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Intellicomm (TM)
v2.01
Copyright (C) 1991-1994 Liberation Enterprises. All rights reserved.
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
INTELLICOMM v2.0x NEW FEATURES/FIXES AND UPGRADE INFORMATION
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. INTELLICOMM VERSION 2.0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.1 Upgrading from v1.00 (or v0.9x) to v2.0x . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.2 Version 2 Update News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.3 Bug Fixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.4 New Features (General) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.5 New Terminal Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1.6 BIF Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.7 New Automation Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.8 New File Tagger Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
1.9 Intellicomm Main Setup Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2. REVERSING ICOM V2 TO ICOM V1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3. SND / GET LISTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
4. VERSION 1.00 NEW FEATURES/UPGRADE TIPS . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.1 Version 0.95 Bugs Fixed In 1.00/2.0 . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 2
1. INTELLICOMM VERSION 2.0
Welcome, veteran Intellicomm user, to Intellicomm v2.0! If you're
upgrading from Intellicomm verson 0.9x/1.00 you don't want to miss this
document! Exciting new feature after exciting new feature is discussed
herein, and if you skip this file you'll end up with 'Intellicomm v1'
with a slightly different look to it. I.e. you likely won't have a clue
what new features have been introduced, nor where they are, nor how to
use them, if you skip this file. It may take you a couple of days on and
off to browse through all the changes and new features, but it's
definitely worth the effort and is a must-read for all Intellicomm
upgraders.
This document was created for those who are upgrading from a previous
release of Intellicomm and are already familiar with BIFs, Intellicomm's
Terminal, automated jobs, etc. If you just recently obtained an older
version of Intellicomm aren't familiar with these things yet, please
delete your old version and start fresh with v2.0 in a NEW directory.
The online help is where all the new user information is contained. This
document contains no new user information, other than where new features
are discussed.
Before you get started with Intellicomm v2 please keep in mind that if
you do run into a problem with v2.0, which you experienced with a prior
version -- that the problem may well lie in your existing DATA files,
which for the most part are not touched when v2.0 is installed. Various
bugs in older versions caused Tagger catalogs, job files, and even BIFs
to be corrupted. It wasn't rampant, but it did happen under certain
circumstances. Due to bugs, you may also have configured Intellicomm
improperly to avoid a problem, and that improper configuration may now
cause you problems with v2.0. If either is the case, and you do run into
problems after upgrading to v2.0 please backup then delete all your
Intellicomm files and start fresh with v2.0. You needn't (and shouldn't)
re-create your entire Icom setup at once; just create one BIF and one job
from scratch with Icom v2. If the problem you experienced previously
disappears, then you'll know that the problem was in your old data files.
Only then should you consider creating other jobs and BIFs from scratch
with v2.0.
1.1 Upgrading from v1.00 (or v0.9x) to v2.0x
Please see README.1ST for installation instructions. Upgraders are
advised to first BACKUP their existing setup, and then to install Icom v2
in the same directory. This avoids having to copy your File Tagger
catalogs, BIFs, scripts, etc., all into a new directory, and simply
updates your existing setup to v2. When the install routines replace an
older file that may be of use to you (BIF template or script), the old
file will be renamed to *.OLD so you will have a backup in case you want
your old file back for some reason, or for your interest if you'd like to
compare the new to the old to see what changes took place. Once you're
sure everything is working properly, and once you check that nothing
important has been renamed to *.OLD, you may delete *.OLD from the \ICOM,
\ICOM\BIF and \ICOM\SCR directories.
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 3
V0.9x UPGRADERS: There was a bug in the password save/update routines
(v0.94 and earlier), which allowed multiple passwords for the SAME BBS to
be saved in the password data file, ICOM.PWD. This caused no problems
(that I know of) in the past, but with the introduction of a new feature
it could cause confusion at some point in the future if you don't fix
your files. To remedy the situation, select "Pack" from the exit menu,
the next time you eXit from Intellicomm (you can do it now, before
installing v2 if you like). This will purge any duplicate password
entries from your password data file.
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 4
1.2 Version 2 Update News
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
■ First the good news: Due to the valiant efforts of those who
registered v0.9x and v1.00 I was able to stay in business (if barely!)
for another year and produce this release! Hopefully you got your
money's worth out of Icom v1.00 alone, and with this major upgrade, I
hope you will get many MORE months of enjoyment from Icom v2. I'd like
to express a wholehearted THANK YOU to those who registered and made
this release possible. Please pat yourself on the back for me.
■ Second: Icom v2 is a free upgrade! Although v2 is quite a major
upgrade, and major upgrades normally require a modest upgrade fee, I
have decided against that for this release (mainly because I'm just as
tired as you are of other software developers soaking me for cash).
Icom v2 will recognize your ICOM.REG "key" file, and automatically
register regular evaluation copies of v2.xx, just as Icom v1.00 did.
You looked after Intellicomm by supporting the product, and I'd like to
return the favour and present v2 to you free of charge.
■ Third: Icom v1 has been thoroughly overhauled. All bugs that were
reported (that could be reproduced and located) have been fixed, and
dozens of major new features have been added, designed to make the
program both easier to USE day-to-day, and easier to SET UP. Using the
new learn modes, Icom v2 can set ITSELF up for automation at a given
BBS by just interacting with you and watching what you do. And with
the new online help, every imaginable tip and tidbit you need is right
at your fingertips -- when you need it, without fumbling through a
manual. Intellicomm v2 is not only the most powerful and flexible
communications program for BBS use, and the most reasonably priced, but
it's now one of the easiest to set up and use as well!
■ Now the 'bad' news. First: Due to an increase in the size of ICOM.EXE,
Intellicomm can no longer run off a 360K diskette. If your system
currently has only 360K drives you won't be able to use this new
release until you can upgrade to at least a 1.2 Meg floppy drive (and
more preferably a hard disk; 40 meg hard drives can be purchased for
about $100 nowadays). Hopefully this isn't an issue for many users,
but I do regret excluding those whom this affects. It was an
absolutely necessary change and as new features were added it became
impossible to keep the EXE below 360K.
■ Second: The price of Icom v2 has been raised $10 (to $39.95), and the
competitive upgrade/$10.00 has been forsaken. Most v1 users didn't
take the discount anyway, and many actually sent EXTRA money, stating
that Icom was priced reasonably enough that it didn't need a
competitive upgrade price. Further, the feedback received from dozens
of users during the initial beta testing of v2 stated over and over
again that Icom v2.0, considering its feature set and the price of
competitive products with FEWER features, was grossly underpriced at
$29.95.
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 5
1.3 Bug Fixes
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
So many Icom v1.00 bugs were fixed for v2.0 (most were minor problems
that you probably didn't even notice) that it would be absolutely
ridiculous to list them all here. Only the major bugs, or bugs you were
likely to have noticed are listed below. If you knew about a bug and it
no longer exists, that's the best "documentation" that the problem was
found and fixed. And again, if you knew about a problem and the problem
STILL exists with v2.0, please try re-creating your DATA files from
scratch (the job and BIF) to see if it fixes the problem.
■ The exception 13's or hangs that occurred prior to file transfers, and
in various other places (just after a job, sometimes when shelling to
DOS, etc), have all been fixed. Locating this bug held up development
of Intellicomm v2 for approximately four months, and it's one of the
reasons v2 was late. It was such a major problem that I couldn't even
consider developing other areas of the program until the problem was
found. As it turned out, it wasn't a bug in Intellicomm's code, but a
bug in a library of mouse routines purchased for Intellicomm.
■ The internal editor had a couple of major bugs in it, but it's been
thoroughly cleaned up and re-tested and you can now use it with
confidence. All of the scripts included with Intellicomm were written
and/or touched up in the v2 internal editor, and it's working quite
nicely now.
■ Another problem frequently reported; the never-ending "Find all/Tag
all" in the File Tagger, has also been fixed.
■ And another, the "Invalid Handle" problem in the File Tagger, has also
been fixed, though I unfortunately was never able to pin this one down
and reproduce it reliably. If a problem can't be produced at will,
there's really no way to test and confirm 100% that it's been fixed.
Various coding problems were found and fixed, and the problem hasn't
been seen in weeks. But there was no way to tell whether it was truly
"fixed", since the problem couldn't be reliably reproduced. If you run
into it again, please re-report the problem and I'll keep at it.
■ And there was an "Invalid Date" problem in the Tagger (or rather on BBS
listings that truly did have invalid dates), and some sorting problems
when using the Tag Status/Location index that were also fixed.
■ The Minimum Connect Speed item (main setup/Dialer Settings) has, since
v1, been allowing re-dialing right up to the Max. Dial Attempts item
defined in the BIF (forever if no Max. Dial Attempts was set). During
automated runs, it now untags the BIF after 3 unsuccessful connects, at
a lower speed than the Minimum Connect Speed. During manual dialing
(Dial from the BBS Directory), the BIF *remains* tagged right up to the
Max. Dial Attempts, as with previous versions.
This is only relevant to those who use the Minimum Connect Speed
feature: if you have the minimum speed set to 300 baud, Icom will allow
connections at any speed.
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 6
Some problems I was simply unable to reproduce. Some people experienced
dialing problems with v1.00 (the first number wouldn't be dialed ... and
various other minor problems), and I've made some changes and am hoping
for the best. Since I was unable to reproduce any of the dialing
problems, I made my best guess and am now leaving it up to you to re-
report the problem if I missed the mark.
1.4 New Features (General)
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
■ Online, context-sensitive help is now available in all major areas of
the program! Press [F1] twice from anywhere in Intellicomm for details
on using the help system (Help on Help). Make sure to use the help
frequently whether you need help or not: Lots of tips and tidbits were
included all over the place that you might never get to take advantage
of if you skip the help screens.
■ Mouse support has been improved, with a free-moving mouse cursor and a
scrollbar to move around in the File Tagger and Editor. No scrollbars
were added to the Job Directory or BBS Directory, but you can do the
equivalent of [PgUp] / [PgDn] (if necessary) by clicking on the top
border or the divider line just below the main windows. Expect to see
dialogue boxes, buttons and so forth in the next major release of
Intellicomm (which will include a totally new interface). V2's mouse
support was ADDED to the basic interface of Intellicomm v1.00 and thus
it isn't the "ultimate" in mouse support ... but it should prove much
more useful than what v1.00 had.
■ The File Tagger and main setup program (TAGGER.EXE, SETUP.EXE) have
been merged into ICOM.EXE. Implementing these as separate programs
meant a lot of wasted disk space since all the base routines (video
support, mouse support, the menu systems, and lots of other code) had
to be duplicated in each EXE. By merging them all into one program, a
common set of program functions is now used by everything, eliminating
the duplication of code.
With all the program routines now in a single .EXE, operation and usage
of Intellicomm is simplified significantly. ICOM.EXE no longer has to
call TAGGER.EXE to export tagged files to SND / GET lists, which
allowed several improvements in the way file transfers are handled.
The old text file SND / GET lists were very awkward to handle as
compared to the indexed databases the Tagger uses, and they are no
longer needed. SND / GET lists ***ARE*** still supported however, so
if you're using BBSee or another program that creates those lists (or
if you use Buerg's LIST program and dump to a GET list), you can still
continue to do so as usual. There are differences (improvements) in
the way SND/GET lists are handled though and more details follow near
the end of this document.
For those of you who were calling TAGGER.EXE separately from inside
your mail reader or the like, you can still accomplish this by using
the command: ICOM.EXE /CAT:CATNAME /Area:Tagger (where CATNAME is the
name of the catalog you wish to view; case is not important). This
takes you directly to the File Tagger, and when you exit the Tagger
Icom exits back to DOS just as if you had called TAGGER.EXE. If you
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 7
imported .NEW files lists into the Tagger using TAGGER /i, simply
change it to ICOM /i. ICOM.EXE now supports the TAGGER.EXE switches.
■ While disk space required is higher with Icom v2 (though still not as
high as most competing products with fewer features... and you can be
rid of a lot of the files if you like, and don't want the new features
Icom v2 offers), and though TAGGER.EXE and SETUP.EXE were merged with
the main program, memory requirements are actually DOWN by a few
Kbytes. Intellicomm will now run in just 350K of memory through the
magic of program overlays (various parts of the program are swapped in
and out of memory as you move around). The overlays will be loaded
into XMS or EMS, if you have it on your system; which allows the
overlays themselves to be swapped to and from upper memory instead of
loading the overlay from ICOM.EXE on disk. If you notice a slight
delay when moving around in Icom, and you don't have XMS or EMS on your
system, it's due to the time needed to load the overlay from disk (no
worse than the time it took to load SETUP.EXE or TAGGER.EXE).
■ Version 2 has a "main menu" which gives you quick access to all the
major areas of the program, as well as various usage statistics that
show you whether (and how many) new files are available for browsing,
and how many new mail packets were downloaded on the last automated
call, and how many times the connection was lost during the last
automated call, and how many file transfers aborted, etc. If you
prefer not to use the Main Menu, set the "Base and Startup Area" in the
Main Setup (General settings) to the Job Directory or whatever you
prefer (registered users only).
■ You can now execute .COM, .EXE, .BAT, or .BTM (4DOS) files via Icom's
internal File Manager. Just "Edit" or "View" the executable, and the
File Manager will ask you whether you want to execute it. Note that
it's best to have the "Enable Swapping" setting (Intellicomm
Setup/General screen) item set to at least "When not connected" when
using this feature, since it causes Icom to swap itself out of base
memory (to XMS/EMS if available, or to disk if not available) giving
the executed program all available base memory, minus just a couple of
hundred bytes. If Icom doesn't swap itself out you may have trouble
running larger external programs from within the File Manager.
■ Intellicomm now has its own internal File Viewer. This viewer is
similar to the internal Text Editor, but you can view files of any size
(the Editor can handle only files 64 Kbytes or less in length), and you
cannot accidentally modify the file. Currently, the File Viewer is
lacking some of the more advanced features you'll find in external
viewers such as Vern Buerg's LIST program: you cannot mark blocks and
dump the text to other text files for example. If you want more power
in a viewer, you're free to plug an external viewer command in, on the
main setup "Filenames and Paths" screen in the "File Viewer" option.
■ REGISTRATION INCENTIVES: Multiple File Tagger catalogs are no longer
supported in the unregistered version of Intellicomm. If you have your
BIFs set up to use multiple file catalogs, the separate catalogs will
not be observed until you send your vote of support for Intellicomm and
make the purchase (all new files go into the NEWFILES database in the
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 8
unregistered version). Script Learn mode, and the definition of a new
program startup area is also disabled in the unregistered version.
Registration benefits seem to be necessary and are even desired by many
people (namely registered users), so a couple were added.
1.5 New Terminal Features
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
■ A Host Mode has been added to Intellicomm's arsenal of communications
features! See HOST.DOC for details.
■ You can now use separate "Minimum Connect Speeds" for each BBS (to
override the Minimum Connect Speed defined in the main setup, and allow
a lower connect speed on a given BBS), through a new item attached to
the "Port Settings" item in each BIF. When you select Port Settings
you'll be given a second option to set the minimum connect speed (set
to 300 to allow connects at any speed). If you set a minimum speed, it
will show up just after the port settings like so: "19200,N,8,1/9600"
(the minimum speed follows the '/'). This minimum connect speed, if
not set to 300, is compared to the CONNECT message your modem returns.
If you don't set up a minimum connect speed in the BIF, the main setup
Minimum Connect Speed (Dialing screen) is used, as with v1. Note that
the actual PORT SETTINGS have not changed. The port will be set to
whatever speed/data bits/parity/stop bits you define in the BIF, as
with v1.
■ You can now run a script to initialize your modem, by specifying
@SCRIPTNAME as the initialization string in the Icom main setup
(Terminal Settings screen).
■ If the terminal is set to use Hardware Flow Control (CTS/RTS and/or
DSR/DTR), a check is now made before it is activated. For either mode
of flow control to work at all, the device connected to the COM port
(your modem) must raise either the CTS (Clear To Send) line or the DSR
(Data Set Ready) line, or both lines. If you attempt to activate
either CTS/RTS or DSR/DTR and "okay to send" line is LOW, a warning is
now displayed and you are given ten seconds to continue before the non-
functioning mode of flow control is automatically disabled. In short,
if you have flow control set up improperly, you'll find out about it.
NOTE 1: Software Flow Control, while a clunky alternative to Hardware
Flow Control, is automatically ENABLED if both modes of Hardware Flow
Control turn out to be malfunctioning.
NOTE 2: Intellicomm v1 by default activated both Hardware Flow Control
AND Software (XON/XOFF) Flow Control. This was done simply because
it's the way the several other comm. programs did things, but in
hindsight it is really rather redundant (and does waste precious time)
to use BOTH Software and Hardware Flow Control, and it's recommended
that you shut the Software Flow Control off at your next opportunity...
though ONLY if you have Hardware Flow Control enabled. Older (slower)
modems do not support Hardware Flow Control and if such is the case
with your modem you mustn't turn off Software Flow Control.
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 9
■ Intellicomm v1 waited until just before dialing to initialize the
modem, and it didn't display the results of the initialization (a modem
OK or ERROR return code) to you. With Icom v2 you can now have
Intellicomm initialize your modem right at program startup, showing you
the results of the initialization, as with most other communications
programs. This allows you to see any ERROR return codes from your
modem, if your modem Initialization String is not defined properly.
Initializing your modem at program startup may also eliminate dialing
problems if you have problems dialing with v2.00. To enable this
feature access the main setup, select "Terminal Settings" and set "Init
Modem at Startup?" to YES.
■ You can now have the Terminal status line display either the port speed
or the modem-to-modem (CONNECT) speed via the new "Status Bar Displays"
option on the main setup Terminal Settings screen.
■ Some general information and debugging information has been added to
the Port Settings menu ([Alt-P] in Terminal mode). It shows your UART
type (16550 or 8250), and the on/off state of the CTS, RTS, DSR, and
DTR lines. [Clear to Send, Request to Send, Data Set Ready, and Data
Terminal Ready.]
■ This isn't really a 'new feature' but a change: The right mouse button
can no longer be used in the Terminal to pop up the [Alt-Z] Terminal
menu. The mouse was interfering with communications in some cases, so
it is now disabled in Terminal mode (though you can still use your
mouse to select items from the Terminal menu after pressing [Alt-Z]).
1.6 BIF Changes
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
■ Instead of setting up your BIFs OFFLINE before calling the BBS or after
finding an error, you can now use BIF Learn to set up your BIFs
interactively while you're ONLINE! BIF Learn watches for the BBS type
when it connects and loads the proper BIF template, then grabs the
proper prompts from the screen (and/or proper command from the
keyboard) and plugs them into the BIF whenever you run into a problem
online! Don't worry about this interfering with unattended
automation... BIF Learn must be activated by you before Icom will stop
and ask you where to put a prompt it can't recognize. During an
automated job, with BIF Learn off, the usual (unattended) error-
handling is done when an error occurs.
■ New BIF templates have been added for GAP, PCBoard v15, TriBBS ....
along with several Mail Template Files (MTF) and Bank Template Files
(BTF) for these BBS types. This brings the total number of BBS's
Intellicomm directly supports to XX, with support for XX mail systems
and XX time banks! And with BIF Learn, setups for other BBS types will
be easier than ever. Intellicomm's nearest competitor supports
automation of only *2* different BBS types, a couple of mail systems,
and no time banks at all ... it has no learn modes, and has a very
limited terminal (and that product costs more than Intellicomm, for
good measure).
■ You can now define longer BIF commands/responses:
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 10
1. All BIF responses (any commands Intellicomm SENDS to the BBS either
in response to a BIF prompt, or to access a sub-menu, search for
files, get new files lists, etc) now accept up to 40 characters.
2. The 'Reply Dir' / 'Message Dir' / 'Upload PATH' / 'Download Dir' BIF
items also now accept up to 40 characters allowing you to override
the default main setup directories with a much longer
D:\DIR1\DIR2\DIR3...etc.
■ Three new BIF Logon slots have been added: "Press [Escape]" for BBS's
with front ends requiring [Esc] to be pressed after connecting, "Enter
Birth Date" for those top-security BBS's that feel compelled to confirm
your birth date from time to time, and "Enter Phone Number" again for
the top-security BBS's that confirm for your birth date from time to
time. Given these new prompts and the 2 new "External Extra" prompts
(see below) for the first time ever Icom actually has SPARE slots
available for Wildcat BBS's! [I await Mustang's next release of
Wildcat, which will undoubtedly force me to use the empty slots, and
probably to add support for 10 more equally tedious prompts... <grin>]
■ Six more BIF "Extra" slots have been added (4 total per area now),
mainly to satisfy "certain", to remain unnamed, BBS's need to ask
redundant questions, and to display the exact same prompt in different
ways, for no apparent reason. Okay, the BBS starts with a "W" and ends
with an exclamation mark. Any guesses? <grin> Actually I'm sure
these extras will be of use on other BBS types as well. Mustang
software... do your worst: we're ready for you!
■ Since there was no room on the BIF "Logon" screen for all these extra
slots, you'll now find the extras on a separate BIF "Extras" screen.
■ "Enter U/L Fname" has been added to the BIF "File" screen, for those
BBS's with different Enter D/L filename and Enter U/L filename prompts.
■ A new "Descrip @SCRIPT" item has been added to the BIF "File" screen,
allowing you to execute a SCRIPT to enter file descriptions during
automated uploads. Please see the [Wildcat v3.x] templates and
WCDESC.SCR for an example.
■ IMPORTANT! An "Extract Newfiles" item has been added to the BIF
"Message" screen, to allow message packet extraction of new files lists
using a filename other than NEWFILES.DAT, and also to allow you shut
OFF the attempted extraction of the new files list from those mail
packets that don't have a list included. Icom v1.00 ALWAYS attempted
to extract NEWFILES.DAT (the new files list) from any mail packets you
downloaded that had a .QWK (Qmail-compatible) extension. With the new
'Extract Newfiles' BIF option, you can selectively choose which QWK (or
other) packets Icom extracts new files lists from: if the item is
blank, no extraction is attempted. Note that you can still disable
extraction of ANY new files list in the main setup, on the File Tagger
screen ("Extract NEWFILES / Mail" option).
■ A rather bizarre item "COUNT File Areas" has been added to the
"Bank/List" screen, and what this item does is to start the file area
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 11
(imported into the Tagger catalogs) at "0", and every time it runs
across one of these on a file list:
║ Month Position . XX New File Area . File Area: ║
───────────────────────────
(the text "File Area:" is used by TriBBS, but anything can be defined),
it increments the file area stored in the Tagger records ... So given
the following new files list:
File Area: Anti-Virus Software
File Area: Audio Files
File Area: Unchecked Uploads
ICOM201A.ZIP XXXXXX MM-DD-YY Intellicomm v2.01.
The file ICOM201A.ZIP would be stored as being in file area "3" (due to
the 3 occurrences of the text "File Area:". If you tagged and auto-
downloaded the file, Icom would access file area #3 ... not "Unchecked
Uploads". So far this has only been necessary on TriBBS lists, which
do not display the actual area number you must access. I.e. above you
could not [C]hange to the "Unchecked Uploads" area. You'd have to
[C]hange to area 3. [Don't blame me... I don't design the BBS's I just
try to let you automate 'em. <grin>]
■ You can now use script commands in BIF prompt responses, and in job
Custom Commands, by preceding the command with '&'. Example:
║ Message Extra A &DOWNLOAD "Z" Message A . . . <FILEDOWN> ║
In the example above, if Icom found the text "<FILEDOWN>" during a
mesage run, it would begin a Zmodem download. The most likely script
commands you'll use are &CAPTURE, &DOWNLOAD, &HANGUP, &UPLOAD,
&WAITFOR, etc. (and even &EXIT ... &EXIT -1 causes Icom to abort all
automated jobs, &EXIT 1 causes Icom to cancel the jobs on the current
BBS, and to untag the BBS). SCRTUTOR.DOC will introduce the
rudimentary script commands to you quickly.
1.7 New Automation Features
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
■ Something I've been meaning to add for a long time has been
implemented: a debugging log. \ICOM\CAP\ICOM.DBG (\ICOM\CAP\ being the
usual path you use in your default Capture File) keeps track of every
status/error message Icom sends (useful in reporting problems), along
with information about automated jobs, as well as Tagger import
information, when a file is excluded from import for some reason
(either due to the fact that it exists in DOWNLOAD.NDX [see below], or
is a duplicate and already exists in the catalog, or was excluded due
to a user-defined Exclude Keyword).
When the Debugging Log is set to "Extensive" mode (main setup, on the
new Debugging Log settings screen) the debugging log keeps track of
every BBS prompt that Intellicomm was watching for at a given time, and
also shows any/all BBS prompts that Intellicomm FINDS. This can be
extremely useful in debugging BIF prompt mismatches, or even more
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 12
importantly INADVERTENT BIF prompt matches (i.e. Icom sends a different
response than you expect to a given prompt, due to the fact that two
BIF prompts are using the same text).
For more information on the Debugging Log access the Intellicomm main
setup "Debugging Log Settings" screen and press [F1] for help.
■ You can now define much longer parameters for several job tasks:
1. The 'Search BBS for files[s]' task now accepts strings up to 80
characters in length.
2. The 'Custom Command/Run script' task now accepts strings up to 150
characters in length, which not only allows much more involved tasks
to be handled with Custom Commands (with strategically placed ^M's,
||, ~~~, etc.: see the online help for details) but also allows many
script parameters to be passed to a script when using a @SCRIPT
command in a Custom Command).
3. The 'DOS Command/Run a program' task now accepts strings up to 150
characters in length, again allowing more command line options to be
passed to programs/BAT files you run.
4. The 'Capture on/off' task now accepts strings up to 64 characters in
length, allowing you to specify a full D:\PATH\FILENAME.EXT as
necessary.
■ Up to this point, Intellicomm's main shining point was its built-in
automated routines and the File Tagger. With v2.0 those previous
highlights have been improved, and another bright shining point has
been added in that the script language has been expanded very
significantly! Intellicomm v1.00 had what was probably the weakest
script language of any communications program. The v2.0 script
language is one of the most powerful and flexible script languages ever
made available for ANY communications program, yet it still remains one
of the easiest script languages to learn and use.
The version 2 script language now contains over *220* commands,
including sophisticated video handling, interactive keyboard input with
three types of user-definable MENUS with full mouse support, string and
key input (and 'simulated' keystrokes for macros), script "command line
parameters" which can be passed from a job Custom Command, BIF, or the
DOS command line, access to all system information (BIF, Icom main
setup, system date, time, day of week, month, year, and environment
information such as the PATH, PROMPT, etc) three types of variables
(user-defined, global array, and system variables), direct access to
the FILE TAGGER CATALOGS, regular file I/O, much better script flow
control with loops, if/else, switch/case, and too many other new
features to list here.
The word "script" is almost a dirty word to some people. But no matter
what you think of scripts due to experiences with other comm. programs
or things you've 'heard' about script writing from other people, no
matter how horrified you are by the size of Icom's script manual (which
is mainly for REFERENCE and is *not* meant to be read in its entirety)
you're simply cheating yourself out of one of the most useful and
flexible tools ever produced for automated communications by not giving
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 13
Icom's script language a look! For a demonstration of some of the new
script capabilities, run the included script SCRDEMO.SCR from the
"Script Manager [Alt-U]", and browse SCRTUTOR.DOC -- a simple and easy-
to-read introduction to scripts. Powerful and very useful Icom scripts
are EASY to create and there are simply too many useful things you can
now do with them to pass them up. Give SCRTUTOR.DOC *one* evening the
next time nothing is on T.V. You'll be very glad you did.
For those of you who wrote scripts for Intellicomm v1.00, the appendix
"CHANGES FROM THE V1.00 SCRIPT LANGUAGE" in SCRIPT.DOC outlines all the
changes from the v1.00 language that you should be aware of. Also, by
looking at the converted scripts in your script directory (comparing to
the *.OLD scripts) you can quickly see what changes were necessary from
v1 to v2.
■ To help script writers get their projects started, and to introduce
those interested in learning script writing to the language, a SCRIPT
LEARN mode has also been added! Something like the BIF Learn mode,
Icom watches the BBS prompts (if online), and the keys you type, and
creates a script as you go along. Script Learn allows you to "record"
any task, and then to "play" the task BACK as many times as you like,
to automate virtually anything. Learned scripts can also be executed
from the DOS command line with the /scr: command line parameter (i.e.
run them from a .BAT file or program launcher) or can even be attached
to function keys allowing you to execute complex automated tasks with
the press of a single key! Script Learn is a bonus feature, only
available in the registered version of Intellicomm.
■ There is now an integrated SCRIPT DEBUGGER with trace and animate
modes, as well as command syntax-checking with automatic
edit/positioning to syntax errors.
■ IMPORTANT! The way job starting times work has been changed (meaning
jobs that use task #1 in the Job Editor, "Set job starting day/time").
Icom v1.00 just sorted the job pauses from earliest to latest. If you
Tagged/Ran two jobs that had pauses; one at 4pm and one at 5am, the 5am
job would always take effect first. With v2.0, job pauses now operate
more intelligently and are sorted according to the CURRENT time of day
and day of the week. So taking the 4pm/5am pause examples above, v2
would not execute the 5am job first unless it was closer to 5am than it
was to 4pm when you ran the jobs. If it was 12am when the job started,
the 5am pause would be the starting point and the 4pm pause would take
effect at 4pm the next day. If it was 3pm when the job was started,
the 4pm pause would take effect first. The job starting time closest
to "now" is always executed first with v2.0.
If you use multiple pauses in your jobs, please make any necessary
adjustments to the starting times you've defined in your jobs.
■ Icom now allows you to define a list of directories to search (main
setup, File Tagger Settings), and it keeps track of all filenames in
those directories (new downloads). Any files that were previously
downloaded, whether they are deleted at a later point or not, are
automatically filtered out when importing new files; so you'll never be
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 14
bothered by the same file once you've downloaded it. You can shut this
feature off in the Main Setup (details below), or can define a new list
of directories to scan, or can delete \ICOM\DOWNLOAD.NDX at some point
in the future to start afresh. DOWNLOAD.NDX is where the filenames of
downloads are stored. Note that this is not reliant on automated
downloads: when DOWNLOAD.NDX is updated (after any automated download)
ALL files that exist in the defined directories are added. So you can
easily add all the files that exist on your system today, and can also
include files you download manually.
■ Added support for POSTFILE.SCR and POSTFILE.BAT. These files (if found
... the .BAT must go in the same directory as ICOM.EXE, and the script
must go in your regular Script Directory; \ICOM\SCR by default) are
executed after any automated job that contained a "Download tagged
files" task; once PER successfully downloaded file. POSTFILE.SCR is
included, and it's pre-programmed to uncompress new archives into a
temporary directory, run the McAfee "SCAN" virus checker on the archive
files, and also to obtain the proper file description from FILE_ID.DIZ
or DESC.SDI, if either exists in the archive. For details, simply run
a job that downloads one or more Tagged files. Once Intellicomm is
offline, it will tell you all about the new POSTFILE.SCR.
■ Added support for PREJOB.SCR, PREMAIL.SCR, PREDOWN.SCR, POSTJOB.SCR,
POSTMAIL.SCR and POSTDOWN.SCR (script versions of the .BAT files Icom
supports during automated runs). The .BAT versions are still supported
(actually both are supported: you can have POSTMAIL.BAT *and*
POSTMAIL.SCR if you like), but Intellicomm scripts are preferred since
they can now do much more than batch files, and also provide access to
all Intellicomm settings (directories, screen displays that use the
same colors as Intellicomm does, etc.), and things such as the current
day of the week, date/time, etc.
1.8 New File Tagger Features
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
■ The Tagger has been improved dramatically with an 'auto-browse' mode
which lets you scan new files without even pressing a key, plus full
mouse support with a scroll bar, plus hilight bar 'locking' (by
pressing [Scroll Lock]) and auto-locking at mid-screen (configurable)
to keep the hilight bar in the middle of the file list while the files
scroll under the bar, plus a configurable 'split screen' mode that
displays key information about each file (along with the full file
comment) in the bottom window -- all while in BROWSE mode. You no
longer have to use "Edit" mode to see full file comments and other
stats. Get all the details, including a graphical display of the file
SIZE for quick viewing, while browsing or auto-browsing.
■ Tagger "keywords" have been expanded to allow a virtually unlimited
number of keywords to be defined (Exclude file keywords, Auto-Tag, etc;
previously only 5 of each were permitted). The "Auto-Tag" keywords are
now called "Note Keywords", and they simply put a little double arrow
beside files on the list to point them out to you (or group all Noted
files together at the top if you use the Tag Status/Location sort
order). Also a very useful new set of keywords called "Replace
Keywords" has been added which allows you to strip and/or replace words
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 15
in file comments with words you prefer (i.e. change all occurrences of
"WIN3" to "Windows 3", change offensive words to something less
offensive, strip unnecessary/annoying words, and whatever else
imagination permits). The new Replace keywords (and all other types)
are documented extensively in the online help. Please do not use the
new Replace Keywords before reading the tips in the online help, or you
might mess up your Tagger file listings beyond recognition. The
keywords are defined in the Intellicomm Setup, on the "Tagger Keywords"
screen. SELECT this setup screen, then press [F1] (Help) for tips and
examples.
■ Another new option 'Auto Tag Remaining Files?' has been added to the
main setup 'Tagger Keywords' screen. If Auto Tag Remaining Files is
set to YES, Tagger automatically tags all newly imported files. A
'newly imported file' is a file that (a) doesn't exist in DOWNLOAD.NDX
(previously downloaded files); (b) doesn't exist in the catalog
already; (c) wasn't excluded by the Exclude File Keywords; (d) wasn't
"noted" by the Note File Keywords. I.e. all files that would normally
be UNTAGGED are instead automatically TAGGED for download if Auto Tag
Remaining Files is turned on. Great for Sysops: turn this option on,
and Icom will collect all new files that you haven't downloaded
previously, and that don't exist on your 'Exclude' or 'Note' keyword
lists.
■ You can now set "Stubborn" tags via Tagger Edit mode (hilight the file
in browse mode and pick "Edit"). Stubborn tags remain tagged until the
file is successfully downloaded. I.e. if the BBS reports "File not
found" Icom keeps it tagged and tries again next time, until the file
is successfully downloaded or manually untagged. You could also set a
"Transfer Day" (again in Tagger Edit mode) with the Stubborn Tag if you
desire, so that Icom would only try for the file on Fridays, etc. This
will be handy when you see something interesting being discussed, and
you have the filename... but you don't know if the file exists on the
BBS you call yet. Just "Add" the filename to your catalog manually,
set a Stubborn Tag, and Icom will repeatedly attempt to download the
file until it shows up at your BBS and is successfully downloaded.
■ File Transfer Priorities (shown in Tagger Edit mode as either "U/L
Priority" or "D/L Priority" depending on the catalog you're viewing)
allow you to tell Icom how to transfer files, by entering an optional
priority number from 1-200 (1 being top priority), either in Edit mode
or by selecting "Priority" from the browse mode bottom menu. Setting
priorities is the equivalent of editing a v1.00 SND/GET list and moving
files around to have Icom transfer them in the order you prefer.
The default priority for every file in your catalogs is 100 (this is
done when your catalogs are converted to v2.0 format, and on
imports)... which puts every Tagged file 'equal' right in the middle of
the priority scheme. So if you saw one or two files you wanted to
transfer immediately, all you'd have to do is set the priorities on
those files BELOW the 100 default (priority 10, priority 20, etc). If
you saw one or two huge files you DIDN'T want to download until later,
all you'd have to do is set priorities ABOVE 100 (110, 120, etc) to
sort them after the default of 100. Files can also have the same
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 16
priority, so you needn't use priority 10, 20, etc., unless you want
complete control over every file that Icom transfers. If you like,
just set the files you want FIRST to priority 1, the files you don't
really care about (if any) to priority 200 and you're done. Again, you
don't have to set priorities for any files if you don't want to... If
you don't, Icom will just download them sorted by filename.
NOTE: The best way to set priorities is to switch to the Tag
Status/Location sort order (sorted forward), after you've gone through
a catalog and have Tagged everything you want. Viewing the catalog
with this sort order shows all the Tagged files grouped together,
exactly as Icom will download them, taking the transfer priorities into
account.
■ The "Column 2" menu item in the File Tagger has been moved to the
Tagger's Tools menu to make room for the new "Priority" item discussed
above. Further, "Tagger Column 2" has been removed from the main setup
program. Tagger now saves the Column 2 status right in the catalog
header, when the catalog is closed. Thus, you can now set different
Column 2's for each catalog. Note that the very first time you access
your Catalogs with v2.0, you may have to select "Tools/Contents of
Column 2" in the Tagger to set it the way you prefer, since this value
is no longer read from or saved to ICOM.INI.
■ The ability to MANUALLY "Note" files for future reference (as opposed
to having to tag them for download) has also been added to the Tagger.
The v1.00 Auto-Tag keywords are now called "Note" file keywords and
they automatically note files for you, and you may also manually note
interesting files instead of tagging them. Noted files are not
filtered out by the "View Date", nor are they purged by the auto-purge
routines by default. But you can change either default in the main
setup, and can have noted files filtered, and can have noted files
purged automatically after X number of days (or not at all) by using
the new settings in the main setup on the File Tagger Settings screen
(again see the online help when there for full details).
■ Smart Noted File Sorting: If a file is noted automatically by Icom due
to a match on the new "Note Keywords" list on imports, priority 1 is
set for the 1st keyword on the list, 2 for the second, etc (the same as
the transfer priorities mentioned above). So, for example, if
"Windows" was the first keyword on your Noted Keywords list, all the
files containing the word Windows in the file description would be
sorted to the top of the catalog (if you use the Tag Status/Location
sort order), with all the Windows files GROUPED TOGETHER... Files
containing the next word on the Noted keyword list will be grouped
together next, and so forth. Keep this in mind when you set up your
Noted Keywords list, moving the most interesting keywords to towards
the TOP of the list.
■ "Find/Save Bookmark" has been added to the Tagger Tools menu. You can
use it to save and restore a given position in the catalog WITHOUT
leaving the catalog. Tagger v1 had bookmarks, but it only saved it
when you exited the catalog, and restored it when you viewed the
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 17
catalog next. With Find/Save bookmark, you can save your position, go
somewhere else to do something, then restore your original position.
■ Tagger Tools/"Export to Text File" now allows you to export All files
in a catalog, only Tagged files, only Noted files, both Tagged and
Noted, or just the Untagged files. [This applies to the new script
CEXPORT command as well; see SCRIPT.DOC for details.]
■ File descriptions imported into the Tagger are now stripped of graphics
characters (by default; configurable in the main setup) and control
characters (CR/LF), and redundant spaces, so that all descriptions are
'equal' and formatted properly when displayed in the Tagger. File
descriptions which use graphics characters (frequently to put the
description in a 'box') are almost always formatted for a specific BBS
type, within specific margins. If you upload the file to another BBS
the using the same description but different margins, the description
can be (and often was) mangled. Thus graphic characters are simply
stripped by default, removing the boxes. Further, when duplicate files
are found on imports, the Tagger compares the existing description
length (the description stored in your catalog) to the description of
the duplicate on the file list, and will automatically replace the old
description if the new one is longer! Of course, all the graphics
characters/control characters have been stripped and the keywords have
done their work by the time duplicate descriptions are compared (Strip
Comment, the new Replace keywords, etc) so we're always comparing
apples to apples when comparing description lengths.
■ The Tagger sort order/direction is no longer saved in the Tagger main
setup, but is instead saved in each catalog similar to the View Date
and Bookmark (i.e. you can now sort different catalogs in different
ways). The FIRST time you access your catalogs in the v2.0 File
Tagger, you may have to adjust the sort order to your preferred method.
Once set, each catalog saves its own sort order and direction
separately, when you exit Tagger or Load a new catalog for viewing.
■ When tagging files for upload in the FILELIST catalog, you can now
specify WHICH BBS's to upload to. Previously if a file was tagged, it
was uploaded to every BBS with any job that had an "Upload files" task
defined. With v2 you can safely add the "Upload tagged files" task to
ALL your jobs, without uploading every tagged file to every BBS. When
you tag a file in the FILELIST catalog, the BBS Directory is displayed,
and you can Tag/Select the BBS's you want to upload a particular file
to. After the tags are set, you'll see an "Upload Pending" (after the
last description line, in the bottom window) followed by a list of BIF
ID's separated by semicolons; and these are the only BBS's the file
will be uploaded to. Each particular BIF ID is removed from the
"Upload Pending" string if/when the file is auto-uploaded and the tag
is only removed from the file after ALL BIF ID's are gone from the
Upload Pending string (i.e. you needn't upload the file to multiple
BBS's all at the same time, unless that's how you want it). As with
v1.00, the "Upload tagged files" job task (previously Upload files on
XXXX.SND) must be defined in the job, or the file isn't uploaded
whether it's tagged and has an Upload Pending or not.
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 18
If you can't see the "Uploaded Pending" string due to a long file
description, simply "Tag" the file again, and the BBS Directory will be
displayed with tags next to all the BBS's where uploads are pending
(press [Esc] to just leave them as is, or change them as you wish).
■ The FILELIST catalog also now keeps track of each BBS (BIF ID) you've
uploaded a given file to. If you've already uploaded a file to a given
BBS, and you Tag the same file for upload again at the same BBS, Tagger
warns you and allows you to cancel your Tag (or continue with the Tag
if you want to upload the same file again for some reason). Once
you've uploaded a given file to one or more BBS's, you'll see "Uploaded
To" followed by a list of BIFID's after the last file description line,
in the bottom window of the browser (or editor if in edit mode). You
can modify either the "Upload Pending" or "Uploaded To" strings
manually if you like, by "Edit"ing the record and adding/removing
BIFID's. You can also feel free to delete the "Upload Pending" or
"Uploaded To" text as long as you delete all the BIFID's following
them. Note that the Tagger does not actually store the text "Upload
Pending" and "Uploaded To" in your catalogs, since it would waste
space. It uses a special character to separate these strings from the
regular file descriptions, and then just expands the special characters
to the text "Upload Pending" and "Uploaded To" when displaying the
record to you.
■ Added the ability to manually purge ALL *untagged* files from a given
catalog (Noted files are always purged according to the main setup
"Purge Noted # Days Old" item; if set to 0, Noted files are never
purged). Previously records had to be at least 1 day old before you
could purge them -- even manually; now, when you select Tools/Purge
from the Tagger, you can enter "0" (0 days old) and kill all the
untagged files. This new feature may be useful to those who make
MULTIPLE new files list runs per day: you can read one list, purge all
the records you've read as explained above (they're simply marked as
Deleted; but they stay in the catalog to eliminate duplicates on the
next import), then import another list. When you browse the catalog
after the import, only the files NOT marked as Deleted are new. NOTE:
You may want to adjust the main setup "Auto Pack when # Purged" item on
the File Tagger Settings screen up to 1000 records or so (maybe even
5000), to avoid an auto-pack after each import. In fact, you may want
to set Auto Pack when # Purged to 0 (zero; don't auto-pack at all) and
simply perform your packs manually, when it suits you.
■ When you delete a file (browse mode "Del" option) the File Tagger now
checks on-disk for the file: first in the directories listed on your
'Upload PATH' then the Download Directory (\ICOM\GET), then in all the
directories on your DOS PATH (if "Use PATH to Locate files" is turned
on, on the main setup General Settings screen). If the file is found
you are asked whether to delete the file on-disk as well.
1.9 Intellicomm Main Setup Changes
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
■ The main setup program (now part of ICOM.EXE; do not use v1's SETUP.EXE
with v2!) now uses a "main menu" of its own, which contains a list of
all the major setup screens. To access a given screen (Terminal
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 19
Settings, for example) just hilight it and press [Enter], or press the
bold 'hotkey', or move the mouse cursor to the item and left click.
One of the settings screens will then be displayed (operating in much
the same way as v1 did, though with a free-moving mouse cursor) where
you can make changes. When done, press [Esc] or click the right mouse
button to return to the main setup menu.
■ Saving your main setup: Instead of always saving the 'current' main
setup file (usually ICOM.INI), the v2 setup allows you to enter a new
filename to save the settings to. Here, you can press [Enter] to just
re-save under the original filename, or you can enter a NEW filename to
create a new main setup file. This means that you no longer have to
exit ICOM.EXE to create a new main setup file.
■ Further, "Load a New Setup File" has been added to the main setup menu,
allowing you to switch from one main setup file to another, again
without exiting ICOM.EXE.
■ As well, two new main setup screens have been added: Debugging Log
Settings, and Host Mode Settings. For detailed information on these
new settings, access the new screen and press [F1] for help. You don't
want to miss out on the new Debugging Log, it's a very useful feature!
1.9.1 New Settings
▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
■ "TAB / Shift-TAB moves the" (General Settings screen) allows you to
configure what the TAB and Shift-TAB keys do in the Job Directory, BBS
Directory, Script Manager, File Manager. Icom v1 used TAB and Shift-
TAB to move the TOP hilight bar, in the main window, and [Left] /
[Right] arrow keys to move the BOTTOM hilight bar, on the action menu
along the bottom. V2 defaults to the opposite, at the request of quite
a few people. To put things back the way v1 worked, just change this
setting.
■ "Put Overlays in XMS/EMS" (General Settings) lets you tell Intellicomm
where it has permission to put its overlays. See the online help from
the General Settings screen for more details.
■ The "Enable Swapping" item (General Settings) can now be set to "When
not connected" (Icom only swaps out if not connected), "Connected or
not" (always swap out), or "No" (never swap out). If connected, and if
set to "Connected or not", Icom's interrupt handler for the COM port
will remain installed and working WHILE you are shelled out. I.e. any
characters received from the BBS, up to the size of the "Receive
buffer" (main setup/Terminal screen) are stored in the buffer and will
be displayed on the Terminal screen when you return from the shell. If
the buffer gets close to full, even while you're shelled out, "flow
control" is activated to stop the modem and BBS from sending further
text (lest the Receive Buffer would overflow and you'd lose
characters). Note that this is only low-level communications
(characters are simply taken from the port and stored in the Receive
buffer... nothing else) and it does not mean you can do background file
transfers while shelled out to another program. If you want to do
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 20
background file transfers, a copy of DESQview, Windows 3.1 or OS/2 will
give background program execution abilities to your entire system.
■ "Release Time Slices?" main setup option on the General Settings screen
allows you to control whether Intellicomm releases idle time back to
DESQview, OS/2 or Windows while online (Icom always releases time
slices while idle, if offline). Releasing time slices means that when
no COM port input/output, keystrokes, or mouse clicks are pending, Icom
will release the remainder of its time slice back to the operating
system, allowing smoother performance of other 'open' applications.
Basically it means that Icom won't hog your system as most DOS
applications do... when it doesn't HAVE to hog the system to process
hundreds of events such as COM port interrupts. However, if you
experience missing characters in the terminal while online, and/or
excessive file transfer errors, you might want to shut this option off.
Scripts can also control the Release Time Slices setting by accessing
the main setup tag '*rslice'. On/off, as with all flag-type variables
is signified by zero (off) or non-zero (on). Example:
assign *rslice 0 ;do not release time slices online
assign *rslice 1 ;release time slices online
■ "Drop RTS on Disk I/O" main setup option on the General Settings screen
controls whether Intellicomm lowers the Request To Send (RTS) line on
the COM port, when disk activity takes place. Lowering RTS prevents
modems that support CTS/RTS flow control from sending characters to the
port, and this is necessary during disk activity or characters can be
lost. However, if you run into any 'unusual' problems with
Intellicomm, such as lockups, try setting this option to NO to see if
it solves the problem.
■ You can now have the status bar display either the port speed or the
modem-to-modem (CONNECT) speed via the new "Status Bar Displays" option
on the Terminal Settings screen.
■ "Confirm Hangup" (which defaults to ON) on the "Terminal Settings"
screen allows you to bail out of an inadvertent [Alt-H] (Hangup). If
Confirm Hangup is on, and you press [Alt-H], you are asked to confirm
the hangup.
■ "Cancel D/L No Time/Bytes" (File Transfer Settings) lets you tell
Intellicomm to stop entering more filenames during automated downloads,
as soon as it finds a "No Time", or "No Bytes" (insufficient time
and/or download bytes to obtain a file) from the BBS. Most people will
want this item turned OFF, since it's quite possible that smaller files
WILL be accepted further along, even if one file did get the No
Time/Bytes message. But if you're not particularly fussy about
downloading to the max., and you want Icom to just give up the first
time it sees a No Time/No Bytes message from the BBS, access the Icom
main setup / File Transfer Settings screen and change and turn this
item on. It defaults to Off.
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 21
■ "Blank Screen # Seconds" (Screen/Color Settings) allows you to
configure Icom v2's new program-wide screen blanker. If set to 0, the
screen blanker is disabled. If set to any other number, the screen
blanker is activated in that number of seconds, if no keys are pressed.
■ "Status Window Delay" (Screen/Color Settings) while not a NEW item,
many v1 users didn't know this item existed. It allows you to
configure how long various status/error messages are displayed on-
screen. This delay value tells Intellicomm how long it takes you to
read a 40 character status/error message. When a message is displayed,
Icom adjusts the display time up or down (depending on the length of
the message) according to this setting. Quite useful if you found
yourself missing various status/error messages with v1.
■ "File Viewer" (Filenames and Paths screen) again isn't new, but it's
automatically cleared during v2 installation to let v1 users know that
Icom now has its own internal File Viewer. If you still want to use an
external viewer, you'll have to plug the proper command back in here
again.
■ File Tagger's main setup screen has been moved into the regular
Intellicomm main setup, on the new "File Tagger Settings" and "Tagger
Keywords" screens. Be sure to give these screens (and the online help,
when on the screen) a look. You'll find the following new settings on
the File Tagger Settings screen:
■ "File Transfer Speed [CPS]" is used to estimate Transfer Times by the
new split-screen reports when in Tagger browse mode, and also on the
new "Tagged File Stats" report available from the Tagger Tools menu.
If you define a CPS (Characters Per Second) here, this CPS rate is used
to calculate transfer times, instead of the "real" average CPS that
Icom v2 now keeps track of from file transfer to file transfer. If you
know the Average CPS you get when transferring files, just plug the
value in here for more accurate Transfer Time estimates when in the
Tagger.
■ "Tagger Screen Size" allows EGA/VGA users to define an extended line
video mode (42/50 lines) for the File Tagger (particularly to increase
the next item listed below), while using the regular 25 line mode in
the terminal and other areas of Intellicomm.
■ "Description lines shown" determines how many (if any) extended
description lines are displayed in the new browse mode split screen
report. If you set this item to 0, Tagger will look exactly as it did
in v1.00 (no stats displayed as you hilight each file).
■ "Export D/L's to TEXT FILE" and "BIF Format for Export" allow you to
have Intellicomm export all newly downloaded file records (name, size,
date, description) to a text file, in a specific BIF format. This is
mainly for Sysops who use Icom for automated file collection, to update
the BBS file listing.
■ "Auto Hilight Bar Lock", "View Date Filters Noted", "Use DOWNLOAD.NDX",
"File .EXTensions in DNDX", "DOWNLOAD.NDX Directories", "Filter
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 22
Graphics Chars", "Purge Noted # Days Old", are all new settings on the
File Tagger Settings screen as well. Rather than duplicating the
documentation here, please see the online help while on the File Tagger
Settings screen for full details.
2. REVERSING ICOM V2 TO ICOM V1
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There are several changes in v2.0 that can be reversed to the way v1.00
did things (in the main setup) if you prefer the v1.00 method:
■ The Main Menu: Icom v2.0 uses a new main menu, instead of starting at
the Job Directory. If you prefer to start at the Job Directory (or
Terminal, or BBS Directory, or Script Manager), select the "Intellicomm
Setup" option on the Main Menu, change to the "General Settings"
screen, then change the "Base and Startup Area" to the area you prefer.
■ TAB/Shift-TAB was used in v1.00 to move the top hilight bar in the Job
Directory, BBS Directory, File Manager, etc. Many people asked that
[Left], [Right] be used to move the top hilight bar so a Main Setup
option was added which allows you to choose the method you prefer. It
defaults to using [Left], [Right] to move the top hilight bar, but if
you want it back the way v1.00 worked enter the Main Setup, select the
"General" settings and set "TAB / Shift-TAB moves" item to "Top
Hilight".
■ File Tagger now scans a list of directories and keeps track of all
files you download, and doesn't add these files to the NEWFILES catalog
(or user-defined catalog, if set up in the BIF). If you wish to turn
this feature off, access the main setup, switch to the "File Tagger"
screen, then set "Use DOWNLOAD.NDX" to NO. There are also many other
new features in the Tagger that you can turn off via the Icom main
setup / File Tagger options. I.e. you can turn off the Split Screen
mode by setting the # of Description Lines displayed to 0 (which
displays files in browse mode the same as Icom v1.00 did), you can turn
off the auto-hilight bar locking, and so forth. Just take a peek at
the Icom main setup / Tagger options, and see the online help for
details.
■ File Tagger also displays a 'split screen' report, showing the full
description of each file (using up a few more screen lines than the
Tagger v1 browse mode did). To shut this split display off access the
Icom main setup / Tagger Settings screen and set "Description Lines
Shown" to 0 (zero). Browse mode with then look exactly as the Tagger
v1 browse mode did.
■ The Tagger hilight bar now automatically 'locks' itself at mid-screen,
scrolling files under the hilight bar as you move around. To shut this
off access the Icom main setup / File Tagger Settings screen and set
the item "Auto Hilight Bar Lock" to OFF.
3. SND / GET LISTS
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As mentioned earlier, Icom v2.0 no longer requires .SND / .GET lists to
transfer files as it now uses the Tagger catalogs directly. .SND / .GET
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 23
lists ARE STILL SUPPORTED, but the way in which they're used is reversed,
and this made several improvements possible. Icom now IMPORTS .SND /
.GET lists (if it finds any) into the proper Tagger catalog(s), and
automatically tags all the files. If you previously didn't use the
Tagger and are worried about having to keep large File Tagger catalogs
on-hand, worry not. The Tagger always moves the filenames/descriptions
of files it downloads into the "Upload" catalog (called FILELIST) and
deletes the entries in the download catalog, after each successful
download. If you don't want a list of files kept handy for uploads,
again see the Main Setup / File Tagger Settings and turn "Keep an Upload
Catalog" off. This way the downloaded files will simply be deleted from
the download catalog and won't be put anywhere else.
You can also control packing of the download catalog (removal of deleted
records) by setting the "Auto Pack when # Purged" item. If you set this
to 1, then the catalog will be packed (i.e. deleted entries are removed
from the catalog) regularly, and all files added from the .GET list (that
were successfully downloaded) will be removed. There will be very little
difference in the disk space used by .GET lists vs. the File Tagger
catalogs if you go this route.
You can either create the SND/GET lists yourself manually (they use the
same format as regular BBS listings, so you can cut/paste lines directly
from a BBS list onto a .SND or .GET list to have Icom transfer the files)
or can use another program such as BBSee which uses SND / GET lists to
interface with Icom to tell it what to transfer. However, previously the
SND / GET lists did NOT go through the duplicate checking routines that
the Tagger used, since previously they were not imported into your
catalogs. Now that they are imported, they go through the regular
duplicate checking routines and also the DOWNLOAD.NDX check (keeps track
of all files you've downloaded previously) if you have that option turned
on. Further they also go through "Strip Comment", "Replace" keyword
checks to clean up descriptions, and descriptions are now also
reformatted and stripped of high ASCII characters (all of the above is
configurable... if you don't want one or more of the above, shut the
feature off in the Main Setup).
A further advantage is that you can now also use the regular BBS file
list format on *SND* (upload) lists. SND lists had a fixed format with
Icom v1.00 (a tab had to precede each description line) and you thus
couldn't use clips of a regular BBS listings, or copies of GET lists, to
have Icom upload files. Icom still supports the old v1.00 format for SND
lists, but v2.0 now supports either the old format OR the same format
used by the BBS file lists. This one should prove popular with Sysops
who upload files to other BBS's regularly, since you can now just copy
portions directly from your BBS file listings right onto SND lists to
have Icom upload the files.
When importing .SND lists Icom ignores the DOWNLOAD.NDX check, since you
wouldn't be uploading a file you didn't already have. If a file on a SND
list already exists in your FILELIST catalog, Icom compares the length of
the file descriptions and keeps the longest one (if that option is turned
on in the main setup... File Tagger Settings again), then tags the file
adding an "Upload Pending: BIFID" where BIFID is the FILENAME used by the
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 24
.SND list. Uploads do not work the same way as downloads in that the
Tagger does not automatically delete entries from the FILELIST (Upload)
catalog. So the catalog will grow over time and you could periodically
DELETE \ICOM\DBF\FILELIS*.* (use POSTJOB.BAT to do it automatically if
you like) to clean it out if you don't want to keep the
filenames/descriptions handy for uploads to other BBS's.
When importing .GET lists, all files go through the regular duplicate
checking / download priority routines. If the file already exists in
your NEWFILES catalog (or custom catalog, if defined in the BIF) Icom
checks the download priority defined in each BIF and updates the record
with the BIF/Location with the highest priority. Comment lengths are
also checked (if that option is turned on) and Icom keeps the longest
comment, then tags the file.
When importing either .SND or .GET lists, the "Note Keywords" and
"Exclude Keywords" are also ignored. It is assumed that if you put a
file on a SND/GET list that you're sure you want to transfer it, so Icom
doesn't override you with the above keyword checks, which could cause the
file to be either Noted (instead of being tagged) or excluded entirely.
The "Strip Comment" and "Replace Keywords" ARE checked though (if you
define any), to clean up the file descriptions.
4. VERSION 1.00 NEW FEATURES/UPGRADE TIPS
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This section contains only the changes from v0.95 to v1.00. For previous
new feature information, please see NEW&FIXD.DOC included in ICOM095B.ZIP
and ICOM094B.ZIP if upgrading from v0.92/.93
■ Support has been added for Opus, Maximus, and RemoteAccess BBS's, along
with support for a couple of related Mail/Bank types for these BBS's!
■ New command line parameter /scr: allows you to run Intellicomm scripts
directly from DOS. Example: ICOM /scr:TEST would start Intellicomm,
switch to Terminal mode (initialize your modem) then run TEST.SCR. No
automatic exit to DOS is done after running the script (as happens when
using the /Run: switch), so you can run multiple scripts one after the
other if necessary (ICOM /scr:SCRIPT1 /scr:SCRIPT2 ...). [V2.0 NOTE:
This switch now also allows command line parameters to be passed to
scripts, and an automatic exit to DOS *is* done, if Icom is offline
when the script(s) end. See SCRTUTOR.DOC for details.]
■ HSMAIL.BAT is no longer required (HSLINK.BAT now works for all HS/Link
transfers). It is recommended that you remove the HS/Link-MAIL entry
from your external protocol definitions, and set your BIFs to use
HS/Link (regular HSLINK.BAT). To remove HS/Link-MAIL enter the
Intellicomm Setup, and change to the "External Protocols" screen. Then
move the hilight to the HS/Link-MAIL item press Enter to edit it, press
Ctrl-End to clear out the description then just press Enter to pass
over the other items. With no description available the protocol will
be cleared and the one beneath it (if any) will move up a slot. eXit
then make sure you save the changes to disk. Support for HSMAIL.BAT
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 25
may be removed in the future, so you should at least update your BIFs
to use HS/Link (see HSLINK.BAT) instead of HS/Link-MAIL.
■ This was a v0.95 new feature, but it's important so I'm mentioning it
again here. Intellicomm now switches to the proper DOS directory
before starting a file transfer (your Up/Download directory, or the
proper Message/Reply directory). If your .BAT files, used to interface
to external protocols (DSZ-?.BAT, HSLINK.BAT, etc.) contain any CHDIR
(or CD) commands, you should REMOVE them and instead just have the
protocol place files in the current directory. Further, if using
HS/Link you should NOT define a "download directory" in the HS/Link
configuration program, or your MAIL PACKETS will end up in your regular
download directory. If you must specify a directory in the protocol
command, use a period which means "current directory" to DOS.
■ The screen is no longer cleared when shelling out to perform external
file transfers. This allows for a more integrated look for protocols
that use nice screens/windows... (such as HS/Link. Also be aware that
you can define the SCREEN COLORS in the HS/Link configuration program
to use the same colors Intellicomm uses). But with DSZ's screens,
which basically assume they have access to the whole screen, it doesn't
look very nice, so a CLS (clear screen) command was added to the DSZ-
?.BAT files. To clear the screen before starting another external
protocol, just place a CLS in the .BAT.
■ Intellicomm now gives up its Desqview "time slice" if nothing is
happening (no keystrokes, nothing from the comm. port, etc). This
should make your foreground applications run more smoothly while Icom
is running in the background. [Version 2 Note: This feature has been
expanded to include Windows, OS/2, the DOS Shell program, and any other
program that uses the standard DPMI (DOS Protected Mode Interface)
"release slice" call.]
■ An "Import from Text File" option has been added to the File Tagger's
"Tools" menu. For use when you obtain a BBS file listing from another
source, which you want imported into a catalog.
■ An "Add" option has been added to the File Tagger's main menu, to
manually add new filenames to your catalogs when necessary.
4.1 Version 0.95 Bugs Fixed In 1.00/2.0
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■ Internal Zmodem had a fairly major bug in it, in that transfers would
never automatically abort due to errors. There is a counter in Zmodem
that causes a transfer to abort after ten consecutive errors... but the
counter was not working properly. Now fixed.
■ Swapping was turned off in previous releases before shelling to
external protocols... and that's still the case in v1.00. But Icom now
sets swapping BACK to the default value after the protocol returns.
Previous releases left swapping turned off.
■ When auto-HS/Link downloads were added to v0.95, it became possible for
an automated mail download to actually take place TWICE. The first
Intellicomm v2.01 UPGRADE.DOC 26
time due to the HS/Link auto-download header from the BBS, and the
second (where HS/Link would just sit and timeout) when the "Receive
Messages" prompt was encountered, as defined in the BIF. Now auto-
HS/Link downloads are disabled during auto mail runs, and only the
Receive Messages prompt is used.
■ PCRelay transfers were not working properly. Intellicomm could either
timeout before the transfer started, or if that didn't happen and the
transfer did go off without a hitch, Icom would call back and try again
since PCRelay just hangs up after the download (Icom thought the
connection had been lost). Both problems are now fixed. Intellicomm
will still think the connection has been lost, but since the "Get Mail"
task is now removed from the queue after a successful download
(previously it was done elsewhere), Intellicomm will have nothing left
to do on the BBS -- will realize this, and won't call back.
■ If there were no "Exclude Dialing" strings defined in the main setup,
on the Dialing screen, Intellicomm would improperly use the Busy/Retry
strings as EXCLUDE strings. This caused a BBS to be removed from the
queue rather quickly, when BUSY signals were encountered. Now fixed...
and you may safely remove your exclude strings if you don't want to use
that feature.
