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1991-11-17
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Total Access Ver .99B Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
┌──┬──┐
┌──┬──┐
│┌│──┐┌─┬─┐┌───┐┬
│││┌───┐┌─┬─┐┌───┐┬
┴└││─┘ │┴ │┴ ├───┤│─┘
┴└───┘ ┴ ┴ ┴└───┘
┌────┐
│ ┌────┐
├─│──┤┌│──┐┌───┐┌───┐┌───┐┌───┐ <TM>
│ ├────┤┌───┐┌───┐┌───┐┌───┐┌───┐ <TM>
┴ │ ┴└││─┘└─│─┘└─├──└─└───┐└───┐
┴ ┴└───┘└───┘└───┘└───┘└───┘
────────────────────────────── ────────────────────────────
Programmer : Mark C. Ford Main Support Board
Libraries : Turbo TechnoJocks The FordBoard
Comm_TP4 Dual HST 14.4 24 hours a day
(315)252-3629
Total Access Ver .99B page <1> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
Table of Contents
─────────────────
License...............................................................2
Warranty..............................................................3
What is C.E.E.D. Software?............................................4
What is RBBS-TA?......................................................5
What being a BETA Tester means........................................6
Installing RBBS-TA....................................................7
Configuring RBBS-TA...................................................8
The PhoneNum.cfg file explained......................................14
LDVPrint.exe.........................................................16
ERRORLEVELS..........................................................17
Function 'Hot' Keys..................................................18
ANSI/ASCII Screens...................................................19
RBBS-PC Batch file setup.............................................20
Appendix A : Bug report form.........................................21
Appendix B : Registration form.......................................22
Appendix C : BETA request form.......................................23
Total Access Ver .99B page <2> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
LICENSE, WARRANTY AND REGISTRATION
__________________________________
LICENSE
───────
You must treat your copy of the RBBS-PC
Deluxe Total Access as if it were a book. You
may install RBBS-TA on more than one machine, but
you may use only one copy at a time. If you
need, you may purchase a site licenses at a
reduced cost. You may make as many copies of
RBBS-TA as required for the sole purpose of backup.
You may copy and redistribute the shareware portion
of the RBBS-TA, commonly known as RBBS-TAVxxx.ZIP, but you
may not modify in any way, the contents of the share-
ware package. Further, you may NOT charge a fee for
providing such a copy, beyond a maximum $8.00 copying
or duplication fee, without the express, written
consent of C.E.E.D. Software.
C.E.E.D. Software reserves the right to change both
RBBS-TA and the documentation without prior notice, with
no obligation to you, the licensee.
You agree that any disputes arising from this
license will be subject to the laws of the state
of New York.
You agree to hold the developer and distributors
of the RBBS-TA harmless for any damages, either direct
or consequential, that might arise from the use of
this product.
You acknowledge that RBBS-TA and documentation are
the copyrighted property of C.E.E.D. Software.
By your use of the RBBS-TA, you acknowledge that you
have read, and understand the terms and conditions
of this license.
Total Access Ver .99B page<3> Copyright (c) 1991 .D. Software
Warranty
────────
RBBS-TA is distributed as-is and without warranty, including,
but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability
and fitness for a particular purpose.
C.E.E.D. Software does warrant the distribution media for
a period of 30 days. During that period, C.E.E.D. Software
will replace the distribution media or provide a refund at
its option.
Total Access Ver .99B page<4> Copyright (c) 1991 .D. Software
C.E.E.D. stands for Creative Entertainment and Educational Design.
C.E.E.D. also stands for great software at a great price.
We here at C.E.E.D. Software are trying VERY hard to write the best
programs available anywhere. We are writing not just for today but
for tomorrow and the next day. Your input is the most valuable thing
in our company. Without it we will be just another small shareware
company among many. With it we will stand out and shine. Good
programming just isn't enough. Please NEVER feel that you can't call
our home BBS any time any day and talk with us.
The FordBoard C.E.E.D. Software
(315)252-3629 or write C/O Mark C. Ford
USR Dual HST 14.4 24 French Avenue
Auburn,NY 13021
Total Access Ver .99B page<5> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
RBBS-PC Total Access (RBBS-TA) is the first in a line of software
by C.E.E.D. Software. The idea behind RBBS-TA is ease of use and power. We
wanted to write a Call Back Verification door for RBBS that was easy
and WORKED! We hope RBBS-TA lives up to your needs. It has been written in
Turbo Pascal 6.0 and uses Com_TP4 and Turbo TechnoJocks Toolkit libraries.
What is a Call Back Verification Door? As you may be aware it is
hard for a Sysop to know if all of his callers are unique. Some people
will log onto a BBS under several names (Aliases). There are many ways to
combat this problem, but by far the best is a Call Back Verification door.
When a user first logs onto your BBS (New) they have no access. Inform them
that to gain full access they must enter door number x (RBBS-TA). RBBS-TA will
explain itself to the user, then disconnect them and call them back! If the
user really is there then he/she will be asked for their BBS password. If
the password is entered correctly RBBS-TA automatically updates their access
with NO intervention from you. Since RBBS-TA checks for duplicate phone numbers
it is impossible for a user to have more then one account per phone number!
Total Access Ver .99B page<6> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
As a BETA tester for C.E.E.D. Software you will receive many perks. Free
copies of ALL C.E.E.D. products (even those you are not BETA testing) is
just one of those perks. What do we ask for this? We ask only that you
conduct yourself in a professional manner that will not reflect poorly on
C.E.E.D.. We ask that you contact us via mail or BBS at least once a week
in early BETA stages and once every two to three weeks in final BETA
stages (Even if just to report that all is well). Finally, we expect
you will in no way release any BETA software to ANYONE, (NO EXCEPTIONS!)
until we decide to make the release. Releasing software before BETA
testing is complete can result in copies with bugs being out in the
publics hands. This can seriously damage our reputation and generate a
lot of extra work for us. Remember, a BETA package is like a secret, if
everyone tell just one person it doesn't take long for everyone to know.
If you wish to apply for FULL BETA status please fill out the form in
Appendix C and mail it or upload it to our BBS. Please be aware that we
can only support a limited number of BETA sites. There is no gaurentee
we will have one available.
Total Access Ver .99B page<7> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
To install RBBS-TA, make a directory anywhere you may have room and unzip
the release archive (RBBSTAxx.ZIP) into that directory. RBBS-TA can be run
from anywhere and does not require it's own directory, although it is
recommended.
Once you have the release archive unzipped run TA-CFG.EXE. You will be
prompted for the drive and then the path to RBBS's RBBS-PC.DEF file. Use
the 'Sidekick' style directory menu to highlight the file then press [Enter].
Next, the main TA-CFG menu will come up. See the next section 'Configuring
RBBS-TA' for explanations of choices.
Finally, read the section on creating the PhoneNum.Cfg file and put it in
the same directory as RBBS-TA.
Total Access Ver .99B page<8> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
System Information
──────────────────
Chat Enter :
This is the message that will be given to the user when chat mode
[F1] is entered. The default is the same as in RBBS although it
doesn't have to be. Changing it will not effect the message used in
RBBS itself.
Chat Exit :
This is the message that will be given to the user when chat mode
is exited [ESC]. Again - it does not have to be the same as in RBBS.
Sysop Name :
This is the name RBBS-TA will use whenever the Sysops name appears. It
will also be used in future versions for editor access from RBBS-TA. It
does not have to be the same as in RBBS.
Board Name :
This is the name RBBS-TA will use whenever the name of the Board appears.
It does not have to be the same as in RBBS.
Timeout :
RBBS-TA will timeout the user (return them to RBBS) if a key is not
pressed within this many minutes.
Call Attempts :
This will tell RBBS-TA how many times to attempt to call someone back. It
is wise to set this to at least two because many things can interfere
with a successful attempt.
Total Access Ver .99B page<9> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
Toggles
───────
Allow LD :
Tells RBBS-TA if long distance calls will be made or not. If this is set to
NO then long distance callers get a message informing them that long
distance calls are not supported. If set to YES then the call will be made
even if it is long distance. *** YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS ***.
If set to MAIL then RBBS-TA uses a special password via mail process to
validate the user (see LDVPrint.exe).
Allow PAGE :
This tells RBBS-TA whether or not to allow paging (PAGE) of the Sysop by the
user. A PAGE will never be allowed if it is not within RBBS Office hours.
Force Address :
This is intended to gather a few bits of information not requested by
RBBS. If set to YES it forces the user to enter their street address
and zip code. If set to NO this feature is by-passed.
Enable Mail :
This allows RBBS-TA to place comments in your comment file so you
can keep updated on what has happened since you last checked.
Total Access Ver .99B page<10> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
Directories
───────────
RBBS Directory :
This is where RBBS-TA will look for RBBS-PC.DEF, USERS, DORINFOx.DEF,
and other RBBS files.
RBBS-TA Directory :
This is where RBBS-TA will look for it's own support files (such as TA-CFG
or CONNECT.ANS/ASC).
Mail Directory :
This is where RBBS-PC puts it's comments. RBBS-TA needs to know this
so it can send you automatic express mail reports.
User Editor :
This is the path and filename of the user editor RBBS-TA will shell to when
[F2] is pressed.
Total Access Ver .99B page<11> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
Modem Information :
───────────────────
Init String :
This is the string that RBBS-TA will use to initialize the modem after
disconnecting the user. IMPORTANT : RBBS-TA does NOT recognize special
characters such as ~ or |. Please remove these before using. (Although
RBBS-TA may work anyway).
On Hook String :
This is the string RBBS-TA will use when it attempts to hang up. RBBS-TA
toggles DTR which hangs up most modems, so this may not be required,
but it is a good idea.
Off Hook String :
This is the string RBBS-TA will use when taking the modem off hook to
dial. Again, it may not be required, but is a good idea.
Dial String :
This is the string RBBS-TA uses before dialing the phone number. It IS
REQUIRED and in almost all cases is either ATDT (dial tone) or ATDP
(dial pulse).
Locked Baud Rate
If you are using a fossil driver (also supported by RBBS-TA) then this
may be useful. If you lock the comport with your fossil driver this MUST
be set to the locked rate! Zero disables this feature.
Total Access Ver .99B page<12> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
Adjustments
───────────
Level :
This is what the users NEW level will be after successful validation.
Total Access Ver .99B page<13> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
About RBBS-TA
──────────
Try it and see!
Quit and Save
─────────────
Exits RBBS-TA and writes the changes to TA.CFG
Quit Without Save
─────────────────
Exits RBBS-TA and abandons all changes.
Total Access Ver .99B page<14> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
PhoneNum.Cfg
────────────
This is the backbone of RBBS-TA's ability to determine if a caller is long
distance or not. It's format is VERY simple. The Phonenum.cfg file
allows comments ALMOST anywhere. Here is a sample phonenum.cfg file:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
<<< Sample PHONENUM.CFG file >>>
This is just to show that comments can be left almost anywhere.
RESTRICT: 22 8 * Allows LD calls from 10pm - 8am (military time) !ONLY!
AREACODES:
L315 * 'L' !MUST! prefix all local area codes.
716
607 9 15 * 9 15 overrides the RESTRICT command
815
etc...
PREFIXES: * Only used if users area code = a local area code
252
253
255
716
497
689
etc...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Access Ver .99B page<15> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
The (optional) keyword RESTRICT:
RESTRICT: [StartHour] [EndHour]
StartHour and EndHour !MUST! be in military time to work correctly.
The effect of this command is to allow long distance call back !ONLY!
in-between StartHour and EndHour. If StartHour is 22 and EndHour is
8 Then long distance calls will only be allowed between 10pm and 8am.
The file OUTHOURS.ANS/ASC will be displayed to long distance callers
that try to use RBBS-TA during other hours.
You must have RBBS-TA set to allow long distance callers for this to have
any effect.
Create this file with any ascii text editor.
****
NOTE: The information on what prefixes are local to you can be found in the
front of your phone book.
****
Total Access Ver .99B page<16> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
LDVPrint.exe
────────────
*** Make a daily backup of LDV.DAT and check it once a day to make sure
*** it is not corrupt. There is a problem I have not been able to find
*** yet that causes this file to corrupt occasionaly. Please report
*** anything you notice about this problem so we can fix it as soon as
*** possible. Thank you.
1st :
This is a stand alone utility for accessing the information gathered by
RBBS-TA and optionally printing it.
LDVPrint.exe takes one optional command line parameter of P.
IE: LDVPRINT P
This tells LDVprint to run in 'automatic mode' and print all users who
have validated since the last printing. This is handy to put in your
daily maintenance batch file. It is crash proof in this mode and will
return gracefully even if you don't have a printer! LDVError.log is
created and/or appended to whenever LDVPrint encounters and error.
2nd :
You will need to create a text file called LDV.LTR (or modify the example).
This is the actual letter LDVPrint will print. It can be created with any
standard text editor (ASCII). Use the following 'Embedded Codes'.
*N - Users Name
*S - Users Street
*C - Users City, State
*Z - Users Zip Code
*P - Users Special six digit LDV password
LDV.LTR *MUST* be in the RBBS-TA directory.
Last :
When you run LDVPrint without any parameters you will be able to browse
through RBBS-TA's user base and toggle wether a letter will be printed for a
user or not. Printing is automatically toggled on/off by LDVprint when needed
but you may want to over-ride this. There is also the option to search for
a users name and to print all marked users.
Total Access Ver .99B page<17> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
TA-DOOR ERRORLEVELS
────────────────────
RBBS-TA will exit with the following DOS ERRORLEVELS:
0 : Validated
1 : Not Validated
2 : RBBS-TA Error
3 : Lost Carrier
4 : Could not reconnect (BUSY, NO ANSWER, ETC...)
These can easily be tested by the calling batch file via the DOS
ERRORLEVEL command.
Total Access Ver .99B page<18> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
Function 'Hot' Keys
───────────────────
F1 : Enter Chat Mode
F2 : Shell to Editor
F3 : Drop to Dos
F4 : Instant Validate
F5 : Exit (twit)
ESC : Exit Chat Mode
Total Access Ver .99B page<19> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
TA-DOOR BATCH FILE
──────────────────
Setting up RBBS-TA for RBBS-PC is easy. The first step is to run RBBS-PC's
configure program (config.exe) and choose F6 (setup doors). Choose option
107 and then enter you BBS directory and the RBBS-TA batch file (eg TA.BAT)
RBBS-PC will automatically pass the node to the batch file, so there is
no need to worry about that.
Now, make a batch file called TA.BAT (or whatever you used in parameter 107)
and place it in the main RBBS directory (as in parameter 107). It should
look something like this:
D:
CD\RBBS\RBBS-TA
TA-DOOR %1
CD\RBBS
EXIT
That's all there is to it.
Total Access Ver .99B page<20> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
ANSI/ASCI FILES
───────────────
All of the ANSI and ASCI files used by ta-door are included in the RBBS-TA
package. Please feel free to modify these to your own tastes. Of course, you
are more then welcome to use the (perfect) ones included.
Total Access Ver .99B page<21> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
Total Access Bug Report Form
────────────────────────────
Name : _______________________________
City : _______________________________ State : __ ZipCode : _____
BBS Phone Number : (____) _____-________
RBBS Version # : ________
RBBS-TA Version # : ________
Fossil (YES) [ ] (NO) [ ]
Baud Rate : ________
Modem Type : ___________________________
I did this :
RBBS-TA did this :
Suggestions :
Total Access Ver .99B page<22> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
** NOTE
The normal price of RBBS-TA is 30 US dollars, however, if you are one
of the first fifty to register you will get it for only 20 US dollars!
Call The FordBoard (315)252-3629 to see if you qualify!
** NOTE
New York State residents include 7% sales tax.
RBBS-TA Registration Form
──────────────────────
Name : _______________________________
City : _______________________________ State : __ ZipCode : _____
BBS Phone Number : (____) _____-________
RBBS Version # : ________
RBBS-TA Version # : ________
Fossil (YES) [ ] (NO) [ ]
Baud Rate : ________
Modem Type : ___________________________
Disk Type ( 3.5 ) [ ] ( 5.25 ) [ ]
Enclosed ( Check or Money Order only, please) for $30 USA.
20 Dollar Special (YES) [ ] (NO) [ ]
Suggestions :
Total Access Ver .99B page<23> Copyright (c) 1991 C.E.E.D. Software
BETA Site Request Form
──────────────────────
Name : _______________________________
City : _______________________________ State : __ ZipCode : _____
Company Name : ____________________________________________________
BBS Name : _________________________________________
BBS Phone number : (___) ___-___
Voice Phone Number : (___) ___-___
Program requesting BETA for : _____________________________________
Describe your BBS :
Fossil (YES) [ ] (NO) [ ]
Baud Rate : ________
Modem Type : ___________________________
Disk Type ( 3.5 ) [ ] ( 5.25 ) [ ]
Suggestions :