If you have the communication toolbox installed and a connection tool is available, you will be able to "Use Comm Toolbox" and then to choose and configure a connection tool with "Configure Tool". If MacTCP is installed, you will also be able to "Use MacTCP". This will respectively switch to the communication toolbox or the MacTCP driver respectively. The connection is configured either with the "Connection…" or the "TCP/IP Address…" menu items.
The "Preferences…" dialog box allows you to set your name and password (used by macros), as well as the font and text size of the main window, the maximum amount of text and commands to buffer and the creator type for log files.
In the "Comunication…" dialog you can define how carriage returns and linefeeds are handled, as well as the filters to use. The default values work well for direct TCP/IP connections. When using the communication toolbox it will usually be necessary to uncheck the "Local Echo" check box and to send only CRs at the end of a line.
The "Macros…" menu items allow you to configure the file transfer options and to edit macros respectively. More informations on these features follow in the next sections.
"Send File" sends the contents of any text file, as if it had been typed by the user.
The Input Area can be resized by placing the mouse on the separator line between the input and output area holding the mouse button and moving up or down.
Macros
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Macros are a simple, but powerful feature, which allows simple tasks, like logging into or out to be automated. In addition to the login and logout macros, which are invoked automatically when opening and closing the connection, further macros can be assigned to any combination of the shift, option and control keys together with a typing key. As an example for the use of this feature, the keys of a numeric keypad can be programmed to generate movement commands, allowing you to move around with the keypad.
Macros can be activated whenever the connection is open and do not disturb text that is being edited in the input field. They consist of one of more lines of text, with one command per line. Empty lines are skipped and lines beginning with a "#" character are treated as comments. All commands are executed sequentially, until the macro terminates or the user presses Command-"." to stop its execution.
Each command line consists of a command name, possibly followed with some parameters. The command names are not case sensitive. A very limited form of variable substitution is available: The strings "$n" and "$p" are replaced by your name and password repectively (taken from the "Preferences…" dialog box). In order to generate a "$" character, you must either use the combination "$$", or "\$".
Special characters can be generated in combination with the backslash character ("\"). "\b" generates a backspace, "\t" a tab character, "\n" a newline (its exact value depends on the "Communication…" settings), and "\f" a form feed. Arbitrary character codes can be generated with a backslash followed with one to three octal digits (e.g. \3 for Ctl-C).
The following macro commands are implemented:
SEND <text to send>
This command sends the rest of the line. It does not automatically send a carriage return at the end of the text, however, so this has to be included in the text (e.g. "SEND quit\n"). Please note also that leading spaces are discarded. In order to include leading spaces, they have to be escaped with a backslash character (e.g. "SEND \ <- space\n"). Trailing spaces are not discarded, however.
ECHO <text to echo>
This command is very similar to send, except that the text is not sent, but only echoed in the main window. This command also works while in QUIET mode (see below) and can be used e.g. for progress reports.
WAIT <number of seconds to wait>
The execution of the macro pauses for the number of seconds specified.
MATCH <text to match>
This command causes the program to wait until the specified text has been received. This has to be an exact match. Wilcards are not supported. The same considerations as for the SEND command apply with respect to the text to be matchedd.
QUIET [ON|OFF]
QUIET, or QUIET ON stops all output from being displayed in the main window, except the output of ECHO commands, which is always displayed. The program returns to normal operation after a QUIET OFF command, or at the end of the macro. This command can be useful during login to discard unnecessary messages and to hide login names and passwords.
PASSWD [<password request>]
This command prompts the user for a password and then sends it, followed by a newline. This makes it possible to automate most of the login process, while still asking the user for passwords instead of storing them in the document. Using the PASSWD command (instead of typing the password in the input field) also has the advantage that the password is not echoed and that it is not stored in the command history.
Misc. Features
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If you want to open a document without also opening the connection (e.g. if a Address has moved), press the option key while selecting the document or while double-clicking it in the Finder.
If you press the option key while opening the application (not a document), the program will ask for a document to open instead of creating a new untitled one.
In dialog boxes, key equivalents are available for most buttons.
The PageUp, PageDown, Home and End keys can be used to scroll the main window.
Carriage returns can be inserted in the input field with Option-Return. Similarly, Option-UpArrow and Option-DownArrow move around the input field instead of switching to a different entry in the command history.
The execution of macros and the update process can be interrupted with Command-".".
Macros can also be assigned to typing keys. This allows you for example to assign a macro to the combination Ctl-C that actually sends this character code to the host .
Troubleshooting
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The program asks for the comm toolbox or MacTCP:
The communication toolbox is included in System 7.0 or later, but the communication tools, which do the actual work, are not. If you are using the CTB, you will have to install a tool for the communication mechanism you will be using. A set of basic tools (e.g. serial or modem connections) is available from Apple. More tools are also available from the main archive servers.
The connection is not opened at startup:
Save the document after having successfully opened a connection. The connection is not opened automatically for new documents, as the program assumes that they are not yet correctly configured.
The specified host can not be found:
Beware of spaces in the host name field. This field is sent as is to the name resolver.
The window does not remember its location:
The location of the main window and of the separator is saved only explicitly, together with the other document information.
The program beeps when I try to execute a macro or enter a command:
Macros can only be executed and commands can only be sent when the connection is open.
