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************************************************************ * * * The Weather Board (R) Weather Forecast Retrieval System * * * * * * Copyright (c) 1993-94 By Rhino Ware * * * ************************************************************ The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS ----------------- TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................ 1 COPYRIGHT NOTICE ................................. 2 WARRANTY ......................................... 2 TRADEMARKS ....................................... 2 INTRODUCTION ..................................... 2 Feature Summary .............................. 3 HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS ............................ 5 INSTALLATION ..................................... 5 Basic Setup for Weather Board ................. 5 The Configuration File ........................ 6 Color Codes ................................... 6 About Modem Settings .......................... 7 HOW IT WORKS ..................................... 8 REGISTRATION INFORMATION ......................... 9 How to obtain your Registered Version ......... 9 Registration Policy ........................... 10 WEATHERMATION NUMBERS ............................ A-1 CONFIGURATION EXAMPLES ........................... B-1 SPECIAL NOTES TO DESQVIEW USERS .................. C-1 WEATHER REPORTING STATION CITY CODES ............. D-1 REGISTRATION FORM ................................ E-1 The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 2 COPYRIGHT NOTICE ---------------- Weather Board is a copyrighted program being distributed under the shareware concept. As such, you may operate Weather Board for a period of 30 days without registering the software. After the 30 day evaluation period, you must register your copy of Weather Board or you will be in violation of United States and International copyright laws. As a shareware program, Weather Board may be freely distributed through a BBS. Shareware distributors may distribute copies of Weather Board on disk for a modest disk duplication charge not to exceed $6 per disk. It is a violation of the Weather Board license agreement to modify the EXE file in any way. WARRANTY -------- Weather Board is distributed without warranty. In no event will Joe Rhinehart or Rhino Ware be liable to you for damages, including any loss of profits, lost savings, or other incidental or consequential damages arising out of your use of or inability to use the program, even if Joe Rhinehart, Rhino Ware or an authorized representative has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Joe Rhinehart or Rhino Ware will not be liable for any such claim by any other party. Once the program has been registered, there will be NO REFUNDS of the registration fee. It is the user's responsibility to be certain that Weather Board runs on their system, and meets their needs, BEFORE they register! TRADEMARKS ---------- Weather Board is a registered trademark of Joe Rhinehart and Rhino Ware. All other brand and product names mentioned in this manual are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. INTRODUCTION ------------ Welcome to Weather Board! To many people's surprise, a BBS Sysop can provide callers with the local weather forecast. The whole process is very low cost, possibly free! Many airports around the country run a system which provides weather information to pilots, called Weathermation. Although the service is mainly for pilots, to assist them in filing flight plans, etc., anyone is permitted to access the information. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 3 The Weathermation system has many options, one of which is called Metro Weather. This option produces a plain English weather forecast for any area of the country, based on the three letter airport ID that you supply. Weather Board will call the airport's Weathermation number, select the Metro option and write an editied text file containing your local area's forecast. The National Weather Service updates the forecast about every six hours. The appoximate times are 9:00 am, 3:00 pm, 9:00 pm and 3:00 am. This varies, up to plus or minus 45 minutes. Of course, if the weather changes profoundly between normal update times, the NWS will issue "updated" or "corrected" reports. These can become available at any time. You'll have to call the closest airport to get your local Weathermation number, if its not in the list that is presented later in this document. Ask for their airport ID also, if you don't already know it. Bear in mind that the closest Weathermation system may still be a long distance call for you. That's why I said it is very low cost and POSSIBLY free. There is no charge for the service, but you may have to pay long distance telephone charges. Typically, you can capture the forecast in less than a minute, so even if you do have to call long distance, your cost for providing this service should be minimal. One of Weather Board's chief design goals is ease of installation and use. It is designed specifically to be run from a batch file, called as an event from a BBS program or front end mailer. Thus, it can run completely unattended. If desired, it can also be run manually from the Dos prompt, or under a multi tasker. Feature Summary --------------- Although Weather Board is a relatively new program, it comes equipped with many powerful features. * - The program transforms the output file into upper / lower case, and removes many of the unnecessary or unsightly items from the raw Weathermation capture file. It also checks for incomplete and garbled weather reports. Some blank lines are added for improved readability of the output files. * - Weather Board can make use of "primary" and "secondary" telephone numbers. The primary number is the number you perfer to call most often. The secondary number is a "backup" number, in case the primary number is down, busy, etc. The program will automatically switch to the secondary number if the forecast can't be obtained from the primary Weathermation site. You can disable this feature if you wish. * - You can customize screen colors, the modem initialization string, Tone or Pulse dialing, communications port and baud rate, Weathermation phone numbers, number of busy retries and output files. All this is done in a plain text configuration file, which is similar in layout to one used in a BBS door. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 4 * - Error level support for batch files: 0 - Normal Completion. The weather information was retrieved. 1 - Minor Error: Shareware version of the program has expired. 3 - Minor Error: Weather Information not retrieved. Program restart is possible, depending on the batch file setup. 5 - Major Error: Weather Information not retrieved. Program restart is not possible. * - There is a sound option that will make the program beep once for a return code of 0, and three and five times for error codes 3 and 5, respectively. * - Multiple Forecasts to let you do two local city forecasts and two state summary forecasts with one run of the program. If you put CMH LAX in line 4 of WB.CFG, you'll get the reports for Columbus and Los Angeles in the local forecast output file. If you put OH CA in line 8, you'll get the state summaries for Ohio and California in the state summary output file. Here's the neat part. If you put OH CA in line 4, you'll get a local forecast output file that contains forecasts for most major cities in both states. What cities you get will depend on where the National Weather Service offices are in that state. Couple this with OH CA in line 8, to get the state summaries, and you'll obtain a wealth of weather information for a fairly wide area. This is handy for people that live near state borders and need weather reports for both states. See the Configuration Examples section for details. * - Edit Mode. There are two options for Edit Mode, FULL and JET. FULL edit does lower case translation, and capitalization all over the place, as required. It doesn't get everything all the time, but it handles about 98% of the situations it encounters. But this takes time. JET bypasses the lower case phase of the editor. It also will not add blank lines in quite as many places as FULL does. However, the same file size that takes FULL 10 minutes can be done by JET in about 25 seconds. If you are getting forecasts for one city and state, or at least not very many cities and one state, use FULL. It doesn't take very long on small capture files, and it will make your output files look the best. If you need reports for a large area, or the reports you ask for tend to generate large capture files, use JET. Your output files will be in upper case, and they might not look quite as nice as with FULL, but your BBS will come back up a LOT faster with JET. You'll just have to experiment and see which option is right for you. * - State Summary File. The program will get the weather summary for the state(s) of your choice and place it in a file name of your choice. * - There is a log file so you can see what went on during a batch run. You can turn logging off if you don't want it. * - Most Dos error codes are handled by name, and clear error messages are printed, explaining what went wrong. If an error code pops up that isn't recognized, it is printed also. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 5 * - The program will check for the modem responses of OK, CONNECT, BUSY, ERROR, NO DIAL TONE, NO CARRIER, NO ANSWER, VOICE and RING. * - You can control whether the program takes the modem offhook during its file edit phase or not. * - Weather Board should run under any operating system that supports MS-Dos applications. I developed it under Windows 3.1. HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS ---------------------- Weather Board has very small hardware requirements. It will run on an IBM PC or compatible computer with 640K of memory, a 100% Hayes compatible modem, monochrome monitor and a 360k floppy drive. INSTALLATION ------------ The first step in using any computer program is to install it. Weather Board was designed with the Sysop in mind. So, if you've ever installed an online door, you should have no difficulty installing Weather Board. Basic Setup For Weather Board ------------------------------ Typically, Weather Board is set up as an external event to be run from a BBS or front end mailer package. Weather Board should run with any program that supports external events. After step 3 below, you can run Weather Board standalone, from a Dos session, by typing Z. Step 4 is just for event setup. 1. Create a directory for Weather Board, usually C:\WB, and move all files in the Weather Board archive to it. 2. Edit the WB.CFG file for the correct com port, and other options. The init string should turn off your modem's error correction and put the phone back on the hook, if its off hook. The default configuration file is set up to call the Virginia Tech number and get the forecast for Columbus, Ohio. Change it accordingly for your area. See the following sections for more details on this subject. 3. Edit the copy statements in the Z.BAT file so the program output files will be copied to one of your BBS's display or bulletin files. The default batch file is set up for the Wildcat BBS package. 4. Set up an external event in your BBS or front end mailer program to run at the appropriate time(s). Make sure the event is set to "forced", "non sliding", "hard" or whetever your package needs to ensure that the event runs on time. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 6 To run Weather Board under Windows, copy WB.PIF to your main Windows directory, then add a program item for Weather Board to any program group that you choose. See the Windows online help for more information on this procedure. To run Weather Board with Front Door, add the contents of the FDBBS.TXT file to your main Front Door batch file, in the proper places. Set up an eXternal event in Front Door to run Weather Board at the appropriate time(s). The default error level in FDBBS.TXT is 45. NOTE: Some Front End / Fossil driver combinations leave the driver active when they shell out to run external events. While I have not found this to be a problem with Front Door and X00, some problems have been reported with other combinations. If Weather Board can't open the comm port, or send the init string to the modem, you will have to temporarily disable the fossil driver before WB is started. Then reenable it before you restart your front end or BBS. The Configuration File ---------------------- Weather Board uses a configuration file to govern its appearance and operation. Its name is WB.CFG, and it must exist in the Weather Board directory for the program to run. Below is the format for the file. Lines can be in upper or lower case, but all of them must be present. See the Configuration Examples section for setup help. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. The communications port (COM1: or COM2:) 2. The baud rate (9600 maximum, 1200 - 2400 usually) 3. The airport ID(s) for the local forecast(s) (See examples) 4. Complete output file name for the local area forecast(s) 5. Phone number of the Primary Weathermation System (no dashes) 6. Tone / Pulse dialing string (ATDT or ATDP) 7. Modem init string or NONE 8. State code(s) for the state summary forecast(s) (See examples) 9. COLOR or MONO screen attributes 10. Foreground color (0 - 15) 11. Background color (0 - 7) 12. Number of dial retries (0 - 32767) 3 to 6 usually 13. Log Status - LOG or NOLOG 14. Sound Option - BEEP or NOBEEP 15. Phone number of the Secondary Weathermation System or NONE 16. Edit Mode - FULL or JET 17. Complete output file name for the state summary forecast(s) 18. Modem Hook Control - YES or NO -------------------------------------------------------------------- Color Codes ----------- The following is a list of DOS color codes. The "Blink" background means that the foreground character will blink on and off when the background is set to one of the background color codes 8 through 15. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 7 The "Blink" codes are not supported by Weather Board. Background Color Foreground Color -------------------------------------------------- 0 - Black 0 - Black 1 - Blue 1 - Blue 2 - Green 2 - Green 3 - Cyan 3 - Cyan 4 - Red 4 - Red 5 - Magenta 5 - Magenta 6 - Brown 6 - Brown 7 - White 7 - White 8 - Black Blink 8 - Dark Grey 9 - Blue Blink 9 - Light Blue 10 - Green Blink 10 - Light Green 11 - Cyan Blink 11 - Light Cyan 12 - Red Blink 12 - Light Red 13 - Magenta Blink 13 - Light Magenta 14 - Brown Blink 14 - Yellow 15 - White Blink 15 - Bright White ---------------------------------------------------- To add color to your display file or bulletin, edit the WTOP.ASC and WBOT.ASC files. Add whatever codes are recognized by your BBS package to activate color. For Wildcat 3.x, it would be something like this: @06@ at the beginning of the bar in WTOP @0B@ at the end of the bar in WTOP @06@ at the beginning of the bar in WBOT @0F@ at the end of the bar in WBOT B and F are Wildcat's codes for 11 and 15. For BBS packages that use straight Ascii to generate color, you would need to add the Ansi escape sequences manually, with a text editor, or with an Ansi editor, such as The Draw. About Modem Settings --------------------- Weather Board will run only on com port 1 or 2. Its maximum connect rate is 9600 baud. Standard IRQ settings should be used. Also, the Weathermation software does not get along with error correcting modems. In order for these modems to connect and retrieve the weather forecast properly, you need to temporarily disable your modem's error correcting feature. This is done with the Init String option in the WB.CFG file. The string must start with the letters AT followed by whatever command disables the feature for your modem. Here are some examples: USR Sportster : AT&M0 USR Courier HST : AT&M0 Cardinal 9600 : AT\N0 Intel 144I : AT\N0 Digicom Scout + : AT*E0 Boca 14.4k : AT&Mn Compucom Champ : AT&F\N0 The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 8 Using the above strings will not write the setting into your modem's NRAM. See your modem manual for the setting you need. It should be listed under something like "error control" or "error correction". This explanation only applies to error correcting modems. If you are running a modem that does not support /ARQ or /MNP connections, you can use the word NONE in the Init String line of WB.CFG, and get a proper connection to Weathermation. Another use for the Init String is to disable call waiting service, if you have it. If your computer is using a phone line that has this service, and a call comes in, your modem will be disconnected. For touch tone telephones, use AT*70, for pulse (rotary) systems, use AT1170. This will disable call waiting for the current call only. The service will reactivate when the current call ends. One other use for the Init String is to increase the intelligence level of your modem, by adding an X value. Most BBS packages set the X value to X1, which provides minimum modem capabilities. For Weather Board, you should use the highest X value that your modem supports. This is usually between X4 and X7. Another interesting note is that some modems return a result code of RINGING while the remote telephone line is ringing. This will give Weather Board fits, because the code will be taken as a RING, or incomming call. If your modem returns RINGING, reduce the X value to a number that will disable the RINGING result code. Special note to users of the new USR HST Dual Standard 16.8k modem: You may need to add an &F as the first command of your init string. Also, if you are running with an X value of X7 and experience connection problems with the Weathermation system, try a more conservative setting, like X4. It seems that these modems tend to "outsmart" themselves, and these two changes usually fix the problem. HOW IT WORKS ------------- Here's an overview of Weather Board in operation. First, it calls the Weathermation number listed in the Primary Number line of WB.CFG. If there is no answer, the number of busy retries is exceeded, etc., then the Secondary number is called. The connection attempt process is repeated. If Weather Board still can't connect, it gives up and exits. If a connection is made to either number, Weather Board attempts to get two weather reports: The local Metro forecast, and the State Summary forecast. The uneditied capture file names are as follows: The local forecast file is made up of the entry on line 3 of WB.CFG plus "L.DAT". Example: CMH on line 3 creates CMHL.DAT. The state forecast file is made up of the entry on line 8 of WB.CFG plus "S.DAT". Example: OH on line 8 creates OHS.DAT. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 9 The editied display file names are as follows: The local forecast file is made up of the entry on line 4 of WB.CFG. The state forecast file is taken from the entry on line 17. You must specify a full filename and extension on both of these entries. At present, there isn't an option to get one report or the other, but provisions have been made to allow the display of either or both reports, via the Z.BAT file. Here's how: In the example configuration files, the editied forecasts are stored in CMH2.DAT and OH2.DAT. The batch file simply appends these files together with the WTOP.ASC, WMID.ASC, and WBOT.ASC files and copies them to the proper places. So, depending on how you set up the copy statements in Z.BAT, you can dispplay either or both forecast files in one or more bulletins or display files. REGISTRATION INFORMATION ------------------------ Skeptical about registering Weather Board? Its understandable. I want to say right up front that I'm not one of those "grab the money & run" guys. Running a BBS and doing PC programming is my main hobby. Its the thing that I do with my spare time. I've been a Sysop since 1986, and I intend to be one for a long time to come. I'm no 90 day wonder kid either. As of this writing, I'm closing in on age 40, and have been in data processing for over 20 years. So, when I tell you that you're going to get certain things in exchange for your money, you can believe it! Registration of Weather Board is $10.00. Payment must be made in US funds, drawn on a US bank. Check or Money Order is accepted, made payable to Joe Rhinehart. The registration form is on page E-1. Mail to: Rhino Ware c/o Joe Rhinehart 760 Cherryhurst Drive Columbus, Oh 43228-2795 How to obtain your Registered Version -------------------------------------- Once you're sent in the completed registration and payment: 1. Allow a few days for the mail to reach here. 2. Call The Comm * Port at 1-614-870-6544 (14400) 3. When you log on, from the Main Menu, pick M to go to the message section. Then select R to read messages, and U for unread personal messages. Press enter to search selected conferences. Be sure to use the same name on the BBS that you used on your registration form. If you send in the form using Charles Smith, then log onto the BBS as Chuck Smith, you won't find your message! The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System 10 4. Your registered copy of Weather Board will be attached to your personal message. Select D to download it. That's it. I think you'll find this a faster, less complicated way to get your registered copy. You won't have to wait to get a return package, or have it get lost in the mail. And I can put your message & file online within minutes of receiving your payment. Registration Policy -------------------- What do you get when you register? Ok, let's say you register version 1.00. First, you get a registered program that will never expire, or display any shareware "nag" messages to you or your users. The shareware version expires every 60 days. Next, you'll be entitled to all minor updates (1.01 to 1.xx) free of charge. After you obtain your first registered copy, I'll upgrade your security so you will have access to a special Weather Board conference and file area on my BBS. That way, you can get all future file updates and ask questions about Weather Board. You can also get help on setup or other program related matters. If there is a major update (1.xx to 2.00), then you'll have to pay for it. But, since you are a registered user, your cost is only $5.00 as opposed to the $10.00 for a new registration. Then, any minor updates (2.01 to 2.xx) will once again be free. I'll notify everyone about major updates via message in the Weather Board conference, or the BBS newsletter file. I hope you enjoy using Weather Board! The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System A-1 WEATHERMATION NUMBERS ---------------------- These are all of the WeatherMation numbers I know about. If you find any more numbers, let me know. I'll update this list ASAP! California: 2400 baud Fresno (209) 498-1027 Michigan : 2400 baud St. Joseph (616) 927-6007 Minnesota: 2400 baud Minneapolis / St. Paul (612) 941-0312 Nebraska : 1200 baud North Platte (308) 532-1625 (2400) Beatrice (402) 223-2479 Fall City (402) 245-5963 Lincoln (402) 471-4567 Ohio: 1200 baud Columbus (614) 889-5803 Pennsylvania: Pittsburgh (412) 466-7232 (9600 Baud) Allentown (610) 791-2904 (2400 Baud) Erie (814) 833-1180 (1200 Baud) Virginia: 2400 baud Abingdon (703) 628-9764 Lonesome Pine (703) 328-8616 Manassas (703) 369-7209 or (703) 369-2474 Mountain Empire (703) 686-6534 or (703) 783-8114 New River Valley (703) 674-1518 Roanoke (703) 362-1151 Shannon (703) 899-0574 Shenandoah Valley (703) 234-9175 Virginia Tech (703) 231-5001 Winchester (703) 662-5645 Accomack (804) 787-7301 Charlottesville (804) 973-3518 The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System A-2 Chesapeake (804) 421-4361 Chesterfield (804) 271-7139 Danville (804) 799-5028 Emporia (804) 634-0602 Hampton Roads (804) 488-7817 Lynchburg (804) 237-5721 Mecklenburg (804) 729-2216 Norfolk (804) 857-0941 Petersburg (804) 861-5559 Richmond (804) 236-3644 Suffolk (804) 539-0827 Williamsburg (804) 220-8810 If you have a problem with any Virginia number, call the VA Depertment of Aviation at (804) 236-3624. Washington 2400 baud Seattle (206) 767-3950 Spokane (509) 536-5614 Yakima (509) 453-5052 Wisconsin: 2400 baud Appleton (1) (414) 735-7003 Appleton (2) (414) 738-3035 Brookfield (414) 781-8377 Burlington (414) 763-9564 Fond Du Lac (414) 922-6551 Green Bay (414) 498-4891 Hartford (414) 673-4571 Juneau (414) 386-2418 Kenosha (1) (414) 658-0870 Kenosha (2) (414) 656-0587 Manitowoc (414) 683-4599 Milwaukee (1) (414) 747-0510 Milwaukee (2) (414) 747-4864 Milwaukee (3) (414) 462-6528 Oconto (414) 834-3454 Oshkosh (1) (414) 231-4764 Oshkosh (2) (414) 426-4905 Oshkosh (3) (414) 231-7596 Racine (414) 631-5639 Sheboygan (414) 467-3841 Sturgeon Bay (414) 743-2820 Sylvania (414) 886-1688 Watertown (414) 262-0808 Waukesha (414) 549-3189 Waupaca (414) 867-2490 West Bend (414) 334-3617 Wilmot (414) 862-6933 Madison (608) 267-9180 Wisconsin Rapids (715) 423-9121 The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System B-1 Configuration Examples ---------------------- Here are some examples of WB.CFG to show you what Weather Board can do. Take note of lines 3 and 8 in each example. 1. The "basic" setup. Get the local forecast for one city and the state summary for one state. In this case, Columbus, and Ohio. Enable the sound option an do full editing with hook control on. COM1: 2400 CMH CMH2.DAT 17032315001 ATDT AT&M0 OH COLOR 15 3 3 LOG BEEP 18044214361 FULL OH2.DAT YES 2. Get the local forecast for several major cities in one state and the state summary for one state. In this case, all of Ohio. No sound and full editing without hook control. COM1: 2400 OH CMH2.DAT 17032315001 ATDT AT&M0 OH COLOR 15 3 3 LOG NOBEEP 18044214361 FULL OH2.DAT NO The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System B-2 3. Get the local forecast for several major cities in two states and the state summary for two states. In this case, Ohio and West Virginia. Use sound, and Jet editing with hook control. Use the Monochrome screen settings. COM1: 2400 OH WV CMH2.DAT 17032315001 ATDT AT&M0 OH WV MONO 15 3 3 LOG BEEP 18044214361 JET OH2.DAT YES 4. Get the local forecast for two cities in two states and the state summary for two states. In this case, Columbus, Ohio and Phoenix, Arizona. No sound, and Jet editing without hook control. COM1: 2400 CMH PHX CMH2.DAT 17032315001 ATDT AT&M0 OH AZ COLOR 15 3 3 LOG NOBEEP 18044214361 JET OH2.DAT NO Note that you can only specify a maximum of two report areas for both the local and state forecasts. If you need more, you'll have to modify the batch file to do multiple runs of the program. This is due to Dos file naming conventions. Sorry, fortunes of war. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System C-1 Special Notes to Desqview Users -------------------------------- Several people who use Desqview as a multitasker have said that Weather Board will not run in that environment. Well, it will, if you do it a certain way. The most common complaint is a DEVICE UNAVAILABLE error at line 900. This is where WB attempts to open the communications port. The problem is usually caused by spawning to another DV window, and trying to run WB while the BBS node or front end mailer is still up. In this case, the program in the original window still controls the com port. In order for WB to work, it MUST be able to get exclusive control of the port while it is running. This can be accomplished by having the BBS or front end shell to Dos in the original window, and run Z.BAT from that window. This should cause the calling program (and DV) to temporarily release the port, so WB can have it. Then, WB in turn will release the port when it ends, allowing DV and the calling program to reclaim it. Here's something else to check. You must have the USES SERIAL PORTS setting in the .DVP set with the COM # or Y, like this: Options: Writes text directly to screen.......: [Y] Displays graphics information........: [Y] Virtualize text/graphics (Y,N,T).....: [Y] ===>> Uses serial ports (Y,N,1,2)..........: [1] or 2 or Y Requires floppy diskette.............: [N] The line marked above MUST have one of the choices I've outlined, but never " N ". Otherwise Weather Board will not find the port. I'm not sure why it works like this, but many door programs have the same trouble. It may be because Weather Board doesn't have (or need) fossil driver support. If you still experience problems running Weather Board from your BBS under Desqview, try these tests before spending money to call for help. 1. Shut Desqview down, and try running Z.BAT from native DOS. Once you get that going, go to step 2. 2. Bring up DV, but shut down ALL nodes of your BBS / mailer. Start up one DV window, and run Z.BAT from there. If this works, try step 3. 3. Bring up all BBS / mailer nodes, EXCEPT the node that runs on the same port as WB. IE, if you use COM1: for WB, leave the BBS node that uses COM1: down. Now run Z.BAT from its own window. If this works, go to step 4. 4. Re-check the settings for the node that uses the same port as WB. Be sure that Z.BAT is set to run as an external event, and that the BBS / mailer shells out to Dos, or leaves memory in some other way, so that the port and other resources of the DV window are released, BEFORE the WB program begins to run. Be sure the DV Pif is correct. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System C-2 If the full setup still doesn't work, give my BBS a jingle, and leave me a message. Please attach a ZIP file to the message, that contains your WB.CFG and WB.LOG file. That way, I can get an idea of what is or isn't happening when you run the program. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-1 Weather Reporting Station City Codes ------------------------------------- AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- YYC AB Calgary YOD AB Cold Lake YEG AB Edmonton YPY AB Fort Chipewyan YMM AB Fort MacMurray YQU AB Grande Prairie YOJ AB High Level YLB AB Lac La Biche YQL AB Lethbridge YLL AB Lloydminster YXH AB Medicine Hat YPE AB Peace River YQF AB Red Deer YRM AB Rocky Mt. House YZH AB Wagner YZU AB Whitecourt Z60 AK Ambler ANC AK Anchorage ANI AK Aniak BRW AK Barrow BTI AK Barter Island BET AK Bettles BTT AK Bettles BIG AK Big Delta 5BI AK Big River Lakes Z68 AK Cantwell CSP AK Cape Spencer CRC AK Circle City CDB AK Cold Bay CDV AK Cordova SCC AK Deadhorse DLG AK Dillingham Z56 AK Dolly Vard Platform DUT AK Dutch Harbor 2Z0 AK Emmonak FAI AK Fairbanks FYU AK Fort Yukon GAM AK Gambell GKN AK Gulkana 5HR AK Hayes River HOM AK Homer ILI AK Iliamna JNU AK Juneau ENA AK Kenai KTN AK Ketchikan AKN AK King Salmon 9Z1 AK Klawock ADQ AK Kodiak OTZ AK Kotzebue 5WO AK Lazy Mountain MCG AK McGrath MYU AK Mekoryuk MDO AK Middleton Island MHM AK Minchumina ENN AK Nenana IKO AK Nikolski OME AK Nome ORT AK Northway PAQ AK Palmer 5PX AK Paxson PSG AK Petersburg PTH AK Port Heiden PTI AK Puntilla SNP AK Saint Paul SDP AK Sand Point 5WD AK Seward SHH AK Shishmaref SIT AK Sitka SGY AK Skagway SKW AK Skwentna 5SZ AK Slana KSM AK St Marys TKA AK Talkeetna TAL AK Tanana UMT AK Umiat UNK AK Unalakleet VWS AK Valdez WSO 5WT AK Whittier Z22 AK Willow CYT AK Yakataga YAK AK Yakutat BHM AL Birmingham CKL AL Centerville DHN AL Dothan HSV AL Huntsville MOB AL Mobile MGM AL Montgomery ELD AR El Dorado FYV AR Fayetteville FSM AR Fort Smith HRO AR Harrison HOT AR Hot Springs JBR AR Jonesboro LIT AR Little Rock LZK AR Little Rock RDR PBF AR Pine Bluff TXK AR Texarkana The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-2 AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- DUG AZ Douglas/Bisbee GBN AZ Gila Bend GCN AZ Grand Canyon IGM AZ Kingman PGA AZ Page PHX AZ Phoenix PRC AZ Prescott E74 AZ Safford TUS AZ Tucson INW AZ Winslow NYL AZ Yuma YXX BC Abbotsford YCJ BC Cape St James YCG BC Castlegar YQQ BC Comox YXC BC Cranbrook YEP BC Estevan Point YYE BC Fort Nelson YXJ BC Fort St John YHE BC Hope YKA BC Kamloops YYF BC Penticton YZT BC Port Hardy YXS BC Prince George YPR BC Prince Rupert YQZ BC Quesnel YZP BC Sandspit YYD BC Smithers YXT BC Terrace YVC BC Vancouver YYJ BC Victoria YWL BC Williams Lake ACV CA Arcata BFL CA Bakersfield BIH CA Bishop BLH CA Blythe NID CA China Lake DAG CA Daggett FOT CA Fortuna FAT CA Fresno IPL CA Imperial WJF CA Lancaster LAX CA Los Angeles MRY CA Monterey PRB CA Paso Robles RBL CA Red Bluff SAC CA Sacramento SAN CA San Diego SFO CA San Francisco NSI CA San Nicolas Is SBA CA Santa Barbara TRM CA Thermal NXP CA Twentynine Palms UKI CA Ukiah AKO CO Akron ALS CO Alamosa ASE CO Aspen COS CO Colorado Springs CEZ CO Cortez CAG CO Craig DEN CO Denver FCL CO Fort Collins GJT CO Grand Junction GUC CO Gunnison HDN CO Hayden LHX CO La Junta 4LJ CO Lamar LIC CO Limon MTJ CO Montrose PUB CO Pueblo SBS CO Steamboat Springs TAD CO Trinidad HVN CT New Haven BDL CT Windsor Locks DOV DE Dover AFB AQQ FL Apalachicola CTY FL Cross City DAB FL Daytona Beach FMY FL Fort Myers JAX FL Jacksonville EYW FL Key West MLB FL Melbourne MIA FL Miami PBI FL Palm Beach PFN FL Panama City NPA FL Pensacola PIE FL St Petersburg TLH FL Tallahassee TBW FL Tampa Bay The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-3 AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- ABY GA Albany AHN GA Athens ATL GA Atlanta AGS GA Augusta CSG GA Columbus MCN GA Macon RME GA Rome SAV GA Savannah AYS GA Waycross 2XG GM Gulf of Mexico 4J3 GM Gulf of Mexico H51 GM Gulf of Mexico H52 GM Gulf of Mexico H61 GM Gulf of Mexico T01 GM Gulf of Mexico T06 GM Gulf of Mexico T07 GM Gulf of Mexico H39 GM High Island A572C SAWRS oil rig station ITO HI Hilo HNL HI Honolulu OGG HI Kahului K53 HI Kailua-Kona JHM HI Kapalua KOA HI Ke-ahole P63 HI Kilauea Point LNY HI Lanai City LIH HI Lihue MKK HI Molokai 1Z2 HI Upolu Point Ln MUE HI Waimea-Kohala BRL IA Burlington CID IA Cedar Rapids DSM IA Des Moines DBQ IA Dubuque FOD IA Fort Dodge 3OI IA Lamoni MCW IA Mason City OTM IA Ottumwa SUX IA Sioux City 3SE IA Spencer ALO IA Waterloo BOI ID Boise PIH ID Pocatello 27U ID Salmon CMI IL Champaign ORD IL Chicago OHare DEC IL Decatur JOT IL Joliet MMO IL Marseilles MLI IL Moline MVN IL Mount Vernon PIA IL Peoria UIN IL Quincy RFD IL Rockford SPI IL Springfield BMG IN Bloomington EKM IN Elkhart EVV IN Evansville FWA IN Fort Wayne GYY IN Gary GUS IN Grissom AFB IND IN Indiana LAF IN Lafayette SBN IN South Bend HUF IN Terre Haute CNU KS Chanute CNK KS Concordia DDC KS Dodge City EHA KS Elkhart EMP KS Emporia GCK KS Garden City GLD KS Goodland GBD KS Great Bend HYS KS Hays HLC KS Hill City HUT KS Hutchison LBL KS Liberal MHK KS Manhattan P28 KS Medicine Lodge RSL KS Russell SLN KS Salina TOP KS Topeka ICT KS Wichita The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-4 AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- BWG KY Bowling Green HOP KY Fort Campbell JKL KY Jackson LEX KY Lexington LOZ KY London SDF KY Louisville PAH KY Paducah 5I3 KY Pikeville ESF LA Alexandria BTR LA Baton Rouge LCH LA Lake Charles MLU LA Monroe MSY LA New Orleans SHV LA Shreveport SIL LA Slidell BOS MA Boston CHH MA Chatham CBE MA Cumberland ACK MA Nantucket ORH MA Worcester YBR MB Brandon YYQ MB Churchill YDN MB Dauphin YGX MB Gillam YYL MB Lynn Lake YNE MB Norway House YPG MB Portage La Prairie YQD MB The Pas YTH MB Thompson YWG MB Winnipeg APG MD Aberdeen Proving Gnd HGR MD Hagerstown NHK MD Patuxent River SBY MD Salisbury BGR ME Bangor CAR ME Caribou LIZ ME Loring AFB PWM ME Portland RKD ME Rockland APN MI Alpena BTL MI Battle Creek DTW MI Detroit CMX MI Houghton HTL MI Houghton Lake IWD MI Ironwood SAW MI KI Sawyer AFB LAN MI Lansing MTC MI Mount Clemens MKG MI Muskegon OSC MI Oscoda ECK MI Peck MBS MI Saginaw TVC MI Traverse City AEL MN Albert Lea AXN MN Alexandria BJI MN Bemidji BRD MN Brainerd DTL MN Detroit Lakes DLH MN Duluth ELO MN Ely FRM MN Fairmont FBL MN Faribault P61 MN Grand Marais HIB MN Hibbing INL MN Int'l Falls MKT MN Mankato MML MN Marshall MSP MN Minneapolis/St Paul PKD MN Park Rapids RWF MN Redwood Falls RST MN Rochester STC MN St Cloud TVF MN Thief River Fls D45 MN Warroad OTG MN Worthington CGI MO Cape Girardeau COU MO Columbia TBN MO Forney AAF JLN MO Joplin AIZ MO Kaiser MCI MO Kansas City MKC MO Kansas City IRK MO Kirksville UMN MO Monett P02 MO Poplar Bluff GVW MO Richards Gebaur AFB STJ MO Saint Joseph STL MO Saint Louis SGF MO Springfield The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-5 AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- VIH MO Vichy SZL MO Whiteman AFB BIX MS Biloxi GWO MS Greenwood JAN MS Jackson MCB MS McComb MEI MS Meridian HEZ MS Natchez TUP MS Tupelo BIL MT Billings BTM MT Butte DLN MT Dillon GGW MT Glasgow GTF MT Great Falls HVR MT Havre FCA MT Kalispell LWT MT Livingston MLS MT Miles City MSO MT Missoula YCH NB Chatham AVP NC Asheville HAT NC Cape Hatteras CLT NC Charlotte RDU NC Raleigh/Durham ILM NC Wilmington BIS ND Bismarck DVL ND Devils Lake DIK ND Dickinson FAR ND Fargo RDR ND Grand Forks AFB JMS ND Jamestown P67 ND Lidgerwood MIB ND Minot AFB ISN ND Williston ANW NE Ainsworth AIA NE Alliance BIE NE Beatrice BBW NE Broken Bow CDR NE Chadron OLU NE Columbus FNB NE Falls City GRI NE Grand Island IML NE Imperial LNK NE Lincoln MCK NE McCook MHN NE Mullen OFK NE Norfolk LBF NE North Platte OMA NE Omaha ONL NE ONeill ODX NE Ord BFF NE Scottsbluff SNY NE Sidney VTN NE Valentine CON NH Concord EEN NH Keene LEB NH Lebanon ACY NJ Atlantic City WRI NJ McGuire AFB ABQ NM Albuquerque CVS NM Cannon AFB/Clovis CNM NM Carlsbad CAO NM Clayton 4CR NM Corona 4SL NM Cuba DMN NM Deming FMN NM Farmington GUP NM Gallup HOB NM Hobbs HMN NM Holloman AFB LVS NM Las Vegas 4MY NM Moriarty ROW NM Rowlett SRR NM Ruidoso SAF NM Santa Fe SKX NM Taos TCS NM Truth or Conseqs TCC NM Tucumcari ZUN NM Zuni/Pueblo YHZ NS Halifax The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-6 AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- YBK NT Baker Lake YUK NT Byron Bay YCB NT Cambridge Bay YTE NT Cape Dorset YVN NT Cape Dyer ZUE NT Cape Parry YUI NT Cape Young YCS NT Chesterfield Inlt WXK NT Clinton Point YUH NT Clinton Pt YCY NT Clyde YCO NT Coppermine YZS NT Coral Harbour WUW NT Dewar Lakes WEU NT Eureka WJC NT Ennadai Lake YGH NT Fort Good Hope YJF NT Fort Liard ZFM NT Fort McPherson YFL NT Fort Reliance YFS NT Fort Simpson YSM NT Fort Smith YFB NT Frobisher YHK NT Gjoa Haven WGZ NT Grise Fjord YUX NT Hall Beach YHY NT Hay River YHI NT Holman YGT NT Igloolik YEV NT Inuvik YUJ NT Lady Franklin Pt YLC NT Lake Harbour YUV NT Longstaff Bluff YWO NT Lupin YMD NT Mould Bay YSR NT Nansivik WRP NT Nicholson Penin. YUC NT Nicholson Penin YVQ NT Norman Wells YXP NT Pangnirtung YPC NT Paulatuk YBB NT Pelly Bay YIO NT Pond Inlet YRT NT Rankin Inlet WTD NT Robertson Lake YRB NT Resolute Bay YSY NT Sachs Harbour YSK NT Sanikiluaq YUS NT Shepherd Bay YYH NT Spence Bay WTW NT Tuktoyaktuk YUB NT Tuktoyaktuk YXN NT Whale Cove YWY NT Wrigley YZF NT Yellowknife BAM NV Battle Mt FD B23 NV Battle Mt Sfc P38 NV Caliente DRA NV Desert Rock/Merc EKO NV Elko ELY NV Ely P68 NV Eureka NFL NV Fallon NAS LAS NV Las Vegas LSV NV Nellis/Las Vegas RNO NV Reno TPH NV Tonopah WMC NV Winnemucca ALB NY Albany BGM NY Binghampton BUF NY Buffalo ELM NY Elmira JHW NY Jamestown MSV NY Monticello JFK NY New York City NYC NY New York City POU NY Poughkeepsie ROC NY Rochester SLK NY Saranac Lake SYR NY Syracuse ELZ NY Wellsville FOK NY Westhampton Beach HPN NY White Plains CAK OH Akron CVG OH Cincinnati CLE OH Cleveland CMH OH Columbus DAY OH Dayton FDY OH Findlay MFD OH Mansfield ZZV OH Zanesville The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-7 AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- ADM OK Ardmore BVO OK Bartlesville CSM OK Clinton CSM OK Clinton FSI OK Fort Sill GAG OK Gage HBR OK Hobart MLC OK McAlester OKC OK Oklahoma City PNC OK Ponca City TUL OK Tulsa END OK Vance AFB YYW ON Armstrong YIB ON Atikotan WCI ON Caribou Island YLD ON Chapleau YXR ON Earlton YGQ ON Geraldton YYU ON Kapuskasing YQK ON Kenora YGK ON Kingston YXU ON London YMO ON Moosonee YQA ON Muskoka WNZ ON Nagagami YYB ON North Bay YOW ON Ottawa YWA ON Petawawa WPL ON Pickle Lake YRL ON Red Lake YAM ON Sault Ste Marie YXL ON Sioux Lookout YSB ON Sudbury YQT ON Thunder Bay YTS ON Timmons YYZ ON Toronto YTR ON Trenton WTL ON Trout Lake YVV ON Wiarton YQG ON Windsor AST OR Astoria BNO OR Burns IMB OR Kimberly LKV OR Lakeview MFR OR Medford OTH OR North Bend PDT OR Pendleton PDX OR Portland RDM OR Redmond P88 OR Rome SLE OR Salem ABE PA Allentown AOO PA Altoona BID PA Block Island BFD PA Bradford DUJ PA DuBois ERI PA Erie FKL PA Franklin MDT PA Harrisburg LBE PA Latrobe PHL PA Philadelphia AGC PA Pittsburgh PIT PA Pittsburgh RDG PA Reading RVL PA Reedsville IPT PA Williamsport YBG PQ Bagotville YBC PQ Baie Comeau YBX PQ Blanc Sablon WTB PQ Border YMT PQ Chibougamau YGP PQ Gaspe YGR PQ Grindstone Is YPH PQ Inukjuak YVP PQ Kuujjuaq YGW PQ Kuujjuarapiq YAH PQ La Grande IV YEO PQ Lac Eon YGL PQ Lac Grande Rivie YMW PQ Maniwaki YNM PQ Matagami YYY PQ Mont Joli YUL PQ Montreal Dorval YNA PQ Natashquan YNI PQ Nitchequon YPN PQ Port Menier YQB PQ Quebec YRI PQ Riviere D Loup YRJ PQ Roberval YUY PQ Rouyn YKL PQ Schefferville YZV PQ Sept Iles YSC PQ Sherbrooke YVO PQ Val D'or The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-8 AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- CHS SC Charleston CAE SC Columbia FLO SC Florence GSP SC Greenv/Spartanbg ABR SD Aberdeen BKX SD Brookings 9V9 SD Chamberlain 0V1 SD Custer HON SD Huron Y22 SD Lemmon Y26 SD Mobridge PIR SD Pierre RAP SD Rapid City FSD SD Sioux Falls YKN SD Yankton YDR SK Broadview YVT SK Buffalo Narrows WFN SK Cree Lake YFN SK Cree Lake YEP SK Estevan YVC SK La Ronge YLJ SK Meadow Lake YMJ SK Moose Jaw YQW SK North Battleford YPA SK Prince Albert YQR SK Regina YXE SK Saskatoon YYN SK Swift Current WDC SK Uranium City YQV SK Yorkton TRI TN Bristol CHA TN Chattanooga CSV TN Crossville DYR TN Dyersburg MKL TN Jackson TYS TN Knoxville MEM TN Memphis BNA TN Nashville ABI TX Abilene AMA TX Amarillo AUS TX Austin BPT TX Beaumont BRO TX Brownsville CDS TX Childress CLL TX College Station CRP TX Corpus Christi COT TX Cotulla DHT TX Dalhart DAL TX Dallas DFW TX DFW Intl Airport DRT TX Del Rio ELP TX El Paso GRK TX Ft Hood GLS TX Galveston T04 TX Georgetown GVT TX Greenville GDP TX Guadalupe Pass HRL TX Harlingen HDO TX Hondo HOU TX Houston Hobby IAH TX Houston Intctl JCT TX Junction LBX TX Lake Jackson LRD TX Laredo DLF TX Laughlin/Del Rio GGG TX Longview LBB TX Lubbock LFK TX Lufkin MRF TX Marfa MAF TX Midland/Odessa OCH TX Nacogdoches PSX TX Palacios SJT TX San Angelo T98 TX San Marcos SAT TX SanAntonio P07 TX Sanderson/Dryden F39 TX Sherman/Denison SEP TX Stephenville TYR TX Tyler VCT TX Victoria ACT TX Waco SPS TX Wichita Falls INK TX Wink The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System D-9 AIRPORT STATE CITY AIRPORT STATE CITY ------------------------------------------------------------------- 4BL UT Blanding BCE UT Bryce Canyon CDC UT Cedar City U24 UT Delta U28 UT Green River 4HV UT Hanksville LGU UT Logan PUC UT Price PVU UT Provo SLC UT Salt Lake City VEL UT Vernal ENV UT Wendover LYH VA Lynchburg ORF VA Norfolk RIC VA Richmond ROA VA Roanoke SHD VA Staunton VQN VA Volens IAD VA Washington Dulles BTV VT Burlington SEA WA Seattle GEG WA Spokane YKM WA Yakima EAU WI Eau Claire GRB WI Green Bay LSE WI La Crosse LNR WI Lone Rock MSN WI Madison MTW WI Manitowoc MKE WI Milwaukee EEW WI Neenah OSH WI Oshkosh RHI WI Rhinelander RIE WI Rice Lake SUE WI Sturgeon Bay VOK WI Volk Field AUW WI Wausau BKW WV Beckley CRW WV Charleston EKN WV Elkins HTS WV Huntington PKB WV Parkersburg HLG WV Wheeling CPR WY Casper CYS WY Cheyenne COD WY Cody CZI WY Crazy Woman GCC WY Gillette LND WY Lander LAR WY Laramie RWL WY Rawlins RKS WY Rock Springs WZW YT AUTO Teslin YDB YT Burwash YDA YT Dawson ZFA YT Faro YAJ YT Komakuk Beach YMA YT Mayo Landing YOC YT Old Crow YUA YT Shingle Point YZW YT Teslin YQH YT Watson Lake YXY YT Whitehorse Note that forecasts for some of these city codes may be unavailable from Weathermation. This is due to the "county zone forecast" change that the National Weather Serivce made in some states on 10/1/93. The Weather Board Weather Forecast Retrieval System E-1 Weather Board Registration Form Version of Weather Board requested: DOS ___ OS/2 ___ Name: _______________________________________________________________ (First) (Last) Address: ____________________________________________________________ City: _______________________ State: _______ Zip: ___________________ Telephone Number: Day: _________________ Night: _____________________ BBS Name: ___________________________________________________________ BBS Phone Number: ___________________________________________________ Modem: ____________________ Maximum Baud Rate: ______________________ Did you have to alter the default initialization string? ____________ If yes, your initialization string: _________________________________ Did you use a Weathermation number that was not in the list? ________ If yes, please answer these questions, so I can update the list: City: ____________________________ State: ________ Area Code & Telephone Number: ______________________________ Comments: ___________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ THANK YOU for registering Weather Board!