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XTick - File Forwarder for the Amiga
Copyright (c) 1995 by Robert Williamson, FIDONET#1:167/104.0
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
This software is provided "as is", without warranty and/or
guarantee of any kind. You may use and/or distribute this software
and copies of it, as long as no alterations have been made, no files
have been added to/omitted from the original distribution archive
and no charge is asked for.
This package may be freely distributed via BBSs, ADS, AmiNet and
software libraries such as Fred Fish's and Aminet CD-ROMs, and other
similar electronic channels.
This package may NOT be distributed SAN, Disk magazines, PD
libraries or BBSs and Services that charge extra for file transfers
without authorization from, and compensation to the author.
What is a File Forwarder?
File Forwarder is the generic class name for programs used to
automatically distribute files via an FidoNet Technology Network (FTN).
The general specifications for File Forwarders were first proposed in
the document FSC-0028.txt. However, this document is simply a discussion
and does not cover what is now known as Common Practice, the real-world
operation of File Forwarders. Included in the distribution is
bw_forward.txt, a proposal for File Forwarding that has been or will be
submitted to the FTSC.
XTick meets all the primary requirements and supports most, if not all,
of the proposed extensions for the TIC file format as well as many that
are in common usage.
A File Forwarder performs three basic FTN functions:
- Hatchs a program into a FileEcho
- Processes a TIC file for a file received in a FileEcho
- Forwards TIC'ed files to downlinks
XTick does much more.
Status of This Release:
This is BETA and given the great number of features it probably has
bugs. In the case of a serious ERROR, and if the error conditions allow,
XTick WILL AUTOMATICALLY WRITE A MESSAGE to ME
at either
FIDONET#1:167/104.0 or AMIGANET#40:600/104.0.
BE SURE that you have set these addresses as ROUTED in your tosser or
packer/router config BEFORE running XTick, so as not to incure
long-distance charges.
The LogLevel for log messages is presently set quite low in order to
display a lot of progress info for debugging. At a LOGLEVEL of 3, the
log will grow very fast. At a later date, loglevels will be changed to
insure a minimal amount of info for normal processing.
This documentation may not be always up to date, as features are being
added at a very quick pace. Refer to the example XTick.cfg for config
changes and the XTick USAGE display for command line changes.
The ToDo list is changed daily, items being either implemented and
removed from the list or new items added. There is no obligation on my
part to implement anything in the ToDO list unless a contract to do so is
entered into by myself and a customer.
Copyrights:
XTick, XTick.doc and the format of XTick.cfg are all,
Copyright (c) 1995 by Robert Williamson, FIDONET#1:167/104.0
XTcrc is based upon CRC32, originally compiled by Juergen Hermann of
2:507/646 which was based upon the crc routines from rz/sz. The
following copyrights are extracted from that source and are hereby
acknowledged.
updcrc macro derived from article Copyright (C) 1986 Stephen Satchell
Programmers may incorporate any or all code into their programs,
giving proper credit within the source. Publication of the
source routines is permitted so long as proper credit is given
to Stephen Satchell, Satchell Evaluations and Chuck Forsberg,
Omen Technology.
XTcrc here has been modified and optimized for speed and to be PURE and
residentable. It will return a CRC of 00000000 instead of text messages
on error.
Why another File Forwarder program?
I have been using Peer's Ftick for a few years, but have been unhappy
with the lack of development and bugfixs. Some of unresolved bugs forced
me to add a frontend for it. For example, FTick chokes on tic keywords
and addressing modes that it does not know. I found that Ftick's
multi-ftn handling to be poor, forcing me to use separate config files
for each FTN. FTick could also not handle primary files renamed by the
mailer when a dupe was already present, nor would it cleanup TIC files
that were not sent when the same file was being re-hatched. Since FTick
used only the old Flow File system, I also had to run either the Shelter
flocvt or the XQ FLO-convertor after every FTick run on my xferq system.
I was also not able to execute more than one command on Hatch or Tick.
There were cases where I wanted to execute both the GLOBAL and AREA
commands.
After writing FQuery, I found myself at the point where the File
Forwarding function was the only FTN function left for which I did not
have source or did not write myself. As I had been thinking I long time
about what I required in a File Forwarder, I decided to implement my
requirements. It wasn't easy, the version number reflects the number of
times a Make was done.
Raid Support:
Other than the REPORT function, XTICK does not perform any other
RAID-type function. A companion utility, XRAID, is available, which uses
the same configuration file as XTick.
Requirements:
WB 2.1 MINIMUM
rexxdossupport.library v2.3
The AmigaOS commands List and Assign must be either resident or on the
path.
Features:
o pure, residentable
o multi-ftn
o supports BOTH XferQ and Flow File systems
o handles files renamed by mailer's extension change
o deletes and de-queues old TICs when re-hatching same file
o can do renames instead of delete/overwrite on Hatch and Replace
o can perform FileName Conversion per SITE with optional Fullname
o permits cross-hatch based upon filespecs from one Area to another
o supports extended tic format (To,LDesc,Size,Magic,Areadesc,Fullname,Via,etc)
o does not fail on unknown tic file keywords
o can strip seenbys that are outside ftn, zone or net
o can save Created as Vias for File Forwarder tracking
o GLOBAL options to enable tic extensions with SITE disable overrides
o can use 3d/4d, or FQFA tic format per SITE
o advanced config format allows multiple keywords per line
o can hatch with Magic, Replaces and Description via commandline
o can hatch with a ticinfo file to include in tic file
o GLOBAL options can be overidden by SITE or AREA options
o SITE options can be overidden by SITE's AREA options
o SITE and AREA passwords
o GLOBAL post announcements for tick or hatch in multiple echos
o per AREA post announcements for tick or hatch in multiple echos
o config report to all or one SITE
o extensive command parameter substitution available
o configurable commands w/substitution for packing and importing
o configurable GLOBAL commands w/substitution for tick or hatch
o configurable AREA commands w/substitution for tick and hatch
o AREA commands can be executed INSTEAD or IN ADDITION to GLOBAL
o AREA commands can be executed BEFORE or AFTER GLOBAL comamnds
o multiple commands can be defined for all types
o displayable SITE config, AREA config and GLOBAL config
o send .tic, fileattach pkt, both or neither per SITE AND per AREA
o notification message for all errors in tic files
o will also use RoofLog function host if active.
See ToDO for future features.
Installation:
Be sure that your dearc command preserves attributes. If it does not,
run:
> Protect Mail:XTick pwerd
> Protect Mail:XTcrc pwerd
Copy XTick and XTcrc to somewhere on your path, MAIL: is nice. For
faster loading, you can pre-load them as resident with these commands:
> Resident Mail:XTick ADD
> Resident Mail:XTcrc ADD
Be SURE you do not have any other programs called XTick or XTcrc on
your path.
If you do not have a CFG: assign, create one and place your XTick.CFG
there. Otherwise, you will have to specify the CFGFILE path on the
commandline. If you are going to do it anyways, then a good idea is to
copy the config to RAM: in your startup and use
CFGFILE RAM:XTick.CFG
in your XTick command lines. This will speed up operations as bit more.
Copy rexxdossupport.library and rexxplslib.library to any directory of
your LIBS: assign.
Copy Start-ARexx to S:. Then remove the call to RexxMast in your
S:Startup-Sequence and add a call to S:Start-ARexx to your S:User-Startup.
Copy RPStart#? to your SYS:WBstartup directory.
Mailer Installation:
Shelter Mailers:
Since Shelter Mailers use inbound file notification per file type,
you have a choice on how to invoke XTick. Depending upon the cpu speed
of your system you can EITHER process TICs WHENRECD or AFTERSESS.
WHENRECD:
TICKRECD "Run >NIL: XTick TICKFILE $(indir)$(infile)"
AFTERSESS:
TICKSESS "Run >NIL: XTick SCANTIC $(indir)"
TrapDoor and similar:
TrapDoor does not provide any sort of notification. Therfore you
will have to scan your inbound for TIC files.
I am not aware of the features of GMS and XenoLink mailers.
Add the following to your AfterSession script:
Run >NIL: XTick SCANTIC path
'path' should be your Inbound directory.
JamMail:
Same as TrapDoor.
Others:
Let me know, I'll add it here.
Templates:
XTick uses standard AmigaDos Templates for both command line arguments
and for many configuration items. See Xconfig.DOC for explanation of
templates used.
Command Line Usage:
The various modes allows use of XTick in WhenRecd, TurnAround and
AfterSession commands as well as in a cli. The template is divided into
functional sets. A Set is defined by the first parameter you give.
DEBUG and CFGFILE may be used with any set, but may not be the last
items in the command line if a /F template is specified in the set.
Template parameters that are not valid for the set are ignored. The
template below shows each Set.
Any of the addressing formats defined below can be used on the command
line.
Template:
SHOWCFG/S
SHOWSITE/K,SHOWAREA/K,
REPORT/K,
SCANTIC/K,NOCRC/S,
TICKFILE/K,NOCRC/S
HATCHFILE/K,FILEAREA/K,TICINCLUDE/K,MAGICNAME/K,REPLACE/K,DESCRIPTION/K/F
DEBUG/S,CFGFILE/K (all sets)
SCANTIC directory_to_scan [CFGFILE ...] [DEBUG] [NOCRC]
Scans directory for tic files and processes any found.
TICKFILE ticfilefullpathname [CFGFILE ...] [DEBUG] [NOCRC]
Processes the received TIC file.
HATCHFILE FullPathName FILEAREA FileEchoArea [CFGFILE ...] [DEBUG] ...
... TICINCLUDE IncludeFile MAGICNAME magicname REPLACE filename ...
... DESC description of file [CFGFILE ...] [DEBUG]
Hatches the file specified into the AREA specified to all sites
configured for that AREA.
TICINCLUDE is OPTIONAL and is a file containing extra TIC info to
include in TIC files. (See Tic Include File section for vaid keywords
than can be included) This file MUST have an extension of ".TINC".
MAGICNAME is OPTIONAL and if used will add the 'Magic' field to TIC
files.
REPLACE is OPTIONAL and if used will add the 'Replaces' field to TIC
files.
DESCRIPTION is OPTIONAL and will be used instead of filenote or DESC
field in TICINCLUDE
NOCRC
This switch forces XTick to accept files with BAD or MISSING CRC's
SHOWCFG [CFGFILE ...] [DEBUG]
Displays configuration
SHOWAREA filearea [CFGFILE ...] [DEBUG]
Display configuration for an FILEAREA
SHOWSITE address|ALL [CFGFILE ...] [DEBUG]
Display options for a site and areas to which it is connected
REPORT address|ALL [CFGFILE ...] [DEBUG]
Sends a report to site. If site is ALL, this will send reports to
ALL configured sites except those configured for NOREPORT.
usage in cron: 30 03 * * 1 XTick REPORT ALL
CFGFILE fullpathname
Defines the fullpath name for the XTick configuration file. The
default is CFG:XTICK.CFG
DEBUG
Displays VERBOSE info and is valid with each operating mode. When
DEBUG is set, the window is not opened, everything is displayed in
the current CLI. The amount of info displayed is MASSIVE. In the
case of reported bugs, a copy of this will be required.
Configuration:
The default fullpathname of the configfile is CFG:XTick.cfg. You can
specify an alternate fullpathname on the command line.
Please see Xconfig.DOC for explanation of config file format, keywords
and templates.
Addressing:
Addresses can be specified in a number of formats in both the config
and on the command line, the preferred being FQFA. The minimum
acceptable is 3d (z:net/node.) for FidoNet and FTNS listed in FTNLIST.
All other FTNs must be specified as 5D or FQFA.
Address Formats:
FQFA - ftn#zone:net/node.point (all must be present)
5d - zone:net/node[.point]@ftn (if no point, 0 is assumed)
4d - zone:net/node.point
3d - zone:net/node
Reports:
If you wish to send reports on a weekly basis to all your links that
are not marked with NOREPORT, add the following to your cron config:
30 03 * * 1 XTick REPORT ALL
Reports will be written as packets in the global OUT directory and
packed/routed by the defined PACKER command.
Notification Messages:
If an error is encountered processing a TIC file, a message will be
sent to the sending site with a copy of the main parts of the TIC file
and an indication of the error. The messages will be written as packets
in the global OUT directory or the AREA's OUT over-ride and will be
packed/routed by the defined PACKER command. In the case where an area
does not exist or we are not configured for an area, a message will also
be sent to ourselves.
EXEC Commands and AREA Overides:
The following commands can use command parameter expansion templates.
Multiple commands can be defined within each type.
PACKER <command> - GLOBAL, no AREA overide
IMPORTER <command> - GLOBAL, no AREA overide
The parameters of the above two will be related to the LAST AREA
processed. The parameters of the following will be related to the
CURRENT area.
HATCHEXEC <command> - GLOBAL default
TICKEXEC <command> - GLOBAL default
AHATCHEXEC <command> - AREA override
ATICKEXEC <command> - AREA override
Multiple Commands:
Multiple commands are created by separating each with a '»'. This is
ALT-0 on NA keyboard. It will be displayed as a double greater-than
character or a double top-right corner character, depending upon your
font. When the » is detected in a command string, it is converted
internally to a linefeed. This function requires that the AmigaDos shell
be available.
Eg:
HATCHEXEC "UpdateArea %p»echo >>ram:freq.lst %n %m"
This would execute my command to update the files.bbs for that path
specified and then append the filename and fullpathname to my freq list.
This of course can be easily done in a simple script. However, there may
be cases where one wants something different for a particular area, and
does not wish to write special scripts for such areas.
AREA EXEC Overrides:
AHATCHEXEC "[+]<command>[+]"
ATICKEXEC "[+]<command>[+]"
If an 'A*EXEC' AREA override is defined within an AREA structure, the
command only applies to that AREA. If the GLOBAL is defined (at the
beginning of the configuration file), that command is executed on receipt
or hatch of files for every AREA that does NOT have an 'A*EXEC' override.
If the AREA override is not specified, the GLOBAL command will be
executed.
If the AREA overide is set to OFF, the GLOBAL command will NOT be
executed (similar to Ftick's NOEXECUTE).
If the AREA overide does specify a command, it will be executed
INSTEAD of the GLOBAL command unless prefixed or suffixed with a '+'.
If the AREA overide command is preceeded by a '+', the GLOBAL command
is NOT over-ridden. The GLOBAL command WILL be executed BEFORE the
AREA command.
eg: ATICKEXEC "+UpdateArea %p"
If the AREA overide command is followed by a '+', the GLOBAL command
is not over-ridden. The GLOBAL command WILL be executed AFTER the AREA
command.
eg: ATICKEXEC "UpdateArea %p+"
NOTE: this feature may not work properly if you are using
a Shell other than AmigaDOS.
Tic Include File (TINC file):
The HATCHFILE TICINCLUDE option of XTick and the TICMODES option USETI
allow one to specify a file to include in the created tics. This file
would be used to add keywords not normally passed though or created by
XTick, to add long descriptions and other information.
The file specified on the command line is used if found, otherwise, if
USETI is true and a TINC file is found in the file area, it will be used.
Keywords in this catagory include:
APP [programname] [data]
Release [UnixTimeStamp]
Author [name]
Source [authors_address]
Date [unixtimestamp]
See "Format of a TIC file" below or forward.txt for description of
these keywords.
Desc [file description]
If found in TICINCLUDE file, it will be used instead of the
filenote. This allows XTick to be independant of the many formats
used to store file descriptions.
LDesc [multi-line file description]
If found in TICINCLUDE file, and the TICMODE USEMLD is TRUE and the
SITE option NOML is FALSE, the LDESC lines will be copied to the
TIC file for that site. This allows XTick to be independant of the
many formats used to store file descriptions.
Cross Hatching:
Cross Hatching is used to forward particular files from one file echo
to another. This is most usually used when a fileecho is restricted.
For example, a net hub which receives the FileEchos BACKBONE and FILEBONE
generally does not forward these echos to anyone. However, they may
specify that certain files from these FileEchos be fowarded in a local
fileecho. For the above echos, an example would be:
AREA BACKBONE APATH ......
CROSSHATCH ECHOS167 POL#? Elist#?.#? FIDONET.N? FIDOSTAT.NA
AREA FILEBONE APATH ......
CROSSHATCH ECHOS167 FILEBONE.N? FILEBONE.ECH
Of course, an AREA setup must exist for the tagname specified in
CROSSHATCH.
Uplinks:
When a downlink requests an area that we do not have, XTick will search
for the AREA in the configured FILEBONE listing. If the area is found,
XTick will then search the configured UPLINKS for a site that is
connected to the FDN (File Distribution Network) for that area. If one is
found, a message is sent to the area MANAGER of that site, requesting the
area.
FileBone:
The FileBone is a network of sites, similar to the Echo BackBone, except
these site distribute FileEchos. The FileEchos distributed by the
FileBone are listed in the file FILEBONE.NA which is updated weekly and
distributed in the appropriately named FileEcho, FILEBONE.
The format of FILEBONE.NA is documented and XTick can read this format
to find requested fileechos. The particular fields XTick uses are the
names of the fileecho and the FDN and the descriptions of the fileecho
and FDN.
Auto Creation of New Areas:
XTick will create new areas when a file is received for an unknown AREA
from a site that has the AUTOADD permission when the ALLOWCMD template
item AUTOADDAREAS is specified. The new directory will be created in the
AUTOADDPATH defined, using the name of the fileecho as the directory
name. If the new area is found in the RAIDDATA file created by XRaid (a
function of FWDREQ permission), the sites listed for that area will be
also added to the AREA config. XRaid will remove the entry for the new
area from the RAIDDATA file. A minimal configuration will be written for
the area.
Outbound Queue Management:
XTick allows the use of either XferQ.library or the old Flow File
system for outbound management. This is controlled by the configuration
keyword, QTYPE.
Only two modes of disposition are used, Leave and Delete. Only two
priorities are used, Hold and Route. The Route priority allows your
packer (XFQ) or mailer (FLO) to select the actual transmission priority
(eg. Crash, or Normal).
QTYPE FLO
Disposition Priority AsName
FileToSend # Leave F or H done by mailer
.TIC ^ Delete F or H done by mailer
.HUT ^ Delete H done by mailer
.OUT ^ Delete F done by mailer
XPRI route hold
The XPRI keyword defines the values used for Route and Hold
priorities. The range is -127 to +127. These should be the same
values as used in your mailer. You can set Routed to the same value
you use for Crash or Normal.
Tic files are automaticaly set to 1 less than the configured priority.
Valid only for QTYPE XFQ
The flow file is created in the defined TIC directory. Packets (.OUT
and .HUT) are NOT added to the flow file. Finding, creating the PKT name
to transmit and sending of these is a required function of the MAILER in
a Flow File system. If your mailer send the files as is (ie with 4d or
5d filenames), it is broken.
QTYPE XFQ
Disposition Priority AsName
FileToSend L Leave config automatic (FNC conversion available)
.TIC D Delete config-1 automatic
.HUT D Delete config automatic
.OUT D Delete config automatic
FileName Conversion:
When a site is set for FNC, the file name is converted to an msdos 8.3
format. The converted filename is placed in the FILE field of the tic
file and the original filename is placed in an added field, FULLNAME.
Since xferq system allows one to specify the transmitted filename, no
further porcessing is needed.
In the FLO File System, the file is copied with the converted name to
the FLOWFNC directory. Future versiona may use links instead.
Inbound Tic Processing and Security:
XTick offers many security checks, so that no unwanted files are posted
and no "illegal" files are passed on.
When processing a TIC file, the following actions are performed in the
specified order with the specified results.
area does not exist:
files moved to BAD, site notified
primary file does not exist:
If a file exists with the same name, but the last character is changed
and has the correct crc, it is renamed to the proper name and
processed.
Otherwise, we assume file has not been received yet.
site notified, tic is left in inbound.
FROM address in FILENOTES of TIC and primary files are not the same:
Presently, this is LOGGED ONLY
FROM address not found in SEENBYs:
files moved to BAD, site notified
site is not configured:
files moved to BAD, site notified
site is not configured for area:
files moved to BAD, site notified
site does not have Hatch permission:
files moved to BAD, site notified
our address is already listed in ORIGIN or PATH fields:
files moved to BAD, site notified
tic includes a MAGIC keyword but field is empty:
site notified
tic includes an AREADESC keyword but field is empty:
site notified
tic includes a TO keyword but field is empty or does not match our HOST
address for the AREA:
site notified
SIZE field missing, 0 or empty:
site notified
Actual Size does not match SIZE field:
If a file exists with the same name, but the last character is changed
and has the correct crc, it is renamed to the proper name and is
processed.
Otherwise, files moved to BAD, site notified.
CRC field is missing, 0 or empty:
site notified
Actual CRC does not match CRC field:
If a file exists with the same name, but the last character is changed
and has the correct crc, it is renamed to the proper name.
Otherwise files moved to BAD, site notified.
PW field in missing or empty:
files moved to BAD, site notified.
Password does not match PW in tic:
files moved to BAD, site notified.
Checks NOT done when TIC Processing:
sending site matchs "From" in the tic
sending site not in the Seenby's in the tic
The problem:
These would involve either the mailer passing the primary address of
the site (easily done with wpl mailers inbound notification feature) or
checking the filenotes of the tic and primary files (the only way to do
it with TrapDoor and similar mailers). In either case, this check does
not take routing into account. ie: the site may hatch or tick
passthru at 40:/0 but route all files via its' AKA 40:6/1 (real world
example). The primary AKA would not necessarly appear in the Tic file.
Outbound Security:
When Hatching or forwarding, the following checks are performed in the
specified order with the specified results.
area not found:
error exit
hatch not permitted in area:
error exit
HATCHFILE path not same as AREA path:
If HATCHFILE exists in AREA path and HATCHOVERWRITE is FALSE, the ,
existing file is renamed to *.OLD and file moved to AREA path.
no CRC:
CRC is calculated and included in new TIC
no SIZE:
SIZE is calculated and included in new TIC
If DESC on commandline,it is used and included in new TIC
else if DESC in TICINCLUDE, it is used and included in new TIC
else DESC from FileNote is used included in new TIC
, if none, tic DESC is set to 'No description available'
if TICINCLUDE exists, it is added to TIC file, there is NO CHECKING
of contents for duplicate or invalid keywords.
Exception: If a DESC field is found, it is used.
if MAGICNAME passed on commandline, MAGIC field added to TIC
if REPLACENAME passed on commandline, REPLACES field added to TIC
SEENBYs are checked for each SITE configured for the AREA, skipped if
found, added to SEENBY if not
if no SITE configuration for a SITE listed in AREA ECHOTO, site is
skipped
If NOSEND or ISFEED is true for a SITE in the AREA, site is skipped
Format of a TIC file:
Keywords are case-insensitive and order independant. There are no
colons on keywords. Each line is terminated with CR LF pair. Keywords
not understood are to be passed-though.
All Keywords are passed through when processing, EXCEPT those marked
with a ^. In some cases, a replacement is created.
keywords marked with a * are REQUIRED when hatching and when processing
keywords marked with a # are CREATED when hatching or processing
*# Area [AreaName]
the TagName of the file area.
*# Areadesc [description of area] OPTIONAL
a short (80 chards) description of the file area.
*# File [File being sent]
the name of the file being sent, no path
^# Fullname [original filename before FNC] OPTIONAL FNC only
*# Crc [CRC-32 in hex]
crc of the file being sent, 8 hexadecimal characters
*# Origin [Address]
Site where file entered the fileecho
*^# From [Address] [Pwd]
Site that is forwarding the file to the next site
Pwd is optional and rarely used. Pwd is not processed nor passed
through.
To [Address] OPTIONAL
Site to which this TIC and the file is being sent. This field is
neither created nor passed through.
*^# Created [Program Banner]
File Forwarder which created the TIC file
*# Path [Address] [timestamp] [date and time]
SIte which has forwarded the file
TimeStamp, date and time is that when the Site received and
Processed the file.
* # Seenby [Address]
Site which has received the file. There are multiple lines of
Seenby and they are unordered.
* Pw [password]
Site or Area password. This is case-insensitive and may be 6 to 8
characters in length.
Magic [MagicName] OPTIONAL
Name under which the file can be FREQed from the site listed in
FROM. This is NOT passed though when ticking. This field can be
entered in a TicInclude file or specified on HATCHFILE commandline.
Replaces [FileName] OPTIONAL
This field can be entered in a TicInclude file or specified on
HATCHFILE commandline.
# Desc [Description]
Description of the file, limited to 80 characters
LDesc [multiple lines]
The long description of the file. This keyword is currently only
supported by ALLFIX, FileMgr and XTick. The long description is
usually a more detailed version of the normal description and
normally consists of several lines. LDESC does NOT replace DESC,
it is used IN ADDITION to the short description. This field can
be entered in a TicInclude file.
# Size [Bytes]
Length of the file in bytes
# Date [FileDateStamp]
DateStamp of the file. Can be date of creation of archive.
This field can be entered in a TicInclude file.
^ APP [program] [Application Specific Information]
This field can be entered in TicInclude file.
Release [UnixTimeStamp]
Date when file is TO BE released. Ususally used by SDS, but can
be used by ADS as well.
This field can be entered in a TicInclude file.
Author [name]
Name of the author of the software being hatched. This field is
not applicable to Newsletters, Nodelist and Diffs and the like.
This field can be entered in a TicInclude file.
Source [authors_address]
FTN address of the Author. Not necessary the same as the ORIGIN
hatch site nor even an FTN address..
This field can be entered in a TicInclude file.
Terminology:
FTN - Fidonet Technolgy Network, such as FIDONET or AMIGANET.
Used interchangably with the term DOMAIN.
FNC - FileName Conversion, process of converting filename to msdos 8.3
format for transmission.
FQFA - Fully Qualified FTN Address, the format is
FTN#Zone:Net/Node.Point
CRC - Cyclic Redundancy Check, method to determine whether some data
has been altered. CRC-32 is used in File Forwarding.
XferQ - a multi-tasking and network independant method of managing the
outbound queue. This method is used by the majority of Amiga
Mailers, such as Porticus, JamMail, Norm, Umbrella, Gazebo, ROCK,
POP, JAZ, RAP as well as my own private Roof Mailer.
FLO - a single-tasking file-based method of outbound queue management.
This msdos-derived method uses files that contain the fullpathnames
of files preceeded by a Disposition flag. This method is used by
only a few Amiga Mailers, such as TrapDoor, Xenolink and GMS.
TIC - a file that contains control information for the File Forwarding
system. These files are named xxSTAMP.TIC, where xx is the first
two letters of the File Forwarding program name and stamp is a
unixdate stamp trucated to 6 characters.
UTC - Universal Time Coordinated, the time at the 0o meridian
(Greenwich); previously called GMT
ToDO: (in no particular order)
- allow replacement of MAGIC name when tic forwarding, would require
access to freq.lst config or duplication of freq list magic config
in XTick.cfg.
- add + prefix/suffix option to Area A*POST ..maybe
- Add DATE keyword - FILE timestamp or date of archive creation
- option to create aminet readme when hatching
- use file links for FLO Fnc files.