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1993-08-18
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* READMAIL 4.1 *
A message reader for the PC
Written by
Jeroen Schipper
This manual is in Unix mailbox format, so you can read this manual
with the program READMAIL.EXE using the Unix header definition.
At the DOS prompt, enter:
C>READMAIL.EXE READMAIL.DOC /P
The /P will enable auto detection.
---------Start of messages--------
From jschipper@hut.nl Tue Aug 17 12:52 CET 1993
Received: by hut.nl
From: Jeroen Schipper <jschipper@hut.nl>
Return-path: <jschipper@hut.nl>
Message-Id: <M8872H@JJS8.882J2J>
Subject: Introduction
To: you@at.your.terminal
Date: Tue 17, Aug 93 12:52
Status: RO
Thank you for trying ReadMail!
ReadMail is a message reader for the PC with many options. It can be
used to scan your message files or mailbox files containing multiple
messages. You can use ReadMail to make an easy selection of messages
you want to read, delete or print. Bookmarks can be used to keep track
of messages you have read. ReadMail is an easy-to-use program, help
screens are available for every function.
This program can be used as an off-line mail reader for most bbs-
systems, provided the header definition is setup correctly.
Please notice: This program is NOT A MAILER! You cannot send new
messages with this program or read messages on-line.
From jschipper@hut.nl Tue Aug 17 12:52 CET 1993
Received: by hut.nl
From: Jeroen Schipper <jschipper@hut.nl>
Return-path: <jschipper@hut.nl>
Message-Id: <M8872H@JJS8.882J2J>
Subject: What's in the archive?
To: you@at.your.terminal
Date: Tue 17, Aug 93 12:52
Status: RO
The archive file RMAIL41.* must contain the following files:
- READMAIL.EXE - The main program
- READMAIL.DOC - Sample message file and at the same time the
instructions
That's all!
A setup file will be created. The setup file contains your color setup
and some additional information about the configuration. This file
also contains the message definitions (see below).
The setup file must be in your current directory, or the directory
where READMAIL.EXE was started from. You can also specify a setup
file from the commandline, which is especially handy if more users
on a network use ReadMail.
From jschipper@hut.nl Tue Aug 17 12:52 CET 1993
Received: by hut.nl
From: Jeroen Schipper <jschipper@hut.nl>
Return-path: <jschipper@hut.nl>
Message-Id: <M8872H@JJS8.882J2J>
Subject: Valid message files
To: you@at.your.terminal
Date: Tue 17, Aug 93 12:52
Status: RO
A message file is a text file that contains messages which are sepa-
rated by headers. The header definition can be changed (See Creating
new message types). The header definition should at least contain a
subject, other fields are not necessary.
ReadMail requires DOS 3.x or higher.
DOS vs UNIX
===========
ReadMail can handle both Dos and Unix files. The only difference is
that Dos uses both a <CR> (carriage return) and a <LF> (linefeed) as
an end of line, while Unix only has a <LF>.
NUMBER OF MESSAGES
==================
READMAIL can read up to 900 messages if there is enough memory. If
your files contains more messages than the maximum (use [F5] to see
maximum) they will be ignored. The messages will be sorted on subject,
sender or will not be sorted at all (can be changed in setup).
From jschipper@hut.nl Tue Aug 17 12:52 CET 1993
Received: by hut.nl
From: Jeroen Schipper <jschipper@hut.nl>
Return-path: <jschipper@hut.nl>
Message-Id: <M8872H@JJS8.882J2J>
Subject: Scanning multiple files
To: you@at.your.terminal
Date: Tue 17, Aug 93 12:52
Status: RO
When you enter the filename of the message file, you can use DOS-
wildcards to scan multiple files. However, all files must have the
same message type. All found messages will be displayed in one big
list in the selection screen. The top of the screen shows the filename
where the current message was found. You also can press [F5] (status
display) to see the current OPEN file. This is not always the same
file as the current message (e.g. when not in preview mode.) When
reading messages, [F5] always gives the right filename.
If you set sorting method ([S]) to Don't Sort, all messages will be in
the order in which they were read. So all messages found in 1 file
will be grouped together. This is also the closest you can get to sort
messages on date, ReadMail cannot sort on the date field, because of
the many different conventions, different languages, used by mailers
for the date field.
From jschipper@hut.nl Tue Aug 17 12:52 CET 1993
Received: by hut.nl
From: Jeroen Schipper <jschipper@hut.nl>
Return-path: <jschipper@hut.nl>
Message-Id: <M8872H@JJS8.882J2J>
Subject: Creating new message types
To: you@at.your.terminal
Date: Tue 17, Aug 93 12:52
Status: RO
You can use ReadMail to read different message files. To do this, you
must define the header, so ReadMail can recognize a new message. To
define a new header, press [F8] when you are prompted for a filename
or when you are in the selection screen. You see a list of 15 defini-
tions you can define. By default, the first seven are defined as:
[A] Unix
[B] EchoMail
[C] Prof. Timo Salmi's FAQ Lists
[D] MBBS
[E] MMDF mail system
[F] UseNet messages
[G] CompuServe forum
The top message can never be deleted; others can be deleted by
removing the description. All definitions can be modified by pressing
[ALT] + the corresponding key (e.g. to change the third one, press
[ALT-C]). Now you can define the header. In some of the fields you may
use wildcards. The wildcards recognized by ReadMail are:
* Replaces any string, even an empty one
? Replaces exactly one character
However if you need a "real" * or ? in a field not to be used as a
wildcard, preceed the wildcard with a backslash ("\"). So:
\* Replaces "*"
\? Replaces "?"
For demonstration on how to use the wildcards, see the examples below.
In all fields, you can use "low" and "high" ascii characters by using
"#nnn". For instance to insert a "╘" (=ASCII 212) enter #212. To
insert Control characters, use the same method: To insert a Control-D
(=ASCII 004), enter #4.
Here is an overview of the fields to be filled out. Only the
description, new header and subject are required, other fields are
optional.
1. Description
This is the description used in the selection list.
2. New Header (Wildcards allowed)
This is where the line is defined that starts a new header in your
message files. It is essential that you define this as precise as
possible, so that ReadMail won't recognize a random line as a header.
3. End Header (Wildcards allowed)
Here you define where the header ends and the message body begins.
There are two possibilities:
- The header ends with a string: enter this string (if necessary use
wildcards). If the header ends with a blank line then enter nothing.
- The header has a fixed number of lines: enter the number of lines
4. Subject (Wildcards not allowed)
To find the subject, ReadMail must know what to look for in the
header. Enter only the keyword that is always the same at the begin-
ning of the line. Wildcards are not allowed here, except a * as the
first character of the line. Uppercase or lowercase is also important:
the keyword shall match exactly the subject name. If the subject is
always at the same offset from the beginning of the header, you can
also enter the line number. In this case the whole line will be read
as the subject.
5. End Subject (One wildcard allowed at the end)
If the subject is f