═══ 1. Introduction ═══ Welcome to Lookout for OS/2. ═══ 1.1. What is it? ═══ Lookout for OS/2 is an internet notifier. It will watch Web, FTP and Gopher sites, and tell you if anything has changed. You can tell Lookout how often you want it to check a particular site, how you want it to notify you when something at the site changes, and things that Lookout can ignore when it checks a site. Throughout this documentation, the "agents" or "bots" that track individual sites are referred to as "Lookouts". ═══ 2. Copyright Notice & Software License ═══ ----------------------------------------------------------------- DEFINITION OF SHAREWARE Shareware distribution gives users a chance to try software before buying it. If you try a Shareware program and continue using it, you are expected to register. Individual programs differ on details -- some request registration while others require it, some specify a maximum trial period. With registration, you get anything from the simple right to continue using the software to an updated program with printed manual. Copyright laws apply to both Shareware and commercial software, and the copyright holder retains all rights, with a few specific exceptions as stated below. Shareware authors are accomplished programmers, just like commercial authors, and the programs are of comparable quality. (In both cases, there are good programs and bad ones!) The main difference is in the method of distribution. The author specifically grants the right to copy and distribute the software, either to all and sundry or to a specific group. For example, some authors require written permission before a commercial disk vendor may copy their Shareware. Shareware is a distribution method, not a type of software. You should find software that suits your needs and pocketbook, whether it's commercial or Shareware. The Shareware system makes fitting your needs easier, because you can try before you buy. And because the overhead is low, prices are low also. Shareware has the ultimate money-back guarantee -- if you don't use the product, you don't pay for it. DISCLAIMER - AGREEMENT Users of Lookout for OS/2 must accept this disclaimer of warranty: "Lookout for OS/2 is supplied as is. The author disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties of merchantability and of fitness for any purpose. The author assumes no liability for damages, direct or conse- quential, which may result from the use of Lookout for OS/2." Lookout for OS/2 is a "shareware program" and is provided at no charge to the user for evaluation. Feel free to share it with your friends, but please do not give it away altered or as part of another system. The essence of "user-supported" software is to provide personal computer users with quality software without high prices, and yet to provide incentive for programmers to continue to develop new products. If you find this program useful and find that you are using Lookout for OS/2 and continue to use Lookout for OS/2 after a reasonable trial period, you must make a reg- istration payment of US$15 to Frugal Software, Inc.. The US$15 registration fee will license one copy for use on any one computer at any one time. You must treat this software just like a book. An example is that this software may be used by any number of people and may be freely moved from one computer location to another, so long as there is no possibility of it being used at one location while it's being used at another. Just as a book cannot be read by two different persons at the same time. Commercial users of Lookout for OS/2 must register and pay for their copies of Lookout for OS/2 within 30 days of first use or their license is withdrawn. Site-License arrangements may be made by con- tacting Frugal Software, Inc.. Anyone distributing Lookout for OS/2 for any kind of remuneration must first contact Frugal Software, Inc. at the address below for authorization. This authorization will be automatically granted to distributors recognized by the Frugal Software, Inc. as adhering to its guidelines for shareware distributors, and such distributors may begin offering Lookout for OS/2 immediately (However Frugal Software, Inc. must still be advised so that the distributor can be kept up-to-date with the latest version of Lookout for OS/2.). You are encouraged to pass a copy of Lookout for OS/2 along to your friends for evaluation. Please encourage them to register their copy if they find that they can use it. All registered users will receive a copy of the latest version of the Lookout for OS/2 system. This document is a legal agreement between you and Frugal Software, Inc. Use of the accompanying software ("SOFTWARE") indicates your acceptance of these terms. LICENSE GRANT. This SOFTWARE as well as any accompanying documents are proprietary products of Frugal Software, Inc. and are protected under international copyright laws. This SOFTWARE as well as any accompanying documents remain the property of Frugal Software Incorporated. This SOFTWARE is provided to you AS IS and Frugal Software, Inc. makes no warranties. Without the express permission of Frugal Software, Inc. you may not 1. Install or use this SOFTWARE for multiple user, networks or multiple computer applications in absence of individual licenses from Frugal Software, Inc. 2. Translate, emulate, reverse program, disassemble, decompile, reduce, or otherwise reverse engineer the SOFTWARE. 3. Use, copy, modify, alter, transfer, electronically or otherwise, the SOFTWARE or documentation except as expressly allowed in this agreement. 4. Sublicense or lease this SOFTWARE or its documentation. TERMINATION This license is effective from your date of purchase and shall remain in force until terminated. You may terminate this license and this agreement at any time by destroying the SOFTWARE and its documenation, together with all copies in any form. Frugal Software, Inc. may terminate the license should you fail to comply with this agreement. In such case, you shall destroy the SOFTWARE and its documentation, together with all copies in any form. ═══ 3. Using Lookout ═══ Using Lookout for OS/2 ═══ 3.1. The Main Window ═══ The main window in Lookout consists of a list of sites and information about them, a menu bar and a status bar. When Lookout starts, it will display the message "Initializing..." in the status bar. Once all of the Lookouts have been created, the "Initializing..." message will be erased. The list of Lookouts contains three columns: Column Description -Site- Description of the Lookout -Status- The current status of the Lookout -Last Checked- The date and time that the Lookout last checked it's site. The very first time you start the program, the only Lookout listed will be one that watches the "Lookout for OS/2 Home Page". This Lookout is set up to check the web site once a day. The -Status- column can have several values:  No change - The Lookout did not detect any changes the last time it checked the site.  Changed! - Something has changed at the site.  Checking... - The Lookout is currently checking the site...  Host unavailable - The host is not responding to requests. You may check the site again after a little while, to see if the host is responding.  Please reset connection - This is more serious. This can be caused by either: The host name you entered when you created the Lookout is invalid, or your Domain Name Server cannot resolve the host name you entered. When you see a Lookout with this status, first try to reset it by selecting "Reset Host" from the popup menu. If this works, the Lookout's status will be reset to "No change". If this doesn't work, you will hear a low-pitched beep, and the status will remain "Please reset host". At this point, you need to edit the Lookout, and correct the host name. ═══ 3.2. Creating Lookouts ═══ If you want Lookout for OS/2 to tell you when a site has changed, you need to create a Lookout to watch that particular site. Lookouts can watch Web, FTP or Gopher sites. ═══ 3.2.1. Creating a Web Lookout ═══ To create a Web Lookout, select "Lookout | New | Web... " from the pulldown menu, or use the shortcut key, Ctrl-W. This will display the "Web Lookout Settings" dialog:  Description - This will be displayed in the -Description- field in the main list.  URL - The address of the page to watch, something like "http://www.polyex.com" ( without the quotes ).  Check every - How often you want this Lookout to check the site. The first field is the number, the second is the units. So, if you want the site checked once a day, you would enter "1" in the first field, then select the pulldown list and choose "Day(s)".  Watch this site - Specifies if you want this site to be watched. If turned off, the site will not be checked until you edit it and set Watch this site to on.  Notification - How you want to be notified when this site changes. You have the following options: - Message box - A message box with the description of this site will be displayed when this site changes. - Play tone - Two tones will be played through the PC speaker when this site changes. - Play sound file - A "wave" file will be played whenever this site changes. You can specify the "wave" file to play by entering the file name ( including path ) in the entry field below this check box, or you can select the "..." button to browse for a sound file.  More... - Displays the "More Web Settings" dialog box:  Ignore tokens with these characters - Select this check box if you want this Lookout to ignore certain HTML tags and tokens on this site. You can enter the tokens you want ignored, one on each line, in the field below this check box. ═══ 3.2.2. Creating an FTP Lookout ═══ To create an FTP Lookout, select "Lookout | New | FTP..." from the pulldown menu, or use the shortcut key, Ctrl-F. This will display the "FTP Lookout Settings" dialog:  Description - This will be displayed in the -Description- field in the main list.  Host - The name of the FTP server, like "ftp.cdrom.com", without the quotes.  Port - The port that the server is watching for FTP connections. Defaults to 21, and you shouldn't have to change it.  Username - The name you use to log in to the server. For anonymous FTP connections, use "anonymous", without the quotes. To change the default user name and password for FTP Lookouts, go to the Settings notebook.  Password - The password you use to log in. For anonymous FTP connections, use your e-mail address.  Directory - The directory on the server that you want this Lookout to watch. Defaults to the root directory, or "/".  Check every - How often you want this Lookout to check the site. The first field is the number, the second is the units. So, if you want the site checked once a day, you would enter "1" in the first field, then select the pulldown list and choose "Day(s)".  Watch this site - Specifies if you want this site to be watched. If turned off, the site will not be checked until you edit it and set Watch this site to on.  Notification - How you want to be notified when this site changes. You have the following options: - Message box - A message box with the description of this site will be displayed when this site changes. - Play tone - Two tones will be played through the PC speaker when this site changes. - Play sound file - A "wave" file will be played whenever this site changes. You can specify the "wave" file to play by entering the file name ( including path ) in the entry field below this check box, or you can select the "..." button to browse for a sound file.  More... - Displays the "More FTP Settings" dialog box:  Look for file - Select this check box if you want this Lookout to watch for a certain file. Enter the file name in the field to the right of this check box.  Ignore these files - Select this check box if you want this Lookout to ignore certain files when determining if the site has changed. Enter the file names, or parts of file names, on separate lines in the multi-line field below this check box. ═══ 3.2.3. Creating a Gopher Lookout ═══ To create a Gopher Lookout, select "Lookout | New | Gopher..." from the pulldown menu, or use the shortcut key, Ctrl-G. This will display the "Gopher Lookout Settings" dialog:  Description - This will be displayed in the -Description- field in the main list.  Host - The name of the Gopher server, like "gopher.micro.umn.edu", without the quotes.  Port - The port that the server is watching for Gopher connections. Defaults to 70, and you shouldn't have to change it.  Selection string - The string that denotes what directory or document you want watched. Defaults to a line feed / carriage return.  Check every - How often you want this Lookout to check the site. The first field is the number, the second is the units. So, if you want the site checked once a day, you would enter "1" in the first field, then select the pulldown list and choose "Day(s)".  Watch this site - Specifies if you want this site to be watched. If turned off, the site will not be checked until you edit it and set Watch this site to on.  Notification - How you want to be notified when this site changes. You have the following options: - Message box - A message box with the description of this site will be displayed when this site changes. - Play tone - Two tones will be played through the PC speaker when this site changes. - Play sound file - A "wave" file will be played whenever this site changes. You can specify the "wave" file to play by entering the file name ( including path ) in the entry field below this check box, or you can select the "..." button to browse for a sound file. ═══ 3.3. Checking sites ═══ Lookouts will check their sites automatically at the intervals you specify. If you want to check a site yourself, you have a few options. First, you can highlight the Lookout's line in the list, then select "Lookout | Check" from the pulldown menu. Or, you can right-click on the Lookout's line and select "Check" from the popup menu. You can use the shortcut key, Ctrl-C, to check the currently highlighted Lookout. Or, if you want to check all of the Lookouts at once, you can select "Actions | Check All" from the pulldown menu. You can use the shortcut key, Ctrl-Shift-C, to check all of the Lookouts. While the Lookout is checking the site, the status of that site in the list of Lookouts is "Checking...". If the site has not changed, the status of that site in the list of Lookouts will be set to "No change". If the site changes, the status of that site in the list of Lookouts will be set to "Changed!". If, for some reason, the site cannot be reached, the status of that site in the list will be set to "Host Unavailable". ═══ 3.4. The Settings Notebook ═══ The following pages are available on the Settings notebook:  FTP Settings - Global FTP Lookout settings.  Web Settings - Global Web Lookout settings.  Gopher Settings - Global Gopher Lookout settings.  Global Overrides - Global notification overrides.  Preferences - Preferences. ═══ 3.4.1. Global FTP Lookout settings ═══  FTP Client - The program to use to view FTP sites. If the program is not in a directory in your PATH, then you need to enter the full path in the FTP Client field. Defaults to FTPPM.EXE  Browse - Pushing this button displays the file open dialog box, which you can use to locate the program to view FTP sites with.  FTP Client Parameters - The command-line parameters you want passed to the FTP Client. Lookout can pass the following, using this format: - %host - The FTP host. - %user - The user name. - %password - The password. - %dir - The directory to view. - %port - The port that the FTP host is listening on.  Reset - Resets the FTP Client and FTP Client Parameters fields to the values they contained when the dialog was displayed. ═══ 3.4.2. Global Web Lookout settings ═══  Web Client - The program to use to view Web sites. If the program is not in a directory in your PATH, then you need to enter the full path in the Web Client field. Defaults to NETSCAPE.EXE  Browse - Pushing this button displays the file open dialog box, which you can use to locate the program to view Web sites with.  Web Client Parameters - The command-line parameters you want passed to the Web Client. Lookout can pass the following, using this format: - %URL - The Universal Resource Locator (URL) of the site and page you want watched.  Reset - Resets the Web Client and Web Client Parameters fields to the values they contained when the dialog was displayed. ═══ 3.4.3. Global Gopher Lookout settings ═══  Gopher Client - The program to use to view Gopher sites. If the program is not in a directory in your PATH, then you need to enter the full path in the Gopher Client field. Defaults to GOPHER.EXE  Browse - Pushing this button displays the file open dialog box, which you can use to locate the program to view Gopher sites with.  Gopher Client Parameters - The command-line parameters you want passed to the Gopher Client. Lookout can pass the following, using this format: - %host - The Gopher host. - %port - The port that the Gopher host is listening on. - %selector - The selector string of the directory or file you want watched.  Reset - Resets the Gopher Client and Gopher Client Parameters fields to the values they contained when the dialog was displayed. ═══ 3.4.4. Global Overrides ═══  Message Box Overrides - Spin button to override notifications by message box. Values are "Don't override message boxes", "Show message boxes for all Lookouts", and "Don't show message boxes for any Lookouts". The first option doesn't change anything, the second will display a message box whenever any Lookout changes, and the third will not display message boxes for any Lookouts when they change.  Tones Overrides - Spin button to override notifications by playing tones. Values are "Don't override tones", "Play tones for all Lookouts", and "Don't play tones for any Lookouts". The first option doesn't change anything, the second will play tones whenever any Lookout changes, and the third will not play tones for any Lookouts when they change.  Sound File Overrides - Spin button to override notifications by playing sound files. Values are "Don't override sound files", "Play sound file for all Lookouts", and "Don't play sound files for any Lookouts". The first option doesn't change anything, the second will play a specified sound file whenever any Lookout changes, and the third will not play sound files for any Lookouts when they change.  Sound File - Entry field for the sound file to play as part of the override. Enter the full path and name of the sound file, or use the "Browse" button. ═══ 3.4.5. Preferences ═══  Check all Lookouts on program startup - Check this box if you want all Lookouts checked every time you start the program.  Default FTP User Name - This user name will be filled in on the "FTP Settings" dialog box when you create a new FTP Lookout.  Default FTP Password - This password will be filled in on the "FTP Settings" dialog box when you create a new FTP Lookout. ═══ 4. Problems & Suggestions ═══ Please send any bug reports or suggestions for improvements to: Chris Kennedy ckennedy@primenet.com ═══ 5. Registering ═══ For more information, see the file "register.txt" included with this distribution. If you find Lookout for OS/2 useful, we would appreciate it if you registered. Registration costs US$15. Registration entitles you to free updates through version 1.99999... You can register through: BMT Micro http://www.bmtmicro.com Orders: (800) 414-4268 orders@bmtmicro.com When you register, you will be given a user name and a registration key. When running Lookout, select "Help | Register...". The Registration dialog is displayed. Enter the user name and key you received EXACTLY the way you received it. If you used the right key, the start-up nag screen will no longer display.