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The Silver Xpress Mail System
Getting the Most Out of the Silver Xpress Mail Door
by: Gary N. Petersen
Midwest Xpress BBS
(913) 894-8835
FidoNet 1:280/389
RIME 5482
June 5, 1994
(c) copyright 1994 Gary N. Petersen
Portions of this document are the copyrighted property of
Santronics Software and are used in this Guide with permission.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 1
Contents
========
1.0 Introduction.............................................. 4
1.1 What is the Silver Xpress Mail System?.................. 4
1.2 Purpose of This Manual.................................. 4
1.3 About this Guide........................................ 5
1.4 Organization of This Manual............................. 5
2.0 Quick Start: Using the Xpress Assistant................... 7
2.1 Introduction to the Xpress Assistant.................... 7
2.2 Using the Xpress Assistant.............................. 7
3.0 Basic Mail Door Configuration............................. 14
3.1 General................................................. 14
3.2 The Xpress Assistant.................................... 16
3.3 The Configuration Menu.................................. 16
3.3.1 Selecting Mail Areas................................ 17
3.3.2 Selecting a File Transfer Protocol.................. 17
3.3.3 Selecting an Archiving Utility...................... 18
3.3.4 The Mail Options Menu............................... 18
3.3.4.1 Keyword Searching............................... 18
3.3.4.2 Search Message Text for Keywords................ 19
3.3.4.3 Receive Your Own Mail........................... 20
3.3.4.4 Receive Group Mail.............................. 20
3.3.4.5 Choose Mail Packet Format....................... 20
3.3.4.6 Use Packet Extension Counter.................... 20
3.3.4.7 Send Selected Areas Only........................ 20
3.3.4.8 Use Flex Assistant at Mail Scan................. 21
3.3.4.9 Show Areas with Mail Only....................... 21
3.3.4.10 Changing Mail Pointers.......................... 21
3.3.5 The Xpress Services Menu............................ 21
3.3.5.1 Xpress Vacation Saver........................... 22
3.3.5.2 New File Lists.................................. 22
3.3.5.3 Receive Bulletins............................... 23
3.3.5.4 Reply Receipts.................................. 23
3.3.5.5 Passwords....................................... 23
3.3.6 The Terminal Options Menu........................... 23
3.3.6.1 Screen Graphics.................................. 24
3.3.6.2 Menu Modes...................................... 24
3.3.6.3 Hot Keys........................................ 25
3.3.7 Save Current Configuration.......................... 25
3.4 Downloading a Mail Packet............................... 25
3.5 Uploading a Reply Packet................................ 25
4.0 Advanced Mail Door Configuration.......................... 26
4.1 Flex Select Commands.................................... 26
4.2 Flex Assistant.......................................... 28
4.3 Vacation Saving......................................... 28
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 2
5.0 Mail Door Maintenance..................................... 30
5.1 Changing Mail Lastread Pointers......................... 30
5.2 Personal Logfiles....................................... 32
6.0 Using the Mail Door with the Silver Xpress Reader......... 34
6.1 Current Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader Files......... 34
6.2 Advantages of the OPX Mail Format....................... 34
6.3 Offline Configuration Using the Silver Xpress Offline
Mail Reader............................................. 35
7.0 Using the Mail Door with Another Reader................... 37
7.1 QWK Mail Options........................................ 37
8.0 Where to Go for More Information.......................... 39
8.1 How Can I Contact Santronics Software?.................. 39
8.2 Where Can I Get Support For the Silver Xpress Mail
System?................................................. 39
Copyright Information
=====================
This is a copyrighted document. You are, however, given permission to
reproduce and retransmit it as follows:
- Make it available for online viewing on your remote host service or
BBS.
- Make it available for downloading from you remote host service or
BBS.
- Print, reproduce, and distribute it without charge to users of the
Silver Xpress Mail System on your remote host service or BBS.
The document may not be modified in any way, and must be distributed
complete, including this copyright notice.
Please contact the author, Gary N. Petersen, at the addresses listed
in the document for more information, or with corrections and
suggestions for future versions of the Guide.
Portions of this document are the copyrighted property of Santronics
Software and are used in this Guide with permission.
Specific and unlimited permission is given for this document to be
distributed in the Silver Xpress Mail System utilities and any other
products of Santronics Software.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 3
1.0 Introduction
=================
1.1 What is the Silver Xpress Mail System?
Silver Xpress is an Offline Mail System which makes the gathering,
reading, and writing of mail messages via computer bulletin board
services (BBS) much faster and more convenient than reading and
replying to mail online. It consists of two parts, the Mail Door and
Offline Mail Reader.
The Mail Door is part of the BBS. You enter the Mail Door through the
BBS when you want to collect new mail or send new messages you've
created. This manual deals primarily with using the Silver Xpress
Mail Door.
The Offline Mail Reader is the second part of a mail system. It is a
program you install on your computer. The Offline Mail Reader
understands the special formats that the Mail Door uses to bundle many
messages into a single file, or mail packet, and can convert the mail
packet into a format which is easy for you to read.
The Silver Xpress Mail System works with mail packets in two formats:
QWK and OPX. The OPX mail format was developed specifically for
Silver Xpress and offers many performance and capability advantages
over the QWK mail format. These are discussed in Chapter 6.
The Mail Door does work quite well with QWK format mail readers. Some
features are limited, however, to the OPX mail format because the QWK
format was simply not designed with the flexibility and capability to
support them.
For these and other reasons, you will get the most out of the Mail
Door if you use the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader. The current
version is 4.01 and is available as SXR401.ZIP. Additional
information on the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader is given in
Chapter 6.
1.2 Purpose of This Manual
This manual is a User's Guide for the Silver Xpress Mail Door. It
provides much the same information that is available through the
online help in the Mail Door along with examples and typical commands
required to configure and optimize the Mail Door for your use.
You do not need the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader to use the Mail
Door. Silver Xpress supports the popular QWK mail format and can be
used with any Offline Mail Reader that can read and write QWK packets.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 4
There are significant advantages to using the Silver Xpress Offline
Mail Reader with the Mail Door, however. These are a result of the
OPX mail format that is unique to Silver Xpress. Many of these
advantages are discussed later in this manual.
1.3 About this Guide
This User's Guide will be periodically updated as changes or additions
become necessary. Suggestions, corrections, or questions not
addressed in this Guide can be addressed to:
Gary Petersen
Midwest Xpress BBS
FidoNet 1:280/389
RIME 5482
CompuServe 70651,2240
Contact me via FidoNet NetMail, RIME routed mail in the Common
Conference, or in any of the Silver Xpress support conferences:
FidoNet: XPRESS_SUPPORT
XPRESS_SYSOP
RIME: Silver Xpress
CompuServe: Santronics Software Forum (GO PCVENJ)
1.4 Organization of This Manual
This User's Guide is divided into several sections, generally by topic
or area of interest. The sections are as follows:
1.0 Introduction: The section you are reading.
2.0 Quick Start: An introduction to the Xpress Assistant, which
provides the fastest way to get started with the Mail Door.
3.0 Basic Configuration: Discussion of the basic configuration
options which must be defined to use the Mail Door.
4.0 Advanced Configuration: Discussion of many of the more powerful
options in the Mail Door which make Silver Xpress even more
useful for you.
5.0 Maintenance: Discussion of additional services which the Mail
Door can provide.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 5
6.0 Using the Mail Door with the Silver Xpress Reader: Discussion
of the options which can be used only through the Silver Xpress
Offline Mail Reader.
7.0 Using the Mail Door with Another Reader: Setting up the Mail
Door to work best with QWK-only mail readers.
8.0 Where to Go for More Information: A list of resources where you
can turn to for additional information.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 6
2.0 Quick Start: Using the Xpress Assistant
============================================
2.1 Introduction to the Xpress Assistant
The Xpress Assistant is a powerful, easy to use automated online
introduction to the Silver Xpress Mail Door. The Xpress Assistant
will walk you through the main features of Silver Xpress and prompt
you with configuration questions to select mail conferences to scan,
set an archive utility and file transfer protocol, and download your
first mail packet.
The Xpress Assistant is particularly useful for callers who are not
very familiar with Silver Xpress or offline mail messaging. More
experienced callers may wish to skip the Xpress Assistant and
configure the Mail Door directly. Detailed configuration of the Mail
Door is discussed elsewhere in this Guide.
2.2 Using the Xpress Assistant
When you select the Xpress Assistant (using option X from the Main
Menu), the following menu will pop up.
------------------- Xpress Assistant ----------------
[E]....Explain what a BBS is?
[A]....Explain Xpress with Example
[N]....New User Information
[Q]....Return to Previous Menu
-----------------------------------------------------
The six steps that the Xpress Assistant walks through to configure the
Mail Door to your preferences and download a mail packet are as
follows:
- Select message conferences.
- Define a file compression utility.
- Define a file transfer protocol.
- Scan the selected conferences for new mail.
- Combine the new mail found into a mail packet and download the
packet from the BBS to your computer.
- Download the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader, if you wish.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 7
Select Message Conferences
==========================
The Silver Xpress Mail Door will present a list of the message
conferences available on the BBS and allow you to choose which
conferences you want to scan. The Mail Door will display an asterisk
(*) next to the conferences you have selected. If you do not see any
asterisks, you have not yet selected any conferences.
The list of available mail conferences in the Mail Door will generally
look like the following:
Available Mail Conferences (* means selected mail area)
*[ 1] - General Discussion *[ 2] - Private Sysop
*[ 3] - Xpress *[ 4] - FidoNet: NetMail
*[ 21] - F:Xpress_Support *[ 22] - F:Xpress_Sysop
*[ 23] - F:AllFix Help *[ 24] - F:RA Multi-Node
*[ 25] - F:RA Sysop Support *[ 26] - F:RA Utilities
*[ 29] - F:BBS Standards *[ 30] - F:BinkleyTerm
*[ 33] - F:Maximus *[ 34] - F:Meadow
*[ 35] - F:Moderator *[ 36] - F:Muffin
*[ 39] - F:Offline *[ 40] - F:PCBoard Sysops
*[ 41] - F:ProBoard Sysops *[ 42] - F:QuickBBS Support
*[ 43] - F:QuickBBS Pro *[ 44] - F:RBBS-PC Support
*[ 45] - F:SuperBBS Support *[ 46] - F:Sysop
*[ 47] - F:TAG BBS Support *[ 48] - F:TAG Multi-Node
*[ 49] - F:Wildcat! Support *[ 50] - F:RADIST_SYS
[ 57] - F:Fantasy Sports *[ 58] - F:OS/2
*[ 59] - F:OS/2 BBS *[ 60] - F:OS/2 DOS-Windows
[ 61] - F:OS/2 Hardware [ 62] - F:OS/2 Programming
*[ 63] - F:Team OS/2 *[ 64] - F:Shareware
*[ 65] - F:UWSA *[ 66] - F:White House
*[ 69] - F:Lora BBS Support *[ 70] - F:FastEcho Support
*[ 71] - F:OS/2 DOS BBS *[ 101] - R:RIME News
[ 102] - R:Uplink *[ 103] - R:Silver Xpress
*[ 104] - R:PostLink Support *[ 105] - R:Sysops
*[ 110] - R:Shareware *[ 111] - R:Common
*[ 114] - R:Engineering *[ 115] - R:ProComm
*[ 116] - R:BBS Software *[ 117] - R:Wildcat Sysops
*[ 120] - R:Mail Doors *[ 121] - R:OS/2
*[ 124] - R:Remote Access *[ 125] - R:Offline Mail
*[ 128] - R:TQM *[ 129] - R:PCBoard
*[ 134] - R:Desqview *[ 201] - K:KC Sysop
*[ 202] - K:GKCSA *[ 203] - K:IBM Discussion
*[ 204] - K:KC 4 Sale *[ 205] - K:KC Area_Net
*[ 206] - K:KC FidoNet Help *[ 207] - K:KC Events
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 8
*[ 210] - K:KC Other *[ 211] - K:KC OS/2
Select/Deselect mail areas by typing the number or name in brackets.
[L]ist Areas [D]etail Listing [S]elected Areas [M]ail Pointers
[F]ind <string> [R]eset <areas> [Q]uit [?] for Help
You can select mail conferences by either typing the conference name,
as it is listed in the table, or conference number. You can select
more than one conference at a time by typing in the conference numbers
with a space between each number, and pressing ENTER when complete.
You can type L and press ENTER to redisplay the table of available
conferences. When you have finished, press Q and ENTER to continue
with the Xpress Assistant.
Select a File Compression Utility
=================================
The Xpress Assistant then prompts you to select a File Compression
Utility. PKZip Version 2.04 is generally pre-selected by default.
Silver Xpress will display a list of file compression utilities which
your sysop has installed. A sample list follows as an example. The
compression method noted with an asterisk (*) is the current selected
compression utility.
Mail Compression Method
* [Z]....Phil Katz's PKZip 2.04G
[N]....Phil Katz's PKZip V1.xx
[L]....LhArc V2.10
[J]....Robert Jung's ARJ program
[A]....Phil Katz's PKPak (SEA compatibility mode)
[P]....NoGate's PAK program
[O]....Rahul Dhesi's ZOO program
Select Method :
Each compression method has its benefits. The PKZip utilities are
perhaps the most common, at least in the IBM compatible BBS world.
Select a File Transfer Protocol
===============================
The final step in collecting mail from the Silver Xpress Mail Door is
actually downloading the mail packet file from the BBS to your
computer. As is the case with any other file transfer, you will need
to define a file transfer protocol so that Silver Xpress and your
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 9
communications program (ProComm Plus, Telix, QModem, etc.) can
negotiate the file transfer over the telephone connection.
Many different file transfer protocols are available. The list below
is a sample of some which your sysop may have installed on the BBS.
Relatively current protocols, such as ZModem, are among the more
common and reliable methods of transferring files. ZModem is pre-
selected for you by default.
Using ZModem is recommended if your communications program supports
it. As with the list of file compression utilities, the file transfer
protocol indicated with an asterisk (*) is the method currently
selected.
File Transfer Method
* [Z]....Z-Modem (Batch) Recommended!
[Y]....Y-Modem (Batch)
[G]....Y-Modem G (Batch)
[X]....X-Modem/CheckSum
[K]....X-Modem 1K
[1]....XModem-1K-G
Select Method :
Scan for New Mail
=================
After defining a file compression method and file transfer protocol,
the Xpress Assistant will scan the conferences you selected for new
mail. A typical mail scan screen that will be displayed during the
mail scan is as follows:
<<< Mail Scan >>>
Last Usage/Download Date : May 31, 1994 8:06:36pm
Mail Packet Format : OPX
Highest Message Read : 78
Scan Area Description Total High Last New Direct Keyword
1 ─ General Discussion 3 28 28 0 0 0
2 ─ Private Sysop 32 81 77 3 1 0
4 ─ FidoNet: NetMail 32 78 78 0 0 0
21 ─ F:Xpress_Support 226 226 223 3 0 0
22 ─ F:Xpress_Sysop 173 173 167 6 2 2
23 ─ F:AllFix Help 299 299 289 10 0 2
24 ─ F:RA Multi-Node 164 164 156 8 0 1
25 ─ F:RA Sysop Support 1092 1092 1040 52 0 7
26 ─ F:RA Utilities 963 963 919 44 0 11
29 ─ F:BBS Standards 135 135 134 1 0 0
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 10
30 ─ F:BinkleyTerm 605 605 591 14 0 1
33 ─ F:Maximus 23 23 22 1 0 0
34 ─ F:Meadow 166 166 157 9 0 2
35 ─ F:Moderator 89 89 85 4 0 0
36 ─ F:Muffin 1047 1047 1010 37 0 6
39 ─ F:Offline 135 135 132 3 1 1
40 ─ F:PCBoard Sysops 217 217 212 5 0 1
41 ─ F:ProBoard Sysops 488 488 414 74 0 3
42 ─ F:QuickBBS Support 402 402 397 5 0 2
43 ─ F:QuickBBS Pro 28 28 27 1 0 0
44 ─ F:RBBS-PC Support 241 241 236 5 0 1
45 ─ F:SuperBBS Support 118 118 115 3 0 0
46 ─ F:Sysop 276 276 271 5 0 2
47 ─ F:TAG BBS Support 407 407 401 6 0 0
48 ─ F:TAG Multi-Node 8 8 8 0 0 0
49 ─ F:Wildcat! Support 1245 1245 1211 34 0 5
50 ─ F:RADIST_SYS 82 82 82 0 0 0
58 ─ F:OS/2 3186 3186 3109 77 0 13
59 ─ F:OS/2 BBS 533 533 523 10 0 3
60 ─ F:OS/2 DOS-Windows 305 305 300 5 0 2
63 ─ F:Team OS/2 276 276 269 7 0 2
64 ─ F:Shareware 585 585 556 29 0 8
65 ─ F:UWSA 451 451 443 8 0 1
66 ─ F:White House 96 96 93 3 0 2
69 ─ F:Lora BBS Support 326 326 315 11 0 3
70 ─ F:FastEcho Support 161 161 157 4 0 0
71 ─ F:OS/2 DOS BBS 194 194 188 6 0 0
101 ─ R:RIME News 21 21 21 0 0 0
103 ─ R:Silver Xpress 57 57 56 1 0 0
104 ─ R:PostLink Support 88 88 67 21 0 3
105 ─ R:Sysops 325 325 266 59 0 6
110 ─ R:Shareware 289 289 245 44 0 11
111 ─ R:Common 346 346 251 95 0 24
114 ─ R:Engineering 80 80 74 6 0 1
115 ─ R:ProComm 61 61 47 14 0 2
116 ─ R:BBS Software 55 55 44 11 0 6
117 ─ R:Wildcat Sysops 17 17 12 5 0 4
120 ─ R:Mail Doors 15 15 13 2 0 0
121 ─ R:OS/2 844 844 673 171 0 13
124 ─ R:Remote Access 10 10 10 0 0 0
125 ─ R:Offline Mail 181 181 158 23 0 13
128 ─ R:TQM 4 4 4 0 0 0
129 ─ R:PCBoard 12 12 10 2 0 2
134 ─ R:Desqview 27 27 20 7 0 2
201 ─ K:KC Sysop 590 590 572 18 0 3
202 ─ K:GKCSA 0 1 0 0 0 0
203 ─ K:IBM Discussion 0 1 0 0 0 0
204 ─ K:KC 4 Sale 36 36 35 1 0 0
205 ─ K:KC Area_Net 17 17 11 6 0 0
206 ─ K:KC FidoNet Help 8 8 8 0 0 0
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 11
207 ─ K:KC Events 1 1 1 0 0 0
210 ─ K:KC Other 0 1 0 0 0 0
211 ─ K:KC OS/2 49 49 49 0 0 0
Total 979 4 170
Approximate Compressed Mail Packet Size : 447590 (05:25)
[GO] Packup Mail [A] Pack All [P] Pack Personal [Q] Abort [?]Flex Help
FLEX:
At this point, the Mail Door is waiting for direction from you on what
mail to pack and download. The most basic instruction you can give is
for the Mail Door to pack all mail. This is done using either the GO
or A commands.
A [ENTER] tells the Mail Door to pack all mail.
GO [ENTER] also tells the Mail Door to pack all mail, because you have
not given it any other instruction. The other instructions you can
use are described in the FLEX COMMAND section of this document.
You can also instruct the Mail Door to automatically quit back to the
BBS or log off when it finished downloading the mail packet. This is
done as follows:
GO G [ENTER] will initiate the mail packing and log you off of the BBS
when the file transfer is complete. NOTE: This feature is definable
by the sysop, so it may not be supported on every BBS you call.
GO Q [ENTER] will initiate the mail packing and return your online
session back to the BBS when done.
Download the Mail Packet
========================
Once the file compression is completed, the Mail Packet Download Menu
will be displayed.
File Name(s) : MWXPRESS.OPX
Total Size : 450852
Transfer Time : 05:30 mins
Protocol : ZModem
Press [ENTER] Begin Download,
[C] Change File Transfer Protocol,
[G] Download file and Hangup when finished,
[ESC] Abort Download
DOWNLOAD: Enter Download Command :
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 12
If you wait at this prompt, the on-screen timer will run down to zero
and the file transfer will automatically begin (if the file transfer
protocol supports that). You can press ENTER to begin the file
transfer automatically, or press G to start the file transfer
immediately and disconnect from the BBS when the transfer is
completed.
For this example, press ENTER or wait until the timer runs to zero.
Download the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader
==============================================
Once you have downloaded a mail packet, you can log off of the BBS and
read the packet with your offline mail reader. The Silver Xpress Mail
Door supports two mail formats, QWK and OPX. These were the first two
mail formats developed for FidoNet style BBS messaging systems.
The QWK mail format is the more common of the two formats. The OPX
mail format offers many more features and much greater power and
flexibility, however. These features are discussed in Chapter 6.
Mail packets using the QWK format can be read by any offline mail
reader which fully supports the published QWK standards. If you use
the OPX mail format, however, you must have the Silver Xpress Offline
Mail Reader on your computer. There are many advantages to this,
though. These are also discussed in Chapter 6.
The Xpress Assistant assumes that you prefer to use the OPX mail
format. If you prefer the QWK format, that can be changed in the
Configuration Menu. Instructions for doing this are presented in
Chapter 4.
If you wish to try the OPX mail format and the Silver Xpress Offline
Mail Reader, the Xpress Assistant makes it easy for you to download
the current version of the reader. Immediately after the file
transfer is completed, the Xpress Assistant will ask if you want to
download the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader. Answer yes to the
prompt, select the proper version of the reader for your system, and
the Xpress Assistant will transfer the file to you!
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 13
3.0 Basic Mail Door Configuration
==================================
3.1 General
Configuration of the Mail Door can be performed three ways: The Xpress
Assistant, Online Configuration, and Offline Configuration.
The Xpress Assistant was discussed in the previous chapter. It is
mentioned briefly in this chapter only for reference. Online
configuration is performed using the Configuration Menu and the
options available in and below it. The balance of this chapter
discussed online configuration. The third, and perhaps most
convenient, way is through offline configuration. Offline
configuration can be performed only with the Silver Xpress Offline
Mail Reader. It is discussed in Chapter 6.
The Main Menu is where all of your Silver Xpress activities will
start. The Main Menu looks like this:
|----------------------------------------------------------------|
| Silver Xpress Main Menu |
|----------------------------------------------------------------|
[#]..System Information [A]..Download Door User Guide
[L]..Personal Log [R]..Download Xpress Reader
[?]..Show Help [X]..Xpress Assistant
[C]..Configuration [S]..Change Selected Areas
[D]..Scan & Download OPX Packet [K]..Scan & Download QWK Packet
[U]..Upload Your Mail [V]..Check Vacation Mail
[Q]..Return to Main System [G]..GoodBye (Logoff)
------------------------------------------------------------------
[1159 mins] Gary, Enter Command :
The options available from the Main Menu are as follows:
[#] System Information
This option presents some basic information about the Mail Door
and BBS.
[A] Download Door User Guide
You can download this User Guide in ZIP or plain ASCII text
format.
[L] Personal Log
If enabled by the sysop, a record of your activities in the Mail
Door.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 14
[R] Download Xpress Reader
You can download the latest Silver Xpress Offline Mail Readers and
utilities with this option.
[?] Show Help
Display online user help for the Mail Door.
[X] Xpress Assistant
Start the Xpress Assistant as described in Chapter 2 of this
User's Guide.
[C] Configuration
Access the Configuration Menu.
[S] Change Selected Areas
Quick access to the available mail conferences on the BBS. This
option is identical to the option in the Configuration Menu, but
is repeated here for quick and easy access.
[D] Scan and Download OPX Packet
Start a mail scan for new messages and prepare an OPX mail format
packet. NOTE: If you have selected QWK mail format packets in the
Configuration Menu and use this option, that selection will be
overridden and you will get an OPX mail packet.
[K] Scan and Download QWK Packet
Start a mail scan for new messages and prepare a QWK mail format
packet. NOTE: If you have selected OPX mail format packets in the
Configuration Menu and use this option, that selection will be
overridden and you will get an QWK mail packet.
[U] Upload Your Mail
Instruct the Mail Door to receive your Reply Mail Packet. NOTE:
You use this option regardless of whether you're using OPX or QWK
mail packets.
[V] Check Vacation Mail
If your sysop has enabled the Silver Xpress Vacation Mail feature
and you have turned it on, this command will give you access to
your mail packets and allow you to download them.
[Q] Return to Main System
Quit back to the BBS.
[G] GoodBye
Logoff of the BBS without exiting the Mail Door. NOTE: This
option is available only if your sysop enables it.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 15
Most of these commands are discussed in greater detail elsewhere in
this Guide.
3.2 The Xpress Assistant
The Xpress Assistant is a powerful, easy to use automated online
introduction to the Silver Xpress Mail Door. The Xpress Assistant
will walk you through the main features of Silver Xpress and prompt
you with configuration questions to select mail conferences to scan,
set an archive utility and file transfer protocol, and download your
first mail packet. Use of the Xpress Assistant is discussed in the
previous chapter.
The Xpress Assistant is particularly useful for callers who are not
very familiar with Silver Xpress or offline mail messaging. More
experienced callers may wish to skip the Xpress Assistant and
configure the Mail Door directly. Online configuration of the Mail
Door is discussed in the balance of this chapter.
3.3 The Configuration Menu
Almost all of the items you can customize in the Silver Xpress Mail
Door are definable through the Configuration Menu. It looks like
this:
------------------ Configuration Menu ----------------
[S]....Select Mail Areas, - 120 selected
[F]....File Transfer Method - ZModem
[A]....Archiver Method - Phil Katz's PKZip 2.04G
[M]....Mail Options
[X]....Xpress Services
[T]....Terminal Options
[C]....Save Current Configuration
[?]....Show help
[Q]....Return to Main Menu
-------------------------------------------------------
[1158 mins] Gary, Enter Command :
The menu lists some basic information about your setup: the number of
mail areas selected, the file transfer protocol, and the archive
utility. It also is your gateway to the other configuration options.
These are discussed in more detail below.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 16
3.3.1 Selecting Mail Areas
Selecting mail conferences to scan is an easy process in Silver
Xpress. The basic procedure is described in the previous chapter.
One additional option not discussed earlier is the Find command.
The Mail Door will search through the conference titles for you to
find the conferences that match a keyword you define. This feature is
accessed through the Select Mail Areas command, S from the
Configuration Menu. When you select this option, a list of the
available message conferences is displayed followed by this menu:
Select/Deselect mail areas by typing the number or name in brackets.
[L]ist Areas [D]etail Listing [S]elected Areas [M]ail Pointers
[F]ind <string> [R]eset <areas> [Q]uit [?] for Help
At this menu, select option F, for Find Areas. The command syntax is:
F <keyword> where <keyword> is the word you want to scan for.
For example, the command F Xpress on my system brings up the following
list:
Enter Number/Name or Command : f xpress
Mail Conferences having the keyword XPRESS ....
*[ 3] - ( Xpress ) Local Xpress
*[ 21] - ( F:Xpress_Support ) F:Xpress_Support
*[ 22] - ( F:Xpress_Sysop ) F:Xpress_Sysop
*[ 103] - ( R:Silver Xpress ) R:Silver Xpress
Select/Deselect mail areas by typing the number or name in brackets.
[L]ist Areas [D]etail Listing [S]elected Areas [M]ail Pointers
[F]ind <string> [R]eset <areas> [Q]uit [?] for Help
Enter Number/Name or Command :
You can then select conferences (by typing in the conference numbers,
separated by spaces or one per line, and pressing ENTER) from this
menu.
When you are finished selecting conferences, press Q ENTER to return
to the Configuration Menu.
3.3.2 Selecting a File Transfer Protocol
This process was described earlier in the previous chapter. You
select a file transfer protocol using the F command at the
Configuration Menu.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 17
3.3.3 Selecting an Archiving Utility
This process was also described earlier in the previous chapter. You
select an archive utility using the A command at the Configuration
Menu.
3.3.4 The Mail Options Menu
The Mail Options Menu is where you define much of how the Mail Door
acts upon your mail. It is accessed using the M command from the
Configuration Menu. The Mail Options Menu is as follows:
--------------------- Mail Options --------------------
[K]....Define Search Rules (Keywords)
[B]....Search Message Body w/ Keywords - NO
[Y]....Receive Your Own Mail - YES
[G]....Receive Group Mail - YES
[P]....Choose Mail Packet Format - OPX format
[C]....Use Packet Extension Counter - YES
[S]....Send Selected Areas Only - NO
[F]....Use Flex Assistant at Mail Scan - NO
[O]....Show Areas with Mail Only - NO
[D]....Change Mail Pointers By Date
[N]....Change Mail Pointers By Number
[R]....Restore Entry Mail Pointers
[?]....Show help
[/]....Main Menu
[Q]....Return to Previous Menu
-------------------------------------------------------
[1157 mins] Gary, Enter Command :
3.3.4.1 Keyword Searching
The Silver Xpress Mail Door will allow you to search through all new
mail for messages which contain keywords that you define. You can
then direct the Mail Door to download only keyword mail in certain
areas. Silver Xpress supports an unlimited number of keywords. They
are defined using the K command from the Mail Options Menu.
Selection of Key Words
[ 1] ALL
[ 2] XPRESS
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 18
[ 3] SILVER
[ 4] SX
[ 5] CLINTON
[ 6] GORE
[ 7] BUDGET
[ 8] MAIL
[ 9] QWK
[10] OFFLINE
[Type Keyword, or D <number> to delete, L to list, ? for Help, Q to
exit]
All of your keywords are listed in this menu. You simply type in new
keywords, one at a time, to add to the list, or type D # to delete
existing keywords. For example, D 5 would delete "CLINTON" as a
keyword.
Negative keywords, popularly known as "twit filters" are also
supported by the Mail Door. Simply add a minus sign in front of
keywords and all mail matching that keyword will be excluded from the
scan table and your mail packets. This feature is most often used
with names, but also works with words, as found in Subject Headers.
For example, a keyword of -Jurassic Park would exclude all messages
with "Jurassic Park" in the header or message text, depending on how
you have the following option set.
3.3.4.2 Search Message Text for Keywords
Unlike other mail doors, Silver Xpress allows you the option of
searching just the message header information (TO and FROM fields and
the SUBJECT line) for keywords or searching both the header
information and the actual message text! This option slows down mail
processing, but is very useful to limit the number of messages you
download in a conference to those you are specifically interested in.
If you want to search only the message header information for
keywords, set this option to NO using the B command in the Mail
Options Menu. Otherwise, if you want to search the entire message
text for your defined keywords, set this option to YES.
NOTE: This feature, developed and introduced in Silver Xpress, is
particularly useful for genealogy enthusiasts!
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 19
3.3.4.3 Receive Your Own Mail
The Y command from the Mail Options Menu lets you define whether you
want mail that you wrote included in your mail packets. If you would
like to see the mail you have written (the recommended option), set
this option to YES.
3.3.4.4 Receive Group Mail
Group Mail is a special type of message that is written once but
appears to everyone who reads it as if it were addressed specifically
to that person. If you want to receive Group Mail (the recommended
option), set this option to YES using the G command in the Mail
Options Menu.
3.3.4.5 Choose Mail Packet Format
The Silver Xpress Mail System supports two mail formats: QWK and the
more powerful OPX format. This option, accessible through the P
command in the Mail Options Menu, allows you to define which format
you wish to use. If you choose the QWK format, you can also define a
few QWK mail options using this command. QWK mail options are
discussed in Chapter 7.
3.3.4.6 Use Packet Extension Counter
Silver Xpress allows you the option of using the standard extensions
of QWK and OPX for all of your mail packets using a counter to avoid
possible duplicate file name problems. If you choose to use the
Packet Extension Counters, set this option to YES using command C from
the Mail Options Menu.
Packet Extension Counters revise the mail packet extension from QWK to
Q01, Q02, etc., all the way to Q99. The counter is increased by one
each time you download a mail packet, and resets to 01 after you
download the Q99 or O99 packet.
This is particularly useful for communications programs that do not
automatically adjust the file name if a file by that name already
exists in the download directory.
3.3.4.7 Send Selected Areas Only
For larger BBS's with many hundreds of mail conferences, you may want
to set this option to YES to improve the speed of your offline mail
reader. If you enable this option, your mail packets will include
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 20
conference definitions of only the mail areas you select. All others
will be excluded.
The effects of this are twofold: Your offline mail reader will
operate quicker, since it doesn't have to sort through all of the
unused conferences, and you will not be able to write messages to
conferences you have not selected, since they will not be listed in
the mail packet.
This option is definable through the S command in the Mail Options
Menu. It should be set to YES if you notice performance problems in
your mail reader and the BBS you call has many hundreds of mail
conferences.
3.3.4.8 Use Flex Assistant at Mail Scan
This option, when set to YES via the F command in the Mail Options
Menu, instructs the Mail Door to ask you about each mail conference as
it is scanned. It gives you the option of selecting all mail, keyword
mail, mail addressed to you, or skipping the mail altogether. A small
menu pops up with these commands after each mail conference is scanned
for new mail.
3.3.4.9 Show Areas with Mail Only
This option, set with command O in the Mail Options Menu, tells the
Mail Door whether or not to skip over mail conferences which do not
have new mail available. If set to YES, only the conferences with new
mail will be listed during mail scans.
3.3.4.10 Changing Mail Pointers
The final three options; D, N, and R, in the Mail Options Menu (other
than the help and quit menu commands) are one way to adjust your
lastread mail pointers. These features are discussed in Chapter 5.
3.3.5 The Xpress Services Menu
The Xpress Services Menu, available using the X command from the
Configuration Menu, is where you define some default actions of the
Mail Door. The menu is as follows:
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 21
-------------- Xpress Service Options ---------------
[V]....Xpress Vacation Saver - OFF
[F]....Scan for New Files - ON
[C]....Change File Scan Date - 05/31/94 8:06pm
[L]....Ansi New Files List - NO
[B]....Receive Bulletins - ON
[A]....Auto Start Xpress - NO
[S]....Send REPLY Receipt - NO
[E]....Erase Mail Recording
[R]....Reader Password
[D]....Door Password
[?]....Show help
[/]....Main Menu
[Q]....Return to Previous Menu
-------------------------------------------------------
[1157 mins] Gary, Enter Command :
3.3.5.1 Xpress Vacation Saver
The Silver Xpress Vacation Saver feature allows you to have the Mail
Door automatically scan for new mail, create a mail packet, and hold
it for you each day. This can be used either while you area away from
the BBS for any length of time or as an everyday mail event to
automatically prepare a mail packet for you.
The Vacation Saver feature is discussed in Chapter 4.
3.3.5.2 New File Lists
The Silver Xpress Mail Door is aware of the file areas installed on a
BBS and can generally scan them for files which are new since the last
time you downloaded mail through the Mail Door. This option allows
you to view those lists with your offline mail reader, if it is
equipped to deal with the list format. Set this option, command F in
the Xpress Services Menu, to YES if you would like to receive new file
lists.
This option works only with the standard file directory system format
built into the BBS. If a BBS uses customized file area software, a
new file list may not be available.
Command C on the Xpress Services Menu allows you to adjust the
effective date of the new file scan. Command L defines whether the
new file list will be in ANSI or ASCII format. Set it to YES for ANSI
file lists or NO for ASCII lists.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 22
3.3.5.3 Receive Bulletins
The BBS you call may generate online bulletins which can be included
in your mail packets so you can read them offline. The B command in
the Xpress Services Menu controls whether these bulletins are included
in your mail packets, if available. Set it to YES to receive
bulletins.
3.3.5.4 Reply Receipts
Reply receipts are a feature that works only with the Silver Xpress
Offline Mail Reader. If you turn this option on by setting command S
in the Xpress Services Menu to YES, the Mail Door will prepare and
download a small file, XRECEIPT.DAT, when you upload a reply packet.
The Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader loads this file and will put a
notice on the reply packet stating that it has been successfully
uploaded.
3.3.5.5 Passwords
The Silver Xpress Mail System has, among its many built-in security
systems, the capability to assign passwords to your mail sessions.
You can assign a password that must be entered whenever you enter the
Mail Door (command D in the Xpress Services Menu) or a separate
password that must be entered to open a mail packet downloaded from
the Mail Door (command R in the Xpress Services Menu). Reader
passwords work only with the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader.
3.3.6 The Terminal Options Menu
Several online characteristics of your Silver Xpress sessions are
defined in the Terminal Options Menu. This menu is as follows:
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 23
----------------- Terminal Options -----------------
[C]....Ansi Color - ON
[T]....TTY (No Color) - OFF
[A]....Avatar Graphics - OFF
[H]....Menu Hot Keys - ON
[I]....IBM Characters - ON
[N]....Novice Menu Mode - ON
[V]....Veteran Menu Mode - OFF
[X]....Gold Xpress Menu Mode - OFF
[G]....Skip RIP Graphics - NO
[?]....Show help [/]....Main Menu
[Q]....Return Previous Menu
-------------------------------------------------------
[1157 mins] Gary, Enter Command :
3.3.6.1 Screen Graphics
The first three options define what type of screen graphics you will
see while logged into the Mail Door.
To see ANSI graphics, set option C to YES. Setting option T to YES
turns off ANSI graphics for an ASCII text mode display. Option A
enables Avatar graphics, which are similar to ANSI, but faster.
Option I enables the use of IBM characters to draw on-screen boxes.
Option G in the Terminal Options Menu controls whether RIP graphics
are used. The Silver Xpress Mail Door ships fully equipped with RIP
graphics screens, but your sysop may have chosen to not install them.
Setting option G to NO will allow RIP graphics to be displayed, if
your sysop uses them and your communications program (RIPTerm, for
example) supports them.
3.3.6.2 Menu Modes
Options N, V, and X control the menu mode which the Mail Door will use
whenever you login. Setting option N to YES (the recommended setting)
enables the Novice Menu Mode. Fully descriptive commands and
information is presented to you when this menu mode is enabled.
Setting option V to YES turns on the Veteran Menu Mode, which displays
only the valid keys, time, and prompt.
The third option, X, is for the future use of Gold Xpress. Gold
Xpress is an advanced communications utility which will interact very
closely with the Silver Xpress Mail Door. It is not yet available,
but is scheduled for release late in 1994. In the mean time, this
option should be set to NO.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 24
3.3.6.3 Hot Keys
Option H in the Terminal Options Menu defines whether hot keys will be
used. Hot keys cause the Mail Door to act on which ever key you press
without waiting for a ENTER or RETURN keypress. The advantage of
setting this option to YES is that the door reacts very quickly to
your commands. The disadvantage is that you cannot stack commands.
3.3.7 Save Current Configuration
The C option from the Configuration Menu saves all configuration
information you have set up in the other menu selections. You should
save your configuration whenever you change it, preferably before
returning to the Main Menu to download mail.
3.4 Downloading a Mail Packet
Downloading a mail packet in Silver Xpress is easy. From the Main
Menu, simply press D if you are using the OPX mail format or K is you
are using the QWK format. The Mail Door will begin scanning mail and
will present you with the options discussed earlier in the previous
chapter.
3.5 Uploading a Reply Packet
Uploading a reply packet is even simpler than downloading. Regardless
of the mail format you have chosen, press U at the Main Menu to upload
a reply packet. The Mail Door will prompt you to begin the upload and
will list the expected file name which your communications program may
automatically use. Once the reply packet has been uploaded, the Mail
Door will decompress it and toss the messages to the areas you
selected.
The Mail Door will prompt you with a successful upload message when
the process is completed.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 25
4.0 Advanced Mail Door Configuration
=====================================
4.1 Flex Select Commands
Flex Select Commands are perhaps the most advanced feature in the
Silver Xpress Mail System. They allow you to very accurately and
specifically define which mail you want to pack and download, not only
by conference (which all mail doors do), but also by topic, whether or
not the messages were written to you, when they were posted, and other
means.
You can use Flex Select Commands immediately after the Mail Door
finishes scanning for new mail. The menu at this point looks like
this:
[GO] Packup Mail [A] Pack All [P] Pack Personal [Q] Abort [?]Flex Help
FLEX:
Pressing ? at this point will bring up a Flex Select Command Help
Menu.
The most basic Flex Select Command is A, which selects all new
messages. Typing A [ENTER] at this point would instruct the Mail Door
to include all new mail in your packet.
Almost all other Flex Select Commands are based on the conference
numbers. The Flex Select Commands are as follows (substitute the
conference number for the # symbol in the following table):
Commands That Apply to All Selected Conferences
-----------------------------------------------
A Pack all new messages
D Pack only direct messages (mail that is addressed to you)
K Pack only keyword messages (mail that matches the keywords
you have defined)
P Pack only personal messages (direct and keyword mail)
Commands That Apply Only to Specified Conferences
-------------------------------------------------
# Pack all new messages in area # (same as A)
-# Skip new mail in area # (last read pointers ARE updated)
#A Pack all messages in area #
#D Pack only direct messages in area #
#H Skip new mail in area # but do NOT update last read pointers
#K Pack only keyword messages in area #
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 26
#P Pack only personal messages in area #
#Fn Pack only the first n messages in area #
#Ln Pack only the last n messages in area #
Commands That Apply to Areas not Otherwise Specified
----------------------------------------------------
* Pack all messages in the remaining areas
*D Pack only direct messages in the remaining areas
*K Pack only keyword messages in the remaining areas
*P Pack only personal messages in the remaining areas
Other Flex Select Commands
--------------------------
GO Accept the Flex Select Commands Entered and Begin Packing the
Mail
FLEX Enable the Flex Assistant
LIST Display the Scan Table
MAIL Display the Mail Table as Modified by Flex Select Commands
TABLE Display the Scan Table (same as LIST)
DFILE Display Any Files Which Are Attached to Your Mail
EFILE Erase Any Files Which Are Attached to Your Mail
CLEAR Clear the Flex Selections
DFLEX Display the Current Flex Select Command Line
EFLEX Erase the Stored Flex Select Command Line
GFLEX Get the Stored Flex Select Command Line and Apply It
SFLEX Save the Current Flex Select Command for Later Use
In addition, two modifiers may be stacked with the GO command. GO G
instructs the Mail Door to use the current Flex Select Command,
download the mail packet, and logoff (GoodBye) after the file transfer
is complete. This option needs to be enabled by the sysop. GO Q
starts the mail packing and quits out of the Mail Door back to the BBS
when the file transfer is complete.
Several examples of Flex Select Command usage follow:
Flex Select Command Description
----------------------------------
D Pack only direct mail and GO.
*D 1 21 22 GO G Pack direct mail in all areas, get all new
mail in areas 1, 21, and 22, GO, and logoff
of the BBS when complete.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 27
GO Q Accept the Flex Select Commands entered (if
any), GO, and quit the Mail Door back to the
BBS when done.
*A 16K 21P 22D Select all messages in all areas, but limit
mail downloaded to keyword mail in area 16,
personal mail in area 21, and direct mail in
area 22.
SFLEX [Flex Command] Store the specified Flex Select command in
the Mail Door for future use.
-41 *K Get keyword mail in all areas except 41,
which is limited to keyword mail.
110L30 Get only the 30 most recent messages in area
110.
4.2 Flex Assistant
The Flex Assistant is "decide while you go" method of using Flex
Select Commands in the Mail Door. When you enable the Flex Assistant,
either by setting the F command in the Mail Options Menu to YES or
typing ASSIST or FLEX at the Flex Select prompt, the Mail Door will
scan each selected mail conference one at a time and prompt you with
the following options:
A) Get all new messages in the area
D) Get only direct mail in the area
K) Get only keyword mail in the area
P) Get only personal mail (direct and keyword) in the area
S) Skip all mail in the area and update its lastread pointers
H) Skip all mail in the area but do not update its lastread
pointers
F) Get the first X amount of mail
L) Get the last X amount of mail
Flex Assistant allows you to select mail "on the fly" while scanning
it in an easy to remember format.
4.3 Vacation Saving
The Vacation Saver is another Mail System feature developed for Silver
Xpress. It is a utility that allows you to have the Mail Door
automatically gather your mail and create mail packets once each day
and hold them until you call in to download them. This is useful for
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 28
(as the name suggests) vacations where you will be unable to call the
BBS for several days and do not want to miss any mail. It also works
quite well to automatically gather your mail each day into a mail
packet that is ready for you to immediately download when you log in,
saving the time to scan for new mail and create the mail packet.
Vacation Saver is enabled by turning the V option in the Xpress
Services Menu to YES. Your sysop must turn this feature on, however,
so you may not necessarily be able to use it.
When you call for mail, you can check for saved Vacation Saver mail
packets using the V option from the Main Menu. The Mail Door will
list your packets and prompt you to download them. A list of Vacation
Saver packets will also pop up if you get into the Mail Door and try
to scan for new mail before downloading the packets.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 29
5.0 Mail Door Maintenance
==========================
5.1 Changing Mail Lastread Pointers
Even though Flex Select Commands can be used to limit the mail you
download, there are occasions when you might prefer to manually reset
lastread pointers. One such time is the first time you download mail
from a conference or the first time you download mail from a BBS. The
Silver Xpress Mail Door offers you three ways to do this.
The "brute force" method is to manually change the lastread pointers
for each conference you wish in the Configuration Menu. To do this,
get into the Mail Door Configuration Menu and select S for Select Mail
Areas. After the list of available mail areas is displayed, you will
see the following menu:
Select/Deselect mail areas by typing the number or name in brackets.
[L]ist Areas [D]etail Listing [S]elected Areas [M]ail Pointers
[F]ind <string> [R]eset <areas> [Q]uit [?] for Help
Enter Number/Name or Command :
The M option in this menu presents a table of current lastread
pointers similar to the following:
Available Mail Conferences (* means selected mail area)
*[ 1] - General Discussion 28
*[ 2] - Private Sysop 77
*[ 3] - Xpress 0
*[ 4] - FidoNet: NetMail 78
*[ 21] - F:Xpress_Support 223
*[ 22] - F:Xpress_Sysop 167
*[ 23] - F:AllFix Help 289
*[ 24] - F:RA Multi-Node 156
*[ 25] - F:RA Sysop Support 1040
*[ 26] - F:RA Utilities 919
*[ 29] - F:BBS Standards 134
*[ 30] - F:BinkleyTerm 591
*[ 33] - F:Maximus 22
The number on the right is the current lastread pointer for each
message area. Selecting the R option from the menu allows you to
manually reset each area. The format for this command is R #, where #
is the conference number you want to adjust. The Mail Door will list
the high message number for the area and the current lastread pointer
then prompt you for the new lastread pointer.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 30
The other two ways to reset lastread pointers are both in the Mail
Options Menu. Option D allows you to globally change lastread
pointers by the date each message was posted. Using this, you could
reset all conferences to messages posted in the last 7 days, for
example.
Option N allows you to change lastread pointers by number. This is
the command you will see when you select that option:
Enter Reset Command or ? for help :
The Reset Command needs to be in one of the following formats:
R *
======================================================================
This command will display each mail area you have selected and prompt
you to change the lastread pointers, conference by conference.
R * value
======================================================================
This command will automatically set the lastread pointer in each
selected mail area to the value defined. See the definition below of
acceptable values.
Examples:
R * 20 Set lastread pointers in selected conferences to 20.
R * HIGH-30 Set the lastread pointers in selected conferences to 30
below the highest. This allows you to download the
last 30 messages in each selected conference.
R [area# or name] [area# or name].....[area# or name]
======================================================================
This will display the areas provided, one by one, and allow you to
change the lastread pointer for each one.
Example:
R 20 32 2 4 5 In this example, you are asking Xpress to display
areas 2, 4, 5, 20, and 32, and to allow you to
change the lastread pointer for each one.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 31
R [area# or name] [area# or name].....[area# or name] = value
======================================================================
This will display the areas provided, but automatically change the
lastread pointer to the specified value.
Example:
R 1 4 7 23 = HIGH-20 This example will set the lastread pointer to
20 messages below the highest for areas 1, 4,
7, and 23 automatically.
This means you will only get the last 20
messages in those particular areas.
The value parameter in this command can be any of the following:
number - Set the lastread pointer to the number.
LAST-amount - Set the lastread pointer to the amount BELOW the
current lastread pointer.
LAST+amount - Set the lastread pointer to the amount ABOVE the
current lastread pointer.
HIGH-amount - Set the lastread pointer to the amount BELOW the
current lastread pointer.
5.2 Personal Logfiles
The Silver Xpress Mail Door includes a built-in user logfile generator
that tracks your activities in the Mail Door, if the sysop has enabled
the feature. One use of the Logfiles is for troubleshooting, if you
are having difficulty with uploading or downloading messages. It will
help your sysop to help you get going better in Silver Xpress.
You can view your logfile, if enabled, using the L option from the
Main Menu. Your logfile may look something like this:
Searching....
01 Jun 07:11:38 USER BEGIN TRUE GARY PETERSEN @ 14400
01 Jun 07:15:02 USER LAST MSG READ : 78
01 Jun 07:15:02 USER Area 2 ( Private Sysop ) - 3 A
01 Jun 07:15:02 USER Area 21 ( F:Xpress_Support ) - 3 A
01 Jun 07:15:02 USER Area 22 ( F:Xpress_Sysop ) - 6 A
01 Jun 07:15:02 USER Area 23 ( F:AllFix Help ) - 10 A
01 Jun 07:15:02 USER Area 24 ( F:RA Multi-Node ) - 8 A
01 Jun 07:15:02 USER Area 25 (F:RA Sysop Support) - 52 A
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 32
01 Jun 07:15:02 USER Area 26 ( F:RA Utilities ) - 44 A
01 Jun 07:15:06 USER Area 103 ( R:Silver Xpress ) - 1 A
01 Jun 07:15:06 USER Area 110 ( R:Shareware ) - 44 A
01 Jun 07:15:06 USER Area 111 ( R:Common ) - 24 P
01 Jun 07:15:06 USER Area 120 ( R:Mail Doors ) - 2 A
01 Jun 07:15:06 USER Area 121 ( R:OS/2 ) - 171 A
01 Jun 07:15:08 USER Area 125 ( R:Offline Mail ) - 23 A
01 Jun 07:16:18 USER Pack MWXPRESS.O23 w/ Phil Katz's PKZip 2.04G
01 Jun 07:22:30 USER DNLD MWXPRESS.O23 w/ ZModem 06/01/94 7:16am
01 Jun 07:23:04 USER END----------------------------------------
If your sysop has enabled personal logfiles, you should examine yours
every now and again, and delete it to conserve hard disk space.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 33
6.0 Using the Mail Door with the Silver Xpress Reader
======================================================
6.1 Current Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader Files
The current version of the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader is 4.01.
Separate versions for real and protected mode configurations are
available, though you can run either version with the same
configuration files and registration. Current file names are as
follows:
File Name Description
--------- -----------
SXR401.ZIP Basic Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader archived
file for real mode applications.
SXR401P.ZIP Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader archived file
for protected mode applications.
SXR401PU.ZIP Replacement executable files to "upgrade" from
the real mode reader to the protected mode
version.
DPMI110.ZIP DOS Protected Mode Interface: This, or another
DPMI, is required to run the Protected Mode
version of the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader.
SXCLR202.ZIP Screen color customization utility.
6.2 Advantages of the OPX Mail Format
The OPX mail format is superior to QWK in many ways. Here are but a
few:
o Powerful Silver Xpress OPX mail format allows for longer TO, FROM,
and SUBJECT fields and large mail creation among other powerful
not possible in QWK.
o 100% Fido Network Capability allows for Direct Electronic Mail
Communications and a whole slew of FidoNet Services such as FidoNet
File Requesting and File Attachment.
o Support for FidoNet based UUCP Internet addressing.
o Direct Support for Pure Internet Addressing with systems using the
Silver Xpress Mail Door! An industry first!
o Tremendous Xpress Forms Processing System for many types of new
offline applications such as Store and Forward Order Entry,
Offline questionnaires, Scheduling, Database Inquiries, etc.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 34
o The world's fastest mail search system with Boolean rules and
"Search and Act" logic.
o Powerful embedded mail language called Xpress Windows and Xpress
to create fancy messages with windows and color!
o Support for PCBoard and Wildcat! Mail Color Codes.
o Interactive off-line configuration system.
o File Upload and Attachment System. (When used with the Silver
Xpress Mail Door).
o Xpress Remote Services System for customized applications.
o Unlimited message length support.
o Speech Friendly Interface with intelligent Mail System for the
Blind.
o Receipt File System tells Packet Manager which REPLY packets were
uploaded.
6.3 Offline Configuration Using the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader
Many of the options and configuration settings in the Mail Door can be
defined remotely with the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader. These
options include:
o Selected Mail Areas.
o Keywords for Scanning Mail.
o File Transfer Protocol.
o Archive Utility.
o Use ANSI Graphics in the Mail Door.
o Download Mail You Created
o Use Mail Door Menu Hot Keys
o Include New File Scans
o Accept Group Mail
o Enable Vacation Saver
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 35
and many others. All can be set up when reading an OPX mail packet
with the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader and uploaded in a reply
packet to the Mail Door!
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 36
7.0 Using the Mail Door with Another Reader
============================================
7.1 QWK Mail Options
If you are using another offline mail reader with Silver Xpress Mail
Door, you're using the QWK mail format. There are a few options which
can (and sometimes must) be set in the Mail Door to overcome problems
with certain offline mail readers. These are defined in the QWK Mail
Options Menu, which is accessible using the M option from the Mail
Packet Type Menu.
The QWK Mail Options Menu is as follows:
------------------- QWK Mail Options ----------------
[K]....Strip Kludges Lines - YES
[C]....Message Header Case - AS IS
[N]....Send NDX Index Files - YES
[W]....Perform Word Wrapping - NO
[?]....Show help
[/]....Main Menu
[Q]....Return to Previous Menu
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[1157 mins] Gary, Enter Command :
Certain QWK offline mail readers cannot deal with kludge lines, which
are used to include routing information in some QWK mail messages.
The K option in the QWK Mail Options Menu allows you to define whether
these kludge lines are stripped from mail messages before they are
combined into a QWK mail packet. If your offline mail reader cannot
deal with kludge lines, set this option to YES.
QWK format mail messages generally allow only capital letters in the
header information (TO and FROM names and the SUBJECT field). Some
more recently released QWK mail readers allow upper and lower case
letters. Some expect only capital letters, though. The C option in
the QWK Mail Options Menu defines whether this information is modified
at all.
NDX Index Files are required by some QWK offline mail readers to
function properly. Not all mail doors generate them, and not all QWK
readers need them. The N option in the QWK Mail Options Menu gives
you control over whether this file is generated by the Mail Door and
included in your QWK mail packet. If your reader cannot work properly
without this file, set this option to YES.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 37
Some QWK mail doors send the main text of each message in a single
line that must be word-wrapped by the offline mail readers. A few QWK
readers cannot do this, however. If your offline mail reader is not
displaying messages from the Mail Door properly, you may need to set
this command to YES via the W option in the QWK Mail Options Menu.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 38
8.0 Where to Go for More Information
=====================================
8.1 How Can I Contact Santronics Software?
Santronics Software can be reached at:
Santronics Software
30034 SW 153 Ct.
Leisure City, FL 33033
Orders: 800-845-6944
Voice: 305-248-3204
BBS: 305-248-7815 (The Xpress Support Center BBS)
FAX: 305-242-1482
Internet: santronics@aisbbs.com
8.2 Where Can I Get Support For the Silver Xpress Mail System?
Support for Silver Xpress is available through the following avenues.
FidoNet
=======
XPRESS_SUPPORT Moderator: Scott Nikont
Primarily for the Silver Xpress Offline Mail Reader, but questions
about other Santronics Software products will be answered also.
XPRESS_SYSOP Moderator: George Fliger
Primarily for the Silver Xpress Mail Doors.
OFFLINE Moderator: Paul Knupke Jr.
Support for and discussion of all offline mail products. Many Team
Xpress people are active in this conference, including Hector
Santos.
SHAREWRE Moderator: MaryJane Choate
Support for and discussion of all shareware products. Many Team
Xpress people are active here as well.
RIME/RelayNet
=============
SILVER XPRESS: Channel 459 Host: Gary Petersen
Support for all Silver Xpress products.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 39
CompuServe
==========
Santronics Software Library and Forum Host: Hector Santos
Support for all Silver Xpress products. The Santronics Software
areas are located in the PC Vendor J Forum (GO PCVENJ).
Voice Support
=============
Contact Santronics Software directly for voice support between 9:00
a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time at 305-248-3204.
Registered users are entitled to one hour of voice support on the toll
free line, 800-845-6944. Those who purchase the Priority Service Plan
are entitled to unlimited voice support on the toll free line.
Silver Xpress Mail Door User's Guide Page 40
