CD-ROM Aktiv 1/CDA1_96.ISO/novell/tapnews.142

Text File | 1995-11-27 | 19KB | 395 lines

________________________________________________________________________
TAPCIS News                     25-Oct-95                           #142

                              IN THIS ISSUE

COMPUSERVE NEWS
   Super Value Plan Sign-up
      -- Will it save you money?
      -- GO CIS:CHOICES

TIPS FOR TAP
   Turn Off View with the "View | Toggle all" Command by Pressing [F3]
   "TODAY" View Shows Most Recent Messages
   Turning Off Message Sorting
   Using SECS.LST, The Forums List With Section Names
   CompuServe error "? Your mailbox is busy. Please try again later"
   Recommended file: CLEANT5.ZIP to Remove TAPCIS 5.x Files & Utilities

COMPUSERVE HAPPENINGS
   CompuServe Celebrates 400,000 European Members
   Take the CompuServe How-Are-We-Doing Survey

NETWORK NEWS
   Canadian Datapac Surcharges Have Been Reduced

FORUM NEWS
   New CIS: Forums:
      America's Funniest Home Videos Forum (CIS:HOMEVIDE)
      Baywatch Forum (CIS:HOM-197)
      Better Homes Kitchen Forum (CIS:BHKFORUM)
      Block Financial Forum (CIS:BLOCKFS)
      GroupWare Files Forum (CIS:NGWFILES)
      Laptop Vendor Forum (CIS:LAPTOP)
      Netware General Files Forum (CIS:NWGENFIL)
      Netware Operating System Files Forum (CIS:NWOSFILE)
      PerfectOffice Files Forum (CIS:NPOFILES)
      PC World SOHO Forum (CIS:SOHO)
      Tektronix Forum (CIS:TEKTRON)
      UK Travel Forum (CIS:UKTF)

Purpose:  To help create an online community that demonstrates the best
          that human beings have to offer.
________________________________________________________________________


--- COMPUSERVE NEWS ---

                         Super Value Plan Sign-Up

Now that the new CompuServe pricing is in effect (see TAPNEWS.138 for
the full details), you may want to consider signing up for the Super
Value Plan. This plan costs $24.95/month (an added $15/month over the
basic $9.95/mo fee). It gives you an extra 15 hours of free connect time
(making a total of 20 free hours per month).

You will save money on the Super Value Plan if you consistently use more
than 10 hours of connect time per month. Of course, ten hours of connect
time using TAPCIS represents an ENORMOUS amount of information. Even
with as many forums and services as I read, I don't use ten hours in
most months. If you do a lot of work interactively, or on the Internet,
you are much more likely to go over the 10 hour mark and need the Super
Value Plan.

To change plans and add or drop the Super Value Plan, use the TAPCIS
Connect | Interactive [I] command and enter CIS:CHOICES as the page
name. Or, type GO CIS:CHOICES when in terminal mode. You can check your
billing using GO BILLING, option 2-Review charges. Whatever you do, make
sure that the account you use daily with TAPCIS is not set up for the
old "Alternate Pricing" plan. If it is, you are paying a huge premium
per online hour ($22.80 vs. $2.95!).


--- TIPS FOR TAP ---

Turn Off View with the "View | Toggle all" Command by Pressing [F3] ---

   Views are a new concept in TAPCIS 6.0, and they do take a little
   while to get used to. We recommend that you read about them in the
   manual (in Chapter 2/Overview around page 2-14 and in Chapter
   3/Reading messages around page 4-21).

   Views can make it seem that some of your messages have "disappeared."
   What the view is doing in truth is filtering out the messages it
   thinks you don't want to see.

   If you do get lost and cannot find a message, press [F3]. This turns
   the view off. You'll see "ALL messages" on the bottom status line.
   Press [Home] to go to the first message in the file. You can then
   find a message by pressing [F], entering a search term, and selecting
   [oK]. This will find the first match. To find the next and subsequent
   matches, press [N].

"TODAY" View Shows Most Recent Messages ---

   Here's a quick view that shows you messages that have a date/time
   within 24 hours of the most recent message in the file. Here is how
   to create this view:

      1) Press [Ctrl+V] to edit the view.
      2) Press [Home] to start with the *All* view.
      3) Press [Alt+H] then underscore [_] to clear the Hold filter.
      4) Press [Alt+A] then ampersand [&] to turn on the Date filter.
      5) Enter the digit 1 in the first field.
         Leave the second field blank.
      6) Press [Alt+V] and save this view as "Today".

   This view starts with all messages in all sections (+ Section: All)
   then keeps in the view only those messages within the last day. If
   you wanted the last three days, you'd use "3" instead of "1". If you
   wanted a specific date range, you could enter "15-Oct-95 through 23-
   Oct-95" to see messages within that range.

   You can activate this view at any time now that it is saved using
   View | Load view [Ctrl+F3] and selecting the Today view.

Turning Off Message Sorting ---

   TAPCIS 6.0 sorts forum messages into "thread order" so that messages
   that are replies to other messages appear in the "proper" order. For
   example, let's say that TAPCIS retrieves a message posted by someone
   else asking "How do I do this?"  The next day, TAPCIS retrieves 5
   replies answering that message. T6 sorts the messages so that the
   replies appear in order following the original message. The original
   message may or may not be "in view" depending on whether it had been
   read or not when it was originally captured.

   You can see this sorting in action by reading a forum message file
   that has several online sessions. Press [I] to switch to the full
   screen index. Scroll up and down and notice that the messages are in
   thread order. In TAPCIS 5.x, you'd would have each batch (session) of
   messages in sequential order.

   Some people prefer the messages sorted, and others prefer the old
   ordering. You can easily switch to the old "file position" ordering
   using View | Load view [Ctrl+F3] and choosing the MAIL view.

   For CompuServe Mail, we use the order the messages were received as
   the default view. When the forum name matches the view name, the view
   is loaded by default. That is why this pre-defined view is called
   MAIL. (See View Naming Conventions, Chapter 4/Reading Messages,
   around page 4-25.)

   If you would like to get rid of thread sorting altogether by default,
   here is what you do:

      1) Press [Ctrl+V] and type MAIL in the Descriptive name field.
      2) Press [Alt+V] and save the view as: DEFAULT
      3) Press [Ctrl+V] and type MAIL.FB in the Descriptive name field.
      4) Press [Alt+V] and save the view as: DEFAULT.FB

   Steps 3 & 4 set the "fallback" view. This means that if no messages
   are found in the first view, use the second view instead. The normal
   view for forum messages is *Unread*. The fallback for *Unread* is
   *All*.

   This can sound confusing. You don't need to worry about all the
   semantics unless you want to really customize the messages that are
   shown to you, and their order. Views represent a significant tool.
   You may want to at least familiarize yourself with some of the
   "Standard Views," such as New and ToMe.

Using SECS.LST, The Forums List With Section Names ---

   If you have added a new forum using TAPCIS 6.0, you know that the
   program allows you to search a list of forums for a keyword. This
   makes it a lot easier to find forums that interest you.

   To do this, TAPCIS uses the file FORUMS.LST found in your TAPCIS
   default directory. This list is updated monthly. You can download new
   revisions as FORUMS.LST or FORUMS.ZIP from Lib 16/TAPNEWS of the
   TAPCIS Forum. You will generally want to unzip and move the files
   from the download directory into the TAPCIS directory, to replace the
   old copy of FORUMS.LST.

   We also offer an alternate, more comprehensive listing called
   SECS.LST. It is available in zipped format as SECS.ZIP in Lib 16.
   This listing includes the public message and library section numbers
   and names. How can this extra information help you find what you are
   looking for?

   Let's say you are looking for information on homeschooling your
   children. If TAPCIS searches FORUMS.LST, it doesn't find any
   references to homeschool. However, a search of SECS.LST finds three
   matches:

      Education Forum                    EDFORUM      CIS: EDFORUM
         Education, Schools, Teachers,
         Librarians, Kidtech, Shareware,
         Preschool, Gifted, LD, Guidance
            6 Homeschool/Alt Ed           6 Homeschool/Alt Ed
      Kids Students Forum                STUFOC       CIS: STUFOC
            6 Homeschool World            6 Homeschool World
      Kids & Teens Student Forum         STUFOA       CIS: STUFOA
            6 Homeschool Link             6 Homeschool Link

   The Education Forum has a very active homeschool section/library 6.
   The two students forums offer a place for homeschooled kids to
   socialize and share information. Without SECS.LST, you might not know
   of these resources unless someone else referred you to them.
   (Remember, our message section S14/Looking for... in the TAPCIS Forum
   is where you can ask fellow members to help you locate an online
   resource.)

   The disadvantage of SECS.LST is that it is much larger than
   FORUMS.LST (890K versus 160K).

   If you do download SECS.ZIP and unzip it into the TAPCIS directory,
   be sure to delete the original SECS.ZIP file as well as the old
   FORUMS.LST. TAPCIS looks first for SECS.LST, then FORUMS.LST. If you
   download SECS.LST and later decide to switch to using FORUMS.LST, you
   will need to delete the old SECS.LST file. (If you are really short
   of disk space, neither file is *required*; you can delete
   FORUMS.LST).

   In addition to the TAPCIS Forum Lib 16, the FORUMS.LST/.ZIP and
   SECS.ZIP files are also available for free downloading by Extended
   Service Plan members from the TAPESP Forum, Library 1. The free
   PRACTICE, HELPFORUM, and NEWMEMBER Forums also carry these files.

CompuServe error "? Your mailbox is busy. Please try again later" ---

   With the dramatic increase in e-mail message volume when CompuServe
   removed the surcharge for Internet mail, the computers that process
   and deliver mail are struggling under the load. We see this with
   reduced performance in Mail, especially on uploads of binary files.
   CompuServe has announced that they will be implementing new
   technology this winter to address these issues, and we do expect that
   more rapid mail response will resume once that is done.

   In the meantime, we have been presented with the above error message
   more often than in the past. For example, let's say that in one
   session TAPCIS downloads and deletes 25 new mail messages. If you go
   back online immediately, the mailbox may be busy as the CompuServe
   host computer works to remove the messages amidst the other mail
   requests it is also processing.

   This message also seems to appear when the mailbox is the process of
   receiving a large file or series of messages. The error will also be
   present if the same user ID is logged on through another connection
   and is using CompuServe Mail. (You can login using the same account
   multiple times, but only one session can access CompuServe Mail.

   In TAPCIS 6.0, when the program sees this message, it "tries again"
   to access mail and most times is able to get through. After two
   tries, it resumes its other online activity (if any), skipping MAIL.

Recommended file: CLEANT5.ZIP to Remove TAPCIS 5.x Files & Utilities ---

   This small zip file contains CLEANT5.BAT that offers a flexible way
   of erasing the TAPCIS 5.x files from your TAPCIS subdirectory. It was
   written by Tim Nash.

   SUGGESTION: We do NOT recommend that you remove TAPCIS 5.x until you
   have 6.0 up-and-running, and you are comfortable with its operation.

   Download CLEANT5.ZIP from Lib 2/Scripts & tools of the TAPCIS Forum.
   Unzip the files into your TAPCIS 5.x directory, backup your hard
   drive (recommended), and then from DOS run "CLEANT5". You will run
   CLEANT5 twice. The first time it moves the files into two temporary
   directories. You can review the files in those directories to note
   and move any files you do not wish to erase. Then, run CLEANT5 again
   to actually erase the files from disk.


--- COMPUSERVE HAPPENINGS---

              CompuServe Celebrates 400,000 European Members

CompuServe now has 400,000 members in Europe. More than 25,000 new
members joined the service in August alone. CompuServe now has over 3.5
million members worldwide.

What most of us in the United States don't realize is that ALL calls in
most European countries are charged by the minute, even "local" calls.
And the charge can often be higher than it is for long distance calls in
within the U.S. For these customers, TAPCIS is invaluable for reducing
their total charge to access the service.

                Take the CompuServe How-Are-We-Doing Survey

Do you have ideas on improving CompuServe? What do you think about the
recent price change? These are questions that CompuServe's asking in the
How-Are-We-Doing survey. To take the survey GO CIS:TELLUS. This area is
free from CompuServe connect-time charges, although communication
surcharges may apply.


--- NETWORK NEWS ---

               Canadian Datapac Surcharges Have Been Reduced

To provide members with the most competitive access to CompuServe, the
cost of connecting to CompuServe via the Datapac network in Canada has
been reduced 27 percent to $4/per hour (US) at all times. In addition,
CompuServe provides access from 15 Canadian cities via its own network
with no additional connection charges. These locations include: Calgary,
Edmonton, Halifax, Hamilton, Kitchner, London, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec,
Regina, Saskatoon, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria, and Winnipeg. Outside
these locations, CompuServe provides dialup access via the Datapac
network in over 200 Canadian cities. GO CIS:LOGON for a list of access
numbers. With TAPCIS 6.0, enter a Login script of "DATAPAC" under
Setup | Phone number.


--- FORUM NEWS ---

                              New CIS: Forums

Do you watch America's Funniest Home Videos? Now you can go behind the
scenes for program information, previews of upcoming shows, video
shooting tips, and a chance to converse with the show's producers and
screening staff in America's Funniest Home Videos Forum (CIS:HOMEVIDE).

Get behind the scenes news, hot photos, cool sounds, and QuickTime video
of the stars of Baywatch in the Baywatch Forum (CIS:HOM-197 for the
forum and CIS:BAYWATCH for their top menu in Interactive mode).

Recipes, cooking tips, nostalgic cover art, and conversation is what you
will find in the Better Homes Kitchen Forum (CIS:BHKFORUM). Sponsored by
the culinary experts at Better Homes and Gardens Magazine, the forum
will help you create fast and healthy family dinners and holiday get-
togethers.

Technical support for Kiplinger TaxCut, Kiplinger's Small Business
Attorney, and Kiplinger's Home Legal Advisor is offered in the Block
Financial Forum (CIS:BLOCKFS). Also available is product information,
press releases, and shareware/demo utilities.

GroupWare Files Forum (CIS:NGWFILES) is a library only forum (no message
sections) covering Novell GroupWare products such as GroupWise,
SoftSolutions 3.x and 4.x, InForms, and WordPerfect Office.

The latest information on the mobile computing marketplace, straight
from the leaders in portable computing hardware and software, is
available in the Laptop Vendor Forum (CIS:LAPTOP). QMS and Sharp
Electronics, Traveling Software, and New Media Corporation are currently
participating in the forum.

Netware General Files Forum (CIS:NWGENFIL) is a library only forum that
focuses on network connectivity products such as UNIX Connectivity,
Netware Messaging, and Tuxedo.

Netware Operating System Files Forum (CIS:NWOSFILE) is a library only
forum that covers Netware operating systems products such as NW Client
OS2, and SFT III 4.1.

The PerfectOffice Files Forum (CIS:NPOFILES) is also a library only
forum. It offers support for all of the Novell application products
including WPWin 6.x and 4.x, WPDOS 6.x and 5.1/5.1+, Quattro Pro - Win
and Quattro Pro - DOS, Presentations, WPMac, WPUNIX, and DataPerfect.

Do you work in a small office or home office environment? The PC World
SOHO Forum (CIS:SOHO) provides access to information and software of
particular interest to the small office/home office community.

If you are in need of technical support for Tektronix products, check
out the Tektronix Forum (CIS:TEKTRON). Personalized answers to your
specific printer questions are available to you, as well as hints and
tips on Tektronix products.

If you are planning a trip to Britain or Northern Ireland, visit the UK
Travel Forum (CIS:UKTF) for information to help you enjoy your stay.

                  Quotes from Section 9/Registered Users

"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes in to us at
midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in
our hands and hopes we've learnt something from yesterday." --John Wayne

"Life itself cannot give you joy unless you really will it. Life just
gives you time and space - it's up to you to fill it." --Chinese Proverb

"Whatever you are be a good one." --Abraham Lincoln

________________________________________________________________________
TAPCIS News is a publication of Support Group, Inc., the publisher of
the CompuServe access program "TAPCIS 6.0". TAPCIS(R) is a registered
trademark of Support Group, Inc.

If you have questions or want more information on TAPCIS, please contact
us via CompuServe Mail or:

Support Group, Inc.,          Phone 1-800-USA-GROUP (872-4768)
Lake Technology Park,               1-301-387-4500  (9am to 5pm Eastern)
McHenry, MD 21541 USA           Fax [phone]
CompuServe 74020,10             TDD 1-301-387-7319  (Answering Machine)

Suggestions for future TAPCIS News issues should be directed to:

Richard P. Wilkes 76701,23    Bonnie R. Thomas 75300,2444
Editor/Publisher              Managing Editor

         Entire contents Copyright (c) 1995, Support Group, Inc.
               CIS:TAPCIS Forum, file TAPNEWS.142, Lib 16.