This section provides a reference to terms, windows, dialog boxes, and menus used in maX.500. It is organized alphabetically by topic.
 
Alias
An alias is a special kind of X.500 Directory entry that serves as a reference or pointer to a real entry. Aliases are typically used to list an entry in several places without duplicating information. For example, a person might have his or her primary appointment in one department but have a minor appointment in a second department. An alias could be placed underneath the second department in the directory so the person could be found there as well as in the primary department.
 
Attribute
An attribute is an aspect of an X.500 Directory entry. maX.500 uses the terms attribute and field interchangeably. Attributes are assigned a set of one or more values. Examples of attributes include “common name” (full name), “business phone number”, “e-mail address”, and “JPEG Photo.” Some attribute names are commonly abbreviated. Here is a partial list:
c country
st state
l locality (a city or county or other entity; e.g., “Ann Arbor”)
o organization (a University, company, or other organization)
ou organizational unit (e.g., a department or a college)
cn common name (full name, e.g., “Janet Jones”)
sn surname (last name, e.g., “Jones”)
 
Authenticate
To authenticate is to identify yourself to the directory, usually for the purposes of obtaining special access (such as permission to make changes to an entry or add new entries). maX.500 supports simple X.500 password and uniqname/Kerberos authentication (if the Authentication Manager control panel is installed). To explicitly authenticate, choose Authenticate from the Directory menu or click the command palette's Authenticate (skeleton key) icon.
 
Browse
Browsing is the process of looking in the Directory by moving about the hierarchy of countries and organizations, scanning lists of items, and choosing a location to search or some entry you want to view. maX.500 2.0.1 supports browsing to set the searchbase, but it does not support browsing to view people and other entries that are located at the edges of the X.500 hierarchy. The Browse… command is on the Directory menu, the command palette, and the Find Entry window (globe icon).
 
Change Entry Password
The Change Entry Password command (from the File menu) is used to change an entry's X.500 Password. It is only available if the entry has an X.500 Password already. At the University of Michigan we are now using uniqname and Kerberos passwords, and so this command is not used. Note that maX.500 does not support changing your uniqname/Kerberos password.
 
Copy Entry Name
The Copy Entry Name command (from the Edit menu) places a copy of an entry's X.500 Name (Distinguished Name) on the clipboard. It is only available if an X.500 Information window is active.
 
Delete Entry
The Delete Entry command (from the File menu) is used to remove an entire entry from the X.500 Directory. This is used, for example, when you want to remove a group that is no longer being used. The entry must be open on the screen to use this command.
 
Discard Authentication
The Discard Authentication command (from the Directory menu) un-authenticates you from the X.500 Directory without quitting maX.500. Note that this command does not dispose of your Kerberos tickets if you have any.
 
Distinguished Name (DN)
Each entry in the X.500 Directory has a globally unique name called the Distinguished Name. The DN is constructed from a sequence of locally unique names called relative distinguished names (RDNs). maX.500 uses the term “X.500 Name” as a synonym for distinguished name. In maX.500, DNs are presented as a comma-separated string of RDNs. Each RDN is made up of an attribute name and value pair, separated by an equal sign (=). Some examples will illustrate:
o=University of Michigan, c=US (organization U of M, country United States)
cn=Mark C Smith 1, ou=Information Technology Division, ou=Faculty and Staff, ou=People, o=University of Michigan, c=US (person with common name Mark C Smith 1, within a small hierarchy of several organizational units, within the organization U of M, country US)
DNs are often displayed without the “attribute name=” tags.
The Copy Entry Name Edit menu command can be used to place a copy of the DN of an entry on the clipboard.
 
Edit Entry
The Edit Entry command (from the Edit menu) toggles between viewing and editing an entry. The first time you choose this command, maX.500 selects the first editable field and enters “edit mode.” Choose Edit Entry a second time to stop editing. The tab key can be used to move among fields while editing.
 
Entry
An entry is a container within the X.500 Directory that holds information about a particular object, such as a person, group, or organization. Entries are made up of fields (also called attributes), and each entry has a globally unique name known as its Distinguished Name or X.500 Name. Entries can be created, deleted, or displayed as the result of a search.
 
Entry List
If a search in maX.500 results in more than one entry, maX.500 opens an Entry List window that contains a list of matches, along with some additional information to help you distinguish the entries (such as a person's title or a description). There is a button that allows you to switch the list sort order between Surname (last name) and Full Name (first, last) if applicable, and a View Entry button which can be used to view an entry in detail.
 
Fax Image
The X.500 Directory supports fields that can contain non-text information, such as sounds or images. A fax image is a black and white compressed image (it is stored in the format used by fax machines).
 
Field
A field is an aspect of an X.500 Directory entry. maX.500 uses the terms field and attribute interchangeably. Fields are assigned a set of one or more values. See the Reference topic attribute above for more information on fields.
 
Find Entry
The Find Entry window is the heart of maX.500. It is opened by choosing Find Entry from the Directory menu or by clicking on the command palette's Find icon. The window has a button in the lower left corner that is used to switch between a simple version of the window and a more complicated one. This is similar to the System 7 Finder “Find” command.
 
Fewer Choices (default)
When the button in the left part of the Find Entry window reads “More Choices,” you are using the simple “Fewer Choices” version. The Tutorial topic “Finding Someone” explains in detail how to use the Find Entry window in this mode.
 
More Choices
When the button in the left part of the Find Entry window reads “Fewer Choices”, you are using the more complicated “More Choices” version. In this mode, the Find Entry window has several additional popup menus that allow you to select the specific field (attribute) to search on, the type of match you desire, and the scope of the search. maX.500 will perform exactly one search, as specified by the popup menu settings. It does not look at what you type to decide what kind of search to perform as is done in the “Fewer Choices” version of the Find Entry window.
You should first choose the kind of entry find, since the field and search type menus have different contents depending on the entry type choice.
The field type menu contains a list of attributes you can search on (such as “common name,” “e-mail address,” etc.).
The search type menu contains a list of available match styles, such as “exactly matches,” “approximately matches,” and “starts with.”
The “Look … within” popup menu determines how much of the X.500 Directory is searched. It has three settings:
• Look anywhere within – search everywhere below the Searchbase; e.g. search an entire organization.
• Look directly below – search the part of the Directory that is beneath the searchbase, but only descend a single level. For example, if the Searchbase is “US,” only the US level will be searched (the search will not descend into the states and organizations).
• Look inside the entry – search only the actual entry indicated by the Searchbase. This means that the search is confined to a single Directory entry. This is rarely useful.
 
Find Within Entry
The Find Within Entry command sets the searchbase to the entry that is being viewed, and activates the Find Entry window. This command is found in the Directory menu, and is also available by clicking the small find icon located just above the vertical scrollbar in an entry's X.500 Information window.
 
JPEG Image
The X.500 Directory supports fields that can contain non-text information, such as sounds or images. A JPEG image is a grayscale or full-color compressed image. JPEG stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group, a name that refers to the inventors of the compression technique used in storing JPEG images.
 
Kerberos
Kerberos is an authentication system that avoids sending passwords over the network in the clear. It is designed to allow people to use the same password to access many different services. On the University of Michigan campus, this is the system used when you type your uniqname and password to authenticate to use X.500, the Institutional File System (IFS), or a computer at the Campus Computing Sites. Kerberos was invented at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It is named after the mythical three-headed dog who watches over the gates of Hades. See the topic “Authenticate” above for more information.
 
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)
LDAP is the protocol (method) maX.500 uses to search and manipulate the X.500 Directory. maX.500 communicates over TCP/IP with an LDAP server. LDAP is a proposed standard of the Internet Engineering Task Force as defined in RFC-1487, and is authored by Wengik Yeong of Performance Systems International, Tim Howes of the University of Michigan, and Steve Kille of the ISODE Consortium.
 
Modifying the Searchbase menu
The bottom portion of the maX.500 Searchbase menu contains a list of searchbase shortcuts. Choosing a shortcut activates the Find Entry window, changes the Searchbase, and (optionally) sets the Find popup menu to a particular type of entry (such as person or group). You can redefine the list of shortcuts by choosing Modify This Menu… from the Searchbase menu itself. A dialog will open that allows you to add, delete, reorder, and define the menu items.
 
New Entry
The New Entry dialog allows you to create a new X.500 Directory entry. You bring up the New Entry dialog by choosing New Entry… from the File menu. The use of the dialog is explained in detail in the Tutorial topic “Groups – creating a new group.”
 
News
When maX.500 starts up, it checks for news about maX.500 and the X.500 service that you have not yet seen. This is presented in a “maX.500 News” text window. The news is made available by those who run the X.500 service. You can retrieve all of the available news, including that which you have already seen, by choosing Retrieve maX.500 News from the File menu at any time.
 
Preferences
The Preferences dialog is used to configure maX.500. To open the Preferences dialog, choose Preferences… from the File menu. To keep changes you make to the preferences, press the Save Changes button. The preferences are saved in a file called maX.500 Preferences inside the Preferences folder within your System Folder. If you start maX.500 by opening (double-clinking) a preferences file in the Finder, that file will be used instead of the one in the System Folder. The available options are:
During Startup/Show Feedback Message (checked by default) If this box is checked, the maX.500 Feedback message screen is shown as maX.500 starts up. If you uncheck it, you will not be shown the feedback message during startup (you can still view it from the maX.500 About box).
During Startup/Authenticate (unchecked by default) If this box is checked, you will be asked to authenticate as maX.500 starts up.
Display/Show Command Palette (checked by default) If this box is checked, a four-icon command palette is visible on the screen. Since all of the commands are available from the menus, you can turn this off if you want to save a bit of screen space.
Display/Use Multiple Windows (checked by default if you have anything but a MacPlus-size display) If this box is checked, maX.500 will open a new window for each entry you find and display. If it is not checked, old X.500 Info windows will be automatically closed when new ones are opened.
Display/Dither Images (unchecked by default) If this box is checked, JPEG photo images are dithered before displaying on screen. This is useful if your monitor does not support many colors. Note that this option has no effect if the “QuickTime™ Image Decode” option is enabled (see below).
Display/Use Grayscale For Images (unchecked by default) If this box is checked, JPEG color images are displayed using grays. This greatly speeds up decoding of the images, but color is lost. Note that this option has no effect if you do not have a color monitor, or if the “QuickTime™ Image Decode” option is enabled (see below).
Display/QuickTime Image Decode (checked by default if the Apple QuickTime‚Ñ¢ extension is installed) If this box is checked, JPEG color images are decompressed using QuickTime instead of the slower decompressor built in to maX.500. The color selection is not as good if you use this option, but it is much faster.
X.500 Operations/Size Limit (default is blank / no size limit) This sets a limit on how many entries are returned when you do an X.500 search. Lower limits may be enforced by the directory servers, but you can use this to set an upper bound. This is useful if you have a slow network connection (e.g., if you are using PPP over a modem).
X.500 Operations/Time Limit (default is blank / no time limit) This sets a limit on how long an X.500 server should spend trying to answer your query. This should be a number, expressed in seconds you are willing to wait.
X.500 Operations/Dereference Aliases (unchecked by default) If this box is checked, you will get the entry an X.500 alias points to (if an alias is returned from a search). If it is not checked, the alias itself will be returned. This is an advanced option that will not be of interest to most people.
X.500 Operations/Search Aliases (unchecked by default) If this box is checked, aliases encountered while performing a search will be followed. If it is not checked, aliases will not be followed. This is an advanced option that will not be of interest to most people.
X.500 Operations/Use UFN Search (checked by default) If this box is checked, typing anything that contains a comma in the “Fewer Choices” Find Window will invoke a “User Friendly Naming” style search. If not checked, UFN will never be used.
X.500 Operations/Use Local Cache (checked by default) If this box is checked, copies of previously executed searches are kept in some memory local to the Macintosh called a “cache.” This helps speed up maX.500.
X.500 Operations/Cache Timeout (default is 15 minutes) This specifies how long information should be kept in the cache. If someone else changes an entry while you have it in your cache, you may see out-of-date information. Note that this field is unused if “Use Local Cache” is not checked.
Initial Searchbase (default is o=University of Michigan, c=US) This is the default searchbase when maX.500 starts up. You can change it by using the Browse… command from the Searchbase menu to set a searchbase, and then pressing the Get Current Searchbase button in the Preferences dialog.
LDAP Server (default is ldap.itd.umich.edu) This is the Internet domain name of the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) server that maX.500 contacts to obtain or modify information from the X.500 Directory. This field can actually contain a space or comma-separated list of servers to try. Note that you should not need to change this unless you are at a site other than the University of Michigan.
 
QuickTime‚Ñ¢
QuickTime is a system software extension from Apple Computer that adds capabilities to let application programs integrate graphics, sound, video, and animation into documents. In maX.500, it can be used to speed up decompression and decoding of JPEG color images. See the reference topic “Preferences” for information on how to enable the use of QuickTime in maX.500.
 
Recently Used
The Recently Used hierarchical menu is found on the SearchBase menu. It keeps track of the three most recently used searchbases and allows you to quickly switch between them.
 
Relative Distinguished Name (RDN)
A Relative Distinguished Name is a set of attribute value pairs that uniquely distinguishes an X.500 entry within one level of the X.500 Directory. An X.500 entry is uniquely identified globally by its sequence of RDNs. An example of an RDN is cn=Mark C Smith 1 (a common name with the value “Mark C Smith 1”). RDNs are sometimes used in maX.500 as a shorthand for a full X.500 Distinguished Name (e.g., in window titles). See the topic “Distinguished Name” for more information.
 
Retrieve maX.500 News
This File menu command is used to view all the available news about the X.500 service. See the reference topic “News” above for more information.
 
Searchbase
A Searchbase is an X.500 Name that specifies where a search will take place. maX.500 maintains a current Searchbase, and it is shown next to the text “Look within:” in the Find Entry window. The Searchbase menu (in particular the Browse… command) is used to change the Searchbase.
 
Show maX.500 Status
Choosing Show maX.500 Status from the File menu opens a dialog that shows the current status of maX.500, including the available memory, whether the local cache is in use, and who (if anyone) you have authenticated as.
 
Uniqname
A uniqname is a short (three to eight character) text string that serves as a campus-wide identity at the University of Michigan. It is known elsewhere as a login or user id. A uniqname usually has a Kerberos identity and password associated with it to provide a means of authenticating to campus services (see the reference topic “Kerberos” above). Uniqnames can be obtained by anyone who is affiliated with the University of Michigan, and they are available at the larger Campus Computing Sites and the ITD Accounts Office.
 
User Friendly Name (UFN)
A User Friendly Name, commonly called a UFN, is a text string that is a simplified version of an entry's X.500 Name (Distinguished Name). See the Tutorial topic “Searching using UFN” for more information.
 
Value
A value is a piece of information that is associated with a field (attribute) in an X.500 Directory entry. Examples of values include: +1 313 764-4357 (a phone number) and Babs Jensen (a name). See the reference topic “Attribute” above for related information.
 
Window menu
The Window menu contains a list of open windows. Choosing the name of a window from the menu activates the window (brings it to the front). The Window menu is useful when you have several windows open at the same time.
 
X.500
X.500 is an international standard for providing online Directory Services. The easiest way to think about X.500 is as a worldwide distributed electronic telephone book. The X.500 Directory can contain information about people, organizations, documents, and just about any other object. At the present time, there is a pilot worldwide X.500 Directory in use that mostly contains information about people and organizations.
 
X.500 Name
An X.500 Name is a text string that uniquely identifies a particular entry in the worldwide X.500 Directory. The term X.500 Name is used as a synonym for Distinguished Name in maX.500. See the topic “Distinguished Name” above for more information.
 
X.500 Password
An X.500 Password is a password that is used to authenticate to the X.500 Directory. Unlike Kerberos passwords (see the reference topic “Kerberos” above), X.500 Passwords are passed over the network in the clear, and are thus less secure. At the University of Michigan we are phasing out the use of X.500 Passwords in favor of uniqname/Kerberos passwords.
