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InterMail Software Inc. InterEcho Info - Sep 01 1994
=====================================================================
Copyright 1993-1994 InterMail Software Inc. All rights reserved.
This leaflet is a short description of InterEcho. Please see
README.1ST for more details.
What is InterEcho?
------------------
InterEcho is computer software for the import and export of messages
in distributed conferences (echomail) to and from different Bulletin
Board Systems. InterEcho is the type of software often referred to as
an "echomail tosser".
InterEcho is a sister product to InterMail, a "front end mailer"
program which is used to move the mail from one computer to another
using modems and ordinary phone lines. InterMail handles mail and
file transfers and also packs and unpacks private mail from person to
person, also known as netmail. InterEcho will work with any front end
mailer, but best with InterMail.
InterEcho achieves it's ease of use by tight integration with
InterMail and by using as much built-in smarts as possible to
eliminate the need for user intervention and complex command line
switches and setup options. The InterMail editor will soon be
converted to support all the same message formats that InterEcho
supports.
What is echomail?
-----------------
Echomail is also known as Conference Mail or Distributed Conferences.
It is a way for several Bulletin Board Systems to share a common
message base. A message that is entered on one system is sent to all
other participating systems. This allows many more people to
participate than if they all had to call a single system with a
limited number of phone lines. In fact, echomail allows a single-line
system to appear as if it had thousands of users.
Echomail has grown increasingly popular in hobbyist networks that are
built on Fidonet technology. Many people would now even go so far as
to say that it is the main reason for the very existence of the
networks themselves. It allows you to discuss various subjects with
people from all over the world, with delays of no more than a few
days between a message and a reply.
An echomail conference is usually organized around a subject.
Sometimes the subject can be very specific, like house plants,
cooking or the use of InterMail. Other conferences have very broad
subjects or are just intended for general chit-chat in a region or
over whole continents.
When you have a question on a specific subject, like the uses of an
unusual vegetable in cooking or how to find a device driver for a
computer peripheral, you can often quickly get the answers you need
by posting your question in the appropriate echomail conference in
one of the hobbyist networks such as FidoNet or EchoNet.
Echomail often provides a surprisingly effective way of finding
like-minded people and establishing communities based on common
interests, more than where you happen to be located geographically.
You can talk to those who share your interests, world views and
concerns regardless of any barriers raised by continents and oceans.
Where can I get echomail?
-------------------------
You can join (link to) a network that offers echomail, the biggest of
which is FidoNet. Find a local hub or host and ask how to join. After
you have received a node number, session password and area manager
password, you can subscribe (link) to various echomail conferences.
There are 600+ echomail areas available on FidoNet today. Your local
hub probably offers a majority of these.
How does InterEcho work?
------------------------
You don't need to know exactly how InterEcho works to use it. You may
however like to know what's happening behind the scenes. If you
aren't interested, then skip this section.
Echomail is distributed by InterMail (and other mailers) in
compressed bundles. Some samples:
Directory of C:\IM\SECURE
0000FFAC.WE1 14215 12-28-93 12:53p
B856D653.SU2 702 12-26-93 9:52a
0000FFFD.TU6 1034 12-28-93 9:32p
0000FFFF.WE1 350037 12-29-93 1:29a
FF88FFFD.WEA 813 12-29-93 3:19a
The first and second character of the file name extension is an
abreviation of the name of the day the file was created. The third
character is the number of the file created that day, from 0 through
Z. Even though the extension doesn't show it, these files are
compressed with PKZIP, ARC, ARJ or another common compression tool.
InterEcho will look for inbound compressed echomail files, and if
found, un-compress them to the work directory. Same samples:
Directory of C:\IM\ECHOWORK
B5835D1F.PKT 331612 12-28-93 4:24a
B50226BD.PKT 35664 12-27-93 2:13a
B502A3FD.PKT 1900 12-28-93 2:40a
A802F2AA.PKT 3785 12-28-93 2:57a
B5891C57.PKT 32339 12-27-93 9:10a
The file name extension is always PKT. These files may contain
hundreds or even thousends of messages. Each message consists of a
header, a message body and a footer. The header contains the sender's
name, the receiver's name, subject, date, area tag name and some
status info. The message body is the real letter. The footer contains
a tag line, an origin node address, a seen-by list and a path list.
The tag line usually gives the name of the editor or the mail tosser.
The seen-by list is a list of some of the BBS's that have received a
copy of the message. The path list is a list of node numbers in the
exact path the message has traveled from the author to you.
The most important information is the area tag name. The tag name is
the name of the conference (the echo, the board or the folder) to
which the message belongs. Same samples:
SYSOP369
INTERMAIL
SCUBA
SB-NASA_NEWS
In the setup program (IESETUP.EXE) you can enter a list of folders
and assign an area tag name to each one of them. You can also enter
information on where your BBS will find these conferences. It may be
the conference number, the board number or the path, depending on how
the BBS software works.
InterEcho will read messages from the *.PKT files, one by one, and
insert (toss) them to the corresponding conference on your system.
You and/or your users may then log on to your BBS and read and reply
to these messages. You may also use the InterMail message editor for
this job.
InterEcho will also scan for new messages entered by you or your
users, export and compress them to outgoing files, recursive as
described above, so they later can be sent by InterMail to your hub
for distribution to other systems.
If you want to forward echomail to other nodes, you may set up down
links in an AREAS.BBS file. InterEcho will create outgoing echomail
packets to each downlink.
Semaphores and Multi-line setup
------------------------------
InterEcho is designed to work in a multi-line mailer setup. This
means that you may have several modems sending and receiving echomail
files at the same time, while InterEcho only process those files that
are safe to work with.
This is achieved using simple semaphore flag files. Some samples of
sempahore files:
Directory of C:\IM\SEMA
X33D7BFD 002 0 12-29-93 8:14p
X19EED70 C02 0 12-29-93 8:14p
XB1D750D 001 0 12-29-93 8:14p
X57ECA71 C01 0 12-29-93 8:14p
InterMail will create these semaphore flag files during its
transmissions with other systems. Seeing these semaphores, InterEcho
will not work with those files until InterMail is finished and the
semaphore is removed. InterEcho will also create its own semaphore
files during tossing and scanning. None of the InterMail nodes will
try to send or append to those files until InterEcho is done.
What BBS software does InterEcho work with?
-------------------------------------------
We are planning to make InterEcho able to toss and scan messages
directly to/from many different BBS softwares and message formats.
Supported now in InterEcho
--------------------------
Wildcat! 4.0
Wildcat! 3.5 - 3.91
PCBoard 15.0+
Fido *.msg
Hudson (QuickBBS, RemoteAccess, SuperBBS)
JAM (Roboboard/FX, Remote Access, ProBoard)
Planned to be supported in 1994
-------------------------------
Novell MHS (Major BBS, cc:Mail, DaVinci E-Mail, other gateways)
Searchlight
Syncronet
Squish (Maximus)
EzyCom
Powerboard
Renegade
PCBoard 14.5
If you wish support for a format not currently in the list, please
contact us.
The reason for supporting so many different message formats is to
make it possible to use InterEcho with most of the available BBS
systems on the market and even to switch from one BBS to another
without more effort than changing a couple of options per message
folder. InterEcho also allows you to freely mix different message
formats, for example to use one format for compatibility with your
favorite BBS while using another message format for top efficiency
for those conferences you import for your private use.
InterEcho without a BBS
-----------------------
You don't need a BBS to run InterEcho. You only need a mailer and a
message editor. The combination of InterMail and InterEcho is perfect
for mail-only (no BBS) systems and for point nodes.
BBS Netmail
-----------
If you use InterEcho with a BBS and wish to give your users access to
netmail, you can specify the BBS netmail folder in the IMSetup
program. InterEcho will only import mail that is not addressed to one
of the names listed under Global/Users in IMsetup.
Echomail dupes
--------------
Improper distribution topology may sometimes create duplicate
messages. InterEcho will check for dupes and move them to a special
folder, thus stopping unnecessary transfer costs.
Unlisted areas
--------------
You may specify a folder for messages that arrive in unknown
conferences - perhaps you forgot to set up a conference. You may also
choose to delete these, before they are saved to the hard drive. This
is useful if you receive echomail in more areas than you want to
save, for example via Planet Connect.
Unsecure messages
-----------------
You may specify a folder for messages that arrive from a node that
wasn't listed as a feed for that conference (a security violation).
You may also choose to delete these messages.
Log file
--------
If you wish, InterEcho will automatically log activity to a log file.
Origin Lines
------------
An origin line is a type of signature at the bottom of a message,
usually giving the system name and location, sometimes with quite a
bit of personal flair. You may enter up to 20 origin lines.
Future plans
------------
This version is a beta version. It is stable and works well, but
there might still be bugs in it. We are planning to fix bugs and add
more features in frequent free updates througout 1994.
The supported compression formats are now: all flavours of PKZIP, Pak
2.51, as well as ARC. Other formats (LHA, ARJ) will follow in later
versions.
Our future plans are based on suggestions from you and other users.
Please let us know your opinion, what you like, what you dislike and
what you miss.
Trademarks
----------
All products by InterMail Software Inc. are trademarks or registered
trademarks of InterMail Software Inc. Other brand and product names
are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
InterMail Software Inc. Voice 1-305-436-1587
10620 Washington Street #101 Fax 1-305-436-5587
Hollywood, FL 33025-3552 BBS 1-305-436-1884
USA Fido 1:369/102
InterMailNet 211:211/0