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1991-03-31
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ROS User's Guide
Copyright 1990 Steven Fox
All Rights Reserved
Associated Information Services
P.O. Box 13711
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87192-3711
The Albuquerque ROS - (505) 299-5974
ROS is a powerful message and file transfer system that works in
conjunction with your computer to help you exchange private mail with
other users, post public messages for others to read, download files
for your own use, and upload files for others to use. If you are new
to ROS, please take a little time to read through this manual. If you
are already familiar with ROS, you may want to just browse, studying
new commands as you go.
============================================================================
CONVENTIONS
Throughout this guide, the characters "<" and ">" are used to indicate
keystrokes that you type. For example: "Type the letter <R> to start the
read operation."
Whenever ROS is listing or typing something to your computer, you may enter
a <Ctrl-S> (press the <Control> key and <S> at the same time) to make the
display pause. Output will pause until you press <Ctrl-Q>. <Ctrl-C> may be
entered at any time, including when output is paused, to completely stop the
listing. ROS will then return to a command prompt.
The word "archive" is used in this document to mean one or more files that
are collected into a single file. Usually these component files will be
compressed and a directory of what is contained within the archive can be
made available with the proper software.
Archives are very useful tools to group related files. For example, a single
archive might contain source code, object or executable code, and
documentation for a particular system.
============================================================================
PROMPTS
System prompts are displayed while ROS is waiting for a command to either
the Messages Menu or the Files Menu (described in more detail later). These
prompts consist of several pieces of information:
Minutes of connect time remaining
Current menu
Current area
If an archive is open, the archive name
For example, the following prompt indicates that you have 22 minutes
remaining on the system, are currently in the Files Menu, and logged into
the NEWIN file area:
22-File: NEWIN>
If an archive is open, your prompt will include the name:
22-File: NEWIN [VECTOR.ZIP]>
============================================================================
COMMANDS AND SELECTIONS
Commands consist of a single letter entered in upper or lower case and need
not be followed by <Enter>. For example, to read a message, just enter the
letter <r> (without the quotes). ROS will echo the whole word "Read" and
execute the command.
Several commands may require the entry of more than one character. This
"selection" must be completed by hitting the <Enter> key. At that time, ROS
will try to match what you have typed with possible choices. You only have
to type enough characters to uniquely identify to ROS which selec- tion you
want to make. Typing the entire name is usually not necessary. For
example, assume the protocol list contains the following selections:
Xmodem-1k Ymodem Zmodem
In this case, typing a <Z> (followed by <Enter>) is sufficient to uniquely
identify the desired protocol as "Zmodem." Another example would be in
choosing a new message area. Assume the system has the following message
areas:
MAIL SENT POST PARTY-LINE Q&A
If you want to select the POST area, you must type at least <PO> and then
press <Enter>. If you were to type only <P>, ROS would select the first
matching choice, PARTY-LINE.
============================================================================
MESSAGES
The following sections describe the commands that are available to write and
read messages.
<E>nter message
Use this command to enter a message to another user, the sysop, or to all
users. Several responses to the "Name>" prompt are accepted:
<Enter> addresses the message to "All" and automatically makes the
message "Public"
Full name "Sysop" is the full name of the system operator
First name ROS will then prompt for the "LAST name>"
If a name is entered, ROS will check to see if the user is registered. If
so, you will be asked if the message should be "Public." If you want users
other than the addressee to be able to read the message, type <Y>. If you
want only the addressee to be able to read the message, type <N>. If the
user is not registered, you will be notified and returned to the Messages
Menu prompt.
During editing, the following commands are available:
<L>ist Text
This command will list the text of the message as it currently exists,
including the header.
<C>ontinue Entry
This command allows you to continue entering text starting with the next
sequential line.
<S>ave Text
This command stores the message to disk.
<Q>uit Entry
If the message contains any text, ROS will verify that this is the desired
command and, if it is, will abandon the current message. All text entered
in this message will be completely lost.
<E>dit Line
This command will ask for a line number. If that line exists, it will be
listed and the cursor placed at the end of the line, waiting for line
editing commands.
<D>elete Line
This command will ask for a line number. If that line exists, you will be
asked to verify you want to delete the specified line. If you do, the line
will be permanently deleted.
<I>nsert Line
This command will ask for a line number. If that line exists, you will be
placed in text entry mode. All text entered will be inserted before the
specified line.
<R>ead messages
When given this command, ROS will prompt for the starting message number. If
the message cannot be found, ROS will start with the next sequential
message. If you enter a number lower than the lower number indicated in the
brackets, ROS will start the with the lowest numbered message available in
the selected message area. If you enter a number higher than the upper
number indicated in the brackets, ROS will start with the highest numbered
message available in the selected message area. If you press <Enter>
without entering a number, ROS will start with the highest message you have
already read.
After the text of the message is displayed ROS accepts the following
options:
<N>ext
This command brings up the next sequential message. If there are no more
messages, ROS will return to the Messages Menu prompt.
<P>revious
This command brings up the previous sequential message. If there are no
more messages, ROS will return to the Messages Menu prompt.
<C>ontinuous
This command causes messages to display without pauses for commands or line
counts ("More [Y/n] ?" messages) until a message sent by you or addressed to
you is encountered or until there are no more messages.
<R>eply
Use this command to respond to the message you just read. ROS automatically
addresses the message and places it in the same area. You will be given the
option of making the message public or private.
<F>orward
This command allows you to readdress the message you just read to send it to
another user. ROS will first verify that this is the intended command and
then ask for the addressee name. You may enter any valid user name,
including just the <Enter> key for "All."
<D>elete
If you are the author of the message or the addressee of a private message,
ROS will ask if you want to delete it. Respond with either <Y> to delete
the message or with <N> to retain the message.
<Q>uit
Use this command when you want to stop reading messages.
<B>ulletin