Night Owl 6

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

/ Night Owl 6 / Night Owl's Shareware - PDSI-006 - Night Owl Corp (1990).iso / 001a / thost200.zip / TINYHOST.DOC < prev next >

Wrap

Text File | 1991-08-15 | 50KB | 1,253 lines

TINYHOST V 2.00 August 15, 1991 Copyright (C) 1991 by Bruce A. Krobusek A small, personal Host program for IBM PC's or compatibles Created by : Bruce A. Krobusek 1001 Cunningham Drive Victor, NY 14564 CompuServe : 74106,1335 Genie : B.KROBUSEK 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 What is TinyHost? 1 1.2 Why TinyHost? 2 1.3 What is a SysOp? 2 2.0 INSTALLATION and SETUP 2 2.1 Host System Requirements 2 2.2 Connecting System Requirements 2 2.3 Installation of TinyHost 2 2.4 Running TinyHost 3 2.5 Modem Requirements 3 2.6 Modifying the TINYHOST.CFG File 4 2.6.1 Descriptor Summary 4 2.6.2 Communications Specific Descriptors 4 2.6.3 General Descriptors 5 2.7 Setting up Access Levels 6 2.8 Customizable Display Files 7 3.0 OPERATION 8 3.1 Ringback Operation 8 3.2 TinyHost Operation 8 3.3 File Oriented Commands 10 3.3.1 File Transfers 10 3.3.2 List Directory 10 3.3.3 Changing Directories 10 3.3.4 Typing out a File 11 3.4 Message Commands 11 3.4.1 Reading Messages 11 3.4.2 Entering Messages 11 3.4.3 Killing (Deleting) Messages 12 3.4.4 Viewing User List 12 3.5 Miscellaneous Commands 13 3.5.1 Expert Mode 13 3.5.2 Executing a Warm Boot 13 3.6 Command Chaining 13 3.7 User Inactivity and Hang-Ups 13 4.0 MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION 14 4.1 What is Shareware? 14 4.2 Distributing TinyHost 14 4.3 Warranty Information 14 4.4 Program Support 15 4.5 New User Logons 16 4.6 Message File Format 16 4.7 Known Program Limits 16 Brand and product names used throughout this document are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 What is TinyHost? TinyHost is a small, personal host program I have developed for IBM PC's or compatibles. It permits the transfer of files (using modems) between two computers without the requirements or overhead of other programs, particularly the full-fledged BBS programs. In these days of people working at home more, and using computers at both work and in their home, having necessary files accessible can be a trying experience! TinyHost has the following features: 1) Supports standard XModem, XModem/CRC, and 1K-XModem (sometimes called YModem) file transfer protocols. 2) Operation can be via COM1, COM2, COM3, or COM4 using a Hayes compatible modem, and at rates of 300 to 9600 baud. 3) Supports up to 25 users. 4) Supports Ringback mode, which permits easy use of a voice phone line for data communications. 5) A text file that resides on the host system can be viewed without downloading. 6) Supports Personal and Public mail, and SysOp Comments. 7) The actions of a remote user are echoed to the local screen. 8) Unauthorized users are not able to logon to TinyHost - a user account must be created prior to a user being permitted access to the system. 9) Using the security level feature, access can be restricted to one directory or the entire system can be available. 10) TinyHost is just that - tiny! The executable file is less than 80K, and the program only requires approximately 130K of system RAM to run in. Your version of TinyHost should have the following files included: THOSTxxx.EXE - TinyHost's executable. The xxx refer to the version number of the program TINYHOST.DOC - The TinyHost manual in printer ready form TINYHOST.WEL - A sample welcome file TINYHOST.CFG - A sample config file HISTORY.TXT - A file describing the release history of TinyHost READ.ME - A short text file describing TinyHost Page 1 1.2 Why TinyHost? Why did I create TinyHost? I needed a method to transfer files with friends without hassle. I also found that, since I use computers at work and at home, I was constantly leaving needed files at one location or another, which resulted in duplicated (or lost) effort. TinyHost is also ideal for the company that needs to keep in touch with remote employees, such as a sales force. With the file transfer and message capability, it is easy to provide a single transfer point for up-to-date information. TinyHost was written using Borland's C++, and consumes approximately 130K bytes of memory space when running. The small memory requirements, along with the small .EXE and other associated files, permits even floppy-disk based systems to be used for TinyHost operation. 1.3 What is a SysOp? When the term SysOp is used in this manual it refers to the person who installs TinyHost on his computer (you), decides who can logon to his system, and what directories they are able to access. 2.0 INSTALLATION and SETUP 2.1 Host System Requirements TinyHost does not need an elaborate system in order to be used. A minimal system would consist of a single floppy drive, 256K RAM, any type of display, a serial port, and a Hayes compatible modem. TinyHost supports COM1-4 using the normal hardware interrupts for each port (IRQ4 for COM1 and COM3; IRQ3 for COM2 and COM4). 2.2 Connecting System Requirements Any type of system and communications package should work with TinyHost. Communications requirements are 8 bits, no parity, and 1 stop bit. 2.3 Installation of TinyHost It is recommended that TinyHost be installed in its own sub- directory. The directory that holds THOSTxxx.EXE is called the "execution directory", and it is here that the .CFG and other TinyHost specific files should be kept. Only two files are needed for operation - THOST.EXE and TINYHOST.CFG. Specific information as to the expected config file format follows in section 2.6. Please remember that user accounts MUST be created prior to using TinyHost - the program does not permit new user logon! Page 2 For security reasons, it is STRONGLY suggested that the TinyHost execution directory be different from the start-up directory! 2.4 Running TinyHost To start TinyHost, move to the execution directory and type "THOSTxxx", where the 'xxx' refers to the version number of TinyHost. 2.5 Modem Requirements TinyHost expects a modem that supports the Hayes compatible command set and ASCII return codes. Because of the many different modem configurations (switch settings) there would be no point in attempting to provide a definitive setup for each. However, I can describe what TinyHost expects - refer to the manual for your modem to see how to make it fit these needs. Most modems support two types of result codes - numeric values (non-verbose) and ASCII strings (verbose). TinyHost expects to receive verbose result codes of the following types: OK - Informs the host that the modem has executed the command string successfully. RING - Informs the host that an incoming call has been detected. CONNECT - Denotes that the modem has made a 300 baud connection. CONNECT 1200 - A 1200 baud connection. CONNECT 2400 - A 2400 baud connection. CONNECT 4800 - A 4800 baud connection. CONNECT 9600 - A 9600 baud connection. Most modems support a switch setting that controls the state of the RS-232 Data Terminal Ready (DTR) handshake line. The switch setting can either force DTR TRUE at all times at the modem, or it can be set to permit the host computer to control DTR. If DTR is supported with the selected host computer and modem, then a modem hangup string will be unnecessary as TinyHost will toggle DTR when it wishes to drop carrier. However, if DTR is unavailable, then the modem hangup string must be defined (see HANGUP below) or TinyHost will be unable to terminate a call and will never drop carrier. Page 3 2.6 Modifying the TINYHOST.CFG File When TinyHost is run it looks for TINYHOST.CFG in its execution directory. If it doesn't find it the program aborts. If the file is located, TinyHost reads in the information that it needs to run. The config file can be created or modified using a simple ASCII editor. Each line in the config file can be up to 80 characters in length. At any point in the line a comment can be added by placing a pound sign (#) in the line - everything following it will be ignored. TinyHost requires specific information to run. To this end I have implemented what I call 'descriptors' which denote what type of information is specified on the line. The descriptor must begin in the first column of the line. The descriptor can be in either upper or lower case, it must be followed by a colon (:), and the descriptor must be spelled properly. If a required descriptor does not exist TinyHost will abort and display an error message. Descriptors can be defined in any order. The descriptors fall into two categories: communications specific and general. The following table summarizes each descriptor, with more detailed information in the following sections. 2.6.1 Descriptor Summary *PORT - COM port to be used *BAUD - Beginning baud rate RINGBACK - Ringback mode select *INIT - Modem initialization string HANGUP - Modem hangup string *RESET - Modem reset string *START - TinyHost start-up directory OVERWRITE - File overwrite security level BOOT - Warm boot security level CHDIR - Change directory security level SYSOP - SysOp security level VIEW - View User List security level ACCESS - Directory access security level *USER - User account information * Required Descriptor 2.6.2 Communications Specific Descriptors PORT - This specifies the COM port that is to be used. Valid values are 1, 2, 3, or 4. PORT is required. BAUD - This specifies the baud rate that TinyHost is to operate at. Legal values are 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, and 9600. BAUD is required. Page 4 RINGBACK - Specifies whether or not TinyHost will operate in ringback mode. RINGBACK is not required - TinyHost will default to Ringback Enabled Mode. INIT - This is the initialization string used to configure the modem. INIT is required. The string included with TinyHost includes some modem commands that are necessary for proper operation: ATE0M0Q0V1X2S0=0S2=43 E0 - Controls echo from the modem. Must be set to 0, which is for no echo. Required. M0 - Controls the modem speaker. A value of 0 turns the speaker off. Optional. Q0 - Determines the kind of result codes sent by the mode. Must be set for 0 (result codes sent). Required. V1 - Determines the type of result codes sent. Must be set to 1 which specifies English (ASCII) codes are sent. Required. X2 - Selects extended modem result codes. Must set to 2 or greater. Required. S0 - Determines the number of rings on which the modem will answer the phone. Must be set to 0. Required. S2 - Sets the value of the escape code for the modem. Must be set to 43 ("+"). Required. HANGUP - Specifies the command string necessary to tell the modem to hang up the phone (go on hook). Refer to the section on modem requirements (2.4) to see if this string is necessary. HANGUP is Optional. RESET - Specifies the command string necessary to reset the modem. RESET is required. 2.6.3 General Descriptors START - Specifies the start-up directory for TinyHost. This is the directory that TinyHost moves to after its initialization is complete. This is also the directory that is available to the remote user that logs onto TinyHost so care should be taken that no sensitive files are available for download from this directory. START is required. A terminating backslash should not be used except when specifying a root directory that is being used for the start-up directory. OVERWRITE - Specifies the security level needed for file overwrite permission. This can be used to update TinyHosts' config file remotely when used with the Warm Boot command. If Overwrite security is not specified then no user will have Overwrite permission. OVERWRITE expects a numeric value between 0 and 10. BOOT - Specifies the security level needed to perform a warm boot of the host system. This command can be used with Overwrite to update TinyHosts' config file from a remote location. If Boot Page 5 security is not specified then no user will have Boot permission. BOOT expects a numeric value between 0 and 10. CHDIR - Specifies the minimum security level necessary to be able to move between directories of the system. If not specified then no security level will be permitted to change directories. CHDIR expects a numeric value between 0 and 10. SYSOP - Specified the minimum security level necessary to perform SysOp level functions. SysOp functions include the ability to delete Public mail, and read and delete SysOp Comments. SYSOP expects a numeric value between 0 and 10. If it is not specified then remote SysOp privileges will be disabled. VIEW - Minimum security necessary to perform a View User List function. It may be desired to prevent lower level users from viewing the names of the TinyHost user base, and setting VIEW high enough will do this. View expects a numeric value between 0 and 10. Not specifying a VIEW security level will result in all users being able to view the User List. ACCESS - Can be used to specify a security level needed to access a directory. Up to 25 Access restrictions can be defined. If no access restrictions are specified then anyone with CHDIR permission can move to any system drive or directory. This could be troublesome when floppy drives are specified and they contain no diskettes. ACCESS expects a valid directory path (up to the DOS limit of 63 characters), followed by a comma, followed by a numeric value between 0 and 10 indicating a security level. USER - Defines a user account. The line should contain (in order) the users first name (15 characters maximum), last name (30 characters), password (8 characters), and security level (2 characters). Each item must be separated from the other by a comma (,). The security level should be specified by a numerical string ranging in value from 0 to 10, with 10 being the highest permissible security level. At least one, and up to 25, user accounts can be created. 2.7 Setting up Access Levels The first thing to remember is that if a user's account hasn't been created in the TINYHOST.CFG file he will never be able to log on! (See Section 4.5 for a method to permit new users to log on). From there, things get a little more complicated (but not *too* complicated!). The SysOp will have to make decisions as to how much system access to give to the user accounts he creates. It is recommended that security level 10 be used to deny access to items such as the floppy drives, etc. when a hard disk based system is used. Trying to remotely access a floppy drive that does not have a diskette in it will cause TinyHost to hang. As noted above, a remote user can be restricted to the Start- Up directory for his uploads and downloads. This is accomplished Page 6 by setting the CHDIR access to a higher level than that of the remote user. To limit access to other areas of the system, the ACCESS descriptor should be used. For instance, it is recommended that only the SysOp have remote access to the sub-directory that contains the TinyHost program, config file, and message files. Since there is no specific file upload or download restrictions, permitting access to these files (particularly the config file) would then give access to the entire user log. Entire disk drives (floppy, hard, and RAM) can be locked out by simply setting up the following ACCESS descriptor: ACCESS:X:,10 This would force a security level of 10 or greater to access drive X. As long as no user (SysOp included) has a security of 10, then no access of drive X is possible. To lock out the root directory of a drive the descriptor would be changed to: ACCESS:X:\,10 Note the trailing backslash after the drive designation. This is the only time that the backslash is necessary. To lock out a particular directory: ACCESS:C:\TINYHOST\BIN,9 would permit access to the TINYHOST\BIN subdirectory by people with security levels of 9 or greater. Note that a trailing backslash is not required (nor desired) when specifying a complete directory path. The config file that has been included with the TinyHost package is set up to lockout drives A and B (normally floppies). Overwrite, boot permission, and SysOp security levels are set to that of the "SysOp", Sam Sysop. 2.8 Customizable Display Files TinyHost permits the customizing of three display files by the SysOp that are shown at three different points within the program. TINYHOST.WEL is displayed after a connection has been made and before a user has logged on. TINYHOST.BUL is displayed after the logon process has been successfully completed. TINYHOST.BYE is shown after the user has logged off. A sample TINYHOST.WEL has been included on the TinyHost disk. Each file can have any number of lines, but each line should be no more than 80 characters long, and should be terminated with a carriage return and line feed. If the file is longer than 20 lines TinyHost will pause at the 21st line (and every 21st line thereafter). These files should be placed in the same directory that THOSTxxx.EXE and TINYHOST.CFG reside (the execution directory). Page 7 If any of the display files do not exist TinyHost will continue on its merry way! 3.0 OPERATION 3.1 Ringback Operation Ringback mode has been implemented to permit using the same phone line for both voice and data communications. In the case of the author, his computer (running TinyHost) shares a phone line with an answering machine. The use of ringback permits access to the computer while not affecting answering machine operation. To access TinyHost when ringback is implemented the caller must first dial into the computer and permit the phone to ring at least once (or permit the modem to detect at least one ring). Then the caller should hang up and wait at least 8 seconds before redialing the computer. As long as the redial is done within 1 minute of the first call, TinyHost will answer the phone and data communications can begin. If more than 1 minute elapses then TinyHost resets and begins waiting for the first ring. 3.2 TinyHost Operation TinyHost is a very easy program to use - if for no other reason than there aren't too many options with which to become confused! After the program is started a status screen is displayed on the local monitor. This information includes whether or not TinyHost is in ringback mode, and, if so, whether or not the program is waiting for the ringback. A local operator is also able to view the progress of a remote connection since all activity is echoed to the computer's monitor. After TinyHost has been started, and while it is waiting for a phone call, a local user can logon locally by pressing <ENTER> (or <RETURN>). The local user will then be presented with the same prompt a remote user gets, the request for the user's first name. To exit TinyHost, a blank line should be entered at the first name prompt. If logon is desired, the user should then enter his first name, last name, and password as requested. It is permissible to string together any and all user information (for instance, entering first and last name, separated by a space, at the First Name prompt). It is not recommended to enter ones password in this fashion as the characters would be echoed to both the local and remote screens. The names and password inputs are not case sensitive. TinyHost does not permit retries when entering this information - if it is entered improperly TinyHost will deny access and will hang up. After the user successfully logs on, TinyHost checks to see if any personal messages exist for the user. If so, TinyHost beeps once, and displays a message that Personal Mail is waiting. A check is also made for Public mail and SysOp Comments (security Page 8 level permitting), and notices are displayed if either forms of messages exist. The user will then be presented with the Main Menu, which displays the following command options: *D - Download a file from TinyHost to the user. *U - Upload a file to TinyHost from the user. If security level permits, file overwrite is possible with or without backup. L - List the contents of the present directory. *C - If permissible, allows the user to move between drives and directories of the system. *T - Typing out a text file that resides on the host system. *R - Read Personal or Public messages, or SysOp comments (security level dependent). *E - Enter a Personal or Public message or SysOp comment. *K - Kill Personal messages, or Private messages or SysOp comments (security level dependent). V - View User List (security level dependent). I - Displays an informative screen about TinyHost. H - Display a Help screen ('?' can also be used). X - Toggles TinyHosts' Expert mode on and off. When Expert mode is ON the longer menu and informative messages are suppressed. B - Re-display the logon Bulletin. G - Goodbye. Ends the TinyHost connection. W - Log off and reload the access and user info from the config file. Subject to permission. This option is *not* displayed on the screen - it is a SysOp secret!! * Command Chaining possible Page 9 3.3 File Oriented Commands 3.3.1 File Transfers TinyHost provides XModem, XModem/CRC, and 1K-Xmodem upload and download capability (1K-XModem protocol is sometimes known as YModem). All uploads and downloads take place from the current directory that the user is in. If CHDIR access has not been given, then file transfers take place from the Start-Up directory. Note that if a user logs on locally file transfers are not permitted (for obvious reasons). Xmodem and XModem/CRC transfers appear as a single selection. TinyHost will attempt to begin transfers using CRC as this is a more reliable protocol than checksum. If CRC attempts are ignored then the system will fall back to checksum. When uploading a file to the TinyHost system, if the file already exists the system will typically prevent overwriting that existing file. The exception to this is if the OVERWRITE descriptor has been set to a security level that matches (or is less than) the caller's. If this is the case then the user will have the option of overwriting the existing file. If overwrite is selected then the user will also be asked if a backup of the current file is desired. If a backup already exists then the current backup will be overwritten by the new backup (no backups of backups are made!). The overwrite option was added to permit updating TinyHost's config file from a remote location. Since new users cannot logon to TinyHost it is necessary to create an appropriate account. By using both the overwrite and warm boot capability the SysOp can download the existing config file, modify it, upload it and overwrite the existing config file, then tell TinyHost to load the new information. 3.3.2 List Directory This function displays the files that reside in the currently selected sub-directory of the system. First, the current directory path is displayed. Then, any additional sub-directories that exist are shown. Finally, the individual files in the current directory are displayed along with their sizes. 3.3.3 Changing Directories The Change Directory function of TinyHost acts much the same as the chdir (or cd) function from DOS. When Change Directory has been chosen the program will prompt for a new directory. The same type of input that is acceptable from a DOS command level is suitable for TinyHost - entering two dots (..) will take TinyHost to the next directory up the tree. Entering a complete path will take the user to the specified directory. All of this is, of course, assuming that the user has the necessary access to permit moving around the host system. To ensure security of the host Page 10 system, TinyHost will return to the designated Start-Up directory after a user has logged off. 3.3.4 Typing out a File This function permits typing out (listing) a file that resides on the TinyHost computer. It is strongly advised that this function be used only to view text (ASCII) files. Viewing binary files (those with .EXE, .COM, .ZIP., etc. extensions) can cause VERY unpredictable results! If the user has Expert Mode turned off when this feature is selected, a cautionary message similar to the above paragraph will be displayed, then the user will be prompted for a filename. If Expert Mode is enabled, then the user will be immediately prompted for the filename. If the file exists in the currently selected directory, then it will be displayed. TinyHost will pause every 21 lines and ask if it is to continue displaying the file. TinyHost will also automatically wrap the screen display if the line length exceeds 80 characters. TinyHost will keep track of added line feeds to be sure that the display is paused properly. The maximum line length that TinyHost will support (without a terminating carriage return or line feed) is 256 characters. 3.4 Message Commands 3.4.1 Reading Messages When a user logs onto TinyHost a notification is given if any Personal or Public mail is waiting, beeping once for Personal mail. If the user's security level is high enough, a notification of waiting SysOp Comments is also given. To read the messages, enter 'R' (or 'r') at the Main Menu prompt. A choice will then be given to read Personal ('P'), Public ('U'), or SysOp Comments ('C'). After the second choice is made the message(s) are then displayed. If more then one message is waiting, TinyHost pauses before continuing on to the next message. The very first line of the message notes who the message is from, and the time and date that the message was entered. If no mail is waiting of the selected type, a message reporting this is displayed. If the user does not have sufficient security to read SysOp Comments a notification is given and the Comments are not displayed. 3.4.2 Entering Messages To Enter a message or SysOp Comment, enter an 'E' (or 'e') at the Main Menu prompt. The user will again be prompted for the type of message to be left (Personal, Public, or SysOp Comment). After the selection is made, a few notes regarding message input are displayed along with a ruler line showing the length of a message line. Page 11 If entering a Personal (Private) message, the user will be asked for the name of the person to send the message to. TinyHost will then check to be sure that such a person exists in its user base, so it is imperative that the user's name be spelled correctly. To find out who exists in the user base, and to find the proper spelling of names, a View User list can be done (within security limits). Up to 20 lines of 70 characters each may be entered. To end the message, enter a blank line when done. TinyHost will then ask whether the message should be Saved or Aborted. TinyHost does not yet provide automatic wordwrap when entering messages, so <RETURN> will have to be pressed when the end of the line is reached. Message editing is also not currently supported. After the message is saved, TinyHost will automatically add the sending individual's name, and the time and date the message was entered, to the beginning of the message. The entire message will then be saved into the appropriate message file. 3.4.3 Killing (Deleting) Messages TinyHost will retain all messages until they are deleted. This is accomplished by entering a 'K' (or 'k') at the Main Menu prompt. The user will then be prompted for the type of mail to delete - Personal, Public, or SysOp Comments. The user is then asked if all messages are truly to be deleted, and if the response is Yes, then the entire mail file is deleted. If the user's security is not high enough to delete Public Mail or SysOp Comments, such a message will be displayed and the user will be returned to the Main Menu. It must be stressed that when Killing Messages, ALL such messages are deleted! There is presently no way, for instance, to just delete one Private message out of the group. However, since a DOS file delete is done, the file should be recoverable using an easily available file recovery utility. Non-deleted messages will hang around forever (or until the next disk crash!). Personal messages, though, will make a minor nuisance of themselves by beeping every time the user logs on. This should help remind people to purge their old messages. See Section 4.6 for information on editing the message files using an ASCII editor. 3.4.4 Viewing User List To help users when entering Personal mail, a View User List function has been added. Entering a 'V' or 'v' at the Main Menu prompt will display the list of users currently defined in TinyHosts' user base. Both the first and last name of the individuals are displayed. Page 12 The View User List function can be restricted to higher security levels simply by setting the VIEW descriptor value high enough. This may be desired when TinyHost is open to new callers (see Section 4.5), or when different security levels are implemented. By not having a VIEW descriptor in the TINYHOST.CFG file, all users will be able to see the user list. 3.5 Miscellaneous Commands 3.5.1 Expert Mode Entering an 'X' (or 'x') at TinyHosts' Main Menu will toggle the Expert User Mode on and off. When OFF, full menus and informative displays are given throughout TinyHost. When ON, these displays are suppressed and only a line showing the valid character inputs is displayed. 3.5.2 Executing a Warm Boot As described above, the warm boot option has been included to permit the SysOp to add users by remotely updating the config file. TinyHost normally only reads its config file on initial start-up. Entering a 'W' will result in an immediate TinyHost logging off (same as if Goodbye had been selected). The program will then proceed to re-load its config file and retrieve ACCESS and USER info - everything else in its configuration (INIT, RESET, etc.) will remain untouched. 3.6 Command Chaining Many commands can be used with Command Chaining. This is the process of entering two pieces of information at the Main Menu prompt, with a space separating the items. For instance, to type out the file FOOBAR.TXT from the current directory, the command line would be: T FOOBAR.TXT <return> Command chaining can be used in or out of Expert Mode, and currently works with file and message commands. Section 3.2 lists the available TinyHost commands, and the ones where command chaining can be used are marked with asterisks ('*'). 3.7 User Inactivity and Hang-Ups TinyHost monitors the COM port for keyboard activity to be sure that a user is still out there and awake. If no keyboard activity is seen for an extended period of time (at least 2 minutes) TinyHost will hang up and recycle itself. The total length of time that TinyHost will wait depend upon what menu the user is in when the inactive period begins. A 5 minute delay is set when Viewing a file; a 2 minute delay exists at the Main Menu Page 13 prompt. This activity monitor will also handle disconnects that occur in the middle of a logon session. 4.0 MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION 4.1 What is Shareware? TinyHost is being released as Shareware, which means that you can try the program out *before* you buy it and make sure that it will do what you want. If you find it of use, you are requested to mail a contribution ($25 suggested) to the author to support the continued development of this and other products. Please send a check or money order (U.S. funds only) to: Bruce A. Krobusek 1001 Cunningham Drive Victor, NY 14564 For your $25 you will receive the latest registered version of TinyHost on either 5 1/4 (360K) or 3 1/2 (720K) media (please specify). The registered version of TinyHost has the same functionality as the Shareware version, but the text requesting contributions will be removed. You will also receive a registered version of the next major release of TinyHost, and notifications of future upgrades. 4.2 Distributing TinyHost Even though TinyHost is Shareware it remains a copyrighted program. As such, it may be freely copied and distributed under the following guidelines: * The author retains the sole right to sell the program for a profit. * The author grants users the right to copy and distribute TinyHost so long as all program files remain unaltered and are distributed as a group. * The program may not be bundled with any other hardware or software without the permission of the author. * Recognized users groups may charge a maximum of $5 for duplication and/or distribution of TinyHost. Registered users are requested to distribute only the Shareware (Unregistered) version of TinyHost. There is no difference in functionality, but the Shareware version reminds the user to register. 4.3 Warranty Information The author (Bruce A. Krobusek) disclaims all warranties expressed or implied as to the quality and performance of this program (TinyHost). The author will not be held liable for any lost profits, lost savings, or any other direct, indirect, incidental, or consequential damages resulting from the use of Page 14 this program. Your use of this program constitutes your agreement to this disclaimer and your release of the author from any form of liability or litigation. 4.4 Program Support Now that the legal technicalities are out of the way, let me state that I have done my best to ensure that TinyHost is error free. However, that is not to imply that one might not find errors that have been missed. If a problem should be found, contact me through one of the avenues mentioned below and I will do my best to correct it. Naturally, the more information that can be supplied as to the nature of the bug the better chance I will have of finding and squashing it! I am also interested in receiving any comments or suggestions regarding TinyHost. Although I have a few ideas for upcoming enhancements (shell to DOS, external file transfer protocols, log file support, online chat, etc.) I am always interested in hearing what other people think of TinyHost. Here are 5 methods that can be used in contacting me, starting with the most preferable: Micro Science BBS - (716) 594-1804 1200/2400 The MailBox BBS - (716) 594-1897 USR Dual Standard These Bulletin Boards are located in Rochester, NY and they are run by Larry Helber. The latest version of TinyHost will always be available from either as a free download. Do a file search (Z) and scan for TINYHOST, or download TH*.ZIP. There is also a TinyHost support conference where messages can be left and received. No registration is required with either BBS for TinyHost support. Intelec (tm) Network - This is a national BBS network (The MailBox is a member). There are nodes all over the U.S. and Canada, with a few starting to appear in other nations. I will monitor the Communications, Shareware, and Central conferences for any mail addressed to me. Please try to spell my name correctly or I may not be notified of a message. GEnie - General Electric Network for Information Exchange My account name is B.KROBUSEK. I usually logon once a week or so. CompuServe Informational Services - My account number is 74106,1335. Again, I try to logon about once a week. Home Address - 1001 Cunningham Drive Victor, NY 14564 Page 15 4.5 New User Logons Although TinyHost does not permit a new user to register, there is a way to permit new users to logon. To do this, a user account can be created, with a password, and this information can be displayed as part of the TinyHost Welcome screen. For instance, an account could be created with the name New User, the password GUEST, and a security level of 0 (zero). A message could be left as part of the TINYHOST.WEL screen stating that new users should use this account to logon. These users would then be able to access the files in the Start-Up directory, they could read Public mail, and they could leave any type of mail message. If the security levels were set properly (the setting in the included TINYHOST.CFG file would be fine), then the new user would not be able to do anything else. This would be an easy way of leaving the TinyHost system partially accessible to, for instance, the customers of a company. 4.6 Message File Format The TinyHost message files are standard ASCII text files. Each file has the extension ".TH". Files for Personal mail consist of filename made up of the user's first and last names. The user's first name is used, with characters from the last name being added to pad the filename for up to 8 characters (the DOS limit). For instance, if the user's name is Joe Fabeets, then his personal mail file will have the filename JOEFABEE.TH. Public mail is stored in PUBLIC.TH; SysOp Comments are stored in COMMENTS.TH. Although TinyHost limits message input to 70 characters per line and 20 lines, this is strictly a program limit. A message file created off-line does not have to adhere to these restrictions (although it is suggested that line length be kept under 80 characters). Each line should be terminated in a carriage return / line feed pair. The end of the message should be marked with a period ('.') in the first column of the terminating line, followed again by a carriage return / line feed. This terminating period is not displayed to the reader. It can be seen, then, that the SysOp can edit Public Mail offline to keep desired messages in the mail file. This can be done using a standard ASCII file editor. 4.7 Known Program Limits A few areas exist where there are some known limitations: First, I am somewhat confused as to the flexibility of 1K-XModem file transfers. The implementation within TinyHost supports both CRC and checksum error detection, yet in the testing that I have done I have never been able to implement a 1K-XModem checksum file transfer because the communications package I was using did not support it. As TinyHost is currently implemented it will attempt to start a CRC upload, and will retry for a total of 30 seconds. If the upload does not begin in that Page 16 time it will fall back to attempting a checksum upload. However, after TinyHost falls back to checksum it will not return to a CRC mode of transfer. The upshot of all of this is that if it takes more than 30 seconds to initiate a 1K-XModem upload using CRC error checking then errors will occur and the upload will never begin (assuming that your communications package does not support 1K checksum). If this happens simply abort the upload and begin again. Secondly, file transfer errors have been observed when using the 1K-XModem protocol at 1200 baud with Windows 3.0 and having TinyHost running as a background task. The host machine was a 16MHz 386SX with 4Mb of RAM. These errors have *not* been seen running TinyHost within DesqView at rates of up to 2400 baud. It is entirely possible that by judicious time-slice selection within Windows that this problem could be eliminated. Finally, I have not had access to the proper equipment to completely test TinyHost at 4800 and 9600 baud. Although I have every reason to believe that operation will be reliable at these speeds there is also the possibility that I may have missed something. As soon as I have the capability to thoroughly test at higher speeds I shall do so. Page 17