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1992-03-08
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L Y N C
Operations Manual
Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 by Jason R. Alward
All Rights Reserved
For product support, contact:
Jason R. Alward
1607 Claymor Ave.
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada K2C1T4
(613)224-3539
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
-----------------
1. INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Licensing and Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2. GETTING STARTED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Starting Lync . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Configuring Lync . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3. USING LYNC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Using the Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
The Input Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
The Help Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
The Status Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Command Line Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Lync's Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Shell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Dial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Capture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Hangup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Download & Upload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Echo & Linefeeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Initialize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Doorway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Host . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Advanced Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Colour Customization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Filenames & Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Host Mode Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
File Transfer Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Clear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Break . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4. FILE TRANSFERS & PROTOCOLS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
What is a File Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Supported Protocols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Ascii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Xmodem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
1k-Xmodem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Ymodem (batch) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Zmodem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Special Zmodem Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Zmodem Crash Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Zmodem Auto-Start . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Zmodem 32 bit CRC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
External Protocols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
REGISTERING LYNC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 2
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1
OVERVIEW
Have you ever wished you could find a communications program that
wasn't a 150-300k program requiring a hard disk to run efficiently?
One small enough to run in a DOS shell from a large application,
without being totally stripped of essential features?
Lync was written to fill this need. Occupying less than 55k of
disk space and requiring less than 95k of free memory, Lync will
operate on all but the most restricted of systems. And the menu
driven interface means you don't have a long learning curve before
you can use it. Read the list of features below and you'll see,
all the essentials are there.
FEATURES
~ Menu driven interface makes it very easy to use.
~ Alt-key shortcuts to all functions for quicker access.
~ Integrated support for ANSI display control.
~ Arrow keys, HOME, END, and DELETE keys send ANSI codes
compatible with most BBS's full screen editors.
~ Doorway mode sends special keycodes so online programs can
utilize entire keyboard.
~ Macro strings can be assigned to the function keys.
~ Macros support "^" control code notation and variable length
pauses for often used command sequences.
~ Handles speeds from 300 to 38400 baud & supports COM1 - COM4.
~ Dialing directory holds 45 entries and supports auto redial,
tagging, auto dial of tagged entries, and auto untagging of
entries connected to.
~ Variable dial time and pause between dial attempts.
~ Capture session to file supported with ANSI code stripping.
~ Can issue a DOS command or drop to a DOS shell.
~ Supports up to seven transfer protocols which can be external
or any of the five built in protocols: Ascii, Xmodem,
1k-Xmodem, Ymodem (batch), and Zmodem.
~ Zmodem resume crashed transfers option.
~ Auto-start Zmodem downloads can be assigned to an external
protocol, or turned off.
~ User customizable display colours.
~ Integrated Host mode with optional password protection. Remote
user can upload, download, page you for chat, and leave a
short message.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 3
LICENSING AND DISTRIBUTION
Lync is not, nor has it ever been, free software. It is copyright
and is distributed as SHAREWARE. You are granted a limited license
to use Lync for an evaluation period, not to exceed 30 days. Use
of Lync beyond the evaluation period requires registration.
Upon registering Lync, you will receive a disk containing the
latest registered and shareware versions and you will be entitled
to product support. See the chapter on Registering Lync at the end
of this manual for complete details on how to register your copy of
Lync.
You may give copies of Lync to others for their evaluation so long
as no fee is charged for the copy. Lync may also be posted on
electronic bulletin board systems (BBS's) as long as no fee is
charged to access Lync beyond subscription or online time fees
normally charged for access to the BBS.
Those copying, sharing, and/or electronically transmitting Lync may
not delete, add, or in any way modify any of the files in the Lync
package. Lync must be distributed in it's entirety, complete with
documentation. Anyone not adhering to these conditions is in
direct violation of copyright law.
Distributors of shareware and/or public domain software must obtain
written authorization before distributing copies of Lync. No one
may use Lync in a promotion for any commercial venture or as an
enticement for the user to pay for any program, product, or service
without having received the express written permission of the
program's author.
In order to distribute Lync, a shareware vendor must comply with
the following conditions:
1. Vendors must obtain written permission from Jason R. Alward
before distributing Lync. If no reply is received,
write again. You may not distribute copies "pending"
receipt of permission.
2. Vendors may not modify or delete any of the files in the
Lync package. A reasonable number of small text or
batch files may be added if designed to provide a service
to the user, but they must be easily identifiable and the
user must be allowed to delete these added files.
3. Vendors must make a reasonable effort to distribute only
the most recent version of Lync. If you have received
written permission to distribute Lync, you will be
notified of updates when they are released.
4. A maximum disk fee, set in the vendor contract, must not
be exceeded. Lync may not be included in any package
sold for more than this maximum.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 4
GETTING STARTED
Chapter 2
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
IBM PC/XT/AT or true compatible computer running DOS v2.0 or above.
One floppy disk drive, a Hayes compatible modem, and 256k of RAM.
NOTE: Lync actually requires about 92k of free RAM to run. If you
have less than 256k in your system, try running Lync anyway, it
just might fit. Of course you can't use the Shell command when
memory is that restricted.
INSTALLATION
Installing Lync requires two steps. First, you simply copy the
file LYNC.EXE to the disk or directory where you will be using it.
Lync uses no overlay files and creates the data files it needs when
you first run it, so you only need the one file.
The next step is to make sure Lync can find those data files each
time you use it. If you're using Lync on a floppy based system,
this is not a problem since you will have to insert the disk
containing Lync and it's files in order to run it. You can remove
the Lync disk after it starts up but you must reinsert the disk
when you make changes in the dialing directory, save changes from
the configuration menu, or save the macro keys file. The dialing
directory is a special case as it only updates the file when you
leave the directory menu. This occurs when you press ESC or when
you connect to an online service after dialing, so the Lync disk
must be in the drive at these times IF you have edited any entries.
If you're using Lync on a hard drive you'll need to know more about
how Lync finds it's data files. The first step Lync takes is to
search the enviroment for a variable named LYNC. If found, Lync
uses the path after this to locate it's data files. This is useful
if you want LYNC.EXE stored separately from it's data files.
(ie. you want Lync in a directory contained in your PATH statement
but you want the data files stored in a directory called C:\LYNC.)
To use this, you would add a line to your AUTOEXEC.BAT file as
follows:
SET LYNC=C:\LYNC
You should of course place your own drive:\path specification after
the "LYNC=". Be sure NOT to end it with the "\" backslash.
If Lync doesn't find the LYNC variable it will check the DOS
version. If it finds version 3.x or greater then it will get a
complete pathname from DOS, you don't have to do a thing. If it
finds version 2.x it will use the current directory to build a path
to it's files.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 5
This is the least desirable method since Lync will create new files
all over your hard drive if you don't change to it's directory
every time you use it. Another minus is that these new files will
contain default information and the dialing directory and macro
keys will be blank.
If you're using DOS version 2.x it is desirable to set the LYNC
variable. Doing this in your AUTOEXEC.BAT means you need only do
it once and don't have to bother with it again.
STARTING LYNC
To start Lync simply change to the disk/directory where you put the
program and type:
LYNC
followed by pressing the ENTER key.
The first time you run Lync it will create a configuration file
called LYNC.CFG which will be filled with default information.
Lync will then place you in the Configuration Options menu and
place a message at the top of the screen prompting you to configure
Lync for your system and press "S" to save. You may need to change
some of Lync's defaults for it to work with your system (See the
Configuring Lync section below). When you've got Lync properly
configured, press the "S" key to save your changes, and you're
ready to go. The next time you run Lync, it will get it's settings
from the configuration file so you won't have to go through this
again.
CONFIGURING LYNC
The first step in configuring Lync is to make sure your modem is
configured so Lync can work with it. Lync expects the modem to
treat status signals as their true state and not force them on or
off. The most important of these are the Carrier Detect (CD) and
Data Terminal Ready (DTR) lines. Many modems default to a forced
carrier and ignore DTR so you must configure your modem to use the
actual state of these signals. Some modems use DIP switches to
control these settings and some use commands (such as AT &C1 for
true carrier and AT &D2 for hangup on DTR low). You will have to
consult your modem's manual for the exact method used to make your
settings but the results you want are:
The Carrier Detect (CD) should reflect the actual state of the
carrier signal.
The modem should go on-hook on an On-to-Off transition of the DTR.
(When Lync drops the DTR signal you want the modem to hangup)
Next you will need to configure Lync to work with the rest of your
system. Lync's configuration is completely menu driven and you can
exit the Options menu by either pressing the "S" key to make your
changes the new start up defaults, or by pressing the ESC key to
keep your changes for the current session without changing the
defaults stored on disk.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 6
When you issue the Alt-O (Options) command, or when running Lync
for the first time, you will see a menu that looks something like
the following:
+--|Current Configuration|------------------|Advanced Options|----+
| Com Port: Com1 Colour Customization |
| Baud: 2400 Filenames & Directories |
| Data Bits: 8 Host Mode Settings |
| Parity: None File Transfer Settings |
| Stop Bits: 1 |
| Local Echo: OFF |
| Add Linefeeds: OFF |
| Alarms & Beeps: ON |
| Snow Checking: OFF |
| Flow Control: RTS/CTS |
| Dial Wait Time: 30 |
| Pause Between Dials: 5 |
| Dialing Prefix: AT DT |
| Dial Cancel: ^M |
| Modem Initialization: AT S7=60 E1V1Q0X4&C1&D2^M |
| Modem Connected Response: CONNECT |
| Modem No Connect Responses: NO CARRIER BUSY |
| NO ANSWER VOICE |
| |
| ><^v: Select, ENTER: Modify, ESC: Exit, S: Save & Exit |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
Use the arrow keys to move the menu select bar to the item you wish
to change and press the ENTER key. You will then be able to enter
the new setting either by selecting it from a menu or typing the
new value. Following is a description of the settings that must be
configured the first time Lync is run. See the Options section in
Chapter 3 for a more complete description of all the settings.
The Com Port setting tells Lync which serial port your modem is
connected to. Lync supports serial ports COM1 through COM4.
NOTE: If you have an internal modem, the serial port is built into
the modem itself. You'll have to check the modem's manual to see
which port it's configured for.
The Baud setting should be set to the maximum speed your modem is
capable of, as this setting is used when creating the dialing
directory defaults. It also gets the initialization string out as
quickly as possible. Supported speeds are: 300, 1200, 2400, 4800,
9600, 19200, and 38400 baud.
The Data Bits, Parity, and Stop Bits settings should be configured
for the settings you most commonly use as these are also used as
dialing directory defaults. Most IBM compatible based BBS's use 8
Data bits, No Parity, and 1 Stop bit, which is what Lync defaults
to, so this would be a good choice for start up.
The supported settings for these are:
Data Bits: 7 or 8
Parity: NONE, ODD, EVEN, MARK and SPACE
Stop Bits: 1 or 2
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 7
The Local Echo setting tells Lync to send characters typed in
terminal mode to the screen as well as the com port. This is
useful if you connect to a lot of systems that don't echo your
input back to you, although most BBS's do. NOTE: Lync echos a
CR/LF pair in place of LOCALLY echoed carriage returns when this
setting is on. This prevents incoming data from overwriting your
last line of input.
The Add Linefeeds setting tells Lync to send a linefeed to the
screen after EVERY carriage return it sends to the screen. This is
used if you connect to a lot of systems that send carriage returns
only, at the end of each line. Adding linefeeds will prevent each
successive line from overwriting the previous line.
These two settings can be either ON or OFF and they are both used
as defaults when creating the dialing directory.
The Flow Control setting defaults to RTS/CTS which is hardware flow
control commonly used with high speed modems. Hardware flow
control has no effect if your modem forces the CTS line high, as
many modems do. But if your modem leaves the CTS line low and
ignored, Lync would never transmit with RTS/CTS flow control on.
If you find Lync won't talk to your modem, try changing this
setting to None or Xon/Xoff (software flow control).
The supported flow types are: None, Xon/Xoff, RTS/CTS, or Both
NOTE: Both means both Xon/Xoff & RTS/CTS flow control.
The Dialing Prefix setting is a short string that is sent to the
modem just before the number to be dialed is sent. It's function
is to tell the modem to dial the following number and wait for a
connection. Lync defaults to "AT DT" for the prefix which tells
the modem to use touch tone dialing. If you have pulse dialing in
your area you would need to change the prefix to use this dialing
method. The appropriate Hayes command would be "AT DP".
The Dial Cancel setting is a string that is sent to the modem when
you tell Lync to interrupt a dialing operation. It defaults to
"^M", a carriage return, which is all that is needed for most
modems.
Consult your modem's manual for the exact commands it needs for
these operations.
The Modem Initialization setting is simply a string of modem
commands that you want Lync to send to your modem at start up.
This just guarantees that the modem will be configured the same way
every time you start Lync. The default string is:
AT S7=60 E1V1Q0X4&C1&D2^M
These are commands from the Hayes modem command set. Again, you
should consult your modem's manual for the complete set of commands
it recognizes and the function of each. From this you can decide
what is needed in your initialization string.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 8
NOTE: The ending "^M" is not a modem command but Lync control code
notation. You can insert control codes into your string by
preceding the control character you want with a caret (^)
character. For example, a bell character is control-G so you would
type a caret immediately followed by a G like this: ^G. This is
what you must do to end your initialization string with a carriage
return, which is control-M or ^M, as Lync does not append a
carriage return to this string. You can only use this control code
notation in certain items, which will display a message at the
bottom of the menu to inform you. See the section on The Input
Editor for further details.
It is also recommended that you set the default directories for
file transfers. Otherwise downloaded files will go in your current
directory, which may not be desirable.
These are found in the Filenames & Directories option under the
Advanced Options heading. Selecting this provides you with a
window containing three options. The important ones are the
Default Directory To SEND Files From, and Default Directory To
RECEIVE Files To. Set these options to the desired directories for
your upload/download areas respectively.
There is one other option in this window that you can change if
desired. It is the Default Capture Path\Filename. This defaults
to a file named LYNC.CAP in the directory where Lync's data files
are located.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 9
USING LYNC
Chapter 3
USING THE MENUS
Using the menus in Lync is easy. The arrow keys move the select
bar and ENTER selects the highlighted item. In almost all cases,
the ESC key will get you out of a menu without selecting or
changing anything.
Most of Lync's menus are arranged vertically, but some are
horizontal. To simplify the way Lync deals with this, the arrow
keys have been paired together. Both the UP and LEFT arrow keys
perform the same function, as do the RIGHT and DOWN arrow keys. So
if you're in a vertical menu, pressing the LEFT arrow would move
the select bar up just as the UP arrow would. And if you were in a
horizontal menu, the UP arrow would move the select bar left just
as the LEFT arrow would. The RIGHT and DOWN arrow key interaction
would be similar.
Lync's menus also support wrap around. This means that if the
select bar were at the bottom of a menu and you pressed the DOWN
arrow key, the select bar would jump to the top. This also means
that when you're in a menu with only two options, any arrow key
will toggle the select bar between the two.
THE INPUT EDITOR
Whenever Lync needs you to enter or edit a string of text, such as
the modem initialization string, it uses a built in line editor.
Within this editor certain keys perform special functions to make
editing easier. These keys are as follows:
The LEFT & RIGHT ARROW keys move the cursor within the existing
string without effecting the text. This lets you position the
cursor to the character where you need to start editing.
The HOME key will move the cursor to the beginning of the existing
string. Likewise, the END key will move the cursor to the end of
the string.
The BACKSPACE key will delete the character preceding the cursor
position and move the cursor back to that position, pulling any
trailing text back one space with it.
The DELETE key will delete the character at the cursor position and
pull any trailing text back one space to fill the gap. The cursor
position remains the same.
The INSERT key will toggle between insert and overwrite mode. The
cursor becomes larger to show when insert mode is on.
Finally, if you press CONTROL-HOME it will erase any existing text
and let you build your string from scratch. This is useful when no
part of the current string can be used to build your new string.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 10
In a few special cases, Lync will accept control code notation
within an input string. An example of this notation is "^M"
(without the quotes) which will be interpreted as control-M which
is a carriage return. Lync only interprets this notation in
strings that will be sent to the modem, for which there will be a
prompt at the bottom of the menu explaining how to use it. Lync
also allows variable pauses using a similar notation. To insert a
pause you would use a caret "^" followed by a number from 1 to 9
representing the number of seconds you need to wait. For example,
a "^3" would cause Lync to pause for three seconds. A "^0" is a
special case as it is interpreted as a ten second pause.
THE HELP MENU
All Lync's functions are available via Alt-key shortcuts, but when
you don't remember one you can press Alt-Z and get the Help Menu.
The Help Menu lists all available functions, their shortcut key,
and a brief description of their purpose. You can execute a
function from this menu by moving the select bar to the desired
function and pressing ENTER, or you can press the corresponding
shortcut key.
THE STATUS LINE
Lync uses the top line of the screen to display the current status
of it's capture file, echo and linefeeds state, com settings, and
carrier detect.
The capture file status is indicated by "Capture:" followed by it's
current status, either ON, OFF, or PAUSE.
The echo and linefeeds status are indicated by "Echo:" and
"Linefeeds:" respectively and they're followed by either an ON or
OFF status.
The com settings status simply reflects the current Baud rate, Data
bits, Parity, and Stop bits that Lync is currently configured to
use. These are displayed as the corresponding numbers except for
Parity, which is shown as the first letter of the corresponding
Parity type.
The carrier detect status is indicated by either the word "Offline"
or "Online". "Offline" is displayed when no carrier signal is
detected from the serial port. "Online" is displayed while a
carrier signal is present on the serial port and is followed by a
time indicator which reflects the time elapsed since the carrier
changed from an off to on status. The "Online" time is displayed
as hours:minutes.
When Lync is in "Doorway Mode" or "Host Mode" the "Help Menu" text
on the status line is changed to reflect the respective mode. This
is especially important in "Doorway Mode" since the only Alt key
function that works in this mode is the Alt-= which toggles doorway
mode off. Even Alt-Z for help won't work in this mode.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 11
COMMAND LINE OPTIONS
Lync supports a minimal set of command line parameters intended
simply to allow you to choose the startup mode of Lync, and to
disable the modem initialization string. These command line
parameters do not work in combination with each other with the
single exception of the /NI parameter, which will function in
combination with any of the other parameters. For the rest of the
parameters, Lync uses the one that appears first on the command
line. Following is a description of each parameter.
/NI - No Init-string.
The /NI parameter suppresses the transmission of the modem
initialization string. This is useful if you occasionally use Lync
in a direct connect situation where you wouldn't want the
init-string sent to the remote system.
/= - Start in Doorway Mode
The /= parameter tells Lync to start with Doorway Mode on. Meaning
all special keys that produce a zero ASCII code will be transmitted
as a null prefixed scan code.
/Q - Start in Host Mode
The /Q parameter tells Lync to startup in Host Mode. Meaning it
will run as a minimal BBS, ready to accept remote calls.
/D - Start in Dialing Directory
The /D parameter tells Lync to startup in the Dialing Directory.
Meaning it will come up with a menu of systems you can connect to
in point and shoot fashion.
/Z - Start in Help Menu
The /Z parameter tells Lync to startup in the Help Menu. This is
useful if you want Lync to start with a menu of it's functions and
quick help displayed.
You may note the choice of letters for the four startup mode
parameters seems unintuitive (Q for Host & Z for Help) but you'll
find they are the same as the Alt keys used to invoke the same
functions from within Lync (Alt-Q for Host & Alt-Z for Help). This
should make them easier to remember as they will be used all the
time during normal Lync operations.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 12
LYNC'S FUNCTIONS
This section will give a detailed explanation of each of Lync's
functions, in the same order they appear in the Help Menu. This
section should make a good reference whenever Lync's prompts and
help prove inadequate.
Files (Alt-F)
The Files function first prompts you to enter the desired path and
filespec for which you wish to list the files. It will provide you
with a string containing the current directory and *.* filespec so
pressing ENTER will list all files in the current directory. Simply
edit this string as needed.
Once you have entered the desired filespec and pressed ENTER, the
Files function will read the directory and display all matching
files in three columns. If there are too many files to display in
one window it will stop and provide you with a "More Y/N" prompt.
Pressing "Y" at this prompt will clear the window and resume
displaying files. if you press "N" at the more prompt (or when
there are no more matching files) the Files function will display
the amount of free space on the selected drive and prompt you to
press any key, which will return you to terminal mode.
Path (Alt-P)
The Path function displays the current directory and allows you to
edit the string. Pressing ESC leaves things as they were but
pressing ENTER will cause the Path function to change the current
directory to the new one you specified. If the new directory is
invalid, a message will inform you of this and the current
directory will remain unchanged.
Shell (Alt-S)
The Shell function allows you to execute a DOS command or program
or drop to a DOS shell. It first displays a window with a DOS
prompt to allow you to enter the command or program you wish to
execute. When you've entered your command line, pressing ENTER
causes the Shell function to call COMMAND.COM to execute the
command or program. Upon the command or program's completion, you
will be prompted to press any key, which will return you to Lync.
If you press ENTER alone in the DOS prompt window without typing
any commands, the Shell function executes COMMAND.COM to drop to a
DOS shell. You will see a message informing you that you must use
the DOS EXIT command to exit the shell and return to Lync.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 13
Exit (Alt-X)
The Exit function simply prompts you to verify that you want to
exit Lync. Pressing ENTER will exit Lync and pressing ESC aborts
the function and returns you to terminal mode. You could also use
the arrow keys to select "No" and press Enter to exit.
Dial (Alt-D)
The Dial function takes you to the Dialing Directory which is used
to store and call the BBS's you use. This directory stores the
information for 45 numbers, 15 of which are displayed at a time.
The HOME, END, PG UP, PG DN and Arrow keys will move the select bar
through the directory to select the desired number.
The DELETE & INSERT keys will delete the selected number or insert
a blank number at the selected location. When you press DELETE,
you will be prompted for confirmation before the number is deleted.
This confirmation defaults to "Yes" so pressing ENTER deletes the
number and pressing ESC aborts the delete. When a number is
deleted, a blank entry is added to the end of the list.
Use caution when you use the INSERT key as well, as the last number
in the list will be lost off the end.
Pressing "E" will open another menu to allow you to edit the
selected number. The menu will look something like this:
+-|Dial Editor|----------------------------+
| Name: |
| Phone: 000-0000 |
| Baud: 2400 |
| Data Bits: 8 |
| Parity: None |
| Stop Bits: 1 |
| Local Echo: OFF |
| Add Linefeeds: OFF |
| Transfer Protocol:Xmodem |
| ENTER: Modify, ESC: Exit, S: Save & Exit |
+------------------------------------------+
Use the arrow keys to select the item you wish to change and press
ENTER to change the information. You will get either a cursor to
edit a string, like the Name or Phone, or a menu from which to
select the new setting. When the items are set as desired, press
the "S" key to save your changes in the directory and exit the
menu. If you wish to abort all changes to this number, pressing
the ESC key will return you to the dialing directory with the
original settings intact.
Pressing the space bar in the directory will "tag" the selected
number (or "untag" if it has already been "tagged"). Tagging
allows you to build a list of BBS's that you want Lync to call at
one sitting.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 14
Pressing the "C" key will clear all "tags" from the directory.
This is useful when you wish to dial the selected number but you're
not sure if there are still tagged numbers in the list.
Pressing the "M" key lets you dial a manually entered number. This
is useful for trying a number to a new system before you commit it
to an entry in the directory.
Pressing ENTER initiates a dial sequence. This consists of
changing the com settings to those in the selected number, sending
the Dial Prefix string to the modem, sending the Phone string to
the modem, sending a carriage return to the modem to execute the
dial operation, and waiting for the number of seconds specified by
the Dial Wait Time. A "dialing" window will appear displaying the
Name and Phone of the number being dialed, the number of attempts
for this number, and the message: "Waiting for Connection" followed
by the remaining seconds before the dial is aborted.
While Lync is waiting, it watches for a carrier signal or any data
coming in from the modem (ie. BUSY). If data comes in, Lync checks
it against the Connected Response set in the Options menu. If that
doesn't match Lync checks the four No Connect Responses from the
Options menu for a match. If there's still no match Lync relies
solely on the state of the carrier signal, which not all modems
provide usably.
If Lync got the Connected string (or a carrier signal), it sets the
Echo and Linefeeds settings to those stored in the selected number,
and sets the Transfer Protocol Menu to default to the desired
setting. Then it sounds a short alarm and exits the Dialing
Directory back to terminal mode.
If Lync got a No Connect string it goes into the pause between
dials. If the time runs out Lync displays "Time Elapsed" as the
status and then goes into the pause. The pause simply displays
"Pausing" followed by the number of seconds remaining before
another dial attempt is made.
Lync will continue to retry the dial until it gets a connection, or
you press ESC to abort the operation.
The number that gets dialed when you press ENTER depends on whether
there are any "tagged" entries or not. If there are no entries
tagged, Lync dials the selected number. If you have tagged some
numbers, Lync will start dialing the first tagged number in the
directory and continue through each successive tagged number in the
list for each dial retry. In other words, Lync will dial the first
tagged number, and if it doesn't connect, it will try the next
tagged number and so on to the last tagged number upon which it
will loop back to the first and try the whole list again.
If Lync connects when dialing a tagged list, it will "untag" the
number before leaving the directory. This means that when you
disconnect from this BBS, you can go to the directory and dial the
remaining tagged numbers. The number that was connected to will no
longer be in the tagged list.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 15
Pressing the space bar when dialing will cause Lync to cancel the
dial operation and skip to the pause stage, or if you press space
while Lync is pausing, it would skip the pause and dial again.
This is useful when dialing tagged numbers and you wish to skip
over one number for the current pass through the list.
Finally, pressing ESC when Lync is not dialing simply returns you
to terminal mode.
Capture (Alt-C)
The Capture function allows you to trap all text displayed on the
terminal screen to a "capture" file, for later viewing.
The menu you get when you select the Capture function is dependent
on capture's current status. If capture is off, you will be
prompted for a filename to open as your capture file. The default
name will be LYNC.CAP, created in Lync's home directory. If
capture is on, you will be asked if you want to close the capture
file or just "pause" capturing. If capture is "paused" you will be
asked if you want to close the capture file or "unpause" it.
When Lync opens the capture file it will not erase an existing
file, but rather add on or "append" to the end of the file. If the
file doesn't exist it will be created, of course.
When you "pause" capturing, you are telling Lync to stop writing to
the capture file, but not to close it because you are just skipping
something.
Hangup (Alt-H)
The Hangup function simply sets the DTR signal low, waits for about
a half second, then sets it high again. If your modem is
configured correctly, this will tell it to hangup the phone. As a
precaution, Lync checks for the carrier signal after the hangup and
if it still exists, Lync informs you that the hangup failed.
Download (PG DN) & Upload (PG UP)
The Download and Upload functions are used to transfer files to or
from the BBS system that you connected to. Downloading means you
are receiving a file and uploading means you are sending a file.
When you wish to transfer a file, either upload or download, the
first thing you must do is get the BBS system ready for a transfer.
Different systems use different commands and menu structures so
you'll have to see the BBS's help or instructions for exact
details, but generally you'll need to: Change to the BBS's file
section, issue the command to transfer a file (usually U or D for
upload or download respectively), enter the name of the file to
transfer, and finally issue the command to select the desired
transfer protocol. At this point the BBS should inform you that
it's ready to do the transfer.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 16
Now that the BBS is ready, you need to tell Lync that you wish to
transfer a file. Press the PG UP or PG DN key, depending on the
direction of your transfer, and you will receive a menu of
protocols that looks like this:
+------------------+
| Ascii |
| Xmodem |
| 1k-Xmodem |
| Ymodem (batch) |
| Zmodem |
+------------------+
Select the same protocol from this menu as you told the BBS to use
and press ENTER. You will be asked for a filename if you are
uploading or you are downloading using Ascii, Xmodem, or 1k-Xmodem.
Ymodem and Zmodem are batch protocols and will get the filename
from the BBS when downloading. Now a window will appear on the
screen displaying data about the transfer like elapsed time,
approximate characters per second, bytes sent/received, etc. Now
just sit back as the two systems transmit data. Lync will sound a
short alarm to inform you when the transfer is complete.
A special note should be made about the two batch protocols.
First, when downloading using Zmodem, you don't need to press the
PG DN key to tell Lync to start transferring. Lync will recognize
the initialize packet for Zmodem and will automatically start the
download when it sees this.
Second, when uploading using either batch protocol, you may send
more than one file at a time, if the BBS system supports multiple
file uploads. When Lync asks you for the name of the file to
upload, you may enter any legal DOS wildcard specification such as:
\FILES\*.ZIP or A:*.*
The batch protocols would then send every file matching these
specs. Of course, as with any transfer that requests a filename,
if you don't specify a drive or directory, Lync will use the file
path you set in the configuration Options menu.
Echo (Alt-E) & Linefeeds (Alt-L)
The Echo and Linefeeds functions simply toggle the local echo or
add linefeeds settings respectively. The indicators on the status
line are updated to reflect the new setting.
Initialize (Alt-I)
The Initialize function re-inits the com interrupts and resets any
flow control that may have stalled Lync's transmit routines. It
then provides you with a menu of strings you could send to the
modem: Initialization, Answer Mode On, Answer Mode Off. You can
select a string and send it to the modem or press ESC.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 17
Doorway (Alt-=)
The Doorway function simply alters the way Lync treats the keys you
press. When Doorway Mode is active, all special function keys send
special codes so the remote system can use the entire keyboard. In
fact, the only key combination Lync checks for is the Alt-= to turn
Doorway Mode off. All of Lync's other functions are inaccessable
in this mode.
Macros (Alt-M)
The Macros function takes you to the macro editor. This will open
a large window and display a menu of the function keys F1 to F10
and SF1 to SF10, each followed by the text defined for that key.
Pressing the "S" key in this menu will save the macro text to a
file called LYNC.KEY in Lync's home directory. Pressing the ESC
key will leave the macro editor without saving your changes to
disk. This is useful when you need to make changes for the current
session only.
To change a macro, simply select the desired item and press ENTER,
make your changes and press ENTER to keep them, or press ESC if you
change your mind and wish to restore the macro to it's pre-edited
form.
Within these macros you can use control code notation as well as
variable pauses. To use a variable pause simply insert a caret "^"
followed by a number from 1 to 9 or 0 (for ten) representing the
number of seconds desired for the pause length.
These pauses are useful if you want a macro to send your name and
password to logon to a BBS. For example:
John Doe^M^5password^M
This macro would send "John Doe" followed by a carriage return,
then pause for five seconds, then send "password" followed by a
carriage return. The pause length needed would of course depend on
the delay between the prompts of the specific BBS being called.
Host (Alt-Q)
The Host function switches Lync into a "mini-BBS" or Host mode.
This function simplifies the exchange of data between you and a
remote user.
When Host mode is activated, it first checks for the existence of a
LYNC.MSG file in it's home directory. This file is where Lync
stores messages that are left by your callers. If this file exists
and it is more than zero bytes long, Lync will ask if you want it
to be "cleared" (truncated to zero bytes long). Select No if you
have not read the messages left during your last Host session,
otherwise select Yes. If this file is never cleared it will grow
very large as Lync always appends new messages to the end of the
file.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 18
Lync now checks for a carrier signal and, if present, warns you
that you are already connected. You must then confirm that you
activated the Host mode intentionally. If you continue going into
Host mode, Lync will not change the com settings. It will instead
skip directly to logging on the remote user.
If there is no carrier at startup, the Host proceeds normally
changing the com settings (Baud, data bits, parity, and stop bits)
to the defaults set in the Options menu (a Dial operation may have
changed them). The Host then sends the Auto Answer On string to
your modem, to set it to answer mode, and waits for an incoming
call.
When Lync sees a carrier signal it will attempt to determine the
baud rate, depending on the settings in the Options/Host Mode
Settings. Lync then displays a welcome message to the caller which
will be either the standard "LYNC HOST" message or the contents of
a file named "WELCOME.HST", if it exists in Lync's home directory.
Now the caller will be prompted to enter their name and will
optionally be required to enter a password to gain access to your
system. If you entered a password in the Host Password option in
the Options menu, the caller will be given 3 tries to enter the
password correctly (case insensitive). If you left the Host
Password option blank, the caller will be logged on immediately
after entering their name. The password prompt is skipped.
At this point Lync checks for a file named "MESSAGE.HST", and
displays it to the user if it exists. Next the caller will be
presented with a menu of options. These options are: Page the
SysOp (you), Leave a message, Files available, Download a file,
Upload a file, and Goodbye (disconnect). These functions are
activated by a single keystroke and are not case sensitive.
If the caller presses "P" to page you, an alarm will sound to let
you know someone is paging (in case you left for a moment). The
alarm will sound 5 times before informing the caller that you are
not available. If you press the spacebar before the last alarm you
will engage "chat" mode. In this mode, what you type will be
highlighted and what the caller types will be normal. To exit chat
mode and return the caller to the menu, press the ESC key.
Page is the only command that requires your interaction although
the keyboard is active during the call so you can help the caller
along when needed. You should also note that the Hangup (Alt-H)
command is active during a call, should you need to "boot off" an
unwanted guest. The Alt-Q function also works in Host mode to
allow you to get out of host mode without logging off the user.
Pressing Alt-Q again takes the user back to the Host options menu.
It should be noted that the File Directories, set in the Options
menu, are used in the Host mode. The caller can "download" any
file contained in your SEND From files directory. Likewise any
file "uploaded" by the caller is placed in your RECEIVE To files
directory. The Host won't let them upload a file that already
exists though, unless it is a file that was just uploaded (to
support Zmodem's resume crashed transfer feature).
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 19
When the Host is waiting for a call you can press the ESC key to
exit the Host mode and return to terminal mode. The Host will send
the Auto Answer Off string to reset the modem. If any messages
were left during this session, the Host will display a message
containing the number of new messages left and telling you to look
in the LYNC.MSG file for the content of these messages. The
LYNC.MSG file is straight ASCII text and can be viewed with almost
any text editor.
You can also do a local logon by pressing the "L" key when the Host
is waiting for a call. This function just lets you get a feel of
what a caller will see when calling your Host.
Options (Alt-O)
The Options function calls up the configuration menu so you can
change Lync's current settings. Use the arrow keys to select an
option and press ENTER to change it's setting. As illustrated in
the Configuring Lync section, this menu is laid out as two side by
side menus. The left and right arrow keys are used to switch
between the two menus. Pressing the "S" key in this menu will save
the settings to the LYNC.CFG file, making them the start up
defaults. Changes made in the configuration menu are effective
immediately so pressing ESC allows you to make changes for the
current session without changing the start up defaults. Following
is a description of all Lync's configurable options that are
accessed through this menu:
The Com Port option selects which serial port you wish Lync to
access and should be set to the port which your modem is connected
to. It provides a vertical menu from which to select the desired
serial port. It can be set to COM1, COM2, COM3, or COM4.
The Baud, Data Bits, Parity, and Stop Bits all provide vertical
menus from which to select and they should be set to your modem's
highest speed, and 8, NONE, and 1 if you plan to use the Host mode
for PC to PC communications. The range for each item is as follows:
Baud: 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, 38400
Data Bits: 7 or 8
Parity: NONE, ODD, EVEN, MARK, SPACE
Stop Bits: 1 or 2
The Local Echo, Add Linefeeds, Alarms & Beeps, and Snow Checks all
provide a horizontal menu with the options OFF or ON. The Local
Echo option tells Lync that the remote system doesn't echo your
input back to you, so Lync will display it when it sends it. The
Add Linefeeds option tells Lync that the remote system ends lines
only with a carriage return so Lync will add linefeeds to keep each
line from overwriting the previous line. The Alarms & Beeps option
tells Lync whether it should sound it's "connect" and "transfer
complete" alarms. When set to OFF it will even disable beeps
produced by control-G characters received from the remote system.
The Snow Checks option is really only important to those who have
CGA video that produces "snow". If you are experiencing alot of
interference on your monitor as you move the select bar around the
menu, then set this option to ON.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 20
The Flow Control option tells Lync how to control the flow of data
when it overwhelms Lync's buffers or when the remote system
complains it is being overwhelmed. The types of flow control Lync
supports are: None, Xon/Xoff, RTS/CTS, or Both.
The Xon/Xoff type is a software flow control in which a character
is transmitted to the remote system when the flow of data needs to
be stopped or restarted.
The RTS/CTS type is a hardware flow control in which the voltage of
the RTS & CTS pins of the RS232 connector are used to reflect
whether the data flow should be stopped or not. This hardware
control can only be used in a direct connection and is most
commonly used to control the flow of data between the PC and a high
speed modem.
The Dial Wait Time and Pause Between Dials options use the input
editor to allow you to enter the desired number of seconds for each
item. These items will allow numbers in the range of 2 to 255.
The Dialing Prefix option allows you to edit the command your
modem requires to initiate a dial operation. This is normally "AT
DT" for touch tone service and "AT DP" for pulse dialing service.
This string can be up to 9 characters long.
The Dial Cancel option allows you to edit the string needed to get
your modem to abort a dial operation. A carriage return or "^M" is
usually all that is needed, but this string can be up to 20
characters long if your needs are specialized.
The Modem Initialization option allows you to edit the string of
modem commands that Lync will send to your modem at startup. This
string can be up to 40 characters long (the maximum length of most
modem's command buffers) and should end with a "^M" to tell the
modem to execute the commands.
The Modem Connected Response option is the string Lync watches for
during a dial operation, to signify that a connection has been
established.
The four Modem No Connect Responses should be set to strings that
your modem will return when it finished a dial operation without
establishing a connection.
Advanced Options
Under the Advanced Options title are four sub menu selections where
more options can be found. Each of these menus contains options
related to the name of the selection.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 21
Colour Customization
Contained in the Colour Customization menu are the nine colour
options for all the colours Lync uses. Selecting a colour options
will present you with a window filled with diamond characters
representing all the possible foreground/background combinations. A
white box will outline the current setting for the selected item.
Move the box with the arrow keys and press ENTER when the desired
colour is outlined. The screen will be refreshed with the newly
selected colour(s).
Filenames & Directories
Contained in the Filenames & Directories menu are three options
used to locate files during transfers and session captures. The
first of these is the Default Directory To SEND Files From option
and as it's name implies, this is where Lync looks for files it is
going to send out or "upload". The next option is the Default
Directory To RECEIVE Files To, and this is where Lync stores files
that are received or "downloaded". The third option is the Default
Capture Path\Filename which allows you to decide the name of the
session capture file Lync starts up with.
Host Mode Settings
Selecting this option provides you with a menu that looks something
like the following:
+--|Host Mode Settings|------------------+
| Answer Mode On: AT S0=1^M |
| Answer Mode Off: AT S0=0^M |
| Host Password: |
| Baud Rate Detect: ON |
| |
| Modem Baud Rate Responses |
| 300 Baud: CONNECT |
| 1200 Baud: CONNECT 1200 |
| 2400 Baud: CONNECT 2400 |
| 4800 Baud: CONNECT 4800 |
| 9600 Baud: CONNECT 9600 |
| 19200 Baud: CONNECT 19200 |
| 38400 Baud: CONNECT 38400 |
| |
| ESC returns to previous menu |
+----------------------------------------+
The Answer Mode On & Off strings are simply the modem commands to
put your modem into or out of auto answer mode. The Host Password
is optional and if set, must be entered by every caller to gain
access to your host mode. If left blank, Lync bypasses the
password prompt altogether. The Baud Rate Detect option allows you
to disable Lync's baud detection when answering a call. This is
useful with high speed modems where you want the com port speed to
remain at a fixed or "locked" speed. Finally, the Modem Baud Rate
Responses should be set to the strings your modem returns when it
gets a connection at the listed baud rates. It should be noted
that Lync scans this list from highest to lowest so as to avoid
matching all speeds to 300 Baud since they all start with CONNECT.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 22
File Transfer Settings
Selecting this option provides you with a menu that looks something
like the following:
+--|File Transfer Settings|--------------+
| Ascii Transfer Settings |
| Expand Blank Lines: ON |
| Send CR as: CR |
| Send LF as: Nothing |
| Receive CR as: CR |
| Receive LF as: LF |
| Auto Zmodem Receive: ON |
| Resume Crashed Zmodem: ON |
| Transfer Protocol Definitions |
| Transfer Protocol 1: Xmodem |
| Transfer Protocol 2: 1k-Xmodem |
| Transfer Protocol 3: Ymodem (batch) |
| Transfer Protocol 4: Zmodem |
| Transfer Protocol 5: |
| Transfer Protocol 6: |
| ESC returns to previous menu |
+----------------------------------------+
The Ascii Transfer Settings consists of five options for control
over how the text lines are terminated during an Ascii transfer.
The first three options control data being sent, and the last two
control data being received. A description of these options
follows:
The Expand Blank Lines option simply watches for blank lines in the
text and expands then to a single space. This is useful when
sending a message file to a BBS that thinks you're done when you
hit ENTER on a blank line.
The next four options provide you with a menu of four ways to
translate the line ending characters when sending or receiving
files. The possible settings are: Nothing, CR, LF, or a CR/LF
pair. It is usually useful to send a CR as a CR and send a LF as
Nothing for uploading text as a message to a BBS. This prevents
double spacing on BBSs that interpret a LF.
The next option is the Auto Zmodem Receive, which can be set to any
of the transfer protocols (because Lync doesn't know which one
you've set to Zmodem) or it can be Off. This is useful if you want
to use an external Zmodem protocol because of some additional
features it offers.
The Resume Crashed Zmodem option can be on or off. When this
option is off, Lync will always overwrite files when receiving with
Zmodem. When on, Lync will compare file sizes to determine if it
is a continuation and resume accordingly.
NOTE: This option only applies to Lync's internal Zmodem routines.
If you're runnning an external Zmodem protocol, it is up to the
external program to determine whether to resume or not.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 23
The last options are the Transfer Protocol Definitions. There are
six user modifiable protocol definitions with which you specify
the transfer protocol that gets executed for each menu item. When
you select one of these options you will be presented with a Define
Transfer Protocol window in which to edit the selected protocol.
The first option in this window is the Menu Name. This is
simply the name you want shown in the menu when selecting a
protocol in the Dialing Directory or doing a transfer.
The next option is the Type. This option provides you with a menu
of protocol types from which to choose. The available types are:
Unused, Internal Xmodem, Internal 1k-Xmodem, Int Ymodem (batch),
Internal Zmodem, or External. Each of these protocol types is
described in chapter 4, File Transfers & Protocols.
The next two options are only relevant if the Type is External.
They are the Dos Command Line To Send (Receive) a File. When
setting up an external protocol, these options should be set to the
actual command line you would type to Dos in order to run the
protocol. When editing one of these options, you have three
settings you can pass to the external program. These are: the
current com port (%p), the current baud rate (%b), and a user
supplied filename (%f). A message will appear in the window to
remind you of these settings substitutions.
Clear (Ctrl-HOME)
The Clear function simply clears the terminal screen using default
"Terminal Normal" colour you set in your configuration.
Break (Ctrl-END)
The Break function sends a special signal, called a "break", to the
remote system. This is only needed for special cases, such as baud
detect for some UNIX systems.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 24
FILE TRANSFERS & PROTOCOLS
Chapter 4
WHAT IS A FILE TRANSFER
File transfers allow you to exchange programs, text, or any other
type of file with any BBS system that supports a file section. In
order to transfer files over phone lines, the receiving system must
have some way to tell if the data it received is the same as what
was originally sent. Phone lines are seldom perfectly clear of
static or noise, and this noise can alter the data as it travels
from one system to the other. This is the purpose of transfer
"protocols".
Transfer protocols generally break a file into small chunks called
"packets" or "blocks", then perform some calculation on the data
and send the "packet", followed by the result of the calculation,
to the receiver. The receiver performs the same calculation on the
data as it comes in and then compares it's result with the
following sender's result. If the two match, the receiver writes
this data to it's copy of the file and sends some acknowledgement
signal to alert the sender to send the next packet. If the two
calculation results don't match then the data was corrupted in
transit and the receiver sends a negative acknowledgement signal to
alert the sender to resend the same packet.
Different protocols use different methods for calculating the error
check value, signaling the start of a packet, and acknowledging
good and bad packets. Therefore it is important to use the same
protocol as the system you're connected to.
In Lync I have attempted to support a "survival kit" of transfer
protocols. I couldn't support a long list of protocols since that
would have made Lync too large a program (Lync's main feature is
that it's very small without being "gutted" of features). I also
didn't want to support so few protocols that you would have to turn
to another terminal program for file transfers. So I've picked the
minimum complement of protocols that I felt were essential to any
terminal program.
SUPPORTED PROTOCOLS
Lync will support up to seven transfer protocols, six of which can
be defined by the user to execute an external protocol or any of
the internal protocols built into Lync. Ascii is the exception as
it is hard coded as the first protocol and cannot be changed. The
remaining four protocols internally supported by Lync are as
follows: Xmodem, 1k-Xmodem, Ymodem (batch), and Zmodem.
Following is a brief description of each protocol.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 25
Ascii
Ascii isn't a true "protocol" since it has no method for error
checking built in and as such is only useful for text files. It
does however provide one very useful function, you can upload a
message that was entered offline.
Since Ascii just reads a file and sends out the characters as if
you were typing them at the keyboard, it allows you to use a text
editor or word processor to create a message that you want to
"post" on a BBS. This is done when you're not connected and not
paying for online charges. You save your message as a pure ASCII
text file and then use Lync to connect to the BBS. Do whatever is
required to enter a message and when the BBS is waiting for you to
type in your message, upload your text file with the Ascii
protocol. You will see the text appearing on your screen as the
BBS echoes it back, just as if you were typing it.
Xmodem
Xmodem is not particularly efficient nor 100% reliable, but it is
supported by almost every online service there is. No matter how
limited a BBS's list of supported protocols is, it will probably
support Xmodem. This is why it was essential to support Xmodem.
Some BBS's may offer you two varieties of Xmodem reflecting the two
types of error checking that Xmodem can use. These are Checksum
and CRC. Lync supports both methods and detects which one the BBS
is using so it will work with either one. Whenever you have the
option, CRC is the preferred method as it is a great deal more
reliable than the Checksum method.
1k-Xmodem
1k-Xmodem is basically the same as Xmodem except for the size of
it's packets. Xmodem uses 128 byte packets and 1k-Xmodem uses 1024
byte packets, which is where the "1k" prefix came from. This makes
it a bit faster than Xmodem since it's packet overhead is reduced
by a factor of 8.
You should be warned that not all BBS's refer to this protocol as
1k-Xmodem. On some systems it's called "Old Ymodem" and others
just call it "Ymodem". This can lead to confusion since this is
not that same as the "Ymodem (batch)" that Lync supports. So if
you're trying to use Ymodem and it just won't work, the BBS is
probably using a misnamed 1k-Xmodem, so tell Lync to use 1k-Xmodem
even though the BBS calls it Ymodem.
Ymodem (batch)
Ymodem (batch) uses the same type of packets as Xmodem but can use
both 128 and 1024 byte packets dynamically. The most important
feature, however, is that it starts the transfer with a special
header packet that contains complete filename, size, date, and time
information about the file.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 26
The transfer is ended with a blank header packet (all 0's). These
header packets allow more than one file to be transmitted in a
single session, thus it is called a "batch" protocol. On some
BBS's this is called "True Ymodem" or just "Ymodem" so it can be
confusing to tell whether you have to use Ymodem or 1k-Xmodem.
Zmodem
Zmodem is the most powerful of the protocols supported by Lync and
should be used whenever possible. It is very efficient because of
a low overhead on each data packet and, like Ymodem, it is a batch
protocol and can send more than one file per session. It also
supports advanced features like crash recovery, automatic start on
downloads, and 32 bit CRC error checking (making it extremely
reliable). These features are described in more detail in the
following section.
SPECIAL ZMODEM FEATURES
Zmodem Crash Recovery
Crash recovery means that you can resume an interrupted download at
a later time without the sender having to retransmit data that you
have already received. For instance, you're downloading a file and
you loose carrier due to line noise, or the power goes out. Now
you're stuck with an incomplete file and with any of the other
protocols, you'd have to download the whole thing again. But when
you reconnect to the BBS and download the file again using Zmodem,
it will see that the file already exists but is incomplete. So it
will tell the sender how much of the file you already have, and the
sender will adjust it's start position accordingly, thus completing
the file.
NOTE: This feature is controlled by the Resume Crashed Zmodem
option in the Options/File Transfer Settings menu.
Zmodem Auto-Start
Automatic start means that you don't have to tell Lync that you're
starting a Zmodem download. Just tell the BBS to send the file
using Zmodem and sit back. Lync will recognize the Zmodem
initialize packet and start a Zmodem download for you.
NOTE: This feature is controlled by the Auto Zmodem Receive option
in the Options/File Transfer Settings menu.
Zmodem 32 bit CRC
The other protocols use a 16 bit CRC for their error checking and
this is reasonably reliable. Zmodem can also use a 16 bit CRC, if
the BBS version of Zmodem doesn't support a 32 bit CRC, but Lync
prefers a 32 bit CRC for the increased reliability and will inform
the BBS that it wants to use them.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 27
EXTERNAL PROTOCOLS
In previous versions of Lync, executing an external protocol was a
painful endevour, requiring you to use the Dos shell command and
enter the name of the protocol program followed by any parameters
it required. These parameters often included the current baud
rate, com port and of course the filename to transfer. If you're
anything less than a speed typist, the remote program usually
timed out and aborted before you were finished getting started!
With this release, Lync softens the blow, allowing you to store a
command line for both sending and receiving, each of which can be
up to 120 characters long. There are also three variables you can
use in these command lines and Lync will substitute the current
settings in place of the variables just before passing the command
to Dos.
Now executing an external protocol is as simple as selecting it
from the menu, like any of Lync's internal protocols. Lync will
then build a command line, replacing the variables with the current
settings and, if you used the filename variable (%f), prompt you
for the filename to transfer, which it will then place in the
command as well. Lync then calls COMMAND.COM to execute this
command line and your external program takes over. The reason Lync
calls COMMAND.COM instead of calling your protocol directly is to
allow you to use a batch file, should you need to do some
processing after the protocol completes.
There are three variables you can use in the command lines you
create for your external protocols and they are: %p, %b, and %f.
When Lync executes the protocol, it substitutes current settings
for these variables as follows:
%p is replaced with the current Com Port setting as 1, 2, 3, or 4.
%b is replaced with the current Baud Rate setting as a decimal
string: 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, or 38400.
%f is replaced with a filename, which Lync will prompt you to enter
when it finds this variable in the command string.
It may also be useful to know that before Lync executes your
external program, it changes the current directory to the SEND or
RECEIVE Files Directory defined in your Filenames & Directories
menu. This is so Lync doesn't have to specify an entire pathname
to your protocol unless you do when prompted for the filename.
Finally, you should be sure that Dos will be able to find your
external program by placing it in a directory contained in your
PATH statement, or by specifying a complete pathname to the program
in your command lines when defining the protocol.
Lync 3.0 Copyright (c) 1990,91,92 Jason R. Alward Page 28
REGISTERING LYNC
To register Lync, simply print the file REGISTER.DOC on your
printer, fill in the requested information and mail the form along
with your check or money order to:
Jason R. Alward
1607 Claymor Ave.
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada K2C1T4
In order to print the form you can type the following at your DOS
command prompt:
copy register.doc prn
If you don't have a printer you can just send a letter containing
the information requested in the registration form. Be sure to
specify the version of Lync that you are registering when not using
the supplied form.
When Lync is going to be installed on more than one machine, you
must register a copy for each machine. Quantity purchase discounts
are as follows:
1 to 10 copies no discount
11 to 25 copies 10% discount
26 to 50 copies 15% discount
51 to 100 copies 20% discount
101 to 200 copies 25% discount
201+ copies Call to negotiate discount
Orders over 50 copies are site licenses, unless you have made
special arrangements. You will receive a master copy and written
authorization to make the number of copies requested.
To make special arrangements, call me at (613)-224-3539.
ALL PRICES AND DISCOUNTS ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE.
Discounts are not cumulative. They apply to single orders of like
products only.
WARRANTY
Lync is sold "as is" without warranty of any kind, express or
implied, including but not limited to, any warranties of
merchantability and/or fitness for a particular purpose. Jason
Alward shall not be liable for any damages, whether direct,
indirect, special or consequential arising from a failure of Lync
to operate in the manner desired by the user.
IN NO EVENT WILL JASON ALWARD BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES TO DATA OR
PROPERTY WHICH MAY BE CAUSED DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY BY THE USE OF
LYNC. JASON ALWARD SHALL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES,
INCLUDING ANY LOST PROFITS, LOST SAVINGS, OR OTHER INCIDENTAL OR
CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR USE OR INABILITY TO USE
LYNC, OR FOR ANY CLAIM BY ANY OTHER PARTY.
