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Intellicomm (TM) v0.94 Copyright (C) 1991-1992 Liberation Enterprises. All rights reserved. Quick-Start Installation/Setup Help This document outlines Intellicomm's purpose in life, and in return what the program requires of your computer system, in order to help you decide whether to install it or not. Once installed you are taken quickly through the initial program setup, setting up only those items of immediate importance. Once the setup is complete and you enter Intellicomm itself, you are taken on a relatively swift guided tour of the program's major areas and you should be connected to a BBS (and may even be performing auto-logons or could be well on your way to complete automation) before long. It is recommended that you print this text before beginning, so you can read it as we perform that actual installation and setup. If you have a printer, type "COPY QWIKSTRT.DOC PRN" (no quotes) from DOS for a printout. If you do not have a printer, please at least scan the text right through so you'll have some idea where you're going. TECHNICAL SUPPORT If you have a problem, complement, suggestion, or question about Intellicomm please contact ALL or WAYNE DUFF in any echoed Intellicomm or Liberator Support conference on your local BBS. Intellicomm echoes are available on NorthAmeriNet, RelayNet/RIME, and soon on SmartNet and U'NI- net (the Liberator echo will be renamed). [If the BBS you call picks up one or more of the above networks and does not carry the Intellicomm/Liberator conference, just ask your Sysop to pick it up for you.] I also monitor Communications/Telecommunications and Shareware echoes on the above networks plus EchoNet, ILink and Intelec. Intellicomm support is free to all for the asking. INTELLICOMM -- WHAT IT IS AND IS NOT Intellicomm is a communications program that bristles with useful communications features, but that is unlike any communications program you've ever used -- for Intellicomm was designed and PRICED specifically with users of computer Bulletin Board Systems in mind. If you require terminal emulations other than ANSI, character translation tables, or other such items for calling non PC equipment, you will have to look elsewhere. There are dozens of communications programs available for general communications purposes, and we did not feel it was necessary to add to the heap. However, if you ARE a user of Bulletin Board Systems, you're in for a real treat as this program was designed especially for you. Intellicomm provides you with three levels of support for carrying out your BBS sessions: Manual, semi-automatic, and fully automatic and unattended operation on virtually any BBS in the world! The combination of a full- featured terminal for manual use, a very full-featured automation system for unattended sessions on multiple BBS types (auto mail and file transfers, and much more), and sophisticated tools to help you manage your OFFLINE time, provides a completely different atmosphere to work in, and may change the way you look at "BBSing". Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 2 Along with the hours of manual labour Intellicomm will save you, it also offers benefits such as reduced long distance fees, if you call out-of- town BBS's, since sessions can be carried out unattended overnight when long distance rates are lowest. The speed with which the program carries out an automated session, typing extremely fast, without ever pausing to look at help screens or thinking about what to do next, will also cut down on your overall connect times! Thus you can save not only tedious manual labour, and long distance fees, but you can also get more done each day with your limited online time. If you require further feature information before beginning, please refer to the main User's Manual, ICOM.DOC. A much more detailed feature list welcomes you in that document. REQUIREMENTS Intellicomm requires an IBM PC/XT/AT/386/PS/2 or compatible with 290K of free memory, running PC/MS-DOS 2.0 or higher. It also requires 260K of disk space without the File Tagger, or 360K if you choose to install the File Tagger. You will also need an internal or external modem that has been properly installed and connected to the telephone line. Please refer to the documentation that came with your modem if you have not installed it yet, as modem installation varies widely, and is not covered in this document. If your modem is "Hayes" compatible, Intellicomm setup will take less time. However, virtually any type of modem can be used through proper program setup. INSTALLATION If you downloaded Intellicomm from a BBS, it is recommended BEFORE installing the package using the auto-install program, that you log back onto the BBS and try to download a file called ICOMBIF.ZIP (substitute .ZIP with the compression type used on the BBS). If this file exists, download it and uncompress it into the same directory where the uninstalled Intellicomm package exists. This ICOMBIF archive will contain special setup files for the BBS, which the setup program will automatically install, and will save you time and effort setting up. Once you are ready to begin the installation, change to the disk/directory where the uninstalled Intellicomm package is located and type "GO" to begin. Read the initial information screen, then select "Yes" to continue. As mentioned on the next screen, if installing TO a floppy disk (i.e. to run Intellicomm from drive A:) you should start on drive B: (type B: from DOS before starting) and install to A:\. Intellicomm first looks for its main setup file, ICOM.INI. If this file is not found the program assumes that a new installation is underway, and asks for your monitor type. If the program did NOT ask for your monitor type after typing GO, press 'X' then select 'A' to exit to DOS and type DEL *.INI. Then enter GO again to start over. Select a display type by pressing the 'bold' letter shown within the option, or by using the cursor keys or mouse to move the hilight then press Enter or the left mouse button. [Note that if you wish to stop the installation process for some reason, you may press the Esc key at any time. The "GO" command may be used again when you wish to continue.] Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 3 Next you will be prompted for a drive/directory to install Intellicomm in. If the directory does not exist, it will be created. You are then asked if you wish to install the "File Tagger". The File Tagger is used to browse BBS New Files listings and "Tag" files that you wish to get from BBS's. It also keeps track of files you DO get, and allows you to Tag these and send them to other BBS's. The Tagger has as many features for tagging files/browsing new files lists, as Intellicomm does for calling BBS's, and it is not described in any detail here. Please refer to the User's Manual for more details if you require them. If you do not plan to do file transfers, or do not have the disk space/memory for the Tagger and the 'catalogs' it keeps (the Tagger itself is 100K, catalogs vary in size), then answer "No" to this question. If running off a 360K disk, it is recommended that you do not install the File Tagger. Intellicomm and all necessary files will then be installed, and any necessary subdirectories will be created in the main Icom directory. Next you must enter the communications 'port' your modem is connected to. If you are using an internal modem, normally the port is configured through switches or jumpers on the modem. See your modem manual or call your dealer for details if you do not know which port you're connected to. Note that COM1, COM2, COM3 and COM4 are not as detached as they appear. If you have a mouse driver set up to use COM1, you cannot use your modem on COM3, and likewise with COM2, COM4. There are only two 'lines' inside your computer for all four ports, and COM1/COM3 share the same line while COM2/COM4 share another line. Thus you can never have two 'active' devices sharing the same line. 'Active' includes a mouse, for even if it doesn't move it may still interfere with proper operation of the modem if it's on the same 'line', even if on another port. A printer would not be considered active, so you can normally use a modem on COM1/2 and serial printer on COM3/4. COM5 to COM8 are not standard ports and must be configured in the main setup before use. COM5-8 are initially set up to use COM1. If you must use them, refer to the 'Port' screen when you enter the main setup program in a few seconds, then enter the proper information (advanced use only). Next we move to the 'baud rate' (port speed) your modem uses. See what your modem manual recommends as the proper 'baud rate'. If you have a 2400 baud modem, it should be fine as is. If you have a faster/slower modem, pick the proper baud rate from the menu. Note that if you have what is called an "MNP" or error-correcting modem, the baud rate is normally set HIGHER here than the actual speed of the modem. See your modem manual for details if you have an MNP or other error-correcting modem. INTELLICOMM QUICK SETUP The Intellicomm Setup program is organized into six different 'sections' or screens. To change a given item on each screen, move the hilight bar over the item using the up/down arrow keys, then press 'E' (or hilight Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 4 'Edit' and press Enter/click the left mouse button). Use the same technique to select the various setup screens. In this first run-through it is recommended you look at all the settings on each of the screens, so you will have some idea what is available should you need to make a change later. Note the important items pointed out with the arrow (>), as these items vary in new setups. Each of the important items is described below. Other, less important items, are discussed in the main User's Manual. INTELLICOMM SETUP - GENERAL OPTIONS Password Access Key is used as a safeguard to protect your BBS passwords from alteration or viewing. Intellicomm stores all your passwords for BBS's encrypted in a special file, and does not allow viewing or editing of any password without this key, if you choose to enter one. If you are the only user on the machine you're setting up on, you probably won't need a Password Access Key. All other items on this screen should be fine at their defaults for now. You may come back and change items later, if necessary, by running the SETUP.EXE program directly from DOS, or through a menu option from within Intellicomm. Browse the rest of the screen, to see what is available in case you need it later, then press 'm' to move to the Terminal screen. INTELLICOMM SETUP - TERMINAL ITEMS The first six items on this screen are common communications settings which are completely dependant on your modem. These items must be configured in every communications program. Default Comm. Port was discussed above, before entering the main setup program. Refer to the text above for further information. Default Port Settings is baud, parity, data bits, stop bits. Only the baud rate (port speed) should concern you, as most BBS's use N,8,1. See what your modem manual recommends as the proper 'baud rate'. Software Flow Control should remain on, unless your modem manual specifically states to turn XON/XOFF flow control off. Hardware Flow Control should remain set to "None", unless your modem manual specifically states to turn CTS/RTS or DSR/DTR flow control on. CTS/RTS is almost always used on modems above 2400 baud, though some support DSR/DTR. The main setup automatically turns CTS/RTS on above 2400 baud. Initialize Modem String is probably the most important setting in Intellicomm. If you get this one wrong, chances are very good that you'll run into problems later. This string (group of commands) is sent to your modem each time Intellicomm 'greets' it for the first time (before dialing, etc.), and whatever you define here must handle AT LEAST the Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 5 following: Function "Hayes" command ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Set echo ON E1 Modem returns result codes Q0 Display result codes as WORDS V1 or in Verbose form Enable busy signal detection X4 The best policy is to set 'X' to the highest number available. If X4 is not supported, Intellicomm will not be able to tell when the line is busy when dialing. Enable Carrier Detect &C1 Very important, but may also be set by a switch. If your modem is 1200 baud you must remove this command, and find the switch for carrier detect enable (normally switch 6 on Hayes compatibles). If Carrier detect enable is not set up properly, Intellicomm will be told that it is connected at all times, and this will surely cause it to malfunction. Recognize change in Data Terminal Ready &D2 Must be removed if 1200 baud. & commands are only supported by 2400 baud modems and higher. This causes the modem to hang up if DTR changes. Turn Auto Answer Off S0 Allow Communications Program to handle timeout when dialing S7=255 Modem Hangup String should be set to get your modem into command state (the +++ does this for Hayes compatibles, ~ causes a 1 second pause), then enter whatever command causes a hangup. Note that in most cases a hangup can be caused by lowering the Data Terminal Ready (DTR) status, and Intellicomm tries this first if the item below is set to "Yes". The rest of the items on this screen are not of immediate importance, and can wait until later. Most will never need changing. Press 'D' now to move to the Dialing screen. INTELLICOMM SETUP - DIALING ITEMS Dial Prefix 1 is the command to send to the modem just before sending an actual telephone number. You may use ^ to specify control characters (e.g. ^M is Control-M or Enter), or ~ to cause a one-second pause. The command is usually ATDT for touch-tone, or ATDP for pulse dialing. Dial Prefix 2, 3, and the Dial Codes are for advanced/special purpose use and may be defined later, if necessary. Dial Suffix is what to end a dial command with. The entire dial command is sent to the modem like this (without the angle brackets, of course): <Dial Prefix>PHONE-NUMBER<Dial Suffix> ^M, the default Dial Suffix, is a Carriage Return (the Enter key). Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 6 Dial Connected is the result your modem returns when a connection is made. You should only have to change CONNECT if using a non-standard modem. Auto Baud Detect is supported only on Hayes compatible modems that return connect messages in the format CONNECT 1200, CONNECT 2400, etc. Intellicomm looks for the baud rate immediately following the "Dial Connected" string defined above. If you are using an MNP or error- correcting/high speed modem, Auto Baud Detect is normally turned OFF. Dial Busy/Retry 1-3 defines three result codes from your modem that signify no connection was made from a dial attempt, but to retry the number again later. See your modem manual for suitable result codes. Exclude Dialing 1-3 defines three result codes from your modem that signify no connection was made from a dial attempt, but to EXCLUDE that number from further dialing (not permanently, but it will remain excluded until a connection is eventually made or you exit the dialer). For example, if your modem returns the result VOICE, the number may be out of service, and it would not be necessary to retry it. The number is not permanently excluded, however, since some BBS's operate only during certain times of the day, while regular voice calls are taken at other times. This way, Intellicomm will not continuously redial the number for the current session, but would dial the number again on the next session/day when the BBS may be operating. The rest of the items on this screen should be fine at their default values. The Screen/File Transfer screen may also be saved for later, but it would probably be useful to select it and give it a quick look so you'll know what's there, and why to come back to it later. When you're ready to continue, press 'F' to move to the File/Path screen. INTELLICOMM SETUP - FILE/PATH Mail Reader is the command Intellicomm sends to DOS when you select "Mail Reader" from the Tools menu from within the program. Enter the command to run your Mail Reader just as you would if you were typing it from the DOS command line prompt. Reply Dir is the directory where your Mail Reader places your replies to send to BBS's. Intellicomm always looks for replies in this directory. Message Dir is the directory where your Mail Reader expects to find messages/message packets from BBS's. Intellicomm places all newly downloaded mail in this directory. Main Unpack, 2nd Unpack are presently used only to extract New Files Lists from ".QWK" message packets, which are message packets from a Qmail- compatible message door. Since many Qmail-compatible doors allow multiple compression formats, Intellicomm allows you to define two unpack commands. If the first fails, the second is tried. Arc. Viewer is the command Intellicomm sends to DOS when you select the "Archive Viewer" command from within the program. Enter the command to Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 7 run your Archive Viewer just as you would from the DOS command line. File Viewer is an external file viewing program (such as Buerg's LIST) that is called when you select "View" from several DOS-oriented menus inside Intellicomm. Swap Dir is not pointed out by an arrow, but if you wish to have Intellicomm swap itself out of memory to a RAMdisk when running external programs, enter the RAMdisk path here. SAVING YOUR SETUP After you are satisfied with your settings, select eXit or press Esc, then select Save Changes from the exit menu. This completes the initial setup of Intellicomm, and you will now be turned over to the main program itself. Intellicomm chooses to display a payment reminder (a "price tag", which will be removed after you buy the program, as with anything else you buy) on each startup, rather than 'crippling' certain features as in some other user-supported software. We feel this method is the best, as it keeps track of the usage to show you how much you use the program, and after the reminder allows you to make full use of the program, as according to the original Shareware recipe. THE JOB DIRECTORY, THE TERMINAL, AND THE BBS DIRECTORY You should now be looking at the Job Directory, which is the main area of Intellicomm. All other areas of the program are accessible from here, and it is from here that you will eventually select or Tag "jobs" to Run, which will automatically dial one or more BBS's and carry out entire sessions online. However, first off a quick tour is in order so you can get acquainted with the major areas of importance in the program, and how to move about. We will explore only the major areas together here. Many others will be self-explanatory as you explore on your own later. As always the main User's Manual is available for more detailed help. A useful key to use to move about the major areas of the program is the F1 function key. Press F1 now and you will see a list of program areas, and a key combination beside each area. The Alt-keys are used to change to the area directly, -without- pressing F1 first and calling up this menu. E.g. to move to the BBS Directory, just press Alt-D from almost anywhere. You may use these keys from most major areas of Intellicomm, but not all areas, as it is necessary to disable them during certain activities. If you press a 'hotkey' and it does not work, try F1 and if this menu does not pop up then the hotkeys are currently disabled (in the internal Editor, for example, the hotkeys are not available). The hotkeys are the fastest way to move around the major areas of Intellicomm, and you will probably make frequent use of them after you become familiar with the different keys. Until you memorize them, you can Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 8 use the F1 key to select the area you wish to go to. Press 'X' or Esc now to exit the hotkey menu without changing areas. INTELLICOMM'S TERMINAL To access your modem directly, all communications programs use what is called a Terminal, or "Terminal mode". Whenever Intellicomm communicates with your modem, other than when dialing, it does so through the Terminal. Press 'm' now to select Terminal from the menu, and we'll take a look. There should have been some activity as soon as you selected the Terminal, as Intellicomm "initialized" your modem, by sending the Initialize Modem String which we defined above. The string should be visible on your screen, and hopefully your modem returned OK to signify that the command(s) were accepted. If you have an OK, and the line at the bottom of the screen shows "Offline" on the left side, skip to SHIP-SHAPE below. If your modem displayed ERROR, don't panic. It is probably due to a bad 'command' in the Initialization string. I.e. if you have &C1 or &D2 in the string, and you are using a 1200 baud modem, these commands are most likely the problem as they are normally only supported on 2400 baud modems or higher; X4 may also need changing to X1, X2, or X3 on old modems. You can find out which command caused the error by entering each command prefixed by the AT command. For example: ATE1 X4 <-- example Initialization String [2 commands] ERROR <-- error returned from modem on entry to Terminal ATE1 <-- you now type this to check the first command OK <-- modem returns OK, so it's not this one ATX4 <-- you type this to check the X4 ERROR <-- aha! Here's the culprit ATX3 <-- try a lower X value until OK is returned, OK then change X4 in the init string later If your modem displayed nothing at all, you probably have the wrong Port and/or Baud set up, and should press Alt-P and try different ports/bauds, then try entering ATZ each time until you get an OK back from your modem. Write the proper port/baud down when you discover them. Another common problem that may cause nothing at all to show on the screen is a mouse driver that is using the same 'line' as the modem. See the main setup above where the "Default Comm. Port" is configured, for more details. One of the most common problems with modems is that the factory almost always sets them up to "lie" about whether they are connected or not. Why this is the case we do not know, but if Intellicomm displays "Online" on the status line at the bottom left corner, your modem is "lying"; it is telling Intellicomm that it's connected when it isn't. The program cannot operate with your modem in this state. Normally 1200 baud modems have a switch inside which controls this, referred to in most modem manuals as the "carrier status" switch or "carrier detect" switch. If changing switch 6 to its opposite position doesn't cause Icom to display "Offline" within 5 seconds, put the switch back and go through all Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 9 the others (pausing for at least 5 seconds on each) until you find the proper one. If switches aren't the problem, you may have to enter a special command. Once the command is found in your modem manual, write it down so you can add it to your Initialization String. If you had an improper modem init string, or had the wrong port set, then you must enter the proper information in the Intellicomm main SETUP.EXE program, or you'll run into the same error each time you use the Terminal. You may run SETUP.EXE when we return to the Job Directory in a few minutes. SHIP-SHAPE With your modem ship-shape we can now get on with the show. Note that there isn't much displayed on the Terminal, but this is because we aren't connected to a BBS at present. When we make a connection in a few minutes, you will see text from the BBS here, and will also type things back to the BBS from here. Note the 'status bar' at the bottom of the screen. This bar gives you quick information about the Terminal, such as whether you're connected, and if so who you are connected to and how long you've been connected, or "Offline" if you are not connected. It shows which "mode" Intellicomm is in, either Manual, or Auto, or Script. Auto and Script are both automatic modes, while Manual is... well, manual mode. The port settings are next, baud rate, parity, data bits, stop bits. The capture status is next. "Capture off" means that the capture file is closed, while if a filename is displayed there, such as ICOM.CAP, then the capture file is 'open', or is writing each line that is displayed on the screen right into the file. This way you can review a session with a BBS after you hang up, by browsing the capture file, and catch anything you missed. Alt-Z (or the right mouse button) is what you should press if you forget any of Intellicomm's terminal keys. Note that the F1 key also works here if you wish to exit the Terminal to another area. Since you don't know any of Intellicomm's terminal keys as yet, Alt-Z will probably be used frequently. Press Alt-Z now and browse through the different menus using the cursor keys or your mouse, noting that each command has a key combination displayed beside it. These key combinations are how you select the command directly from the Terminal, without pressing Alt-Z and using the menu. For example, if you want to open/close/pause the capture file, you can press Alt-L directly from the Terminal. That's it for our initial tour of the Terminal. If you require more information, please refer to the main User's Manual later. Open the eXit menu by pressing 'X', then press 'D' to exit the Terminal and move to the BBS Directory. BBS DIRECTORY/BIF FILES Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 10 The BBS Directory is used to Tag/Dial BBS's when placing calls for manual sessions, and to set up the various information for each BBS, such as phone numbers, and your name and password. The first thing we'll do from here is to look at and set up a "template" (the entries with square brackets around their descriptions are templates) with the proper information. These template entries are not to be dialed, as they do not contain any phone numbers. They are used like partially filled out forms, to serve as a starting point for setting up for a new BBS. Hilight one of the templates you're interested in (i.e. if you have a phone number for a BBS of a particular type, such as a PCBoard BBS), and press 'E' to Edit/view it. After the information is loaded from disk, the BBS Notes are automatically displayed for viewing/editing, if any notes exist (if you see BIF Editor on the top line, no notes existed). The notes give you specific information on setting up the BBS for use with Intellicomm, etc. Press Esc to exit the notes when ready. Next you will enter the BBS Information File Editor, or BIF Editor for short. BIFs are organized into five different sections or screens, as you can see on the bottom menu, and they contain the "map" of the BBS that Intellicomm needs to automate various tasks. With BIF templates only a few items must be changed, as these templates have already been almost fully set up. Only information which is specific to you (your name, for example) must be changed. BIF templates are identified by a square bracket ([) starting the "BBS/Host Name" item, and they are different from other BIFs in that they never contain specific phone numbers, port settings or other BBS-specific items; since templates are used as starting point to set up for EVERY BBS of a given type (i.e. whenever you require a new BIF for a PCBoard-type BBS you start with the PCBoard BIF template). Thus, certain BBS-specific items are never saved to disk in templates, whether you enter the information in the BIF Editor or not. The excluded items include Phone Numbers, Port Settings, Last Connected (date), Total Connects, and Password Answer (Logon screen). Each of these items will change from BBS to BBS and thus it would be useless to save them in BIF templates. The fastest way to set up any BIF or template is to give a quick browse to each screen, double-checking the items with an arrow (>) following the item's description. If you don't know what an item is/does, move the hilight bar to it (press TAB to change columns) and read the description on the help line, or select it for Editing and see if you get another menu to clear things up. You can move directly to a specific screen by selecting it from the bottom menu, or just page through each screen using PgUp/PgDn. Please press PgDn now to move to the Logon screen. On this screen, hilight the "Logon Name" item, press 'E' to edit it, then enter your name: +=| Logon/Global Commands |=============| Logon/Global Prompts |========+ Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 11 | Your Logon Name> Wayne Duff Name . . . . . . | Note when you select "Edit" that the help in the box near the bottom changes to give you specific information on entering your name. I.e. you may use ^ to specify control characters (^M = carriage return or Enter, ^[ is Esc, ~ causes a 1 second pause, @SCRIPTNAME runs a script, etc). If you must enter your first/last names separately on the BBS, you may do this by specifying a carriage return after your first name: First^MLast, or First^M~Last ... which may look funny, but it causes Enter to be pressed then pauses for 1 second before entering your last name. If editing the Wildcat template, you must also enter your date of birth and phone number in the two "External Extra" commands near the bottom. MMDDYY means month, day, year of birth, and 1235551234 would be replaced with your area code and phone number (no hyphens or spaces). This is how Wildcat BBS's in North America ask for the information, when verifying it occasionally. Page through the rest of the BIF template if you wish, to check the various other items that have already been set up for you. Select 'X' or press Esc to exit when ready, then press Enter when asked for a filename to re-save the template using the same filename. You will return to the BBS Directory after the BIF information is saved to disk. CALLING A BBS If you have a phone number for a BBS handy, you're ready to start dialing. If you know the 'type' of the BBS for which you have a phone number, hilight that BBS template using the cursor keys. If you don't know the BBS type, hilight "Blank Template". With the proper template hilighted, select "Create". If any notes exist for the BBS, they are automatically displayed each time you Create/Edit a BIF, until you connect to the BBS (normally you will only see the notes once, when you first Create the BIF and enter the phone numbers). Once you connect the notes will not be automatically displayed again. Make sure you heed the information presented in the notes, or you will surely run into automation problems later. Press Esc to exit notes. The first step in setting up a newly Created BIF is to enter a description of the BBS. Since you are not creating a new BIF Template, you shouldn't enter square brackets around the description. What you enter here in the BBS/Host Name item will be displayed later in the BBS Directory. Next, enter up to 5 telephone numbers where indicated. Most Hayes compatible modems don't care whether you use 555-1234, or 5551234, so it's up to you. If you know the highest baud rate of the BBS, set the "Port Settings" to the highest speed supported by both your modem AND the BBS. If you don't know the proper baud rate, just leave it at the default for now. Nothing further should need changing on this screen. Next, press PgDn and check whether the Password Answer entry displays <Confidential> or <NO PASSWORD>. If it displays <Confidential>, Edit the item and REMOVE the password. Intellicomm will attempt to perform an Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 12 automatic logon if a password is defined and in all likelihood you do not want that at this point. Take it one step at a time and get connected manually first. Once you're familiar with the BBS, and become more comfortable with the various BIF "Logon" items and are reasonably confident that they're set up properly for the BBS, you may enter a password and have Intellicomm perform automated logons/sessions. As usual, press eXit to exit (Esc also normally eXits if you prefer that key), then think up a suitable filename to save the BIF under. Filenames are left up to you so that you have direct access to the BIF file itself and can distribute it to others if need be. I.e. if you get a BIF working for a given BBS, you may want to upload the file for others to use. Your password data is always stored separately from the BIF, so you needn't worry about hiding your password when distributing .BIF files. (Please do not distribute a BIF to a BBS until you've used it for at least a couple of weeks with no problems and have tested ALL areas of automation possible on the BBS. Uploading a BIF that is not properly set up/tested will do more harm than good). IMPORTANT: Once you save a BIF under a certain filename, you should never rename the file directly from DOS or you will lose your password. To give a .BIF another name you may "Edit" it, then just enter a new filename when you exit. The old .BIF may then be safely deleted. If you don't understand, simply avoid renaming your .BIF files from DOS and you'll never have to worry about it. Now, hilight the newly Created entry, and press 'D' to Dial. You may cancel dialing at any time by pressing Esc or 'X' for eXit, as usual. Once you connect to the BBS, use ALT-1 to enter your name when the BBS asks for it (a terminal feature types the name set up in the BIF when ALT- 1 is pressed). Note that if you make a mistake entering a command to the BBS, you may call up the Keystroke Buffer, re-edit the command, then re- send it to the BBS. Press Alt-K to call up the Keystroke Buffer for a quick look. You just hilight the command you want to re-send, edit it using the usual editing keys, then press Alt-S and Intellicomm will re- type the full line for you. If you want to re-enter an entire sequence of commands you may hilight the starting point then press Alt-D and all lines from the hilight down will be resent (ENTER is sent after each line). Once you get fully logged on, press ALT-B to enter the "scrollback buffer". This buffer is used to view text that has previously scrolled off the screen, and for many other useful things. The usual cursor keys are used to move the cursor around and page through the scrollback text. Check the first few lines of the scrollback text, just after you connected to the BBS, and it should tell you which TYPE of software is running at the BBS (i.e. PCBoard, RBBS, Wildcat, etc). Take note of the BBS type, and don't worry if you accidentally chose the wrong type when setting up the BIF; you can change the type of BBS very easily. A "block" of text can be marked by holding down a shift key while using the cursor keys, and once a block is marked you may print it, save it to disk or paste it into the Keystroke Buffer to later re-send to the BBS. Blocks may also be marked by pressing ALT-B then moving the cursor without Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 13 holding down the shift keys; use whichever you prefer. With a mouse, blocks are marked by clicking (not holding down) the left mouse button, moving the mouse to mark the block, then pressing the right button to call up the menu to do what you like with the marked block (or click the left button again to cancel the block). Mark a block now, then press ALT-Z or the right mouse button for the menu and you'll see both what you can do with blocks, and what key-combinations accomplish the task without using the menu. When pasting to the Keystroke Buffer, you may have it paste the block and add ENTER after the blocked text, or add a SPACE after the blocked text. If you are familiar with BBS "batch" transfers, and how filenames are usually entered separated by spaces, you will see the purpose of the latter. The intended purpose of pasting blocks from the Scrollback to Keystroke buffer is to allow you to request listings of files from the BBS (a file search, or what have you), then enter the Scrollback Buffer to view the files and paste certain filenames into the Keystroke Buffer for later entry to the BBS (it saves writing them down). If a SPACE is added after each paste, the filenames pasted will end up on the SAME line of the Keystroke Buffer, each separated by a space... from the BBS you then request a batch transfer and dump the line of filenames. Select "Exit Editor" to exit the scrollback editor from the Alt-Z menu, or just press Esc from outside the menu, and you will return to the Terminal. CHECKING THE BBS FOR A PRE-DEFINED BIF The first thing to check when you log onto a new BBS that you want to automate is whether the Sysop or someone else (or Liberation Enterprises) has set up a BBS Information File for that particular BBS. If so, much of the work is done and you are very close to full automation. File downloading techniques/commands vary from BBS to BBS, but normally you must access the File Menu (if there is one), then enter D for download, then to get the pre-defined BIF, enter the filename ICOMBIF.ZIP. When asked for a protocol, select "Zmodem" if available, and the file should transfer automatically: if Zmodem isn't available select Ymodem, Xmodem- 1K, or regular Xmodem as available, then press PgDn and pick the same protocol on the Intellicomm file menu (Enter ICOMBIF.ZIP if asked for a filename). Then follow these short instructions to install the BIF once disconnected: 1) Uncompress the file (PKUNZIP ICOMBIF.ZIP from DOS) and view any instructions in a README file (TYPE README.TXT, etc). The README file may contain special installation instructions that should be used instead of these instructions. 2) Type "COPY <name>.BIF \ICOM\BIF" from DOS (no quotes) to copy it into your BIF directory -- <name> being the BIF name, and \ICOM\BIF being your BIF directory. 3) Enter Icom's BBS Directory and select "Read" to read the new BIF into your directory. 4) "Edit" the BIF to enter the proper port settings and your name/ password on the Logon screen. That's it! If the BIF was set up properly you should be ready to set up "Jobs" to run from the Job Directory. This is as easy as selecting "Create" from the Job Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 14 Directory, hilighting/selecting the proper BIF, then typing in the numbers of the jobs you want to automate... Believe it or not, it can be that simple with a properly defined BIF. If the BBS notes told you to turn [X]pert mode on, or to turn BBS hotkeys on, etc., now is a good time to do it. You may then disconnect, and will be automatically returned to the BBS Directory when the connection breaks. Next, "Edit" the BIF again so we may demonstrate one more useful item before leaving you to experiment for a while on your own. If you earlier set up the BIF using the "Blank Template" or chose the wrong BBS type, you will be happy to know that all you need to do to remedy the situation is to select "Merge" from the bottom menu, then hilight the proper template from the menu and Select it. This will cause the BIF Template to be merged with the current BIF, thus resetting all the prompts/commands and most other items to the settings from the template. Items that are protected during Merges are BBS/Host Name, Phone Numbers/Port Settings, your Password, and your Logon Name (if the logon name was blank in the current BIF, it will be replaced with the name from the template though). Thus you will never lose these items in a Merge, but all others will be overwritten with the template data. If you're feeling energetic, you may want to enter your BBS password in the BIF now, eXit re-save it and try an auto-logon (just use Dial again to have it dial/auto-logon... the password itself is the key that triggers auto-logon attempts). A successful auto-logon is your next goal if you intend to use Intellicomm for automated sessions. Auto-logon or even automation problems are usually quite easy to fix, and normally result from the fact that the BBS Operator changed the format of a given question or message, causing Intellicomm to ignore it as it does any other regular text. Just make a note of the prompt/question that it got stuck at, "Edit" the BIF, and enter the question as is showed up on the BBS (make sure that you don't use text that commonly shows up elsewhere; i.e. "password" usually works well as the password prompt to cause Intellicomm to enter your password -- but that word may also show up in various other places such as logon news, bulletins, or even on the main menu, so make sure you use some punctuation ("Password?", or "Password:") where possible). Make sure you define enough of the prompt so that Intellicomm won't confuse it with other text from the BBS, and of course avoid text that changes such as the time of day or how long you've been connected for (yes, it has been attempted). The EXAMPLES.DOC file, included with Intellicomm, contains example setups for MegaMail/Qmail-type door automation, and explains how to set up for automated file downloads. If you're interested in either of these, please refer to this document at your next opportunity. ICOM.DOC can be explored at your leisure, whenever you require specific information on a given item or area of the program (each section discusses a different area; you needn't sit down and read the entire manual like a book). Help with full automation and many other useful tips, techniques and tidbits are presented in the main documentation. The time spent learning the program will more than pay itself back with Intellicomm v0.94 Quick Start 15 unattended use -- learn it once, then sit back and enjoy the benefits!