Just Call Me Internet

home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search

/ Just Call Me Internet / Just Call Me Internet.iso / com / othernet / compuser / qwkcis / quickcis.doc < prev next >

Wrap

Text File | 1992-08-10 | 51.3 KB | 1,122 lines

* - QuickCIS - the Atari ST navigator for users of CompuServe * * QUICKCIS.PRG is ½1989/90/91/92 by Jim Ness 27W450 Ridgeview St. West Chicago, Il. 60185 USA * A. What it is B. Setting up your configuration C. Making a call D. Writing messages E. Reading messages F. Using your QuickCIS Library G. Downloading files H. Checking your charges I. Using Desk Accessories J. History K. Acknowledgements L. Appendix A. What it is QuickCIS is a program for Atari ST/STe/TT computers of all types. QuickCIS controls an online CompuServe session, from dialing the call, through CompuServe's maze of services, to the eventual end of the call. QuickCIS has two main purposes. First, it allows a user to avoid having to learn all the ins and outs of navigating through CompuServe (CIS). Second, it allows a user to minimize the amount of time spent online. In general, the result is that a CIS user can spend much more time engrossed in useful "conversation," discussing a wide range of topics that are of interest, and in acquiring a useful library of public domain, freeware and shareware software. The beauty of it is that only a very small increment of time is spent online, being billed by CIS. A great deal of effort has gone into making QuickCIS as generic as possible. In other words, any user with a CIS account should be able to quickly set up a QuickCIS configuration and get online. While online, QuickCIS itself sets the online CIS configuration required for a successful call. The user is not required to set up CIS properly. The online configuration set by QuickCIS is not permanent. That means that the user can later make a call with a normal terminal program, and not have problems. QuickCIS is available under my own version of shareware/careware. That is, while I won't cry myself to sleep if I never receive a dime, I will also be very happy to accept a payment. It is obvious that QuickCIS will make anybody's online time much more efficient. Some people are more grateful than others, for this improvement. If you are feeling generous, send a check. $20 seems a fair figure. If your finances are in a shambles, don't worry about it. I am not a commercial enterprise, and don't depend on programming to earn a living. QuickCIS is designed to maintain compatibility with current and future versions of the ST/STe/TT computer. It runs in medium, high and extended resolutions. QuickCIS checks the screen capabilities of the computer upon loading, so that it can support whatever monitor is being used. Also, QuickCIS supports bps rates of 1200, 2400, 9600 and 19200. The support of 19200 is for modems which allow data compression. Data compression is not currently supported by CIS, but should be in the not-too-distant future. QuickCIS supports CIS sysops with special message base and library features. These features are only active in forums in which QuickCIS notices that you are greeted as a sysop. A seperate document is available on request, which explains how to use these capabilities. NOTE: QuickCIS' main screen is a typical GEM screen with drop down menus. Any QuickCIS option can be initiated by choosing the sub-menu and clicking on the option. Also, QuickCIS can use the keyboard as a shortcut. If you are already familiar with each option, you can initiate it from the main screen by typing its first character (i.e., type N for Normal Call, or R for Read Messages). B. Setting up your configuration NOTE: QuickCIS is capable of recognizing and using a subdirectory for its commonly used support files. If you wish to keep your QuickCIS support files in a seperate directory from QuickCIS itself, create a subdirectory (folder) named SUPPORT in the same directory as QuickCIS. ALL files except QuickCIS itself should then be placed in the folder. Use of the SUPPORT folder is entirely optional. From QuickCIS' main screen, choose Configure, and click on View Config. Or, from the main screen, simply type V to choose this option. Either method will cause a GEM dialog box to be displayed, listing your QuickCIS options. Across the upper portion of the dialog box are six columns of options. The choices in each column are checkmarked by clicking on one of them. The Bps Rate option allows you to choose the Bps rate that you prefer. The most cost effective rate is 9600 bps, but CIS has only a limited number of 9600 bps nodes, and chances are they are not near you. 2400 bps would be your next best choice. Obviously, your modem dictates the highest bps rate available to you. CompuServe Mail can be handled in three different ways by QuickCIS. CompuServe Mail is CIS's private user-to-user mail network. It also provides pathways to MCI Mail, U.S. Mail, FAX, Telex, TWX, and USENET. You can choose to have QuickCIS read and store all your incoming mail, or read/store/delete it from CIS, or skip CIS Mail entirely. Your CIS Mail mailbox has limited storage. Keep that in mind, if you choose not to have QuickCIS delete mail after reading it. NOTE: QuickCIS assumes that you have already "initialized" your CIS Mail mailbox. A user with a brand-new account will be recognized as such by CIS and treated a little differently. QuickCIS can be confused by the different text and questions which appear, so you should introduce yourself to CIS Mail. To do this, log into the service with QuickCIS by choosing Call CIS and Manual Call. This will log you in and leave you at CIS' main menu. From here, type GO MAIL, which will bring you to CIS Mail. At the CIS Mail menu, type ADD NAME. This command will allow you to enter the name you wish to use as your "From:" address within CIS Mail. Some people choose to use their real names, some use handles. Until you do this, CIS Mail will always ask you what name to sign your mail with, and this question confuses QuickCIS. NOTE: CIS Mail can be used to transfer programs from user to user. This "binary" data cannot be simply read by QuickCIS, so it is instead downloaded as a complete file. For this to work, you MUST have either Shadow or XYZ.TTP onhand as a downloader. More info about these programs exists later in the document. Each CIS forum will occasionally display a News Flash announcement to each user when a forum is entered. This announcement is usually short and of importance to that forum's users. The News Flash option can be set to either store or ignore this bulletin when it appears. CIS can be reached through a number of long-distance private carriers. CIS has its own network, but in many cases the CIS network may not have a nearby phone number for a user. Other carriers which can connect to CIS include Tymnet, Telenet and Datapac. Each of them has specific methods of tying into the CIS system. If you reach CIS through its own network, choose the Default option for the Login Via: column. Any other login path must be handled by a simple QuickCIS script interpreter. This routine reads a file named LOGIN.SCR, and follows the commands there, in logging into CIS. See the appendix, later in this doc, for more info. A text file named LOGIN.TXT is also included with QuickCIS, and contains sample scripts for Telenet, Tymnet, and Datapac. QuickCIS allows the use of either a built-in simple editor or the use of EdHak, an external editor, for writing CIS messages. If you choose to buy and use EdHak, you must run EdHak as a Desk Accessory, and you must rename it to EDHAK.ACC. Otherwise, QuickCIS will not find it, and will stick you into its default editor. QuickCIS does not have the built-in routines necessary to download files from CIS. Optional external programs can be used through QuickCIS to perform this task. You must choose one of the programs, if you wish to download files from CIS. Shadow is a commercial program produced by Double Click Software. Shadow is a Desk Accessory terminal program, and has a number of capabilities that make it useful even without QuickCIS. With QuickCIS, Shadow is set up to use the fast CIS B+ download method. XYZ.TTP is a Shareware program written by Alan Hamilton. It is designed to be used by other programs, like QuickCIS, which need its special capabilities. XYZ.TTP is available online in the ATARIPRO libraries. With QuickCIS, XYZ can be chosen for either ymodem, or (v2.02 and later) ymodem-g. Ymodem-g is ymodem without error checking. This is only recommended for use with modems which to their own checking (MNP or LAPM). Ymodem-g is currently the fastest available protocol, for any modem connection. QuickCIS can also support other downloader modules, which may have features you prefer to those above. To set up QuickCIS for these other modules, choose Other in the downloader selection, and read about User Options in the appendix here. QuickCIS also allows you a choice of editors. Actually, the choice is relatively simple. Use Craig Harvey's EdHak editor (v2.24 or above) as your primary choice. This editor is a Desk Accessory, and is very very handy to have around, with or without QuickCIS. There is a demo version of EdHak onhand in the ATARIPRO forum, which can be used with QuickCIS, but will not save files outside of QuickCIS. This will allow you to decide if you wish to buy the full program. I recommend that you do. Your fallback choice is the default editor, which is a very simple line editor, and for most people is a bit too primitive. It works, and you can use QuickCIS with it, but EdHak is the better choice. Below the six columns of initial View Config options, QuickCIS displays a number of text fields which the user must fill in. To bring the vertical cursor to a particular field, click on it with the mouse, or use the up and down arrows on your keyboard. To erase what is currently in the field, hit the ESC or Backspace key. Modem Init should be filled with a string of characters which the user typically uses to initialize the modem. Some modems do not need to be initialized. Try "ATZ" or "AT" if you are unsure of what to put here. QuickCIS will send this string when it is first loaded. It does not resend the string for each call. Dial should be filled with the characters used to make your modem dial up CIS. As an example, most modems could use a string like "ATDT5551212" to make a call. Consult your modem manual for other optional features your modem can handle. The Color button provides a simple way to invert the black and white colors on your monitor. Your current choice is saved with your configuration, so that you do not have to go back and reset it each time you use QuickCIS. The Speed button allows you to choose how fast QuickCIS will send text to either your modem or CIS. Under some conditions, a modem is sensitive to receiving commands at top speed. Also, CIS will occasionally have trouble receiving your messages at full speed. Choosing Medium speed for both is recommended, although you should experiment to see if another speed works better for you. It is possible to choose speeds even slower than those available above. See User Options, in the appendix here, for details. CIS User ID should be filled with your CompuServe account number. This is used in automatically logging QuickCIS onto the service. Password is a special field, in that it tries to never display your CIS password to the world peeking over your shoulder. Under normal circumstances, this field is filled with the phrase "Not Displayed." To enter your password, bring the vertical cursor to the field and hit the ESC key to clear the field. Then type in your password. When you leave the dialog box, the field is again filled with Not Displayed, and your password is held internally by QuickCIS. The D/L Path button allows you to point out where you want downloaded files to be stored. A standard file selector box is displayed, and you just move it to the directory you choose. Click on the file selector Okay box when finished. Obviously, this option is meaningless if you do not have one of the required downloader modules. The Forum-Lib-Read fields are for designating which forums you wish to visit, and what you wish to do there. The actual CIS forum name should be entered in the Forum field (examples: ATARIPRO, ATARIART, ATARIVEN for the ST, and APORTFOL for the Portfolio). You don't necessarily need to use all eight characters in each case. You may leave any of these fields blank, if you don't have six forums you wish to visit. QuickCIS will always ignore blank forum entries. In the Lib fields, enter a list of forum libraries you would like the program to visit. Leaving this field blank results in no libraries being visited. QuickCIS will ask each chosen library to list the newest uploaded programs, which you can then choose to download if you want. In some forums, a single library may hold all recently uploaded files. In others, files will always be located in specific libraries, regardless of age. Current CIS software allows library numbers to be selected in any of a number of logical ways. For instance, 1-3,5,7,11-14 would be one acceptable list. Another might be simply 1,2,3,4,5. For all libraries, simply use the word ALL. Whatever you enter here will be sent to CIS verbatim, when a library scan is requested. Should you include a library number not available to you, that number will simply be ignored by CIS. Note: contrary to previous versions of QuickCIS, you should not seperate library numbers with a space. Always use a comma, or where logical, a hyphen. When you read through the scanned list of file descriptions, QuickCIS will take note of which specific library a file is located in. Choosing to download that file will cause a record to be created which includes the forum, library number and filename involved. On your next call, the file will be downloaded. Next to the word Lib, in your View Config dialog, is a small field labeled Age, which allows you to choose how far back CIS is to go in displaying new files. If this field is left blank, QuickCIS calculates how many days since your last visit to this forum, and uses that number for its age specification. If QuickCIS calculates an age of zero (meaning you were already in this forum today), it will not request library descriptions on this call. When you call the next day, or later, resulting in an age greater than zero, you will get accumulated new file descriptions. The Read Command field is used to tell the forum how you want to read forum messages. Leaving this field blank means you do not want messages from this forum. On CIS, read commands can be abbreviated to 3-character "tokens." Thus, READ becomes REA, WAITING becomes WAI, SUBJECT becomes SUB. There are dozens of variations in Read Commands. The most common method is to read all new messages, in order by subject ("thread"). In that case, the Read Command would be simply "REA". If you wish to read only messages sent to yourself, the command is "REA WAI." You can select just certain forum sections ("REA SEC:1,3,5-8") or choose a subject matter ("REA SUB:Atari"), and it is allowable to group a number of commands together in the field by separating them with a semi-colon (as in "REA WAI;REA SEC:3,9"). If you are new to CIS, or have not logged on in awhile, you may want to specify an age for messages, to avoid having QuickCIS give you all new messages - for the last month. Use something like "REA DAYS:2" to accomplish this, specifying the number of days back you wish to go. To get a more detailed explanation of how to read specific message groups, leave a message to the SYSOP of a particular forum, or order a CompuServe Users Guide online. Near the bottom of the View Config dialog are four fields which hold CIS's current per-hour online rates. Fill these fields in with current rates, so that the Time and $$ main menu choice can display your current accumulated minutes and charges. To exit the View Config dialog, click on the Okay button. Be sure to use the Save Config main menu choice, to save your configuration to disk. C. Making a call At the main screen, move the mouse pointer to "Call CIS." You will notice that QuickCIS offers four different methods of calling CIS. A Normal Call is one which does everything you have set QuickCIS up to do, then logs off and disconnects. A Quick Call is designed to be used after you have already done a Normal Call, and may be thought of as your Second Pass through the system. You have read messages and written replies, have read Library file descriptions, and possibly tagged a file to be downloaded, and now you are ready to post the replies and download the file. You do not wish to capture any additional text at this time. This is simply a call-back to complete your business. Only those forums and libraries with which you have pending "business" are visited. The call is usually much faster than a Normal Call. A Delayed Call is a Normal Call which you have scheduled to occur at a later time. Clicking on this choice will display a dialog box asking you for a target time. The current time is also displayed. You must enter a time, in 24 hour format, at which you want a QuickCIS call to occur. This routine does not check for erroneous times. You must be careful to enter a time that is attainable. A Delayed Call is useful if you want to take advantage of lower off-peak phone rates. While waiting for the current time and desired time to match, the dialog box remains onscreen. You may wish to turn off your monitor, to prevent this image from being burned into the screen. Also, there are various "screen-saver" programs available which will automatically blank the screen after a specific period. A Manual Call is a call in which QuickCIS logs you in, then leaves you alone to run around manually. If you wish to eventually put QuickCIS into automatic mode, hit ALT-q (hold Alternate key while typing "q") for a Quick Call, or ALT-n for a Normal Call. During any call, your ST keyboard is "live." You are able to help (or hinder) by typing keyboard responses, if something unexpected occurs - for instance, a CIS error of some type. If there is ever a case when you are not watching the screen and an error occurs, rest assured that your bank account is not in danger. QuickCIS will automatically log off after any pause of more than 90 seconds. This pause would occur whenever CIS presents a prompt that QuickCIS is not waiting for. Both ends of the call will go numb, until the 90 second timer elapses. During a call, your ESC key is your Escape Hatch. Hitting the ESC key will cause QuickCIS to log off of CIS and return you to the Main Menu. The message "Disconnecting.." is displayed while QuickCIS logs off. An alert box appears, warning you that the preceeding call was aborted. This is useful if QuickCIS itself did the aborting, while you were away from the keyboard. NOTE: The above feature, under certain circumstances, will utilize the DTR line in your RS232 cable, to force a disconnect. Most modern modems have an option which disables a DTR disconnect. So, you must make sure your modem WILL respond to DTR. The Hayes command for this is &D2. If you are not sure, go ahead and add it to your Init String (ex: AT&D2). If your modem is set wrong, QuickCIS will believe it has successfully disconnected, when actually, the modem ignored the command and is still connected to CIS. NOTE: QuickCIS includes a feature which automatically sets your system's internal clock, if that clock is off by a full day or more. Any file system, whether floppy or hard drive, benefits by having the files properly date and time stamped. QuickCIS gets the correct time from CIS upon login, and compares it to your current system time. The system clock is updated if necessary. D. Writing messages QuickCIS has a built-in text editor for you to use in composing messages you wish to post on CompuServe. You also have the option of using an external editor, EdHak (v2.24 or above). There are four different ways to access either editor. When reading messages that QuickCIS has gotten from CIS, you are given the option of Replying to the source message. Also, when reading file descriptions in the forum libraries, you are given the option of commenting to the uploader. Third, you can reply to CompuServe Mail. And fourth, you can initiate your own topics, in CompuServe Mail or in the forums. The main screen option Write Messages allows you to initiate a new message. A dialog box is displayed, which allows you to provide the To: information, the Subject:, and the forum section you wish to post the message to (not required, for CIS Mail messages). QuickCIS has the ability to create an "address-book" consisting of names and ID numbers of CompuServe members. This book is created and added to when you are reading messages. An option labelled ser is used to add the user info contained in the From: line of the message you are reading. This info can be recalled into the To: line of the Write Messages dialog box, so that at any later time, you can initiate a new message to the user whose name you have saved. To recall a saved name, you must type a portion of that name, using upper and lower case characters where needed, into the To: line of the Write Messages dialog box. Then click on the Users button, and QuickCIS will search the address book for a match. If a match is found, the name will be displayed, and you will be asked if this is the user you were intending to use. If you answer yes, that name and ID are inserted into the To: field. A similar feature is used to select the forum section you wish to have the message posted to. If the forum you are planning to post to has a description of itself listed in the file SECTION.LST, QuickCIS will display that description for you. From the description, you can choose which section you want, and that section number will be inserted into the SEC: field. The SECTION.LST file is user-editable and has the Atari forums already included. Information on other forums must be added by the user. In the upper portion of the Write Messages dialog are listed all of your chosen forums, as well as Mail. Click on one of these to choose the destination for your message. When you are satisfied with the information in the Write Messages dialog, click on Okay, and you will be placed into the QuickCIS editor. The QuickCIS default editor is a very basic line editor, which allows you to type in short messages to be posted on CIS. Many of the special keys on your ST keyboard are assigned specific functions. These can be reviewed by hitting your Help key. One important feature is the ability to attach a line of text to both the F1 and F2 keys. These are for commonly used words or phrases that you use in a message. The most often-used line is your name, for signing your messages. To insert a line of text into F1 or F2 hit that key while holding the Shift key. Once the text is inserted, hit either F1 or F2 to print it on the screen, and include it in your message. The text you have inserted can be saved permanently using the Save Config main menu option. Aside from the special function keys, the editor simply allows you to type. When you reach the right margin, QuickCIS automatically wraps to the next line for you, breaking the current line at the nearest space between two words. This will not work, though, if you already have text typed in the following line. To correct text, use the up and down arrows to move to the end of any line, and backspace over the existing text. You may also use the Delete key to remove an entire line of text, and position the cursor at the far left of the line. After you are finished typing a message, hit the Undo key to leave the editor. You will be shown a dialog box which includes options for posting your message. If you have chosen EdHak as your editor, be sure to read its instructions, and become familiar with its various key combinations. For use with QuickCIS, I recommend using Alt-X to exit the editor. It is a little quicker than using the mouse, and has a companion key sequence which you will find explained later. Just as with the default editor, Alt-X brings you to the Post Message dialog box. If the message is intended for a forum, you have the options of posting the message with the UNF command (unformatted - the message is stored on CIS exactly as you have typed it), and/or with the PRI command (private message). The PRI command is not enabled in all forums. When QuickCIS is told by CIS that it cannot post a PRI message in a forum, it will default to the forum MAI command, which mails the message to the user's CIS Mail mailbox. This capability maintains your privacy. If your message is intended for CIS Mail, the UNF and PRI commands are ignored. Your other options for posting are to simply post the message as it stands (Post), or hold the message while you go back to what you were previously doing (Exit), or delete the message without saving it (Quit). The Exit option is useful should you wish to re-read a message you are replying to. Optionally, you can force the Exit option from the default editor with the F4 key, or from EdHak with the Shift-Alt-X key combo. This acts as a toggle, allowing you to move back and forth between your reply and the source message you were reading. When storing your message to the ST disk drive, QuickCIS includes all necessary CIS commands to make sure the message gets properly posted. Should you have a need to re-edit a message you have already stored, be careful not to change the embedded CIS commands. E. Reading messages After QuickCIS has made a call to CompuServe, there will be a number of text files on your disk drive. These contain the messages and file descriptions you asked QuickCIS to store for you. Choosing the Read Messages option on the main screen will cause the Read dialog box to be shown. This dialog box contains eight main choices, as well as an Exit button. Initially, the top choice will have a thicker box around it, indicating it is the "default" choice - you can choose it by pressing your Return key. As each section of messages is read, the default choice will rotate down the list, allowing you to choose each selection in order with your Return key, instead of clicking on it with the mouse. Note: See User Options, in the appendix here, to read about a Read Messages option which is available to you if desired. Alongside each choice will be the number of messages currently on file to be read. When you choose the Read Messages option, your disk drive is searched to obtain these numbers. When you choose the top choice, MAIL, you will be able to read any CIS Mail which was captured on your last call. If no mail exists, you will be returned to this dialog box, with the next button as the default. If you do have CIS Mail, the message will be displayed for you. Only the first "screenful" of lines is displayed. If there are more lines to be read, pressing any key will allow the next batch of lines to scroll up. At the end of the message, a number of options are displayed for you in a menu bar. To choose one of the options press the key corresponding to the first letter of the option, or click on the option with the mouse. The <A>gain option will redisplay the message from the top. Choosing revious will redisplay the previous message, if there is one. <N>ext (or any non-listed key) will show you the next message, if one exists. <Q>uit is used to exit the CIS Mail message area. Using the <Q>uit key activates the QuickCIS "Bookmark" feature, which stores the current message location, for later retrieval. This allows you to come back later, and immediately go to the last spot you read. Should you prefer NOT to place this bookmark, you can exit using Shift-Q. You may also "quick scan" through messages, by using the up and down arrow keys. When used, these keys cause QuickCIS to display only the first couple of message lines. If you choose not to read the rest of the message, press the down arrow key again, to progress onward. If you do want to read, press any other key. The left mouse button can also be used to progress through the messages. The entire message body will be displayed using this method. It emulates the <N>ext key, as described above. Following this methodology, the right mouse button can be used to see the previous message, emulating the revious key. The ser option can be chosen if you wish to add the sender's name and ID to your QuickCIS address book. Before it is added, an alert box asks you to confirm your choice. <O>utput is used to make a copy of the current message, and you will be prompted to direct the message either to your printer, or to a disk drive. <R>eply will move you to the QuickCIS editor, so that you can compose reply to this message. The reply is sent privately to the CIS Mail mailbox of the person who sent you the message. Once you have reached the end of your CIS Mail messages, you are automatically returned to the Read Messages dialog box. You will notice that the new default choice is the next button which is not labelled "None" (None indicates a forum slot which you have not chosen to use). Hitting your Return key will chose the default button, or you can use the mouse to choose any button you wish. When reading text from the forums, the first text that QuickCIS looks for is any forum News Flash. If that text does not exist, regular forum messages are displayed. As with CompuServe mail, forum messages are displayed in screen sized blocks, and at the end a menu bar is displayed. The forum menu bar options match the CIS Mail options. After all forum messages are displayed, descriptions from the forum libraries are displayed. Each description is displayed individually, in a similar manner to messages. In this case, the menu bar options are slightly different. The <A>gain, revious, <N>ext, <Q>uit (and Shift-Q), and <O>utput options operate identically to those in the messages. Additionally, there are two other options. The <D>ownload option adds that particular file name to your list of files to be downloaded on the next call. You must have one of the four download methods (in the View Config dialog) chosen, for a download to occur. The downloaded file will be stored in the spot you indicated in the D/L Path item in View Config. If no D/L Path has been chosed, the file is downloaded to the directory in which QuickCIS is located. The <C>omment option allows you to send a forum message to the uploader of the file. This is useful in case you have questions about the file. You can get your answers before you actually download the file. Also, many of the files found in the Atari LIBs are very useful - and free. The <C>omment option allows you to send a thank-you note to someone who has given you a valuable piece of software. Unless the uploader left his/her name in the file description, you may not know who you are sending the message to. QuickCIS sends it to an ID number, using the filename as the subject of the message. You supply the text. After the descriptions from each library are displayed, QuickCIS returns you to the Read Messages dialog, where you can choose what to read next. The LIBRARY button in the Read Messages dialog gives you access to QuickCIS libraries of messages that you have previously chosen to save with the <O>utput option, or with the Append to Lib Main Menu option. Choosing this option causes a standard file selector to be displayed, so that you can choose which file to look at. Once your file is chosen, QuickCIS displays another box, in which you can insert a "search string." This string is a group of characters you wish QuickCIS to search for, within a library file. You are then able to quickly locate a particular message, or messages. The entire message is searched, including the message number and the To, From and Subject fields. Each message that matches the requirements will be displayed, and all normal message options, except <R>eply, will be active. Note that QuickCIS allows you, in most cases, to name your own LIBRARY files. Due to a peculiarity in the read routines, any library you create for CompuServe Mail MUST have a file that has MAIL as the first part of the filename. Any suffix is acceptable. F. Using your QuickCIS Library There are two ways to create and add to a library of QuickCIS messages. At the main screen, the Append to Lib option allows you to append an entire file or files of messages to their respective libraries. If you choose the ALL option, all of your chosen forums and CIS Mail messages will be store to library files with the extender LIB at the end of the filename. It is recommended that you use the LIB extender yourself, in order to keep your files in order. From within the Read Messages section, the <O>utput option will append that message to any file of your choice. This allows you to build your own library, containing only messages you find of value. Be careful not to mix file description <O>utputs in with message <O>utputs and/or CIS Mail <O>utputs. As described in the Read Messages topic above, the LIBRARY button gives you access to your created library files. Also, each of the files used by QuickCIS is a simple text file, which could be loaded into nearly any text processor, if that is desired. G. Downloading files As noted previously, QuickCIS can work with any of a number of different external programs to download files from CompuServe. Which program you choose is up to you. Just be sure to indicate which via the View Config dialog box. There are two methods by which you can indicate a file to be downloaded. Either tag a file using the <D>ownload option in the Read section, or use the Main Menu option Files List to manually type in a name. The Files List option will display the current list of files to be downloaded. From this routine, you can choose to <A>dd or <D>elete files, or <Q>uit, returning you to the main menu. If you choose to add a file, you will need to supply the forum and library in which QuickCIS can download that file. The list you have created is saved to a text file called FILES.LST, for later retrieval. When QuickCIS is finished downloading all files, FILES.LST is deleted, to prevent a file from being downloaded twice. Files that are downloaded are saved to the disk drive and folder that you have indicated in the View Config dialog (D/L Path). The Shadow downloader is a special type of program. Its downloads are handled in the "background." That means that your ST can be doing other things while Shadow is handling the download. In QuickCIS, this means that you will be allowed to access the QuickCIS Main Menu, for reading/writing messages, or accessing your QuickCIS Library. Once the download begins, QuickCIS displays a message indicating that if you want to see the main menu, just click the mouse button or press a key. When the main screen is displayed, you will notice that the Call options are disabled. You are already in the middle of a call, so they are unnecessary. But, you can read messages, write messages, or have full access to your Desk Accessories while the download is in progress. To return to the download in progress, choose Exit. When Shadow is finished, it will ring the ST bell, warning you that QuickCIS has to get back to work. In order for the call to proceed, you will need to return QuickCIS to the download routine, by clicking on Exit, on the Main Menu. QuickCIS will then save the downloaded file and the call will proceed to the next item. NOTE: QuickCIS will automatically download any binary files that appear in CIS Mail. Typically, these are program files being sent to you by another user. QuickCIS will have no idea what the true filename should be for this file. A simple naming solution is used. All binary files downloaded from CIS Mail will be named using the method MAILn.BIN, where n is a sequential number. H. Checking your charges QuickCIS keeps a running total of online minutes. The online time is retrieved from the sign-off that CompuServe displays just before disconnecting. If you should for some reason lose your connection prematurely, the minutes used in that particular call will not be saved. The number of minutes is seperately saved for each bps rate, so that if you occasionally call at a different bps rate, the proper cost per minute can be used to calculate your total costs. Choosing the main screen Time and $$ option displays a dialog box in which your time and charges at each rate are indicated. QuickCIS uses the previously saved minutes totals, and the CIS rates that are shown in your View Config dialog. At the top of the dialog, the date at which you began to accumulate minutes is shown. There are two buttons at the bottom of the dialog. You can choose to Exit to the Main Menu, or Reset your minutes counters to zero. You must confirm the Reset choice, before it happens. I. Using Desk Accessories QuickCIS allows the use of any GEM Desk Accessories, but the Desk ACCs are not allowed to be on display while QuickCIS is in action. Thus, when you choose any QuickCIS option, you will see your Desk ACC windows close. After QuickCIS is finished, it will reopen any windows it previously closed. J. History QuickCIS was begun as a personal project in early 1989, to improve on the features offered by the only other ST navigator available. At the start, it was not much better than its predecessor, but users who tested the program were quick to offer advice - and their personal wish list. K. Acknowledgements Although the bulk of the work in writing QuickCIS was obviously my own, there are a number of people who made the job much easier for me. QuickCIS has never had any official "beta testers." The users of the Atari ST forums have always helped me to test each version and point out the problems (of which there have been many). My personal ST hardware does not cover the entire spectrum, and users have been invaluable in testing QuickCIS on various hardware setups. That makes QuickCIS very much a group effort. The QuickCIS interface with Shadow required some assembly language programming, which I was not prepared to do. The folks at Antic, after some prodding by a user and myself, were willing to provide a copy of the program for testing. But it turned out that I needed help to complete the interface. Robert Birmingham, a regular in the Atari forums, volunteered to rewrite some assembly language source code and compile it for me to include in QuickCIS. It worked. Thanks, Robert. The sysops in the Atari forums have been invaluable. They obviously have a vested interest in improving the accessability of their forums, but have gone well beyond what I expected to see in the way of assistance. They have a thankless job, and get little credit for it. Craig Harvey has been invaluable, in providing an interface to his excellent EdHak editor. Any of you who have used both the default and EdHak editors, with QuickCIS, know how much better it all seems with EdHak. The program is well worth the price Craig charges. There are a number of expert programmers who visit the Atari forums regularly, either to support their own products, or just to chat. I have found all of them to be supportive in passing along "inside" information on squeezing performance out of the ST. QuickCIS is a much better piece of software due to the help of these individuals. Special thanks go for early help from Charles Johnson and Doug Wheeler. As I said, it has been a group effort. Thanks, to all of you. - Jim Ness 75300,3155 L. Appendix *** QuickCIS files: * QUICKCIS.PRG - The QuickCIS program itself. A copyrighted file. * QUICKCIS.DOC - This doc file. * VERSION.DOC - Information about the changes included in the latest QuickCIS version. * QUICKCIS.CNF - This file contains your current user configuration info. QuickCIS cannot operate without this file and the info it contains. * FILES.LST - QuickCIS uses this file to store a list of the files you have asked to be downloaded. The file is created and deleted on a dynamic basis. Each entry in this file consists of a single text line. Each line consists of two numbers followed by a CIS filename. The first number is the position (1-6) of the desired CIS forum, as it appears in your View Config dialog box. The second number represents which CIS forum library the file is located in. * TIME.DAT - This file is used to store your current accumulated online minutes, as well as the date your minutes were last reset to zero. QuickCIS will create this file if it is not found. The file consists of a single line of text. That line consists of four numbers, representing online minutes for each of the four bps rates, and a text date indicating when the numbers were last reset. * <forum>.MSG - Files with the forum name in front, and .MSG in back contain the forum messages QuickCIS downloaded during the last call. Each time you call and retrieve messages, the new file overwrites the old file. CIS Mail messages are also stored in this manner. * <forum>.NWS - Contains a News Flash message from the indicated forum. * <forum>.LBS - These files contain the file descriptions retrieved from CompuServe. * <forum>.M1 - Contain individual messages which are ready to be posted in the indicated forum (or CIS Mail). The trailing number is sequentially assigned, from 1-99. * LOGIN.SCR - Used for logging in via methods other than a direct CIS connection. * SECTION.LST - This optional file contains descriptions of each of the forums you attend, laid out in a specific format. They are read from within the Write Messages dialog, by clicking on the "?" button. The sample file included with QuickCIS contains the Atari forums info, and indicates how to set up your other forums. * FORUMS.LST - A list prepared by CompuServe, listing each of its current forums. *** Using login scripts: QuickCIS uses a very simple script interpreter to follow a login script. If you have chosen the LOGIN.SCR option for Login Via in the View Config dialog, you must use a text processor to build your own custom login script. Sample scripts are included in the LOGIN.TXT file with this package. For each line of the script, the first digit must be a number from 0 to 3, the second digit must be a space, and the remaining characters are the related specifics of the command. If the first digit is 0, the rest of the line is a text string to be sent to CompuServe by QuickCIS. If the first digit is 1, the rest of the line is a text string to be received by QuickCIS from CompuServe. QuickCIS will wait to see this string. Any number of characters from 1 to 50 can be watched for. QuickCIS will not proceed until it sees this group of characters. After the standard 90 second maximum pause, QuickCIS will disconnect. If the first digit is 2, the rest of the line contains a delay time, in seconds. This timer should not be counted on to be extremely accurate. QuickCIS will pause this many seconds before proceeding to the next line of the script. If the first digit is 3, the rest of the line contains an ASCII value, for a single character which QuickCIS must send. This command is useful for sending control codes, or a Return character. Last, the script line "7 2" is recommended to be the last line of any script you create. Examples: 0 Jim Ness <-- send the string "Jim Ness" to CIS 1 User ID: <-- wait for "User ID:" to appear 2 3 <-- pause 3 seconds 3 13 <-- send ASCII 13 - a Return character 7 2 <-- end of script See the LOGIN.TXT file for specific examples pertaining to Telenet, Tymnet and Datapac. *** Info on the makeup of the QUICKCIS.CNF file, by line: 01) Code indicating which of the options is checkmarked in each of the six option categories in View Config. 02) Modem Init string 03) Modem Dial string 04) CompuServe acct. number 05) CompuServe password 06) reserved 07) forum name, #1 08) forum libs, #1 09) forum read command, #1 10) forum name, #2 11) forum libs, #2 12) forum read command, #2 13) forum name, #3 14) forum libs, #3 15) forum read command, #3 16) forum name, #4 17) forum libs, #4 18) forum read command, #4 19) forum name, #5 20) forum libs, #5 21) forum read command, #5 22) forum name, #6 23) forum libs, #6 24) forum read command, #6 25) 2 delay values for text and modem output (range 0-5) 26) D/L Path 27) Color flag (0=inverse, 1=norm) 28) Lib Age 29) Alt d/l, filename (details available) 30) Alt d/l, protocol, CIS-style 31) Alt d/l, command line 32) Alt msg reader filename (details available) 33) unused 34) default editor text macro, F1 35) default editor text macro, F2 36) unused 37) CIS charges, cents/hour, 300bps 38) CIS charges, cents/hour, 1200bps 39) CIS charges, cents/hour, 2400bps 40) CIS charges, cents/hour, 9600bps *** User Options: By request, a number of optional capabilities have been added over the years. They involve editing the config file, rather than simply changing something in your View Config dialog. a) Optional downloaders, such as YMG125.TTP, can be utilized by changing three lines in the config file: Line 29 - The filename of the downloader Line 30 - CIS protocol tag (ie, YMO or B) Line 31 - The parameters to be passed to the file b) Optional output speeds, beyond those utilized by the SPEED button in View Config. Line 25 of the file contains two numbers, seperated by a space. Increasing these values slows down text output, and modem output, respectively. c) Optional message readers, such as QCMSG.PRG, can be utilized by placing the filename (followed by any parameters) into line 32 of the file. Also, you must change the 7th parameter of line 1 to the number 2. Programming info: QuickCIS was written using Personal Pascal v2.05, from ICD. A small portion of the program is linked object code produced by the DRI assembler. QuickCIS expands the internal RS232 receive buffer of the ST to 8k bytes, to accomodate 9600bps. The info arrives so fast, and shutting it off takes long enough, that the default buffer would overflow. A 56000 byte internal buffer is used to store incoming text. This seems to be a reasonable comprimise, allowing all STs to participate, while limiting disk accesses. QuickCIS uses both pixel-related and text-related VDI calls to find out what type of monitor is being used. This allows the program to utilize dialog boxes and text properly. Moniterm is supported, as well as the ST, STE and TT resolutions. Rather than use standard Pascal I/O calls, QuickCIS uses GEMDOS and BIOS calls, through the bindings provided with Personal Pascal. This provides the fastest possible I/O. The current Pascal source code for QuickCIS is over 4000 lines long, with a file length of about 170k bytes. The initial object code file is also about 185k bytes, with the linked and optimized .PRG file being about 125k bytes.