Cream of the Crop 21/Cream of the Crop 21 (Terry Blount) (October 1996).iso/bbs/vfido713.zip/VFIDO.DOC

Text File | 1996-07-14 | 74KB | 1,472 lines

VFIDO Fido Gateway 7.13
=======================

Copyright Neil J Marshall 21st October 1991 - 14th July 1996
 TransAtlanticBBS    2:440/211 FidoNet    [e-mail]
  http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Neil_J_Marshall    [phone]


Introduction
============

This program implements a complete Gateway to Fido networks.
It enables the exchange of NetMail, EchoMail, Tick Files,
Node Lists and Diffs, AreaFix and AllFix messages between
VBBS and Fido. VBBS and VFIDO are fully capable of handling
all Fido type Network calls as a Front End Mailer, though you
can use FrontDoor as a Front End Mailer.


Contents
========

Initial Configuration Of VFIDO To Give E-Mail Functionality
Configuration Of VFIDO To Add Conference Functionality
Configuration Of VFIDO To Add Interface To FrontDoor
Creation Of A Fido Network List For Use By VBBS
Summary Of VFIDO Command Syntax
Technical Information
Development History


Initial Configuration Of VFIDO To Give E-Mail Functionality
===========================================================

Place the VFIDO.EXE, VFITO.EXE, VFIPO.EXE and VFICO.EXE programs
in your main VBBS directory.

Run VFIDO /E NETWORKID=#, where # is the Network Number you are
setting up, as shown in the NETWORKS.LST or VCONFIG.

1. Fido Address:       2:440/211
    Your Fido network primary address in Zone:Net/Node.Point format
2. EchoMail Server:    2:440/410
    Your main EchoMail server in Zone:Net/Node.Point format
2. NetMail Directory:  C:\VBBS\NETMAIL
    Where Fido NetMail will be stored - must specify the same
    directory for every Fido-type network you set up
3. EchoMail Directory: C:\VBBS\ECHOMAIL
    Where Fido EchoMail will be stored - must specify the same
    directory for every Fido-type network you set up
4. Archiver:           ZIP
    Default Compression Type for Outgoing EchoMail:
        ZIP   means use PKZIP.EXE and PKUNZIP.EXE
        PKPAK means use PKPAK.EXE and PKUNPAK.EXE
        PAK   means use PAK.EXE
        LHA   means use LHA.EXE
        ARJ   means use ARJ.EXE
        ARC   means use ARC.EXE
        ZOO   means use ZOO.EXE
        RAR   means use RAR.EXE
        NONE  means do not archive Outgoing EchoMail
6. Fido Front-End:     Standalone
    Select Standalone or FrontDoor.
7. Node List Name:     NODELIST
    The name of the nodelist for the network
8. Zones:              1-7
    The range of Zones that are valid for that network (ie the Domain)
9. Origin:             TransAtlanticBBS
    The text you want to appear in the Origin line of EchoMail
0. EMSI Protocol:      Zmodem
    Allows you to select if you will only use Zmodem when answering EMSI
    calls or if you will use Zmodem and Hydra. You must remember to install
    the relevant protocol programs, DSZ for Zmodem or Hydracom for Hydra
C. Colour Handling:    Strip
    Lets you choose between Stripping Heart Colour from messages as they
    are Gated into Fido Type Networks, or Translating the Heart Colour to
    Real Ansi Colour
E. Echo Mail List:    FidoNet.NA
    Sets the name of the BackBone EchoList file against which all Pass
    Through AreaFix Requests are validated before being sent to your Server

D. Dial List
    1. Node Number:            2:440/59
        Fido address of node to call
    2. Phone Number:           44-1689-812646
        Full international-format phone number to dial
    3. Open
        Determines if the system can be called 24 hours a day, or
        only in Zone Mail Hour
    4. Poll Priority:          Hold
        This determines when VFIDO calls any node for whom it has mail
        waiting
          Hold means never call except to send Crash Mail
          Once means call no more than once a day
          Always means call whevever any mail is waiting to be sent
          Cheap means the same as Always, but the calls are only
            made during weekday cheap rate hours (7am to 7pm),
            or any time at weekends
    5. Daily Call
        This determines if VFIDO should make a call once a day to the
        system even if there is no mail to send to it. You normally use
        this to force a call to your NetMail and/or EchoMail Server to
        collect mail every day
    6. Preferred Session Type: EMSI/Zmodem
        EMSI Handshaking is the fastest mail protocol in FidoNet,
        and is supported by all modern mailers. Two transmission
        protocols are available under EMSI, the unidirectional
        Zmodem and the faster bidirectional Hydra protocols.
        FTS-1 Handshaking is the original standard for FidoNet
        and should be used with systems not supporting EMSI
    7. Archiver:               ZIP
        The archiver to use when creating EchoMail packets for that
        specific system
    8. Session Password:       FRED
        The password to use in the EMSI or TSYNCH session with the
        other BBS, which may be blank. The password must be linked
        to the FIRST address your connect presents in his EMSI
        handshakes
    9. AreaFix Password:       JOE
        The password that must be used in AreaFix messages between
        your BBS and the other system. This must be set to a
        non-blank value if you want the other system to be able
        to make AreaFix requests
   10. AllFix Password:        TOMMY
        The password that must be used in AllFix messages between
        your BBS and the other system. This must be set to a
        non-blank value if you want the other system to be able
        to make AllFix requests
   11. Flags:                  ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
        The access flags, corresponding to those set in VCONFIG for
        the Message and File Areas, which this BBS is entitled to
        access using AreaFix and AllFix

R. Routing
    1: 2:440/59 2:440/59.*
        Routing defines the way your mail is sent to its addressee.
        The format is {Send To Address} {Addressee Address}. The
        above example says send all mail to 2:440/59 or any of its
        points (the .* wild card) to 2:440/59
    2: 1:1/1 1:*/*
        This says send any mail to Zone 1 systems to 1:1/1
    3: 2:440/* 2:440/*.*
        This says send all mail for any Zone 1 Net 440 systems direct
        without routing - note the use of the * wildcard in the
        {Send To Address} section
    4: 2:440/6 2:*/*
        This says send all other Zone 2 mail to 2:440/6
        If you do not include this kind of "catch-all" final routing
        line, all mail that does not match one of the routing options
        above will be left "on hold" on your BBS for its addressee
        to collect

A. AKAs
    1: 2:440/59.3
        Alternative address for the board - must be same Zone. You can
        configure AKAs as hidden, which means they are used by the Tosser
        but not presented in EMSI handshakes. This is really only relevant
        to Planet Connect
    2: 2:440/0

Once this configuration is completed, go to the main VBBS directory
and run:

    VFIDO /C NETWORKID=#

You should rerun this every time you change the above configuration
information, although VFIDO will now detect these changes
automatically and rerun the above command.

You will also need set up a file containing phone prefix aliases
called VFIDO.FON in your DATA subdirectory. This is used to ensure
that the phone numbers listed in the nodelist are converted to a
format that can be dialed from your BBS. This is used for removing
your country code for national calls and area code for local calls.
VFIDO needs the correct phone numbers listed so it can call any BBS
in the nodelist when Crash Mail, File Attaches or File Requests are
sent.

The format of this file is:

{International Dialing Prefix}
{Convert This Dialing String} {To This Dialing String}
    .
    .
    .
{Convert This Dialing String} {To This Dialing String}

An example of this file for the USA would be:

011-            The prefix for dialing international phone numbers
1-210-787- 787- Sets up the toll free codes for your area code
1-210- 1-       Makes all other calls in your area code long distance
1- 1-           Ensures all US phone numbers are not made international

This example would convert a phone number listed as 1-210-787-8974 to
787-8974, or convert 1-210-999-9999 to 1-210-9999, or 44-1689-812646 to
011-44-1689-812646

and for Europe:

00-             The prefix for international calls
44-1689-        Strip the country and area code for local calls
44- 0           Add a 0 prefix for national calls

As an example, the above would convert an international phone number
listed in the nodelist as 1-616-399-4818 to 00-1-616-399-4818, or a
national number in the nodelist as 44-1689-812646 to 01689-812646.

Place the unarchived nodelist into the C:\VBBS\NETMAIL directory and
run:

VFIDO /A NETWORKID=#

You will normally receive a new NODELIST or NODEDIFF file from your
Server or Hub once a week. Whenever you receive these files, the
above command should be run. You can also set it up as a daily event
if you want.


Sending E-Mail Using VFIDO
==========================

To send an E-Mail message from VBBS to any Fido-type network, invoke
the E-Mail routine as normal. The User Network Address field should be
completed in the format User Name@Fido Address, so to send E-Mail to me
use Neil J Marshall@2:440/211.

If you want to send Crash Mail, that is where the E-Mail is sent
directly to the addressee's BBS, ignoring the routing logic, then
add a " +c" after the addressee's name, so to send Crash Mail to me use
Neil J Marshall +c@2:440/211.

If you want to send NetMail directly to the addressee's BBS, ignoring
the routing logic, but do not want to send it Crash Mail, then add a
" +d" after the addressee's name, so to send NetMail direct to me use
Neil J Marshall +d@2:440/211.

In Fido-type networks it is policy that messages with files attached
must go directly to the addressee's BBS and ignore the routing logic,
so if you attach a file to a message it will be held on your board
awaiting a call from the addressee's BBS unless you send it Crash Mail
or the addressee is one of the BBSs in your dialing list that you call.


Running An EMAIL Gateway Using VFIDO
====================================

If you are in more than one Network, you can operate an EMAIL/NetMail Gateway
service to allow people in a Fido Type Network to send NetMail to people in
other non-FTN Networks.

To send the mail to the Gateway, it must be sent To: {Network Name} Gateway
and the Subject line must read either {User Name}@{Address}, or
{User Name} {User Number}@Address, or {User Number}@{Address}. For example,
to send mail to me you would make it To: VirtualNET Gateway and make the
Subject line read Neil J Marshall 1@440 or Neil J Marshall@440 or 1@440.

Inside the body text of the message, if you put a line that reads
Subject: {Real Subject Of This Message} the Gateway will move that into the
correct Subject field at the Gateway.

Outgoing EMAIL/NetMail to a Gateway is handled using the GATEWAY.* files as
described in the VBBS documentation.


File Requests Using VFIDO
=========================

If you want to send a File Request to another Fido-type BBS invoke the
e-mail routine as normal. The User Network Address field should be
completed in the format Sysop +f@Fido Address, where the " +f" is the
switch to indicate this is a File Request. The Filename requested is
put in the Title field of the message. All File Requests are sent direct
to the addressee's BBS and ignore routing. If the addressee's BBS is not
one that you have set up in your dialing list, then you must also use
the +c switch to make the File Request a Crash E-Mail. To request the
latest version of VFIDO from me, you would invoke the E-Mail function
and address it to Sysop +f +c@2:440/211, then make the Title of the
message VFIDO.

VFIDO also supports incoming File Requests. When a File Request is
received, VFIDO searches each of the File Areas that you have set up in
VCONFIG and sends the file back if it is found. VFIDO also supports
"Magic Names" for File Requests - this is where a pseudonym is
associated with an actual file for ease of access by calling systems.
Magic Names should be set up in the file VFIDO.MAG in your DATA
directory. The format of this file is one entry per line, giving the
"Magic Name" followed by the full path and filename of the file to
associate with the Magic Name, for example

    VBBS C:\VBBS\FILES\SYSOP\VBBS620.ZIP
    FILES C:\VBBS\MASTLIST.TXT

might be some of the most common ones. Magic Names must be a single
word only and must not contain any spaces.


Configuration Of VFIDO To Add Conference Functionality
======================================================

Before conferences can be subscribed to you must place
whichever EchoMail archiver you want to use in a
directory accessable through the PATH statement.

If you want to access public message areas in Fido, you will
need to know the AREA name that uniquely identifies each Fido
conference. Supposing for example you wished to set up VBBS to
participate in a Fido conference whose AREA name was HARPOON.

Run VCONFIG.EXE and select Database Configuration, Message Bases,
the relevant Group and Database. Then select Networks Configuration,
A for add, select the network, and on the line for the Network
Conference Identifier, put the AREA name of the Echomail conference
in the network, then a space, then the Fido address of the EchoMail
server from whom you receive the conference. If you are acting as a
local hub, also add, separated by a space, the Fido addresses of the
nodes to whom you directly circulate the conference. You are currently
limited to 80 characters in VCONFIG although you can manually edit
the file in DOS to create longer subscription lists.

The line will look like this:

Network Conference Identifier: HARPOON 2:440/59 1:2/3 1:3/4
                               ^       ^        ^
                               |       |        |
                               |       |        These are the addresses
                               |       |        of BBS whom you pass the
                               |       |        conference on to when
                               |       |        you are a local hub
                               |       |
                               |  This is the Fido address of the
                               |  EchoMail server from whom you
                               |  collect the conference
                               |
                   This is the AREA name of the Fido
                   conference

After you have set up all your conferences, you must run VCONFIG,
Database Configuration, Compile Network Configuration, then
VFIDO /C NETWORKID=#. You should rerun these two steps every
time you change the network configuration of a database in VCONFIG,
although VFIDO will now detect that Compile Network Information has
been run and will automatically run the VFIDO /C NETWORKID=#.

With these simple steps taken, every message posted on that
conference will be echoed to Fido, and every message from Fido
on that conference will be fed into VBBS.

You may find, from time to time, that new Message Areas arrive at
your BBS which you do not have configured. If you have a Message
Area set up in VCONFIG called DEADMAIL, all these "unknown area"
messages will be posted there.

Once EchoMail has arrived in DeadMail, you can run:

    VFIDO /ADD NETWORKID=#

which will automatically set up the Areas found in DeadMail.

You can optionally add any or all of the following options to the
/ADD command line:

o   /MAXMESSAGES=# sets the Maximum Messages for these Messages Areas,
    otherwise VFIDO will default to 1

o   /READSL=# sets the Read Security Level for these Messages Areas,
    otherwise VFIDO will default to 255

o   /WRITESL=# sets the Write Security Level for these Messages Areas,
    otherwise VFIDO will default to 255


File Distribution Conferences
=============================

Fido networks uses a procedure called "Tick" to automatically distribute
files to all BBS subscribing to File Distribution Conferences.

The procedure for setting up a File Distribution Conference is the same
as for an EchoMail conference. You must remember to configure a Files
Path in VCONFIG, Database Configuration, File Directories for each of
the File Distribution Conferences you set up, and you must also remember
to physically create the Directory specified in the Files Path on your
Hard Disk.

VFIDO processes incoming "Tick" files and places them in the correct
Files Path for the File Distribution Conference to which they belong.
It also creates "Tick" messages to forward these files on to any of
your Clients subscribing to the same File Distribution Conference.

All incoming "Tick" files will be passed through the Virus Scanner
and will have their file descriptions, in FILE_ID.DIZ or DESC.SDI
format, uploaded into their long description field.

Where "Tick" files have Magic Names associated with them, VFIDO will
automatically add the Magic Name to your Magic Name file VFIDO.MAG
or will update an existing Magic Name to show the new File Name.

If you are uploading files locally to VBBS and want to have a Magic
Name associated with the file, ensure that one of the lines of the
Long Description of the file reads:

    Magic MagicName

VFIDO will update your own Magic Name file with this information and
will also include the Magic Name in the "Tick" message sent to each
other BBS subscribing to the File Distribution Conference.


Using AreaFix Or AllFix To Request Conferences
==============================================

You can add or remove your BBS to the subscription list for conferences
on other Fido BBS using AreaFix for EchoMail Conferences and AllFix for
File Distribution Conferences.

All you have to do is to send a NetMail to AreaFix or AllFix, as
appropriate, at the BBS address with your AreaFix or AllFix password
as the title (the AreaFix or AllFix password is agreed in advance by
yourself and the other Sysop) and a content that lists, line by line,
the Area name of a conference, preceded by a - for remove.

For example, a message whose content read:

VFIDO_SUPPORT
-GAMES_DISCUSSION
---

would add your BBS to the VFIDO_SUPPORT conference and remove it from
the GAMES_DISCUSSION conference.

At the end of the list of areas you want to add and drop, put three
dashes --- at the start of a line to indicate you have finished.

VFIDO also supports the use of the -L and -Q commands in the message
subject, or the equivalent %LIST and %QUERY commands in the body of the
message. The -L command returns a list of every Echo that is available
from the BBS. The -Q command returns the same list, but also marks with
a * each Echo that you are subscribing to. Just make the Subject of the
message read PASSWORD -L or PASSWORD -Q to operate this function.

VFIDO also supports the %COMPRESS command in the body of the message,
which lets your callers select a compression method for their EchoMail.

Finally, the %ALL and %-ALL commands are also supported in the body of the
message. These add a caller to or drop a caller from all available Echoes.


Acting As An EchoMail Or File Distribution Hub
==============================================

VFIDO supports incoming AreaFix Requests as an EchoMail Hub and
AllFix Requests as a File Distribution Hub when your BBS has Clients.
The passwords presented are checked against those set up for the
calling BBS in VFIDO /E, and the Access Flags the calling BBS has are
checked against each Conference before subscription is allowed.

If you receive an AreaFix or AllFix request from a Client for an
EchoMail Conference or File Distribution Conference that you do not
already receive, VFIDO will generate an AreaFix or AllFix request to
your EchoMail Server automatically.

It will also set up the new EchoMail Conference or File Distribution
Conference as a Pass Through area on your BBS. That means the EchoMail
messages or File descriptions will not be posted to your BBS, but they
will be bundled and processed for your Clients.

You can also use VFIDO's interactive AreaFix functions, the F option in the
VFIDO /E configuration program, to manually add and remove yourself,
your Clients and your Server from the Subscription Lists of any EchoMail
Conference you carry or in the network's Echo List.

Note that most changes you make will require you to run VBBS on Channel 1
after making the changes, as that will automatically recompile any Network
or Configuration Information that has changed.


Summary Of VFIDO Command Syntax
===============================

VFIDO {channel number} {option} NETWORKID=#

# is the network identifier as specified in the NET.0 file for
the network you are connecting to.

{channel number} is only necessary with /DIAL, /HOST and /POLL options.

{option} is one of:

/A      Build network list from Node List and Node Diffs
/ADD    Adds EchoMail Areas that have gone to DeadMail
/C      Compile Fido configuration
/E      Edit Fido configuration
/DIAL   Make a call to another Fido address, specifying the address
        right after the switch like /DIAL2:440/211
/HOST   Answer an incoming Fido call
/POLL   Call all systems for whom Crash Mail is pending
/U      Scan VBBS mail and toss to Fido
/T      Scan Fido mail and toss to VBBS


Technical Information
=====================

VFIDO creates FTS-0001 packets for NetMail with FSC-0039 extensions for
Zone and Point 4D addressing, FTS-0004 ARCmail packets for EchoMail,
and FTS-0006 WaZOO-format File Requests.

Connections can be using FTS-0001 (TSynch) using XMODEM or
FSC-0056 (EMSI) using the ZModem Uni-Directional and/or the
Hydra Bi-Directional protocol depending on the capabilities of
the remote system.

VFIDO requires the presence of a 1994 release of DSZ.COM/DSZ.EXE,
a 1.08 or later release of HYDRACOM.EXE, and the appropriate archiver
programs (PKZIP, PKUNZIP, PAK, ARJ, LHA, PKPAK, PKUNPAK, ARC, ZOO, RAR)
in a  directory accessable through the PATH statement.


Release Notes
=============

7.13    Modified Nodelist compiler to ensure it handled Node Numbers
        up to 65535

7.12    Corrected the cause of Out of String Space errors when handling
        large Pass Through AreaFix requests
7.12    Corrected a problem with the DSZ command line when Hardware
        Handshaking was turned off

7.11    Corrected the problem that prevented you from browsing the full
        Echo List until you had subscribed to at least one Echo
7.11    Identified and rectified the cause of the failure to list files
        received during Hydra connects in the Network Log
7.11    Tweaked the handshake timings during the FTS-0001 outgoing calls
        to improve connection success rates with a couple of aberrant
        mailers

7.10    Modified Hydra command line to force it to overwrite duplicate files
        received, just like DSZ does, rather than renaming them which causes
        horrible complications for Tick Areas

7.09    Modified Registration Routines to use the Foreign Legion VNET and FTN
        Networks instead of VirtualNet

7.07    Modified the key required to change Packer in VFIDO /E Dial List
        from "A" (for the old heading, Archiver)
        to "P" (for the new heading, Packer)
7.07    Introduced further enhancements to internal Sort routines to permit
        larger files to be handled internally

7.06    Added a new VFIDO /E option to let you decide, for each Network Id,
        whether VFIDO should use Real Names or Handles when sending NetMails
7.06    Modified the Polling routines to introduce a new option, Cheap,
        meaning call every time there is mail waiting to send during cheap
        rate hours (7pm to 7am) or any time at weekends
7.06    Modified the technique used to Poll Daily to stop VFIDO trying to
        make the once a day call for hours on end
7.06    Changed the routine for analysing REPLY: kludge lines to detect and
        ignore lines without an Address before the Hex Number in the REPLY,
        which are of course out of spec but have started to appear anyway
        from other faulty software :-)
7.06    Reduced the number of entries VFIDO makes in the NETCALLS.LST to
        the first address presented and any aliases that appear in your
        dialing list
7.06    Added a new NONE (i.e. do not compress) option for Outgoing EchoMail
        archiving to let you send your EchoMail in straight .PKT format
7.06    Cured a problem in acting as a Hub for Tick Files when the Seenby
        list of the Tick files exceeded several Kb in size

7.05    Changed the Word Wrap routines to prevent them from word-wrapping
        Kludge lines over 79 characters long (not that there should be any!)
7.05    Modified the incoming Tick processor to make it place the Short
        description of the file in the Long description field if the file
        does not contain a FILE_ID.DIZ, instead of using the control
        information from the Tick file as the Long description
7.05    Replaced a number of Shell to Dos functions with internal VFIDO
        programming to speed up execution
7.05    Modified the routine that prepares the Seen-By and Path lines on
        outgoing in-transit EchoMail to make them immune to people using
        out-of-spec Net/Node numbers in their Seen-By and Path lines
7.05    Identified and cured a problem in the Modem Off-Hook routines that
        could cause VFIDO to hang when the Modem Off-Hook setting was
        Do Nothing
7.05    Changed the Packet Management to only delete stray .LST .IMM and .DIR
        files that have been created by VFIDO, those with all-numeric File
        Names
7.05    Dialing routines now monitor the Continuous Mail flag in the
        Node List and only let you dial a non-CM system during Zone Mail
        Hour unless you specifically force VFIDO to make the call manually

7.04    Added a new interactive AreaFix function to allow you to maintain the
        Subscription Lists of Echoes you carry, by adding and deleting your
        Server and Clients from the Subscription List at the touch of the
        Space Bar
7.04    Added a new VAREA-type function to allow you to subscribe yourself to
        new Echoes from the Echo List by browsing the Echo List and selecting
        the Echoes you want using the Space Bar, and to drop Echoes
        just as easily
7.04    Modified the AreaFix processor so that you automatically drop any
        Echo to which you no longer have any Subscribers
7.04    Added a new NetMail and EchoMail Packet Manager that allows you to
        examine what packets you have waiting to send, to change them from
        Crash to Direct to Routed status, and to delete them
7.04    Added a new +d option, similar to the existing +c Crash Mail option,
        to create a NetMail that will be sent direct to the addressee,
        ignoring your routing logic, the next time you call the addressee or
        the addressee calls you
7.04    Added support for the %FROM command in AreaFix messages to allow
        remote AreaFix requests to be processed
7.04    Added a new Packet Management option to the VFIDO /E functions,
        which allows you to review what NetMail and EchoMail packets are
        waiting to be sent out on your machine, and to delete those packets
        or change their status from Crash to Direct to Normal and back
7.04    Improved the recognition of Message/Reply linking in Fido messages
7.04    Changed the Date Processing routine to convert the standard Fido
        Date Format (dd mmm yy  hh:mm:ss) on incoming messages to the
        VBBS Date Format (day mmm dd, yyyy hh:mm:ss) and to extract the
        correct numeric age of the message from this
7.04    Finally added the ability to put wildcards in the Server Address
        section of the Routing, so that you can easily set up all Nodes
        within your Net with Direct Routing. As an example, routing like
        2:440/* 2:440/*.* sends all mail to Net 440 systems direct
7.04    Corrected the routing logic for your Points to ensure that mail that
        is sent directly to them is never accidentally routed to your Server
7.04    Modified the routine that automatically detects and recompiles
        changes in Network Configuration to separately and independently
        react to changes in Net Configuration (Dialing, Routing, Aliases)
        and Echo Configuration, since the former can be recompiled far
        faster than the latter
7.04    Corrected a fault in the processing of Tick files in unknown Tick
        Areas which were not being placed in DEADMAIL
7.04    Corrected a fault in the generation of PATH lines on outgoing
        EchoMail which was causing information from the SEEN-BY lines to
        appear in the PATH lines
7.04    Revised the routine that detects and resends EchoMail that has not
        been sent for seven days as there were loophopes in the logic it was
        using to detect the old EchoMail packets
7.04    Corrected a problem with Tick files when the Tick Area was not set on
        Pass Through - the files were being left in the NetMail directory
        instead of being moved into the file directory for that database
7.04    Introduced a routine to prevent the same file being sent twice in
        a Mail Session, for example if a careless SysOp File Attaches the
        same file twice
7.04    Cured the bug that was causing the mail for the last EchoMail Area
        (when sorted alphabetically) to be sent to DeadMail
7.04    Cured the bug that was causing primary addresses in networks to
        be flagged as hidden if the last alias in the preceding network was
        a hidden alias
7.04    Cured the bug that caused Dialing Entries for Zones that were not
        assigned to any NetworkId from appearing in all your NET.* files
7.04    Introduced new internal Sort routines that replace the use of the
        SORT.EXE program in DOS, and run twice as fast as well

7.03    Changed the process for archiving outbound EchoMail packets to make
        each archive 500Kb maximum size, instead of archiving each 500Kb of
        uncompressed EchoMail into a separate packet
7.03    Outbound EchoMail processor now detects archives that have been
        sitting in the EchoMail directory for a week and resends them
7.03    Outbound EchoMail processor detects when it is unable to archive
        a packet due to insufficient memory, and inserts the commands to
        archive then delete the packet into the POLL#.NET file so that
        the packet is archived as VBBS returns to the Waiting For Call
        screen, when there is far more memory available than under VFIDO
7.03    Outbound EchoMail processor also detects when it is unable to archive
        a packet due to a missing archiver program, and sends the packet
        uncompressed instead
7.03    If the Inbound EchoMail processor detects it has insufficient memory
        to unarchive an incoming packet, it now inserts the commands to
        unarchive then delete the packet into the POLL#.NET file so that
        the packet is unarchived as VBBS returns to the Waiting For Call
        screen, when there is far more memory available than under VFIDO
7.03    Added support for the excellent RAR archiver/unarchiver program
7.03    Introduced a new set of my own common VBBS access routines to
        replace those from Roland's VBBS Toolkit, solving the problem
        of programs hanging under Windows or EMM386 due to the Toolkit
        sporadically failing to reclaim or release vectors correctly

7.02    Tick Processor now uploads the FILE_ID.DIZ into the Long Description
        of any file received in a Tick Area as soon as the file is received,
        instead of relying on VBBS's upload scanner to do this
7.02    Pass Through EchoMail Areas are now given their correct Title which
        is looked up from the Echo List file (FidoNet.NA or equivalent)
7.02    /ADD now automatically looks up the Title of each new Area from the
        Echo List file instead of making it the same as the Echo Tag
7.02    /ADD now works substantially faster due to a rethink of how
        it decides to place new Areas in the Database Configuration
7.02    /ADD now has three additional options, /MAXMESSAGES=# to set
        the Maximum Messages in each new Area created, /READSL=# to set the
        Read Security Level, and /WRITESL=# to set the Write Security Level
7.02    Incoming AreaFix requests are now organised on receipt so that they
        are processed using the correct Network Id, so that the relevant
        Echo List file can be used in processing them
7.02    Modified the AreaFix %LIST and %UNLINKED commands to show all Areas
        available to the caller with a * to indicate which Areas they are
        currently subscribed to
7.02    Modified the AreaFix %QUERY command to just list the Areas they are
        currently subscribed to
7.02    Modified the AreaFix report when %LIST, %UNLINKED and %QUERY are not
        specified to just report the results of the AreaFix instead of adding
        the list of Areas they are currently susbcribed to, which was taking
        far too long to process
7.02    Changed the routine to invoke the VFIDOEND.BAT to compensate for
        VBBS failing to provide a Channel Number to VFIDO when running
        VFIDO /U
7.02    Added a function to force VME to toss any PENDING.* files for Fido
        Type Networks, since VME is failing to detect PENDING.* files unless
        there are also SPOOL.NET or DISTRIB.NET files
7.02    Modified the routing logic to automatically send all mail for your
        Points direct to them instead of ever trying to route it

7.01    Redesigned incoming Mail Tosser to write directly to the Message
        Areas bypassing the LOCAL.NET, which roughly halves the time taken
        to toss incoming EchoMail
7.01    On a VBBS 7.00 installation, VFIDO now writes details of the Network
        Connects to the NETCALLS.LST file
7.01    On a VBBS 7.00 installaton, VFIDO now uses the enhanced Modem
        Configurations Settings from the CHANNELX.CFG file
7.01    When you write a Crash Mail, VFIDO now forces a Poll immediately
        instead of waiting for the Network Poll Delay at WFC before Polling
7.01    Identified and solved the problem of Network Validation and Gating
        not working on Gated Validated EchoMail
7.01    Identified and solved a problem caused when NetMail was received in
        a packet from one Network where the NetMail was addressed to another
        Network - 7.00.11 was putting this NetMail in the wrong Pending file
7.01    Identified and solved a problem in converting large .MSG files into
        .PKT files
7.01    Corrected a problem with NetMail routed through your BBS caused by
        the introduction of the function to forward NetMail
7.01    Modified the call answering routine to ensure VFIDO does not try to
        compile Fido configuration when answering calls
7.01    Modified the format of the AreaFix report so that the list of
        Echo Tags and Echo Descriptions appears in two neat columns wherever
        the length of the Echo Tag is not greater than 45 characters, which
        is rare even for Internet-Gated groups
7.01    Upgraded to use VBBS 7.00 structures whilst remaining compatible
        with existing VBBS 6.14a structures
7.01    Added an improved /MONO command line option to force the program to
        run in Black and White for those of you who are colour blind, or
        are using a Screen Reader, or who just hate my taste in colours
7.01    Introduced a new mechanism for drawing your attention to the Release
        Notes before you start running a new release of a Utility, in case
        there are any important steps you must take when installing the new
        release
7.01    By popular demand, new Registration Routines that do not alter any
        VBBS system structures and do not leave obscure hidden files on
        your Hard Disk
7.01    The new Registration Routines no longer require you to stop using
        6.xx.xx releases of other Marshall Utilities
7.01    The new Registration Routines are not compatible with the Routines
        with the Routines used by the first releases (7.00.00 and 7.00.01)
        of the 7.00.xx family of Marshall Utilities. You will not be able
        to run these side by side with a 7.01 or later Marshall Utility
7.01    Changed the naming convention for the distribution archives so that
        they carry a proper .ZIP extension that VBBS can recognise as a ZIP
        file and that can therefore be viewed on-line

7.00.11 Introduced full support for the BRE file attach messages produced
        when BRE is set to FrontDoor mode, including the deletion of the
        BRE attached files once they have been sent
7.00.11 Outgoing EchoMail is now divided into up to 10 smaller archives
        containing packets no larger than 500Kb of uncompressed EchoMail for
        each Client, instead of 1 large archive, to improve the chances of
        some mail getting through when line conditions are poor
7.00.11 Changed the recognition process for incoming EchoMail archives to
        recognise mail from tossers that produce out-of-spec archive names
        where the last character of the extension is a letter instead of
        a number, such as what arrives from Planet Connect
7.00.11 EchoMail is now tossed direct to the Pending files, bypassing VME,
        whenever there is no Gateway or Validation in operation
7.00.11 Password Checking now scans all the Addresses in an EMSI Handshake
        to determine if the password is valid for any of the presented
        Addresses instead of just checking the first address shown
7.00.11 Pass Through EchoMail Areas are now verified against the BackBone
        Echo List for your Region/Zone (ie FidoNet.NA in FidoNet Zone 1)
        before being created
7.00.11 Outbound EchoMail .PKT and Tick .TIC files are now prepared in the
        EchoMail directory to prevent incoming callers on multi-line systems
        from accidentally picking up their EchoMail and Tick packets before
        they are ready
7.00.11 Added code to strip leading and trailing spaces from EMSI AKA list
        to compensate for an apparent bug in another Mailer software
7.00.11 Tick Files that are placed in DEADMAIL no longer have their
        FILE_ID.DIZ loaded automatically so that /ADD will work with them
7.00.11 If there is a VFIDOEND.BAT in the main VBBS Directory, VFIDO will
        run it automatically after every connect on the channels on which
        the LOGOFF.BAT is specified to run in VCONFIG
7.00.11 Added support for Echo Tags up to 80 characters in length

7.00.10 New VFIDO /E option added to let you toggle any Fido network between
        stripping all Heart Colour from messages and translating all Heart
        Colour to Real ANSI
7.00.10 Greatly improved the speed of EMSI Handshaking
7.00.10 Reduced the time taken to compile the NodeList by two thirds
7.00.10 Added a function to hide AKAs for use by Planet Connect subscribers
7.00.10 Corrected the routine that lets you set up the first Fido Network
        using VFIDO /E
7.00.10 Corrected the order of Day, Month and Year in the Packed Message
        Header, because Day and Month were the wrong way round
7.00.10 Modified the processing of the VFIDO.FON file to ignore blank lines
        accidentally left in after manual editing
7.00.10 Removed the routine to generate MSGID and REPLY lines as it has
        proved impossible to generate FTS-0009 compliant lines without a
        source code modification to VBBS itself
7.00.10 Limited use of PID kludge line to NetMail, as use in EchoMail is
        not necessary as the Tear Line shows the product name and version
7.00.10 When looking up a phone number from the NodeList, the number is
        now automatically recorded as -Unpublished- if it is not found in
        the NodeList
7.00.10 Cured the problem of sending the FREQ report to the wrong address
        when the FREQ came from a Zone that did not match any of your own
        AKA's Zones
7.00.10 Introduced even more security to prevent users from sending File
        Requests or Crash Mail, even if they have Security Level 255
7.00.10 Please note that David Nugent, the Chairman of the Fido Technical
        Standards Committee, has ruled that the way ALL PREVIOUS VERSIONS
        of VFIDO (from 1.00 to 7.00.09) created REPLY kludge lines from
        MSGID kludge lines is in breach of Fido Technical Standards.
        You are therefore all STRONGLY advised to upgrade to 7.00.10,
        because compliance with FidoNet Technical Standards is a
        pre-requisite of FidoNet membership.

7.00.08 Corrected the routine that sends the NetMail replies to FREQ's to
        handle FREQ's from Nodes that have a Point as an alias
7.00.08 Corrected the routine to edit your Node Number in VFIDO /E

7.00.07 Modified the EchoMail routines to strip INTL, FMPT and TOPT kludges
        from EchoMail
7.00.07 Cured a fault from 7.00.06 which was causing VFIDO to fail to invoke
        VFITO after a /POLL even when successful connects were made (oops!)
7.00.07 Cured the problem that caused the Archive Method to appear Blank
        instead of as the default Archive Method for any new entry in the
        Dialing Lists that was added automatically by Crash Mail (oops too!)
7.00.07 Cured the problem that caused an occasional crash when using /ADD
        for Tick Areas (oops three!)
7.00.07 Cured the problem that caused the daily feedback to be sent after
        every run of VFIDO when the day of the month was single digit
        (oops lots of times each day!)
7.00.07 Fixed the alignment of the data entry fields and the title text in
        the Registration Application

7.00.06 You MUST run VFIDO /C for each NetworkId when you first install
        this release before doing anything else!
7.00.06 Re-optimised the word wrap routines to improve tossing speed,
        which improved performance from under 100Kb/minute to over
        800Kb/minute on my laptop
7.00.06 Increased the available space on the screen in which to display
        information from 11 lines to 15
7.00.06 Added the facility to choose between Zmodem and Hydra for the
        transport protocol in any outgoing EMSI call
7.00.06 Added an option to the VFIDO /E configuration to turn Hydra on or
        off as a transport protocol for any incoming EMSI call
7.00.06 Can now automatically add Tick Areas from DEADMAIL, including moving
        the files to the relevant directories
7.00.06 Revised some working file names to fully support 256 channels
7.00.06 Changed the AreaFix function to support mail addressed to AreaMgr
7.00.06 Modified the method of processing AreaFix requests so that really
        large requests (200 or more EchoMail Areas at once) can be handled
7.00.06 Split the programs into three chunks to reduce their size in memory
        and make more room for archivers and unarchivers to run within them.
        You now have VFIDO.EXE as the Mailer, VFITO.EXE as the Tosser, and
        VFICO.EXE as the Configuration Editor
7.00.06 AreaFix/AllFix now includes a list of all supported AreaFix/AllFix
        commands in its replies
7.00.06 A report of all available Magic Names and a summary of the files
        requested is now sent in response to any File Request
7.00.06 Will automatically send the contents of FREQ.TXT from the VBBS Text
        Directory (normally VBBS\TXT) in response to any incoming FREQ
7.00.06 Fixed a problem where the To: Address on incoming EchoMail was being
        shown as {EchoMail} instead of being extracted from the REPLY kludge
7.00.06 Modified the /E Configuration Editor routine so that, for a new
        network, it automatically sets up a dummy network configuration
7.00.06 If no successful connects are made, VFIDO no longer runs the VFITO
        Tosser and returns directly to DOS or the WFC screen
7.00.06 Traced and resolved the reason for dialing entries that were set to
        Daily being reset to Hold when VFIDO /E was used subsequent to a
        successful call being made to that connect
7.00.06 Added the option to configure a different EchoMail Archiver for each
        of your Clients and Servers for use when packing outbound EchoMail
        to them
7.00.06 Enhanced the AreaFix processing to allow connects to send the
        %COMPRESS instruction to change their EchoMail Archiver
7.00.06 Improved the AreaFix processing still further to recognise the %ALL
        and %-ALL instructions to add to or drop from all available Echoes
7.00.06 Incoming File Requests now compare the Caller's Access Flags with
        the Access Flags to the File Area to ensure the FREQ is allowed

7.00.05 Revised COM port routines to work better with the 6.14a serial
        routines and reduce the chances of crashes
7.00.05 The FILE_ID.DIZ from incoming TIC files is now automatically added
        to the file's long description using the Upload Scanner
7.00.05 Now automatically falls forward to the first configured Fido Type
        Network when FidoNet itself is not configured, so you no longer
        need to configure a fake FidoNet address if you are not a member
        of FidoNet
7.00.05 Added a /MONO monochrome option for those without colour screens
        or who prefer not to see my colour scheme

7.00.04 Phone Number Verification now works very much faster during Node List
        compilation
7.00.04 Node Lists are now sorted into ascending Zone:Net/Node order during
        compilation
7.00.04 Phone number verification during Node List compilation no longer
        resets phone numbers to Unpublished
7.00.04 Solved an obscure problem at the NetMail Gateway when someone
        addresses mail to the Gateway and specifies the Gateway's address
        in one of the other Networks as the final destination address
7.00.04 Resolved a problem caused by running /ADD when there is no EchoMail
        in DEADMAIL that can be added
7.00.04 Identified and rectified cause of Hydra locking up when the Slow
        setting for Handshake is set up in VCONFIG Channels Configuration

7.00.03 Added full EMAIL/NetMail Gateway between Fido Type Networks and
        non-FTN Networks such as VirtualNET or Internet using the VBBS
        GATEWAY.* files for outgoing EMAIL and a To: NetworkName Gateway
        format for incoming NetMail as described in the main documentation
7.00.03 Now answers incoming calls faster by short-cutting some of the
        startup routines
7.00.03 Word wrapping now works at column 80 instead of column 79 which
        ensures some of those fancy taglines do not wrap
7.00.03 Word wrapping now wraps lines containing Heart ANSI and Real ANSI
        so they are not split unnecessarily by ignoring the ANSI codes
7.00.03 Added code to limit the To and From Names to 36 characters and the
        Title/Subject to 72 characters
7.00.03 Corrected a problem with the SEEN-BY and PATH lines created when
        hubbing mail to a point
7.00.03 Identified and rectified cause of VFIDO dropping carrier on other
        Channels than the one it is working on
7.00.03 Added packet passwords to the empty TSYNCH fake packet where a
        Session Password is used
7.00.03 When adding Echoes from DEADMAIL using /ADD, it now supports mail
        with MSGID and Origin information showing that post if from another
        Domain to the one the Echo from which has been received

7.00.02 Added support for the Hydra Bi-Directional Protocol in EMSI sessions
        with other Hydra-capable Mailers, for example FrontDoor

7.00.01 Modified the off-hook routine to prevent the phone ever being
        taken off-hook if the Modem Idle setting in VCONFIG is set to
        do nothing

7.00.00 Changed to support provisional new VBBS 7.00 configuration files
7.00.00 Now sends you a Daily Report in EMAIL of its activities
7.00.00 Split the program into VFIDO.EXE which handles the
        phone calls and VFITO.EXE which handles the mail
        tossing, freeing up memory and improving performance
7.00.00 The Origin Line is now configurable for each separate Network
7.00.00 Renamed the AreaFix function for File Distribution
        Conferences to AllFix to follow Fido conventions
7.00.00 Added separate AllFix password separate from the
        AreaFix password
7.00.00 Added Access Flag security to the AreaFix and
        AllFix functions using the 26 Access Flags you
        can set in VCONFIG for each Echo
7.00.00 Daily Feedback now reports Addresses as well as
        Names of calling BBSs
7.00.00 When presented with out-of-spec Seen-By and Path
        lines containing Nets or Nodes over 32767, will not
        crash any more
7.00.00 VFIDO /ADD now limits itself to a subset of the
        DEADMAIL to ensure the DOS SORT function does not
        run out of memory
7.00.00 VFIDO /ADD now detects TIC Areas and does not set
        them up accidentally as EchoMail areas
7.00.00 Now puts the phone on-hook before trying to
        initialise it
7.00.00 Identified a DOS bug that was causing the mysterious
        hanging at the end of the Loading Todays Callers
        section
7.00.00 Now logs the connect time to the Network Log for
        reporting and analysis purposes

Gamma 10
6.20.00 Added a new /ADD command to automatically scans
        your DEADMAIL, sets up any new EchoMail Areas
        that it finds and transfers the posts over from
        DEADMAIL to the new EchoMail Areas
6.20.00 Added support for incoming File Attach messages
        using Wildcards as File Names
6.20.00 File Attach NetMails from Tick and ArcMail are no
        longer posted to the local EMAIL database
6.20.00 EchoMail where the To: address is not known now
        appears as To: {EchoMail} instead of the old
        To: {Not Available}

Gamma 9
6.20.00 Enhanced screen display

Gamma 8
6.20.00 Cured problem in EchoMail that was causing some
        EchoMail to be treated as NetMail - that was a
        side effect of the Gamma 7 fix for NetMail
        containing the word AREA:

Gamma 7
6.20.00 Cured problem in NetMail Routing to Points
6.20.00 Corrected problem in recognising LHA archived
        EchoMail packets, NODEDIFFs and NODELISTs
6.20.00 Incoming AreaFix requests that are sent Crash
        Mail are no longer replied to by Crash Mail,
        just by normal NetMail
6.20.00 Cured problem of NetMail containing the word
        AREA: being mistaken for EchoMail

Gamma 6
6.20.00 Added support for extra archive methods using
        ZOO.EXE, ARC.EXE and PKPAK.EXE/PKUNPAK.EXE
6.20.00 Enhanced error handling for unknown archivers,
        missing unarchiver programs, and memory problems
        with unarchivers
6.20.00 All AKAs for the Domain are now added to SEEN-BY
        lines for EchoMail to reduce the chance of dupes
6.20.00 Added support for AreaFix commands %LIST %QUERY
        in incoming AreaFix commands, and cured problem
        with spurious + on Area names

Gamma 5
6.20.00 Modified Network Validation logic to only require
        validation when you have Validation On and where
        you are gating between networks
6.20.00 Enhanced message tossing still further to eliminate
        out of string space problems

Gamma 4
6.20.00 Added an internal equivalent of the VCONFIG Network
        Configuration screen for Fido type networks to allow
        all the extra fields missing in VCONFIG to be set up
6.20.00 Added proper Hubbing functions including sending
        AreaFix requests to your Server when a Client requests
        an EchoMail conference you don't carry, and support for
        Pass Through EchoMail areas
6.20.00 Now detects when any aspect of the Fido configuration
        has been changed and automatically runs a VFIDO /C
        to compile the new configuration
6.20.00 EMSI handshakes now give 5D addresses including Domain
6.20.00 Automatically runs VCONFIG's Compile Network Information
        when new Pass Through areas have been added
6.20.00 Added support for separate Session and AreaFix passwords
6.20.00 Restricted Session and AreaFix passwords to 8 characters
        to conform to Fido Technical Standards
6.20.00 Changed processing of message packets to solve the
        Out Of String Space problems
6.20.00 When you connect with another Fido system, VFIDO now
        only lists addresses for those Networks you have in
        common in the Today's Callers list
6.20.00 Will now not send NetMail with File Attaches or
        File Requests, nor EchoMail or Ticks, between the
        Net Low time and Net High time defined in VCONFIG,
        enabling full Zone Mail Hour compliance
6.20.00 Improved the screen display of calling node
        information when answering EMSI to the same level
        of detail as shown when calling out using EMSI
6.20.00 AreaFix requests incoming from Fido networks using
        other NetworkIds than Slot 4 now work correctly
6.20.00 Now removes any blank lines or illegal lines found
        after the Tear Line in EchoMail
6.20.00 Added .MSG creating and tossing functionality to support
        BRE and other similar games, and FrontDoor

Gamma 3
6.20.00 Seen-By lines are now presented in sorted order in
        accordance with unpublished Fido Technical Standard
6.20.00 Original Fido & VirtualNET Date & Time fields are
        now preserved
6.20.00 Message Threading now works for messages from and to
        Fido Networks
6.20.00 NetMail Tossing and Tick Tossing now operates faster
6.20.00 Tossing Performance in Kb/Minute is now reported in
        the Network Log and Daily Feedback
6.20.00 Incoming Mail Tosser now counts up the total number
        of messages processed instead of the number in each
        packet

Gamma 2
6.20.00 Incoming file requests are now logged to NETWORK.LOG
6.20.00 All Tick files are automatically passed through the
        Virus Scanner and have the FILE_ID.DIZ descriptions
        uploaded into the Long Description
6.20.00 Now logs the Fido Address of any invalid subscribers
        to the daily Feedback message and the Network Log
6.20.00 ARCmail file attach messages and other file attach
        messages which contain nothing but the file name
        are now sent as "null" messages so that the empty
        message can be deleted automatically by the
        receiving BBS
6.20.00 File Attach messages now just place the filename
        in the Subject field instead of the path and the
        filename
6.20.00 Command line use of DSZ now includes passing the
        estimate parameter while sending files and the
        restrict parameter while receiving files
6.20.00 Taglines from EMAIL.TAG are automatically stripped
        from otherwise empty EMAILs, such as File Requests
        and File Attaches, so that an empty NetMail is
        received at the other BBS which can be deleted
        automatically
6.20.00 Fixed a bug from Gamma Candidate 1 which was letting
        the PATH lines, hidden by a Diamond 0 combination,
        be seen by non-SysOps

Gamma 1
6.20.00 Mail tossing time reduced by 65% for incoming mail
        and 75% for outgoing mail
6.20.00 VFIDO supports multiple Fido style network gating
        with different EchoMail Area names for each network
6.20.00 VFIDO now deletes null (60 byte) packets each run
        instead of leaving them in the NetMail directory
6.20.00 Modified the compiled Nodelist format to show the
        telephone number as shown in the source Nodelist,
        including - separator characters
6.20.00 Changed phone prefix technique to read the VFIDO.FON
        as phone numbers are dialed instead of requiring the
        Nodelist to be recompiled each time the VFIDO.FON
        is altered
6.20.00 Nodelist compilation now automatically checks and
        corrects the phone numbers listed in your dialing
        list in VCONFIG Network Configuration
6.20.00 Added Network Validation for incoming Fido EchoMail
6.20.00 SEEN-BY: and PATH: lines are now concatenated onto
        existing lines where possible instead of automatically
        starting a new line
6.20.00 Messages incoming from Fido are now stored with all
        their Fido "kludge" lines intact, but hidden by
        Diamond 0 prefixes, so they can be viewed only by
        the SysOp
6.20.00 NetMail routing modified so that mail always routes
        directly if there is no suitable routing logic, to
        assist those Nets with lots of local boards who have
        to route direct and don't want to enter it manually
6.20.00 Incoming NetMail now scans the USERFILE.IDX to find
        the User Number so that you don't need to have sent
        NetMail to Fido networks before being able to receive
        incoming NetMail to your Real Name or Handle
6.20.00 EMSI handshaking now presents the primary address for
        the NETWORKID as the first address in the handshake
        sequence, rather than always presenting the FidoNet
        address first
6.20.00 When answering EMSI calls, VFIDO shows the primary
        address corresponding to the primary address shown by
        the caller
6.20.00 Added code to handle messages gated from WWIV networks
        using VWW4 that contained spurious ^A characters
6.20.00 Now strips heart colour codes from the From and To
        Name fields and the Subject field
6.20.00 EchoMail now reports the To: address in messages as
        {Not Available} where VFIDO is unable to identify
        the real To: address
6.20.00 VFIDO now adds dialing entries to the correct
        NET.# file instead of always adding them to the
        file for the Networkid # it was run under
6.20.00 No longer tries to look up phone numbers for Points
        from the NODELIST
6.20.00 Now displays connect's address and name during file
        transfer in EMSI mail sessions
6.20.00 Now records connect's BBS name and SysOp name from
        EMSI mail sessions in network.log
6.20.00 Now completes all of the EMSI handshake optional
        fields based on information extracted from the
        NODELIST
6.20.00 Changed VFIDO's AreaFix LIST command to the conventional
        -L or -Q after the password instead of the earlier
        LIST command which was non-standard
6.20.00 VFIDO's AreaFix now automatically returns a list of all
        Echoes that the caller is subscribing to when the caller
        makes any kind of AreaFix request
6.20.00 EchoMail sent to {DEADMAIL} will now be tossed to a
        Message Area with a database file name of DEADMAIL if
        you set one up in VCONFIG, Database Configuration
6.20.00 Now automatically unarchives NODELIST files
6.20.00 Deletes old NODELIST files when a newer one is received
6.20.00 Correctly picks up a "this year" .001 NODELIST in
        preference to a "last year" .365 NODELIST
6.20.00 Now processes NODEDIFF files and updates the NODELIST
6.20.00 Cured bug that was failing to delete sent EchoMail and
        NetMail packets that were over 1Mb in size
6.20.00 Added full incoming and outgoing Tick file handling,
        including moving files to the relevant directories
        as defined for each File Area in VCONFIG
6.20.00 The VFIDO.FON dialing translation file now handles
        translate patterns where the second part of the pattern
        is blank, eg translate 1-616- to nothing
6.20.00 Changed order in which attached files are sent to
        ensure that attached files are resent when a connection
        fails with some of the files sent and some not
6.20.00 Logs the type of incoming connect, EMSI or TSYNCH, in
        the NETWORK.LOG
6.20.00 NetMail addressed to unknown users is forwarded to the
        SysOp account automatically

6.10.05 Improved mail tosser logic to prevent tossing to
        "silly" node numbers
6.10.05 Modified NODELIST compiler to only print summary
        information to screen to improve performance
6.10.05 Spacebar aborts of outgoing calls now hang the phone
        up immediately
6.10.05 Added code to support password EMSI handshaking with
        boards who insist on adding a .0 to the end of their
        full node addresses

6.10.04 Added unique thread id to prevent accidental deletion
        of messages by VME as duplicates
6.10.04 Corrected EchoMail routines to support hubbing between
        VFIDO systems
6.10.04 Added routine to handle overlength date/time fields
        in packed message headers
6.10.04 Improved still further the routines for extracting
        origin information from EchoMail
6.10.04 Disabled VFIDO mail tossing on nodes 2 and over of a
        multi-line BBS to prevent locking and crashing
6.10.04 Added packet level passwords for outbound mail

6.10.03 Corrected operation of VFIDO in a multinode BBS

6.10.02 Rectified routing problem in non-crash direct mail such
        as EchoMail file attaches

6.10.01 Rectified problems in EMSI and TSYNCH handshake caused by
        VFIDO 6.10.00

6.10.00 Modified LOCALNET processing routines to support the new
        NETWORKS.LST format

6.00.05 Modified configuration compilation to support zones=
        fields with only a singe zone number listed
6.00.05 Removed need for GUS by inbuilding archive detection
6.00.05 Modified incoming EMSI routing to support badly behaved
        EMSI mailers
6.00.05 Added more detail to the log in VFIDO.TOS and VEMSI.LOG
        to assist debugging

6.00.04 Modified the logging to VFIDO.TOS to include all tossing
        within a single running of VFIDO
6.00.04 Amended the off-hook routine to ensure that the phone is
        taken off the hook on some slower modems
6.00.04 Modified the handshaking delays to ensure connects with
        Binkley systems
6.00.04 Modified outgoing EMAIL routine to delete outgoing NetMail
        with incorrectly formatted node numbers
6.00.04 Removed need for NET.1 and NET.4 to be configured for VFIDO
        to operate successfully

6.00.03 Added tossing log file VFIDO.TOS to assist debugging of
        EchoMail and NetMail tossing problems

6.00.02 Improved handling of CD-ROM file requests
6.00.02 Modified NetMail identification routine to support file
        attaches generated by BRE
6.00.02 Increased the archiving formats to support ARC, PKPAK, DWC
        and HYP
6.00.02 Changed to use a GUS General Unarchiver Shell program to
        allow almost any incoming archived mail format to be used
6.00.02 Reintroduced some delays before DSZ to assist Binkley connects
6.00.02 Modified call logging routine to record every connecting AKA

6.00.01 Improved wildcard file request handling
6.00.01 Improved automatic polling logic to work according to original
        concept

6.00.00 Official release

5.60.11 Cured bug in the outgoing EchoMail packets generated by a hub

5.60.10 Enhanced AreaFix routines to support the use of the session
        password as the AreaFix password, and to recognise the LIST
        command as a method of showing all available databases
5.60.10 Modified password routine to recognise passwords from any
        network on incoming calls
5.60.10 Modified outgoing call routines to automatically use EMSI or
        TSYNCH as appropriate
5.60.10 Modified routines calling DSZ to use PORTX instead of PORT
5.60.10 Modified call logging routine to list correct Network name
5.60.10 Modified NODELIST processor to exclude DOWN systems

5.60.09 Modified EchoMail archive packet naming for points
5.60.09 Corrected bug in incoming file request handler

5.60.08 NetMail no longer carries a tear and origin line
5.60.08 Outgoing file requests and crash mail can only be sent by
        the Sysop account
5.60.08 Modified EMSI checksum routine to ensure 4 digit checksums
5.60.08 Removed reliance on DOS DIR command
5.60.08 Added support for LocalNET slots configured as Fido type
5.60.08 Modified file request code to support CD ROM drives and to
        ignore wildcard file requests
5.60.08 Improved analysis of results of a call to ensure sent packets
        are deleted even if the receive fails

5.60.07 Modified incoming mail user name recognition to cope with
        names with the first character missing
5.60.07 Overhauled the FTS-0001 packet exchange section to get better
        results with Binkley connects

5.60.06 Modified packet creation routine to make the packet show
        the address in the correct network as the origin
5.60.06 Corrected a bug caused by the switch to 60 byte null
        packets in 5.60.05 which caused outgoing mail to be
        ignored or two bytes out of phase

5.60.05 Modified the /c and /f email switches to +c and +f
        because of conflict with MultiMail function
5.60.05 Modified null packet length to the correct 60 bytes
5.60.05 Modified EchoMail processing to detect NetMail containg
        AREA: in the text as NetMail instead of EchoMail
5.60.05 Introduced a quick return to Waiting For Call where call
        was unsuccessful
5.60.05 Modified incoming and outgoing call routines to improve
        success rate with VFIDO, FrontDoor and Binkley connects
5.60.05 VFIDO now remembers the telephone numbers of Crash Mailed
        systems so the nodelist does not need to be searched again
        if further Crash Mail is sent or redials are needed
5.60.05 Modified routine that processes EMSI caller's address
        information to handle 5D addressing and spurious .0
        point addresses

5.60.04 Modified telephone answering routine to handle incoming
        Binkley 2.56 calls using EMSI or FTS-0001
5.60.04 Modified incoming file request processor to take account
        of comments and directory names
5.60.04 Improved the incoming EMSI handshake performance
5.60.04 Modified the EMSI handshake routine to detect carrier
        dropped right at the start of the handshake
5.60.04 Modified the routine to detect nodelists in VFIDO /A
        so that it runs a bit faster

5.60.03 Corrected bug in Crash Mail introduced in 5.60.02
5.60.03 Incoming EchoMail is now forced to appear from the same
        network as it is addressed to, preventing reflection
5.60.03 Added even more code to remove junk in incoming MSGID,
        REPLY and Origin fields

5.60.02 Corrected bug in receive EMSI handshaking that was
        causing an infinite loop
5.60.02 Corrected a bug causing a crash if you sent crash mail
        to the same address more than once then made a connect
5.60.02 Modified incoming mail processor to add a /c to crash
        mail to allow the reply to be sent as crash mail
        automatically
5.60.02 Changed MSGID, REPLY and * Origin routines to detect
        where Zone is 0 and default the network to FidoNet
5.60.02 Completely rewrote inbound EchoMail processor to allow
        for situations when the from and to addresses are in
        completely different networks
5.60.02 Corrected origin network processing for mail whose
        origin line indicates an invalid Zone
5.60.02 Corrected incoming File Request processing routine
5.60.02 Suppressed sending of null packets during EMSI session
5.60.02 Enabled routing to #:#/0 addresses
5.60.02 Corrected routine that takes modem off hook during
        tossing to use correct COM: port and only activate if
        VCONFIG is set to Idle Modem
5.60.02 Checks VCONFIG file request flag to see if file areas
        are FREQ'able or not
5.60.02 Added code to recover from invalid addresses in the
        REPLY field from other Fido mailers
5.60.02 Added some strategically placed pauses to allow screen
        to be read to assist debugging
5.60.02 Spacebar now aborts the whole redial sequence for a node
5.60.02 Checks for null packets received during a TSynch session
        to prevent attempting to apck mail for 0:0/0

5.60.01 Modified the /POLL routine to only poll within the
        specified NETWORKID
5.60.01 Added display of EchoMail From Address during tossing
        to assist correct configuration of EchoMail processor.
5.60.01 Corrected TSYNCH handshake to cope with empty incoming
        packets
5.60.01 Corrected the AreaFix message format to follow the Fido
        standard for add requests
5.60.01 Modified the initial handshake after CONNECT to support
        mailers that generate a single Escape character
5.60.01 Added code to mask out REPLY lines reading 0:0/0
5.60.01 Added code to mask out invalid MSGID lines from Xenolink
5.60.01 Added support for Session Passwords
5.60.01 Updated processing of Origin information in EchoMail to
        handle invalid formats of the Origin without crashing
5.60.01 Corrected incoming EchoMail processing logic to handle mail
        from multiple networks simultaneously
5.60.01 Takes phone off hook during mail tossing
5.60.01 Modified call to DSZ to handle duplicate incoming file names
5.60.01 Added abort by spacebar in dialouts
5.60.01 Added pause between redials
5.60.01 Corrected processing of nodelists with sub-100 extensions
5.60.01 Added Carrier Detect functions to detect loss of connection
        in incoming and outgoing calls

5.60.00 Added incoming AreaFix functionality
5.60.00 Added incoming & outgoing Crash Mail functionality
5.60.00 Added incoming & outgoing File Attach functionality
5.60.00 Added incoming & outgoing File Request functionality
5.60.00 Integrated the FrontDoor telephone handling functionality
5.60.00 Introduced support for Domains
5.60.00 Upgraded routing to give unlimited routing flexibility
5.60.00 Introduced support for Aliases
5.60.00 Introduced support for simultaneous multiple Fido-type networks
5.60.00 Reintroduced the PATH statement in EchoMail
5.60.00 Introduced support for unarchived EchoMail
5.60.00 Improved the detection of origin information on incoming EchoMail
5.60.00 Added processing to correct Private EchoMail and Public Netmail
5.60.00 Added support for To: field in EchoMail
5.60.00 Upgraded to support VBBS 5.60

5.52.04 Corrected the problem that was preventing messages from Fido being
        gated out to VirtualNET clients and servers
5.52.04 Improved the detail provided on-screen as messages are being
        processed (to give you something to read as the program chugs
        slowly along!)
5.52.04 Cured the problem of VFIDO "reflecting" EchoMail back to the
        original sender thereby causing duplicates
5.52.04 Corrected the display of the From address for incoming EchoMail so
        that it no longer always shows the Server's address
5.52.04 Removes the AREA and SEEN-BY lines from incoming EchoMail before
        posting it to VBBS
5.52.04 Introduced an automatic word-wrap on incoming messages to cater for
        those annoying Fido mailers that fail to word-wrap their messages as
        they are entered

5.52.03 Corrected another bug in the usa of LHA for archiving

5.52.02 Corrected a bug that was making the VBBS mail tosser skip messages

5.52.01 Corrected the use of LHA as an archiving and unarchiving protocol
        since it was making VFIDO crash

5.52.00 Completely rewrote echomail handling for multiple clients (the
        last version was my first attempt and was not too good!)
5.52.00 Added recognition of soft carriage returns in message text
5.52.00 Corrected SEEN-BY line on echomail to show NET/NODE only
5.52.00 Forced e-mail to use real name
5.52.00 Corrected FLAGS for file-attached archived message packets
5.52.00 Corrected expected name of NODELIST files
5.52.00 Added a VFIDO.LOG file that records file access attempts to help
        debug obscure file problems

5.51.00 Added support for VBBS 5.51

5.50.06 Added support for multiple servers and multiple EchoMail clients
        (this was a MAJOR job, let me tell you!)
5.50.06 Corrected bug causing crashes if subdirectories under NETMAIL
5.50.06 Fixed crash caused by blank lines in NET.0
5.50.06 Fixed crash caused by archived NODELIST in VFIDO /A

5.50.05 Fixed ARCmail file attach message bug
5.50.05 Fixed INTL addressing bug

5.50.04 Fixed horrendous bug in the 5.50.03 EchoMail processor

5.50.03 Rewrite of mail processor to handle large messages

5.50.02 Fido mail addressed to SysOp is routed to #1 account
5.50.02 Origin line now has only 1 leading space
5.50.02 SEEN-BY and PATH now in correct order on Conference mail

5.50.01 Failure to toss Fido Conference mail to VBBS message areas

2.2     Fixed bug in showing Fido node in VBBS

2.1     Fixed bug in Fido echomail to VBBS conversion

2.0     First Public Release

1.5     Beta

1.4     Beta

1.3     Beta

1.2     Beta

1.1     Beta

1.0     Beta