OS/2 Shareware BBS: 3 Comm/03-Comm.zip/tcmail.zip/tcmail.INF

OS/2 Help File | 1995-02-18 | 24KB | 498 lines

ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 1. Changes in this Beta ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Beta 7E is Netware aware.

By checking the appropriate box in setup, TSR Mail will use your network name
as your email name.  This is especially useful when more than one person shares
a computer.

To make things easier, new mail announcements also have your email name on
them.  Further enhancements to the netware API calls will be introduced in beta
8 series -- the last set of beta before gamma 1.

Enhancements in Beta 7 releases:

o You may delete all messages older than 30 days by selecting that option from
  the Utility menu.
o SCHEDULER module has been cancelled.  It will be introduced in TSR Mail
  Version 2.
o Other delete options allow 10 days for your in box, and 10 days for the out
  box.
o OS2.INI file heavily used.  You may modify colors, fonts, and location of
  each dialog.
o Forms Generator will be completed by Beta 8
o See the attached HISTORY.LOG file for complete update information.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 2. Introduction ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

It's amazing how many companies simply won't produce software for OS/2.
WordPerfect just announced their 6.0 release for Unix.  Do you know what the
Intel-based Unix installed base is? How about 2 million users, and that's being
nice.  OS/2 has an installed base of between 6-8 million users with
approximately 400,000 sales monthly.  At this point OS/2 is outselling just
about every other operating system on a monthly basis.  It's time people put
their biases aside, and simply admit that IBM has a powerful, stable operating
system that just might make a major dent in the PC Operating system business.

Here's where I come in.  Five years ago I began selling software services for
the small businessman.  Armed with Turbo Pascal I helped make everyday tasks
just a bit easier.  Two years ago, I released my first piece of software
designed more for a mass market--TSR Timeclock for DOS (For those interested,
it can be downloaded in the IBM NEW FORUM). However, the Windows bug (yes, it
has dual terms here) had taken the market by storm. Nobody seemed to want DOS
applications anymore.  Windows seemed like a glorified TSR and I wanted nothing
to do with the thing.  Fortunately, IBM had a better alternative.

For the past year I have been aggressively learning how to program in the OS/2
environment. It's been an experience.

My company employs two people--myself and my wife.  It is not a full time job
yet, and I'll try my hardest to be available for questions.  The company's
phone number is [phone]. Feel welcome to call anytime.  You'll probably
receive voicemail 80% of the time, but I'm very good at returning calls.  The
best time to call is between 6-9pm Central Standard Time.  You can almost
always reach me then.

ABOUT THE SOFTWARE

Nine months ago my company (the day job) was interested in E-Mail.  Every
machine in our office was OS/2 based running on a Novell 3.12 file server.  We
tried a number of products-- CC-Mail, WP Office, and MS-Mail only to find that
none were very efficient (For those with WP Office, load your E-Mail and watch
your system crawl).

Novell did a pretty good job with MHS, but must have taken marketing lessons
from IBM. Infinite Technologies took MHS to a higher level with their release
of Connect 2.  But nobody wrote an OS/2 front-end to take advantage of it; that
is until now.

TSR Mail has been designed to integrate with MHS, Global MHS, or Connect 2.
The system has been tested with my daytime employer for the past year.  TSR
Mail is running well on ten stations, in two offices, across a 56K Bridge, and
under two LAN's.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3. Running in Non-MHS environments ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

TSR Mail requires only a compatible MHS directory structure in order to
properly send/receive electronic mail.  A proper MHS structure is NOT the
entire sub-directory system, but just the directories under \MHS\MAIL\USERS.

Each user must therefore have the following structure:

o .\[NAME] where NAME is the user's email name.
o .\[NAME]\IPARCEL -- for attachment delivery.
o .\[NAME]\MHS  -- for message delivery.  Actually MHS may be substituted for
  any other name.

TSR Mail should have no problems sending/receiving mail with Futurus Team and
DaVinci mail even if MHS is non-existant.  Please check with your System
Supervisor for correct pathnames to Email directories then configure TSR Mail
properly in Setup.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4. Beta Features ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

o Uses almost no processor time when idle.
o Netware aware
o Fast
o Push-button access to most used features
o Separate thread for notification
o Separate thread for message submission
o Separate thread for Printing
o Appealing dialogs
o Supports all versions of MHS  (SMF-70 & SMF-71)
o Interfaces with Connect 2 pager gateway seamlessly
o Can be executed before network connection achieved (Startup)
o Log In or Out independently of Network connection
o Runs on a remote station without modification (using remote MHS)
o Visually select Attachments (only one per message under current beta)
o Quick Mail for sending messages to only one person
o Phone Message "Pink Pad"
o Phone directory
o Cut/Copy/Paste within message dialogs
o Notification of attachments
o Supports other third-party Email systems such as DaVinci & Team
o Phone book to easily remember names & addresses
o Task Manager
o OUT box for viewing messages sent by the current user

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

The following features will be included in future drops.

o Expansion of task manager features
o Scheduling sub-system
o Complete help engine
o Better icons
o More powerful Install Program
o User Suggestions
o Bug Fixes


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5. Form Scripting Language ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Form scripts are simple ASCII files that TSR Mail converts to dialog boxes.
There are a number of sample forms located in your \MHS\EXE directory.  All
have the extension (FRM).

Each form is read from top to bottom.  Input boxes, Radio Buttons, and
Checkboxes fill two items per line, while each title fills a complete line.

The script language is a simple upper-case letter followed by a line of text.
The very first item of the script is a one-line description of the form.  This
description is displayed when a user selects a form and as the Window Title of
the form.

SCRIPTING LANGUAGE REFERENCE

Ltr   Purpose
T     Title
C     Checkbox
R     Radio Button
I     Input Field
S     Send message to recipient; signature required
V     Send message to recipient; no signature necessary

SAMPLE SCRIPT

Request for Overtime
T Please Enter the following information
I Last Name:
I First Name
I Number of Hours
T When will the overtime be worked
R During the week
R Saturday/Sunday
T You will be notified by Email if overtime has been approved.
S bossman@corporate
S accountant@corporate
V secretary@corporate

In the above sample script, TSR Mail will produce a dialog box with the title
of Request for Overtime.  The first line of the dialog box will say Please
Enter the following information.  On the third line will be two input boxes for
the First and Last name.  The fourth line will show the remaining input box,
Number of Hours.

TSR Mail places two (2) input boxes, check-boxes, and radio buttons on each
line as long as there are at least two (2) of the same type (I,C,R) in a row on
the sample script.

If four radio buttons appear in a row, your dialog box will have two rows of
two buttons.

If five radio buttons appear in a row, your dialog box will have two rows of
two buttons and one row of one button.

Directly below the input boxes another title,When will the overtime be worked,
will be displayed followed by two radio buttons (in the same row).

Finally, the user sees the last Title (T),You will be notified....

Once [SEND] is pressed, the message will be delivered to,Bossman@corporate for
signature.  When the boss approves the form it will be sent
to,accountant@corporate for signature.  After the form has been signed by each
required person (S) the form is sent to the secretary and a message approval
will be sent to the sender.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6. Installation Instructions ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

TSR Mail can be located in any directory on your hard drive.  The INSTALL.EXE
file will copy the program from the directory where it was unzipped to
C:\OS2\APPS (default) and create a desktop object.  The Install program can
also UNINSTALL the product.  Please use this option as TSR Mail utilizes the
OS2.INI file and the UNINSTALL utility removes those entries.

To manually install, copy TCMAIL.EXE to a directory of your choosing.  From the
OS/2 desktop, open the templates folder and move the PROGRAM template anywhere
onto the desktop.  The icon will open up and prompt for a directory and
filename.  Type the directory and filename (example: C:\OS2\APPS\TCMAIL.EXE)
and double-click the upper left corner.  The icon should be created.

Once the icon is created, double-click it to start the program.  Choose
'Utility' from the menu, and then Setup.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7. Send Appointment ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This function has not been developed yet.  The dialog displayed is the View
Appointment dialog.  Please examine the interface and report any unusual
circumstances to TSR Software.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 8. Appointments ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This function is still under development.  Please examine the interface, yes,
you can play with the buttons, and report any unusual circumstances to TSR
Software.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 9. Form Options ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Users can create custom forms that gather specific information.  Any person
with access to forms may simply highlight the correct form, press [OK], fill-in
the data, and press [SEND].  The form knows what recipient(s) to mail to.

See Also: Form Script Language


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 10. Setup Options ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

To modify the way TSR Mail interacts with your Email system, choose Setup

GENERAL:

o User Name Type your EMAIL name.  In SMF-70 Applications this is limited to
  only eight characters.
o Use Netware  Check this box if you are running under Netware and your Email
  name is also your login name.  TSR Mail will pull you login name from the
  Netware API.
o Auto Login This box, when checked, will automatically enable email rights
  upon network login.  This defaults to not-checked, but should be checked if
  you are the primary user on your workstation.
o TSR Notify Unless MHS sends your mail notification, check this box.  Once
  each minute, the computer will search your mailbox.  If a new message is
  waiting, you'll receive notification with a short beep (or drum-roll if MMPM
  is installed), a message box, and TSR Mail will pop to the foreground.

  Note:  When running DOS, WIN-OS2 full screen, or OS/2 text applications only
  a beep will be heard.
o MHS Drive Select the mapped drive where MHS appears.  In most cases this will
  be drive 'F' which is usually mapped to volume SYS.  Drives 'C' through 'K'
  can be selected by choosing the appropriate radio button.  If your MHS
  mapping is below drive 'K', choose 'ALT' and type the letter of the MHS drive
  in the 'Alternate MHS Drive' input field.  TSR Mail only needs the drive
  letter, and will simply take the first letter in this input box.
o PAGER GATEWAYUsers who are running Connect 2 Pager Gateway will love this
  feature.  By pressing a button while creating a message it will automatically
  be paged--of course you could just type user@pageit, but how many of your
  employees will remember that!  Check the enabled box if you have the pager
  gateway.  Enter the name of the pager gateway in the provided space.  It
  defaults to PAGEIT which is the Connect 2 default.
o WORKGROUP SMF-71 users require a workgroup name.  SMF-70 users (MHS 1.5 &
  Connect 2) may use this as well.  If you don't have a workgroup, leave this
  item blank.  In Global MHS environments it is also necessary to append your
  server name as well.
o DELIVERY METHOD If the Email system your communicating with does not use MHS
  to transfer messages, select DIRECT which will, when properly configured,
  deliver the mail without an MHS server within the local office workgroup.
  This method may be used even when MHS does exist because TSR Mail will submit
  all messages (regardless of the setting) to MHS for delivery if, anywhere in
  the recipients address, an '@' is found.  Select 'MHS ALWAYS' if TSR Mail
  should submit everything directly to MHS.
o PATH TO USER DIRECTORY Press 'DEFAULT' to select the standard MHS directory
  path.  If your email system uses another directory structure (Futurus Team
  under EASY Setup) enter that structure here.  If you hear a beeping sound
  when trying to send Email, this may be set incorrectly.
o PREFERRED APPLICATION Many existing DOS & Windows Email packages such as
  DaVinci & Futurus Team use their own version of MHS to direct local mail and
  may not deliver Email to the standard MHS path which is
  "\USERS\[username]\MHS'.  In this entry field, enter the correct pathname
  that TSR Mail will use to find your incoming mail.  This field defaults to
  MHS and should work under most circumstances.  This field only changes the
  directory structure (seen above) from after [username].

  Note:  If you are already receiving mail properly using TSR MAIL, then don't
  change this field.

Futurus Team Users

TSR Mail should communicate with all Futurus Team users.  If MHS is not being
used, check with your Systems Administrator for correct directoy assignments
and make sure DIRECT is selected for mail delivery.  The default mail directory
"PATH TO USER DIRECTORY" for Futurus Non-MHS setup is "/FT".  Also, make sure
the PREFERRED APPLICATION field says the following: "MHS\" (without the
quotes).

Davinci Mail Users

Your Davinci email system does not need to use MHS as a transport for TSR Mail
to be compatible.  If MHS is not being used, TSR Mail can read, but not send
email unless DIRECT is selected for mail delivery.  Set your PREFERRED
APPLICATION to DVSEMAIL (default).  If you still can't read messages, check
with your systems adminstrator--they may have used a different PREFERRED
APPLICATION name.  TSR Mail has been tested with Davinci Email version 2.52 and
has performed excellent.

Note:  TSR Mail uses the MHS directory structure to save older messages.
Although this may change in the future, it was how Novell intended it to be.
Davinci mail stores all messages in a single file and is not accessable by any
other Email package.  To maintain compatibility with as many Email packages as
possible we decided to keep the older messages in the same directory where new
messages are placed, but with a new name & .OLD extension.  By simply renameing
all *.OLD messages to *. you can then view them under Davinci mail (they will
appear as new messages).  If Davinci gives me permission to use their file
structure, TSR Mail may have the ability to completely emulate Davinci mail in
the future.  However, if your primary station is under OS/2 and you will be
using TSR mail for all mail delivery, there should be no problem communicating
with any DAVINCI mail user in your company.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 11. Sending Mail ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Mail can be sent by either selecting the item from the Send menu or pressing a
push-button.

See Also:

Send Mail
Phone Messages
Quick Mail
Tasks


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 12. Keys Help ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

There are no hot keys (as of yet) in TSR Mail.  Most functions can be
accomplished by pressing the appropriate button.

Button                Purpose
Lightning & Phone     Send Phone Message
Lightning & Letter    Send Quick Mail
Postage Envelope      General Mail Send
Pencil Pad            Send Task
"New" Folder          ReadNew Messages
"IN BOX" Folder       Read Old Messages
"OUT BOX" Folder      View Sent Messages


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 13. Selecting Mail ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

If there is new mail to be read a dialog will list all available messages.
Select the mail to read by double-clicking or highlighting and pressing OK

Actions while Selecting Messages:

Button            Description
READ              Select this button to read the highlighted message.  You may
                  also read a message by double-clicking on a message title.
DONE              When finished reading messages, press this button to exit.
DELETE            Press this button to delete the highlighted message.  You
                  will be asked for a confirmation. To delete all messages
                  older than 30 days, select that option from the Utility menu.

See Also: Read Mail


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 14. Read Mail ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Once a message has been selected, a number of different dialog boxes may
appear, depending on the type of message sent.  Virtually all messages sent by
foreign programs will be viewed by the standard message viewer.  Telephone
messages sent by TSR Mail and other 100% MHS compatible Email packages will be
viewed by a Pink Pad. Tasks sent by other TSR Mail stations will be viewed by
the Task Manager.  Regardless of the view, the following options can be used:

Button            Action
DELETE            While reading a message, press this button to delete the
                  message.
FORWARD           Enter the name of the person to forward the message to.  You
                  will still keep a copy.
REPLY             To quickly reply to a message, press this button.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 15. Attachments ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Attachments may be added to your document by selecting Attachment from the
Options menu.  A typical OS/2 File Open dialog will appear.  Select the file to
add and press [OK].  To change drives, press the down arrow immediately to the
right of the drive box.

When the message is sent, the attachment will be copied and emailed with your
document. Any MHS-compatible email program will be able to remove the
attachment.  This version only supports one attachment per messages.  If you
need to send a number of files, try compressing them into one filename (PKZIP)
which will probably reduce transmission costs as well.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 16. Printing ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Email documents can be printed by selecting Print from the Options menu which
is displayed while reading or writing any email message.  Once Print has been
selected, a list of available print queues is displayed (note: in order to
print, a print queue for that printer must exist on the user's desktop).
Select the printer and press 'OK'.  To change options such as paper size, etc.,
press the 'SETUP' button, make your choices, then press 'OK'. Beta 3 only
prints messages that have been sent.

TSR Mail prints in a separate thread.  After the print job has began, you may
continue to use TSR Mail.  It has been noticed that some network print jobs
take 2-3 minutes.  This is normal, and will be addressed in later versions.

Note:  While printing no other documents within TSR Mail may be Queued until
the job in progress has completed.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 17. Send Mail ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When a message needs to be delivered to more than one recipient, use the full
mail option. Fill out the necessary dialog boxes, type your message, and press
Send.

o From Specifies who is sending the message.  This field is automatically
  entered for you; however, the name may be changed.
o To Type the name(s) of the individual(s) who will be directly receiving the
  message.

  Note:  In each field more than one person may be specified.  Separate each
  name with a comma.  If only one name is used, a comma is not necessary.
o CC  This stands for Carbon-Copy.  Type the name(s) of the individual(s) who
  will receive a Carbon-Copy of this message.
o BC  Blind copy recipients are not listed to any viewer.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 18. Phone Message ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

A Pink Pad (256 colors) will appear with the familiar "While You Were Out"
options.  Your name should appear under Operator.  Fill out the necessary boxes
and check whatever message is appropriate.  The yellow pad can hold up to 16K
of information.  Users with the Connect 2 Pager gateway may press Page Me to
have the message formatted and sent to an alpha-numeric pager.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 19. Quick Mail ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Use Quick mail when you only need to send a message to one recipient


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 20. Task ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When a job needs to be done within a specified period of time, select the Task
function.  Enter the person(s) to be delivered to, number of days to complete
the project, and a description of the task to be completed.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 21. Adding names to the phone book ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Click here to add names to your telephone directory.  This is a shared network
file that resides in the MHS directory structure under /EXE.  You may access
the phone book by selecting it from the Utility option on the main menu.  'NEW'
adds a new name to the directory. 'UPDATE' modifies the current listing.  When
accessing the phone book from a message, pressing 'OK' places the Email address
into the TO: field.  Future releases will expand on this concept.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 22. Beta Information ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

For the beta tester:  Please evaluate this software by using it in normal
day-to-day operations. When problems arise please let me know by using one of
the following methods:

o CompuServe Mail -- 74552,3302

o Our MHS Hub --  [e-mail]

o Local Telephone -- [phone]

You should expect a new version drop every other week.  Interim versions will
appear as needed.  Bug reports are usually fixed within 24 hours and posted to
the OS2AVEN section on Compuserve.

Beta testers who communicate regularly will receive a 10 station license along
with the final product.

Thank you for your interest in OS/2 and MHS.