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SUBJECT.EXE - Documentation Page 1
SUBJECT Version 3.0
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A Freely available RBBS-PC Conference Messages utility
[SUBJCT30.ZIP]
by Vaishnava dasa -- 10/10/90
Krishna Yoga Foundation BBS - FidoNet 1:115/800 - 312/743-6116
Use: Scans RBBS-PC messages files and writes a file listing
the most popular threads in descending order. Various formating
options included.
SUBJECT.EXE can be used to create automatically a text file
showing the number of messages per thread in a RBBS-PC Messages
file. The output file can then be used as the Conference's
WELCOME file.
DISCLAIMER
~~~~~~~~~~
There is no guarantee that SUBJECT.EXE will work with RBBS-PC
in all circumstances or with all hardware configurations. Source
code is provided to see if the RBBS-PC SysOp will find
SUBJECT.EXE useful. No one has ever reported any harm when using
SUBJECT.EXE. SUBJECT.EXE is released freely into the Public
Domain for anyone to use any way he sees fit. Vaishnava dasa,
the author of SUBJECT.EXE, will not make any claim to
proprietorship on this code. The idea behind SUBJECT.EXE is
solely to support the idea of making RBBS-PC suit the needs and
creativity of the RBBS-PC SysOp.
WHAT'S NEW in this Version of SUBJECT.EXE?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Use this Version of SUBJECT.EXE especially compatible with
RBBS-PC.EXE Version 17.3. Earlier versions of SUBJECT.EXE didn't
know if RBBS-PC.EXE supported finding *WG.DEF and *WC.DEF
WELCOME files when using Conferences or Subboards. Now
SUBJECT.EXE supports the simultaneous creation of *W.DEF,
*WG.DEF and *WC.DEF files if the name of the Conference/Subboard
is 6 characters or less. Version 3.0 of SUBJECT.EXE is not fully
backwards compatible with earlier versions of SUBJECT.EXE. This
version of SUBJECT.EXE is ideal when used with Mike Zakarhoff's
MSGTOSS Fast RBBS-PC mail tosser. Once you have created Template
files to your liking, or even if you use the default samples
included in this ZIPped archive, MSGTOSS will automatically
invoke SUBJECT.EXE and all WELCOME files will be created without
any maintenance on the SysOp's part.
Version 3.0 is NOT backwardly compatible to previous versions
of SUBJECT.EXE. Template files (*.TMP) must be used to format
your WELCOME files. No longer are the command-line switches S:,
F:, D:, or L: supported. A couple minor bug fixes are also fixed
with this version.
Also, SUBJECT.EXE's template files' format has been changed to
support subjects that are 25 characters in length. All previous
versions supported 20 character subjects only.
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SUBJECT.EXE - Documentation Page 2
Files Included in this archive:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SUBJECT.EXE - Executable program
SUBJECT.DOC - This text file
SUBJECT.BAS - QuickBASIC Version 4.5 source code
SUBJECT.TMP - Sample non-graphics Template file
SUBJECTG.TMP - Sample ASCII-Graphics Template file
SUBJECTC.TMP - Sample Color-Graphics Template file
Format:
~~~~~~
SUBJECT I:<file> O:<file> C:<name> (? = Help)
Examples:
~~~~~~~~
SUBJECT I:c:\rbbs\rbbspcm.def O:rbbspcw.def C:rbbspc
SUBJECT I:binkm.def O:binkw.def C:binkleyterm
Required command-line parameters:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I: - Input file. Name of RBBS-PC Messages file to read. Usually
this file is the full name (and optional path) of a RBBS-PC
Conference Messages file. SUBJECT.EXE reads this Messages files
SUBJECT field, strips out any occurances of "(R)", sorts the
SUBJECTs, computes the total messages for each particular
SUBJECT, then writes the information to a formatted Output file,
specified by the O: parameter. When creating an Output file,
SUBJECT.EXE will not include any SUBJECTs that are SUBJECTs of
messages which are marked as private or killed. Also, if
SUBJECT.EXE has any difficulty reading or finding the specified
input file, it will create a file called SUBJECT.ERR in the
default directory from which SUBJECT.EXE is run and detail the
error for debugging purposes. If SUBJECT.ERR already exists, the
error information will just be appended to SUBJECT.ERR.
O: - Output file. Name (and optional path) of output file to be
created by SUBJECT.EXE. Use the same name as the RBBS-PC
Conference file (up to 6 characters) and add "W.DEF" so that the
Output file will automatically display as user enters the
Conference. For example, if the Conference Messages file is
COOKNGM.DEF, set the O: parameter to create the COOKNGW.DEF
Conference WELCOME file. RBBS-PC will automatically display the
<conference name>W.DEF file. By specifying a drive and path in
this O: parameter, SUBJECT.EXE can create the Output file in the
subdirectory where RBBS-PC will be able to locate it and display
it (usually in the same directory as RBBS-PC.EXE and the
<conference name>M.DEF Conference Messages file is located.) If
no drive and path are specified, the Output file is created in
the same directory from which SUBJECT.EXE is run.
C: - Conference name to be used in Output file header. Do NOT
use any [SPACE] characters. The Conference name as appearing in
the Output file will be in fully capitalized regardless of how
the Conference name appears on SUBJECT.EXE's C: command line
parameter (see examples below). If the Conference name contains
more than one word, an underline character can usually
substitute for a space character. For example, if the Conference
name is "HOME REPAIR", you must change the name so that no space
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SUBJECT.EXE - Documentation Page 3
characters appear in the name. "HOME_REPAIR" with the underline
character substituted for the space is a very good substitution.
Optional parameters:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
? - Small help screen
Template file substitutions:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
o SUBJECT890123456789012345 - SUBJECT header is substituted
always beginning with the most popular SUBJECT
o MSG - 3 character total number of public messages in the
specified message base
o AREA - Up to 20 characters of the AREA name of the message
base
o FMDATExx - 8 character Date of earliest message in message
base in the format of MM-DD-YY
o TODATExx - 8 character Date of most recent message in message
base in the format of MM-DD-YY
o ### - 3 character number of messages under one SUBJECT. Number
of messages under one SUBJECT always begins with the
greatest number of messages.
SUBJECT.EXE substitues these various strings with real values,
and creates a file determined by the O: parameter and other
command-line switches. If the Output filename specified in the
O: parameter is in the format "<6 letters-or-less Conference
Name> + W.DEF", the resultant Output filename is called "<6
letters-or-less Conference Name>". The optional path specified
in the O: parameter is also preserved.
The Template file used by SUBJECT.EXE may be one of two files.
SUBJECT.EXE looks on the default drive for "<6 letters-or-less
Conference name> + .TMP" first, and, if not found, then
SUBJECT.EXE looks for the default file called SUBJECT.TMP and
uses it. This facility is there for those SysOps who want to
have a special WELCOME file for any given Conference. Of course,
if SUBJECT.EXE cannot find either .TMP file in the default
drive/(subdirectory), then SUBJECT.EXE reports an error, and
aborts any further processing. For any RBBS-PC messages file in
the format of *M.DEF which has seven characters as the name of
the Conference/echo (e.g. COOKING), SUBJECT.EXE will NOT produce
any ASCII and ASNI Graphics WELCOME files. Only
Conferences/echo-names with six letters or less will allow
SUBJECT.EXE to produce the wanted non-graphics, ASCII and ANSI
WELCOME files.
All Conferences/Subboards can have their own individual
Template file. SUBJECT.EXE will search for the existence in the
default directory for the <6 letters-or-less Conference Name> +
*.TMP Template files. If SUBJECT.EXE cannot find it, it will
then look for the default Template files, namely, SUBJECT.TMP,
SUBJECTG.TMP and SUBJECTC.TMP. If SUBJECT.EXE cannot find these
files, SUBJECT.EXE will report an Error, and update or create
the SUBJECT.ERR file on the default drive.
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SUBJECT.EXE - Documentation Page 4
Example 1 - Sample Non-Graphics Template File:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(see SUBJECT.TMP)
Example 2 - Sample ASCII Graphics Template File:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(see SUBJECTG.TMP)
Example 3 - Sample Color Graphics Template File:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(see SUBJECTC.TMP)
Short Discussion about SUBJECT and MSGTOSS:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SUBJECT.EXE performs quite well with Mike Zakharoff's new
MSGTOSS Net/Echomail Tosser. SUBJECT.EXE can be invoked via
MSGTOSS.CFG using MSGTOSS's variables: [MSGFILE], [WELFILE], and
[AREA]. SUBJECT.EXE will create WELCOME files for Conferences or
Subboards, or even a combination of the two, producing files
with SMART-TEXT, Ascii Graphics, Color Graphics or non-graphics
formats automatically without the SysOps help once these
parameters are set.
Example 4 - Sample use with MSGTOSS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(For more information about MSGTOSS, contact the Interstate BBS
Network at 206/631-7813, Mike Zakharoff, SysOp.)
In MSGTOSS.CFG, use:
UTIL1CMD---->SUBJECT I:[MSGFILE] O:[WELFILE] C:[AREA]
For example, if [MSGFILE] = "RBBSPCM.DEF", [WELFILE] would
default to "RBBSPCW.DEF" and [AREA] would be "RBBS-PC".
The preferred method is to use a Conference name that is 6
letters or less. The result would be the creation of
"RBBSPCW.DEF," "RBBSPCWG.DEF," and "RBBSPCWC.DEF" so that RBBS-
PC.EXE Version 17.3 would find these three different files and
display them for the User according to what graphics/non-
graphics option he has set for each and every Conference/Subbord
that he uses.
- end -
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