ftp.barnyard.co.uk/2015.02.ftp.barnyard.co.uk.tar/ftp.barnyard.co.uk/cpm/walnut-creek-CDROM/BEEHIVE/COMMS/QTERM42G.ARC/QTERM.DOC

Text File | 1991-08-11 | 18KB | 321 lines

QTERM
=====

If QTERM is invoked with no arguments, it starts up, and after signing
on, you are immediately connected with the modem. If an argument file
is provided, then it is assumed to be a chat script (see 'X'), and the
chat script is immediately activated. With this file as with all others
that can be entered, user numbers can be included in the filespecification:
B3:CHAT.XYZ will look for the file in user area 3 on drive B: Either the
drive or the user alone can be given: A:FOO.FOO and 7:BAZ.BAR are both
acceptable, anything not given defaults to the current values. On
completion of the chat script, command passes to normal connected
operation. All special actions are initiated by typing the escape
character, what happens next is determined by the next character typed.
Note that while all letters here are shown in upper case, lower case works
equally well: so <escape> b also activates the code to set the baud rate.
As delivered, the escape character is set to control backslash, however it
can be changed by patching QTERM: see QTERM.PAT for details, so to print
help type '^\' '?', etc. In all the descriptions that follow, references to
the escape character refer to this (i.e. '^\' and not the ESC key - '^[')

At several places in QTERM it is necessary to be able to encode control
characters and other "non-printing" characters in a visible mode, to
do this a special escape mechanism is used. To start one of these escape
sequences a backslash '\' is used, followed by one or more characters to
define the desired character. The following are provided: '\r' carriage
return (0x0d), '\n' linefeed (0x0a), '\t' tab (0x09), '\b' backspace
(0x08), '\e' escape (0x1b), '\k' break, and '\d' delay. '\k' causes a
break to be sent if this string is subsequently sent to the modem (as in
a chat script), and '\d' causes a delay of two seconds when used in a
chat script. In addition a backslash can be followed by up to three
octal digits to send the character with that representation: so '\177'
would send a delete, and '\003' or '\3' would send a control C; this can
also be done for hexadecimal representations: in this case '\x' is the
leadin, and it is followed by up to two hexadecimal digits: so '\x7f'
would again send a delete, and '\xd' could be used in place of '\r' to
send a carriage return. The rule for determining how many characters are
used when scanning an octal or hex number is as follows: octal has a
maximum of three, hex a maximum of two (not including the \ or \x
respectively): use at most that many characters, or stop early if an
inappropriate character is encountered.

Retyping the escape character (i.e. typing it twice) sends a single copy
of the escape character to the remote system.

Other characters and what they do are:

? - Print help - QTERM provides a brief synopsis of the available commands.

. - Send a break - If QTERM has been patched to do it, this will transmit
a tenth of a second break.

, - Hang up modem - This is done by deactivating DTR for a short time, which
causes most modems to hang up. Again QTERM has to be patched to do this.
Alternatively, if your modem doesn't respond to DTR, it is possible to
have QTERM transmit a string to cause a hangup: for example the:

    '<delay> +++ <delay> ATH0'

as required by a HAYES compatible modem. See the patch documentatin for
details.

B - Change baud rate and mode - This will first prompt you, your response
must look like the following:

    nnnn
    nnnn mmm
    * mmm
    nnnn mmm -3 20 500 +S.

where 'nnnn' is a number specifying the baud rate. Up to eight options
are available: 300 600 1200 2400 4800 9600 19200 and 38400, although not
all of these may be enabled. 'mmm' is a byte format specifier made up
of three characters. The first must be '7 ' or '8' to specify the number
of data bits; the second 'E', 'O', or 'N' for even, odd, or no parity;
and the third '1' or '2' for the number of stop bits. The * in the third
example is used as a place holder when the mode is to be changed, but
not the baud rate. So, for example: '1200' would change to 1200 baud
leaving the mode as is; '300 8n1' would switch to 300 baud, and select
8 data bits, no parity, and 1 stop bit; and '* 7E2' would change the
format to 7 data bits, even parity, and 2 stop bits, while leaving the
baud rate alone. Two other options can be added to this line: the '-'
option is a way of specifying three delays that can be set, and the '+'
option can set the characters used to enable and disable character
transmission from the remote system.

If both the '-' and '+' options are used, then the '+' must follow the '-'
(as above in the example).

The '+' option changes the characters that QTERM will use for flow
control. When a system is sending text to QTERM, which is being saved
in a file, QTERM needs to be able to stop the remote system from
sending when it writes to disk. Most of the time ^S and ^Q are
recognised, but for the few systems that use other characters, this
option allows them to be changed. Following the '+' should be exactly two
characters ('S' and '.' in the example), the first becomes the "stop"
character, and the second the "start" character. These characters can
be '\' escapes if needed.

If the '-' option is used, it should be followed by up to three numbers.
The first is a delay in seconds after the "stop" character is sent.
Since some systems take longer to respond to the "stop" character than
others, the delay time can be changed. QTERM starts up with one second
of delay, but by specifying -3 or -6 or whatever, this delay can be
changed. -0 is possible, but not recommended unless your remote system
responds instantly. The second number is a delay in milliseconds between
character sends in 'P' transmits (see below). Note that this time is
the time between the start of each character transmission, rather than
a time between the end of one and the start of the next. So if this
delay was set to 15 milliseconds at 1200 BPS, where each character
takes about 8 milliseconds to transmit, there would be 8 milliseconds
spent sending the character, and then 7 milliseconds of idle time: the
total being 15. The third number is the delay at the end of a line in
'P' transmission: this is also a count of milliseconds, and this delay
occurs after transmission of a carriage return. Note that it is possible
to selectively set these values: if a '*' is entered as a place holder
then the delay value for that position will not be changed, i.e.

    -* 20

would leave the stop delay alone, set the character delay to 20
milliseconds, and leave the end of line delay alone.

Although QTERM always claims to have made the changes to the baud rate
and communication mode, they will only happen if the necessary patches
are applied. Note that for the second character of the mode specifier,
both lower and upper case are accepted.

C - Open an input catch file - This prompts for a filename, and then opens
that file for output. All subsequent data received up the line from the
modem port will be written to the file.

Y - Put catch file on hold - This keeps the output file open, but temporarily
disables transfer of data. A second <escape> 'Y' will re-enable capture
of data.

Z - Close a catch file - This closes the output file, and disables data
capture until another catch file is opened.

D - Display local directory - This prompts for a single CP/M wildcard
file specificier, and then lists all files that match. Note that an
empty filename is assumed to be '*.*'. This option will only work
with CP/M 2.2 and compatible systems: it is disabled under CP/M 3.0.
When the files are being printed, QTERM will stop after each screenful
(23 lines), hitting return will print a single line, any other key will
print a full page.

E - Toggle remote echo - This toggles echo to the remote system. This will
most likely be used when the remote system is a terminal or another
computer running a terminal program. It causes all characters received
from the modem to be re-transmitted back to the modem, creating the
impression that the far end is running in half duplex mode. Caution
should be used to make sure that you don't set up an 'infinite loop'
where the remote system is also echoing: because then the first
character that returns will be sent out again by QTERM, to be returned
by the remote, to be sent out again by QTERM .....

H - Toggle half duplex - This simply causes all keyboard input to be
echoed to the screen.

I - Print status information - This prints a summary of QTERM's current
state, showing the state of the various toggles, delays, what the
current drive and user are, etc.

J - Junk control characters - This causes QTERM to discard all control
characters received from the remote system that are not considered
important. Important control characters are: carriage return (0x0d);
linefeed (0x0a); backspace (0x08); and tab (0x09). In this mode, if
the remote system is sending characters with the MSB set, and bit 7
masking is not enabled (see 'M'), then all characters with bit 7 set
will also be discarded.

L - Toggle linefeed transmit for 'P' - When 'P' is used to send a file
to a remote system, it normally transmits all useful characters: i.e.
all printable ascii characters from ' ' to '~', tabs, and carriage
returns. This toggle ensables the transmission of line feeds, for
cases where it is needed. Note that when QTERM starts, this is off,
i.e. the default is not to transmit linefeeds.

M - Toggle bit 7 mask - When this is enabled, all characters received from
the remote have the most significant bit stripped. This may be useful
when QTERM is running in 8n1 mode, but the remote is transmitting in
7e1 mode - the top bit will contain parity, and this strips it off.

N - New default drive and user. This will prompt, and allow entry of a drive
user specification (i.e 'A7:' or 'B14:' or 'C:' or '9:'), this then
becomes the default for all file operations. Note that it is possible
to user the CP/M BDOS functions to set drive and user during the entry
hook code (see QTERM.PAT), so if the entry code selects D2:, and all
scripts are on D2: just entering QTERM SCRIPT at the CCP prompt would
find SCRIPT on D2:. Also note that after the entry hook code, QTERM makes
a note of where it is (i.e. in the above case D2: ) When a chat script
is invoked with the 'X' command, QTERM will first look at the drive
given, or on the default if no drive is specified. If that fails, then
QTERM will take a second look in the drive/user area as saved after the
entry hook. The rationale behind this is to place all chat scripts in
one place: these can subsequently move the default around (see the '!'
section of chat scripts), or 'N' commands can be used to move around.
However it does not matter what the current default drive/user is, QTERM
can always find the scripts by lookng back at the area it noted.

O - Toggle output to the printer - This simply toggles a switch that causes
all data received to be transmitted to the printer.

P - Print a file to remote - This prompts for a filename, and then transmits
that file to the remote system. While this transfer is in progress, the
keyboard is ignored, except that typing control 'X' will cancel the
transfer. Note that the 'L' command may come in useful with this command,
check how your remote system behaves.

T - Type a local file - This also prompts for a filename, and then prints that
file to the screen locally. While this is in progress, a control 'X' will
cancel it, Output can also be paused by typing control 'S', which will
halt until another character is typed. If this character is control 'X'
the output will be aborted, any other continues the printout.

U - Invoke user function - QTERM can be patched to include a user defined
function, this is the command to call it. This subroutine can be used for
any purpose required, for example keyboard mapping can be enabled, or some
special screen sequence can be printed, or whatever is needed. The patch
documentation provides information on how to patch this into QTERM, and
also explains how it is possible to prompt for information from within
this subroutine.

V - Toggle VT100 emulation - This function requires the following screen
abilities be specified before it will work (see QTERM.PAT for details):
clear to end of line, and clear to end of screen. Note that the VT100
emulation is as complete as it can be, however the alternate character
sets are not recognised, and all the display attribute commands are mapped
to the single highlight mode encoded in the patch area.

W - Toggle split window mode - This requires that the insert line and delete
line screen abilities be specified (see QTERM.PAT for details). It puts
QTERM into a mode where send and receive text are shown in two separate
windows. This can be useful when using QTERM to communicate with another
communication program running in terminal mode, because it keeps what
is typed on the keyboard separate from what is received from the remote
system. After selecting window mode, QTERM prompts for window size: there
are two options, 'b' or 's' (big or small). This refers to the receive
window: when small, the screen is split exactly in half: 11 lines for
both send and receive. Big mode makes the receive window 18 lines deep,
the send window is only 4 lines: this will be useful when far more text
is being received than is being sent.

R - Receive a file using protocol - This option prompts for a mode and
optional receive file information. Xmodem and Kermit are both supported.
Respond with 'k' to go into Kermit receive, or 'x' to go into Xmodem
receive. Normally files are received on the current default drive,
however by entering a drive or a user (e.g. 'k b7:') files will be
received in the specified location. In addition, if Xmodem is not
being used in batch mode, a filename can be given here. Non-batch
Xmodem has a default filename, this can be used to override it. Note
that a space MUST be present between the k or the x and the
filename / drive specification for proper operation. Normally QTERM
is silent, however if an 'a' option is given immediately after the
'x' or 'k' (as in 'ka c4:') QTERM will alert on termination of transfer
by ringing the terminal bell. While the transfer is in progress, a
control 'X' will abort it.

S - Send a file using protocol - This also prompts, the response should be
'k filelist ....' or 'x filelist ....' where 'filelist ....' is a list
of CP/M filespecifiers: wildcards are permitted. Single filespecifiers
are separated from one another by spaces, and there must be a space
before the first filespecifier. There are options that can be given
immediately following the k / x. For Kermit, the only option available
is 'b', to forces binary mode. Kermit usually sends files in text
mode, i.e. 0x1a is taken as end of file. If you want to transfer a
binary file, specify the mode as 'kb filename.com'. Xmodem has the
following options: 'b' - use Xmodem batch (AKA Modem7 batch mode);
'y' - use Ymodem batch mode; 'k' - use 1K packets. So 'xbk a12:*.com'
would send all .COM files on drive A:, user area 12, using Modem7
batch mode and 1K packets. To match names to various combinations:
xyk will give true Ymodem (known sometimes as ymodem batch), xk gives
Xmodem 1K (sometimes incorrectly called ymodem), xy gives Ymodem batch,
but forces 128 byte packets, xbk will use Modem7 batch mode, but with
1K packets. Note that the Kermit implementation will attempt to use both
hi bit quoting and repeat character packing for sending. As with protocol
reception, this procedes in silence, however if an 'a' option
(i.e. 'xkya 4:*.txt') is given, QTERM will ring the bell on completion;
in addition, a control 'X' will abort the transfer.

K - Program a function key - This prompts for a key number and a string
to be loaded under that key. The first character entered may be an
's' to specify the string should be sent slowly. Normally function
key strings are transmitted at full speed, however the 's' creates
a tenth second delay between characters. Following the 's' (if given)
or as the first character if no 's' is given, must be a digit between
'0' and '9': this specifies the key number. Finally comes the string
that will be loaded under the key. Maximum string length is 14
characters, longer strings are truncated. Backslash escape sequences
are permitted, see the description in the section on chat scripts
for a full explanation of what is available. As a few examples:

    s2hello\r

would program function key 2 to send 'hello <cr>' slowly, and:

    3userid = 17\e

would program function key 3 to send 'userid = 17 <esc>' at full speed.

0-9 - Send function key string - After <escape> 'K' has been used to load
strings into the function keys, <escape> '0' etc. will activate the
function key, causing the string it contains to be sent. Note that if a
function key string contains the QTERM <escape> character, it will not
invoke the function in question. So loading \x1c,\x1cq
(<escape> , <escape> q) under a key cannot be used to provide a
"hangup and exit" from QTERM.

X - Activate a chat script - This prompts for a filename, then it reads
the file, and does the chat script given. Following the filename can be
parameters for use in the script, much as SUBMIT.COM allows parameters
to be passed to a .SUB file. If a chat script is given to QTERM as a
command line argument when it is invoked from the CCP, then the following
command line arguments will become the parameters to the chat script.

A chat script is a means for getting QTERM to automatically send and
receive text, this can be used to auto-dial, connect to remote systems,
log in to them, and do whatever else is wanted. A companion file
QTCHAT.DOC explains the workings of chat scripts.