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!FreeNews
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1995-11-12
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Installation guidelines for FreeNews
====================================
(file last updated Sun 12th November 1995 to cope with FreeNews 1.01).
NOTE
----
FreeNews version 1.01 is a RELEASE version of the Freenet NNTP news fetcher.
However, no NNTP news system can ever be perfect, as news is propagated from
machine to machine across the internet. If you want any guarantees that all of
the relevant news is downloaded, then sorry, but none will be forthcoming.
I have (and many alpha and beta testers have too) tested FreeNews quite
considerably over the last few months, and although far from being complete
(I'm already working on version 1.10, with version 2.00 in the planning stage),
it is certainly as usable as KA9Q, and about the same speed (see below).
Known Bugs
----------
* Version 1.00 of FreeNews calculated the cps figure strangely, so it understated
the speed it now obtains. It (unlike KA9Q and SLIPdial) calculates
speed from the very start of the fetch until <now>. FreeNews 1.01 now calculates
using a much smaller timespan to average over (8 seconds). The cps figures
shown are the newer version with the old method in brackets for reference.
NB actual speed has not changed between 1.00 and 1.01, just the method of
calculating it.
* Very occasionally, the lower two lines in the status window are not updated,
even though transfer is actually happenning. If anyone can get a lead on this,
please let me know.
* There are a couple of problems with the Newsbase transport system; these
require mods to be made to Newsbase. Basically, Newsbase/Groups sometimes
think that a group has not been added to the newsfeed. Don't worry though,
as it will have been.
* "nager:Sprites22". This is an Acorn bug caused by problems surrounding the
Drawfile module and the toolbox. Make sure that you have the latest versions
of both these modules in System:modules, and THAT YOU REPLACE ALL OLDER VERSIONS
that may be in various subdirectories on your machine. Most people report
that they are surprised how many copies of Drawfile they have!
* RISC OS 3.60 USERS: You have an older version of some of the toolbox modules
in ROM than FreeNews needs. If they are in use, FreeNews is unable to replace
them with the new versions. If problems (such as "nager:Sprites22") persist,
try *Unplugging the version in ROM.
* Auto-start/quit currently have problems occasionally, specifically when
there is a problem with the initial connection to the server. My advice is
not to use these options at the moment unless you absolutely need to.
* Auto-retry of connection to a news server works fine in development, but seems
a little flaky in the real world. If you have problems, simply quit and restart
FreeNews. Version 1.02 should include a new way of implementing this, so
please be patient.
If you are unfortunate enough to come across any other bugs, or you have any
comments or requests for inclusion in future versions, please email details
to freenews@roundel.demon.co.uk. Thanks.
Distribution files
------------------
!FreeNews
!Boot - Filer boot file.
!Help - This file!
!Run - App. startup file. You may need to edit Wimpslot.
please let me know if you do.
!RunImage - Application executable.
!Sprites - Wimp icons.
!Sprites22 - High resolution wimp icons.
Acknowledge - Acknowlegements.
Advanced - Instructions for "Advanced Configuration".
Data - Directory containing files needed at runtime.
AllGroups - list of groups to fetch all new news from.
Config - FreeNews configuration.
History - List of message ids that have been fetched.
NewGroups - FreeNews puts any New Groups found in here.
NewIDs - Message ids of news to be fetched this run.
(maintained by FreeNews. Do not edit).
PostIndex - List of filenames containing messages to post.
*~ - Previous version (backup) of file *.
History - History of bug fixes, releases, and fixes awaiting
implementation.
Messages - Wimp Messages
Res - Acorn Toolbox application resource file (UK).
If anyone wants a decompiled version so that they
can translate it to another language, please let me know
as I'd be very glad to help.
!NewsBase
Transports
freenews (full dir)
- This is NOT a full release of Newsbase, but a set of
"transport" files to interface FreeNews with Newsbase.
To install it, simply drag the !Newsbase from the
FreeNews distribution over your master copy of Newsbase
if you use it. Ignore this if you don't.
IMPORTANT - follow the instructions in "Setting up"
below to make NewsBase work with this transport.
!Syslog (app) - Stewart Brodie's system log utility. The version that
I supply may not be the latest, but it will work with
FreeNews. You should find the latest version at
ftp://cslib.ecs.soton.ac.uk/pub/Acorn/freenet/s.n.brodie
Any significant actions that FreeNews does get logged
in the system_log file in this directory.
!SysMerge (app) - Acorn-written utility to upgrade your !System
!System (app) - FreeNews has been written using the new Acorn C
toolbox. This directory contains the toolbox modules.
Use this, in association witgh !SysMerge to update
your !System.
Setting up
----------
I've tried to make this as simple as possible, but one or two things need to be
done before you can successfully use FreeNews.
Installation:
* Copy !FreeNews to the same directory as your other internet utilities.
Specifically, !NewsBase, !NewsDir (and possibly, !TCPIPUser !) need
to be seen before FreeNews will run.
* Copy !Newsbase over your existing copy of Newsbase. This archive
contains files that will add a "freenews" transport to Newsbase.
Newsbase:
* Edit the file !Newsbase.Transports.freenews.SetHost so that your
hostname replaces "roundel.demon.co.uk".
* Enter the Newsbase Setup "Transport control" window. Choose
"freenews" as the "default news route".
* Ensure that the line "Source transport" in the transport control
window is set to "freenews", even if you are using KA9Q for mail.
If this is not done, new group information will not be added to
NewsBase. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. Graham Allan is looking into a fix
to NewsBase for this at the moment.
* (for Newsbase 0.55 onwards, ensure that for the freenews transport,
mail checking is inactive, news checking is active and outgoing
routing is news).
* Save all changes here.
FreeNews:
* Edit the file !FreeNews.Data.AllGroups. This should contain the groups
that you wish to subscribe to, one per line. The use of "*" at the
end of a name is valid for wildcard purposes.
Note that the format of the file is <name><TAB>1.
If you are upgrading from KA9Q, take your existing newsfeed file
(*News, e.g. demnews), copy it to AllGroups, and edit it to add the
<TAB>1.
If you are upgrading from an earlier version of FreeNews (0.98 and
before), you must edit this file to include the <TAB>1.
* Run !FreeNews, and open the preferences window. Note that Acorn's
interactive help is supported here.
* Enter at least one news server name. Ensure the server you wish to use
is selected by the radio button on the left.
* Enter a date and time for fetching or click on "catch up".
* Choose a speed option. I'd recommend FAST, unless you are experiencing
memory problems.
* Accept/save these changes by clicking OK.
Using FreeNews
--------------
Once setup, FreeNews is simple to operate. Choose "Transfer News" from the iconbar
menu to start the process running. The text under the icon (if configured) will
change to indicate progress (or lack of!) For more information, clicking select
on the iconbar icon will open a status window. This status window can also be
opened by selecting the relevant entry on the iconbar menu, or automatically,
according to the preferences.
FreeNews will attempt to be clever if you drop your connection part-way through
a fetch. Next time you connect, only those articles that were not downloaded in
full previously will be fetched again.
If FreeNews fails for any reason, it should show an error window before dying.
If you find it just removes itself from the icon bar, have a look in the
system_log file (held within !Syslog).
If you want to speed things up a little at the expense of debugging information,
Edit the !FreeNews.!Run file and change the parameter on the SyslogD_Debug line.
The lower the number (it goes to zero meaning next to no logging) the less
disk activity there will be. If you do find a fault, I'd like to see the relevant
bit of the syslog at level 5 or above (pref. level 7).
At debug level 0, errors and start/stop are logged. At level 1, Warnings are also
included. Higher levels give progressively more information, such that the
fetching will proceed at a snail's pace. Please do not set to higher than 5 unless
I've asked you to.
Compatability
-------------
FreeNews should be compatible with *any* standard TCP/IP stack. I've tested it
with Freenet version 0.20 and the ANT Internet suite at 0.45ß. Other beta testers
have used Acorn TCP/IP without problems. FreeNews will *not* work with KA9Q
(aka !TCPTP) or Termite Internet, as these are not standard stacks.
Error messages that are displayed whilst running with ANT beta stack with Fresco
are a fault with the Acorn written code within the ANT stack. ANT are aware of
this.
The Future
----------
Just because FreeNews is now stable enough to be numbered above 1.00 does not
mean that this is it. FreeNews is still evolving. My plan of action for the
near future is as follows:
* The ability to download headers-only of messages, and browse these at leisure
to select which articles to fetch. Limited support for this is already present
(and hidden) within FreeNews 1.01; so expect some support for this fairly soon.
* The ability to edit the fetch status of groups (a window exists in 1.01 to
elicit comments).
* The facility of selecting from headers by THREAD rather than individually.
* The provision of auto-select and auto-kill functions that will automatically
download the body of articles that you've already expressed interest in, and
conversely to "kill" the headers of certain articles after download so you will
not be shown the header, and the body will not be downloaded.
* The facility to associate a cost with individual newsgroups so that high traffic
groups are only downloaded when telephone calls are cheap, and very low-traffic
or important groups are fetched regardless of the time.
Any Questions?
--------------
Or observations/requests? Then please feel free to contact me by email at
freenews@roundel.demon.co.uk.
Licence
-------
FreeNews is © Copyright 1995 John Smith and Neil Clegg and is released as
freeware.
Permission is granted to use FreeNews on the understanding that this use
is entirely at your own risk. We accept no liability whatsoever for any
loss or damage arising from the use of FreeNews nor do we make any guarantee
that it is fit for any purpose. You may not distribute FreeNews
in any form without express permission, unless all files are present and
unchanged. No charges may be made (other than reasonable postage/packing costs)
for distribution.
PD Libraries and BB sysops should contact me to ensure that they have the latest
version.
Toolbox Modules
---------------
FreeNews may have been distributed with Acorn's Toolbox modules. These
modules are Copyright © Acorn Computers Ltd. You may not distribute them
unless you have a licence from Acorn to do so.