting in the configuration.

Signature

You can also choose which signature you want to attach at the end of messages to this contact. The signature must already exist. This will override the default setting in the configuration.

Taglines

You can also choose taglines for this contact. Choose between random, sticked or no tagline. This will override the default setting in the configuration.

New

Click the NEW button at the bottom of the screen or press Insert to add a new contact. The new contact will not be saved in the database before you click Update. Click Cancel any time to cancel the new contact.

Modify

Click the Modify button at the bottom of the screen, or double-click the contact in the list or press Enter to modify an existing contact record. The changes will not take effect before you click Update. Click Cancel any time to undo any changes.

Delete

Click the Delete button at the bottom of the screen or press Delete to remove the active contact. You will be asked if you want to remove the contact permanently from the database. If this is what you want, answer yes.


Tagline Manager

In Tropical Reader you can enter and keep an unlimited number of taglines in the tagline database. We suggest that you try to control your creativity and keep each tagline to 72 characters, as this is the de-facto standard in the BBS/Internet community. The Tagline Manager will not accept duplicate taglines.

Taglines will be inserted at the end of the message.

If you are an unregistered user, you will not be able to use taglines in your messages.

New

Click the NEW button or press Insert to add a new tagline to the database. Enter the tagline text in the edit box below the tagline list and press Enter when finished. If you dont want to save the entered tagline, press ESC.

Modify

Highlight the tagline you want to modify, and then click either the Modify button or press Enter to modify an existing tagline. The tagline will appear in the edit box below the tagline list. Make your changes and press Enter when finished. If you dont want to save the modified changes, press ESC.

Delete

Highlight the tagline you want to remove, and either click the Delete button or press the Delete key. You will be asked to confirm if you want to remove the tagline or not. Answer Yes if you want to remove it from the database.

Import

The program will let you import a plain textfile with taglines to the tagline database. The Tagline Manager will treat each line separated with Enter (CRLF - CHR(13)+chr(10)) as a separate tagline. Edit the file with an ASCII editor and save the file as a plain ASCII file before you import the textfile.


Signature Manager

A signature is a short section of text which is attached to the end of a message you write. This text usually contains name, company, phone number, etc. Tropical Reader lets you add the Time and Date variables. Unlike most off-line readers there is no limit on the number of different signatures you can have. You can also combine the power of the Contact Address database and automatically link a signature to one or more contacts.

New

Click the NEW button or press Insert to add a new signature to the database. Enter the signature text in the edit box below and press Update when finished. If you dont want to save the new signature, click Cancel.

Modify

Select the signature you want to modify, and then click the Modify button to modify the signature. Make your changes in the edit box below and press Update when finished. If you dont want to save the new signature, click Cancel.

Delete

Select the signature you want to remove, and either click the Delete button or press the Delete key. You will be asked to confirm if you want to remove the signature or not. Answer Yes if you want to remove it from the database.

Other

The Signature Manager supports two variables you can insert in the signature. Both fields will be updated when they are inserted in a message.

Date

The date will be formatted as the Long Date is defined in the International section of the Control Panel.

Time

The time will be formatted as defined in the International section of the Control Panel. Long time includes hours, minutes, seconds.

Import from File

You can also import a plain text file. Click the Import button and choose the file.

Example

This is an example of the Signature entry as you save it in the Signature Manager:

   _/_/_/_/_/ _/_/_/_/_/  Tropical Reader for Windows

      _/     _/      _/   ===========================

     _/     _/_/_/_/_/    Off-line reader for Internet

    _/     _/    _/       EMail/Usenet and QWK-format

   _/     _/      _/ (c)  with full  database support

= miron@ksc.au.ac.th ================================

                     {Date} {Time}

=====================================================

In the actual message it will be attached to the end of the message and look like this:

   _/_/_/_/_/ _/_/_/_/_/  Tropical Reader for Windows

      _/     _/      _/   ===========================

     _/     _/_/_/_/_/    Off-line reader for Internet

    _/     _/    _/       EMail/Usenet and QWK-format

   _/     _/      _/ (c)  with full  database support

= miron@ksc.au.ac.th ================================

                     7-Jan-1996 16:23:45

=====================================================


Quote Header Manager

The Quote Header is the text that appears before any other text in a message. It is usually used to refer to an original message you are answering to. You can insert variables in the quote header and they will be updated with the references in the message.

New

Click the NEW button or press Insert to add a new quote to the database. Enter the quote text in the edit box below and press Update when finished. If you dont want to save the new quote-header, click Cancel.

You can use the following variable fields:

From Name

This is the complete name of the sender of a message. If no such field exist, the program will use the From EMail address instead.

From Email address

This is the EMail address of the sender of a message.

To Name

This is the name of the original recipient of the message. If no such field exist, the program will use To EMail address instead.

To Email address

This is the EMail address of the original recipient of the message.

From Conference / Newsgroup

This is the name of the conference (QWK) or the Newsgroup (Internet) the message originated from.

Subject

This is the original subject of the message.

Original Message Date

This is the original message date. The date will be formatted as the Long Date is defined in the International section of the Control Panel.

Original Message Time

This is the original message time. The time will be formatted as defined in the International section of the Control Panel. Long time includes hours, minutes, seconds.

Modify

Select the quote header you want to modify, and then click the Modify button to modify it. Make your changes in the edit box below and press Update when finished. If you dont want to save the new signature, click Cancel.

Delete

Select the Quote Header you want to remove, and either click the Delete button or press the Delete key. You will be asked to confirm if you want to remove the quote header or not. Answer Yes if you want to remove it from the database.

Example

This is the Quote Header entry as you save it:

On {Date} {Time} {From Name} wrote to {To Name} about {Subject}:

In the actual message it will look something like this when you use this Quote Header:

On 5-Jan-1996 (15:22:12) Santa Claus wrote to Peter Peterson about Christmas Visit 1995:


Configuration Settings
Configuration

The configuration screen is the most important part of the program. All the settings will be saved to a file called TROPREAD.INI in your Windows directory. If you delete any of the settings in this file using a text editor, the Tropical Reader will not start. Use this configuration screen to change any of the settings.

General

Directory

Program

Service

Folder

Read

Write

Font

Network


General Configuration

How to process external tasks

You can use the power of some external programs and integrate it into Tropical Reader. PGP supports is one such example. These programs are all DOS-based, and while Tropical Reader is running under Windows, it becomes necessary to shell out to DOS and execute the program. You have two choices how the program shall do this. Tropical Reader comes with a PIF-file called TROPREAD.PIF which is located in the program directory. If this file doesnt exist, you must create it.

Minimized Background

The program execution will be done, using the SHELL command from within Windows. Try this as your first choice, and if you experience any problems, set it to Background and try again.

Minimized Windowed

The program execution will be done in the background, using a .PIF file under Windows. This method usually works without problems. Some OS/2 users have reported problems executing .PIF files from within Windows. They should use the Foreground execution.

Foreground

The program execution run in the foreground, using a DOS BATCH file from within Windows.

Packet Settings

Default QWK Extension

The default extension of a QWK packet file is QWK. You can change this and it will effect what kind of packets the program will show in the Open Packet screen. Tropical Reader will rename the packet by changing the last character of the file extension name.

Default SOUP Extension

The default extension of a SOUP packet file is SUP. You can change this and it will effect what kind of packets the program will show in the Open Packet screen. Tropical Reader will rename the packet by changing the last character of the file extension name.

Default Packet Format

Tropical Reader supports the two most widely used file message formats: QWK for BBSes and SOUP for Internet hosts. Choose which of these you want to appear as default when choosing a new packet to open.

Automatically rebuild index file

The BBS mail system will usually build an index and include it in the downloaded file packet. Some of BBS systems do not have this option, and Tropical Reader will automatically create the necessary index files. This will take a few seconds extra, depending on the total number of messages in the packet.

Number of days to keep Packets

Enter the number of days you want to keep the packets in the download directory before deleting them. The is set to 10 as default.

Automatically rename Packets

Click the check box if you want Tropical Reader to automatically rename the packets. Usually the file packets will be downloaded with the extension QWK from QWK-based BBSes and SUP from Internet hosts. The program will rename these packets by changing the last character in the file extension. You can have a maximum of 36 packets in the download directory at any time (A-Z, 0-9). If you download one packet from each mail service a day, you can keep a backlog of packets for 36 days.

Issue warning before Deleting expired packets

Click the check box if you want Tropical Reader to ask you to confirm if you want a packet deleted or not. This option is checked as default.

Message settings

Backup Interval

Tropical Reader can make a backup of the message you are writing on a set time interval. If you set this value to 0 minutes, no backup will be made. You can open backup files from the Message Editor by choosing Insert | Text File.

Time Zone

Choose from one of the time zones in the list box. This entry will only be used for Internet SOUP messages.


Directory Configuration

Program

This is the main program directory where you keep the Tropical Reader executable file TROPREAD.EXE. The only time you need to change this setting, is if you are moving the program to another directory or drive. Default is C:\TROPREAD.

Data

This is the subdirectory where you keep the folders and database files. Default is C:\TROPREAD\DATA.

Download

This is the default directory where you download your file packets when using your communication program. Incoming electronic message packets will be stored here.

Upload

This is the default directory where you upload files when using your communication program. Outgoing electronic mail packets will be stored here.

Export

This is the default directory where you export messages to a file.

Import

This is the default directory where you import text from for your outgoing messages.

Work

This is the subdirectory where the program will unpack mail packets. The default is C:\TROPREAD\WORK. Tropical Reader will create sub-directories for each packet in the work directory.


Program Configuration

Tropical Reader supports the use of external programs. In the Program section of the configuration screen you can change the location of the PGP program. If you dont have the TROPREAD.PIF file in your program directory, you need to create it.

PGP Pretty Good Privacy

Pretty Good(tm) Privacy (PGP), from Phil's Pretty Good Software, is a high security cryptographic software application for MSDOS, UNIX, VAX/VMS, and other computers.

PGP

Set the location of the PGP.EXE file. Click the Change button to browse the disk.

Update Public PGP Keys to Tropical Reader data file

You need to update the internal datafile with copies of the PGP public keys. This is done in order to use the PGP program more efficiently from within Tropical Reader.

Your PGP Secret Key

Choose your personal PGP secret key from the list box. This is the key that will be used to read incoming encrypted messages to you and sign outgoing messages.

Create TROPREAD.PIF

During installation of Tropical Reader, the setup program will copy a file called TROPREAD.PIF to your program directory. IF this file doesnt exist, you need to create it.

Open your PIF Editor

You will normally find the PIF Editor under program-group Main in Windows.

Enter the following values in the fields:

Program File Name

Enter

TROPICAL.BAT

in the field. This file will automatically be created by Tropical Reader.

Window Title

Enter Tropical Reader or anything you like.

Optional Parameters

Leave this field blank.

Start-up Directory

Leave this field blank.

Memory Requirements KB Required

We suggest you set this value to 384. Some users have also been able to run it with 256 Kb.

Display Usage

Choose Windowed.

Save the PIF-file

Save the PIF file as tropread.pif in your Tropical Reader program directory.


Packet Configuration
Service Configuration

Information about mail service

The entries about the Internet host and BBS s, will be created the first time you open a packet from the mail service. or you can click the New button.

System ID

This is the official name of the system you are connected to. If it is a QWK-based BBS, this entry will automatically be created from the CONTROL.DAT file. If it is a SOUP-based Internet host, the entry itself will have the same name as the message packet you have downloaded from the host, without the three character extension.

Your UserID

This is your userid. On a QWK-based BBS, this will be created automatically, and you will not be able to change it. Under a SOUP-based Internet host, you are able to change this entry, but usually the mail program on the Internet host will override it. This field will be used in the FROM field of your messages.

Reply To

This entry is only valid for Internet SOUP-messages. The field is usually identical with Your userid, but if you have several accounts and you want the recipient to respond to another EMail address, you can enter the other address here.

Full Name

Enter your full name here. This entry is only valid for Internet SOUP-messages.

Organisation

Enter the name of your company or organization here. This entry is only valid for Internet SOUP messages.


Folder Configuration

Sort Messages

You can choose how to sort the messages in the selected folder displayed in the message list box. Set the sort potions for ordinary messages under the Read section. Your options are:

Subject, Date/Time (Ascending/Descending Date/Time)

From, Subject, Date/Time (Ascending/Descending Date/Time)

To, Subject, Date/Time (Ascending/Descending Date/Time)

Date/Time (Ascending/Descending Date/Time )

Expired messages

This option is currently not activated.


Read Configuration

Sort Messages

You can choose how to sort the messages in the selected conference/newsgroup displayed in the message list box. Your options are:

Subject, Date/Time

From, Subject, Date/Time

To, Subject, Date/Time

Date/Time, Subject

Quote Symbols

Enter any characters usually used to quote original text. The most common used character is >, but you can enter any number or characters. When using graphical view, Tropical Reader will automatically use the quote color on any line in the message starting with the characters you enter here.

Message List

You can choose how you want to view the information in the message list:

Mode:	Example:

Normal	This is the subject

Lowercase	this is the subject

Uppercase	THIS IS THE SUBJECT

Titlecase	This Is The Subject

Viewer

You can choose if you want to show the messages in text view or in what we call graphical view in Tropical Reader.

Text view

In text view you will only be able to see the message in black/white, or any other background/foreground color you have chosen. This is the fastest way of displaying a message, but it appears somewhat disturbing for most people as you can not easily differentiate between the quoted part of the message and the new text.

Graphical view

In graphical view, the message is shown in two or more colors so you can differentiate between the quoted part of the message and the new text.

Show Text Attributes

Text sent as electronic mail, is not formatted. In order to emphasize your message, you can use italic and underline by typing an underscore character (_) immediately before and after the word you want to underline. To italicize text, use the * character. If you enable this option, it will slow down the time it takes to activate a message, but for most users with at least 4Mb RAM it will not be a significant difference in speed.

Turbo Display

If you feel it takes too long time to activate and view a message, you can always enable the unique Turbo Display option in Tropical Reader. The only disadvantage is that if you multitask to another application or window, the text in the message display window will disappear. You can always reactivate the message by pressing the up or down arrow key or clicking on the scroll bars in the message display window. This function will use a minimum of system resources if enabled.

View Email Address/Name

You can choose if you want to view the Internet EMail address (name@host.site.org) or the name of the EMail address (Firstname Lastname) when viewing a message. If you choose EMail Name and this information is not available, the program will automatically use the EMail address instead.

Wrap long lines

The program can automatically wrap long paragraphs of incoming messages by inserting a carriage return at a preset position. The default value is 76 positions.

Miscellaneous Settings

Suppress repeating subject in Message List

In the message list box, you can suppress repeating subjects. Where there are more than one consecutive messages with identical subject headings, it will be shown against the first message only and not the following ones.

Save Message header info (use swap)

This will increase the performance of Tropical Reader significantly, as the program will save message headers for already opened conferences in a packet to a temporary swap file instead of reading all the message header information to the message list every time. Even if you have selected this option, the program can re-read the message headers if you double-click the conference list instead of just clicking once.

Enable use of Status info

Another unique function in Tropical Reader. If you enable this function, the program will automatically keep track of the messages you have read, replied to, forwarded to another user, transferred to the folders, printed or saved. It is only avaialble if your screen resolution is better than ordinary VGA (640 * 480).

Hide Internet Header Information

If you check this option, Tropical Reader will not show the Internet header information, such as routing and all the other headers. This option is checked as a default.

String Allocation Size

Tropical Reader is using a variable length string to read messages from the files. If you are low on memory and get an error message, you should reduce the size in the drop-down box. As most messages are less than 24,000 bytes, 24 Kb should be sufficient, but if a message is larger, it will read in several pieces, called chunks. The default setting is 24,000 bytes.


Write Configuration

Default Quote

Choose the default quote header you want to start each reply with. If you are replying to a contact already registered in the Contact Addresses with its own entry in the Quote field, that quote will be used instead.

Default Tagline

Choose the default tagline you want to use. If you leave this field blank (press ESC), a tagline will be chosen randomly. If you are sending a message to a contact already registered in the Contact Addresses with its own entry in the tagline field, or another setting is enabled, that setting will always be used instead.

Default Signature

Choose the default signature you want to add at the bottom of your messages. If you are sending a message to a contact already registered in the Contact Addresses with its own entry in the signature field, that signature will always be used for mail to that contact.

Default Out-Folder

Choose the default folder where you want a copy of your outgoing mail transferred to. If this field is left blank (press ESC), messages will not be saved to the folders. If you are sending a message to a contact already registered in the Contact Addresses with its own entry in the folder field, all messages to that contact will automatically be saved to that folder.

Forwarded Quote

Choose the forward quote you want to add to the beginning of messages you are forwarding to another user. Remember to add a specific new quote header for the forwarding function. If this setting is left blank (press ESC), no text will be added to the message.

Carbon Copy text

Enter the text you want to add to the beginning of Carbon Copy (CC:) messages. The default is Carbon Copy (CC:) sent to:.

File Attachment

You can select between using MIME 64 encoding or UUENCODE when attaching a file to a message. Default is MIME 64.

Wrap at position

Choose at what position the program shall wrap lines by inserting a hard carriage return. This applies only for SOUP messages.

Show in To Field

When looking up addresses from the Contact Address database, you can choose if you want to show the Email address or the name of the recipient. If you choose the name of the recipient, the program will automatically look up the Email address when you select an entry for a new message.

Always use settings from Contact Address database if record exists

The program will use the settings from the Contact Address database, such as default signature, quote header, taglines, etc. if the recipient of a message exists. It will be a little bit more time consuming, as the program needs to perform a query in the database when you select a record.

Mark QWK Messages Private as default settings

The message will automatically be marked as private, if the selected service is QWK-based.

Use MIME quoted-printable characters as default for SOUP messages

MIME quoted-printable characters enables you to write and send international characters (8 bits) over a 7 bits UNIX Internet gateway. Should always be checked if you write in French, German, Norwegian or Thai.

Default language for SOUP messages

The two available options are US-ASCII and ISO-8859-1.


Font Configuration

Your can use most of the fonts available under your Windows configuration. Please keep in mind that all EMail messages will be sent as ordinary ASCII text, without any fancy fonts attached to it. The font configuration under Tropical Reader is made available so you can choose your favorite font to use when you read and reply to messages. If you want to use fonts as a part of a document, you will need to attach the document to the message and the user can detach it and view it using a Word processor or any other program.

Read Fonts

Background Color

Click the Background Color button. The color window will open and you can choose the color you want to use as background color when viewing a message. Windows cant dither a text edit window, so if you choose a non-standard color, tit will automatically recreate it to the closest solid color. The default is white.

Message Font

Click the Message Font button to change the font you want to use when viewing the message. You can change the font name, size and other attributes.

Quote Font

Click the Quote Font button to change the font you want to use when viewing the quoted part of a message you are reading. You can change the font name, size and other attributes.

Write Fonts

Background Color

Click the Background Color button. The color window will open and you can choose the color you want to use as background color when writing a message. Windows cant dither a text edit window, so if you choose a non-standard color, it will automatically recreate it to the closest solid color. The default is black.

Message Font

Click the Message Font button to change the font you want to use when writing a message. You can change the font name, size and other attributes.

Print Fonts

Header / Footer  Font

Click the Header / Footer Font button to change the font you want to use when printing the header of a message. You can change the font name, size and other attributes.

Message Font

Click the Message Font button to change the font you want to use when printing a message. You can change the font name, size and other attributes.


Network Configuration
Network

SMTP Host

Tropical Reader uses the SMTP protocol to send Email. Please enter the SMTP address of your host.

Default Service

Choose the name of the mail service you will be using to send Email.

POP3 Host

Tropical Reader uses the POP3 protocol to receive Email. Please enter the POP3 host address where you get your incoming Email. If you are not sure about this address, please ask your system administrator.

Username

Enter your username. If you Email address is Peter@host.org, your username will be Peter.

Password

Enter your password you use to access your Email account. The password will be encrypted and stored in the TROPREAD.INI file.

Delete Retrieved Messages

Check this option if you want to automatically delete incoming messages you have already transferred successfully from your internet host to Tropical Reader.


How to register Tropical Reader
Registration

 Credit Card Orders

 Pay by bank (Money order / SWIFT)

Tropical Reader for Windows is distributed as shareware.

After we have have received your order and payment, we will EMail/Fax/Mail you the registration key and the software manual and diskettes if you have ordered these. All orders will be processed within 72 hours.

You will receive a registration key and a serial number which enables you to get rid of the nag-screen, and reminders in everything from your outgoing mail, printout as well as using taglines. Choose Help | Register Tropical Reader and enter exactly the same information as sent to you.

This information will be stored in the .INI file of the application and if you ever remove or change  this entry from the .INI file, you will have to enter the keys again.

If you are ordering using a credit card, all orders will be processed by the Public software Library. Credit Card orders MUST be sent directly to the PsL. Any credit card orders received by us will NOT be processed.

See also

Electronic End User Agreement


Credit Card Orders
Credit Card Orders:

You can order by credit card from PsL (Public software Library) in the United States by calling 800-2424-PsL or 713-524-6394 from 7 a.m. - 6 p.m. Mon.-Thurs., 7 a.m. - Noon Friday or FAX 713-524-6398 or Email to 71355.470@compuserve.com or mail credit card orders to PsL at P.O. Box 35705, Houston, TX 77235, USA. Remember to make reference to the product name Tropical Reader for Windows and product number 14106.

Important

The above numbers are for orders only. For information or support for registered users, please EMail MIRON International at miron@ksc.au.ac.th.

Any questions about the status of the shipment of the order, refunds, registration options, products details, technical support, volume discounts, dealer pricing, site licenses, etc., must be directed to MIRON International. To insure that you get the latest version, PsL will notify us the day of your order, and if you have requested diskettes, we will always ship the latest version to you.


Pay by Bank
Pay by Bank (Money Order/SWIFT):

Se also:

Orderform

You can pay by transferring the amount to:

Bangkok Bank

333 Silom Road

Bangkok 10500

Thailand

Branch:	Saphan Mai

Account Name:	Wasana Sastarawatid (check the spelling twice!!!)

Account No:	134-48-25532

You must enclose a copy of the money transfer together with the order form when transferring directly to Bangkok Bank and send it to:

MIRON International

Att: Wasana Sastarawatid

P.O. Box 92

Ramintra Post Office

Bangkok 10220

Thailand

EMail us in advance so we can prepare your registration key.

Sorry, no checks accepted!


Orderform
Orderform: Tropical Reader for Windows

Order Tropical Reader for Windows. You should only use this orderform if you pay through our bank or fax/mail your credit card order to PsL.

Product:	Tropical Reader for Windows - English rel.

Produkt kode: 	14106

Name:

Streetaddress:

Zip / City / State:

Country:

Phone:

Fax:

Email address:

Alt. Email address:

__	Bangkok Bank (SWIFT transfer)

Bangkok Bank

333 Silom Road

Bangkok 10500

Thailand

Branch:	Saphan Mai

Account Name:	Wasana Sastarawatid

Account No:	134-48-25532

Please Email this form to miron@ksc.au.ac.th or mail it to:

MIRON International

Att: Wasana Sastarawatid

P.O. Box 92

Ramintra Post Office

Bangkok 10220

Thailand


Electronic End User Agreement

Copyright

Tropical Reader for Windows (Software) is owned by MIRON International, and its structure, organization and code are the valuable trade secrets of MIRON International. The software is also protected by the Copyright Law of Norway and International treaty provisions. You agree not to modify, adapt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble or otherwise attempt to discover the source code of the Software. You may use trademarks only to identify printed output produced by the Software, in accordance with accepted trademark practice, including identification of trademark owner's name. Such use of any trademark does not give you any rights of ownership in that trademark.

No Warranty

The Software is being delivered to you AS IS and MIRON Internationa makes NO WARRANTY as to its use or performance. MIRON Internationa do not and cannot warrant the performance or results you may obtain by using the software or documentation. Morten Iversen makes no warranties, express or implied, as to noninfringement of third party rights, merchantability, or fitness for any particular purpose. In no event will MIRON Internationa be liable to you for any consequential, incidental or special damages, including any lost profits or lost savings.

Governing Law and General Provisions.

This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the Kingdom of Norway. This Agreement will

not be governed by the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, the application of which is expressly excluded. If any part of this Agreement is found void

and unenforceable, it will not affect the validity of the balance of the Agreement, which shall remain valid and enforceable according to its terms. This Agreement shall automatically terminate upon failure by you to comply with its terms.


Necessary Files
Files

Filename	Location

CMDIALOG.VBX	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

CTL3D.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

MBF2IEE.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

MMSYSTEM.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

MSABC110.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

MSAJT112.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

MSAJT200.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

MSOUTLIN.VBX	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

THREED.VBX	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

NETCODE.VBX	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

NETCODE.LIC	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

IPPORT.VBX	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

IPPORT.LIC	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

VBDB300.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

VBRUN300.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

UZDLL20.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

ZDLL20A.DLL 	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

ZDLL20B.DLL	/WINDOWS/SYSTEM

TROPREAD.INI	/WINDOWS

TROPREAD.EXE	TR Program Dir

TROPREAD.HLP	TR Program Dir

TROPREAD.PIF	TR Program Dir

TROPREAD.MDB	TR Data Dir

TROPREAD.LDB	TR Data Dir


The header is the portion of a packet, preceding the actual data, containing source and destination addresses and error-checking fields. Also part of a message or news article.


Mailing list is a discussion group, distributed via Email from a central computer maintaining the list of people involved in the discussion.


A popup-menu contains commands related to the screen or item you are working with. Activate it by clicking the right mouse button.


The small, usually four-line message at the bottom of a piece of Email or a usenet article is called a signature. Large signatures are a no-no.


Usenet is the set of machines that exchange articles tagged with one or more universally-recognized labels, called newsgroups (or ``groups'' for short)


PGP allows people to exchange files or messages with privacy, authentication, and convenience.  Privacy means that only those intended to receive a message can read it.  Authentication means that messages that appear to be from a particular person can only have originated from that person. Convenience means that privacy and authentication are provided without the hassles of managing keys associated with conventional cryptographic software.  No secure channels are needed to exchange keys between users, which makes PGP much easier to use.  This is because PGP is based on a powerful new technology called "public key" cryptography.

PGP combines the convenience of the Rivest-Shamir-Adleman (RSA) public key cryptosystem with the speed of conventional cryptography, message digests for digital signatures, data compression before encryption, good ergonomic design, and sophisticated key management.  And PGP performs the public-key functions faster than most other software implementations.  PGP is public key cryptography for the masses.  PGP does not provide any built-in modem communications capability. You must use a separate software product for that.

You can download PGP from most BBSes or using FTP on the Internet.


Spell Checker for Edit Boxes This program is designed to provide spelling checker facilities to any application that uses the standard edit control (or compatible).  The checker is enabled using a predefined short cut key.It contains a 50,000 word dictionary which has been carefully checked to ensure that it contains only valid words, although there are omissions. Available from ftp.demon.co.uk in /pub/ibmpc/windows/spell. Email: spellchk@quinion.demon.co.uk.

Spell checker for edit boxes has been written by and is copyright © 1994 by Brian Quinion. All rights reserved. Spell Checker for Edit Boxes is freeware.


Copy Copies the selected text to the Clipboard. This command is available only after you selected text.


Select All Selects the entire text and copies it to the Clipboard.


Cascade Arranges open Windows in an overlapping pattern so that the title bar of each window is visible.


Tile Horizontal Arranges windows to be stacked evenly from top to bottom.


Tile Vertical Arranges windows evenly from left to right.


Arrange Icons The Arrange Icons command arranges all the minimized windows.  Available only when a minimized window is active. All icons will be arranged horizontally from left to right at the bottom of the application window.


Set Default Windows Layout Automatically arranges all the windows to the default positions.


Active Windows Shows the open packets and Folder Window. Click one of the names to activate the window.


Bulletins Displays the bulletins included in the QWK packet.


New Files Displays the New Files listing if the BBS includes one. It will be viewed using your standard text editor.


BBS Bulletin Board System


SOUP Format Tropical reader supports the Simple Off-line Usenet Packet (SOUP) format. This is the file format most Internet hosts will use to create incoming mail and news messages to you when using a traditional dial-up host. Usually you will need a program called uqwk to create this mailpacket with incoming mail and news. You will use the same program to send any Email messages or post to usenet newsgroups. SOUP file packets must use the fileextension SUP, e.g INTERNET.SUP or COMNET.SUP, not INTERNET.SOP or  COMNET.FGH!!! The program will not be able to recgognize other extensions than SUP and QWK (for QWK packets).


Mail Service Reference to the on-line service (BBS or Internet host) you are using to read and send your mail.


MIME Quoted Printable Most Internet gateways uses the SMTP protocol to send messages from one gateway to another. It is one problem with this, and that is that SMTP is limited to the standard ASCII characterset. So, for us who write in Norwegian, French, German or even Thai, we need to use the MIME Quoted Printable encoding scheme in order to write messages.It can also be used if you are writing a very long paragraph without using word wrapping.


SMTP Simple Mail Transfer Protocol.


MIRON International - P.O. Box 92 - Ram Intra post office - Bangkok 10220 - Thailand Email: miron@ksc.au.ac.th


You can order by credit card from PsL (Public software Library) in the United States by calling 800-2424-PsL or 713-524-6394 from 7 a.m. - 6 p.m. Mon.-Thurs., 7 a.m. - Noon Friday or FAX 713-524-6398 or Email to 71355.470@compuserve.com or mail credit card orders to PsL at P.O. Box 35705, Houston, TX 77235, USA. Remember to make reference to the product name Tropical Reader for Windows and product number 14106.