EasyTransfer may be freely distributed provided that no charges are made and that this file is included and that the software remains unmodified.
What is EasyTransfer?
EasyTransfer is a tool that allows users to exchange files between Macintosh computers. There is no need to compress, BinHex or manipulate the files in any way. Anybody who wishes to make files accessible to the outside world can set up user accounts for remote logins. These user may read or deposit files in a previously assigned location, and there is no way they could 'bypass' that. The transfer is done in real time and does not require any UNIX or other system services such as POP hosts etc. EasyTransfer allows you to send or receive files to/from any Mac anywhere in the world, provided both Macs have MacTCP installed (and are connected to the Internet :-) It is designed for groups of people who work together on some project and wish to exchange/update files frequently. Compressing/BinHex'ing/Cutting-into-parts takes up a lot of time which EasyTransfer eliminates. EasyTransfer is extremely simple. It has no fancy user interface and apart from sending or receiving files there’s not a lot to it. This is quite deliberate. It is meant to provide a *simple* and *quick* way of transferring files without the need for an elaborate setup and many configuration files. Absolutely no knowledge of networks etc. is required, not even knowledge of your own IP address. Users should be able to get it up and running in at most ten minutes. Users who seek compatibility with Unix, Mac e-mail or FTP, should have a look at Eudora, Fetch and ftpd.
What's new in 2.1.1
Added Alias support. That is, a file/folder may be shared by putting an alias to it into the transfer folder.
Log window may be saved to disk.
Bug in About screen fixed.
System Requirements
EasyTransfer requires system software 7 or higher and MacTCP 1.1. It *might* work under system 6, though I have not tested this. It requires at least a Mac Plus. If you have any problems at all running it, PLEASE let me know, I'll fix it for you if at all possible.
How to use EasyTransfer
EasyTransfer is now two applications in one. A server that allows outside users to connect to your Mac (if they have an account), and a client that allows you to connect to another Mac. The log window logs every transaction. If someone connects to your Mac, the transaction log will be preceeded by "SERVER>" to indicate server action. If you connect to another Mac, transactions will be logged as "CLIENT>". It is very simple to set up user accounts on your Mac. You can even test it out, simply by connecting to 'yourself'. Every registered user has his 'own' folder. All user folders reside in the same folder which you may select. A user account has the following form:
• user name (the 'login')
• a password
• an option to access all mouneted volumes
• read permissions for files in 'own' user folder
• read permissions for files in other users' folders
• permission to write to 'own' folder
• permission to write to other users' folders
• access restriction from hour:minute to hour:minute
A user's 'own' files are those which reside within his 'own' folder or folders contained in this folder (almost sounds like legal stuff). A user with permission to read/write his 'own' folder will not be able to see the file store of others. A user with permission to read any folder will be able to see and read other users' files and folders, but will not be able to write anywhere outside his own folder. A user with permission to write to any folder will be able to write to any user's folder.
NOTE: if you have GateKeeper or some other anti-virus protection installed you must either turn it off or add EasyTransfer to the list of trusted applications. If you fail to do so GateKeeper will veto the creation of applications (when someone sends you an application or you receive one).
A Step-By-Step Guide
1) If you don't want to use EasyTransfer as a server, go on to step 6. Otherwise, decide where you want to keep shared files. This may be anywhere on your Mac. It is best to create a special folder called, say, "Transfer".
2) Start EasyTransfer. If this is the first time you run EasyTransfer you will have to create a Preference file. Click on 'New' in the appropriate dialog (you will see...). The default location is "System Folder:Preferences", but you may keep it anywhere if you prefer. Note for systems other than UK/US/Canada: it might not find the preference folder if it is not named "System Folder:Preferences", but don't worry.
3) Select "Default Folder..." from the Options menu. Navigate your way inside the 'Transfer' folder (or whatever you called it). Click the "Save files here" button.
4) Create new user accounts. Select "Users..." from the Option menu. Click on the "New" button. Give the user a name. Assign the user appropriate access permissions. Repeat for additional users.
5) You may now test the user accounts. Select the top entry from the hierarchical "Open Connection" menu. This is your own machine. You will be prompted for a user name. Enter whatever user account you want to test. If the user account tested does not do what you want, go back to step 4 and edit it. Try to transfer some files by clicking "Put file...". Once there is something in the user's folder, try to retrieve it by double-clicking on the file. You may make an extended selection by holding down the command key.
6) To establish a connection to another Mac, choose 'Open Connection..." from the File menu, or select an address from the shortcut "Open" menu. You may edit this shortcut menu by selecting "Default Hosts..." from the Options menu.
7) Follow the instructions when prompted for a user name and password.
8) Navigate through the remote file store in the same way as you normally use a disk.
9) Click on "Get File..." or "Put File..." to transfer a file. You may get more than one file at a time by holding down the Shift or Option key when making a selection. That's all there is to it.
10) You may leave a message on the remote server for inspection by the owner. Select "Leave Message..." from the File menu to do this. Funny aspect of this: if your remote host has a connection to you at the same time, you can use this like UNIX 'talk', though it is a bit tedious.
11) You may experiment with various options, mostly default settings. Have a look at the Options menu.
12) To share files/folders that are NOT inside the transfer folder, simply put an Alias to it into the appropriate place in the transfer folder.
NOTE: if an Alias can't be resolved, EasyTransfer will transfer the Alias file rather than what it (ought to) point to.
Limitations
EasyTransfer is not meant to be a substitute for ftp. It is merely providing a quick and easy way of sharing files over the Internet. Ftp users should use "Fetch" combined with "ftpd" by Peter Lewis.
If you use EasyTransfer on a regular basis, then I expect you to send me US$10, or the equivalent. Please send no cheques (except Euro-cheques) since I can't cash them here. I never charge for more than five licences, anything above that goes free, ie. US$50 is the maximum.
Please send to:
Christopher Reid
4/1, 4 Dalcross Pass
Glasgow G11 5RA
Scotland
Please contact me at cr@cs.strath.ac.uk to let me know of any suggestions or if you need help. Registered users will receive future updates free of charge. I am always pleased to hear criticism/bug reports etc. I am committed to fix bugs as soon as they are reported to me.
Acknowledgements
Many thanks to Internet-MacTCP guru Peter N. Lewis, Australia. Lots of the initial TCP code used is based on his Chat&Talk sample code (get this if you are interested in MacTCP programming). Peter, you’re a great guy! Thanks also to those who have provided me with invaluable feedback and helped me to detect and fix bugs. In particular, I would like to thank Thomas Diessel, Svante Goding and Robert Fronk.
Future improvements
• run-time data compression
• any clever suggestion that is made to me
Version History
2.1.1
Added Alias support.
Log window may be saved to disk.
Bug in About screen fixed.
2.1
Eliminated bug which caused EasyTransfer to batter MacTCP under certain circumstances.
Added multi-file put option.
Added 'Drive' option to access all mounted volumes.
Made it more reliable.
Removed Daemon option.
2.0.2
Important bug fix. A bug caused the program to hang under certain circumstances (only over very slow links).
The contents of the Log window may now be copied onto the system scrap.
Can fetch whole folders (and folders inside folders).
Eliminated a Log window weirdness.
ETDaemon works now under system 7.1
2.0.0
Version 2.0.0 has been completely redesigned for greater efficiency and ease of use.
Server and Client have been merged into one application.
An EasyTransfer alert daemon runs (optionally) in the background. That is, if someone tries to connect to your Mac and EasyTransfer isn't running, it tells you to do so.
A new session protocol means that transfer speeds are improved by anything up to 50%. This will be particularly obvious over long-distance links.
IMPORTANT: due to the new session protocol, EasyTransfer v2.0.0 is INCOMPATIBLE with earlier versions. You should always use v2.0.0 or higher (when it comes out).
The set-up of user accounts has been much simplyfied since it is now possible to quickly test it out -- on a single machine running only one copy of EasyTransfer.
The location of user folders can now be selected - it is no longer static on the start-up volume and may even be changed whilst servicing clients.
'Machine Alias' files are no longer supported - nobody used them!
More than one file at a time may now be fetched by making an extended selection.
Remote users may create new folders.
You may now send a message to the other end. This message will be logged in the log window. This is useful to report any unusual occurences. It may also save a long-distance telephone call if the person at the other end happens to see it and reacts to it :-)
1.1.0
Fixed problems with Quadras. Client now runs fully in the background. Eliminated a bug which (10 percent chance) caused crashes at start-up time (only on some models - I still don’t know what exactly why it only occured on certain configurations, but it should be fixed now).
1.0.0
Initial Release. Seemed to work well. Bug reports indicate problems with Quadras. Client ought to work in the background.
