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From: commafaq@alpha3.ersys.edmonton.ab.ca
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.mail-news,comp.answers,news.answers
Subject: comp.os.msdos.mail-news FAQ (01/02) intro
Summary: uucp, mail, and news for msdos or ms-windows or os2 (part 01/02)
Message-ID: <19941107.commafaq.01@alpha3.ersys.edmonton.ab.ca>
Date: 07 Nov 1994 00:00:00 -0700
Expires: 08 Dec 1994 12:00:00 GMT
Reply-To: commafaq@alpha3.ersys.edmonton.ab.ca
Followup-To: comp.os.msdos.mail-news
Organization: Private System, Edmonton, AB, Canada
Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu
Supersedes: <19941021.commafaq.01@alpha3.ersys.edmonton.ab.ca>
X-Posted-By: trivdb
Lines: 679
Xref: network.ucsd.edu comp.os.msdos.mail-news:2446 comp.answers:7659 news.answers:29843
Archive-name: msdos-mail-news/intro
Original-Archive-name: comma-intro
Comp-os-msdos-mail-news-archive-name: intro
Posting-Frequency: biweekly
Last-modified: 1994-11-06
Comp.Os.Msdos.MAil-news == c.o.m.ma == comma
========================================================================
Contents:
Part 1:
1. Disclaimer
2. Where are the Questions?
3. Charter
4. QWK
5. `offline'
6. Related Groups/Mailing Lists
7. Books
8. ftp and how to get files from the Internet
a. help is easy to obtain
b. where to find software
c. archie
d. not on the Internet: accessing ftp archives
e. not on the Internet: accessing archie
9. RFCs
10. announcements
11. other FAQs
12. What do the technical or jargon terms mean?
13. How can I get mail/news on my PC at home?
a. I have a UNIX login, but don't want to tie up the phone lines.
b. I can get a `feed' -- but what do I do with it?
c. I'm reading over someone's shoulder.
d. I want better software than what I've got now.
14. How can I use waffle newsreaders with other packages?
98. spelling
99. credits
Part 2:
100. notes and index
101. Disclaimer
102. I want mail and/or news on msdos! what software is there?
103. summary only - no reviews
104. what the addresses mean
105. maintainer index
106. ftp index
200. uucp
201. discussion
202. waffle
203. uupc, uupc-msw [msw], uupc-os2 [os2]
204. fsuucp
205. mks-uucp
206. internetanyw [msw]
207. uuslave
208. pduucp/pcuucp
209. dcp
210. xp/crosspoint
211. fxuucico
212. mail-it-rem [msw]
213. minihost [msw]
214. winnetmail [msw]
215. uufree
216. ntnetnews [nsw]
217. uulink
300. mail/news transport agents, batchers, servers
301. discussion
302. filesystem
400. network
500. mail/news user agents
501. discussion
502. filesystem
600. network
700. other
800. source
801. discussion
802. dcp
803. uuslave
804. pduucp/pcuucp
805. uupc
806. uupc-msw
807. uupc-os2
808. snews
809. hackticnr
810. rusnews
811. winelm
812. mit-red
813. pcrrn
814. smaildos
815. pmnews
816. snuz
817. barbnews
818. olsenews
819. slnr
820. rexxnews-os2
821. procc
822. wsmtpd
823. trn-os2
824. tin-os2
825. winvn
826. nexp
827. mimelite
828. wrn
829. appsig
830. aser
831. solar
832. makenews
833. mailqueue
834. tmailpostnews
835. nnrnews
836. uufree
837. mpack
838. mime64
839. unpost
840. nntpd-dvx
841. nn-dvx
========================================================================
1. Disclaimer
Read at your own risk. The current, previous, or original authors
make no claim as to fitness for any purpose or absence of any errors,
and offer no warranty. Do not eat.
2. Where are the Questions?
most of them are implicit. this is more of a `Frequently Wanted
Information' listing than a FAQ listing.
just pretend you're on `Jeopardy!', and everything will be fine.
3. Charter
``
Date: Wed, 19 May 1993 19:54:41 MDT
Message-ID: <930519.195441.7R5.rusnews.w164w@alpha3.ersys.edmonton.ab.ca>
Subject: CFV: comp.os.msdos.mail-news
Sender: tale@rodan.UU.NET
Charter:
[ use of `msdos' can be interpreted as `msdos and compatibles' ]
[ traffic relating to ms-windows and os/2 would be welcome until such
a time (if ever) that traffic warranted creation of groups under
comp.os.ms-windows and/or comp.os.os2 ]
on-charter topics include:
- almost anything involving running uucp under msdos
- almost anything involving usenet (RFC1036) under msdos
- almost anything involving DNS mail (RFC822) under msdos
- almost anything involving PCMAIL (RFC1056) under msdos
- almost anything involving Post Office Protocol (RFC1225) under msdos
similar RFCs will also be discussed, as they become available.
''
``
Date: 21 Jun 1993 16:27:00 -0400
Message-ID: <2055ikINNpg0@rodan.UU.NET>
Subject: RESULT: comp.os.msdos.mail-news passes 140:21
Sender: tale@rodan.UU.NET
Approved: tale@uunet.uu.net
RESULT: comp.os.msdos.mail-news PASSES 140:21
''
4. QWK
as QWK has several built-in limitations in its headers, many (or
most) QWK-to-news programs produce articles which are not compliant
with RFC1036, thus these topics are off-charter.
however, there are notices of QWK packages that get around these
limitations, in much the same way normal news articles do -- by
including the full text of the headers in the text, separated by
a blank line. in addition, there are hopes of QWK user agents
which recognize these headers and work with them as well as any
non-QWK user agent. and finally, the reported official successor
to QWK will support `Internet' (sic) headers.
discussion of _these_ topics is, of course, directly on-charter.
5. `offline'
the word `offline' means different things to different people, and
it seems sometimes that neither group understands what the other
is talking about. naturally, this leads to confusion.
for some, `offline' means: using local processing power to do
things, instead of using your PC as a $10 surplus terminal.
this is often accomplished using such tools as uucp.
for others, `offline' goes further, and means: using local
processing power to do things, without having the PC set up
as a distinct site. very, very similar tasks are done in
very, very similar (but occasionally weirdly incompatible)
ways. this is often accomplished using such tools as uqwk.
there is a very good standards document available known as
`soup12.zip' which outlines a way to eliminate some of the
incompatibilities. (see the section on `ftp' for how to
find a location near you.) soup (simple offline usenet
packets) is based on hdpf/hpf (helldiver packet format)
and an enhanced hdpf named slnp (simple little news packets).
I will attempt to avoid use of the word `offline' here.
6. Related Groups/Mailing Lists
(note: these are suggestions for posting, not laws. but people
do tend to be happier when everyone is on-charter, I would guess.)
comp.bbs.waffle The Waffle BBS and USENET system on all platforms.
- anything to do with waffle probably should be at least crossposted here.
alt.usenet.offline-reader Offline readers for usenet
- ``I have an account, but want to read news without tying up the
phone line - how can I do it?''
news.software.readers Discussion of software used to read network news.
- news-reading software
comp.mail.uucp Mail in the uucp network environment.
- uucp software, and using mail with it
comp.mail.misc General discussions about computer mail.
- mail in general
comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc TCP/IP for IBM(-like) personal computers.
- ``how do I get SLIP working under msdos? ftp? telnet?''
bit.listserv.pmail Pegasus Mail Discussions.
- Pegasus mail in general
msmail-l@yaleVm.YCC.yale.edu Microsoft Mail
- anything to do with ms-mail
CCMAIL-L@VM1.ucc.okstate.edu cc:Mail Interest Group
- anything to do with cc:mail
uupc-info@kew.com uupc
- send mail to uupc-info-request@kew.com to subscribe/unsubscribe.
snews-dev-l@invlogic.com snews
- send mail to listserv@invlogic.com to subscribe/unsubscribe. seems
oriented more towards developers/power users.
zipnews-users@nlbbs.com zipnews
- send mail to list-server@nlbbs.com to subscribe/unsubscribe.
fsuucp@toys.fubarsys.com fsuucp
- send mail to fsuucp-request@toys.fubarsys.com to subscribe/unsubscribe.
pc-uucp-l@invlogic.com snews
- Send a message to listserv@invlogic.com with a body of
"SUBSCRIBE PC-UUCP-L" for discussions on this software.
(not sure how drastically this is intended to be different from
snews-dev-l, and the name seems misleading)
fx-list@tau-ceti.isc-br.com fxuucico
- send mail to fx-list-request@tau-ceti.isc-br.com to subscribe/unsubscribe.
<not-given>@jpunix.com rnf
- send email to listserv@jpunix.com to subscribe/unsubscribe.
eudora@uiucvmd.bitnet Eudora
- unsure how to subscribe/unsubscribe from Internet
mail-server@iowegia.dsm.ia.us solar
- To subscribe, send mail to mail-server@iowegia.dsm.ia.us with
'subscribe solar' in the body of the message.
yarn-list@lists.colorado.edu yarn
- To subscribe, send mail to listproc@lists.colorado.edu with the
contents of the message being `subscribe yarn-list <your-full-name>'
7. Books
DOS User's Guide to the Internet
ISBN 0-13-106783-3
Mortice Kern Software
info@mks.com
is about uucp, not Internet
Low Cost E-Mail with UUCP
ISBN 0-442-01849-5
Copyright date 1995 (!)
Van Nostrand Reinhold
115 Fifth Ave.
NY NY 10003
or
Nelson Canada
1120 Birchmount Road
Scarborough, Ontario
Canada M1K 5G4
8. ftp and how to get files from the Internet
8a. help is easy to obtain
there are many good introductory materials on how to use ftp and
transfer files around the Internet (and beyond). some are available
as books in your local library/bookstore (go ahead, ask them), and
some are available as other FAQ files.
if you're confused, your best first action is to ask someone locally.
ask the person or machine from whom/which you got this file you're
eading right now for help. they're a lot more likely to know the
commands that will work for you than anyone across the planet.
or, if it's 4 a.m., you might try sending mail to the id
``mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu''. if prompted for a Subject: to
use, just use ``help''. when entering text, just use one line,
and again, just use ``help''.
if you're on an Internet-connected machine, you might want to try
going through the following, to see if it works. if not, your best
bet is again: asking someone local who's in the know.
(we'll assume your email address is chris@some.site for this section)
you see something like... you type...
---------------------- --------
%
ftp rtfm.mit.edu
ftp: Command not found.
(well, it won't work. talk to someone local.)
CONNECTED to random-name.mit.edu.
200 random-name FTP server ready.
Name (rtfm.mit.edu:chris):
anonymous
331 Guest login ok, send e-mail address as password.
Password:
chris@some.site
230 Guest login ok, access restrictions apply.
ftp>
cd /pub/usenet
250 CWD successful
ftp>
cd news.announce.newusers
250 CWD successful
ftp>
ls
200 PORT command successful.
150 Opening ASCII mode data connection for file list.
[lots and lots of file names you can grab]
226 Transfer complete.
2048 bytes received in 2.00 seconds (1.0 Kbytes/s)
ftp>
hash
Hash mark printing on (1024 bytes/hash mark).
ftp>
binary
200 Type set to I.
ftp>
bell
Bell mode on.
ftp>
get Answers_to_Frequently_Asked_Questions_about_Usenet faq
200 PORT command successful.
150 Opening binary mode connection for Answers_to_Frequently_Asked_Qu
estions_about_Usenet (40960 bytes).
###################...####
226 Transfer complete.
local: faq remote: Answers_to_Frequently_Asked_Questions_about_Usenet
40960 bytes received in 40.0 seconds (1.0 Kbytes/s)
ftp>
close
221 Goodbye.
ftp>
quit
%
more faq
not all of those steps were absolutely necessary, but they work.
also, `Answers_to_Frequently_Asked_Questions_about_Usenet' could
have been consistently abbreviated as `A_t_F_A_Q_a_U', since rtfm
keeps copies of the files under abbreviated names.
8b. where to find software
much of the software discussed in c.o.m.ma can be obtained via ftp
from these (and many other) places:
ftp.gte.com:/pub
ftp.halcyon.com:/pub/waffle
wuarchive.wustl.edu:/systems/ibmpc/msdos/uucp (also waffle, offlinemail)
ftp.uu.net:/systems/ibmpc/msdos/simtel/uucp
oak.oakland.edu:/SimTel/msdos/uucp
ftp.cica.indiana.edu:/pub/pc/win3
gatekeeper.dec.com:/pub/micros/msdos/win3
8c. archie
for help with archie, which can locate files for you on ftp sites
world-wide, send mail to (for instance)
archie@archie.rutgers.edu
archie@archie.sura.net
archie@archie.mcgill.ca [the original site, no longer there]
for a Subject: line, use `help', and in the text of the message,
just use one line -- `help'.
there may an archie server nearer to you. any of these will be
able to tell you.
you may already have an `archie' command installed on your
machine. you will likely get quicker responses from the server
if you do, and you use that version instead. but it's up to
your system administrator and network connection.
8d. not on the Internet: accessing ftp archives
first, ask someone local -- they may already have the files you need!
(obviously, most of the following methods will cost you phone
charges of some sort, an access charge, or both. know the
charges before transferring files)
for the simtel collection:
- many BBSs carry the CD-ROM copy, and allow free X/Y/Zmodem downloads
- Detroit Download Central +1 313 885 3956 allows X/Y/Zmodem downloads
- ftp.uu.net 1-900-GOT-SRCS allows anonymous uucp (id uucp, no password)
use `uucp uunet!~/help uunet-help' for the help file
waffle and offlinemail portions only:
- remote.halcyon.com allowed anonymous uucp (id: nuucp, password: nuucp)
use `uucp remote!~/00-index.txt .' for the master file list for anon uucp
note that remote also carries the ftp.halcyon.com collection!
[currently unavailable, hoped to return]
for other collections:
there is a common service known as `ftp-by-mail' -- it allows you to
transfer files through email. keep in mind that most mail transfer
setups are designed for very short messages (most mail that I get here
is under 4k), and that ftp-by-mail systems will happily send a 2 meg
file all at once (usually, it will be in a lot of pieces, but it
still takes unexpected amounts of disk space to store them). thus,
I (personally) recommend this be used only when clear permission has
been obtained from the place that would be most affected by doing this.
I repeat:
check with the person who runs your site, or if you run your own site,
check with the site(s) that you connect to that would also have to bear
the burden.
once you have everyone's ok, send mail to any of the many archive
servers to get started. for instance, for archive-server@halcyon.com
the subject=`help', text=one line, `help'.
8e. not on the Internet: accessing archie
you can send mail to archie@<the archie server you want to use>, whether
you're on the Internet or not.
9. RFCs
RFC stands for ``Request For Comment''. the RFCs are numbered
documents which lay out proposed standards for how machines
can communicate over the Internet (more or less).
if you are writing any news or mail software, you definitely want to
(actually, need to!) consult the relevant RFCs. this is not only the
case if your machine is directly connected to the Internet, but also
if you intend to generate mail or news that may travel over the
Internet at some point. they can be obtained via ftp from these
(and many other) places:
wuarchive.wustl.edu:/doc/rfc/rfc822.txt.Z
/doc/rfc/rfc1036.txt.Z
/doc/rfc/rfc1123.txt.Z
ftp.uu.net:/doc/standards/internet/rfc822.Z
/doc/standards/internet/rfc1036.Z
/doc/standards/internet/rfc1123.Z
10. announcements
much of the software discussed in comma is available for ftp and
announced in the group `comp.archives.msdos.announce'. when
sending in the announcement, please take a moment to indicate at
the top which groups you feel the announcement should be crossposted
to (eg. comp.os.msdos.mail-news, or alt.usenet.offline-reader, or
comp.bbs.waffle). this makes the c.a.m.a moderator's job easier,
as well as allowing everyone who reads comma and c.a.m.a to see the
announcements only once.
a c.a.m.a moderator writes:
> If the uploader includes the Usenet "Newsgroups: " and "Folloup-To: "
> information either in the header or as the first two lines of the upload
> announcement that is mailed to me, it will be automatically used for the
> posting - unless it is inappropriate, in which case it will be edited to
> delete the inappropriate newsgroup(s).
11. other FAQs
many FAQs are found at rtfm.mit.edu:/pub/usenet/ -- abbreviated to
just `rtfm:' below:
rtfm:comp.bbs.waffle/Waffle_Frequently_Asked_Questions_(FAQ)
rtfm:news.admin.misc/How_to_become_a_USENET_site
rtfm:comp.mail.uucp/UUCP_Internals_Frequently_Asked_Questions
rtfm:news.answers/ibmpc-tcp-ip
12. What do the technical or jargon terms mean?
UUCP
Unix-to-Unix cp (copy)
rmail
rnews
NNTP
Network News Transport Protocol
SMTP
Simple Mail Transport Protocol
POP
Post Office Protocol; Point of Presence
IMAP
feed
RFC
Request For Comment
MIME
Multimedia Internet Mail Extensions
13. How can I get mail/news on my PC at home?
13a. I have a UNIX login, but don't want to tie up the phone lines.
[not only will you not tie up the phone lines, but you'll be able
to use your favorite editor, take your time formulating and
revising text, easily archive all your outoing messages, etc.]
check out alt.usenet.offline-reader -- this may be the easiest
solution for you. it requires little or no effort on your admin's
part, if your system lets you compile and execute random C source,
but the tools currently available may not be what you're looking
for if you want more than `n' groups (where `n' ranges widely
for different people)
or, you could ask for a `mail feed' or `news feed' and see:
13b. I can get a `feed' -- but what do I do with it?
you'll need to know a little about it -- is the data transmitted
to you via the UUCP standard, or the NNTP standard? UUCP is a
general-purpose file transfer protocol, and often comes with
programs to handle (also called `transfer', `unbatch', or `toss')
mail and news. NNTP transfers news over an Internet Protocol
connection (and for info on how to get one of those, check out
comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc).
13c. I'm reading over someone's shoulder.
will their site give you a feed? will they give one the person
whose shoulder it is you're reading over, so they could feed you?
13d. I want better software than what I've got now.
what is it compatible with? there's probably something out there
already.
14. How can I use waffle newsreaders with other packages?
for reading only:
I've done this with two packages, myself (alpha3!commafaq). rusnews
is much easier, since you can just pass it all the stuff it needs
on the command-line, in environment variables, or in a config file.
of course, rusnews now works with waffle and uupc natively.
(for software locations, see that part of the Comma FAQ)
for helldiver, you have to also fake a password file:
first: get rusnews and read the section in rusnews.doc on how to
use rusnews without waffle installed.
then, create a dummy password file for helldiver in waffle/admin/
that is of this format:
<256 bytes of random junk>username#10#10#10#10#10Your Full Name#10
`username' is your user id
`#10' is ascii 10 -- the LF
`Your Full Name' is... well...
make sure the file size ends up a multiple of 256 bytes (not
necessary possibly, but sure can't hurt)
I think that's what I did to make it work, but it's been a while
now and I may have missed a step.
98. spelling
it's == it is, it has. "It's a nice day." "It's been great."
its ~= his, her, their. "The dog is chasing its rival."
you're == you are, you were. "You're right."
your ~= his, her, their. "You should watch your spelling."
lose == make not findable "Don't lose your watch." (pron. looz)
loose == not well-fastened "The steering wheel is loose." (pron. looss)
they're == they are "They're crazy."
their ~= his, her, your "The dogs are chasing their rivals."
there == a place or situation "He is over there." "There is no food."
supersedes has no c.
definitely has no a.
compatible and compatibility each have an a, but only one.
99. credits
many software entries were found in:
Setting up SLIP clients under DOS / Windows by ashok@biochemistry.cwru.edu
comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc FAQlet Posting by aboba@world.std.com
comp.mail.mime FAQ by tim@pipex.net
comp.bbs.waffle FAQ by fenner@cmf.nrl.navy.mil
list of IMAP software by mrc@Tomobiki-Cho.CAC.Washington.EDU
LAN Mail Protocols Summary by jmwobus@mailbox.syr.edu