D'Bridge EMAIL System
Copyright (c) by Nick J. Andre, Ltd.
www.dbridgemailer.com 1:1/130
* USER MANUAL *
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section Title Page
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0.00 NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR 1
1.00 GENERAL OVERVIEW 2
2.00 SOFTWARE INSTALLATION 6
2.01 BASIC EMAIL SETUP 7
2.02 BASIC ECHOMAIL SETUP 9
3.00 SYSTEM CONFIGURATION AND MAINTENANCE 14
3.01 BASIC CONFIGURATION 15
3.02 DIRECTORY PATHS 30
3.03 COMM / MODEM SETUP 38
3.04 SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE 46
3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION 61
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL 69
3.07 TIC AREA SETUP 82
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL 84
3.09 TIME CONTROL SYSTEM 91
3.10 FUNCTION KEYS 96
3.11 BBS CONFIGURATION 97
3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS 103
3.13 DISK SPACE MINIMUMS 113
3.14 ACCOUNTING TRANSLATION 114
3.15 ZMODEM PARAMETERS 118
3.16 SETUP EDITOR OPTIONS 120
3.17 ECHOMAIL AREAS 128
3.18 WINDOW COLORS 137
3.19 KEYBOARD MACROS 138
3.20 TRANSLATION TABLE 139
3.21 SOUP GATING 140
3.22 BINKD 141
4.00 SYSTEM IDLE COMMANDS 146
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Section Title Page
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5.00 EMAIL MESSAGE EDITOR 166
5.01 USING EDIT MODE 172
5.02 USING READ MODE 179
5.03 ADVANCED FEATURES 182
6.00 UNDERSTANDING THE QUEUE 185
6.01 CREATING A PRIVATE NODELIST 190
6.02 DUTIES OF A NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR 192
7.00 DBUTIL / UTILITY PROGRAM 193
7.01 MESSAGE STORAGE 194
7.02 USING THE SCRIPTING LANGUAGE 195
7.03 EXAMPLE SCRIPT FILE 200
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS 201
9.00 GLOSSARY OF TERMS 250
A.00 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 275
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0.00 NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
Hello, my name is Nick Andre, and I am the current developer of the
D'Bridge EMAIL System originally written by Chris Irwin.
What can D'Bridge do? Simple - it can move data, programs, documents,
spreadsheets, pictures, drawings and sounds between continents in just
seconds or minutes, depending on the size. Anything that can be stored
in your computer may be automatically transmitted to other computers
using compatible EMAIL systems anywhere in the world. It also features
a vast array of options, a built-in scheduler and router. It is fully
capable of "conference mail" (Echomail) internally and has a built-in
message editor for reading and composing messages.
D'Bridge isn't alone; there are many other programs out there that can
communicate with it. This means you may communicate with anyone using
simular programs such as FrontDoor, BinkleyTerm, Intermail, Fido, Opus,
SEAmail, TIMS, TrapDoor and many others.
D'Bridge is also Internet ready, and can communicate using the now-
common BinkD protocol. In more advanced setups, it can also process
messages from Usenet (NNTP) and exchange Internet Email using SMTP/POP3.
I have updated the help system to include step-by-step walkthroughs
and troubleshooting, as well as help for newer features such as Internet
connectivity. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not
hesitate to contact me by the methods indicated in the appropriate
README file for this release.
Nick Andre
www.dbridgemailer.com
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1.00 GENERAL OVERVIEW
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1.00 GENERAL OVERVIEW
D'Bridge is one of the most flexible Fido EMAIL systems available today
and its menu-driven operation makes it one of the easiest to use. The
communications between D'Bridge systems use the powerful ZMODEM proto-
col, ensuring that your data arrives as quickly and accurately as
possible.
In its simplest form, D'Bridge acts like a messenger between two or more
points; at its best and most complex, it can be a multi-tired network
connecting hundreds (or thousands) of cities using a "hub and spoke"
topology (much like our major airlines and parcel services.)
MESSAGES
D'Bridge can send messages (text) from one location to another automatically.
Messages may be prepared by using the built-in D'Bridge Message Editor or a
third-party product. Messages are a simple and cost-effective way for offices
to communicate with each other. It is usually more cost-effective to send
EMAIL messages between offices than to use FAX or TELEX. With a high-speed
modem, D'Bridge can transfer hundreds of messages in just a minute or two.
FILES
Along with messaging, D'Bridge can send files. Word processor files, spread-
sheets, database files and graphic images are just a few of the types of files
D'Bridge can transfer. Any file which can be put on a standard DOS storage
medium may be sent anywhere in the world within minutes using D'Bridge.
FUNCTION-REQUESTS
D'Bridge also has the ability to spawn FUNCTION-REQUEST server tasks. These
programs are designed to process received data then generate output to send
back to the calling sytstem. Examples of function requests are the programs
that issue "DEMO keys" and collect registration data.
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DESIGN PHILOSOPHY / BASIC CONCEPTS
D'Bridge is a complex program that allows a user complete control over
its operation. Three highly-integrated programs are involved in the routine
operation of the system. In addition, some "modules" are included for
communications over the Internet.
DB This is the MAILER portion. It controls your modem
both answering and originating calls; it can control
your FAX card or the FAX options inside your modem at
the same time. Think of the MAILER as a fancy timer/
clock allowing you to program different "events" to
happen using a weekly schedule. EMAIL is transmitted
only when the schedule permits; mail schedules can be
set up to send all mail at the least-expensive rates.
DB EDIT This is the EDITOR portion. It is very much like a
word-processor in operation, but instead of documents,
there are EMAIL messages. The editor allows you to
enter, read and reply to messages. Optionally, you may
use your own message editor provided it is compatible
with D'Bridge.
DBUTIL This is the utility program. It allows for additional
functions such as SEND FILE or POLL to be executed from
a batch file so that nightly data transmissions can be
automated. With the PURGE option, DBUTIL will purge the
message base.
BINKD This module allows D'Bridge to send mail and files via.
the Internet using a transaction protocol called BinkP.
VSOUP This module allows D'Bridge to process Internet EMAIL
and USENET groups as regular "Fido-style" messages.
There are some basic terms that are important to understand when dealing with
D'Bridge. There is also a complete glossary of terms located in appendix A,
but here are the ones you will need in order to get started:
EMAIL Electronic mail, or in D'Bridge terms, messages that
are sent directly between systems or routed through
a host. EMAIL messages may be public or private and
may be sent in normal or compressed (XMAIL) form. It may
also refer to messages addressed to/from the Internet.
NETmail NETmail or network mail is the name of the EMAIL message
area for messages sent directly between systems. Each
NETmail message has an ORIGIN and a specific DESTINATION
where it is to be sent.
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1.00 GENERAL OVERVIEW
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ECHOmail ECHOmail is a form of conferencing. When an ECHOmail
message is entered on your system, it is automatically
"echoed" to all other systems participating in the given
conference. ECHOmail messages are generally not private
since they can be read by the system operator of each
node receiving it.
ECHOmail conferences are generally topic-specific. For
example, there may be an ECHOmail conference about SKIING
and one about SCUBA_DIVING. This provides a means of
linking lots of people throughout the world in a common
forum for discussion.
ECHOfile Files which arrive on your system with corrosponding "TIC"
files are "echoed" to other participating systems very
simular to how Echomail works. D'Bridge fully supports TIC
file processing to forward files to other systems.
XMAIL In D'Bridge terms, XMAIL simply means compressed mail.
Compression is achieved through the use of common com-
pression/archival programs that store a series of files
inside a single archive. By default, PKZIP by Phil Katz
is used to store and compress the mail. ARC, LHA, ARJ, PAK
ZOO and RAR are also supported as standard compression
methods.
NETWORK A NETWORK is a group of computer systems with the
ability to send EMAIL on a scheduled or continuous basis.
In D'Bridge, NETWORKS are defined by a NODELIST file.
NODELIST A NODELIST is a text file containing a list of EMAIL
systems in a given NETWORK. The list is in a structured
form, known as the "St. Louis" format. D'Bridge needs to
compile the raw list(s) into its database before a new
nodelist file may be used. If you are joining a public
NETWORK, you will need to obtain a copy of their NODELIST
from a "network administrator". If you are setting up a
private NETWORK, you will need to create your own
NODELIST file.
MESSAGE A MESSAGE is the basis of EMAIL communications. A user
enters a MESSAGE in the editor and ADDRESSES it to any
other system in the NODELIST.
ADDRESS Each EMAIL MESSAGE has two addresses: the ORIGIN and
DESTINATION ADDRESS. The ORIGIN is simply the ADDRESS of
the system on which the message was written and the DESTI-
NATION is the ADDRESS of the system where the message is
being sent. In D'Bridge, addresses are broken up into
four segments: ZONE, NET, NODE and POINT. Each of these
segments is a number between 0 and 32767. The normal for-
mat for an EMAIL ADDRESS is ZONE:NET/NODE.POINT.
ZONE The ZONE ADDRESS is a number between 1 and 32767 desig-
nating a NETWORK or geographic region. In the case of pu-
blic NETWORKS, different ZONES have been used to designate
completely separate NODELISTS.
NET The NET ADDRESS is a number between 1 and 32767 designa-
ting LOCAL NETWORKS. A LOCAL NETWORK consists of a HOST
NODE, BOSS NODES and POINTS.
NODE The NODE ADDRESS is a number between 0 and 32767 desig-
nating the ADDRESS of an individual system. If the NODE
number is 0, the system is a HOST NODE.
POINT The POINT ADDRESS is a number between 0 and 32767 desig-
nating the ADDRESS of an individual system acting as a
POINT. If the POINT number is 0, the system is a BOSS
NODE; otherwise, the system uses its BOSS NODE to receive mail.
BOSS NODE A BOSS NODE is any system operating with a point address
of zero. The difference between a BOSS NODE and a POINT
is that BOSS NODES are listed in the NODELIST of a
NETWORK, while POINTS are not. A BOSS NODE will HOLD and
FORWARD EMAIL and files to its POINTS.
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HOST NODE A HOST NODE acts as a collecting point for EMAIL and
HOST-ROUTED files. When a message and/or file is ROUTED,
it is automatically FORWARDED for the appropriate NODES.
EVENT An EVENT comprises of a number of scheduled parameter
changes in order to control EMAIL routing or to execute
a series of DOS commands at preprogrammed intervals.
The SCHEDULE may hold a maximum of 64 EVENTS that tell
D'Bridge what to do.
D'Bridge features four basic modes of operation:
MAILER The normal mode of operation, the MAILER mode of D'Bridge
is normally running 24-hours/day unless you are running
D'Bridge only at certain times. While in the MAILER mode,
D'Bridge sends and receives EMAIL and files based on a
preprogrammed schedule. The MAILER mode offers a completely
unattended method for scheduled transfers of data between
personal computer systems.
The user has the ability to control the queue of outbound
file-transmissions and file-requests as well as XMAIL and
standard EMAIL. No mail will be sent if the system is
not left in MAILER mode when not in use by the operator.
EDITOR The EDITOR mode allows you to enter and read EMAIL
messages sent and received by D'Bridge. The EDITOR is
a specialized word-processor designed to offer powerful
functions through a clear and simple user interface.
The editor can be configured to read hundreds of local and
ECHOmail areas as well as standard EMAIL.
TERMINAL The TERMINAL mode allows D'Bridge to act as a ANSI
terminal allowing the user to call other systems such
as Bulletin Board Systems (BBS) or commercial systems. In
order to make calls, you must have a modem installed in
your computer that is supported by D'Bridge.
CONFIGURATION The CONFIGURATION mode of D'Bridge consists of a series
of parameter screens providing complete control over
the operation of the software. There are many different
user-definable parameters controlling the scheduling,
communications and routing of the EMAIL. For added
security, a password may be required to enter the various
CONFIGURATION screens.
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2.00 SOFTWARE INSTALLATION
Installing D'Bridge from the release ZIP file is quick and easy.
Please refer to the README.TXT file for information on system requirements:
- CPU types and speed.
- Memory (RAM)
- Hard-drive storage
- Modem hardware, COM ports, telephone lines.
- Internet connectivity.
- Operating system support.
The README.TXT file also contains last-minute information which may or
may not be present in the F1-Help system or the manual.
At this point, you should have the following files in the directory that
you decompressed the release archive into. Lets take a look at what they are:
DB4.EXE - This is the D'Bridge Setup program. Running this
executable file begins the installation/upgrade process.
DB4.TXT - This file contains information specific to this release
of D'Bridge. You should always read this file before
you upgrade your system with a new version.
So to install or upgrade D'Bridge, simply type the command DB4 in the
directory.
C:\>DB4
The installation program will walk you through the installation process.
Proceed to the next chapter for basic EMAIL configuration.
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2.01 BASIC EMAIL SETUP
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2.01 BASIC EMAIL SETUP
In order to gain a complete understanding of D'Bridge, we suggest that
you use the following guideline to initially configure the software.
Using this section, follow along step-by-step as we install an operati-
onal system.
1. When D'Bridge is first loaded, it will perform a series of tests on
its environment, files and peripherals.
2. When the top-left corner of the screen says "IDLE," you may press
the ESC key to display the main menu. Pressing the ESC key a second
time will return the system to IDLE mode. Select menu items by
using the ARROW keys to move to the desired option, then press ENTER.
Pressing the first letter of any option will select that option im-
mediately without any other keystrokes.
3. On the EDITOR menu, select the SETUP EDITOR OPTIONS option.
(Pressing ESC-E-S is a quick way of getting to this menu from the
IDLE state.) Choose answers for all the fields on this screen.
If you're not sure about a field, leave it blank or accept the pre-
programmed "default"; refer to SECTION 3.15 for more information.
4. On the CONFIG menu, select each of the following options and
fill-in all the fields with the appropriate information. Again,
if you don't understand something, just accept the "default"
value or leave it blank.
Screen Section
BASIC CONFIGURATION 3.01
DIRECTORY PATHS 3.02
COMM / MODEM SETUP 3.03
NODELIST CONFIGURATION 3.05
INTERNET BINKD SETUP 3.22
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5. If you run a bulletin board system (BBS,) setup the information on
the ADVANCED MENU, BBS CONFIGURATION screen; refer to SECTION 3.10
for more information on this screen.
6. Next, if there are certain mail schedules required for your
NETWORK, you can set them up in the SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE option
of the CONFIG menu. Typically, a NETWORK will have at least one
MAIL EVENT each night. During these events, EMAIL and files are
allowed to be sent; this allows EMAIL entered during the day to
be transmitted at night, yielding the highest savings in tele-
communication costs. See SECTION 3.04 for more information.
7. At this point, your system should be configured for basic EMAIL
operation. Assuming that you defined a NODELIST on the NODELIST
CONFIGURATION screen, it must be compiled before D'Bridge can use
it. The NODELIST always gets compiled when the system is brought
up and a new NODELIST exists. If you haven't left the program,
you can force a nodelist compile by using the BUILD NODELIST
DATABASE on the UTILITIES menu. This process takes a few minutes,
so be patient.
8. In most cases, you are assigned a network address from another system
which should be running the BINKD protocol for allowing transactions
over the Internet. If this is the case, proceed to BINKD SETUP as
described in SECTION 3.22.
9. Now EMAIL is fully configured and you may continue by reading
SECTION 2.02, BASIC ECHOMAIL SETUP.
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2.02 BASIC ECHOMAIL SETUP
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2.02 BASIC ECHOMAIL SETUP
It is assumed you've completed the previous section and set up most
of the parameters on all the menus listed. If you haven't done this,
please go back and read the previous section as you configure D'Bridge.
Before you configure the ECHOmail subsystem, it is a good idea to have
a general understanding of what it is and how it works. Once properly
configured, the D'Bridge ECHOmail processor is completely automatic in
operation.
- What is ECHOmail?
ECHOmail is a facility allowing for EMAIL-based conferencing in
any number of message areas at the same time. An ECHOmail message
differs from a NETmail message only in that there is no DESTINATI-
ON ADDRESS for an ECHOmail message; it gets sent to ALL systems
participating in a given conference.
With ECHOmail, you have the capability of sharing ideas with other
people in SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS or SIGS. A conference is created
for each topic of discussion and you may participate in as few or
as many as you wish. When you enter a message, it is automatically
forwarded to all the other nodes you are linking to the conference.
In turn, all the other nodes forward the message to all the nodes
they link to; the process continues until your message has been seen
by every system participating in the conference. Your message can
be sent to THOUSANDS of systems if a conference is interesting
enough to attract a large and widespread "audience"!
ECHOmail is a unique form of communications. People living thousands
of miles apart can carry on a public discussion on any topic or in-
terest they have in common. During the Gulf War the CNN television
network featured a report about D'Bridge being used for fast commu-
nications between American soldiers and their families at home.
In fact, within several days a special purpose all-D'Bridge SaudiNet
had been set up for this particular purpose. While it took regular
mail several weeks to get to its destination, D'Bridge carried Mega-
bytes of messages back and forth between the Gulf Region and the
States within minutes!
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An example of some public ECHOmail conferences anyone may partici-
pate in are:
DBRIDGE D'Bridge users conference
HUMOR Sick jokes and humor
POLITICS International political discussion
SYSOP International Sysop ECHO
ZMODEM Discussion about the ZMODEM protocol
For more information about how to receive public ECHOmail, contact
any of our support nodes and we'll be glad to help you.
- How does ECHOmail work?
Each ECHOmail conference is actually an entire network within
itself. An ECHOmail network is defined by its TOPOLOGY or the
way in which the network interconnects. The following chart
describes the topology of an ECHOmail conference from my system's
point-of-view. (This is just an example...)
--------------------
1:110/68 (my system)
---------+----------
|
|
|
/-----------+------------+-----+-----+-------------+-------------\
| | | | | |
---+--- ----+---- ----+---- ---+----- ----+----- ----+-----
1:105/3 1:107/150 1:150/613 1:3601/14 2:512/1006 1:110/68.1
---+--- --------- --------- ---+----- ----+----- ----------
| | |
+-----------+------------\ | +-------\
| | | | | |
---+---- ---+---- ----+---- ---+----- ---+----- |
1:105/10 1:105/50 1:105/300 1:3601/14.1 2:280/280 |
-------- -------- ----+---- --------- --------- |
| |
+----------------\ |
| | |
-----+------ -----+------ -----+------
1:105/300.14 1:105/300.68 2:512/1006.1
------------ ------------ ------------
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2.02 BASIC ECHOMAIL SETUP
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To understand what topology is and how messages get to all the
systems in the conference, let's take an example of a message
entered on 1:105/300.68 replying to a message from 2:512/1006.1...
The message would pass through the following systems to make it
to its final destination:
1:105/300.68, 1:105/300, 1:105/3, 1:110/68, 2:512/1006, 2:512/1006.1
This could take anywhere from a few hours to a few days depending
on the events running on the different systems; the message must
be forwarded through four different systems before making it to
2:512/1006.1!
You will notice the topology (interconnection) is in the form of a
tree starting with my address at the top. ECHOmail topology is
different from every system's point-of-view. In the above network,
there may be links I am not aware of. For example, I have no way
of knowing to which points 1:105/300 is sending the ECHOmail.
The tree looks completely different from his point-of-view.
The main thing to remember is never to have more than once "source"
of an ECHO. It is fine to forward an echo to several other systems,
but make sure all topology follows this tree structure and never
causes any loops.
Most networks have an ECHOmail coordinator whose job it is to ensure
the validity of the local network topology. If you are a member of
a public network, you should always contact the ECHOmail coordinator
before setting up any ECHOmail links.
IMPROPER TOPOLOGY ACCEPTABLE TOPOLOGY
/-----------\ /-----------\
| | | |
---+--- ---+--- ---+--- ---+---
1:134/2 1:134/5 1:134/2 1:134/5
---+--- ---+--- ---+--- ---+---
| | | |
---+--- ----+---- ---+--- ----+----
1:134/3 1:134/150 1:134/3 1:134/150
---+--- ----+---- ------- ---------
| |
\-----------/
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OPTIMUM TOPOLOGY
System FORWARD TO a
------ ---------- -------
1:134/2 1:134/3 1:134/5 1:134/150 1:134/2
1:134/3 1:134/2 ---+---
1:134/5 1:135/2 |
1:134/150 1:135/2 /-----------+-----------\
b | c | d |
---+--- ---+--- ----+----
1:134/3 1:134/5 1:134/150
------- ------- ---------
While configuring basic ECHOmail capabilities, read the follo-
wing sequence of instructions to gain a greater understanding of
D'Bridge.
1. From the CONFIG menu, select the PACKET/MAIL CONTROL screen.
Using this screen, set the ECHOmail-related parameters like
this:
Inbound mail handling? Automatic
Kill null msgs? Yes
Kill In-transit msgs? Yes
In-transit rescan? Yes
Secured ECHOmail only? No
Save ECHOmail SEENBYs? No
Save duplicate messages? No
Auto-add ECHOmail areas? No (for now)
Accept AREAFIX requests? Yes
Remove empty PASSTHRUs? Yes
2. Next, select the XMAIL CONTROL screen. Here, you should
already have defaults displayed for each of the compression
commands. If you are using different archive programs than
the ones specified, change them as appropriate, but remember
the formats of the ARC, ZIP, LHA, ARJ, PAK or ZOO files must
be the same.
XMAIL uses the ZIP program by default, but you may specify
which compression methods to use for which systems on this
screen.
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3. On the ADVANCED menu, select the DISK SPACE MINIMUMS screen.
D'Bridge comes preprogrammed with suggested minimum disk
space criteria. If you plan to use more than one hard-drive
to store the message bases or queue directory, make sure you
specify minimums for them on this screen.
4. On the EDITOR menu, select the ECHOMAIL AREAS screen.
Following the directions listed in SECTION 3.16, create all
the ECHOmail areas you will be using. In the FORWARD TO
fields, list the addresses of the systems you want to set
up ECHOmail links for.
5. That's all there is to it. For ECHOmail to work, you must
verify the following things:
a. D'Bridge reports at least enough free memory as it takes to
run the compression and decompression programs specified on
the XMAIL CONTROL screen. When D'Bridge first comes online,
it says how many bytes of memory are available. Typically,
this must be around 100K, depending on the compression
programs you are using.
b. The compression programs specified must exist in the current
default path.
c. There is enough free disk space; there will be a warning
at the bottom of the screen if disk space is too low to
unpack or forward ECHOmail.
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3.00 SYSTEM CONFIGURATION AND MAINTENANCE
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3.00 SYSTEM CONFIGURATION AND MAINTENANCE
D'Bridge is configured by using a series of configuration options on the
EDITOR, CONFIG and ADVANCED menus. These options give you complete
control over all features and settings and, if improperly set, result in bad
performance or malfunction. It is therefore advised that only the system
operator have access to the maintenance functions. Configuration screens may
have a password assigned, using the Config password parameter on the BASIC
CONFIGURATION screen.
The following menu options comprise the configuration/maintenance sub-system
of D'Bridge:
Setup editor options
ECHOmail areas
Keyboard macros
Translation table
Basic configuration
Directory paths
Comm/modem setup
Schedule maintenance
Nodelist configuration
Packet/Mail control
XMail control
Time adjustment data
Function keys
BBS configuration
Security/Miscellaneous
Disk space minimums
Accounting/Translation
ZMODEM parameters
Xport configuration
Window colors
All these options are described in detail in the following sections.
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3.01 BASIC CONFIGURATION
The BASIC CONFIGURATION screen allows control over the "basic" functions
of D'Bridge such as:
- System log, Internet BinkD log, packet log
- Primary and Alias (AKA) EMAIL addresses
- System name
- Operator name
- Location or City
- Data phone number
- Flags
- Alarms
- Configuration password
SYSTEM LOG LEVEL
System log level: Verbose (None/Terse/Verbose/Debug)
This controls the level of detail being written to the system log
file. D'Bridge allows three levels of activity logging; it is high-
ly recommended you select VERBOSE until you are familiar with the
complete operation of D'Bridge Email System.
/---------+----------------------------------------------------------------\
| NONE | Creates NO log whatsoever. Using this option, problems will |
| | be difficult to resolve, once detected. Not recommended in |
| | all but the strangest of setups... |
| | |
| TERSE | Writes only the important data, such as connections, events, |
| | and file-transfer information. This is the recommended |
| | setting once you are familiar with D'Bridge operations. |
| | |
| VERBOSE | Writes ALL information displayed in the log window. |
| | |
| DEBUG | Same as VERBOSE, except the times are recorded in the log |
| | using fractional seconds. (HH:MM:SS.hh) Fractional seconds |
| | are not displayed in the log window. |
\---------+----------------------------------------------------------------/
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CPS DISPLAY UNIT
Units: bps (bps/cps/kpm/%)
This setting determines the method to use when reporting the effective speed
of a data transfer. These measurements are displayed in the ACTIVITY window
during a modem session. The value of this parameter has absolutely no effect
on the actual speed of a transfer.
The CPS of the transfer is not displayed for Internet BinkD sessions.
/-----+----------------------------------------------------------------\
| bps | Bits per second @ 10 bits per byte. ie. 17100 bps |
| | |
| cps | Characters or bytes per second. " 228 cps |
| | |
| kpm | Kilobytes per minute. (cps x 1024) " 94.2 kpm |
| | |
| % | Percentage of reported baud rate. " 113.2% |
\-----+----------------------------------------------------------------/
PURGE LOG AFTER
Purge log after: 7 days, BinkD: 3 days
This specifies the number of days to retain the information in the system
log files. Over time, the size of these log files can grow considerably
so it may be desirable to purge old entries.
Every day, all log entries older than the specified number of days will be
erased from these files. This purge occurs only during the AutoUpdate
event at midnight or by running DBUTIL PURGELOGS.
On busy systems, large log files may take a long time to purge. For this
and a few other reasons it is recommended to use SSD drives if your
system gets quite the workout...
Answering zero to any of the these questions disables automatic purging
for that log file. This is not recommended unless you are running some
other process to purge or "rotate" the log files.
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HISTORY DAYS
Keep history for: 7 (days)
D'Bridge automatically maintains history files for INBOUND and OUTBOUND
EMAIL calls as well as ECHOmail and AREAFIX requests. These files are
automatically purged every night at midnight. This field defines how
many days of history to keep before purging it. The default value for
this option is 7, providing one week's history.
On busy systems, the midnight-purge of the History make take some time
to complete. For this and a few other reasons it is recommended to
use SSD drives if your D'Bridge system is a busy one...
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OS
Operating system: Auto (Auto/DOS/douBleDOS/desQview/OS2/Windows/Linux)
D'Bridge can fine-tune its performance and some other variables based on
what operating system your computer is running. In most cases you should
just leave this set to Automatic, the default setting.
But if you really think its necessary, you may override and select:
D MS-DOS, PC-DOS, Tandy 1000, IBM PC/XT/AT compatibles.
B DoubleDOS.
Q DESQview by QuarterDeck Systems.
O IBM OS/2 (includes E-ComStation and ArcaOS)
W Windows 95 through Windows 10 32-bit.
L Linux (BinkD subsystem)
The BinkD subsystem requires that you select the appropriate executable
to run on your computer operating system.
On Windows, the BinkD executable will either be BINKD9X.EXE for Windows
95, 98 or ME, or BINKDWIN.EXE for Windows 2000 or newer.
For OS/2, its BINKDOS2.EXE and your system should be Warp 3 or newer, and
may require the installation of the EMX runtime libraries to function
properly. D'Bridge on EcomStation and ArcaOS have not been tested.
If your BinkD setup is running under Linux or some other environment, then
you will need to obtain, install and/or compile the appropriate BinkD for
your system. With Linux, both the INBOUND and QUEUE path may need a slight
change in Config-Directory Paths.
On some operating systems, it may be necessary to configure a firewall
or security software to allow BinkD to have access to the Internet or to
allow incoming connections on the port(s) you specify.
LOG FILENAME
Log filename: C:\DB\DBRIDGE.LOG
Here is where you specify the path and filename of the system log file.
This log will contain information about performance, system events, file
transfers and mail processing. The amount of information logged is
determined by the Log level setting earlier.
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LOG PACKET FILENAMES
Log packets: None (None/Inbound/Outbound/Both)
If it is ever necessary to troubleshoot "problems" with packets from
other systems, you can specify the level of packet logging:
/----------+-----------------------------------------------------------\
| NONE | Do not log packet file information. |
| | |
| INBOUND | Report the packet file and header when unpacking mail. |
| | |
| OUTBOUND | Log the outgoing packet files created for a system. |
| | |
| BOTH | Log both inbound and outbound packet information. |
\----------+-----------------------------------------------------------/
Packet logging should NOT be enabled unless it is necessary since it will
increase the size of the system log file.
BINKD LOG FILENAME
Binkd log filename: C:\DB\DBBINKD.LOG
BinkD is a method of exchanging Fidonet packets over the Internet. This
question is where you specify the path and filename to write information
logged by the BinkD subsystem.
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PRIMARY ADDRESS
Primary address: 1:110/68.1
This specifies your primary system address. D'Bridge supports "four
"dimentional" addressing, that consists of: <ZONE:NET/NODE.POINT>
/--------+------------------------------------------------------------\
| ZONE | Continent or nodelist designator 1=US, 2=Europe, etc. |
| | |
| NET | Usually represents a local calling area (1..32767.) |
| | |
| NODE | Specific system address within a ZONE and NET. |
| | |
| POINT | Zero unless running as a "point" of another system. |
\--------+------------------------------------------------------------/
If you are a member of an already-existing network, contact your network
coordinator for an address assignment. If you're not sure, make up
an arbitrary address for now (avoid zones 1 through 6 please)
ALIAS ADDRESSES
Alias addresses: 201:201/0 FOR 201:ALL
This specifies your secondary (alias) addresses. The field must be in the
format: <address> [FOR <filter>]
The FOR filter is for address "matching" when either the mailer or message
editor needs to identify which correct address to use. Note that the
primary address is used in all cases where there is no match with an alias
address filter.
If you are using the Internet EMAIL and USENET features, please do not
specify the address of the gateway in your alias-addresses.
See PRIMARY ADDRESS for information about address formats.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
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SYSTEM NAME
System name: Darkrealms
When D'Bridge communicates with a remote site, the SYSTEM NAME is
displayed on the other system's screen along with OPERATOR NAME, CITY
and your primary and alias addresses.
This field should match the SYSTEM NAME field of your nodelist entry.
The SYSTEM NAME is also used as the default "Origin" line on messages
written using the internal message editor; unless you specify another Origin
line to use in the ECHOMAIL SETUP screen.
SYSTEM CITY
System city: Toronto
When D'Bridge communicates with a remote site, the SYSTEM CITY is
displayed on the other system. Make sure it is not duplicated in
the SYSTEM NAME field (it would be redundant...).
This field should match the CITY field of your nodelist entry.
OPERATOR NAME
Operator name: Nick Andre
When D'Bridge communicates with a remote site, the OPERATOR NAME is
displayed on the other system and placed in its system log file.
This name will also be used in the "FROM" field in the editor, when
entering a NETmail or ECHOmail message.
This field should match the OPERATOR field of your nodelist entry.
The OPERATOR NAME is used by default in the internal message editor for
composing new messages. If you wish to use a handle or "alias", specify
those in the EDITOR SETUP screen.
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DATA PHONE
Data phone: 1-647-847-2083
When D'Bridge communicates with a Fido system using a modem, the DATA
PHONE field is transmitted to the other system for automatic addition
to their nodelist database. If you do not specify your data phone number,
it might not be possible for the remote system to return an answer to your
mail directly by modem.
If you don't use a modem, or you use a voice line and you do not wish to
have incoming calls, specify -Unpublished-.
If you have an Internet IP address or domain, DO NOT specify this in the
phone number field. Instead, have your Network Co-ordinator list that
information as an INA or IBN flag in the Nodelist.
* NOTE * For proper translation, phone number MUST be in the format:
<COUNTRY CODE>-<CITY/AREA CODE>-<NUMBER>
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CAPABILITY FLAGS
Capability flags: XX,CM,V32
This specifies your system's capabilities. Each capability flag is
separated by commas. These flags are transmitted to the remote site
during the modem's initial EMSI handshake. With this information stored
in a system's nodelist, it is possible to determine modem type, hours of
operation and file-request capability.
If you do not use a modem, leave this question blank except you should
specify CM if you run your D'Bridge system "24 hours". It is not
necessary to specify any Internet nodelist flags.
Following is a partial list of standard capability flags:
/-----+----------------------------------------------------------\
| CM | Continuous mail system. (On 24-hours every day) |
| | |
| XX | WaZOO file-requests and update-requests are accepted. |
| | |
| V32 | Modem conforms to the V.32 standard. |
| | |
| HST | Modem conforms to the US Robotics HST standard. |
| | |
| PEP | Modem conforms to the Telebit Trailblazer standard. |
\-----+----------------------------------------------------------/
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AUDIO ALARMS
Audio alarms? Yes (Yes/No)
This parameter controls the PC's speaker, enabling or disabling the
audio alarms. These alarms will alert the operator of incoming calls
and new mail received. You will also be notified by a series of beeps
if you received mail addressed to you personally. If you specify No,
all automatic alarms will be disabled.
When your D'Bridge system exchanges mail with another D'Bridge system
by modem, this also controls the availability of split-screen chat
alarms during this time.
NOTE: Sounds should be disabled if you are accessing D'Bridge over a
terminal server or RDP connection in Windows.
D'Bridge allows you to run a program whenever personal mail arrives. It
will check for the presence of PLAYMAIL.BAT and calls it to allow you to
play digital audio files or run something of your choice. For more
information on this, please consult the included PLAYMAIL.ZIP file. A
sample WAV file and player is included for Microsoft Windows computers.
ALARM HOURS
Alarm hours: 24 hours
-or-
Alarm hours: 08:00 until 23:00
This parameter controls the time of day during which the audio alarms
may be heard. This has no effect if the Audio alarms are disabled.
Either specify nothing (for 24 hours) or enter both starting and ending
times. Use 24-hour format to describe times after 12 noon. If the
starting time is before the ending time, the period includes midnight.
NOTE: Sounds should be disabled if you are accessing D'Bridge over a
terminal server or RDP connection in Windows.
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RING SIGNAL
Ring signal? Yes (Yes/No)
This parameter enables or disables the PC's speaker when the phone is
ringing because of an incoming call. This has no effect unless the
Answering method is configured for Hardware or RingMaster on the
COMM/MODEM DEVICES screen.
This signal is only heard during the allowed time period.
NOTE: Sounds should be disabled if you are accessing D'Bridge over a
terminal server or RDP connection in Windows.
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CALL ALARM
Call alarm: T120L8CGL4E
This parameter would normally be blank, indicating that the standard
alarm tones should be used. However, some people get tired of hearing
the same alarm every day, so this field gives you the opportunity to
write your own musical alarm. Either specify the music codes or the
name of a text file containing the notes.
Standard ANSI music codes are used, in fact, they are the same as the
"PLAY" statement in Microsoft's BASIC.
Following is a chart of supported music commands:
/--------+--------------------------------------------------------\
| A .. G | The musical notes A thru G. A note may be followed |
| | by an accidental ('#' or '+' for sharp and '-' for |
| | flat.) Additionally, a note (With optional sharp or |
| | flat) may also be followed by a number denoting the |
| | note length (1 for a whole note thru 64 for a 64th) |
| | The note, with optional accidental and length, may |
| | also be followed by one or more dots ("."), each of |
| | which extends the note by one half of its existing |
| | value. For example, two dots produce a length 9/4ths |
| | the original value, and three dots 27/8ths the value. |
| | |
| Ln | Specifies the default length of the notes following |
| | ("n" must be 1 for a whole note thru 64 for a 64th |
| | note.) The default value is 4 (quarter note.) |
| | |
| Mz | Specifies the fraction of the note length that the |
| | note is actually sounding. "z" is either "S," "N" |
| | or "L", which have these meanings: |
| | |
| | MS Music staccato (3/4 of note length) |
| | MN Music normal (7/8 of note length) |
| | ML Music legato (all of note length) |
| | |
| On | Specifies the octave in which the notes following |
| | are to be played (0 thru 7). The initial default |
| | octave is 3, which is the octave beginning at |
| | middle C. |
| | |
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D'Bridge 4
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| Pn | Specifies that no sound is to be made for an |
| | interval. "n" (optional) is the note length (1 |
| | for a whole note thru 64 for a 64th note.) If "n" |
| | is omitted, the current default note length is used. |
| | One or more dots may follow, each of which extends |
| | the rest by one half of its existing value. |
| | |
| Tn | Specifies the tempo in beats per minute (32 thru |
| | 255.) The initial default value is 120. |
\--------+--------------------------------------------------------/
NOTE: Sounds should be disabled if you are accessing D'Bridge over a
terminal server or RDP connection in Windows.
SPECIAL ALARMS
Special alarms: 135/ALL T180L8O4GGGAAACD.
If you would like to be notified when certain systems call, specify
the address followed by the music codes you wish to hear. The format
for the music is specified in the preceding section. The alarm will
be heard after the call is complete, but only if new messages or files
have been received.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
NOTE: Sounds should be disabled if you are accessing D'Bridge over a
terminal server or RDP connection in Windows.
CONFIG PASSWORD
Config password: SECRET
In a corporate environment where there may be several people using the
EMAIL system, it may be desirable to put a "lock" on the configuration
menu to prevent accidental changes of the D'Bridge configuration. If
a password is specified here, then it must be entered when any of the
SETUP menu options are selected. It only needs to be entered once for
each time D'Bridge is run.
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3.01 BASIC CONFIGURATION
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DISPLAY TIMEOUT
Display timeout: 5 (Minutes)
D'Bridge features a built-in "screen-saver" which will blank your video
screen after a specified period of inactivity. The DISPLAY TIMEOUT
parameter specifies the number of minutes of inactivity before the
screen goes blank. If a call comes in, a scheduled event starts, or you
press any key, the screen will re-display and the timer starts over.
When the screen is blank, D'Bridge is still fully-functional - just
waiting for something to happen! If you do not want the screen to ever
go blank, enter a zero ("0") and the display timeout will be disabled.
Blankout graphics? Yes (Yes/No)
When the D'Bridge screen is blanked due to inactivity, you have the
option to display "blankout graphics." If you answer YES to this
question, there will be a bouncing pattern of dots - a Starfield
Simulation - that will tell you at a glance D'Bridge is still running
and you haven't had a system crash or something terrible like that.
Most computers hate to be bored and do nothing all day; blankout graphics
make your system happy by giving it something to do when nothing else is
going on.
EFFECTS
Effects? Yes
D'Bridge animates the screens during certain operations such as
unpacking mail and running external programs. By default this is enabled.
If you are using an IBM XT, Tandy 1000, PS/2 or other older PC you can
gain some performance by answering NO or if the animations bother you.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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PRINTER PORT
Printer port: PRN
Specify the printer device here. If you wish to route output to a file for
later printing, you may specify the filename here. The default is PRN,
which maps to the default printer on DOS operating systems.
The next question specifies the Printer Control File; which is a text file
that contains control-codes to tell your printer how to print special
formatting codes such as Bold, Italics, and if graphics can be printed.
Some sample control files are included that you may edit to your liking.
Note for Microsoft Windows:
On Windows, printing might only function correctly if you use LPT1, LPT2
or LPT3 as the port name; and the printer must have the chosen port name
specified in the printer properties. You should verify that this is set
correctly in the Windows Device Manager or using the NET SHARE command.
If the printer port is not assigned, printing may not function correctly.
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D'Bridge 4
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PCF NAME
PCF name: OKIOL400 OKIDATA OL400 LED page printer
The PCF NAME specifies the name of a D'Bridge "Printer Control File."
Included, you will find an ZIP file which contains our standard
PCF collection. If you press F10, you will receive a list of all
printers currently supported. Simply select the Printer Control File
to use for the printer port. When you select a different PCF or specify
one for the first time, D'Bridge will unZIP the file if needed from
PCFILES.ZIP. A list of printers supported is displayed from the list
in PCFILES.LST.
PCF files are simple control files that may be changed using any standard
text editor. The following control language is used. Keywords are not
case-sensitive, but must start in column 1 or they will be ignored. Invalid
syntax is ignored without error to allow backward / forward compatibility.
PCF <NAME> <DESCRIPTION>
ie. PCF OKIOL400 OKIDATA OL400 LED page printer
<NAME> must match the DOS filename (without the extension.)
FIXED FONT <PRINTER CODES>
PROPORTIONAL FONT <PRINTER CODES>
TITLE FONT <PRINTER CODES>
START BOLD <PRINTER CODES>
END_BOLD <PRINTER CODES>
START_ITALIC <PRINTER CODES>
END_ITALIC <PRINTER CODES>
GRAPHICS <ON or OFF>
ie. FIXED FONT <ESC>&l0O<ESC>(10U<ESC>(s0p10h12v0s0b3T
PROPORTIONAL FONT <ESC>&l0O<ESC>(0U<ESC>(s1p10v0s0b5T
TITLE FONT <ESC>&l0O<ESC>(0U<ESC>(s1p14.4v0s3b4T
START BOLD <ESC>(s7B
END BOLD <ESC>(s0B
START ITALIC <ESC>(s1S
END ITALIC <ESC>(s0S
GRAPHICS ON
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D'Bridge 4
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LINES PER PAGE
Lines per page: 46
When printing from the F1-Help system or a message from the internal
message editor, you may specify the number of lines printed before a new
page is started. If you print messages using a different editor then this
setting has no effect. The default setting is 46 lines per page.
SOUP ADDRESS
UUCP address: 1:229/2
This is an advanced feature. Please leave this blank unless you
specifically use or run a Soup/UUCP gateway. The address specified must
not be the Primary address or any defined Alias addresses.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.02 DIRECTORY PATHS
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3.02 DIRECTORY PATHS
The DIRECTORY PATHS screen allows you to set which drives and subdirectories
D'Bridge will use. Parameters include:
- Network mail storage
- Inbound files path
- Temporary queue path
- Outbound queue path
- Path for Tic storage
- Bad ECHOmail path
- New ECHO area path
- Request paths
- Specific requests
- Inbound, outbound, ECHOmail and AREAFIX history
NETWORK MAIL STORAGE
Network mail storage: Fido
This question is where you specify which storage format D'Bridge should
keep NETmail messages in. Please note that only one NETmail area may be
defined. Multiple NETmail areas are not supported.
/----------+------------------------------------------------------------\
| FIDO/MSG | NETmail will be stored in Fido *.MSG format. Choose for |
| | compatibility with most 3rd-party editors and utilities. |
| | Messages are stored in individual files. |
| | |
| QUICKBBS | NETmail will be stored in QuickBBS/Hudson or GoldBase |
| | databases; a series of index, header and message files. |
| | Up to 200 areas may be defined for QuickBBS or up to 500 |
| | for the GoldBase edition. The size of the databases must |
| | not exceed 2 gigabytes. |
\----------+------------------------------------------------------------/
Please refer to the README file with this version of D'Bridge for more
information on supported storage formats.
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NETWORK MAIL PATH
This question changes depending on the NETmail storage method specified.
Again, please note that D'Bridge only supports one NETmail area. Multiple
NETmail areas are not supported.
NETmail directory: C:\DB\MESSAGES
If you are using the Fido *.MSG method to store NETmail messages, specify
the directory path to use.
QuickBBS area number: 1
If you are using QuickBBS, then specify the area number you would like to
use for NETmail messages. (1-200 or 1-500 for the GoldBase edition)
Area number 1 is the default for new installations.
NETmail database name: EMAIL
For any other supported storage format, this would be the name of the
database to store NETmail messages in. The name must be alphanumeric only.
Please refer to the README file for this version of D'Bridge for more
information on supported storage formats.
INBOUND FILES PATH
Inbound files path: C:\DB\INBOUND
This designates the drive and path for the directory where inbound
files will be stored. Make sure there is always enough disk space
available to store any files which may be received. This may be
changed at any time without adversely affecting the system, as long
as the specified directory path actually exists.
Two subdirectories may be created within this path, specifically for
files received via. modem calls. ISOLATED and RESTART. The first is for
incomplete Zmodem file transfers that cannot be resumed. The second is
for Zmodem aborted/cancelled transfers that are saved for resuming
later on. The two directories are not used for Internet BinkD transfers.
If D'Bridge is being ran on Linux DOSEMU, DOSBOX or some other emulated
environment, this path should not include the drive information, ie.
it should just be set to INBOUND.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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UNSECURED DIRECTORY PATH
Unsecured files path: C:\DB\UNSECURED
If you prefer to move files received from systems that do not use a
session password, specify that path here. D'Bridge will NOT process mail
or files received in this directory.
By default, this is left blank because the nature of Fidonet and some
Othernets is that another system or SysOp may "crash" a message direct
to your system regardless of whether that system has an established
"relationship' with yours. If you chose to refuse unsecured mail, such
messages may never be processed until you manually move the packet files
to the INBOUND directory.
TEMPORARY QUEUE PATH
Temporary queue path: C:\DB\PACKETS
This designates the drive and path for temporary packets created for the
mail-queue.
* NOTE * All files in this directory will be automatically erased
each time the queue is rebuilt.
OUTBOUND QUEUE PATH
Outbound queue path: C:\DB\QUEUE
This designates the drive and path for the outbound queue directory.
XMAIL archives and poll, transmit, and request queue entries are
stored in this directory.
Under no circumstances should you store anything but D'Bridge-specific
queue items in this directory. This directory should not be used by any
3rd-party programs unless the program is specifically designed to
support the D'Bridge queue format.
If D'Bridge is being ran on Linux DOSEMU, DOSBOX or some other emulated
environment, this path should not include the drive information, ie.
it should just be set to QUEUE.
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BAD ECHO PATH
Bad echo path: C:\DB\BADECHO
This designates the drive and path where invalid or unknown ECHOmail
messages should be stored. The BADECHO messages are stored in Fido *.MSG
format and may be accessed using area 65535 in the message editor.
There is no purge-criteria for the BADECHO area.
NEW ECHO PATH
New echo path: C:\DB\NEWECHO
This designates the drive and path where Fido *.MSG ECHOmail message
areas will be created if Auto-add areas is configured for "Fido.".
When new directories are created, D'Bridge will try its best to name them
according to the area name. If it cannot, a random numeric name will be
chosen.
NEWTICS PATH
New fileecho path: C:\DB\FILEECHO
If D'Bridge is configured to auto-create new Fileecho/TIC areas, then
specify the base path for creating the new areas here. Subdirectories
will be created inside of this directory.
When new directories are created, D'Bridge will try its best to name them
according to the area name. If it cannot, a random numeric name will be
chosen.
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HISTORY PATH
History path: C:\LOGS
There are four files, DBRIDGE.DL1 through DBRIDGE.DL4 which are "history
databases" of inbound, outbound, Echomail and Areafix/Filefix history.
The size of these files will depend on the HISTORY DAYS setting and how
busy your system runs. Over a period of time these files may take up a
fair amount of space. This setting lets you store these files on another
drive or path of your choice. If this is blank (the default), your DB
directory will be used for these.
DATABASE PATH
Message databases: C:\QUICKBBS
When a message storage format other than Fido *.MSG is being used, then
this is where you would specify the path to the message database files. If
this is blank, then the databases will be stored in the D'Bridge directory.
If you are using a BBS or 3rd-party editor then you would set this to the
existing directory containing the message databases.
It is not necessary to specify anything if you are only using Fido *.MSG.
Please refer to the README file with this version of D'Bridge for more
information on supported storage formats.
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REQUEST PATHS
Request paths: C:\PRIVATE\ SECRET
D'Bridge has a feature allowing other systems to call in and request
files from your system. If you wish to enable this option, you must
specify which directories will be available for request. You may also
specify a password that must accompany a request. If you use no pass-
word, any system will have access to the specified directory.
The format for the request paths is:
<DIRECTORY PATH> <OPTIONAL PASSWORD>
Where password is an optional parameter. Any number of directories may
be specified in the REQUEST PATHS window. Make sure to use passwords
on any directory containing sensitive or confidential information.
- or -
@<FILENAME>
Where filename is a text file containing a list of requestable directories
in the same format defined above.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
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SPECIFIC REQUESTS
Specific requests: DBRIDGE C:\FREQ\DB*.ZIP
This window allows you to specify any number of "magic filenames" that
may be requested from your system. An example of this might be where
you distribute a newsletter and the filename changes every month. You
might have a line like:
NEWS \NEWSLTR\PC-NEWS.021
The above line means that when a file-request arrives for "NEWS" - the
file \newsltr\pc-news.021 will be transmitted instead of searching the
directories specified in REQUEST PATHS. The format for this window is:
<MAGIC NAME> <FILE PATH> <OPTIONAL PASSWORD>
Once again, password is optional, but should be specified if any of this
information is not public.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
OUTBOUND HISTORY FILENAME
Outbound history file: C:\DB\OUTBOUND.LOG
The OUTBOUND HISTORY FILENAME parameter specifies a text file to write
an outbound EMAIL history log. Every outbound connection is logged to
a the specified text file listing the date/time, address, data sent and
received, elapsed time and total cost. If you do not want such a log,
leave this field blank.
Note that this log file is not purged automatically. You must run your
own process to purge or erase this history file.
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INBOUND HISTORY FILENAME
Inbound history file: C:\DB\INBOUND.LOG
The INBOUND HISTORY FILENAME parameter specifies a text file to write
an inbound EMAIL history log. Every outbound connection is logged to
the specified text file listing the date/time, address, data sent and
received and elapsed time. If you do not want such a log, leave this
field blank.
Note that this log file is not purged automatically. You must run your
own process to purge or erase this history file.
ECHOMAIL HISTORY FILENAME
ECHOmail history file: C:\DB\ECHOMAIL.LOG
The ECHOMAIL HISTORY FILENAME specifies what text file to use for the
inbound ECHOmail history. This log lists date/time, address, area name,
area description, messages and duplicates received.
If you do not wish to have the area description or the origin address of
the mail received, create a dummy/semaphore file called DBRIDGE.NDH
(No Description in History)
Note that this log file is not purged automatically. You must run your
own process to purge or erase this history file.
For advanced users or BBS Sysops - there is a special log file created
that notes any Echomail unpacked to *.MSG storage areas called
ECHODIRS.LOG. Only the directories are stored in this file as it is
meant for use by 3rd-party programs. This special log file is
automatically erased at midnight.
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40
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AREAFIX HISTORY FILENAME
AREAFIX history file: C:\DB\AREAFIX.LOG
The AREAFIX HISTORY FILENAME specifies what text file to use for an
AREAFIX history log. This includes information about conferences added
and removed either by remote AREAFIX request or New ECHOmail link, ALT-N.
Note that this log file is not purged automatically. You must run your
own process to purge or erase this history file.
FILE REQUEST HISTORY FILENAME
File-request history: C:\DB\FREQ.LOG
The FILE-REQUEST HISTORY file specifies what text file to use for file
requests to your system.
Note that this log file is not purged automatically. You must run your
own process to purge or erase this history file.
DOWNLOAD PATH
Download path: C:\DB\DOWNLOAD
The DOWNLOAD PATH specifies the directory to receive downloaded files when
using terminal mode.
Two subdirectories may be created within this path, specifically for
files received via. modems. ISOLATED and RESTART. The first is for
incomplete Zmodem file transfers that cannot be resumed. The second is
for Zmodem aborted/cancelled transfers that are saved for resuming later
on. The two directories are not created when using Internet BinkD
transfers.
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3.03 COMM MODEM HARDWARE
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3.03 COMM MODEM HARDWARE
The COMM/MODEM hardware screen allows you to define your serial port
and modem for direct-dial connections. You may also setup and configure:
- Modem COM/FOSSIL port, answering method, line assignment
- CostGuard limits, DimeSaver, Dialing overrides
- Auto-initialization time
D'Bridge 4 requires a FOSSIL driver for modem operation. FOSSIL stands
for Fido/Opus/Standard/Serial/Interface/Library. It is somewhat of an
abstraction layer or "link" between the COM ports on your computer and
how they will be used by Fido software. Ray Gwinn's X00 driver is
automatically installed by default, but other FOSSIL drivers can be used.
If you plan to use a modem with D'Bridge, you should be using a Hardware
modem, not a "softmodem" or "Winmodem" as those modems often rely on the
operating system to perform data processing while on a call; adding CPU/OS
overhead ontop of high-speed connections. Unfortunately a great amount of
PCI and USB modems are softmodems. External serial modems and ISA modems
are the recommended Hardware modems to use with D'Bridge, especially
brands such as Hayes, Rockwell and US Robotics. External serial modems
should always be used with a good quality shielded RS-232 serial cable.
The use of modems over VOIP telephone service is not recommended or
supported; your phone line should be a "landline" or "copper line". Also
the use of virtual COM port software or serial redirection over TCP/IP is
not supported.
A comprehensive list of Modem Control Files (MCF's) for many brand-name
modems are included, along with a general template for you to specify
custom settings.
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PORT
Port Status Ident MCF name Description
COM3
The PORT identifies the name of the serial I/O channel connected to your
modem. It also refers to the port that is used by the FOSSIL driver.
Standard values are COM1 through COM4. COM5 to COM7 may also be
specified if you are running D'Bridge on an IBM PS/2 computer system.
On MS-DOS, PC-DOS, Tandy 1000 or IBM XT computers, you may need to
first check that you have a high speed Uart chip, the 16550. This serial
chip allows your computer to handle running a high-speed modem (14.4kbps
or faster). High-speed modem transfers may not be reliable or possible if
your computer has the 8250 or 16450 Uart chip.
If you do not have a modem or don't wish to use one, leave this blank.
WARNING: Specifying an incorrect port may cause a system malfunction.
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MCF NAME
Port Status Ident MCF name Description
USRC1438 US Robotics HST 14400
The MCF NAME specifies the name of a D'Bridge "Modem Control File." The
MCF files are tiny text files that tell D'Bridge how to talk to your modem.
Included, you will find an ZIP file which contains our standard
MCF collection. If you press F10, you will receive a list of all
modems currently supported. Simply select the Modem Control File
to use for the specified serial port. When you select a different
MCF or specify one for the first time, D'Bridge will unZIP the file
if needed from MCFILES.ZIP. A list of files, modems and ident (ATI)
codes are displayed from the list in MCFILES.LST.
MCF files are simple control files that may be changed using any standard
text editor. The following control language is used. Keywords are not
case-sensitive, but must start in column 1 or they will be ignored. Invalid
syntax is ignored without error to allow backward / forward compatibility.
MCF <NAME> <DESCRIPTION>
ie. MCF USRC1419 US Robotics HST 14400
<NAME> must match the DOS filename (without the extension.)
<DESCRIPTION> is the displayed modem type.
MCF This must always be the first line of a Modem Control File.
BAUD <BAUD RATE>
ie. BAUD 19200
<BAUD RATE> is 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, 38400 or 57600. Any
values other than these will be "rounded off" to the most applicable
rate.
LOCKED
ie. LOCKED (no parameters)
This causes D'Bridge to always use the specified baud rate, regardless
of the "CONNECT" results reported by the modem. If you are using this
mode, the modem must also be configured to use a fixed DTE rate. &B1 is
used on HST's, for example.
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DELAY <MILLISECONDS>
ie. DELAY 50
This specifies the inter-character delay in milliseconds when sending
commands to the modem. The default is 20, but some modems may require
values as high as 50 or 60.
TIMEOUT <SECONDS>
ie. TIMEOUT 75
This specifies the failsafe timeout when dialing or answering the phone.
This defaults to 60, but might need to be increased if overseas calls
take longer than one minute to complete.
DIAL <BAUD RATE> <MODEM STRING>
ie. DIAL 19200 ATDT
<BAUD RATE> is 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600 or 19200. Baud rates higher
than 19200 will use the 19200 baud string setting.
<MODEM STRING> is the command sent to the modem before the phone number.
ANSWER <MODEM STRING>
ie. ANSWER ATA
<MODEM STRING> is the command sent to the modem to answer the phone.
INIT <MODEM STRING>
ie. INIT ATZ
<MODEM STRING> is a command to configure the modem as desired.
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TRANSLATE <BAUD RATE> <RESPONSE>|<*C STRING>
ie. TRANSLATE 2400 CONNECT 2400/ARQ|2400MNP
<BAUD RATE> is 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 14400, 19200 or 38400.
<RESPONSE> is the connection result string from the modem.
<*C STRING> is the translated response code for the BBS "*C" code.
PREINIT <MODEM STRING>
ie. PREINIT AT&C1&D2&W
<MODEM STRING> is a command to pre-configure the modem as desired.
OFFHOOK <MODEM STRING>
ie. OFFHOOK ATH1M0S0=0
<MODEM STRING> is a command to take the modem offhook.
IGNORE <MODEM RESPONSE>
ie. IGNORE DATA
<MODEM RESPONSE> is a unimportant code returned from the modem to be ignored
completely.
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ANSWERING METHOD
Answering method: Software (Hardware/Software/Modem/Ringmaster/Disable)
This specifies the method D'Bridge will use to answer incoming calls. If
you do not wish to answer any calls, select DISABLED.
Usually SOFTWARE is the appropriate choice unless you have a multi-line
or "Ringmaster" type of setup.
/------------+---------------------------------------------------------------\
| HARDWARE | Answers using hardware ring detection. (RS-232 pin 22) |
| | NOTE: Hardware detection may not work on Microsoft Windows. |
| | |
| SOFTWARE | Answers using software ring detection. (RING from modem) |
| | Usually this is the "safest" setting for all computers. |
| | |
| MODEM | Assumes that modem will auto-answer. (S0=1 assumed) |
| | |
| RINGMASTER | Hardware ring detection with multi-pattern ring detection. |
| | 3 different ring patterns are detected, see LINE ASSIGNMENT. |
| | It is recommended to use a Ring Box if at all possible as |
| | the other phone numbers will still ring without such a |
| | device to filter rings from the other numbers. |
| | |
| DISABLE | Answering completely disabled. |
\------------+---------------------------------------------------------------/
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LINE ASSIGNMENT
Line assignment: V1V (1/2/3/Voice)
RingMaster (or Ident-a-Call in Canada) is a pay-service that some phone
companies offer where you may assign up to three phone numbers to one
physical telephone line. Each phone number rings in a special pattern
sequence. D'Bridge can be programmed to act on a specific ring pattern.
When using this answering method, it is necessary to assign the three
possible ring patterns to the desired sequence. 1, 2 and 3 correspond
to DATA/1, 2 and 3. Voice designates a ring pattern to be ignored
by D'Bridge and logged as a voice call.
A hardware adapter known as The Ring Selector manufactured by Aastra
Telecom essentially performs this duty. If you are fortunate to own one
of these and wish to use it, please go back and change from RingMaster to
either Hardware or Software answering instead.
The vast majority of unsolicited/telemarketing calls are "scraped" from
public telephone directories. Some users with RingMaster prefer to use the
first number for the modem since the phone company usually lists this
number and not the pattern-numbers...
COSTGUARD TIME
CostGuard limits: 240 (minutes) (cost)
The COSTGUARD TIME specifies the absolute maximum amount of time an
EMAIL session may last. When the elapsed time for any inbound or
outbound call reaches the number of minutes specified, DTR is lowered
and the call is aborted by D'Bridge.
COSTGUARD COST
CostGuard limits: (minutes) 100.00 (cost)
The COSTGUARD COST specifies the absolute maximum cost of an outbound
EMAIL session. When the accumulated cost for any outbound call reaches
the amount specified, DTR is lowered and the call is aborted by D'Bridge.
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COLLISION DETECTION
Collision detection? Yes
This specifies whether or not D'Bridge will detect collision of outbound
dialing attempts with inbound calls. This is usually desirable, but it
is possible that it will not work well with every kind of modem, so you
should disable it if it incorrectly detects collisions.
DIMESAVER ENABLED
DimeSaver enabled? Yes (Yes/No)
This specifies whether or not the DimeSaver feature should be used.
DimeSaver causes D'Bridge to answer a potential inbound call if the
modem reports NO DIAL TONE when placing an outbound call. If there
was no incoming call, subsequent DimeSaver activations will not occur.
AUTO INITIALIZATION
Auto-Initialization: 5 (minutes)
This parameter specifies the number of minutes idle before automatically
re-initializing the modem. Sometimes, modems go "out-to-lunch" because
of brown-outs, cats and so forth. Re-programming the modem every few
minutes certainly can't hurt and sometimes solves problems of unattended
operation.
If you specify zero, this feature will be disabled and the modem will
only be initialized after each call and upon startup.
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BUSY WHEN OFFLINE
Busy when offline? No (Yes/No)
D'Bridge does many things. During the time calls may not be answered,
the phone can either be busy or just keep ringing. If you answer Yes
to this question, the phone will be taken off hook whenever D'Bridge is
not ready to accept a call.
- If you are using a dedicated data line, Yes is preferred.
- If you are using a voice/data line, in most cases, use No.
TOUCH TONE DIALING
Touch-Tone dialing? Yes (Yes/No)
If you have a Touch-Tone<tm> telephone line, answer Yes to this question.
Pulse (rotary) dialing will be used if you specify No.
MAXIMUM RINGS
Maximum rings: 4
Some modems will report RINGING when placing an outbound call. This
allows D'Bridge to count the number of times the remote phone rings.
If this count exceeds the maximum specified by this parameter, dialing
will be aborted.
If the maximum ring count is exceeded on two consecutive attempts at
calling the same system, the call will be placed on Ten minute hold.
Unless overridden by VIEW/MODIFY QUEUE, no further attempts will be
made for at least ten minutes.
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FLAG DIAL
"Flag" dial: HST ATB1DT
This field is only used to define the exceptions to the normal dialing
commands. The flag specifies a substring to match in the nodelist
flags field. When D'Bridge places an outbound call, it searches the
nodelist flags fields for a match in the "Flag" dial list. The first
match found will determine the <DIAL STRING> to use. The format is:
<NODELIST FLAG> <DIAL STRING>
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
SPECIFIC DIAL
Specific dial: 2:280/280 ATX0M1DT
This field lists exceptions to the normal and "Flag" dialing commands.
After D'Bridge searches the "Flag" dial list, it looks for the first
match in Specific dial. If you are using an address such as 2:ALL,
make sure any specific systems are listed before the wildcard entry.
The format is:
<ADDRESS MASK> <DIAL STRING>
ie. 2:280/280 should come before 2:280/ALL, etc.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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3.04 SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE
The SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE screen allows you to program the weekly event
schedule as well as set up routing, and access rules. The system uses a
default Mail event, called the "Un-event"; which runs when no other Mail
event is defined or applicable. In most cases this is sufficient, but you
are welcome to add others as you see fit or DOS/Errorlevel events for
running programs or triggering batch-file conditions. The ClockSync event
will instruct D'Bridge to synchronize the computer time with another
D'Bridge system or the Atomic Clock. Event Parameters include:
- Event management (Mail, DOS, Exit/errorlevel and ClockSync events)
- Schedule day/time and days of the week
- Time between calls
- Maximum tries, sessions and failures
- Priorities allowed
- Polling
- Routing
- Forwarding
- Many more...
EVENT TAG
Event "tag": NMH
The "TAG" is an arbitrary 8-letter name by which you identify the event.
In the above example, I've used "NMH" to stand for "National Mail Hour."
This "TAG" must be unique; it is used on the screen and in the log to
identify events.
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EVENT NODE
Event Node: All
D'Bridge is capable of being ran in environments where more than one
instance or node can be running on the same computer or perhaps on
different computers on a LAN.
For example, on a multi-line BBS, multiple nodes answer multiple modems.
Another example is a hybrid system where one node handles modem calls while
another handles Telnet connection. This requires that you run a multi-
tasking operating system such as Desqview, Windows or OS/2.
The event scheduler is flexible in that if you need this event to run on a
specific node, then you would specify that here, from 1 through 255.
If you only run one node or instance of D'Bridge, leave this as zero (All)
EVENT ENABLED
Enabled? Yes
This Yes/No question simply specifies whether this event should be
currently enabled or not. Normally, you would answer YES but if you
ever want to temporarily disable the event, you may change it to NO.
This option is provided so you may disable events without actually
removing them.
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EVENT TYPE
Type: Mail (Mail/DOS/Exit/ClockSync/EmailNNTP)
There are five types of events; each functions differently:
Mail
A "mail" event defines a period of time when certain mail
may be sent. The default is to send ALL mail, unless you
specify ADVANCED ROUTING.
DOS
A "DOS" event defines a list of DOS commands, programs and
batch files to execute at a pre-defined time. These tasks
are all "spawned" while D'Bridge remains in memory. This
will only work if you have enough memory.
Exit
An "exit" event specifies that you want D'Bridge to terminate
at the specified time. This would normally be used in a
batch file to transfer control to another program - instead
of "spawning" it as above. With EXIT, you specify which DOS
errorlevel you want to use.
ClockSync
A ClockSync event will set the system clock using the atomic
clock or another D'Bridge system. The accuracy should be within
a tenth of a second (plus the propagation delay) of the Timebase
system.
EVENT DAYS
Weekday(s): [ ]All [X]Sun [ ]Mon [ ]Tue [X]Wed [ ]Thu [ ]Fri [X]Sat
With the EVENT DAYS field, you put an "X" next to all days that you wish
to run this event. If you specify ALL, then all the days of the week
are marked. To access individual days, erase the "X" next to ALL by
pressing the SPACE BAR.
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3.04 SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE
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EVENT START
Start time: 14:30
Specify the time you wish to activate the event. This time should be
specified in 24-hour format and must not conflict with any other
scheduled event. To specify a START TIME, just enter a time using 3 or
4 digits. For example:
300 is 3:00 AM; 2250 is 10:50 PM
EVENT END
End time: 15:20
Specify the time you wish a mail event to end. This time should be
specified in 24-hour format and must not conflict with any other
scheduled event. To specify an END TIME, just enter a time using 3 or
4 digits. For example:
300 is 3:00 AM; 2250 is 10:50 PM
EVENT ERRORLEVEL
Errorlevel: 200
For EXIT EVENTS, you simply specify the DOS ERRORLEVEL to return when
terminating. This number would normally be used by an "IF ERRORLEVEL"
directive in a batch file.
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3.04 SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE
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EVENT DOS COMMANDS
DOS commands: MAILCHEK -S
For DOS events, you may specify any number of DOS commands, programs
or batch files to execute. It is even possible to use DOS primitives
like CD (change directory) and COPY. It is up to you to make sure none
of the commands specified require human interaction. For example, if
you specify the command to start your word processor, odds are the word
processor will continue running until someone comes along...
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
BETWEEN CALLS
Between calls: 15 to 45 (seconds)
Here, you specify the period of time to wait between outbound calls.
This is entered as a "range." If you say "30 to 60," then D'Bridge
will wait a random amount of time between 30 and 60 seconds before
placing a subsequent call. This period of time is used to receive
incoming mail; if this event is supposed to send mail only, you may
specify a very short time period.
EVENT CRITICAL
Critical? Yes (Yes/No)
For DOS and EXIT EVENTS, you should specify "YES" if you want the event
to execute even if D'Bridge is not running at the time of the event. A
CRITICAL event is one that D'Bridge will execute even after the START
TIME specified; it is only executed once. Specify "NO" if you want the
event to occur ONLY if D'Bridge is running at that time.
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MAX DIALING TRIES
Max tries: 30
The MAX TRIES parameter indicates the maximum number of times D'Bridge
should attempt to contact a specific system during the current MAIL EVENT.
This setting will have no effect if no limit is placed on no-cost calls.
MAX SESSIONS
Max sessions: 30
The MAX SESSIONS parameter specifies the maximum number of actual
connects allowed during the given mail event. This is handy for limiting
ECHOmail turnaround to long-distance systems.
This setting will have no effect if no limit is placed on no-cost calls.
MAX SESSION FAILURES
Max failures: 2
The MAX FAILURES parameter specifies the maximum number of aborted or
bad sessions allowed with each system during the specified mail event.
This parameter may help control costs when the answering system has
crashed or is not functioning properly.
EVENT CLOCKSYNC TIMEBASE
TimeBase: 1:3601/14
For ClockSync events, this field designates the TimeBase to use for
setting the system clock. Either specify the EMAIL address of another
D'Bridge system, or leave the field blank to use the Atomic Clock.
* Note * If the clock is wrong on the D'Bridge system specified,
your clock will also be set to an incorrect time. Make sure you use
a trust-worthy system.
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ACCEPT EMAIL CALLS
Accept EMAIL calls? Yes (Yes/No)
This specifies whether or not D'Bridge should answer the phone to accept
EMAIL/BBS calls during this event when you are using a modem. If you
answer No, the phone will not be answered and will remain on-hook for
the duration of the event.
PRIORITIES ALLOWED
Priorities allowed? NCI (N/C/I)
This field specifies what mail priorities (if any) may be sent during
this event. For most events, specify NCI (Normal, Crash and Immediate),
as allowable priorities. Keep in mind that outbound calls are still con-
trolled by the cost-accounting system.
This field simply serves as a master override to cost-accounting.
HOST ROUTE PRIVATES
Host-route privates? No (Yes/No)
If you want NETmail messages destined for private or unlisted systems
to be host-routed, answer Yes to this question. If you answer No,
the mail will be held, waiting for the remote system to poll to pick
it up.
* Note * Host-routed mail may not be picked-up by the destination.
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CM SYSTEMS ONLY
CM/Non-CM systems only? Both (CM/Non-CM/Both)
"CM" stands for Continuous Mail, a system designated as being able
to receive EMAIL calls anytime. Certain events might be designated
to send mail only to CM systems just as other scheduled events might
be reserved for sending mail only to NON-CM systems. Specify Both
if you want to send all mail regardless of the CM nodelist flag.
EVENT SCAN ECHOMAIL
Scan ECHOmail areas? Yes (Yes/No)
If you want D'Bridge to scan all ECHOmail areas for new outbound
traffic each time this event begins, answer Yes here. Only when
the event starts for the first time each day will the ECHOmail scan
be performed.
EVENT DYNAMIC
Dynamic event? No (Yes/No)
If you answer Yes to this question, a mail event will terminate when
there are no more outbound calls to make. When a dynamic event ends
early, the UN-EVENT is resumed and the queue is rebuilt.
ALLOW REQUESTS
Process requests? Yes (Yes/No)
If you want to allow file-requests during this event, answer Yes to
this question. Otherwise, file-requests (FREQs) will be rejected.
NOTE: This has no effect on file-requests via the Internet BinkD
subsystem.
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ACCEPT HUMAN CALLS
Accept human calls? Yes (Yes/No)
If you want to allow human (BBS) calls during this event, answer Yes to
this question. If you answer No, human calls will be rejected for the
duration of the event and callers will be notified that the system is cur-
rently accepting EMAIL calls only.
EVENT ALLOW XMAIL AND TICS
Allow XMAIL? Yes (Yes/No)
If you want to allow XMAIL (compressed mail) traffic to be sent
during this event, answer Yes to this question. If you answer
No, all XMAIL will be held, disallowing pickup by remote systems.
Specify No only for dedicated NETmail events. In most cases, Yes
is the appropriate answer.
PACKETS FOR
Packets for: ALL
Here's where we get into the filters and addresses! In PACKETS FOR,
specify a filter as defined previously in this section. This will
determine for which systems you want to create packets. The default
setting is ALL, meaning packets can be created for everyone.
* Note * This does not necessarily mean D'Bridge will call the
system, since the packet might be on "HOLD" or "ROUTED" to a diffe-
rent system.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
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HOLD FOR
Hold for: NONE
If you wish to hold all outbound traffic for certain systems, specify
them here with a filter. With a system on "hold", no calls will be
made to it during this event, regardless of priority.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
EVENT POLL
Poll: 1:110/68
If you wish to poll certain systems each time this event is started, list
the EMAIL addresses here. Polling means: to call a system in order to
pick up any mail that is "on hold."
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
PICKUP FROM
Pickup from: ALL
This setting affects modem calls only.
Normally, D'Bridge will pick up mail from ALL systems it calls.
However, if you wish, you may specify a filter to control from which
systems you would like to receive "hold" mail from when you call to
deliver outbound traffic.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
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ALLOW PICKUP FROM
Allow pickup from: ALL
This setting affects modem calls only.
Normally, D'Bridge will allow ALL systems to pick up their "hold" mail
when they poll or call to deliver mail. If you want to run a completely
secure system, you might not want to allow pickup for certain systems.
Since D'Bridge has password-security, it would be rare to use anything
other than ALL here.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
ROUTE TO
Route to: NONE
Normally, D'Bridge sends mail directly to the receiving system when you
write EMAIL messages. "Routing" is a way to cut costs by sending mail
through other EMAIL systems or networks to be delivered to its final
destination.
"Route to" may control specific routing and/or host-routing. This field
may contain multiple lines, so the last line should contain HOSTS or
host/hub-routing or NONE for direct delivery.
Specific routing may be done by specifying:
Route to: <ADDRESS> FOR <FILTER>
ie.
Route to: 110/68 for 110/ALL 2:ALL 3:ALL
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
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ROUTE FILES FOR
Route files for: NONE
D'Bridge has the capability of routing attached data files along with
EMAIL messages. This should be used only by special arrangement between
the system operators involved. NONE should be specified in most cases.
Specify the filter describing the systems willing to route in-transit
files from your system. This is only applicable if you are using a rou-
ting other than NONE.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
FORWARD FOR
Forward for: ALL
D'Bridge will forward in-transit mail for the systems specified in this
filter. In most cases, ALL should be specified.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
FORWARD TO
Forward to: OURNET
D'Bridge will forward in-transit mail to the systems specified in this
filter. Using OURNET means D'Bridge will only forward in-transit mail
destined for systems with the same NET number as your own. (It is assumed
there is no cost associated with calls within your NET)
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.04 SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE
63
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FORWARD FILES FOR
Forward files for: ALL
D'Bridge will forward in-transit files for the systems specified in this
filter. In most cases, ALL should be specified.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
FORWARD FILES TO
Forward files to: OURNET
D'Bridge will forward in-transit files to the systems specified in this
filter. Using OURNET means D'Bridge will only forward in-transit mail
destined for systems with the same NET number as your own.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.04 SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE
64
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MAIL RECEIVED DOS COMMANDS
DOS commands: +TOSSMAIL.BAT
During certain events, you may wish to have D'Bridge terminate or
execute DOS commands every time mail is received from a remote system.
The DOS COMMANDS field allows you to specify any number of DOS commands
or programs to be executed when mail arrives. Any DOS command or
program may be used, but you must make sure they don't require any human
interaction or D'Bridge will be "stuck" until you give the program the
input it wants.
NOTE: Do NOT use commands to redirect DOS console output.
As well as DOS commands, the following functions are available from
the DOS COMMANDS field:
/----------------+-----------------------------------------------------------\
| +(command) | Causes D'Bridge to swap to disk, leaving more memory |
| | available to the application program. |
| | |
| -(command) | Causes the command to be executed inside the queue |
| | window. Only use this for programs that do standard |
| | DOS I/O. |
| | |
| *R | This will force a rescan of the queue. Same as ALT-Q |
| | |
| *L | This will be replaced with the current line/node number |
| | |
| *S | This will force a complete ECHOmail rescan. |
| | |
| *X<errorlevel> | This causes an exit with the specified DOS errorlevel. |
| | |
| | Errorlevels 250, 251 and 252 are reserved by D'Bridge. |
\----------------+-----------------------------------------------------------/
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION
65
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3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION
The NODELIST CONFIGURATION screen allows you to setup the nodelist database
that D'Bridge uses to make outbound calls. Parameters include:
- St. Louis nodelists
- Private nodelists
- Pointlist
- Exclude/Translate NETs
- Prefixes
- Baud, Flag and Phone overrides
ST LOUIS NODELISTS
"St. Louis" nodelists? C:\DB\FILES\ DBNET DBDIFF
"St. Louis" refers to a standard format for NODELIST text files. This
includes a "nodelist" and a "nodediff". You may have any number of
St. Louis-style nodelists at one time by listing each separately in
the window. Each line in the window describes one nodelist and should
contain:
<DIRECTORY PATH> <NODELIST BASE> <NODEDIFF BASE>
For example:
C:\DB\FILES\ NODELIST NODEDIFF 7567 153
C:\DB\FILES\ ANETLIST ANETDIFF 38791 153
The two numbers on the right are the CRC of the nodelist name and the
currently installed nodelist. These numbers are maintained by D'Bridge
and the user need not concern himself with them.
D'Bridge automatically determines which nodelist is the most-recent based
on the extension of the "list" or "diff" file. The St. Louis format is
based on weekly update files called "diff" files; these files contain
the differences between last week's and this week's nodelists and are
generally smaller than the nodelist itself. If a diff file exists for
a nodelist, it will be automatically decompressed and installed when
it arrives (if applicable).
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION
66
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PRIVATE NODELISTS
Private nodelist(s): MYLIST.PVT
You may also use any number of private nodelists. In this field you
may specify any number of text files to be included in your compiled
nodelist. You may notice D'Bridge adds two numbers after the filename
once the nodelist is compiled; these numbers are the date and time of
the private nodelist file. If these numbers are changed or the node-
list is replaced or edited, D'Bridge will automatically recompile the
nodelist when it is started next.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
POINTLIST
Pointlist: POINTS.LST
If you are part of a point system, you will want to specify the name of
your POINTLIST file.
This is a list of POINTS under the same ZONE:NET/NODE as your system.
Just like the PRIVATE NODELISTS, the numbers after the filename indicate
the date and time of the POINTLIST when the nodelist was last compiled.
If these are changed, D'Bridge will automatically recompile the nodelist.
FAKE POINTNET
Fake pointnet: 32001
To maintain compatibility with older EMAIL systems, a "FAKE POINTNET"
has been established to allow Fidonet-based mailers to act as points
of a D'Bridge BOSS. Since there is no definition of a "point" address
in Fidonet, a fake NET number is used. Specify the fake net to use
here. When a system calls in using that NET number, the node number
used will be translated to a point address.
If you do not wish to use a Fake Pointnet for legacy systems, then just
leave this question blank.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION
67
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FAKE POINTS
Fake points: 1 2 4 22
This field specifies which systems require the FAKE POINT addressing.
Specify the point numbers of the systems for which FAKE POINT addressing
is required. This affects the way in which ECHOmail packets are created.
This is never required with points running D'Bridge EMAIL System; it is
provided for compatibility with older Fidonet-based systems.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
OUTBOUND GATEWAY
Outbound gateway: 1:110/68
Most networks do not use an outbound gateway, but if your NET has a
system designated to send all outbound mail, then put its address here.
You would use this in conjunction with the ROUTE TO field in the schedule
maintenance subsystem. (ROUTE TO: OGATE FOR OTHERS)
USERLIST FILE
Additional user file: USER.LST
You may specify the name of a text file containing an additional user-
list to merge with the nodelists. Typically, this file will contain a
list of people who use certain EMAIL systems but are not listed as
the primary operator. The format for this file is:
<ADDRESS> <USER NAME>
ie. 1:135/68.2 George Meyers
.20 John Smith
107/27.5 Oliver South
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION
68
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EXCLUDE NETS
Exclude ZONE:NET(s): 2:ALL 3:ALL
Some systems (that use a large NODELIST like Fidonet) may want to
completely eliminate certain ZONES and/or NETS from their nodelist.
If there is no reason to communicate with people in other countries,
you can greatly reduce the NODELIST size and compile-time by excluding
those addresses you don't use. For example, if you live in the U.S.
and don't plan to do any mail to Europe or Australia, you may exclude
these continents completely by using the statement from the example
above.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
TRANSLATE NETS
Translate NET(s):
This field gives you the option to actually translate one NET to
another. This will let you move a NET from one zone to another or
simply change the NET number to something else. This will not be
used for most systems, but is a feature found in other EMAIL systems
and I am including it for compatibility. The syntax is:
<original ZONE:NET> <new ZONE:NET>
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
COUNTRY CODE
Country code: 1
Here, you MUST specify your country code. This is the prefix found
before the "area code" in the nodelist. For the U.S. and Canada,
specify "1" - other countries, specify your country code (in the same
way you do with DOS)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION
69
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LOCAL PREFIX
Local prefix:
If there is a prefix you must dial before NO-COST (local) calls, speci-
fy it here. In the U.S. and Canada, this field will be left blank in
most cases. (Some PBX systems might require you to dial "9" to get a
local outside line.)
DOMESTIC PREFIX
Domestic prefix:
If there is a prefix in your country that you must dial before all
domestic calls, specify it here. For the U.S. and Canada, this field
should be left blank; we need no PREFIX. (Some PBX systems might
require you to dial an "8" to get a long-distance line.)
INTERNATIONAL PREFIX
International prefix: 011
Specify the prefix to dial before any international calls are made.
In the U.S., use "011" - other countries, check with your phone company.
An international call is defined as one where the COUNTRY PREFIX of the
system being called differs from your own.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION
70
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PHONE NUMBER OVERRIDES
Phone number overrides: 110/68 1-513-424-5167
If you wish to override the phone number for an existing address, or
define the phone number for an unlisted NODE or POINT, the PHONE NUMBER
OVERRIDES field is the place to do this.
If you are using a SCRIPT with this particular address and phone
number, enter the filename of the script file in quotation marks.
<ADDRESS> <PHONE NUMBER> <ACCOUNTING/CONTROL PREFIX>
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
BAUD RATE OVERRIDES
Baud rate overrides: 110/68 9600
This is where you may specify temporary overrides to the baud rate for
specified addresses.
<ADDRESS> <BAUD RATE>
* NOTE * This does not affect modems with a locked baud rate.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
FLAG OVERRIDES
Flag overrides: 110/68 CM,XX,HST
This is where you may specify temporary overrides to the nodelist flags
for specified addresses.
<ADDRESS> <FLAGS>
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.05 NODELIST CONFIGURATION
71
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SYNONYMS
Synonyms: ARTHUR 1:3601/14
This field defines a list of synonyms that will substitute a KEYWORD
for an EMAIL ADDRESS. These mnemonic keywords allow for quick and easy
entry of commonly used systems.
<KEYWORD> <ADDRESS>
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
AUTO COMPILE NODELIST
Auto-compile nodelists: Startup (Startup/Midnight/Never)
Before a nodelist can be used, it must be compiled and indexed in the
nodelist database files. This process can take anywhere from 5 seconds
to 45 minutes, depending on the speed of your computer. Three options
are available to specify when to test the nodelist for currency:
/----------+---------------------------------------------------------------\
| STARTUP | Tests and/or rebuilds the database every time D'Bridge is |
| | fired up. (This includes the nightly auto-restart.) |
| | |
| MIDNIGHT | Tests and/or rebuilds the database after the auto-restart |
| | routine. |
| | |
| NEVER | Only rebuilds the database upon request or if it is missing. |
\----------+---------------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
72
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3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
The PACKET/MAIL CONTROL screen allows you to set up general mailer controls.
Parameters include:
- NETmail archives
- Message purge criteria
- Renaming of duplicate files
- XMAIL Pre-unpack command
- ECHOmail and EchoFILE/TIC controls
- AREAFIX and FILEFIX controls
OUTBOUND MAIL ARCHIVE
Outbound mail archive: C:\DB\OLDMAIL\OUTBOUND.TXT
This specifies the name of the text file to write messages flagged as
ARCHIVE/SENT. This is quite useful as a history of NETmail; it includes the
full message text and the date and time it was sent.
Note that this text file is not purged automatically. You must run your
own process to purge or erase this file.
If this question is left blank, NETmail will not be archived to a file
when it is sent. You can choose to keep them or delete them in the
question Keep NETmail flagged Archive/Sent.
NETMAIL ARCHIVE
NETmail archive: C:\DB\OLDMAIL\MAIL-ARC.LOG
The NETMAIL ARCHIVE parameter specifies the text file (if any) into
which the DBUTIL PURGE option will archive NETmail messages before era-
sing them.
Note that this text file is not purged automatically. You must run your
own process to purge or erase this file.
If you do not wish to save old NETmail messages when DBUTIL PURGE runs,
leave this field blank.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
73
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NETMAIL PURGE CRITERIA
Purge NETmail after: 30 days
-or-
Purge NETmail except: 100 messages
DBUTIL is a command-line program that performs various maintenance tasks
associated with a D'Bridge system. In the DBUTIL PURGE program, there are
two options for deciding which messages to erase from the system. When
the cursor is on this field, you may press the F10 key to switch between
the methods: PURGE EXCEPT and PURGE AFTER.
With PURGE EXCEPT, DBUTIL will erase all but "x" messages; specify "x" in
this field as how many messages to save after purging. With the PURGE
AFTER option, DBUTIL will purge messages based on their age. PURGE AFTER
30 DAYS means to erase all messages over 30 days old when DBUTIL PURGE is
run.
Note that D'Bridge does not automatically run DBUTIL; you must schedule
this using the Config-Schedule or by some other method. When calling
the DBUTIL program from within the D'Bridge schedule, a plus-sign (+) is
required before the DBUTIL command. The plus-sign tells D'Bridge to swap
out of memory; giving DBUTIL the most memory to use for its operation.
KEEP NETMAIL FLAGGED A/S
Keep NETmail flagged A/S? No
NETmail messages that are flagged as "Archive/Sent" are written into
the text file you specify in the previous questions. After D'Bridge
does this, you may choose to delete those messages or keep them in
your NETmail area. Answer YES or NO. It is really your own personal
preference; some operators do not like to keep old NETmail's hanging
around if they have been archived already. The default answer is NO.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
74
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MAIL AND TIC PROCESSING
Inbound mail handling? Automatic (Automatic/Manual/External/Disabled)
This parameter controls the method used for receiving and processing
inbound mail traffic. For most cases, Automatic would be the best
choice because mail is unpacked and possibly forwarded continuously
allowing immediate access to all ECHOmail and forwarded NETmail for
the nodes served by your system. The options available are:
AUTOMATIC Automatically processes mail after each call. Exceptions
are low disk-space, event override or QuickDial active.
MANUAL Processes mail only when activated by the operator.
EXTERNAL Completely disables internal processing and causes inbound
XMAIL and EMAIL packets to be received as normal data files.
DISABLED Completely disables processing of inbound mail.
TICS ALLOWED
Process EchoFILE/TIC files? Yes (Yes/External/No)
Answer YES if you wish to accept, process and forward TIC files
automatically, or EXTERNAL if you use a 3rd party program to do that
for you. The external Tic program will be called as part of the DOS
commands called for mail packets as defined in the current mail-event
or the Unevent.
If you do not process EchoFILE/TIC files then answer NO, the default
setting.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
75
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PACKET PREPROCESSOR
XMAIL Pre-unpack command:
If you wish to run an external program AFTER compressed XMAIL bundles
are received and BEFORE processing inbound .PKT files, you can specify a
DOS command. The use for this varies from running archival/statistical
analyzers to executing a "Message Police" program of some type.
If you wish to ALWAYS run commands BEFORE processing or "tossing" ANY
inbound mail, create a batch file called BTM.BAT (Before Tossing Mail)
and specify your DOS commands in there. Put a plus-sign (+) before any
programs that require D'Bridge to swap out of memory. ATM.BAT can also
be created to be called after ALL mail is done processing.
WARNING: Modifying packets might upset some people and great care must be
taken to ensure that your unpack-programs can run unattended.
RENAME DUPLICATE FILES
Rename duplicate files? Yes
For modem sessions, there may be occasions when you receive different
files with the same name. If you answer YES to this question, any files
received having a duplicate name in the INBOUND FILES DIRECTORY will be
renamed by "sequencing" the last character of the extension.
A duplicate README.TXT would become README.TX1 if it existed; if "1"
was already there as well, "2" would be used, etc.
If you answer NO, the existing file will simply be replaced by the one
just received.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
76
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KILL IN TRANSIT MESSAGES
Kill in-transit messages? Yes (Yes/No)
An IN-TRANSIT message is a message which was neither originated from
nor destined for your system. This message exists on your system just
to be forwarded elsewhere. If you answer YES to this question, IN-
TRANSIT messages will be flagged KILL/SENT when they arrive. If you
answer NO here, forwarded mail will "pile-up" until it is purged or
manually killed.
KILL NULL MESSAGES
Kill null messages? Yes (Yes/No)
Usually, you would answer YES to KILL NULL MESSAGES. A null message
means a message that has a TO, FROM and SUBJECT, but no text. These
are usually just messages associated with a file-attach and should
be ignored anyway. If you answer YES to this question, all messages
that are unpacked and have no text will be ignored.
SAVE DUPLICATE MESSAGES
Save duplicate messages? No (Yes/No)
Personally, I would answer NO to this question, but if you would like
to see what messages are received more than once, answer YES here. If
you save the duplicate messages, they will be tossed into the BADECHO
area for your inspection.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
77
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MSGID ENTRIES
MSGID entries: 10000
Most Echomail messages have a unique indentifier, known as a MSGID kludge.
When an Echomail message is received, D'Bridge will check to see if that
exact same message with that MSGID has ever been received before; if so
then the message is considered to be a duplicate. Over a period of time
the size of this log of MSGID's can grow considerably.
Specify the number of MSGID's to remember per-system. Leave this as 10000
if you are unsure. If this is set to zero, then no MSGID checking takes
place.
WARNING: Only experienced D'Bridge operators should change this setting.
LIMIT NO COST CALLS
Limit no-cost calls? No (Yes/No)
D'Bridge has a limit for the number of connections with a given system
in each mail event. This limit exists to make sure ECHOmail traffic
only turns-around a few times each mail event. Since local calls are
usually free, you can circumvent this limit for no-cost calls. Answering
No here will make unlimited local calls for ECHOmail turnaround.
IN TRANSIT RESCAN
In-transit rescan? Yes (Yes/No)
If your system acts as a hub or boss-node, you might want to provide
immediate turnaround when "routed" mail is received. If you answer
YES to IN-TRANSIT RESCAN, the NETmail area will be rescanned after each
in-transit message is received. This will cause the message to be made
available to the destination system immediately rather than at the be-
ginning of the next event.
Please note that if you enable the Areafix feature, any Areafix requests that
arrive that are NOT destined for your system will be treated as IN-TRANSIT
and forwarded to the appropriate system as determined by the ROUTING of the
current event.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
78
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SECURED ECHOMAIL ONLY
Secured mail only? No (Yes/No/Detailed)
Some hubs may wish to run a more secure system by only allowing
mail from passworded systems, either SESSION or PACKET passwords.
It makes sense that routine mail links should be secured for the benefit
of the whole network. If you answer Yes to this question, all ECHOmail
received from systems who use an incorrect password will be tossed
into the BADECHO area for inspection.
If you answer Detailed, D'Bridge will report the password of all
packets received. This should only be used for diagnostics or
troubleshooting incorrect passwords between systems. DO NOT enable this
option if there is no need to troubleshoot passwords.
SAVE JUNK MESSAGES
Save junk messages? No (Yes/No)
On Echomail areas which have the "Junk filter" enabled, if messages are
received which match the junk criteria you specify; those messages can
be saved in the BADECHO area for your inspection.
LEAVE SEENBYS
Save ECHOmail SEENBYs? Yes (Yes/No)
If you wish to save the text containing the SEEN-BY lines in your
message base, answer YES. It really doesn't matter how you respond
to this question; the system will perform the same way.
* NOTE * This question only affects the Quick storage method.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
79
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MAXIMUM PACKETS DURING UNPACK
Max PKT's in Unpack: 50
On busy Hub systems which handle large volumes of mail, you may set a
limit on how many packets to process in one single Unpack (toss) operation.
The default is zero, meaning no limit. Under most circumstances it is
not necessary to change this setting, unless you feel that your system is
always "tied up" unpacking large volumes of mail at a time.
* NOTE * This is an advanced feature.
AUTO ADD ECHOMAIL AREAS
Auto-add ECHO areas? Fido
D'Bridge has the capability of automatically adding areas that don't
exist when undefined CONFERENCE TAGS are detected. This can save
lots of work in setting up new areas. Specify which Echomail storage
format to use here for them, or NO to completely disable auto-adding.
/----------+------------------------------------------------------------\
| NONE | Will not create a new area, so messages received for |
| | unknown areas will be rejected. |
| | |
| FIDO/MSG | Echomail will be stored in Fido *.MSG format. Choose for |
| | compatibility with most 3rd-party editors and utilities. |
| | Messages are stored in individual files. |
| | |
| QUICKBBS | Echomail will be stored in QuickBBS/Hudson or GoldBase |
| | databases; a series of index, header and message files. |
| | Up to 200 areas may be defined for QuickBBS or up to 500 |
| | for the GoldBase edition. The size of the databases must |
| | not exceed 2 gigabytes. |
\----------+------------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
80
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AUTO ADD ECHOFILE AREAS
Auto-add EchoFILE/TIC areas? None
If you wish to automatically add unknown EchoFILE/TIC areas received, then
specify the type of storage to use:
/-----------+------------------------------------------------------------\
| NONE | Will not create a new area, so any EchoFILE/TIC files |
| | received for unknown areas will be rejected. |
| | |
| DIRECTORY | Creates a new directory for storing EchoFILE/TIC files. |
| | |
| 1/FILES | Creates a new directory and updates a text-file named |
| | FILES.BBS containing the name and a one-line description |
| | of the file processed. |
| | |
| 2/FILES | Same as above, except the FILES.BBS text-file will also |
| | be updated with the "long description" of the TIC file. |
\-----------+------------------------------------------------------------/
ONLY ADD FROM SYSTEMS
Only add areas from: 1:229/426 A 50
This allows you to determine which systems D'Bridge should auto-add new
areas from, if allowed to do so. Specify the addresses one per line.
You may optionally specify a group access letter (A to Z) and security
level. When D'Bridge adds the conference, it will automatically add your
criteria to the new area. In the above example, new areas from 1:229/426
will be assigned group A, security level 50.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
81
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FORCED PRIORITIES
Forced priorities: 1:110/68 CRASH
This window allows you to absolutely override the priority for any
system on a semi-permanent basis. The overrides are listed one per
line and the format is:
<ADDRESS> <IMMEDIATE/CRASH/HOLD>
This field is also maintained in the VIEW/MODIFY QUEUE, ALT-V screen.
PACKET PASSWORDS
Packet/TIC override: 1:110/68 Secret
By default, D'Bridge uses the session password in ADVANCED/MISC-SECURITY
as the password for mail packets and the TIC files for EchoFILE areas. In
most cases this is fine but sometimes there may be a desire to have a
different password for these. Note that passwords are case sensitive.
If you specify the address without a password, then mail packets and TIC
files will not have a password. This is not recommended and should only be
for troubleshooting or strange setups. Try to resolve any problems with
the other system so passwords are enforced correctly instead of using "band
aid" fixes.
For maximum compatibility with other Fidonet software products, it is
recommended to have a packet password no more than 8 characters. Keep this
in mind when defining the session passwords in the other screen.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
82
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PROCESS AREAFIX REQUESTS
AREAFIX/FILEFIX enabled? Yes
D'Bridge has a very robust security system for Areafix (Echomail) and
Filefix (EchoFILE/TIC). Answer YES if you wish to have D'Bridge accept
and process these transactions. If you answer no, then AREAFIX/FILEFIX
is DISABLED. The requests received will just appear in your NETMAIL area
and never be processed. D'Bridge only processes requests as they are
unpacked, not from them already existing in the NETMAIL area.
AREAFIX MAXIMUM REQUESTS
Maximum requests per area: 50
This setting controls how many areas may be requested in an Areafix or
Filefix request. This should be left as 50 unless there is a good reason
to change this value. You may not set this past 200.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
83
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AREAFIX INFORMATION
Areafix/Filefix info: 1:110/68 PASSWORD ABC,501 Normal Yes Yes AREAS68.BBS
This window controls the AREAFIX/FILEFIX subsystem, allowing automated area
list and ECHOmail/EchoFILE distribution management. For each system, specify:
<ADDRESS> <PASSWORD> <GROUPS,LEVEL> <PRIORITY> <RESCAN?> <FWD REQ?> <AREAS.BBS>
Where:
<ADDRESS> is the address of the system in the form ZONE:NET/NODE.POINT
<PASSWORD> is a codeword agreed upon by both systems (you and the system
specified.) The password may be from 1 to 32 characters. For maximum
compatibility with other Fidonet software and systems, the password should
not exceed 8 characters.
Unlike session and packet passwords, Areafix/Filefix passwords are NOT case
sensitive. Keep this in mind if there is a need to troubleshoot any password
issues with the remote system.
<GROUPS,LEVEL> contains the groups allowed and security level assigned to
the system. ie. ABC,501 allows groups A, B and C and areas with a security
level equal to or less than 501.
<PRIORITY> is the EMAIL priority associated with the link. In most cases,
you would use CRASH for systems in your local calling area and NORMAL or
HOLD for long-distance links. Valid priorities are: Immediate, Crash,
Normal and Hold.
<RESCAN OK?> asks whether the specified system should be allowed to
request a complete rescan of a conference as it is added. Normally,
this is acceptable, but if your system is particularly busy, you may
want to disallow this by answering NO.
<FWD REQ?> determines whether requests for unavailable requested areas
will be forwarded to your ECHO hub(s). If you answer Yes, all unknown
requests will be passed along to the first applicable ECHOhub. As per
the next question, you should specify an AREAS.BBS file for forwarding. It
is not required however.
<AREAS.BBS> specifies the filename of the system's AREAS.BBS file to
use when forwarding requests. This should only be specified for the
systems which are your ECHOmail hubs or feeds. Any conference listed
in this file may be requested by other allowed systems. Make sure these
lines are listed in the desired search order.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
84
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REMOVE EMPTY PASSTHRUS
Remove empty passthrus? Yes (Yes/No)
Hub systems which carry many passthru areas may wish to remove unused
conferences automatically. D'Bridge will erase these unused areas a few
days after the last ECHOmail feed is cut. AREAFIX TIMEOUT DAYS controls
the number of inactive days to wait before killing the last feed and
sending an AREAFIX request to your feed, removing the conference.
Note: An area will not be removed if it is set to be "permanent".
AREAFIX TIMEOUT DAYS
Request timeout days? 3
This parameter controls the number of days to wait for a new ECHOmail
or TIC conference to arrive after forwarding a request. After this many
days, if a new conference requested has not been received, a message is
generated to the original requesting system, explaining why their request
was not honored.
This also controls the number of days before removing a passthru area
with no links left.
Note: An area will not be removed if it is set to be "permanent".
UNKNOWN AREA FORWARDING
Unknown area forwarding:
Here, you may specify the address of an ECHOmail or EchoFILE/TIC hub to
use "blindly", forwarding AREAFIX/FILEFIX requests for unknown areas. If
the area is not found in any listed AREAS.BBS file, it will be sent to the
specified system.
The system must first be specified with proper password in the AREAFIX/
FILEFIX INFORMATION window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.06 PACKET MAIL CONTROL
85
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SHOW MAIL WAITING
Show personal mail: Yes
When D'Bridge unpacks mail, you can be notified on Netmail and Echomail
messages addressed to you. Answer YES if you want an on-screen reminder
of personal messages or NO if you do not. When you read these messages with
the internal editor, the reminder goes away.
DBRIDGE.PMT (Personal Mail Total) is a two-line text file. The first line
is the number of personal NETmail messages and the second is for Echomail.
DBRIDGE.PMW (Personal Mail Waiting) is a text file containing a short
description of whats waiting to be read. If you are using BBS software or
some other editor to read your messages, be sure to erase both of these
files when done otherwise the reminder will remain or not be accurate.
D'Bridge also has an ability to call an external program when personal
messages are received and the AUDIO ALARMS setting in Config-Basic is
enabled. It will check for the presence of a batch file called PLAYMAIL.BAT
and run it if found. This allows you to play sound-files or run something
of your choice the moment you receive a personal message. Some obsessive-
compulsive users manipulate PLAYMAIL as a way to send an Internet email or
text message containing the list of personal mail waiting.
For more information on this, please look at the included PLAYMAIL.ZIP file.
A sample .WAV file and player is included for Microsoft Windows computers.
For "real-DOS", there are many simular freeware programs for Sound Blaster
cards, Tandy 1000 or others... even the PC speaker. Whatever you decide to
run, you MUST be sure that it does not require any input or the system will
halt until you intervene.
If there are certain names you do NOT wish to be notified when mail
arrives addressed to you, create a simple text-file with those names, one
per line, in a file called DBRIDGE.IPN (Ignore Personal Names).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.07 TIC AREA SETUP
86
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3.07 TIC AREA SETUP
TIC AREAS:
This screen allows you to configure each of the fileecho/TIC areas available
on your system.
Codeword: NODEDIFF
The CODEWORD is a word from 1 to 16 characters which you designate as a
mnemonic reference to an area. It could be a word like NODEDIFF for node
"diff" files or GRAPHICS for image files. CODEWORDs must be unique - the
words "NETMAIL" and "BADECHO" are predefined by the system and may not be
used here.
Alert flag: D
If you wish to be notified (on the status line) about new files in this
area, specify a one character "flag" here. When files are received, the
mailer will show it by listing the defined "flag" character on the right
side of the bottom status line.
Security level: 500
The SECURITY LEVEL is used by the FILEFIX subsystem to allow other
systems to automatically add or delete themselves from Fileecho links.
Security levels range from 0 to 9999; if a system has a security
level of 50, it has access to all areas with a SECURITY LEVEL of 50
or less. If you don't want anyone to have access to an area, define
its level to be 9999.
Group/Sort: A1
GROUP/SORT is a two-byte field; the first character is the FILEFIX access
group; the second is the sort code for use with DBUTIL SORT AREAS.
In FILEFIX, each area is assigned a GROUP code. Each system with a FILEFIX
password also has one or more group codes associated with it. Only those
systems with matching GROUP codes have access to a given area.
Description: Weekly Nodelist/Nodediff files
This description field will be used throughout the system to describe the
conference.
Storage method: Directory (Or N for None/Passthru)
This question is where you specify if the files will reside on your system.
If NONE is specified, the area is regarded as an area "passing through"
your system. The files will not be stored on this system, just forwarded
to the specified systems.
If "Files.BBS" is specified, then the file is stored on your system along
with its listing in FILES.BBS updated with the description. There are two
types of FILES.BBS files. Standard and Extended. Standard means only a one-
line description is added. Extended means the full description is added
after the first line with a plus-sign (+) beside each description line.
Directory path: C:\FILES\NODEDIFF
The DIRECTORY PATH is any DOS directory where D'Bridge should store the
received files for this conference. It may be a local drive and path or
a drive and path that is "mapped" from another computer on a network.
Conference name: NODEDIFF
Each fileecho area must have a unique CONFERENCE NAME. This may be the
same as or different from the CODEWORD specified above, but must reflect
the actual fileecho name or conference tag specified in the corrosponding
TIC files that arrive with the files.
The CONFERENCE NAME may be up to 54 characters and must not contain any
spaces; when creating a new fileecho conference, it is suggested your
CONFERENCE TAG should not exceed 16 characters if at all possible to
maintain compatibility with other systems.
NOTE: D'Bridge does not allow "NETMAIL" or "BADECHO" to be used as
conference names. Those two names are reserved by the internal mail
processor.
Alias address: 1:229/427
If you are a member of more than one network, it might be necessary to
use an "alias" address on a fileecho area. This means that the address
put on the ORIGIN-LINE of the outgoing TIC files will be different than
your primary address. Most systems would leave this blank.
Default priority: Normal (Immediate/Crash/Normal/Hold)
For each conference, you specify a DEFAULT PRIORITY for forwarding of
fileecho files and TIC's. Choose either IMMEDIATE, CRASH, NORMAL or
HOLD; This default may be overridden for any specific system.
Forward to: 1:110/68 22 .20
The FORWARD TO fields allow you to specify a list of systems to whom you
wish to forward files received in this conference. You may specify as many
systems as will fit on the lines available; the systems should be separate
by spaces and be in the format:
ZONE:NET/NODE[,PRIORITY] or .POINT[,PRIORITY]
Here's an example:
1:18/0 1:105/3 1:110/22,C .20,H
In this example, 1:110/22 has CRASH priority as an override and .20 has
HOLD priority specified. Please note that you may only forward files to
points or your own node. You may not forward files to a point system of
another node.
DBRIDGE.DFQ
A new file, DBRIDGE.DRQ (Deny Request), can be created containing the
area name, a space, and the system of which Areafix messages can be denied
to. The remote system will see an "Area unavailable" message if they are
listed in this file and attempt to request the area and the area will NOT
show up in any list-requests.
For example: SECRET_AREA 1:229/500
Means that SECRET_AREA is not available to be requested by 229/500.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.07 TIC AREA SETUP
87
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TIC ACTIONS
This screen allows you to configure actions to take when certain TIC
files arrive on your system. A good example would be to automatically
copy new Nodelists or node "Diffs" to your Nodelist directory.
Codeword: NODEDIFF
The CODEWORD is a word from 1 to 16 characters which you designate as a
mnemonic reference to an area. It could be a word like NODEDIFF for node
"diff" files or GRAPHICS for image files. CODEWORDs must be unique - the
words "NETMAIL" and "BADECHO" are predefined by the system and may not be
used here.
Description: Weekly Fidonet NodeDIFF
The DESCRIPTION of the action is entered here, and is for your reference.
FileMask: NODEDIFF.*
This is where you specify the filename or "wildcard" to match for this
action when TIC files arrive.
Action: CopyFile (Copy/Move/Hatch/NoForward/Exec)
This is where you specify the action to take. COPY means copy the TIC file
to a DOS directory of your choice. MOVE will move the TIC file from one
area to another. HATCH means to create a new TIC in a specified area.
NOFORWARD means to not forward that TIC file to any systems, and EXEC
means to execute a DOS command.
Run once-only? No
If you answer YES, D'Bridge will delete this action when it has been
executed. Otherwise, answer NO if this is to be a "permanent" action.
Weekdays: [ ] All [ ] Sun [ ] Mon [ ] Tues [ ] Wed [ ] Thu [ ] Fri [ ] Sat
Specify the applicable WEEKDAYS that this action should run on, or answer
ALL if this action is allowed to run all the time.
FromArea: NODEDIFF To area: NEW_AREA
Specify the appropriate TIC AREA that this acion applies to.
Path: C:\DB
If you are copying TIC files from an area into a DOS directory, specify
that directory path here.
DOS commands: DOTHIS.BAT
If this action is to execute a DOS command, specify that command or batch
file here.
LDesc: The NodeDIFF is the weekly "difference" in Fidonet nodelists
Replaces: SOMEFILE.*
MagicName: SOMENAME
These three questions apply to hatching new TIC files only.
Suspend: No
If you answer YES to this question, files received in this area will NOT be
forwarded to any downlinks listed in the FORWARD-TO section. This can be
useful for temporarily "suspending" TIC processing for a given area. The
default answer is obviously NO, meaning process/forward normally.
Permanent: No
If you answer YES to this question, D'Bridge will NOT remove this area
if there are no passthru-links left, if you answered YES to "Remove
empty passthrus". The area will also not be removed by using the DBUTIL
REMOVEDEADECHOS command. The default answer is NO.
Forced: No
If you answer YES to this question, D'Bridge will not allow any system
to unsubscribe/"Un-Filefix" themselves from this area. The default answer
is NO.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
88
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3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
The XMAIL CONTROL screen allows you to configure the various compression
and decompression software that is used to bundle XMAIL packets. Parameters
include:
- XMAIL processing interval
- Size limits
- Default format
- Specific formats
- ZIP, LHA, ARJ, PAK, ARC, RAR and ZOO Compress and Decompress commands
D'Bridge comes with the PK-ZIP/UNZIP and ARC software programs, and already
is preconfigured to use the right parameters. It is not really necessary
to obtain the programs needed to handle compression formats other than ZIP
or ARC unless you have some sort of special setup with other Sysops.
XMAIL PROCESSING INTERVAL
XMAIL processing interval: 30 (minutes)
This parameter specifies the minimum time interval between XMAIL processing
cycles. In the above example, there will be a 30 minute delay between the
end of one cycle and the start of the next. Any XMAIL received during this
delay period will not be processed immediately. At the end of the period,
processing will resume automatically.
XMAIL PACKET SIZE LIMIT
XMAIL packet size limit: 200 (kilobytes)
This parameter controls the maximum size of outbound ECHOmail .PKT files.
When ECHOmail is scanned or forwarded, a new packet is started when the
origin address changes, or the packet size limit is exceeded. Making
this field smaller than 50k is not a good idea; neither is exceeding 250k
in a network using mailers other than D'Bridge.
The default setting is 200k and should NOT be changed under most
circumstances.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
89
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XMAIL PROTECTION
There are two questions in the CONFIG - XMAIL screeny, RATIO and
COUNT. These settings are designed to add some basic protection against
a rare form of suspicious XMAIL archives received on your system.
By default, these should be left at the default settings. Keep in mind
that Fidonet and most "Othernets" in recent years almost never see this
form of abuse.
RATIO means that if the compression ratio within the XMAIL archive appears
to be beyond a reasonable percentage, then the archive is treated as
suspicious.
Likewise for COUNT. If the number of files within the archive exceed a
specified amount, the archive is treated as suspicious.
These settings have no effect if an XMAIL archive program uses a "suffix".
WARNING: Only experienced operators should change these setetings.
COMPRESSED MAIL FORMAT
Compressed mail format: ZIP [Press SPACE to change]
This specifies the default compression format for outbound XMAIL files.
Choose either ZIP, LHA, ARJ, PAK, ARC, ZOO or RAR.
D'Bridge is capable of unpacking any of these archives, providing the
decompression program is correctly specified.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
90
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ALTERNATE COMPRESSION FORMATS
System-specific formats: ARJ 1:110/68
This field allows you to define specific compression formats for certain
systems. This is a rare option but is here incase its needed. The format
is as follows:
<ZIP/LHA/ARJ/PAK/ARC/ZOO/RAR> <filter>
ie.
ARC ALL EXCEPT 1:110/68 .10 .20
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
ZIP COMPRESS COMMAND
ZIP compress command: +PKZIP -M
ZIP is arguably the most popular compression format and D'Bridge supports
the use of PKZIP by Phil Katz or the open-source InfoZIP project.
This specifies the command to move files to a ZIP archive. For PKZIP,
the -M (move files) option must be specified. For Info-ZIP's "zip.exe"
program, the case-sensitive -m and -D options are specified to move
files and strip directory prefixing, ie. +C:\DB\zip.exe -m -D
A plus sign (+) is required before running PKZIP, to tell D'Bridge to swap
itself out of memory and give more memory to the PKZIP program.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the ZIP format.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
91
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ZIP DECOMPRESS COMMAND
ZIP decompress command: +PKUNZIP -O
ZIP is arguably the most popular compression format and D'Bridge supports
the use of PKUNZIP by Phil Katz or the open source Info-ZIP project.
This specifies the command to extract files from a ZIP archive. PKUNZIP
requires the -O option to overwrite existing files. Info-ZIP's "unzip.exe"
program requires the case-senstive -o and the -j options to overwrite
files and strip directory prefixing. In addition, the pipe-code and -d
directory-output command is required, ie. +C:\DB\unzip.exe -o -j | -d
A plus sign (+) is required before running PKUNZIP, to tell D'Bridge to
swap out of memory and give more memory to the PKUNZIP program.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the ZIP format.
LHA COMPRESS COMMAND
LHA compress command: LHA M -M
This specifies the command to move files to a LHA archive. LHA requires
the M command and the -M option.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the LHA format.
LHA DECOMPRESS COMMAND
LHA decompress command: LHA E -CM
This specifies the command to extract files from a LHA archive. LHA
requires the E command and the -CM option to overwrite existing files.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the LHA format.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
92
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ARJ COMPRESS COMMAND
ARJ compress command: +ARJ M
This specifies the command to move files to an ARJ archive. ARJ requires
the M command.
Note that recent shareware versions of ARJ have a "nag screen" asking you
to register your copy of ARJ. Unless you do this, this screen will appear
every time the ARJ program is called. For this reason, it is not
recommended to use ARJ for mail compression nor is ARJ included here.
A plus sign (+) is required before running the ARJ program, to tell
D'Bridge to swap out of memory and give more memory to the ARJ program.
ARJ is a rare format nowadays and should not be used.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the ARJ format or replacing ARJ with JAR.
ARJ DECOMPRESS COMMAND
ARJ decompress command: +ARJ E -y
This specifies the command to extract files from an ARJ archive. ARJ
requires the E command to decompress and the -y switch to automatically
answer "yes" when it asks if you wish to update (overwrite) files.
A plus sign (+) is required before running the ARJ program, to tell
D'Bridge to swap out of memory and give more memory to the ARJ program.
Note that recent shareware versions of ARJ have a "nag screen" asking you
to register your copy of ARJ. Unless you do this, this screen will appear
every time the ARJ program is called. For this reason, it is not
recommended to use ARJ for mail compression nor is ARJ included here.
ARJ is a rare format nowadays and should not be used.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the ARJ format or replacing ARJ with JAR.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
93
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAK COMPRESS COMMAND
PAK compress command: PAK M
This specifies the command to move files to a PAK archive.
PAK requires the M command.
PAK is a rare format nowadays and should not be used.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the PAK format.
PAK DECOMPRESS COMMAND
PAK decompress command: PAK E /WA
This specifies the command to extract files from a PAK archive.
PAK requires the E command to decompress and the /WA option
to overwrite existing files.
PAK is a rare format nowadays and should not be used.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the PAK format.
ARC COMPRESS COMMAND
ARC compress command: ARC M
This specifies the command to move files to an ARC archive.
ARC requires the M option to move the files to the archive.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the ARC format.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
94
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ARC DECOMPRESS COMMAND
ARC decompress command: ARC EO
This specifies the command to extract files from an ARC archive.
ARC requires the E option to actually extract the files, and
the O option to overwrite any existing files.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the ARC format.
ZOO COMPRESS COMMAND
ZOO compress command: ZOO -M
This specifies the command to move files to a ZOO archive.
ZOO requires the -M command.
ZOO is a rare format nowadays and should not be used.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the ZOO format.
ZOO DECOMPRESS COMMAND
ZOO decompress command: ZOO -E
This specifies the command to extract files from a ZOO archive.
ZOO requires the -E command.
ZOO is a rare format nowadays and should not be used.
Note: Technical support will not be provided for running other "archiver"
programs that handle the ZOO format.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.08 XMAIL CONTROL
95
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RAR COMPRESS COMMAND
RAR compress command: +RAR32 M
Specify the command to compress a RAR archive. RAR requires the M
parameter to move files into the archive. A plus sign (+) is required
before calling the RAR program. RAR requires at least a 386 processor.
If you are running D'Bridge under OS/2 Warp, you may first have to set
the "DPMI Enabled" setting to YES under the DOS Session Properties screen.
RAR DECOMPRESS COMMAND
RAR decompress command: +RAR32 E -O+
This specifies the command to extract files from a RAR archive.
Note that the RAR command requires the E parameter to extract files
and the -O+ parameter to overwrite existing files. A plus sign (+)
is required before calling the RAR program.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.09 TIME CONTROL SYSTEM
96
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.09 TIME CONTROL SYSTEM
The TIME CONTROL SYSTEM screen allows you to set time-related parameters
and display historical data. Functions and parameters include:
- UTC offset
- Daylight savings time status
- Timezone names
- Default ClockSync systems
- Remote clock history
- Adjustment history
Note that the ClockSync features require a modem.
OBSERVE DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME
Observe DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME at this site? Yes
In most locations, the time changes twice a year for daylight
savings time. If your country/state observes this, answer Yes.
ADJUST MAIL EVENTS
* NOTE * This feature is not currently supported.
ADJUST CLOCKSYNC EVENTS
* NOTE * This feature is not currently supported.
ADJUST DOS EVENTS
* NOTE * This feature is not currently supported.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.09 TIME CONTROL SYSTEM
97
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DAYLIGHT TIME STARTS
Daylight time starts: 04/23/92
Specify the date on which daylight savings time starts. If daylight
time is currently in effect, use the date last spring when it started.
If it is late fall or winter and daylight savings time is not in
effect, use the date on which it will start next spring.
DAYLIGHT TIME ENDS
Daylight time ends: 10/21/92
Specify the date on which daylight savings time ends. Always make sure
the ending date is greater than the starting date, next spring.
DAYLIGHT TIME CHANGES
Time of automatic change: 02:01
Specify the exact time at which daylight savings time changes. In the USA
it is always 2:01 on a Sunday morning in the spring and fall. For times
in the afternoon, make sure to use 24-hour format (ie. 13:00 is 1:00pm).
LOCAL STANDARD TIME
Name of local STANDARD time: Eastern Standard Time
Specify the name of your timezone during standard time.
LOCAL STANDARD TIME ABBREVIATION
Abbreviation for local STANDARD time: EST
Specify the commonly accepted abbreviation for your local standard time.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.09 TIME CONTROL SYSTEM
98
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LOCAL DAYLIGHT TIME
Name of local DAYLIGHT time: Eastern Daylight Time
Specify the name of your timezone during daylight savings time.
LOCAL DAYLIGHT TIME ABBREVIATION
Abbreviation for local DAYLIGHT time: EDT
Specify the commonly accepted abbreviation for your local daylight time.
DISPLAY TIME DATA
Display comparative time data? No
On inbound as well as outbound calls D'Bridge will compare its time
with that on other systems it connects to. If you want this data to
be displayed in the LOG window, answer Yes here.
TIME WARNING THRESHOLD
Display average time-difference if: 5 minute(s) or more
On inbound as well as outbound calls D'Bridge will compare its time
with that on other systems it connects to. A history is kept and
average differences are computed. If you wish to see a warning when
the average time difference exceeds a certain threshold, specify the
number of minutes here.
In this example, a warning will be displayed when the average time
difference exceeds 5 minutes.
To reset this warning display, you will need to Zero the clock history
screen.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.09 TIME CONTROL SYSTEM
99
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CLOCK HISTORY FOR
Store data from the clocks on: ALL
Specify a filter controlling which systems will be included in
your time/clock history screen. If there are some systems you
wish to exclude, use: ALL EXCEPT nnn/nnn nnn/nnn ... etc.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
CLOCKSYNC SYSTEM
Always synchronize clock with: 1:3601/14
You have the option of setting your clock using a certain system both on
demand and every time you connect with it. In this example, my system
will always synchronize its clock to 1:3601/14, a "D'Bridge Universal
TimeBase."
In most cases, leave this blank.
AUTOMATIC CLOCKSYNC SYSTEM
Default ClockSync timebase: Atomic clock
If you start D'Bridge with the clock obviously wrong, it will set its
clock using the specified system. Leaving it blank will make it call
the atomic clock at the U.S. Naval Observatory near Washington D.C.
The only time this happens automatically is when the date is set to
before this release of D'Bridge occurred -- the clock is wrong without
a doubt. (This occurs when there is no battery-backed clock on an
XT most frequently.)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.09 TIME CONTROL SYSTEM
100
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CLOCK SET COMMAND
DOS command after clock adjustment:
Some computers, usually XTs, require a command to be issued to set
the battery-backed clock which is not on the motherboard. If you own
such a clock, you probably know what this means. If you don't, leave
this field blank.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.10 FUNCTION KEYS
101
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3.10 FUNCTION KEYS
The FUNCTION KEYS screen allows you to define programmable function keys
for use within D'Bridge.
USER FUNCTION
There are 19 programmable function keys that may be made available from
the main menu or D'Bridge idle state. F2 through F10 and ALT-F1 through
ALT-F10 may be programmed to execute any number of DOS commands or spe-
cial functions.
As well as DOS commands, the following functions are available here:
/----------------+-----------------------------------------------------------\
| +(command) | Causes D'Bridge to swap to disk, leaving more memory |
| | available to the application. |
| | |
| -(command) | Causes the command to be executed inside the queue |
| | window. Only use this for programs that do standard |
| | DOS I/O. |
| | |
| *R | This will force a rescan of the queue. Same as ALT-Q |
| | |
| *L | This will be replaced with the current line/node number |
| | |
| *S | This will force a complete ECHOmail rescan. |
| | |
| *X<errorlevel> | This causes an exit with the specified DOS errorlevel. |
| | |
| | Errorlevels 250, 251 and 252 are reserved by D'Bridge. |
\----------------+-----------------------------------------------------------/
* NOTE * You must NEVER load a TSR using this method. It will cause
a system crash when D'Bridge resumes.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.11 BBS CONFIGURATION
102
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3.11 BBS CONFIGURATION
The BBS CONFIGURATION screen allows you to set up an interface between your
BBS system and D'Bridge. Parameters include:
- EMAIL calls only text
- Press ESC for BBS text
- Loading BBS text and filename
- Human caller timeout
- BBS online hours
- After hours file
- Minimum baud rate
- Too slow file
- ECHOmail scan
- DOS commands for BBS
BBS SOFTWARE INSTALLED
BBS software installed? Yes
If you are using D'Bridge as the "front-end" for a bulletin board system
(BBS), answer "YES" to this question. If you do not want D'Bridge to run
another program (such as a BBS) when "humans" call, specify "NO."
If D'Bridge is being ran "on the line" from a Telnet server or requires
an immediate exit upon hangup, please create the semaphore/dummy file
LINExxx.OTL, where xxx is the line number. Optionally, you may specify
in this file the connected baudrate, ie. 38400.
EMAIL CALLS ONLY TEXT
"EMAIL calls only" text: Please hang up... accepting EMAIL calls only.
If a human caller dials in when D'Bridge is not accepting human callers
during the current mail event, this line of text will be displayed on
the caller's terminal. This is also displayed if you have answered No
to "BBS software installed."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.11 BBS CONFIGURATION
103
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PRESS ESC FOR BBS TEXT
"Press ESC for BBS" text: Press the ESC key twice to access the BBS.
When someone first dials into D'Bridge, it displays its copyright notice
and this text. You may specify any message you wish to replace the stan-
dard message, but remember you should inform the caller to 'press the
ESC key twice for faster access' in this line.
LOADING BBS TEXT
"Loading BBS" text: BBS now loading - Please wait...
This text will be displayed when a human caller presses the ESC key
twice or the "human caller timeout" has expired. This is to inform
the caller that the BBS is currently loading and that he should wait.
LOADING BBS FILE
"Loading BBS" file: C:\DB\LOADBBS.TXT
If you wish to display some sort of "banner" file when the BBS is
loading, specify the name of a text file here. You may use ANSI codes
and IBM graphics if you wish, but keep in mind that not all callers
have computers compatible with IBM ANSI. You're best off keeping it
printable ASCII (32-126 decimal).
HUMAN CALLER TIMEOUT
"Human" caller timeout: 20
Specify the number of seconds D'Bridge should wait before determining
that a call is "human" and not an EMAIL call. The minimum value for
this field is 10 (seconds), but you may want to make this time longer
if you have "noisy" phone lines or trouble with inbound connections.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
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BBS ONLINE HOURS
BBS online hours: 06:00 until 23:00
This field allows you to specify the hours of operation for your BBS.
If a human caller is detected outside of these hours, the "After hours"
file will be transmitted and D'Bridge will hang-up. This is another
way besides the use of mail events to restrict BBS access times.
AFTER HOURS FILE
"After hours" file: C:\DB\BBSHOURS.TXT
If you restrict the hours of operation of your BBS, you need to prepare
a text file in which you explain your policy to human callers. Specify
the name of a text file here; it will be transmitted to all human callers
dialing in outside the specified time frame.
MINIMUM BAUD RATE
Minimum baud rate: 1200
If you wish to restrict BBS access to those callers that have a faster
modem, specify the minimum allowable baud rate here. In this example,
300 baud callers will be rejected and the "Too slow" file will be sent.
If you don't care about the baudrate, just leave this question blank.
TOO SLOW FILE
"Too slow" file: C:\DB\TOOSLOW.TXT
If you have specified a minimum baud rate for BBS access, this file
will be transmitted to callers with slower modems. If you're going
to reject callers based on baud rate, the least you can do is explain
your policy...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.11 BBS CONFIGURATION
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DOS COMMANDS FOR BBS
DOS commands for BBS: +BBS /LINE 1 /BAUD 14400
Here, you specify the DOS commands that will be used to invoke the BBS,
telling it you already have a caller on. It is highly recommended to
swap D'Bridge out of memory by placing a plus-sign (+) infront of the
command to load the BBS. This will ensure the BBS has the most amount
of memory available when running.
There are several "special" commands that substitute values or cause
an EXIT. Refer to the manual of your BBS software for which commands
you need to configure this correctly. You may refer to the BBS SYSTEMS
help section for some examples.
NOTE: Do NOT use commands to redirect DOS console output. Always remember
that no matter the commands you specify; special care must be taken
to ensure the program does not require any interaction from you.
/----------------+-----------------------------------------------------------\
| +(command) | Causes D'Bridge to swap to disk, leaving more memory |
| | available to the application program. |
| | |
| -(command) | Causes the command to be executed inside the queue |
| | window. Only use this for programs that do standard |
| | DOS I/O. |
| | |
| *B | This is replaced by the baud rate of the connection. |
| | |
| *C | This is replaced by the actual or translated connect |
| | string from the modem. |
| | |
| *P | This is replaced by the comm port number (1-8) |
| | |
| *L | This is replaced by the number of the current line/node |
| | |
| *R | This will force a rescan of the queue. Same as ALT-Q |
| | |
| *S | This will force a scan of ECHOmail after the call. |
| | |
| *T | This is replaced by number of minutes until the next |
| | event defined in "schedule maintenance." |
| | |
| *X | This causes an exit with the errorlevel corresponding |
| | to the baud rate divided by 100. ie. 1200 baud = 12 |
| | |
| *X<errorlevel> | This causes an exit with the specified DOS errorlevel. |
| | |
| | Errorlevels 250, 251 and 252 are reserved by D'Bridge. |
\----------------+-----------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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3.11 BBS CONFIGURATION
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As an example, here's what my DOS BBS COMMANDS field looks like to run
Opus, then execute the MYMAIL program (An Opus MAIL-CHECK program by
Steve Sullivan):
cd \opus
opus opus -t*t -p*p -b*b
mymail -u
When a caller dials in at 2400 baud with 120 minutes until the next
event, D'Bridge runs the following DOS commands:
cd \opus
opus opus -t120 -p1 -b2400
mymail -u
After all these commands are complete, D'Bridge initializes the modem
and returns to its previous status (Mail event, IDLE, etc.).
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS
107
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3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS
The SECURITY/MISCELLANEOUS screen allows you to setup various parameter
which affect security and other settings. For security settings relating
to packets, see PACKET/MAIL CONTROL.
The settings in the screen include:
- Hang-up on security violation
- Ignore unauthorized mail packets
- Rename unauthorized/unknown files
- Allow unlisted nodes to send mail
- File request controls
- Session passwords
- Automatic password request control
- Function requests
- Gateways
- External receivers
- Fidonet and WaZOO protocol overrides
HANG UP ON SECURITY VIOLATION
Hang-up on security violation? No
If you are using SESSION PASSWORDS to protect any or all of your
links, you may choose to hang-up and not accept any mail from any
system with a missing or invalid password. This option has no effect
on systems that have no password specfied. Used in conjunction with
Secured ECHOmail only, this provides a fairly good security method
for ECHOmail traffic.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
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IGNORE UNAUTHORIZED MAIL PACKETS
Ignore unauthorized mail packets? No
If you are using SESSION PASSWORDS to protect any or all of your
links, you may choose to completely ignore incoming mail from a link
using the wrong (or no) password. If you indeed wish to ignore this
mail, specify Yes to this field. If you want to receive the mail
normally, answer No.
Unauthorized mail that comes in will be renamed to BAD-MAIL.001,
BAD-MAIL.002, etc.
RENAME UNAUTHORIZED INBOUND FILES
Rename unauthorized inbound files? Yes
You may choose to rename file-attachments that come in from unknown/unlisted
systems or from systems that connect with an incorrect password. D'Bridge
will rename the files to BAD-ATCH.001, BAD-ATCH.002, etc.
The reason for doing this is to prevent unauthorized ECHOMAIL and FUNCTION
REQUESTS from being executed. Specify Yes if you want to automatically
rename incoming files or No if you want to receive them normally.
ALLOW UNLISTED NODES TO SEND MAIL
Allow unlisted nodes to send mail? Yes
In a private network, possibly the BEST way to discourage hackers from
the outside is to hang-up on them immediately. If you specify Yes to
this question, D'Bridge will immediately reject any incoming call from
a system not listed in your nodelist. This should only be used in a
private network - public networks often have communications from new
addresses or private addresses that are not in the nodelist (yet).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
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FILE REQUESTS FOR UNLISTED NODES
File-requests for unlisted nodes? Yes
If you support file-requests, you must decide whether or not you wish
to allow systems that are NOT in your nodelist to request files. Some
people (kids, usually) will abuse your system's file-request privilege
by calling back many times, using many fake node numbers to file-request.
If you say Yes to this question, any system, listed or not will be able
to issue file-requests. If you say No then only requests from systems
found in your nodelist will be honored.
TIME LIMIT FOR FILE REQUESTS
Time limit for file-requests: 30 (minutes)
When you are running a public system, you may find you have trouble with
people abusing the file-request privilege by constantly requesting too
many files and keeping your system busy for hours. D'Bridge allows you
to limit the time allowed for file-requests. Here you may limit the num-
ber of minutes allowed before refusing to honor a request.
NOTE: This setting has no effect for file-requests via the Internet BinkD
subsystem.
FILE REQUEST LIMIT
File-request limit: 500 (kilobytes)
You may limit the total number of kilobytes allowed for file-request
by specifying it here. It is suggested you make this larger than the
biggest file you have available for request.
If this is left blank or zero, there will be no limit applied.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS
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MAXIMUM FILES FOR FILE REQUEST
Maximum files for file-request: 10
You may limit the total number of files allowed for request. This
is really not as meaningful as the other limits because time is the
main factor requiring a limitation.
If this is left blank or zero, no total-limit will be applied.
ENFORCE LIMITS FOR 24 HOURS
Enforce limits for 24-hours? No
If you wish to accumulate these file-request limits for a 24-hour
period, answer Yes here. If you want the limits enforced on a
per-call basis, answer No. If the limits are enforced for 24-hours,
a file is created containing the address, timestamp and limit data.
The limit will be reset exactly 24-hours from the START of the first
file-request. If you must manually reset these limits, delete the
file "DBRIDGE.FRS."
MINIMUM BAUD RATE FOR REQUESTS
Minimum baud rate for request? 1200
This specifies the minimum link rate (baud) allowed for file-requests.
(300/1200/2400/4800/9600... Etc.)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
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SESSION PASSWORDS
Session passwords: 1:3601/14 SECRET
You may specify a SESSION PASSWORD for each system you plan to communicate
with directly. This password must be specified by BOTH systems and must be
agreed upon in advance. Once in place, it becomes impossible to communicate
with the other system if you don't use the same password.
For a password with 135/20, type:
135/20 WALLY (Where "WALLY" is the desired SESSION PASSWORD)
Any number of session passwords may be defined. Remember, in the above
example, it is important 135/20 also sets up a session password for my
address, 110/68, or it won't work. Both ends must use the same password!
Passwords are case sensitive and also apply as the PACKET PASSWORD. There
is a seperate question in CONFIG/PACKET-MAIL CONTROL if there is a desire
to have a different packet password.
For maximum compatibility with other Fidonet software products, it is
recommended to have a packet password no more than 8 characters.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
AUTOMATIC PASSWORD REQUEST FOR
Automatic password request for: 201:ALL 1:110/ALL
D'Bridge has the capability to automatically establish session passwords
with new links. This field specifies a filter that controls which EMAIL
addresses that you wish to request an automatic session password be added.
If you wish to disable this feature, specify NONE as the filter.
This field only affects outbound calls on modems, not Internet sessions.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS
112
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ALLOW PASSWORD REQUESTS FROM
Allow password requests from: ALL
The D'Bridge Automatic Password Request System allows a remote system to
request that a session password be established automatically. If a calling
system makes this request, the answering system creates a random 8-character
password and transmits it back using the EMSI handshake.
This field specifies a filter that controls which EMAIL addresses that you
wish to allow password requests from. If you wish to disable this feature,
specify NONE as the filter.
This field only affects inbound calls to modems, not Internet sessions.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS
113
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FUNCTION REQUESTS
Function requests:
A FUNCTION REQUEST is an online service provided to calling systems
while they are still "on the line". FUNCTION REQUESTS only work with
other WaZOO-based EMAIL systems such as D'Bridge, FrontDoor, Opus and
BinkleyTerm. This is a VERY advanced feature and will not be used by
most systems, so don't feel bad if you don't understand this...
A function request can be defined in four steps:
1) The caller sends the REQUEST FILE.
2) D'Bridge recognizes the filename as being a FUNCTION REQUEST
and spawns the REQUEST SERVER task. (user-provided)
3) The REQUEST SERVER (a program provided by the user) takes its
input data from the REQUEST FILE and the CALLER.FIL file cre-
ated by D'Bridge. It prepares output file(s) to send back to
the caller plus an OUTPUT FILE LIST telling D'Bridge which
files to send.
4) When the REQUEST SERVER has terminated, D'Bridge then transmits
all the files listed in the OUTPUT FILE LIST, deletes them, and
continues to send the rest of the "pickup" mail.
To use this feature, you must either write your own REQUEST SERVER or
use one of the existing systems such as ML-INQ.
The format for the FUNCTION REQUESTS field is:
<REQUEST FILE> <OUTPUT FILE LIST> <DOS COMMAND>
For an example, I'll explain how I run the ML-INQ program on my system.
ML-INQ stands for Megalist Inquiry. The Megalist is another program I
wrote that creates a "master file listing" for all participating Fido
and Opus systems. The list got so huge, I decided to add an on in-
quiry service. To access the MegaList Inquiry feature, the calling sys-
tem simply creates a text file containing a list of filenames to search
for; this file is called MEGALIST.INQ. Anytime D'Bridge receives a file
called MEGALIST.INQ, the REQUEST SERVER "ML-INQ" is executed.
Here's what I have in my FUNCTION REQUEST field:
MEGALIST.INQ MEGALIST.LST ML-INQ
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS
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The ML-INQ program first opens the file "CALLER.INF" to get general
information about the system and the caller. CALLER.INF is a text
file created automatically by D'Bridge just before spawning the REQUEST
SERVER task. Here's what my CALLER.INF contains at the moment:
1:101/200 (The Fidonet address)
TC-Trader (The system name)
Cheryl Buzzell (The operator name)
C:\DB\FILES\ (My INBOUND FILES DIRECTORY path)
ML-INQ then opens the file "C:\DB\FILES\MEGALIST.INQ" to get the actual
request from the caller. Then, it prepares the file "MEGALIST.OUT" con-
taining the results of the search. Finally, ML-INQ creates the OUTPUT
FILE LIST, this time called MEGALIST.LST (in the current directory);
this file contains the list of files to send back to the caller, then
erase. In this case, the OUTPUT FILE LIST only contains MEGALIST.OUT.
Finally, ML-INQ returns control to D'Bridge and the file gets sent and
deleted as specified. The request file, MEGALIST.INQ, is also erased.
A request server may transmit files without erasing them (if they are
available for file-request) simply by creating a WaZOO-style request
file (with the extension .REQ) in the INBOUND FILES DIRECTORY. D'Bridge
will treat these files like inbound file requests.
IMPORTANT: It is essential that any REQUEST SERVER takes no more than
30 seconds to execute. Taking more time than this can cause
the calling system to timeout and hang-up.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
EXTERNAL RECEIVERS
External receivers: CONNECT FAX|*X50
This feature is designed for use with combination modems that also
handle FAX and/or VoiceMail. The above example causes D'Bridge to
exit with errorlevel 50 when a "CONNECT FAX" response is received
from the modem.
The syntax for this field is: <MODEM RESPONSE>|<DOS command>
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS
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EXTERNAL GATEWAYS
External gateways:
Again, this is a VERY advanced feature and will not be used by 99% of
the D'Bridge systems out there; this is for the other 1%:
An EXTERNAL GATEWAY allows D'Bridge to act as a "front-end" for up to
20 other EMAIL receivers at the same time. The way this works, is by
defining a specific "SYNC" sequence; D'Bridge can look for that sequence
and spawn another EMAIL system while the calling system is still on.
This way, D'Bridge can be compatible with as many systems as possible.
As of this time, I know there are gateway programs for UUCP and USENET.
I'm sure there are others I just don't know about.
As an example, let's say I want to install a UUCP mail receiver "on
top" of D'Bridge. I have a program written for the IBM PC which will
receive mail when a call is received. Assuming this program features
an option to respond to a call already in progress and terminate after
finishing the session, it is compatible. The first thing you need to do
is figure out what the SYNC sequence is.
A SYNC sequence is the sequence of bytes the calling system sends to
the receiving system (multiple times) until the receiver responds with
an acknowledgment that it is ready to begin a mail session.
D'Bridge can be programmed to recognize up to 20 separate sequences of
up to 16 bytes each and spawn a different task depending on which one
is received. For example, let's say your UUCP transmitter continuously
sends the sequence: 9F, A9, 9F, A9... (hex) until the receiving system
acknowledges. For this sequence, simply specify your EXTERNAL GATEWAYS
field as:
9F/A9 UUCP_RCV -b*b -p*p
As soon as an incoming call is detected sending the sequence 9F, A9,
D'Bridge will spawn the UUCP mail receiver with the following command
line:
UUCP_RCV -b2400 -p1
Just like described in DOS BBS COMMANDS, the BAUD RATE and PORT NUMBER
can be substituted by using a *B and *P respectively.
It is up to the spawned task (UUCP_RCV in this case) to handle the mail
session from this point on; it should terminate as soon as the mail is
received and make sure it doesn't answer any calls itself.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.12 SECURITY MISCELLANEOUS
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Because of the normal operation of D'Bridge, we've restricted three
characters: 1B (Escape), AE (Fidonet TSYNC), and F1 (WaZOO YOOHOO
character). These three bytes may not be a part of your SYNC string.
It is also suggested you use bytes with high parity (greater than 7F
(hex)) to prevent "human" users from easily activating your alternate
mailer.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
FIDONET PROTOCOL FOR
Fidonet protocol for: NONE
If you want to override the default EMSI/WAZOO protocol D'Bridge uses
and revert to XMODEM/TELINK protocols, specify the NET/NODE filter here.
This field should contain "NONE" in all but the strangest setups.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
WAZOO PROTOCOL FOR
WaZOO protocol for: NONE
If you want to override the default EMSI protocol D'Bridge uses and
revert to the YOOHOO-YOOHOO/2U2 handshake, specify the NET/NODE filter
here. This field should contain "NONE" in all but the strangest setups.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.13 DISK SPACE MINIMUMS
117
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3.13 DISK SPACE MINIMUMS
The DISK SPACE MINIMUM screen allows you to set minimum criteria for system
operation:
- System operation minimum
- BBS operation minimum
- Unpack/forward minimum
In most cases it is not necessary to change the settings in this screen.
System operation: 256
The system operation line specifies the minimum disk space allowed (in Kb)
before D'Bridge will completely shut down. Once shut down, D'Bridge will
not reactivate without human interaction. Either disk space must be
freed, or DB SETUP must be used to change the minimum.
BBS operation: 512
The BBS operation line specifies minimum disk space criteria for BBS
operation. If disk space is below specified criteria, human callers
will be told the BBS is offline due to disk space shortage.
Unpack/forward: 1024
The unpack/forward line specifies the minimum disk space required before
a mail packet may be decompressed or unpacked. Once this limit is
reached, all ECHOmail and NETMAIL unpacking will be halted.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.14 ACCOUNTING TRANSLATION
118
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3.14 ACCOUNTING TRANSLATION
The ACCOUNTING/TRANSLATION screen allows you to set up costing data and
controls which determine where D'Bridge uses a modem to place calls and
when. This system allows for minimum telecommunications cost when NORMAL
priority is used.
PREFIX
Prefix: 1-513-
This is the "key" to the database record. You cannot change it. If
you must, you need to remove and add the record again. The PREFIX field
is the first part of a phone number (which will be replaced with the
TRANSLATE TO field when a number is dialed).
TRANSLATE TO
Translate to: 1-
When phone number are translated, this field will be used to replace the
PREFIX for dialing. The field is actually broken down into two subfields:
PREFIX and SUFFIX. If you need to dial something after the number,
such as a credit card or billing account number, you may specify a SUFFIX
by using a vertical pipe ( | ) to separate the PREFIX from the SUFFIX.
An example would be: 1-305-370|,,3188. ",,3188" would be sent to the modem
after dialing. The two commas represent a modem command meaning "pause a
few seconds before dialing the following digits".
LOCATION
Location: Southwestern Ohio
This is just a description field for your information.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.14 ACCOUNTING TRANSLATION
119
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COST DATA SOURCE
Cost data source: Table
Here, you either specify Table or Xref for the data source. If you
use Xref, you will be prompted for another prefix to cross-reference.
Otherwise, you will use the table listed below...
The box at the bottom of the screen contains the cost information.
In order to keep communications costs low, D'Bridge has adopted a
system of "cost-based control". This means the system can be programmed
to place all calls during the most economical periods based on this
cost screen entirely. The cost-information for calling a given country
or city can be acquired by calling your long-distance company.
Typically, there are different rates on different days and at different
times. This table allows you to specify up to 5 cost-periods for
accounting and control purposes.
When D'Bridge looks at these cost-tables, it searches from the top of
the list to the bottom, stopping on the first match. For this reason,
"catch-all" entries, like the one shown at the bottom of our example
should be listed last. For flexibility and simplicity, you are allowed
to define overlapping periods, but nevertheless D'Bridge will always
select the first applicable period for accounting and control.
Please note that any time-ranges left undefined are assumed "free" and
D'Bridge will actually try to dial out during these times. Therefor:
DON'T LEAVE ANY TIME-RANGE UNSPECIFIED.
REFERENCE PREFIX
Reference prefix: 1-
When using a cross-referenced table, you must specify the prefix whose
table you wish to use for costing and control purposes. The translation
will still be based on the data listed above, but now it will be applied
to the referenced table.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.14 ACCOUNTING TRANSLATION
120
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TABLE WEEKDAYS
All S M T W T F S H
In these fields, specify for which day(s) the costing-line is applicable.
Any non-blank character will designate a weekday. H stands for holiday.
TABLE START TIME
Here, you specify the starting time for the cost period. Make sure you
use 24-hour time format (e.g. 23:00 is 11:00 pm).
TABLE END TIME
In this field, you specify the ending time for the cost period.
TABLE NCI
Here's the CRITICAL part to understand. During a given cost-period, you
may choose which priorities of mail you would like to be sent. In the
NCI field, you may specify any or all of the letters N, C and I, desig-
nating the priorities NORMAL, CRASH and IMMEDIATE. If you list all three
"NCI," then all priorities of mail are allowed to be sent during this
cost-period. If you enter "CI," then just CRASH and IMMEDIATE mail
will be sent. This allows you to send NORMAL priority mail during the
low-cost periods and higher priority mail anytime (that's what this
example shows).
TABLE FIRST PERIOD COST
In this field, enter the cost associated with the first billing period.
This is a decimal number with three digits after the decimal point.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
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TABLE FIRST PERIOD SECONDS
Specify the number of seconds on which the FIRST PERIOD COST field
is based. In the United States, this is normally "60", but other
countries and/or long-distance carriers may have a different billing
increment.
TABLE SUBSEQUENT PERIOD COST
In this field, enter the cost associated with the subsequent billing
periods. This is a number with three digits after the decimal point.
TABLE SUBSEQUENT PERIOD SECONDS
Specify the number of seconds on which the SUBSEQUENT PERIOD COST field
is based. In the United States, this is normally "60", but other
countries and/or long-distance carriers may have a different billing
increment.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.15 ZMODEM PARAMETERS
122
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3.15 ZMODEM PARAMETERS
The ZMODEM PARAMETERS screen allows you to set the behavior of the ZMODEM
protocol which D'Bridge uses to send EMAIL over modem sessions.
The values in this screen should not be changed unless there is a specific
reason to do so. You may press F9 to use "minimums" for troubleshooting
transfer problems over noisy lines, or F10 to set the default settings.
STARTING BLOCK SIZE
This is the block size to be used at the start of a ZMODEM file-transfer.
This must be a power of two between 32 and 8192 (32, 64, 128, 256, 512,
1024, 2048, 4096 or 8192).
MAXIMUM BLOCK SIZE
This is the largest block size D'Bridge will use in ZMODEM. The value
will increase from the STARTING BLOCK SIZE to MAXIMUM BLOCK SIZE using
the BLOCK STEP RATE specified here.
RECOVERY BLOCK SIZE
This is the block size to be used after an error has been reported by
the receiver. Normally, this value should be less than the starting
block size because where there is one error (phone noise) there may im-
mediately be another. Making the recovery block size small reduces the
amount of time it takes the system to recover from bad line noise.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.15 ZMODEM PARAMETERS
123
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BLOCK STEP RATE
When the ZMODEM sender is not receiving error reports from the receiver,
it will increase the block size by doubling it after "x" successful
blocks until it reaches the MAXIMUM BLOCK SIZE specified. The BLOCK
STEP RATE is "x". In other words, it tells the system after how many con-
secutive good blocks it may increase the block size. By default, D'Bridge
uses a factor of 4.
DIRECT ZMODEM
When D'Bridge communicates with other EMAIL systems capable of the DZA or
IZE protocols, you have the option of increasing throughput an average of
1.6% by selecting direct ZMODEM. By answering Yes to this parameter, the
protocol will transmit the XON and XOFF characters transparently rather than
"escaping" them as the ZMODEM specification calls for. If you are having
ZMODEM trouble, try setting this to No to see if it makes a difference.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
3.16 SETUP EDITOR OPTIONS
124
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3.16 SETUP EDITOR OPTIONS
The SETUP EDITOR OPTIONS screen allows you to control the behavior of the
internal editor or configure an external editor such as GoldED or TimED.
EMAIL EDITOR
EMAIL editor: Internal (Internal/GoldEd/TimED/Other)
This selects the EMAIL editor to be used when ALT-E is pressed or the menu
option "READ/EDIT EMAIL" is selected. The default is Internal, but GoldED
and other Fidonet-compatible editors may just as well be used.
Editor version: Original
When GoldEd or TimED are used, the next question is where you specify
what version of the program you are using. Press the SPACE BAR until the
correct version for your editor is shown. If however your version is not
listed, then you should go back up and configure as an "Other" editor. You
will then need to specify the commands that launch that program.
You should only use message editors that specifically state that they will
work with D'Bridge. The use of other editors may not work as desired.
EDITOR REBUILD QUEUE
Rebuild queue? Yes
This parameter gives you the option to automatically rescan the NETmail
area after EMAIL has been entered or deleted. This scan will happen im-
mediately after exiting the editor. If you want the mail scanned automa-
tically, specify Yes here. It will not scan automatically if you spe-
cify No.
Scan ECHOmail? Yes
If you want to send ECHOmail messages immediately after leaving the
editor, specify YES here. The D'Bridge ECHOmail scanner knows what
areas need to be scanned if any. If you don't say YES here, then
ECHOmail will not be sent until an ECHOscan is run either in an event
or manually using the menu option: UTILITIES/Process ECHOmail.
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EDITOR SOUND EFFECTS
Sound effects? Yes
This specifies whether the sound effects will be active in the internal
editor. Usually Yes, or No if noise bothers you.
NOTE: Sounds should be disabled if you are accessing D'Bridge over a
terminal server or RDP connection in Windows.
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EDITOR DEFAULT PRIORITY
DEFAULT: Priority? Normal (Immediate/Crash/Normal/Hold)
This specifies the default priority for EMAIL messages. The priority de-
termines when (if at all) the message will be transmitted from the system.
Four priorities are available, listed here from highest to lowest:
IMMEDIATE When a message is flagged as IMMEDIATE, it has the
ultimate priority on the system. All IMMEDIATE
messages must be transmitted before any other out-
bound calls are possible. Using this priority is
quite effective in getting the mail out fast, but
has the disadvantage of slowing down outbound mail
traffic if the IMMEDIATE systems are busy or not
answering.
CRASH Messages flagged as CRASH are allowed to be sent
anytime, 24-hours a day. Unless a "hold" override
is placed on a system, an EMAIL message with CRASH
priority will be sent during the UNEVENT or any
scheduled event. If entered during the day, CRASH-
priority messages will most-likely be sent at the
highest phone rates.
NORMAL When a message is flagged as NORMAL, it will not
be transmitted until a scheduled mail event occurs.
Using this priority (usually overnight delivery) is
the most cost-effective way to use D'Bridge for EMAIL.
HOLD When a message is flagged as HOLD, it will not be
sent until the destination system polls or another
non-HOLD message is entered. Use HOLD priority if
you intend for most systems to call to pickup their
mail.
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EDITOR FORCED ROUTING
Forced Routing: None (Direct/Hub/None)
Choose the desired routing method for NETmail messages entered using the
internal editor:
DIRECT This designates all messages (by default) to go directly
to the destination systems, bypassing any event-specific
routing controls.
HUB This defaults all messages to be HUB- or HOST-routed.
NONE This defaults to standard routing as defined in each
mail event.
EDITOR DEFAULT PRIVATE
Default private? Yes
This specifies whether the editor will default all new messages to
private status or not. "Private" usually means the EMAIL is only
intended for the receiver. However, you should note that mail can
be read on all systems it passes through (unless the messages are
encrypted somehow). The "Private" status does not work in Echomail.
EDITOR DEFAULT KILL SENT
Default Kill/Sent? No
This specifies the default for the "Kill when sent" flag in the editor.
If you have no use for a copy of outbound mail, you might want to
specify Yes here. Mail flagged KILL/SENT is erased after being sent
to the next destination.
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EDITOR DEFAULT ARCHIVE SENT
Default Archive/Sent? Yes
This specifies the default for the "Archive when sent" flag in the
editor. If you want to save a copy of the outbound mail in a text
file "archive", answer Yes here. When a message is sent, it will
be added to the text file, showing the date and time of transmis-
sion; the original message will subsequently be erased.
EDITOR DEFAULT XMAIL
Default XMAIL? No
This specifies the default setting for the "XMAIL" flag. If set to Yes, all
NETmail entered using the internal editor will, by default, be sent as com-
pressed mail utilizing the compression method defined in the XMAIL CONTROL
screen. When NETmail is marked as XMAIL, it will be marked as sent, deleted
and/or archived when the queue is built, making it impossible to re-edit the
message later.
Unless this is really what you want, it is suggested you specify No here.
Note that the maximum number of Netmails able to be packed into Xmail when
the queue is built is 1024. If you run a system which processes large
amounts of Netmail on a regular basis, it may be necessary to add some DOS
events that "force" the Queue to be rescanned, ie. ECHO > DBRIDGE.RSN so
that the NETmail is always "packed out".
EDITOR DEFAULT INSERT
Default insert? No
This specifies the default state of the "insert mode" in the editor.
Some people prefer to work in insert mode; others don't. If you want
"insert" to be on in the editor by default, answer Yes here.
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EDITOR DEFAULT INTL ADDRESSING
Custom kludges: TZ: -0500
Kludges are "hidden" lines of text in Fidonet messages that contain details
such as the path of the message and zone information. Kludge lines are
used by almost all software out there that allows you to participate in
Fidonet or related networks.
The internal message editor can optionally add your own kludge-lines to
all outgoing messages written by the internal message editor.. Specify the
kludge name, followed by a space, then the value.
WARNING: This is an advanced feature. Fidonet frowns on people inventing
kludge-lines.
EDITOR QUOTE SEENBYS
Quote SEEN-BYs? No
When entering a quoted reply with the internal editor, this field gives you
the option of including ECHOmail SEEN-BY information in the reply text. If
you want this, answer Yes, otherwise specify No.
EDITOR CUSTOM TEAR LINE
This option allows you to specify your own "tear" line that gets added
to outgoing Echomail messages generated from the internal message editor.
This is a feature found in other message editors and I am including it here
as a convenience. Your custom tear line must NOT begin with "-" and must
be less than 20 characters.
If you don't want your own custom tear line, leave it blank, and D'Bridge
will generate one that contains it's version/release information.
Note that this feature only works if you are using the internal editor
to write mail. It will not work if you're using an external message editor
such as GoldEd or you're running BBS software that modifies the tear line.
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ACKNOWLEDGE RRQS
A Return Receipt Request (RRQ) kludge is a flag on a NETmail message to
trigger D'Bridge to send the sender of the message a "receipt"
acknowledging that the message has been read by the receiver.
When a RRQ kludge is encountered, D'Bridge will write a "receipt" NETmail
to the sending system indicating that the original message has been read
for the first time by the receiver. The receipt that gets sent back is a
simple NETmail message indicating the time and date that the message was
read, along with a copy of the original message. The receipt is sent back
to the receiver during the next QueueScan, and is subject to the routing
defined in the SCHEDULER.
Note that the RRQ kludge feature only works for the built-in internal
message editor. It will NOT work with GoldED or any external editors.
The RRQ kludge feature has three options:
YES - The editor will acknowledge RRQ's automatically without your consent.
ASK (Default) - The editor will display a pop-up window when it encounters
a message with the RRQ kludge and ask you if you wish to acknowledge
receipt.
NO - The editor will not acknowledge RRQ's.
The internal editor's "Add Return Receipt" option will only show up in
the menu when you are writing a NETmail message only. It will not be shown
when writing Echomail messages or if the RRQ kludge feature is turned off.
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EDITOR USERS
Valid users: Chris Irwin,SECRET
Here, you specify a list of valid users and their "passwords". The
correct format for a user line with a password is:
<USERNAME>[,<OPTIONAL PASSWORD>]
If more than one line is entered here, every time the editor is run,
you must specify which user you are. This is for the "FROM" field in
the message editor. If you only specify one line, you won't have to
confirm anything (except your password, if specified).
The internal message editor will use the SYSOP NAME by default.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
TAGLINE SUPPORT
D'Bridge has the ability to add a TAGLINE to outgoing messages. Taglines
are nothing more than cute "words of wisdom", and are placed just before
the tear line in the message. For example:
... Work fascinates me. I can sit and watch it for hours.
... The Big Bang is only the universe rebooting.
... NO MESSAGES FOUND. [H]it modem. [S]cream at fido gods. [Y]ell profanity
... Death before dishonor, neither before breakfast.
You get the idea. So, answer this question as follows:
YES - Append a tagline to all messages.
ECHOMAIL ONLY - Append a tagline to Echomail messages only.
NETMAIL ONLY - Append a tagline to NETmail messages only.
ASK - Ask each time if its okay to add a tagline.
DISABLED - Shuts off the tagline support.
The default setting is ECHOMAIL ONLY - Taglines will be added only to
messages in Echomail areas.
The taglines are saved in a text file called DBTAGS.TXT that is read and
indexed by D'Bridge upon starting the internal message editor. Feel free
to modify this file to whatever you like. It is not necessary to add the
three dots (...) before the tagline.
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EDITOR KLUDGE LINES
Kludges are "hidden" lines of text in Fidonet messages that contain details
such as the path of the message and zone information. Kludge lines are
used by almost all software out there that allows you to participate in
Fidonet or related networks.
Answer YES if you wish to view the kludges when reading messages in the
internal editor, or NO if you don't care to read all that extra stuff. The
default is NO.
EDITOR QUOTE STYLE
When replying to a message and quoting the original, you can have the
initials of the original poster before the > symbol. Answer YES if you
want this, or NO if not. This option is set to NO if you are upgrading
from version 2.68 or lower.
EDITOR PATH
Editor path: C:\GOLDED
If you have chosen an external editor as your EMAIL reader/editor, specify
the directory path where this program is located.
EDITOR DOS COMMANDS
DOS commands: C:\MYEDIT\MYEDITOR /C /U
If you have chosen Other as your EMAIL reader/editor, specify the DOS
commands to invoke your editor here.
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3.17 ECHOMAIL AREAS
The ECHOMAIL AREAS screen allows you to define the local and ECHOmail areas
that you wish to use with D'Bridge.
ECHOMAIL CODEWORD
Codeword: DBRIDGE
The CODEWORD is a word from 1 to 16 characters which you designate as a
mnemonic reference to an area. It could be a word like POL for politics
or PROG for programming conference. CODEWORDs must be unique - "NETMAIL"
and "BADECHO" are predefined by the system and may not be used here.
ECHOMAIL ALERT FLAG
Alert flag: D
If you wish to be notified (on the status line) about new mail in this
area, specify a one character "flag" here. When mail is received, the
mailer will show it by listing the defined "flag" character on the right
side of the bottom status line.
ECHOMAIL SECURITY LEVEL
Security level: 500
The SECURITY LEVEL is used by the AREAFIX subsystem to allow other
systems to automatically add or delete themselves from ECHO links.
Security levels range from 0 to 9999; if a system has a security
level of 50, it has access to all areas with a SECURITY LEVEL of 50
or less. If you don't want anyone to have access to an area, define
its level to be 9999.
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ECHOMAIL GROUP SORT
Group/Sort: A1
GROUP/SORT is a two-byte field; the first character is the AREAFIX access
group; the second is the sort code for use with DBUTIL SORT AREAS.
In AREAFIX, each area is assigned a GROUP code. Each system with an AREAFIX
password also has one or more group codes associated with it. Only those
systems with matching GROUP codes have access to a given area.
ECHOMAIL DESCRIPTION
Description: D'Bridge Support Conference
This description field will be used throughout the system to describe the
conference.
ECHOMAIL STORAGE
Storage method: Fido (Or N for None/Passthru)
This question is where you specify which format D'Bridge should store
the Echomail messages in. Any 3rd-party software or BBS should be configured
to use the same settings for this area.
/----------+------------------------------------------------------------\
| FIDO/MSG | Echomail will be stored in Fido *.MSG format. Choose for |
| | compatibility with most 3rd-party editors and utilities. |
| | Messages are stored in individual files. |
| | |
| QUICKBBS | Echomail will be stored in QuickBBS/Hudson or GoldBase |
| | databases; a series of index, header and message files. |
| | Up to 200 areas may be defined for QuickBBS or up to 500 |
| | for the GoldBase edition. The size of the databases must |
| | not exceed 2 gigabytes. |
| | |
| NONE | If NONE is specified, the area is regarded as an area |
| | that "passes through" your system. The messages are not |
| | actually stored on your system, just forwarded to the |
| | specified systems in the FORWARD-TO lines. |
\----------+------------------------------------------------------------/
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ECHOMAIL DATABASE INFORMATION
This question is where you specify either the DIRECTORY PATH for Fido
*.MSG storage or the number or name of the Echomail database for any
other formats.
Directory path: C:\MESSAGES\CHATECHO
For Fido *.MSG storage, enter a valid path to where Echomail will be stored.
QuickBBS #: 23
If QuickBBS is being used to store messages, then each QuickBBS area should
have a unique area number in a range from 1 to 200 (or 500 for
GoldBase). If you accidentally assign the same number to different areas,
you will locally "crosslink" the conferences. Specify a UNIQUE number here
or match your existing BBS setup.
Database name: CHATECHO
If any other storage format is being used, enter the database name here.
The name must be alphanumeric only.
ECHOMAIL DEFAULT PRIVATE
Default private? No
If you want the editor to flag messages as PRIVATE by default, answer Yes.
This only affects the internal message editor when entering or replying to
messages. Most ECHOmail conferences are by nature "public" - Private ECHOmail
can be read by all receiving system operators.
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ECHOMAIL ARCHIVE FILE
Area archive: C:\ECHO\DBRIDGE.TXT
If you want D'Bridge to save a copy of each message purged when DBUTIL
PURGE is run, specify a text file to "archive" them in. Each area may
write messages to a different file, or you may combine several areas into
a single text file. If you don't want to save a copy of the messages, just
leave this field blank.
Archive kludges? No
Answer YES if you wish to have the kludge lines of each message saved into
the text-file archive when DBUTIL PURGE is ran, or NO if you do not.
ECHOMAIL PURGE CRITERIA
Purge except: 100 messages
Purge after: 30 days
In the DBUTIL PURGE program, there are two options for deciding which
messages to erase from the system. When the cursor is on this field,
you may press the F10 key to switch between the methods: PURGE EXCEPT
and PURGE AFTER.
With PURGE EXCEPT, DBUTIL will erase all but "x" messages; specify "x"
in this field as "how many messages to save after purging". With the
PURGE AFTER option, DBUTIL will purge messages based on their age.
PURGE AFTER 30 DAYS means to erase all messages over 30 days old when
the utility is run.
ECHOMAIL PRESERVE MESSAGES
Preserve: 200 messages
In DBUTIL PURGE, you may specify a certain number of messages to ignore
while purging. These will be the lowest-numbered messages in the area
and contain information you don't want erased such as conference rules,
etc.
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ECHOMAIL AREA TYPE
Area type: ECHOmail (ECHOmail/Local)
User-defined areas are either Local or ECHOmail. The default is ECHOmail
and should be left this way under most circumstances.
D'Bridge ignores LOCAL areas except while in the editor; when an ECHOscan is
executed, all ECHOmail areas are scanned for outbound mail.
ECHOMAIL CONFERENCE NAME
Conference name: DBRIDGE
Each ECHOmail area must have a unique CONFERENCE NAME. This may be the
same as or different from the CODEWORD specified above, but must reflect
the actual ECHOmail name or conference tag used for the specified area.
The CONFERENCE NAME may be up to 54 characters and must not contain any
spaces. When creating a new ECHOmail conference, it is suggested your
CONFERENCE TAG should not exceed 16 characters if at all possible to
maintain the most compatibility with non-D'Bridge systems.
NOTE: D'Bridge does not allow "ALL", "NETMAIL" or "BADECHO" to be used as
conference names. Those names are reserved by the internal mail
processor. Names must also not contain asterisks (*'s)
ECHOMAIL ORIGIN LINE
Origin line: Nancy's BBS - Middletown, Ohio
The ORIGIN LINE defaults from your SYSTEM NAME (specified on the BASIC
CONFIGURATION screen) and will be added to the bottom of all ECHOmail
messages originating from your system. Typically, sysops use the name
of their system and the city where it is located.
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ECHOMAIL ALIAS ADDRESS
Alias address: 1:229/427
If you are a member of more than one network, it might be necessary to
use an "alias" address on an ECHOmail area. This means that the address
put on the ORIGIN-LINE of the messages will be different than your pri-
mary address.
Most systems would leave this blank.
ECHOMAIL TINY SEENBYS
Tiny SEEN-BYs? No
If you say YES to TINY SEEN-BYs, then only the systems you are forwar-
ding a conference to will appear on the SEEN-BY lines. This is fine if
you are a "leaf node" or a local ECHO hub; PLEASE NOTE THAT USING THIS
OPTION IS NOT ALLOWED IN SOME NETWORKS - CONTACT YOUR LOCAL ECHOMAIL
COORDINATOR FOR MORE INFORMATION.
ECHOMAIL DEFAULT PRIORITY
Default priority: Normal (Immediate/Crash/Normal/Hold)
For each conference, you specify a DEFAULT PRIORITY for forwarding of
ECHOmail. Choose either IMMEDIATE, CRASH, NORMAL or HOLD; This
default may be overridden for any specific system.
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ECHOMAIL FORWARD TO
Forward to: 1:110/68 22 .20
The FORWARD TO fields allow you to specify a list of systems to whom you
wish to forward this ECHOmail conference. You may specify as many systems
as will fit on the lines available; the systems should be separated by
spaces and be in the format:
ZONE:NET/NODE[,PRIORITY][READ/WRITE/BOTH]
Or:
.POINT[,PRIORITY][READ/WRITE/BOTH]
Here's an example: 1:18/0 1:105/3 1:110/22,C .20,H
In this example, 1:110/22 has CRASH priority as an override and .20 has
HOLD priority specified. Please note that you may only forward ECHOmail to
points or your own node. You may not send ECHOmail directly to a point of
another system.
With this example, if I enter an ECHOmail message in this area, it will
automatically be forwarded to these four systems, who will in turn send my
message on to all the other systems participating in the conference.
If there are many systems defined in the FORWARD-TO lines, D'Bridge may
take a bit longer to pack/forward Echomail; this is normal behavior.
SUSPEND
Suspend: No
If you answer YES to this question, mail received in this area will NOT be
forwarded to any downlinks listed in the FORWARD-TO section. This can be
useful for temporarily "suspending" mail processing for a given area. The
default answer is obviously NO, meaning process/forward normally.
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PERMANENT
Permanent: No
If you answer YES to this question, D'Bridge will NOT remove this area
if there are no passthru-links left, if you answered YES to "Remove
empty passthrus". The area will also not be removed by using the DBUTIL
REMOVEDEADECHOS command. The default answer is NO.
FORCED
Forced: No
If you answer YES to this question, D'Bridge will not allow any system
to unsubscribe/"Un-Areafix" themselves from this area. The default answer
is NO.
CIRCULAR PATH DETECTION
CPD? No
Every Echomail message contains both SEEN-BY and PATH kludge-lines to
indicate the systems it makes its way through... if a system appears
"twice" in the PATH then this is known as a circular-loop as a result
of another system's stripping the SEEN-BY kludge lines.
If you answer YES to this question, D'Bridge will reject any message
with a circular PATH kludge. Note that SEEN-BY and PATH kludges do not
take into account any Echomail from Point systems; so D'Bridge will not
apply this filter if the message originates from a Point.
The default answer to this question is NO because a little bit of extra
memory and processing is required, and circular paths are unlikely in any
message network that does NOT strip the SEEN-BY kludge lines. Thats the
reason why most message processing software makes a huge deal about making
sure the Sysop doesn't enable that unless its *really* necessary.
This setting may be required for Fidonet if you receive an unusual number
of duplicates NOT being rejected in a typical Unpack cycle; on "Othernets"
such as Micronet, Agora, FSX etc, it should not be necessary to enable
this setting as these networks follow traditional Hub/tree-style topology.
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MSGID DETECTION
MSGID? No
The MSGID kludge has been adapted by some BBS and mail tossing software as
a means of checking for a "unique" serial-number on every message generated
by a system. I say the word unique in quotes because over a period of
time the maximum possibilities for a serial become exhausted... and MSGID
does NOT solve the problem of duplicates caused by a misconfigured system
such as message-base rescans or SEEN-BY kludge stripping.
D'Bridge has never used MSGID for duplicate detection but it can if you
desire. Answer YES if you really want this or NO if not; this is the
default setting as a little bit of extra processing and disk-space is
needed for this to work.
This setting may be required for Fidonet if you receive an unusual number
of duplicates NOT being rejected in a typical Unpack cycle; on "Othernets"
such as Micronet, Agora, FSX etc, it should not be necessary to enable
this setting as these networks follow traditional Hub/tree-style topology.
HIDDEN FROM EDITOR
Hidden: No
If you answer YES to this question, then this area will be hidden from
the internal message editor listings.
The default is NO.
Note that this does NOT hide the area from matching Areafix requests, but
the area will not be presented in Areafix requests from systems that do
not meet the security and group criteria you specify in Packet/Mail.
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JUNK FILTER
Junk filter: No
When you answer YES to this question, D'Bridge will examine every received
message in this area against the following text-files for a "keyword match"
and reject the message accordingly. The default setting is NO.
DBRIDGE.JMF - The message FROM field will be scanned against this file.
DBRIDGE.JMT - The message TO field will be scanned.
DBRIDGE.JMS - The message SUBJECT field will be scanned.
DBRIDGE.JMB - The message body will be scanned.
DBRIDGE.JME - New Echomail areas matching this file will have Junk enabled.
Isolate? Yes
When you answer YES to this question, if a junk message is encountered, the
message will NOT be forwarded onward to other systems defined in FORWARD-TO.
The default setting is NO. Isolating junk messages may seem like a good
idea, but may upset some people you forward mail to if it is discovered
that your system is deleting/trapping messages.
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3.18 WINDOW COLORS
The WINDOW COLORS screen allows you to set the screen colors that D'Bridge
will use.
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3.19 KEYBOARD MACROS
The KEYBOARD MACROS option allows the operator to define "macros" that
cause keys, ALT F1-F10 and CONTROL F1-F10, to substitute preprogrammed
text while editing. This might be handy for "canned" introductions,
signatures or whatever you can think of. Twenty keys may be defined and
each key can have any amount of text desired. Note: This limit is RAM-
based, so check your memory status if in question.
The cursor will appear on the top line. Fields may be changed by typing
over the current values or by using the field edit keys: INSERT, DELETE,
LEFT and RIGHT arrows. Pressing ENTER or the DOWN arrow advances to the
next line and pressing the UP arrow moves the cursor to the previous
line. You must press the ESC key to exit this window and save the setup.
The above example shows the definition for the CONTROL-F1 key as being
my mailing address. Each key is defined in its own window. All vertical
pipe characters "|" are translated to hard-returns in the editor.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
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3.20 TRANSLATION TABLE
The TRANSLATION TABLE screen allows you to redefine how certain characters
will be displayed. This may be used to allow line-drawing or foreign
character sets to be used in the internal message editor. The ALT-keys
(a-z) may be defined as displaying any character and transmitting it as a
normal printable character in the range of 33-126.
This is an advanced option and is not normally needed, so if you have no
need for foreign character sets, skip this screen.
It allows you to redefine part of the printable character set as translating
to non-standard characters. Pressing the LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys scans
through the characters, helping you to locate the proper ASCII code.
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3.21 BINKD
The questions in this screen is where you configure the systems that will
be connecting for their mail over the Internet using the BinkD protocol.
D'Bridge treats mail for Internet systems the same way it does for modem
sessions. Queue entries are built and "calls" placed are subject to the
limits specified for the current mail event defined in the SCHEDULER.
If you need to have people connect to your system over the Internet so
they can exchange mail, then you need to run the BINKD system as a "server"
process.
OPERATING SYSTEM
Binkd subsystem: Yes
Enables or disables the entire BinkD subsystem. Unless you plan on going
back in time to the 1990's, this should be left on?
The BinkD subsystem requires that you select the appropriate executable
to run on your computer operating system.
On Windows, the BinkD executable will either be BINKD9X.EXE for Windows
95, 98 or ME, or BINKDWIN.EXE for Windows 2000 or newer.
For OS/2, its BINKDOS2.EXE and your system should be Warp 3 or newer, and
may require the installation of the EMX runtime libraries to function
properly. D'Bridge on EcomStation and ArcaOS have not been tested.
If your BinkD setup is running under Linux or some other environment, then
you will need to obtain, install and/or compile the appropriate BinkD for
your system. With Linux, both the INBOUND and QUEUE path may need a slight
change in Config-Directory Paths.
On some operating systems, it may be necessary to configure a firewall
or security software to allow BinkD to have access to the Internet or to
allow incoming connections on the port(s) you specify.
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RUN AS A SERVER
Run BinkD as a server? Yes
Answer NO if you are not accepting any incoming connections and are just
"polling someone else" for all of your mail.
Answer YES if you are accepting incoming BinkD connections. You will then
need to run the BinkD executable in a seperate process on your operating
system. The file DBRIDGE.BNK is the automatically-updated configuration
file that the BinkD system must use.
On Windows, create a shortcut to run BINKD9X.EXE -C DBRIDGE.BNK if you are
running Windows 95, 98 or ME. If you running Windows 2000 or newer, the
command will be BINKDWIN.EXE -C DBRIDGE.BNK
On OS/2, create a new Workplace Shell object to run BINKDOS2.EXE -C
DBRIDGE.BNK
On Linux or other environments you will need to install the appropriate
BinkD package for your environment. Typically it would be called by
/usr/sbin/binkd -C [home directory] DBRIDGE.BNK.
Answer SERVICE tells D'Bridge to run BinkD as a service-process on Windows
XP and newer. That means that BinkD will run in the background, with no
window. D'Bridge will automatically shutdown and restart BinkD when a
configuration change has occured. Note that the process is left installed
and running even when D'Bridge has been shutdown. If you want to
automatically shutdown BinkD when you shutdown D'Bridge, create a dummy file
called DBRIDGE.BSS (short for BinkD Service Shutdown) in your DB directory.
Note that when BinkD is installed as a service-process, it will be started
whenever Windows starts. D'Bridge will assume that the process is always
running.
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LINUX PATH
Linux installation path: /home/johndoe/.dosbox/DOS/DB/
If you are running D'Bridge on Linux under DOSEMU, DOSBOX or some other
emulated DOS system, you would specify the installation path here. The BinkD
configuration will be written correctly with the paths mapped out and
"translated" to reflect this home directory.
D'Bridge only comes with BinkD for Windows and OS/2. On Linux computers you
would typically install or compile the appropriate version of BinkD that
applies for the "platform" you are running, for example by using apt-get
install binkd or some other command. Next, you would then start BinkD with
the DBRIDGE.BNK file as the configuration file parameter (-C). Some users
create a script for this or use systemctl to add as a service:
For example: /usr/sbin/binkd -C /home/johndoe/.dosbox/DOS/DB/DBRIDGE.BNK
The "Run as a service" question elsewhere in this screen is not applicable
for Linux when you are running D'Bridge in this type of setup. It is assumed
that BinkD is always running in the background.
Remember that on Linux, files are case-sensitive and that in Config-
Directory Paths, the INBOUND and QUEUE directories should just be literally
set to just INBOUND and QUEUE since any DOS drive specification (ie. C:)
would likely cause an error. INBOUND is valid... C:\DB\INBOUND is not.
Also remember that port 24554, or whatever you specified, will need to
added to iptables or ufw or whichever firewall you may be using on Linux.
INCOMING PORT
BinkD incoming port: 24554
This question is where you specify the Internet TCP port that BINKD shall
be using for incoming connections. BINKD does not support UPNP (Universal
Plug & Play). If you are behind a router or firewall you must configure
any "port-forwarding" settings accordingly.
The default setting is TCP port 24554 and should not be changed.
On Windows XP or newer, a Firewall warning-screen may appear when BinkD is
ran for the first time. Answer "ALLOW EXECUTION" when prompted.
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OUTGOING PORT
BinkD outgoing port: 24554
This question is where you specify the Internet TCP port that BINKD shall
be using for outgoing connections. BINKD does not support UPNP (Universal
Plug & Play). If you are behind a router or firewall you must configure
any "port-forwarding" settings accordingly.
The default setting is TCP port 24554 and should not be changed.
On Windows XP or newer, a Firewall warning-screen may appear when BinkD is
ran for the first time. Answer "ALLOW EXECUTION" when prompted.
SIMULTANEOUS INBOUND CONNECTIONS
Simultaneous inbound sessions: 8
The maximum incoming sessions allows you to define a limit to how many
simultaneous connections the BINKD system should handle at once. The
default should not be changed unless you really have a need to "cap" the
amount of incoming sessions.
SIMULTANEOUS OUTBOUND CONNECTIONS
Simultaneous outgoing sessions: 8
The maximum outgoing sessions allows you to define a limit to how many
simultaneous connections the BINKD system should handle at once. The
default should not be changed unless you really have a need to "cap" the
amount of outgoing sessions.
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BINKD SESSIONS
Systems: 1:229/426 fidonet bbs.darkrealms.ca U
The next questions control who you exchange mail with using BinkD, if you
have chosen not to use INA/IBN resolving. This serves as a "master override"
for all BinkD transactions.
If you are using a modem with D'Bridge, these settings will override any
existing settings for a system. The mailer will function in a "hybrid"
setup, meaning it is technically possible for a system to exhange mail
either using a modem or the Internet.
BinkD sessions: <ADDRESS> <DOMAIN> <IP/PICKUPONLY> [PORT] [U]
ie. 1:123/500 fidonet the-estar.com
1:129/305 fidonet ttb.slyip.com 24554 U
ADDRESS - Defines the Fido address of the remote BINKD system, in the
format of Zone, Net, Node and Point.
DOMAIN - Specify the Fidonet "5D" domain (NOT the Internet domain) of the
system. This is usually up to 8 characters, such as "fidonet" or
"metronet". The domain is usually defined by your Zone or Network
Co-ordinator for BinkD usage. This should never be an Internet
domain; if the remote system is using an Internet domain the
connections will fail (please notify the other system).
IP - The Internet address of the remote system. If the system does not
have one, you don't know, or just "calls" here to pickup their
waiting mail, answer PICKUPONLY. The remote system will be
solely responsible for "polling" you to pick up their mail.
PORT - Connects with the remote BINKD system on a specified port. This
is an optional parameter. By default, BinkD uses TCP port 24554.
U - If this is specified, D'Bridge will sends uncompressed mail to
this system. Any XMAIL queued-up will be uncompressed before the
remote system receives it.
* REMEMBER * CTL-N inserts lines, CTL-Y deletes lines in a window.
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DISABLE FILE REQUESTS
Disable file-requests: No
If you are using an external SRIF processor or you wish to have the BinkD
system ignore received file-requests, answer YES. Any commands to handle
received file-requests must be specified in the next question, "Additional
Options".
Otherwise answer NO, and D'Bridge will handle file-requests automatically.
BINKD OPTIONS
Additional options: domain starnet alias-for star.net
This question allows advanced control over the BinkD system by overriding
how your D'Bridge system interfaces with BinkD. Under most circumstances
this should be left blank.
NOTE: Technical support may not be provided if you are specifying options
which may conflict with how D'Bridge interacts with BinkD.
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4.00 SYSTEM IDLE COMMANDS
The D'Bridge mailer has a LOG window which displays the current status,
an ACTIVITY window showing the progress of any operation, and the QUEUE
showing items being processed or transferred. When items are unpacked or
scanned, the window will change to show the messages. At the bottom of
the screen is a STATUS BAR indicating new NETmail or Echomail received.
If a modem is installed, the modem COM port, current baud rate and each of
the status-registers are shown; black is off, grey is on. The modem COM
port is black when the modem is off-line and grey when on-line or "ready".
When D'Bridge is idle, you have full control over its functions. The
following single-key commands are available when the word "IDLE" appears
in the upper-left corner of the screen:
Call Makes the next outbound call immediately, if any
Retry Retries the last outbound call, if any
Next Advances the pointer to the next outbound call
Prev Returns the pointer to the previous outbound call
Hold Places the queue entry selected on hold status
QuickDial No pauses between calls (also activated by DBRIDGE.AQD)
ESC Displays the main menu
F1 Activates the Help system
ALT-C Call a system from the nodelist in terminal mode
ALT-D Call a system from your directory in terminal mode
ALT-E Read/Edit EMAIL messages
ALT-F Request file(s)
ALT-H History display
ALT-I Information display
ALT-K KatGuard, locks the keyboard (electronic keyboard cover)
ALT-L View system log file, search entries, highlight keywords
ALT-N New link (Areafix/FileFix must be properly setup)
ALT-P Poll a node
ALT-Q Rebuild outbound queue
ALT-R Request link (Areafix/FileFix must be properly setup)
ALT-S Toggles the display of the schedule window
ALT-T Transmit file(s)
ALT-V View/Modify queue
ALT-X Exit D'Bridge (Quit)
ALT-Y Push to DOS shell (small)
ALT-Z Drop to DOS shell (large)
The ARROW KEYS can also be used to scroll through the QUEUE if there are
more entries than what can be shown in that window.
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HOLD ALL MAIL
Selecting the HOLD ALL MAIL menu option will immediately place all outbound
mail on HOLD. The hold will come off at midnight, when a new event starts or
by using the VIEW/MODIFY QUEUE command, ALT-V.
This command only holds mail until midnight at the latest.
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VIEW MODIFY QUEUE
Selecting the VIEW MODIFY QUEUE option (or pressing ALT-V from IDLE mode)
allows you direct access to the outbound mail queue allowing you to view,
erase or change priorities of queue entries.
The top line of the queue should be highlighted. To view or change a queue
item, first move the highlight bar to the desired entry using the UP and
DOWN arrows. Next select one of the following commands by pressing the
first letter of the option (I for Immediate, etc.)
QUEUE: Next, Previous, Immediate, Send, Hold, Reset, Force, View, Kill
NEXT The NEXT option advances to the next outbound call.
PREVIOUS The PREVIOUS option returns to the previous outbound call.
IMMEDIATE The IMMEDIATE option will change the priority of an
entire queue entry to immediate until the next NETmail
scan. If the queue entry is FORCED or is a unlisted
system, this option is not valid and the computer will
sound the "foghorn".
SEND The SEND option will change the priority of an entire
queue entry to crash priority. This change only lasts
until the next NETmail scan. If the queue entry is
FORCED or unlisted, the computer will sound the "foghorn".
HOLD The HOLD option causes an entire queue entry to be held
and not transmitted unless the receiving system poll for
it. This option is not valid if there is a FORCED
PRIORITY for the system.
RESET When you RESET LIMITS for a queue entry, both the number
of TRIES and CONNECTS is reset to zero, allowing the
queue entry to be transmitted during this event even if
the retries limit has been exceeded.
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FORCE When you FORCE a priority for a certain system, that
system will be forced to that priority "until further
notice". The only way to override the FORCE is to remove
it by specifying "NONE" here. When you press "F" for
FORCE, a menu is displayed:
FORCED MODE: Immediate, Crash, Hold or None
Choose which priority to force this system to; if you don't
want to do this, just press ESC and no change will be
made. Select the priority or "N" to remove the "force".
When a node is forced, it is designated by an exclamation
point "!" next to the address.
VIEW Viewing a queue entry lets you "look inside" a queue entry
and see which messages and files are queued to send. Some
general information about a system is displayed on the
left; on the right is a detail window which may be scrolled
up and down by using the UP, DOWN, PGUP and PGDN keys. Press
ESC to exit view mode.
KILL KILL is a very dangerous option because it allows you to
erase any or all outbound mail and requests with one extra
keystroke. Pressing "K" will display a window asking what
you would like to KILL. If you don't want to KILL any
part of the entry, press ESC to cancel. Otherwise, choose
from the menu which lets you erase everything or just one
"part" of the queued entry. You'll have to try it to really
understand - just be careful.
When you are finished VIEWING and MODIFYING the queue, just press ESC
to exit this screen.
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REBUILD QUEUE
The REBUILD QUEUE option causes D'Bridge to erase all the packets
currently in the QUEUE window and re-scan for outbound mail.
This is the same thing that happens when D'Bridge begins a mail event.
This is handy for recreating packets if you had previously aborted the
scan when D'Bridge first came up or you entered some messages in the
editor (although there IS an option to automatically re-scan NETmail after
leaving the editor).
REBUILD QUEUE will normally create packets for all outbound mail
regardless of whether it is CRASH priority or not; typically, all crash-
mail will be sent, and all other mail will be on hold. This can easily
be changed by using the VIEW/MODIFY QUEUE command, ALT-V.
POLL A NODE
The POLL A NODE option causes D'Bridge to call the specified system to
pick up mail which may be on "hold" there. D'Bridge will simply ask you
"Poll whom?" and you enter either the address of the system to call or the
operator's name. If you enter a name, it will display a list of all systems
with the Operator name you specify (if you enter "JOE," it will display all
the "JOEs" in your nodelist and allow you to select the one you wish.
If you don't know the address, five function keys (F1-F5) will aid you in
your search. Once you have determined the system to call and pressed ENTER,
D'Bridge will add a POLL entry to the queue with the specified priority.
If you use IMMEDIATE or CRASH priority, the POLL will happen right away.
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TRANSMIT FILES
The TRANSMIT FILE(S) option gives you a simple and quick way to send
files to another system. Any file which can be copied using the DOS
"COPY" command can be sent with D'Bridge. Similar to the POLL A NODE
command, the TRANSMIT FILE(S) option asks you for the destination
address. Here, you may enter the address of the system or part of the
operator's name. Once you've entered the address, D'Bridge will ask
you for a list of files to transmit. You may enter as many files as
you wish, one per line. Make sure you've included the DOS subdirectory
if they aren't in the current directory. If D'Bridge can't find a file,
the cursor will simply be stuck on the line until you press ESC (to
cancel the entire request), press the UP arrow or enter a valid (exis-
ting) DOS filename. When you're satisfied you've entered the list cor-
rectly, press ENTER. You may also use the DOS "wildcard" characters "*"
and "?" to specify a group of files to send.
To use a priority other than the default, enter <FILENAME> <PRIORITY>
in the window:
C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT Immediate
C:\DATA\BIGFILE.ZIP Hold
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FILE REQUEST
The FILE REQUEST option allows you to request that a remote system sends
you file(s), depending on the capabilities of the remote system.
To use the FILE-REQUEST option, simply enter the address of the system you
wish to call (just like MANUAL POLL and TRANSMIT FILE(S)) and enter a list
of files you wish to receive.
If you're not sure of the exact filenames, you may use the DOS "wild-
card" characters "*" and "?." After you have entered the entire list of
files to request, press ENTER and D'Bridge will add the request to the
outbound mail queue.
To use a priority other than the default or file-request passwords, use:
<FILENAME>[,<PASSWORD>] <PRIORITY>
FILE1,SECRET Immediate
FILE2 Crash
Note that HOLD is not a valid priority for file-requests. Requests only
work when you connect to the remote system.
INFORMATION DISPLAY
The INFORMATION DISPLAY screens provide summary information about D'Bridge.
Execution times and traffic-volume information are collected and available for
display in three different forms:
SUMMARY This provides traffic and data volumes for the year, month,
week, yesterday and today.
TIME USAGE History of execution times is displayed on this screen.
ACTIVITY GRAPH This shows a graphical representation of the operation
of D'Bridge.
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READ / EDIT EMAIL
The READ/EDIT EMAIL option causes D'Bridge to load the selected EMAIL
editor. The screen will clear and the editor will be loaded, ready for you
to read and respond to EMAIL messages.
DB EDIT may also be run directly from the dos prompt; it is used to enter
and read the EMAIL messages D'Bridge sends and receives. D'Bridge utilizes
the Fidonet standard message format used by so many other EMAIL systems,
bulletin boards and utilities. This will allow you to use a great variety
of external programs such as "robot" mailers, form-letter generators and
editors.
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HISTORY DISPLAY
When you select the HISTORY DISPLAY option, ALT-H, you will receive
a menu of available history screens. There are four screens on the menu:
OUTBOUND HISTORY
The outbound history screen simply displays a log of all outbound mail
calls within the last "n" days (specified on the BASIC CONFIGURATION
screen). This display always starts at the end by showing you the most
recent call. The UP, DOWN, PGUP and PGDN keys scroll the screen, ESC
exits. This display lists the date, time, destination, bytes sent/received,
elapsed time and actual cost of the connection.
INBOUND HISTORY
The inbound history screen simply displays a log of all incoming mail
calls within the last "n" days. This display lists the date, time,
origin, bytes sent/received, elapsed time. Since this is inbound mail,
there is no cost involved.
RECEIVED ECHOMAIL HISTORY
The received ECHOmail history screen displays a log of all ECHOmail
messages received within the last "n" days. This display lists the
date, time, destination, bytes sent/received, elapsed time and actual
cost of the connection.
AREAFIX LOG
The AREAFIX log screen displays a log of all automatic additions to
your "forward-to" list in the area manager. These may be in the form
of AREAFIX requests or may be entered manually by using the NEW
ECHOMAIL LINK, ALT-N option.
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VIEW SYSTEM LOG
The VIEW SYSTEM LOG command allows you to scroll through the system log file
and search it for keywords. Besides the standard cursor control keys, the
following keys are active here:
+/- The PLUS and MINUS keys change the date of
the display (pressing the minus key three
times displays the log from 3 days ago.)
Morning Displays log entries starting at midnight.
Afternoon Displays log entries starting at noon.
Evening Displays log entries starting at 6:00 PM.
Search Enters "search mode"
Highlight Allows entry of highlight keywords and colors.
USING SEARCH MODE
Search mode has two ways to look for log entries:
KEYWORD SEARCH Searches for any match in a list of keywords.
TEXT SEARCH Searches for the first occurrence of a substring.
The Next and Previous commands actually invoke the search.
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REQUEST LINK
AREAFIX and FILEFIX are subsystems within D'Bridge enabling you to
remotely request new ECHOmail or TIC links from a HOST or FEED system.
This system, originally designed by Greg Dawson, eliminates the need for
manual intervention on the part of the HOST system operator. Now that
handling hundreds of conferences on a single system is a reality, this
automated system of forwarding maintenance is required.
The REQUEST LINK, ALT-R command allows you to request a remote system,
either STARTs or STOPs forwarding of either ECHOmail or TIC conferences.
To use this feature, you must pre-arrange a PASSWORD with the operator
of your feed.
First, enter the address of the system to request conferences from. If
you have not established a password for the specified system, D'Bridge
will ask you to assign one at this time. AREAFIX and FILEFIX will not
function without a security password (for good reason!). Passwords may
also be entered on the PACKET/MAIL CONTROL and FILEECHO/TIC SETUP screens.
Next, enter a list of CONFERENCE TAGS desired, one per line; press
ENTER on a blank line when finished. If you wish to remove a conference
rather than adding it, simply put a minus sign "-" before the tag.
If you wish to receive a list of available conferences from your link,
answer YES to "Area listing?". If you want the host system to rescan the
message base in an AREAFIX request (sending you all the old messages),
answer YES to "Get old messages?".
Finally, choose the priority you wish to use for transmitting the
request. This priority has no connection to the one with which you will
receive the conference - that's up to the other system's operator.
When the request is received by the remote system, it will add or remove
your system from its "forward-to" list as you have specified; it will
send you a confirmation message which will explain the changes made and
errors or violations you have made. This message may be sent automatical-
ly, or you may have to poll later to receive it; this depends on how your
link has his system configured.
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NEW LINK
The NEW LINK, ALT-N command allows you to add systems to the FORWARD-
TO list in your area manager. This command queues up the same type of
entry as an inbound AREAFIX or FILEFIX request with the exception of the
security check. When a system is added or removed from an area, an audit
trail is created in the AREAFIX/FILEFIX LOG and a confirmation message is
created and sent to the receiving system.
First, enter the address of the system to send the conference(s) to. You
do not have to have a password just to enter a manual request.
Next, enter a list of CONFERENCES to add or remove, one per line; press
ENTER on a blank line when finished. If you wish to remove a conference
rather than adding one, simply put a minus sign "-" before the tag.
If this is an AREAFIX request, and you wish to have D'Bridge rescan the
entire ECHOmail area and send all the mail currently stored, answer YES
to "Rescan?".
If you wish to send a list of areas available, answer YES to "Send area
list?".
Choose the priority you wish to use to transmit the request. This
priority has no connection to the one with which you will receive the
conference; that's up to the other system's operator.
Finally, if you want the request to be processed immediately, answer
YES to "Process now?". If the request is not processed immediately,
you may enter several requests and subsequently run the PROCESS option on
the UTILITIES menu.
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TERMINAL EMULATOR
The D'Bridge terminal mode is designed to let you communicate with
online services such as a bulletin board system (BBS), CompuServe<TM>
and other such electronic information systems. Terminal mode acts
like a glass Teletype, having an 24x80 display plus a status line
giving information such as current baud rate, parity, etc. It is not
the intention of D'Bridge to provide many terminal features such as you
might find in other communication programs; D'Bridge is an EMAIL system
and only provides this terminal mode as a simple means for you to tie-
in with other systems through a direct connection.
Terminal mode transmits all printable and control characters without
translation to your modem. The ALT keys are used to control the various
functions in terminal mode. Pressing ALT-X exits the terminal and
returns to mailer mode.
Once in the terminal mode, you will notice that pressing ALT-H displays
a help screen. These are the commands currently supported:
/-TERMINAL MODE COMMANDS----------------\
| |
| ALT-C Dial system(s) from nodelist |
| ALT-D Dial system(s) from directory |
| ALT-P Set terminal parameters |
| ALT-L Capture log ON/OFF |
| ALT-T Terminate connection |
| ALT-W Wipe (clear) screen |
| ALT-X Exit terminal mode |
| ALT-Y PUSH to DOS |
| ALT-Z DROP to DOS |
| PgUp Upload file(s) |
| Pgdn Download file(s) |
| |
\---------------------------------------/
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ALT-C / Call system from nodelist
D'Bridge can dial any systems in your nodelist that are not "unlisted
nodes". Pressing ALT-C will display the following window:
/-CALL SYSTEM(S) FROM NODELIST--------------------------------------------\
| |
| F1-List nodes in NET 1:110 |
| F2-Change ZONE:NET |
| F3-List all NETS |
| F4-List NETS in ZONE 1 |
| Dial which node(s)? F5-Scan user names |
| |
| _____________________________________________________________________ |
| |
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------/
Simply enter a list of addresses you wish to call, separated by spaces.
D'Bridge will auto-dial the entire list until a connection is made. The
function keys F3-F7 are available to assist you in locating the proper
addresses. When a connection has been made, D'Bridge will "beep" and
return to terminal mode with the remote system online at the proper
baud rate.
F3 Scans the entire nodelist by username (first names).
F4 Pressing the F3 key displays all the NODES and POINTS in the
currently selected NET. Pressing ENTER while using this display
selects a system; pressing ESC cancels.
F5 Gives a listing of all NETs in the entire nodelist and allows
you to select a new NET.
F6 Lists all ZONEs in the nodelist
F7 Allows you to change the currently selected NET by entering the
ZONE:NET desired. After you change NETs, you can use the F1 key
to list the systems in the new NET.
ENTER Starts the cycle-dialing window; D'Bridge will continue dialing
until connected or interrupted by the operator.
ESC Cancels dialing mode
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ALT-D / Dialing directory
D'Bridge terminal mode has a built-in dialing directory enabling you
to program the phone numbers for up to 100 systems you call frequently.
Pressing ALT-D will display the following window:
/-DIALING DIRECTORY---------------------------------------------------------\
| Entry Name Phone number Baud/Parms |
| ----- ---- ------------ ---------- |
| 1 D'Bridge Support/Cincinn 1-513-821-1387 9600 8N1 |
| 2 D'Bridge Support/West 1-503-292-7233 9600 8N1 |
| 3 D'Bridge Support/West 1-503-292-7237 9600 8N1 |
| 4 D'Bridge Support/East 1-215-879-3310 9600 8N1 |
| 5 D'Bridge Support/Canada 1-416-823-4521 9600 8N1 |
| 6 D'Bridge Support/Europe 31-85-459034 2400 8N1 |
| 7 D'Bridge Support/Italy 39-766-540-899 2400 8N1 |
| 8 D'Bridge Support/Austral 61-3-848-3331 9600 8N1 |
| 9 D'Bridge Support/Austral 61-3-563-2496 9600 8N1 |
| 10 |
| 11 |
| 12 |
| |
| Edit entry, Delete entry, UP, DOWN, PGUP, PGDN, #, ENTER-Dial, ESC-Cancel |
| |
| Command? |
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------/
You may easily enter or change numbers in this list by using the EDIT
ENTRY command. Move the highlight bar to the entry you wish to add or
edit then press "E". It will display the following window:
/-EDIT DIRECTORY ENTRY---------------------\
| |
| Entry number: 1 |
| Name: D'Bridge Support/Cincinn |
| Phone number: 1-513-821-1387 |
| Baud rate: 9600 |
| Parity: NONE |
| Data bits: 8 |
| Stop bits: 1 |
| Save entry? |
| |
\------------------------------------------/
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Enter the NAME, PHONE NUMBER, BAUD RATE, PARITY, DATA BITS and STOP BITS
desired, then answer YES for "Save entry?". Pressing ESC will abort the
change. After you have answered YES, the window will disappear and the
entry will be permanently added to your personal dialing directory.
To dial a number, simply type the ENTRY NUMBERS desired, separated by
spaces, then press ENTER. You can also move the highlight bar to the
desired line and press ENTER. Either will do the same thing.
If you wish to use the D'Bridge scripting language, simply enter the
phone number with the following format:
"SCRIPT.FIL"aaa-nnn-nnnn
Where SCRIPT.FIL is the name of your script file, aaa is the AREA CODE
you are calling and nnn-nnnn is the PHONE NUMBER.
ALT-H / Terminate connection
Pressing ALT-H will terminate the current call immediately by dropping
the DTR signal to the modem for 1.2 seconds.
ALT-P / Set terminal parameters
The ALT-P command will allow you to set the default settings for
terminal mode. Pressing ALT-P displays the following window:
/-SET TERMINAL PARAMETERS--\
| |
| Comm port: COM1 |
| Baud rate: 2400 |
| Parity: NONE |
| Data bits: 8 |
| Stop bits: 1 |
| Duplex: FULL |
| Emulation: ANSI |
| Capture ANSI: YES |
| AutoDownload: YES |
| |
\--SPACE-Change, ESC-Exit--/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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By using the UP and DOWN arrow keys to select an option and pressing
the SPACE bar to change, you can configure the terminal to any setting
you wish. This setting will be recalled when terminal mode is entered,
but the communications settings can also be changed by ALT-C and ALT-D.
COMM PORT
The COMM PORT specifies which serial interface channel you wish to
use. This could allow you to select between modems or even direct
links to other PC's. COM1 through COM7 are allowable values.
BAUD RATE
This allows you to select the speed or BAUD RATE of the serial link with
your modem. Allowable values are 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200 and
38400, but may not exceed the value specified in the COMMUNICATIONS/MODEM
SETUP screen. If you have LOCKED your modem at its top speed, this baud
rate setting has no effect.
PARITY
The PARITY setting allows you to communicate with systems that require
parity-error checking. Valid settings are NONE, EVEN, ODD, MARK and SPACE,
but most newer networks are using "NONE."
DATA BITS
This setting is included for compatibility with old-style 7-bit systems.
Allowable values are 7 and 8, but be warned file-transfers will not
function properly with a 7-bit link.
STOP BITS
Almost all baud rates use 1 stop bit, but "weird" configurations might
require a value of 2 (highly unlikely!).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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DUPLEX
Some older systems require your own system to provide the "echo" of
the characters typed. This is called HALF DUPLEX. Newer systems all
echo back the characters you type, eliminating the need for a HALF
DUPLEX setting. Use FULL DUPLEX for systems such as CompuServe, The
Source and BBS networks.
EMULATION
D'Bridge terminal program has only one emulation, ANSI. You may either
select ANSI or NONE. The ANSI emulation does not require the use of
an ANSI.SYS driver; it includes full color support plus ANSI-MUSIC!
CAPTURE ANSI
If you have the capture log enabled, D'Bridge has the option to either
save or strip the ANSI codes from the file. If you want to SAVE the
ANSI codes in the capture file, answer YES here.
AUTODOWNLOAD
D'Bridge terminal mode has the capability to detect when the remote
system has initiated a ZMODEM send request. If you answer YES to this
question, when such a request is detected, D'Bridge automatically starts
a ZMODEM receive session saving you the trouble.
ALT-L / Capture log ON/OFF
The ALT-L key "toggles" the capture log ON or OFF. If you wish every-
thing displayed on the screen to be captured to a text file, press
ALT-L to turn on the capture log. It will ask you for a DOS filename
to store the information in; it defaults to CAPTURE.LOG, but you may
change it to any directory or filename you wish. Pressing ALT-L a
second time or exiting terminal mode will close the text file. If a
capture file already exists, D'Bridge will add on to the end of it,
preserving its previous contents.
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ALT-W / Wipe (clear) screen
Pressing ALT-W simply clears the current screen, moving the cursor to
the upper-right corner.
ALT-X / Exit terminal mode
Pressing ALT-X will take you out of the terminal mode and back to
D'Bridge. Your modem will be re-initialized and should be ready
to receive incoming mail almost immediately.
ALT-Y / PUSH to DOS
Pressing ALT-Y will allow you access to DOS commands while you are
still connected to a remote system. To get back into D'Bridge, type
EXIT. This is handy for doing directory listings, etc. while you're
connected to an online service.
ALT-Z / DROP to DOS
Pressing ALT-Z will also allow you access to DOS commands. The only
difference is that with ALT-Z, D'Bridge is totally swapped out of memory
to EMS or disk so you have as much free memory as possible.
PgUp / Upload
The PgUp key allows you to transmit a list of files to the host
computer. The way to do this is typically to tell the remote computer
you are ready to send some files, then press the PgUp button, select
the desired protocol, XMODEM, Telink or ZMODEM, then enter a list of
files to send. Note: With XMODEM, you can only send one file at a
time - XMODEM is not a "batch" protocol.
PgDn / Download
The PgDn key allows you to receive files from the host computer. This
is normally done by first telling the remote system which files to send
then pressing the PgDn key. You then tell D'Bridge which protocol you
want to use, XMODEM, Telink or ZMODEM and specify which directory to
put the files in. With XMODEM you must specify the actual filename
because it is not a batch protocol.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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BUILD NODELIST DATABASE
This forces D'Bridge to recompile the nodelist database index. This is
normally an automatic process happening at midnight, but you can force
it to happen by selecting this option.
Note that if you create a "dummy" file called DBRIDGE.RNC in
your D'Bridge directory, D'Bridge will "restart" itself after compiling.
PROCESS MAIL
This enables you to manually start inbound mail processing and scanning
for outbound ECHOmail and AREAFIX requests. This shouldn't be necessary
unless you have mail processing set to "Manual" in the PACKET/MAIL CONTROL
screen.
FILEBASE SEARCH
This option (CTL-F) allows you to search through the D'Bridge FileBase
for a partial match on a specified filespec.
The FileBase is a combined listing of files available for request on other
systems. This enables you to easily locate files and request them with the
ease of point-and-shoot operation.
After you specify a search key to start (like "DB" for filenames starting
with DB), a list of partial matches will be displayed. You can highlight the
file you want to request by using the arrow keys; request it by pressing "R",
then the priority: Immediate, Crash, or Normal.
If you need to make a passworded request, set the current password with the
"P" option. Since the FileBase is not zone-aware, you may select another
zone with the "Z" option.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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EXPORT CONFIGURATION
With this option, D'Bridge will produce an "exported configuration" file.
Normally called DBRIDGE.CFG, the output is a standard text file designed
to transfer the entire D'Bridge parameter configuration to another system or
for upgrading to a newer version.
Every night at midnight, D'Bridge automatically exports its configuration to
a file called SAVE-XXX.YYY where XXX is the day-of-week and YYY is the
line-number (usually 1). These are zipped into DBCONFIG.ZIP.
LEAVE DBRIDGE
This option, CTL-C or ALT-X will exit to DOS and completely unload the
D'Bridge software.
DOS SHELL
ALT-Z will "drop" to DOS. D'Bridge swaps its memory either to EMS or
disk, depending on free memory available. ALT+Y drops to DOS without
swapping D'Bridge out of memory.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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5.00 EMAIL MESSAGE EDITOR
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5.00 EMAIL MESSAGE EDITOR
The EMAIL message editor is activated by selecting the READ/ENTER EMAIL
option from the main menu or by pressing ALT-E. The editor may also be
accessed directly from the DOS prompt by typing:
C> DB EDIT
Assuming the DB EDIT command was found, you quickly get a display
similar to the following:
F1-Enter, F2-Reply, F3-Edit, F4-List, F5-Kill, F6-Areas, ESC-Menu D'Bridge
1.30/001002
/-READ/EDIT EMAIL-------------------------------------------------------------\
|Msg # 250 |
|Date: 11 Jun 92 18:10:34 |
|From: Chris Irwin |
| To: Tom Ordelman on 201:200/0 D'Bridge Support/Europe |
|Subj: Greetings from freezing Cincinnati! |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|Hello Tom, |
| |
|I was just writing to let you know that I've been sitting out in the snow |
|finishing the D'Bridge documentation. I think that you will find that it |
|is well-written and quite clear. It's Thursday, so I'll be out playing poker |
|this evening... Give me a call when you get a chance tomorrow! |
| |
|Regards, |
|Chris, 201:201/0 |
| |
| |
| |
| |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------/
Area: D'Bridge network mail Msgs: 273 Highest: 298 Last read: 276
This is the "READ" mode of D'Bridge. Using this screen, you can enter,
read and reply to messages along with a variety of utility functions.
Each function will be described in detail in the next few sections.
Remember that a quick way to get out of the editor is to press CONTROL-C.
This is a perfectly acceptable way to get out, it's just like using
the QUIT menu option.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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RIGHT and LEFT arrows - NEXT and PREVIOUS MESSAGE
Pressing the RIGHT arrow key will display the next message in the
current area; pressing the LEFT arrow will display the previous one.
F1 or E - ENTER A MESSAGE
As soon as you press the F1 key or the letter "E" D'Bridge will go into
"EDIT" mode, clearing the screen and starting with a blank message.
F2, R, Q or > - REPLY TO A MESSAGE
Replying to a message is the same as entering a new one; the difference
is that the "TO" name and address is taken automatically from the
message currently on the screen. The editor will move the "FROM" infor-
mation to the "TO" field. This is handy to keep from making a mistake
typing the name or network address. There are four keys that create a
reply message:
F2 Asks for QUOTED or NORMAL reply.
R Creates a NORMAL reply.
Q Creates a QUOTED reply.
> Same as Q.
If you select a NORMAL reply, the screen will clear and just the "TO"
and "FROM" information will be displayed. If you specify a QUOTED re-
ply, the entire message you are replying to will be QUOTED, so that
you may remind who you are communicating with and exactly what it is
you are replying to. QUOTED text has each line starting with a ">"
character indicating that the text came from the other person.
For example, if a message reads:
What time can I call you about the pricing information?
Your QUOTED reply might look like:
CI> What time can I call you about the pricing information?
Give me a call around 4:00, if I'm not in, please leave the
information with my secretary.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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QUOTED replies are quite valuable for reminding the receiver exactly
what you're talking about. In fact, if the receiver of the above message
wanted to reply to you, the reply might look like:
CI> What time can I call you about the pricing information?
TO> Give me a call around 4:00, if I'm not in, please leave the
TO> information with my secretary.
I can't - I'm flying to Paris today. I'll call you when I
get back.
F3 or O - EDIT AN OLD MESSAGE
Sometimes, you will enter a message, then realize you wish to make a
change before sending it. The F3 or "O" option does just that. It
allows you to edit the currently displayed message. If the message
displayed is not from you, you will be asked "You didn't enter this
message, edit anyway?". Generally, it's not "nice" to edit other
people's mail, but D'Bridge allows you to do this anyway.
F4 or L - LIST MESSAGES
Pressing F4 or "L" will put the editor into "LIST" mode. While in
"LIST" mode, the display changes to show you all the message headers.
This is handy when you want to scan for a particular message quickly.
Until you press the ESC key, the editor will remain in LIST mode and
the function keys have a different meaning. While in this mode, you
may view message headers and select a group of messages to KILL or
PRINT.
LIST: Include, Exclude, All, None, Page, Display, Group, ESC-Exit D'Bridge
1.50/001002
/-READ/EDIT EMAIL-------------------------------------------------------------\
|/-LIST MESSAGES--------------------------------------------------------------\
||Msg # Date From To Subject |
|| 292 20 Apr Chris Irwin Tom Ordelman 201:200/0 D'Bridge Suppor|
|| 293 20 Apr Chris Irwin Joaquim Homri 135/20 Re: ZMODEM |
|| 294 20 Apr ARCmail Sysop 107/246 FF239209.MO1 |
|| 295 20 Apr ARCmail Sysop 108/871 F98429E1.MO1 |
|| 296 20 Apr ML-UPD 1.5 11/109 Megalist Admi 000B0071.MLA |
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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The first line will be highlighted with a light bar. Using the UP, DOWN,
PGUP and PGDN keys, you can move the light bar to the desired message.
When you press the ESC key, the specified message will be displayed and
DBEDIT will return to READ mode.
While the LIST window is on the screen, the following commands are
enabled:
I - INCLUDE
When you press the I key, a star ( * ) will appear next to the
message number on the highlighted line. This means this message
is "included" for processing by group commands.
E - EXCLUDE
Pressing the E key will remove a star "*" from the highlighted
line. This is used to un-include (de-select) the current message
from processing by the group commands.
A - ALL
If you press A, all of the messages will be included for processing
by group commands and they will all have a star "*" next to them.
This is handy to use in conjunction with "E" (EXCLUDE) when you
want to process most of the messages with group commands.
N - NONE
Pressing N will remove all the stars "*" from the LIST MESSAGES
window. None of the messages will be selected for group commands.
P - PAGE
Pressing P will select all messages on the currently displayed page.
D - DISPLAY
Pressing D will toggle the LIST display between showing the TO, FROM
and SUBJECT and showing the entire SUBJECT line.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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G - GROUP
Pressing G will display another list of options called GROUP COM-
MANDS. With these commands, you can PRINT or KILL all of the
selected messages automatically. This can be a very "dangerous"
command, so make sure you know exactly what you're doing if you
use it. The following GROUP COMMANDS are allowed:
P - PRINT (group command)
The P group command will PRINT all messages that have stars "*"
next to them and were previously included while in the "LIST"
mode. Obviously this option will work only if you have a printer
connected; press the ESC key to cancel the PRINT operation.
K - KILL (group command)
The Kill group command will KILL all messages that were included
and have a star "*" next to them. Make sure you have double-
checked which messages were included because once they are
KILLED, they are permanently gone. (Perhaps Professor Norton
could get them back... ).
F5 or K - KILL A MESSAGE
Pressing F5 or "K" allows you to permanently KILL (erase) a message from
your disk. It will ask you "ARE YOU SURE?" just in case you pressed it
accidentally; use this option with caution!
F6 or A - CHANGE MESSAGE AREAS
The editor allows you to have any number of local and ECHOmail areas.
Pressing F6 or "A" will display a list of all the areas you have de-
fined in your configuration. Select the desired area by moving the
light bar up and down, then pressing ENTER when the desired area is
highlighted. You may also enter the AREA NUMBER and press ENTER. Both
ways accomplish the same thing. If you are running a basic EMAIL
system, you probably will not have any use for this option.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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ESC - EDITOR MENU
All of the other editor features are accessible by using the EDITOR
MENU. Pressing ESC will display the menu and allow you to select any
of the following options:
- Area information
- Display statistics
- Forward message
- Copy/move message
- Print message
- Write message to file
- Username AKAs/Alias addresses
- Search headers/text
- PUSH/DROP to DOS
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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5.01 USING EDIT MODE
After you have selected either the ENTER, REPLY or EDIT command, the
editor will be in "EDIT" mode. When you are using this mode, all of the
keys have different meanings than they do in READ mode. The top line of
the screen lists all the valid commands.
The cursor will first appear on the "TO" field. Here, you enter the
name of the person to whom the message is addressed. If you have
selected the USERNAME INDEX option (in the nodelist configuration),
the editor scans for a username simply by entering part of the name.
For example, if you enter "CHRIS", DBEDIT will display all of the
users who have a first name of Chris, Christine, Christy or Christo-
pher and allow you to select the desired person. This search is based
on FIRST NAME, so entering a last name won't work.
If you wish to send the same message/files to different destinations,
press the F8 key while on the "TO" field. This will display a window
which allows you to enter any number of destinations, one per line in
the following form:
<ADDRESS>[,<PRIORITY>] <USER NAME>
ie.
1:110/68 Chris Irwin
Valid priorities are: H - Hold
N - Normal
C - Crash
I - Immediate
If you routinely send information to the same list of systems, you
will want to take advantage of the "distribution list" feature.
Instead of an address and a username, you can specify the names of
any number of distribution lists to include. A distribution list is
simply a text file containing the same information as above: address
and username.
After you have entered or selected the name of the person you are
writing the message to, the editor will say "on" and expect you to
enter the address of the user. If you selected the username from the
D'Bridge database, the address should already be there and you simply
press ENTER. If you are entering this message to someone not in the
database or have specified NO in the CREATE USERNAME INDEX field in
the nodelist setup, you will need to enter the address.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The editor provides 5 function keys to help you to find an address:
F3 - List nodes
Pressing F3 will display a list of all the systems in the currently
selected ZONE:NET. Moving the light bar, highlight the desired system
and press ENTER. If you can't find the address in this NET, press the
ESC key.
F4 - Change net
The F4 key allows you to change the currently selected ZONE and NET
numbers. Enter the ZONE and NET numbers desired separated by a colon
( : ) character. If you specify just one number, it is assumed to be
the NET; the ZONE remains the same. After changing the ZONE and NET
you may use the F3 key again to scan for individual systems.
F5 - List nets
Pressing F5 will give you a list of all ZONE and NET numbers in your
nodelist and allow you to choose one as the currently selected NET.
Similar to the F6 function, move the light bar to the desired line
and press the ENTER key.
F6 - List zones
This function is identical to F5 above except it lists the ZONES that
are compiled into the nodelist.
F7 - Set ZONE:NET
Allows you to directly set the ZONE and NET defaults.
After you have selected the destination address, the cursor will move to
the SUBJECT line. If you want to send a file along with this message or
if you wish to request one, you must enter the filename(s) as the sub-
ject. If you are SENDING files, you must specify the actual filename
including drive and directory. If you are requesting a file, just specify
the filenames you wish to receive. Obviously, if you are neither SENDING
nor REQUESTING files, the SUBJECT line is simply a field which briefly
states the purpose of the message.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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While the cursor is on the SUBJECT field, the following function keys are
in effect:
F3 - Send file
Pressing F3 sets the FILE-ATTACH attribute for the message. This means
all the files listed in the SUBJECT line (labeled ENCL) will be sent
with the message.
F4 - File request
Pressing the F4 key sets the FILE-REQUEST attribute for the message.
This means that when the message is sent, D'Bridge will request that
the remote system sends you all the listed files.
F5 - Update request
The F5 key sets the UPDATE-REQUEST attribute for the message. UPDATE-
REQUESTS are the same as FILE-REQUESTS in D'Bridge.
F6 - Cancel
Pressing F6 cancels a FILE-ATTACH, FILE-REQUEST or UPDATE-REQUEST and
makes the SUBJECT line be just informational.
When the cursor is BELOW the line separating the heading from the message
text, the editor acts just like most word-processing systems.
You may simply type in your message, using the BACKSPACE and ARROW keys
to edit. You may notice that when you press the ENTER key, a "HARD RETURN
SYMBOL" is generated. Normally, you should not press the ENTER key unless
you wish to start a new paragraph or are entering a list of some kind
which should not be "rejustified" on the receiving system. Because D'Bridge
can communicate with other EMAIL systems and bulletin boards, the messages
might not look exactly the same on the receiving system as they look on
your screen when you enter them. For example, some EMAIL editors only
allow the display of 66-column text. If you were to use HARD RETURNS (by
pressing ENTER on each line), your message would be very hard to read on
the other EMAIL system. Get in the habit of only pressing the ENTER key
when you want to start a new paragraph.
While in the "EDIT" mode, the following function keys are in effect:
F1 or ESC-Q-A - ABORT
If you have accidentally gone into "EDIT" mode or wish to cancel your
edit session and completely "throw away" the message you are entering,
use the ABORT option. The editor will ask "ARE YOU SURE?", just to
make sure you didn't press F1 accidentally. ABORTING your editor will
return you to "READ" mode.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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F2 or ESC-Q-S - SAVE MESSAGE
Pressing F2 will immediately save the current message to disk. Unless
otherwise specified, it will be sent during the next scheduled mail
event. If you press F2 by accident, you can always use the EDIT OLD
option to continue or change it. SAVING your message will return you
to "READ" mode.
F3 or CONTROL-N - INSERT LINE
The INSERT LINE option will add a blank line BEFORE the line where the
cursor is located.
F4 or CONTROL-Y - DELETE LINE
The DELETE LINE option does just that; it erases the line that the
cursor is on.
F5/F6 - MARK
This is an "advanced" feature; The F5 key marks the beginning of a
block of text; the F6 key marks the end. "Marked" text is designated
by reverse video for the selected block. This is used in conjunction
with the BLOCK commands described later; they allow you to COPY, MOVE,
DELETE or WRITE the selected block of text to a file.
F10 - FLAGS
D'Bridge allows you to set up to 15 different "FLAGS" on an EMAIL
message. Pressing F10 displays a menu of all the flags; only the
ones that are "bright" are allowed. Depending on certain criteria,
such as FAX addressing, etc, certain options are not always available.
The currently defined flags are as follows:
Private This message is intended for the addressee only.
If the receiving system is a BBS, only the Sysop
should be able to read the message.
Hold HOLD priority should be used for this message.
Please note that unless you specify XMAIL for this
message, the message will be sent if there is any
other outbound traffic for the destination system;
if you enter a CRASH message to the same system,
both messages will be sent unless you XMAIL it.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Crash CRASH priority means the message should be sent
right-away, even during the UNEVENT. Only messages
with CRASH or IMMEDIATE priority will be sent during
the UNEVENT. CRASH messages might cost more due to
making a long-distance phone call during the day
rather than during a late-night scheduled event.
CRASH priority messages never get routed, but go
directly to their destination.
Immediate An IMMEDIATE priority message means the message will
be sent right away and have priority over other out-
bound traffic that has no IMMEDIATE priority.
This is handy for getting an important message out
when there's a lot of other outbound traffic in the
queue.
XMail If you specify an EMAIL message to be XMAIL, this
means the D'Bridge mail scanner will pack the
message in an outbound XMAIL archive using the
specified archive program: ZIP, LHA, ARJ, PAK, ARC
or ZOO. If you use this method, all priorities:
IMMEDIATE, CRASH, NORMAL and HOLD are treated
separately; HOLD mail will never be sent unless the
other system calls to pick it up or the operator
specifically overrides it in the VIEW/MODIFY QUEUE,
ALT-V mode.
Kill/Sent If a message has the KILL/SENT flag, it will be
erased from your NETmail area as soon as it has been
successfully transmitted. This is good for messages
that have been sent to multiple destinations.
Archive/Sent The ARCHIVE/SENT flag causes a message to be written
to the specified OUTBOUND MAIL ARCHIVE specified on
the PACKET/MAIL CONTROL screen. After the message
text has been stored in this file, the message is
erased from the system.
Direct If a message is flagged as DIRECT, the normal
routing specified in the ADVANCED ROUTING screen of
the event setup is ignored; the message is sent
directly to its final destination.
Route/HUB If you want a message to be HOST- or HUB-ROUTED,
specify this flag.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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You can change the flags either by moving the highlight bar with the
UP and DOWN arrows and pressing ENTER, or by pressing the first letter
of the desired flag. Press ESC when you are finished setting message
flags.
ESC - MENU
The rest of the "EDIT" mode commands are activated from the menu.
Pressing the ESC key will display the menu.
BLOCK: READ
The BLOCK READ option allows you to read in text from a standard text
file. It will ask for the name of a text file and whether you want to
use HARD of SOFT returns. If the text is in the form of paragraphs, use
the SOFT option; if you are reading in columns of numbers or some sort
of text you don't want to be reformatted, specify HARD.
BLOCK: WRITE
Assuming you have already used the F5 and F6 keys to highlight a
block of text, the BLOCK WRITE option allows you to write it to a
standard text file.
BLOCK: COPY
The BLOCK COPY option will move the text highlighted with the F5 and
F6 keys to the position where the cursor is currently located. This
option will not work if the cursor is within the highlighted region.
BLOCK: MOVE
The BLOCK MOVE option is the same as the BLOCK COPY command except
the text is actually moved rather than copied to the current cursor
position.
BLOCK: DELETE
The BLOCK DELETE command will erase all text you highlighted with
the F5 and F6 keys.
QUIT: SAVE
The SAVE option is the same as the F2 key. It saves the current message
and returns to "READ" mode.
QUIT: ABORT
The ABORT option allows you to "throw away" the current edit session.
This is the same as the F1 key.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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QUIT: DROP TO DOS
The DROP TO DOS command allows you access to DOS while you are editing
a message. This method frees all available memory by swapping the
editor to EMS or disk. When you are finished using DOS commands or
programs, type "EXIT" to return to your edit.
QUIT: PUSH TO DOS
The PUSH TO DOS command allows you access to DOS while you are editing
a message. When you are finished using DOS commands or programs, simply
type "EXIT" to return to the editor.
To summarize, we have included the following table of keys and their
effect in various "edit" modes:
Mode/field Key(s) Effect
-------------------------------------------------------------------
"TO" F3 List users starting with the one entered
F8 Multiple destinations/Distribution list(s)
"ADDRESS" F3 List all NODEs in the currently selected NET
F4 Select a new ZONE and NET
F5 List all NETs in the nodelist
F6 List all NETs in the selected ZONE
F7 List FAX entries
"SUBJECT" F3 Send file(s)
F4 File-request
F5 Update-request
F6 Cancel send/request
EDITOR UP Moves the cursor up one line
DOWN Moves the cursor down one line
LEFT Moves the cursor left one character
RIGHT Moves the cursor right one character
DELETE Deletes the character under the cursor
INSERT Toggles "insert mode" ON/OFF
HOME Moves cursor to the start of line/page/message
END Moves cursor to the end of line/page/message
TAB Moves cursor to the next tab position
BACKSPACE Moves cursor left one character and erases
previous character if at the end of a line or
"insert mode" is ON.
F1 Aborts the current edit, returns to READ mode
F2 Saves the message, returns to READ mode
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
5.02 USING READ MODE
186
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5.02 USING READ MODE
"Read" mode allows the user to read EMAIL messages in any of the defined
message areas. There are several keys that are used to control "read" mode
with a single keystroke:
UP and DOWN arrows
The UP and DOWN arrow keys move the currently displayed message UP and
DOWN on your screen allowing you to read more text than will fit on the
screen.
PGUP and PGDN
The PGUP and PGDN keys work like the UP and DOWN arrows except they
advance the text one page at a time.
HOME and END
The HOME key displays the first page of a message; the END key displays
the last page.
LEFT and RIGHT arrows
The RIGHT arrow displays the NEXT message; the LEFT arrow displays the
previous message.
+ and - keys
The PLUS and MINUS keys allow you to read by "thread". If a message
says "Reply to #nnn", you can read the original message (the one replied
to) by pressing the MINUS (-) key. Pressing PLUS (+) displays the next
message in the "thread". This is most useful for "local" areas and does
not usually work in your Network mail area.
Number keys (0-9)
You can advance to the desired message simply by entering the message
number and pressing ENTER.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
5.02 USING READ MODE
187
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge allows for virtually any number of message areas to be defined
in the area manager. While in READ mode, you may select between the
different message areas by using the F6 or "A" command. This command
displays the following screen which allows you to select a new message
area:
F1-Enter, F2-Reply, F3-Edit, F4-List, F5-Kill, F6-Areas, ESC-Menu D'Bridge
1.50/001002
/-READ/EDIT EMAIL-------------------------------------------------------------\
|Msg # 251 |
|Date: 07/-AREA CHANGE-----------------------------------------------------\ |
|From: Ch| 0 NETMAIL Network mail area | |
| To: To| 2 COMPLAIN Complaint Department | |
|Subj: Gr| 4 DB_ALPHA D'Bridge ALPHA conference | |
|--------| 6 FTSC Technical standards committee |--|
|Hello To| 7 NETDEV Network developer's conference | |
| | 10 SYSOP18 Region 18 Sysop conference | |
|I was ju| 11 ZMODEM ZMODEM conference | |
|finishin| 12 ECHOECHO ECHOmail working group | |
|is well-| 19 SYSOP110 NET 110 Sysop conference | |
|I won't | 21 DBRIDGE D'Bridge ECHO | |
| | 22 QUICKBBS QuickBBS ECHO | |
|Regards,| 24 TBBS TBBS ECHO | |
|Chris, 2| 9999 BADECHO Bad ECHOmail area | |
| | | |
| | | |
| \-----------------------------------------------------------------/ |
| |
| |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------/
Change areas either by highlighting the desired area using the UP and
DOWN arrows and pressing ENTER or by entering the TAG or NUMBER of the
message area you desire. Pressing ESC will leave you in the same area
you were in before.
Once DBEDIT is displaying another message area, it should be displaying
the same message as was there the last time you exited from that area.
This is a feature of the so-called LAST READ POINTER, which is maintained
for each user in the editor separately. D'Bridge stores the LAST READ
POINTERS on your disk so that they are the same the next time you read
your mail.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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5.02 USING READ MODE
188
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To summarize, we have included the following table of keys and their
effect in various "read" modes:
Mode Key(s) Effect
--------------------------------------------------------------------
READ F1, E Enter a new message
F2 Enter a reply to a message (see REPLY mode)
R Enter a normal reply
Q, > Enter a quoted reply
F3, O Edit an old message
F4, L Change to LIST mode
F5, K Kill (erase) the current message
F6, A Change message areas
ESC Displays the main menu (advanced functions)
LEFT arrow Displays the previous message
RIGHT arrow Displays the next message
0..9 Selects message number
ENTER Selects message or advances to the next one
UP arrow Scrolls the message up one line
DOWN arrow Scrolls the message down one line
PgUp Scrolls the message up one screen
PgDn Scrolls the message down one screen
HOME Displays the beginning of the message
END Moves to the end of the message
CTL-C Leave editor
REPLY F1 Enter a quoted reply
F2 Enter a normal reply
ESC Cancel reply
LIST UP arrow Moves the highlight bar up one line
DOWN arrow Moves the highlight bar down one line
PgUp Scrolls the screen back one page
PgDn Scrolls the screen forward one page
ENTER Select current message, return to READ mode
I Includes the highlighted message
E Excludes the highlighted message
A Includes all messages
N Includes no messages (excludes all)
P Includes all messages on the current page
G Enters GROUP mode
ESC Exits LIST mode, displaying the same message
GROUP P Print all included messages
K Kills (erases) all included messages
ESC Exits GROUP mode, returns to LIST mode
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
5.03 ADVANCED FEATURES
189
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.03 ADVANCED FEATURES
There are several other features available from DBEDIT; they include
forwarding, copying, moving or printing messages, searching text and
selecting alternate addresses or "AKA" usernames. To activate the
EDITOR MENU, press ESC while in "READ" mode; the following menu will
be displayed:
Editor menu: UTILITIES SEARCH QUIT D'Bridge
/--------------------\ 1.50/001002
/-READ/EDIT EM| Area information |------------------------------------------\
|Msg # 252 Wri| Forward message | |
|Date: 11 Jun | Copy message | |
|From: Chris I| Move message | |
| To: Tom Ord| Print message |Bridge Support/Europe |
|Subj: Greetin| Write msg to file | |
|-------------| New username |------------------------------------------|
|Hello Tom, | Use alias address | |
| \--------------------/ |
|I was just writing to let you know that I've been sitting out in the snow |
|finishing the D'Bridge documentation. I think that you will find that it |
|is well-written and quite clear. It's Thursday, so I'll be playing poker |
|tonight... Give me a call when you get a chance tomorrow! |
| |
|Regards, |
|Chris, 1:110/68 |
| |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------/
Following are descriptions of all the options available from the main
editor menu:
UTILITIES: AREA INFORMATION
The AREA INFORMATION screen functions identically to the AREA CHANGE
function described in the previous section. The difference is that
AREA INFORMATION displays the number of messages, last read, low and
high message numbers in each area. D'Bridge displays the areas that
have new, unread mail in the selected BRIGHT color. Areas which have
new mail have the HIGHEST message different than the LAST READ.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
5.03 ADVANCED FEATURES
190
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information screen looks like this:
/-AREA INFORMATION------------------------------------------------------------\
|# Name Description Low High LR Msgs|
|0 NETMAIL Network mail area 16 1477 1471 190|
|2 COMPLAIN Complaint Department 1 1458 1458 17|
|4 DB_ALPHA D'Bridge ALPHA conference 279 1479 1479 268|
|6 FTSC Technical standards committee 1 295 261 295|
|7 NETDEV Network developer's conferenc 1 107 107 95|
|10 SYSOP18 Region 18 Sysop conference 1 479 479 402|
|11 ZMODEM ZMODEM conference 1 29 29 29|
|12 ECHOECHO ECHOmail working group 1 3 3 3|
|19 SYSOP135 NET 135 Sysop conference 1 178 175 15|
|21 DBRIDGE D'Bridge ECHO 4 1332 1332 125|
|22 QUICKBBS QuickBBS ECHO 130 1450 1450 199|
|24 TBBS TBBS ECHO 621 1182 1080 102|
|9999 BADECHO Bad ECHOmail area 1 1 1 1|
| |
| |
| |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------/
UTILITIES: FORWARD MESSAGE
The FORWARD MESSAGE option allows you to re-route or send a copy of the
current message to another system. You simply enter the TO, ADDRESS and
specify the priority and whether to keep a the original copy of the
message.
UTILITIES: COPY/MOVE MESSAGE
The COPY and MOVE MESSAGE commands can only be used when you have
specified alternate message areas. It will copy or move the current
message from one area to another.
UTILITIES: PRINT MESSAGE
Assuming you have a printer connected to your "PRN" port, DBEDIT will
print the current message.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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5.03 ADVANCED FEATURES
191
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UTILITIES: WRITE MSG TO FILE
The WRITE MSG TO FILE option allows you to export a message to a
standard text file. This might be used to transfer data from D'Bridge
to a word processor or spreadsheet.
UTILITIES: NEW USERNAME
If you have defined more than one USER NAME in the SETUP EDITOR PARAM-
ETERS menu, you can select from any of these to be the current user.
This is the same screen you receive when you first start the editor
with more than one user defined.
UTILITIES: ALIAS ADDRESSES
For systems who have defined multiple ALIAS ADDRESSES on the BASIC
CONFIGURATION menu, this function allows you to enter messages
addressed from one of your aliases.
SEARCH: HEADERS or TEXT
The SEARCH HEADERS or TEXT options allow you to search through your
messages for specific keywords. Simply enter the word to search for
and D'Bridge will find and highlight all occurrences.
QUIT: EXIT
Terminates DBEDIT and returns to D'Bridge.
QUIT: DROP/PUSH TO DOS
PUSH TO DOS allows you to enter DOS commands and run other programs
while DBEDIT is still in memory. Type "EXIT" to return to DBEDIT.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
6.00 UNDERSTANDING THE QUEUE
192
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6.00 UNDERSTANDING THE QUEUE
Everything D'Bridge does is based on the entries in the outbound queue
window. Once you understand what the "queue" is and how it is organized,
you will have a good overview of the program's structure.
The "QUEUE"
The outbound queue is a database containing entries for each of the
systems that currently have "outbound" mail. When D'Bridge first starts,
the outbound queue is created by scanning the NETmail area (either in
Fido or QuickBBS format), then scanning the disk-based queue for polls,
file-requests, etc. This database is then sorted by address and finally
displayed in the bottom-left window.
The queue can best be understood by disabling the SCHEDULE window so
the entire QUEUE window will be displayed. (Press ALT-S to toggle the
schedule window on and off).
/-QUEUE----------------------------------------------------------------------\
| Destination Try/Con/Bad/Online Priorities/Pkt types Status |
|*110/68.1 0 0 0 00:00 C N X M Hold/Unlisted |
| 105/3 0 0 0 00:00 H X Hold |
| 108/0 0 0 0 00:00 N F M Decision at 17:00|
| 135/3 30 0 0 00:00 C X Try limit |
| 135/142 1 1 0 00:32 Sent successfully|
| 143/18 1 0 0 00:00 H X Hold |
| 167/999 0 0 0 00:00 C M Hold/Unlisted |
| 2:243/40 0 0 0 00:00 H X Hold |
|*8:77/7 0 0 0 00:00 N T M Hold/Unlisted |
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------/
To understand the queue, you simply need to have a good understanding of
the individual fields:
DESTINATION
The destination is simply the Fidonet or FAX address of the system to
contact. The destination is not always the "ultimate" destination due
to possible routing, but is the system to be called.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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6.00 UNDERSTANDING THE QUEUE
193
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TRY
The try field simply shows how many times D'Bridge has tried to call
the destination system during the current event. If there is a plus
sign ( + ) behind the number, it has been manually reset this event
by the operator.
CON
This field shows the number of actual connections (carrier detects)
made as the result of outbound calls to the specified system.
Inbound connections do not count in the CON field. Again, if
there is a plus sign ( + ) after the number, it has been manually
reset this event.
BAD
This field shows the number of failures encountered during outbound
sessions this event. In general, a failure means it was a wasted
phone call for one reason or another (generally, the reason or error
is listed in the log file). Again, the plus sign after the number is
an indication that it has been manually reset (using the ALT-V com-
mand).
ONLINE
The online field keeps track of total connect time as a summation of
all outbound connects. This field is not reset until the end of the
current event.
PRIORITIES
The priorities field shows which priorities of mail are contained
within the queue entry. This field may contain any or all of the
following:
I Immediate (Highest priority mail)
C Crash (High priority mail)
N Normal (Normal, budget priority mail)
H Hold (Mail held for pickup)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
6.00 UNDERSTANDING THE QUEUE
194
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PACKET TYPES
The packet type field contains what types of mail packets are contained
within the queue entry. The field may contain any or all of the follow-
ing:
R Outbound AREAFIX request (ALT-R)
T Transmit file(s) (ALT-T)
F File-request(s) (ALT-F)
P Poll (ALT-P)
X XMAIL (Editor/BBS/ECHOmail)
M NETmail (Editor/BBS)
STATUS
The STATUS field is most-likely the most important one to understand.
If you are having trouble understanding why a mail packet is not being
sent, the STATUS indication should be able to tell you exactly what is
wrong. Please read and understand what the following status indications
mean:
Hold
The mail can't be sent because "HOLD" is the only priority specified
for the mail. (You told it to do this when you entered a message or
set-up an ECHOmail area).
Hold/Unlisted
This indication means it is impossible to call this system
because it is either not in your nodelist or it is listed as
"unpublished". The destination system must call in for its mail
or you need to get a nodelist containing its phone number.
Max cost hold
The cost of the message you want to send (as indicated in the editor)
exceeds the maximum allowed during the current event.
Temporary hold
This means the operator has used the VIEW/MODIFY QUEUE mode to
set the entry's status to "hold". To send the message, select
ALT-V again and specify "SEND".
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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6.00 UNDERSTANDING THE QUEUE
195
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forced hold
This means the operator has specified a forced priority of hold
at some time in the past. This may be changed by using the ALT-V
command to remove the "forced" status.
Priority hold
This means the given mail event does not allow the specified
priority of mail to be transmitted. (This is related to the
PRIORITIES field in the advanced routing of the schedule).
Not a CM system
In this event, you have specified that only those systems with a "CM"
(continuous mail) flag may be called. (Again, this is a function of
the advanced routing screen of the scheduler).
CM not allowed
In this event you have told D'Bridge not to call any "CM" systems.
Decision at 17:00
This means that because of the cost-control data, no outbound call
may be placed to this address until at least 17:00. At 17:00, a
decision will be made as to whether it may be called or not. This is
the mechanism which allows D'Bridge to call-out only at the most
economical times for normal priority mail. If you want the mail to
be sent now, you should use a higher priority or change the cost-
control data in the ACCOUNTING/TRANSLATION screen.
Try limit
This means D'Bridge has exceeded the maximum number of times
allowed to try calling the remote system. Typically, you are not
charged for non-connects, but you might want a limit on how many
tries (gotta give up sometime... ).
Session limit
You have reached the maximum number of sessions allowed within the
given event. In the case of long-distance systems, this has most-
likely saved you a wasted phone call, making too many ECHOmail calls
in the same event...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
6.00 UNDERSTANDING THE QUEUE
196
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Failure limit
This means you have reached the maximum failures (bad sessions)
allowed for the event. Maybe something is wrong with the remote
system?
Picked up
This means all mail has been successfully picked up by the remote
system. This saves D'Bridge the trouble and expense of making the
call itself.
Sent successfully
This means you called the other system, sent the mail and all went
well. All mail is confirmed as delivered to the "destination" sys-
tem; remember that routed mail is now in the hands of another
operator and is not 100% guaranteed to arrive.
----------
The dashes (-----) mean that the packet is ready to be sent, now.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
6.01 CREATING A PRIVATE NODELIST
197
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.01 CREATING A PRIVATE NODELIST
Without a nodelist, D'Bridge can not make outbound EMAIL calls. Your
nodelist tells D'Bridge which systems it can communicate with and contains
information such as name, phone number and baud rate. Nodelists are text
files that can be created by any standard text editor. It lists ZONES,
NETS and NODES, one per line, using the "St. Louis format", the same style
used by Fidonet, Alternet and many other public EMAIL networks. You may
specify any number of St. Louis or private nodelists in D'Bridge.
Here's a sample NODELIST for a bogus private network:
,HOST,1720,Main_System,Cincinnati_OH,Rancy_Neagan,1-513-777-0007,9600,CM
,1,New_York_Office,Bronx_NY,Quan_Dale,1-202-555-9343,2400,CM
,4,Western_Division,Los_Angeles,Clinn_Billton,1-714-555-5286,2400,CM
,6,XYZ_Canada,Quebec,Lawrence_DeLaMouche,1-418-555-2811,2400,CM
,15,European_Office,The_Hague_NL,Luud_Rubbers,31-70-452121,9600,CM
,20,Moscow_Bureau,Moscow_USSR,Joris_Beltsin,!Unlisted,2400,CM
This example defined a HOST system and 5 nodes in NET 1720. Unless
a ZONE directive is specified, NET 1720 will be in whatever zone you
are in. Notice the format of the text file; no spaces are allowed.
All underscore characters "_" will be translated to spaces when the
information is displayed. Each field is separated by commas. The
following format is used for the "St. Louis format" nodelist:
KEYWORD,NUMBER,NAME,CITY,OPERATOR,PHONE,BAUD,FLAGS
KEYWORD The KEYWORD directive may be blank or contain any of the
following values:
ZONE The ZONE keyword marks the start of a new ZONE
and NET (both with the same number). It also
defines the NODE that is the ZONE coordinator.
POINT Specifies that this entry is a POINT of the
previously specified NODE.
HOST The HOST keyword defines the start of a new NET
number and defines its HOST (a HOST has a NODE
number of zero).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
6.01 CREATING A PRIVATE NODELIST
198
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REGION The REGION keyword is identical to HOST with the
exception that no mail will be automatically
routed through the "HOST" node. This is mainly
used when the NET covers more than one geographic
area.
HUB The HUB keyword defines the start of a routing
group. A HUB acts as the HOST to receive in-
coming mail for all nodes listed after it.
PVT Defines that the listed node is private and does
not have a listed phone number. If a system's
phone number is not listed, this keyword MUST
be used.
DOWN Defines that the listed node is down and should
not be added to the database.
NUMBER This specifies the NODE number of the listed node UNLESS
the KEYWORD is ZONE, HOST or REGION; in these cases, the
NUMBER defines the ZONE and/or NET, depending.
NAME Defines the name of the system. D'Bridge truncates NAMES
to 25 characters. Underscores "_" will be translated to
spaces for display.
CITY Specifies the city where the system is located. Again,
underscores "_" translate to spaces.
OPERATOR Defines the name of the primary system operator. Under-
scores "_" translate to spaces.
PHONE List the ENTIRE phone number including the COUNTRY CODE,
AREA CODE and PHONE NUMBER separated with dashes. "-"
For example: 1-305-232-9365 or 38-52-592831
BAUD Specify the MAXIMUM BAUD RATE for the system. May be
either 300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600 or 19200.
FLAGS A free-form field that may contain additional information
about the system. Include the characters "CM" if you wish
to designate a system as CONTINUOUS MAIL (24-hours)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
6.02 DUTIES OF A NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR
199
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6.02 DUTIES OF A NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR
Every network must have an "administrator" or anarchy would certainly
prevail! This chapter briefly outlines which duties the administrator
of any private network should perform. Remember, these are just guidelines.
1) The NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR is generally responsible for daily
operation of the network. This means any problems are reported
directly to the administrator. Obviously, a very large network
would sub-divide the support into several regional administrators
who would try to field all problems if they could.
2) The NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR is responsible for the maintenance of the
nodelist. Any systems added, changed or deleted must have these
changes reflected in the nodelist and the new nodelist updates
must be sent to all systems in the network.
3) The general structure and routing used in the network must be either
designed or approved by the NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR. He must be kept
informed of all aspects of the network so that he can "keep a handle
on it..."
4) The NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR will assign NET and NODE numbers unless
that responsibility is divided into different regions and handled
by the regional administrators.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
7.00 DBUTIL / UTILITY PROGRAM
200
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.00 DBUTIL / UTILITY PROGRAM
D'Bridge comes with a utility program called DBUTIL; it allows you to
automate routine file-transfers and maintenance.
DBUTIL is located in your D'Bridge directory. If D'Bridge is running, it
should be taken off-line or shut down before running any DBUTIL tasks. Any
BBS or third-party utilities should also be taken off-line.
The following parameters are used when running DBUTIL. If no parameters are
specified, then the most frequently-used commands are displayed.
SEND
The DBUTIL SEND command adds TRANSMIT-FILE entries to the disk-based
queue. Files will be sent directly to the destination system with no
routing. The syntax for the SEND command is:
C:\DB> DBUTIL [priority] SEND <Address> <file> ... <file>
ie.
C:\DB> DBUTIL CRASH SEND 18/68.5 HOMEWORK.TXT
C:\DB> DBUTIL HOLD SEND 18/20 DB-140*.ZIP DBNET.Z56
REQUEST
The DBUTIL REQUEST command adds FILE-REQUEST entries to the disk-based
queue. The file-request will be sent immediately or during the next
applicable mail event, depending on the priority you specify. Following
is the syntax for REQUEST:
C:\DB> DBUTIL [priority] REQUEST <Address> <file> ... <file>
ie.
C:\DB> DBUTIL CRASH REQUEST 2:280/280 FILES ABOUT
C:\DB> DBUTIL REQUEST 135/14 GOODGAME.ZIP MONOPOLY.ZIP
POLL
The DBUTIL POLL commands adds a POLL entry to the disk-based queue.
Depending on the priority, the system will be called either immediately
or during the next applicable mail event. When you POLL a system,
D'Bridge will call to see if you have any mail waiting. The syntax for
POLL is:
C:\DB> DBUTIL [priority] POLL <Address>
ie.
C:\DB> DBUTIL IMMEDIATE POLL 1:105/3
PURGE
The DBUTIL PURGE command will purge the specified message areas or all
of them if you don't list any AREA NAMES. The purge will scan each
message area and purge (and archive) the messages based on the criteria
specified in the LOCAL/ECHOMAIL AREAS screen and CONFIG-PACKET/MAIL
CONTROL. The syntax for the PURGE command is:
C:\DB> DBUTIL PURGE [areaname] [areaname] ... [areaname]
ie.
C:\DB> DBUTIL PURGE
Purges all of the Echomail areas.
C:\DB> DBUTIL PURGE POLITICS SCIENCE ART
Purges only the POLITICS, SCIENCE and ART areas.
Note that if a message area DOES NOT have any purging criteria, it
will NOT be purged.
SORT AREAS
If you wish to reorganize the areas in your LOCAL/ECHOMAIL AREAS screen,
you may use the SORT AREAS command. This will sort and renumber your
areas by SORT GROUP and TAG. Before using this command, make sure you
specify SORT GROUPS for all the areas and group them together in a
logical manner. The syntax is:
C:\DB> DBUTIL SORT AREAS
Be warned that if you have a large number of Echomail areas, it may
take anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes, depending on
the speed of your computer.
CHANGE
The CHANGE command tells DBUTIL to make mass-changes to your
Echomail setup, based on the option you select:
CHANGE [option] [newvalue]
Options:
ALERTFLAG [value] - The "Alert" status flag. 0-9, A-Z.
GROUPACCESS [value] - The group access character. 0-9, A-Z.
GROUPSORT [value] - The group sort character, usually 0-9.
AREASECURITY [value] - The security level. 0 to 5000.
PURGE [value] - Purge except OR purge after days. If you
are purging in days, specify a negative
value, ie. 7 days should be "-7"
PRESERVE [value] - Messages to preserve.
AKA [value] - Network address.
The following addition criteria can be set:
JUNK [value] - Change junk filter ON or OFF.
ISOLATE [value] - Change Isolate Processing ON or OFF.
SUSPEND [value] - Change Suspend status ON or OFF.
FORCED [value] - Change Forced status ON or OFF.
PERMANENT [value] - Change Permanent status ON or OFF.
Examples:
C:\DB> DBUTIL CHANGE ALERTFLAG A ALERTFLAG B
Changes all areas with alert flag "A" to alert flag "B"
C:\DB> DBUTIL CHANGE GROUPACCESS A GROUPACCESS Z
Changes all areas in group "A" to group "Z"
C:\DB> DBUTIL CHANGE PURGE -14 PRESERVE 50
Changes all areas with a 14 day purge value to also have a preserve
value of 50.
C:\DB> DBUTIL CHANGE SECURITY 50 JUNK ON
Changes all areas matching security level 50 to have the Junk Filter
enabled.
DELETE
Deletes areas from your Echomail database based on your criteria. Use
with caution.
DELETE [option]
Options:
ALERTFLAG [value] - The "Alert" status flag. 0-9, A-Z.
GROUPACCESS [value] - The group access character. 0-9, A-Z.
GROUPSORT [value] - The group sort character, usually 0-9.
AREASECURITY [value] - The security level. 0 to 5000.
PURGE [value] - Purge except OR purge after days. If you
are purging in days, specify a negative
value, ie. 7 days should be "-7"
PRESERVE [value] - Messages to preserve.
AKA [value] - Network address.
Examples:
C:\DB> DBUTIL DELETE ALERTFLAG A
Deletes all Echomail areas that have alert flag "A"
C:\DB> DBUTIL DELETE AREASECURITY 5000
Deletes all Echomail areas that have a group security of 5000.
DESCFILE
The DESCFILE command tells DBUTIL to change all the descriptions of
the Echomail database to match those found in a text file. The text
file should be in ".NA" format, meaning the area tag, at least one
space, and then the description.
ie.
C:\DB> DBUTIL DESCFILE C:\DBRIDGE\FIDONET.NA
MOVE
MOVE will take any address you specify, and "move" the Queue entry
to a directory of your choice. The MOVE command should be used after
any queue-manipulating commands such as POLL and SEND.
MOVE [address] [directory]
ie.
C:\DB> DBUTIL MOVE 1:229/426.1 F:\LAN\SOMEONE
C:\DB> DBUTIL MOVE 1:229/2000 C:\ROBERT
C:\DB> DBUTIL MOVE 2:2/0 C:\WARD
GENBINK
GENBINK will generate a ".FLO" file. This command is for advanced
users only and should not be used under normal circumstances.
SHOWDEADECHOES [days] will produce a log of any Echomail areas that
have not had any traffic in them in the specified number of days.
This is saved in a plain ASCII text file called DEADECHO.LOG
containing just the Echomail tags, a space, and their description
if available. That text file can be used as part of any "robot"
reporting process or anything else you can think of.
REMOVEDEADECHOES [days] will actually remove the dead echo, ie.
DBUTIL REMOVEDEADECHOES 90. The dead echoes are logged to a different
file called NUKEECHO.LOG as per the above command.
The above two commands use the "Last Accessed Date" to keep track of
the last time mail was received in an Echomail area. The
command RESETLASTACCESSEDDATE, will reset all of your Echomail
"last accessed" dates to todays date.
NUKEFROMFILE C:\DB\NUKEAREA.TXT will delete any areas specified
in the given file. The file would contain the list of areas you wish
to have the DBUTIL program delete, one line at a time.
AREAFIX
AREAFIXLIST
AREAFIXOVERRIDE
AREAFIXLISTOVERRIDE
AREAFIXRESCAN
AREAFIXRESCANLIST
AREAFIXRESCANOVERRIDE
AREAFIXRESCANLISTOVERRIDE
FILEFIX
FILEFIXLIST
FILEFIXOVERRIDE
FILEFIXLISTOVERRIDE
These various commands allow you to "fake" such requests from the DOS
prompt as if that system was sending you a request normally.
D'Bridge will process these requests the next time it has to toss
mail; note that due to the way D'Bridge tosses mail, only one
Areafix or Filefix request can be pending at a time, per system. That
means that if you run this command for a system and there is already
an existing Areafix/Filefix request waiting to be processed for that
Sysop, this command will fail.
When no areas are specified, a notification of the currently
subscribed areas is generated.
Now AREAFIXRESCAN is exactly the same as AREAFIX, except that an
Areafix request to add an area is given the "rescan" flag. Your
system must specifically support the rescanning of messages - If you
are manipulating your messages via a BBS or 3rd-party software, it
may not be possible to process a rescan-request for systems with
DBUTIL AREAFIXRESCAN.
Areafix/Filefix requests generated from DBUTIL will be given NORMAL
priority with NO "override" authority (as in, not the same as pressing
ALT+N from the mailer). This means, a request is "faked" along with
permissions. This was designed to specifically aid in troubleshooting
or testing Areafix/Filefix requests. Requests will follow the
security levels you specifically define in CONFIG - AREAS, CONFIG -
PACKET/MAIL CONTROL and CONFIG - FILEECHO SETUP.
Here are some examples (assuming my system address, 1:229/426)
C:\DB> DBUTIL AREAFIX 1:229/427
This will send a notification list from my system, 1:229/426, to a
downlink of mine, 1:229/427, containing all of the currently connected
Echomail areas.
C:\DB> DBUTIL FILEFIX 1:229/427
This will send a notification list from 1:229/426 to 1:229/427 of the
currently connected EchoFILE/TIC areas.
C:\DB> DBUTIL AREAFIX 1:229/427 DBRIDGE FN_SYSOP -STATS
Fakes an Areafix request from 1:229/427 to 1:229/426, requesting the
DBRIDGE and FN_SYSOP echoes, but dropping STATS.
C:\DB> DBUTIL AREAFIXRESCAN 1:229/427 -FIDONEWS CHAT
Fakes an Areafix request from 1:229/427 to 1:229/426, requesting the
CHAT echo with a message rescan, and dropping FIDONEWS.
ERASE QUICKBASE CONFIRM
This command will completely erase and "reset" the QuickBBS/GoldBase
databases. Only use this command if it is absolutely necessary.
EXPORT AREAS.BBS
This will export an AREAS.BBS file. Use EXPORTZP if you need to
export this file to show Zones and Points.
EXPORT AREAS.JTT
This will export a file containing "Just the tags" (Echomail
conference names)
EXPORT AREAS.JTD
This will export a file containing the Echomail tags (conference
names), a space, then the Fido *.MSG directories. Passthru or
non *.MSG areas will be ignored.
EXPORT AREAS.JTA
This will export a file containing the Echomail tags (conference
names), a space, and the ASCII last-accessed date.
EXPORT AREAS.JFD
This will export a file containing the Fido *.MSG directories
only. Passthru or non *.MSG areas will be ignored.
EXPORT AREAS.JAD
This will export a file containing the Echomail area names and
their descriptions.
POST [Area] [From] [To] [Subject] [File with body] [MsgID Y/N]
This command will write the contents of a text-file to an Echomail
area of your choice. The Echomail area must not be a Passthru area.
Any spaces in From, To or Subject must be replaced with underscore
characters, ie. Test_Subject_Line to become Test Subject Line. If
you do not want a MSGID kludge, specify "N" as the last parameter.
ie. DBUTIL POST 229426HS Nick_Andre All Hourly_Stats ECHOMAIL.LOG
If you want the messages posted to scan-out right away, you should
run DBUTIL COMMIT afterwards. This will tell D'Bridge to only scan
the areas that had the POST command executed. Alternatively you may
create the dummy file DBRIDGE.RSE to force a complete outbound-scan
or in the mailer use ESC-Utilities-Process Mail.
NETMAIL [FromAddr] [ToAddr] [From] [To] [Subject] [File with body]
This will send a NETmail message much like the DBUTIL POST command.
DBUTIL NETMAIL "commits" right away and the Queue will be rescanned
when this command is used.
ie. DBUTIL NETMAIL 1:229/426 2:292/854 Nick_Andre Ward_Dossche
A_Funny_Joke FUNNY.TXT
Note that FromAddr and ToAddr can be *any* valid Fidonet address,
not just ones defined on your system. This may be useful for testing
in-transit message routing or "tracker" software.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
7.01 MESSAGE STORAGE
201
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.01 MESSAGE STORAGE
D'Bridge currently supports two methods for storing EMAIL messages on
your hard drive:
/----------+------------------------------------------------------------\
| FIDO/MSG | Messages will be stored in Fido *.MSG format. Choose for |
| | compatibility with most 3rd-party editors and utilities. |
| | Messages will be stored in individual files. |
| | |
| QUICKBBS | Messages will be stored in QuickBBS/Hudson or GoldBase |
| | databases; a series of index, header and message files. |
| | Recommended only if you are running BBS software that |
| | will specifically use those databases. |
\----------+------------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
7.02 USING THE SCRIPTING LANGUAGE
202
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7.02 USING THE SCRIPTING LANGUAGE
D'Bridge includes a powerful scripting language allowing it to use
alternate carriers such as packet-switched networks rather than normal
telephone connections. This can be used with any carrier such as Tele-
net's PC-Pursuit or your private Satellite uplink service. Any data
carrier capable of 8-bit, no parity, full duplex communication may be
used with D'Bridge. The reason for using an alternate carrier is usu-
ally to save money on your phone bill.
The scripting language connects two D'Bridge systems through any form
of data link that is compatible. In the U.S.A., the most common example
for using scripts is PC-Pursuit, so I'll use that as an example. Script
files are text-files created by any standard text editor and contain
keywords telling D'Bridge exactly what to do. It is important to have
a good understanding of the carrier you intend to use before designing
your script file; this is necessary for a good understanding of all the
terms used here - it's not that simple.
To use a script file, you will need to have a PHONE NUMBER TRANSLATION
or OVERRIDE for each area code or system you intend to use. With PC-
Pursuit, this currently requires 40 translation strings, one for each
city served. I intend to use an indexed database in a future release
to eliminate this necessity, but that's later. For now, use a trans-
lation in the following format:
cc-aaa- "script.fil"xxxxx-
Where "cc" is the COUNTRY CODE, "aaa" is the AREA CODE, and "xxxxx" is
the translated AREA CODE (or in the case of PC-Pursuit, the city des-
ignator). As an example, use the following PHONE NUMBER TRANSLATION to
reach the Miami, Florida area:
1-305- "PCP.SCR"FLMIA-
This will translate ALL 305 area codes to use the script file. Needless
to say, not all of area code 305 is PC-Pursuitable, so if you need to
contact other cities in our area code, you will need to specify previous
translation or override strings (the upcoming index file will eliminate
the need for these translations altogether).
Assuming you now have 305 translated to use the PCP.SCR script file,
you now must create this file and put it in your defined SCRIPT PATH
(SCRIPT PATH is defined on the DIRECTORY PATHS setup screen). With
D'Bridge, it is possible to use one script file for ALL the "pursuitable"
cities, though you will need one for each baud rate desired. Following
is a detailed description of the scripting language keywords and their
meaning (see the next chapter for a specific example and explanation
using PC-Pursuit):
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
7.02 USING THE SCRIPTING LANGUAGE
203
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: ABORT <start_time> <end_time>
Example: ABORT 6:00 18:00
The ABORT keyword causes the script to abort immediately if the time is
between the <start_time> and <end_time> specified. This is handy for
making sure no script calls are made outside predefined hours.
Syntax: AREACODE
The AREACODE keyword causes D'Bridge to transmit the AREA CODE field of
the phone number. This is separated from the PHONE NUMBER by a dash "-"
and is sent with no carriage return or other characters. For PC-Pursuit,
this is usually substituted with the city code (such as FLMIA).
Syntax: BAUD <baud_rate>
Example: BAUD 1200
The BAUD keyword changes the current baud rate to the specified value.
By default, it will be the baud rate of the destination system.
Syntax: CARRIER
When the CARRIER keyword is encountered, the script file is aborted
unless a carrier is detected at this point. This is handy for ensuring
you have a carrier when you think you should.
Syntax: COMM <config_characters>
Example: COMM 7E1
The COMM keyword configures the communication port for the setting
specified. In this example, it is set for 7 data bits, even parity
and 1 stop bit. The following <config_characters> are supported:
1 - 1 stop bit N - No parity
2 - 2 stop bits E - Even parity
7 - 7 data bits O - Odd parity
8 - 8 data bits
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
7.02 USING THE SCRIPTING LANGUAGE
204
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: CONNECT
The CONNECT keyword sets the CONNECT count for the given packet is
increased by one. This is used in conjunction with the maximum
connects limit defined for the current mail event.
Syntax: DIAL <phone_number>
Example: DIAL 555-2939
The DIAL keyword causes D'Bridge to dial the <phone_number> specified
and wait for a CONNECT, BUSY or NO CARRIER field just like when dialing
normally. If a non-connect message is received, the script is aborted.
Syntax: DIRECT <start_time> <end_time>
Example: DIRECT 6:00 18:00
The DIRECT keyword will cause D'Bridge to abort the script file and dial
direct (using your phone company) between the times specified. This is
useful for switching between script and telephone company use depending
on the time of day.
Syntax: DOS <DOS_command>
Example: DOS ibm_uucp 2400
The DOS keyword is seldom used, but it enables you to execute any DOS
command from within a script file. In this example, the program
"IBM_UUCP" is executed with a parameter of 2400.
Syntax: GOTO <label>
Example: GOTO LOOP-1
The GOTO keyword transfers control to another point within the script
file. The <label> must exist and start with a colon ":" just like in
DOS batch files. Caution should be used in not creating "endless
loops" without a TIMER statement preceding them.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
7.02 USING THE SCRIPTING LANGUAGE
205
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: IF <pattern_number> <label>
Example: IF 2 GOTO SUCCESS
The IF keyword transfers control to another point in the script file
if a previously defined pattern has been detected. This is used in
conjunction with the PATTERN keyword and uses the same label structure
as the GOTO keyword. It is also possible for IF to cause "endless loops"
if your script is not designed correctly, so use of the TIMER keyword
is highly desirable.
Syntax: INIT
The INIT keyword causes D'Bridge to send it's standard initialization
string to the modem. This is normally done at the beginning of every
script, but may not be necessary.
Syntax: PATTERN <pattern_number> <string>
Example: PATTERN 0 BUSY
The PATTERN keyword defines a pattern to look for from the remote system
or modem. It is used in conjunction with the WAIT and IF keywords to
act based on the response received. The <pattern_number> must be from
0 to 9 and the <string> may be up to 20 characters. If "PATTERN 0" is
specified with no characters after it, pattern 0 is disabled.
Syntax: PHONE
The PHONE keyword causes D'Bridge to transmit the PHONE NUMBER field.
This is sent with no additional characters such as carriage return, so
if you want to send one, use the XMIT keyword after the PHONE keyword.
Syntax: SESSION
The SESSION keyword is used to begin the mail session. When it is
encountered, the script file terminates and D'Bridge starts trying
to sync with the destination system. If there is no carrier detected
at this point, the session will be aborted. Make sure this is only
used once a "CONNECT" signal is received from the remote modem.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
7.02 USING THE SCRIPTING LANGUAGE
206
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: TIMER <seconds>
Example: TIMER 300
The TIMER keyword sets an overriding timeout on the execution of the
script file. This is especially handy when you have created "endless
loops" for re-dialing within your script file. If no TIMER value is
specified, D'Bridge will keep dialing "forever" until it gets through.
Every time the TIMER keyword is encountered, the timer is cleared. For
this reason, care should be taken to ensure it is not within an "end-
less loop".
Syntax: WAIT <seconds>
Example: WAIT 20
The WAIT keyword causes the script to wait for the specified number of
seconds for one of the patterns (previously defined) to be received.
If none of the patterns are received within <seconds> seconds, the
script is aborted. The PATTERN keyword defines the pattern(s) to wait
for.
Syntax: XMIT <string>
Example: XMIT HELLO|~~~52937,334|
The XMIT keyword causes D'Bridge to transmit characters to the remote
system (or your modem if not currently connected to anything). This
command is executed literally and there must be only one space between
XMIT and <string> or the spaces will also be sent. There are two
special characters used in the XMIT keyword:
"|" causes a carriage return (CR) to be sent
"~" causes a one-second delay in execution
The script file is executed much like a program, sequentially. The
only exception is when control is transferred to another part by using
an IF or GOTO keyword. Any errors in the script file will only be
found when the keyword is executed. Use the script debugging windows
while testing scripts; these will display the communications plus what
keywords are being executed. Activate these windows by answering YES
to the DIAGNOSTICS? question on the BASIC CONFIGURATION screen.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
7.03 EXAMPLE SCRIPT FILE
207
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.03 EXAMPLE SCRIPT FILE
The following example script file is the one Tony Wagner wrote for use
with the PC-Pursuit service. It is currently used by a fair number of
people with success. You will need to customize it somewhat to work in
your city and use your own password.
INIT
TIMER 600
BAUD 2400
DIAL XXX-XXXX
XMIT @~D~|~D1|
:RETRY
PATTERN 0 @
WAIT 30
XMIT C D/
AREACODE
XMIT /24,YOUR ID#|
XMIT PASSWORD|
PATTERN 0 CONNECT
PATTERN 1 ONLINE
PATTERN 2 BUSY
PATTERN 3 RE-ENTER
PATTERN 4 MANUAL
PATTERN 5 NOT
WAIT 30
IF 2 RETRY
IF 3 RETRY
IF 5 RETRY
TIMER 600
XMIT ~|~@~|
XMIT ~SET 1:0,7:0|
XMIT CONT|
XMIT |~I~|~ATZ|
:CITY_CONNECT
XMIT ~ATDT
PHONE
XMIT |
WAIT 45
IF 2 CITY_CONNECT
IF 4 CITY_CONNECT
SESSION
The above script is a rapid-dial script that tries for a maximum of
five minutes to connect with the desired city. Once in the city, it
then re-dials the destination system for a maximum of five minutes.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
208
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
D'Bridge is designed to act as a FRONT-END for "online" programs such as
BBS (bulletin board systems) and database systems. D'Bridge will answer
the phone and determine whether an incoming call is EMAIL or HUMAN. If it
is an EMAIL call, D'Bridge automatically receives the mail and/or files and
returns to the idle state. If a HUMAN call is detected, control may be
transferred to another program such as a bulletin board system. It will
take about 10 seconds for D'Bridge to decide whether a caller is HUMAN;
this time-period can be increased if desired. If the caller presses the ESC
key twice, D'Bridge will assume the call is HUMAN and transfer control to
the BBS immediately.
Every BBS software package is configured slightly differently, therefore
D'Bridge needs to be flexible in the way it transfers control while the
caller remains online. There are three basic ways of invoking your BBS
program:
PUSH Using the PUSH method, you simply specify a series of DOS
commands to be executed. You may even invoke a batch file
in this method. Only the memory D'Bridge is not using will
be available for the BBS. The PUSH method is designated by
simply typing the commands in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window.
ie. CD \OPUS
OPUS OPUS -B*B -T*T
DROP The DROP method is similar to the PUSH method, except that
all available memory (except 15K) is freed, leaving almost
all system memory free for the BBS to use. This is handy
if you have a large D'Bridge configuration or your BBS has
a lot of "door" programs that it spawns. The DROP method is
designated by typing a plus sign "+" in front of the commands
in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window.
ie. CD \OPUS
+OPUS OPUS -B*B -T*T
EXIT With the EXIT method, D'Bridge completely terminates, exiting
with an errorlevel designating the baud rate. If you use this
method, you must be running the mailer from a batch file set
up to trap the various errorlevels. To configure the EXIT
method, specify *X on a line by itself in your DOS BBS COMMANDS
window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
209
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ie. *X
An example of a simple batch file that would work with the
EXIT method demonstrates the setup for a 2400 baud modem.
Note that the errorlevel returned by D'Bridge is equal to
the BAUD RATE / 100.
:TOP
DB
IF ERRORLEVEL 24 GOTO 2400BAUD
IF ERRORLEVEL 12 GOTO 1200BAUD
IF ERRORLEVEL 3 GOTO 300BAUD
GOTO END
:2400BAUD
CD\OPUS
OPUS OPUS -B2400
GOTO TOP
:1200BAUD
CD\OPUS
OPUS OPUS -B1200
GOTO TOP
:300BAUD
CD\OPUS
OPUS OPUS -B300
GOTO TOP
If you are not familiar with batch files and you must use
them, see the IBM DOS manual.
Every time a BBS call is detected, control is transferred to your BBS
software by executing the commands located in the DOS BBS COMMANDS
window. You may specify any number of DOS commands in this window to
be executed in sequence.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
210
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Each line must contain a valid DOS command, or a D'Bridge "directive".
If an entry begins with a plus sign (+) the command will be executed
using the DROP method rather than the PUSH method. If you use DROP,
D'Bridge will be entirely swapped out of memory (except 15K) allowing
the called program almost all the free memory in the environment. This
is nice for running BBS programs that have "door" utilities. The DROP
method takes longer to execute than the PUSH method. D'Bridge memory
is swapped to either EMS or DISK.
Following is an example of how I run the QuickBBS bulletin board:
CD \QUICKBBS
+QUICKBBS -b*b -t*t -e0
Any entries with an asterisk "*" will be treated as D'Bridge directives
or substitutions. When the above DOS BBS COMMANDS are executed, the
following is an example of the actual DOS commands issued:
CD \QUICKBBS
QUICKBBS -b2400 -t126 -e0
Following is a description of the D'Bridge directives available:
*B Substituted with the actual BAUD RATE of the connection.
*C Substituted with the actual connect string returned from
the modem. This may be translated to any string you wish
by using the "CONNECT" COMMANDS field of the COMMUNICATION/
MODEM SETUP screen.
*H If specified, leaves the FOSSIL "HOT" or initialized.
*L Returns the current line or "node" number.
*P Returns the COMM PORT D'Bridge is currently using. This
may be from 1 to 7.
*R Causes a NETMAIL rescan to occur after each BBS call.
*S Causes an ECHOmail scan to occur after each BBS call.
*T Substituted by the number of minutes until the next event.
*X Exit D'Bridge with an errorlevel of the baud rate divided
by 100 (3,12,24,48 or 96). If you use this method (which is
not suggested), you will need to write a batch file like
the one described on the preceding page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
211
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Xnnn Exit D'Bridge with the specified errorlevel. If you use
this method, you must be using some alternate method to
pass the baud rate to the system.
Any DOS command with the exception of EXIT, PROMPT and SET will work
in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window. Changing directories is allowed;
D'Bridge will automatically switch back to the DB root directory
when the commands are finished. You do not have to specifically
change directories after the BBS call.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
212
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GENESIS DELUXE BBS
Genesis Deluxe Bulletin board system is available from PRISM Software.
In order to configure Genesis and D'Bridge together, follow these
steps:
1) Configure Genesis Deluxe as follows. This uses the US Robotics
HST Dual Standard as an example. If you use a different modem, the
parameters may vary. You may leave all the initialization fields
as they are, Genesis will ignore them when using a front end mailer.
2) Genesis does not accept 4800 or 14400 as valid command line baud
rates.
Configure the "CONNECT" COMMANDS field on the COMMUNICATION MODEM
SETUP screen:
/-------------------------------------------------------------------\
| "CONNECT" commands: 9600 CONNECT 4800|9600 |
| 19200 CONNECT 14400|19200 |
\-------------------------------------------------------------------/
3) There are 2 ways to setup Genesis under D'Bridge.
OPTION "A" - Spawn a batch file using the DROP method
With the DROP method, D'Bridge swaps almost all its used RAM to
EMS or disk, then "spawns" a batch file which invokes Genesis.
This is the fastest method if you have EMS.
a) Enter the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window on the
BBS CONFIGURATION screen:
/--------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: +MGEN.BAT *P *B *T |
| |
\--------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
213
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
b) Create a batch file called MGEN.BAT in the D'Bridge root
directory. Use the following as an example:
@ECHO OFF
:START
D:
cd\gendlx
GENESIS %1 SINGLE %2 %2 %3
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
GOTO END
:DROP
CTTY COM%1
ECHO Type Exit to return to the BBS
C:\COMMAND.COM
CTTY CON
goto DOORBACK
:DOOR
CALL DOOR.BAT
:DOORBACK
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS %1 SINGLE
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
:END
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
OPTION "B" - Run D'Bridge from a batch file and EXIT
With the EXIT method, D'Bridge is completely removed from memory
when Genesis takes control. This method requires D'Bridge to be
fired up from a batch file. Following is a description of how to
configure the software for this method:
a) Enter the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window on the
BBS CONFIGURATION screen:
/--------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: *X |
| |
\--------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
214
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
b) Create a batch file called RUN-DB.BAT using the following
model as an example. Start D'Bridge by using this batch
file, most-likely by calling it directly from AUTOEXEC.BAT:
@ECHO OFF
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
:LOAD_DB
DB
IF ERRORLEVEL 192 GOTO 19200
IF ERRORLEVEL 96 GOTO 9600
IF ERRORLEVEL 50 GOTO RENUM
IF ERRORLEVEL 48 GOTO 4800
IF ERRORLEVEL 24 GOTO 2400
IF ERRORLEVEL 12 GOTO 1200
IF ERRORLEVEL 10 GOTO LOCALBBS
IF ERRORLEVEL 3 GOTO 300
IF ERRORLEVEL 0 GOTO END
GOTO LOAD_DB
:LOCALBBS
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS 1 SINGLE
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
:RENUM
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
DBLOG 2 DBRIDGE.LOG
MREN -R -P -L -DB
MREN -R -P -L -DB H:\DBRIDGE\MESSAGES
CD\NETMAIL
SMLINDEX
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
215
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
:300
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS 1 SINGLE 0 300
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
:1200
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS 1 SINGLE 0 1200
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
:2400
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS 1 SINGLE 0 2400
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
:4800
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS 1 SINGLE 0 4800
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
:9600
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS 1 SINGLE 0 9600
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
216
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
:19200
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS 1 SINGLE 0 19200
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
:DROP
CTTY COM1
C:\COMMAND.COM
CTTY CON
goto DOORBACK
:DOOR
D:
CD\GENDLX
CALL DOOR.BAT
GOTO DOORBACK
:DOORBACK
D:
CD\GENDLX
GENESIS 1 SINGLE
IF ERRORLEVEL 9 GOTO DROP
IF ERRORLEVEL 8 GOTO DOOR
H:
CD\DBRIDGE
GOTO LOAD_DB
:END
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
217
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MAXIMUS BBS
D'Bridge is completely compatible with the Maximus CBCS.
In order to configure D'Bridge with Maximus, follow these simple steps:
1) Your MAX.CTL file includes the following line:
After Call Exit 5
This is absolutely correct - please do not change it to any other value.
2) There are three methods for running Maximus from D'Bridge:
a) Using the PUSH method, D'Bridge "spawns" the Maximus program; this
is the fastest way, but requires the most memory. To configure
this, specify the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window:
/---------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: CD \MAX |
| MAX -B*B -T*T |
| |
\---------------------------------------------------------/
b) Using the DROP method is almost identical. This way, D'Bridge
swaps its memory to EMS or disk, then runs Maximus. Simply put a
plus sign "+" in front of the Maximus command like this:
/---------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: CD \MAX |
| +MAX -B*B -T*T |
| |
\---------------------------------------------------------/
c) Using the EXIT method, D'Bridge must be run from a batch file.
This requires some understanding of DOS, since your system will
be setup slightly different than our example.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here is an example to put in the DOS BBS commands field:
/----------------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: ECHO CD \MAX >BBS.BAT |
| ECHO MAX -B*B -T*T >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO :DOERLVL >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO IF ERRORLEVEL 17 GOTO DOOR >>BBS.BAT|
| ECHO IF ERRORLEVEL 1 GOTO END >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO GOTO END >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO :DOOR >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO CALL C:\MAX\SYSOP.BAT >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO MAX -R >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO GOTO DOERLVL >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO :END >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO CD \DB >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO RUN-DB.BAT >>BBS.BAT |
| *X20 |
\----------------------------------------------------------------/
Special definitions in this batch:
ERRORLEVEL 17 - example for a doorway call from within MAXIMUS
SYSOP.BAT - a batch, that calls doorway, like this one:
CD C:\DB\DOOR
DOORWAY COM2 /I:MENU.TXT /S:* /G:ON /V:D /M:100 /B:MSZ /C:DOS
DOERLVL - tells MAXIMUS to use errorlevels
ERRORLEVEL 1 - No idea, what is was for - once there was an error without
this line, so it had been included
Maybe it works without it...
MAX -R - Returns to MAXIMUS
RUN-DB.BAT - the batch to start D'Bridge
*X20 - The errorlevel in the D'Bridge batch, which calls BBS.BAT
With this method the batch, which calls MAXIMUS is always written "live"
by DB and the baud rate and rest time (until next event) will be passed
to MAXIMUS.
Create a batch file called RUN-DB.BAT containing at least the following:
ECHO OFF
:START
C:
CD \DB
DB
IF ERRORLEVEL 20 GOTO LOADBBS
GOTO END
:LOADBBS
BBS.BAT
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
:END
EXIT
To start D'Bridge, simply type RUN-DB from the D'Bridge root
directory.
- please remember to use a fossil with MAXIMUS -
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OPUS CBBS
D'Bridge is completely compatible with the Opus CBBS (Conversational
bulletin board system.) In order to configure D'Bridge with Opus, follow
this simple steps:
1) Edit your OPUS.CTL file to include the following line:
Exit 15
This tells Opus to exit after each call with an errorlevel of 15;
when this happens, control is returned to D'Bridge.
2) Recompile your OPUS.PRM file by using the OPUSCTL command. See the
Opus DOCs for more information.
3) There are three methods for running Opus from D'Bridge:
a) Using the PUSH method, D'Bridge "spawns" the Opus program; this
is the fastest way, but requires the most memory. To configure
this, specify the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window:
/---------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: CD \OPUS |
| OPUS OPUS -B*B -T*T |
| |
\---------------------------------------------------------/
b) Using the DROP method is almost identical. This way, D'Bridge
swaps its memory to EMS or disk, then runs Opus. Simply put a
plus sign "+" in front of the opus command like this:
/---------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: CD \OPUS |
| +OPUS OPUS -B*B -T*T |
| |
\---------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
c) Using the EXIT method, D'Bridge must be run from a batch file.
This requires some understanding of DOS, since your system will
be setup slightly different than our example. Put the following
in the DOS BBS commands field:
/---------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: ECHO CD \OPUS >BBS.BAT |
| ECHO OPUS OPUS -B*B -T*T >>BBS.BAT|
| ECHO CD \DB >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO RUN-DB.BAT >>BBS.BAT |
| *X20 |
\---------------------------------------------------------/
Create a batch file called RUN-DB.BAT containing at least
the following:
ECHO OFF
:START
C:
CD \DB
DB
IF ERRORLEVEL 20 GOTO LOADBBS
GOTO END
:LOADBBS
BBS.BAT
:END
EXIT
To start D'Bridge, simply type RUN-DB from the D'Bridge root
directory.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PC-BOARD
PCBoard is available from Clark Development Company. It is another
excellent BBS package with particularly strong support for DOORs, and
it runs very well with D'Bridge. In order to configure PCBoard with
D'Bridge, follow these steps:
Note that since this method uses DOS 3.3's CALL command, it will not
work with earlier versions of DOS. It should work with DOS 4.x.
1) Configure PCBoard's MODEM INFORMATION screen as shown below. The
example shown is for a US Robotics HST 9600 bps modem, with the comm
port locked at 19200. If you are using a different modem, you will
need to make some adjustments to the parameters. PCBoard will
receive the caller online after D'Bridge answers the call.
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------\
| Modem Information |
| |
| Seconds to wait for carrier : 60 |
| Comm Port (COM1,COM2,NONE) : COM2 |
| Opening Baud Rate (300-38400) : 19200 |
| Lock in Opening Baud Rate : Y |
| Modem Initialization String : ATE0M1H0 |
| Modem Off-Hook String : ATE0M0H1 |
| Disable CTS/RTS checking : N |
| Using a Hayes V-Series 9600 : N |
| Using a FastComm 9600 : N |
| Reset Modem During Recycle : N |
| Modem Off-Hook During Recycle : N |
| Packet-Switch Network : N |
| Answer on True Ring Detect : N |
| Allow Callers at 7,E,1 : N |
| Allow 300 Baud Callers : N |
| Allow 300 Baud Start Time : 00:01 |
| Allow 300 Baud Stop Time : 24:00 |
| |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2) In PCBoard's OPTIONS #1 screen, set PCBoard to drop to DOS after
each call:
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------\
| Options #1 |
| |
| Exit to DOS After Each Call : Y |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------/
3) In D'Bridge's COMM PORT / MODEM SETUP screen, set it up as shown
below (again, this is for a USR 9600 HST). Modify to suit your
modem. The "CONNECT" commands are very important. You must use
the appropriate translations so that PCBoard will understand the
connect codes later in the batch files.
/-------------------------------------------------------------------\
| Modem port: COM2 (COM1-COM7 or NONE) |
| Baud rate: 19200 |
| Locked? Yes |
| Use RTS-CTS? Yes |
| Initialize: ATE0F1M1X6Q0V1&K0&B1H0S0=0 |
| Offline: ATE0M0H1 |
| Drop DTR? Yes |
| Answer: ATA |
| Dial 300: ATDT |
| " 1200: ATDT |
| " 2400: ATDT |
| " 4800: ATDT |
| " 9600: ATDT |
| " 19200: ATDT |
| Specific dial: |
| "RING" commands: RING |
| "CONNECT" commands: 300 CONNECT|/C:0 |
| 1200 CONNECT 1200|/C:2 |
| 2400 CONNECT 2400|/C:3 |
| 2400 CONNECT 2400/ARQ|/C:3 /ERR |
| 9600 CONNECT 9600/ARQ|/C:5 /ERR |
| "ABORT" commands: VOICE |
| Char delay: 15 (milliseconds) |
| Modem timeout: 45 (seconds) |
| Carrier detect mask: 128 (almost always 128) |
| Auto-init modem? Yes |
\-------------------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4) In D'Bridge's BBS CONFIGURATION screen, set the "DOS commands for
BBS:" as shown below:
/-----------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: ECHO PCBOARD *C > C:\PCB\PCBBAT.BAT |
| *X20 |
\-----------------------------------------------------------/
5) If you run in a DESQview environment, create a batch file called
"PrepDb.bat". I keep mine in my C:\Batch directory, which is in
my DOS path. In your DESQview "Add a program" screen, you will run
this batch file to run D'Bridge. It sets up the stuff for the DB
window that only needs to be done once, instead of doing it every
time the board recycles.
@Echo Off
REM PrepDb.bat file to start D'Bridge from DESQview
Dnansi
RunDB
6) If you are not running in DESQview, make sure you have ANSI.SYS
loaded in your config.sys file. In either case, make sure X00.SYS
is loaded in CONFIG.SYS.
7) The main batch file running D'Bridge is RunDb.bat... If you are
running in DESQview, PrepDb.bat will run RunDb.bat as the last item,
if not, you will run it directly from DOS using the RunDB.bat file.
REM Rem Main Batch file to run D'Bridge
@Echo Off
C:\CAPTURE
E:
CD \DB
DB
If ErrorLevel 90 Goto Maint
If ErrorLevel 20 Board
Goto END
:MAINT
Call Maint
:END
Exit
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8) Modify your PCBoard BOARD.BAT file so it looks like the example
below.
@Echo off
C:
Cd\Pcb
If Exist Remote.bat Rename Remote.bat Remote.sys
If Exist Event.bat Rename Event.bat Event.sys
If Exist Door.bat Del Door.bat
If Exist Endpcb del Endpcb
Call PCBBAT
If Exist Remote.bat Remote
If Exist Door.bat Door
If Exist Event.bat Event
Cls
RunDB
9) Now, when a BBS caller calls, D'Bridge will copy the translated
connect code to a batch file it creates called "PCBBAT.BAT," exit
with errorlevel 20, and run PCBoard's Board.bat file. When Board.bat
gets to the "Call PCBBAT" line, it will run PCBBAT, which, if a 2400
bps MNP caller is online will contain the following command:
PCBOARD /C:3 /ERR
...which tells pcboard the caller is connected at 2400 bps, and is
using an error-corrected (MNP) modem. This will allow the caller to
use protocols such as YModem-G. After the caller exits from PCBoard,
PCBBAT will return to BOARD.BAT.
Well, that's it! Really fairly simple, and it works very reliably.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PHOENIX BBS
D'Bridge is completely compatible with the Phoenix BBS system, through
version 1.36rt. In order to configure D'Bridge to work with Phoenix,
follow the steps below:
1) In the Phoenix configuration, set the "Use PRENM (or equivalent front-end
mailer) setting to 'Y'. This will let phoenix know you are running D'Bridge
and cause Phoenix to exit with a errorlevel 200 when a user logs off.
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------------\
| PHOENIX Remote Communications System Configuration Program |
\-----------------------------Press F1 for Help-------------------------------/
Operational Defaults
| |
| Display System Status Report after every caller?... N |
| Use modem when using ALT-R or HOME?................ N |
| If so, Y = Busy modem, N = Disable answering.... N |
| Busy modem when using ALT-D?....................... Y |
| Use Full Screen mode on startup?................... Y |
| Use PRENM (or equivalent front-end mailer)?........ Y <--- Set this to 'Y' |
| Use direct (fast) screen writes?................... Y |
| Allow more than one copy of PHOENIX to run?........ N |
| Busy modem when quitting PHOENIX (F10 key)?........ Y |
| Message must be private until proofed by sysop?.... N |
| All messages must be public?....................... N |
| User level sensitive bulletins?.................... N |
| If so, what menu to use......................... 1 |
| |
Press PgDn for the next page
Copyright (C) 1989 by The GeneSys Project
2) There are 3 methods for running Phoenix with D'Bridge, however the first
method, using the PUSH routine, is not recommended since Phoenix takes up
quite a bit of memory. Using the PUSH method may limit your ability to
run external doors within Phoenix especially if running under Desqview.
a) Using the DROP method will swap most of D'Bridge to EMS or DISK, then
load and run Phoenix. Make sure you put the '+' in front of the command
to start Phoenix, this tells D'Bridge to swap itself to memory. The *B will
pass the correct baud rate to Phoenix. Here is a example:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
/----------------------------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: cd\phoenix |
| +phoenix -b*B |
| |
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------/
b) When using the EXIT method, D'Bridge must be run from a batch file. See the
example, RUNDB.BAT below. This method is the best way to conserve memory and
is easy to setup, especially if you already use a batch file to run D'Bridge.
Put the following in the DOS BBS command area:
/----------------------------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: Echo PHNX -b*b > c:\phoenix\dobbs.bat |
| *X150 |
| |
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------/
The example above writes a file called DOBBS.BAT containing the commands to
run Phoenix, via a batch file called PHNX.BAT (see the example below). The *b
is replaced with the callers baud rate. After the batch file is created,
D'Bridge will exit with a errorlevel 150, which will call the label named BBS.
The listing below is an example of the batch file which will load D'Bridge and
start the BBS when a call is received.
RUNDB.BAT EXAMPLE
-----------------
@echo off
cls
set dbridge=c:\db
set phoenix=c:\phoenix
:START
c:
cd\db
XU CAPTURE:OFF FIFO:OFF LOCK:0:OFF PORT:0:OFF
db
if errorlevel 150 goto bbs
if errorlevel 0 goto end
goto end
:BBS
cd\phoenix
dobbs.bat <--- This is the batch file created above by D'Bridge. It will
goto end contain something like 'Phnx -b2400', if the caller called
at 2400 baud.
:END
When DOBBS.BAT is ran, it will run the batch file PHNX.BAT and pass along the
baud rate as -b2400 in the %1 variable. Phoenix will interpret the variable
when loading.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PHNX.BAT EXAMPLE
----------------
@echo off
cls
:START
cd\phoenix
XU CAPTURE:ON FIFO:15 LOCK:0:19200 PORT:0:ON
Phoenix %1 <- The %1 will be -b2400
if errorlevel 200 goto loaddb <- When the user logs off, Phoenix will exit
if errorlevel 0 goto exit with a errorlevel 200.
goto end
:LOADDB
cd\db
rundb <- This is were you re-load D'Bridge for the
goto end next call.
:END
IMPORTANT NOTES:
Phoenix versions 1.07 through 1.36rt will only support locked baud rates up
to 19200 baud, so make sure you do not lock your fossil any higher. If you
have an error correcting modem, you may pass along the /ARQ connect to
Phoenix. If your modem returns something other then /ARQ, Phoenix will not
operate, but you can use the "CONNECT" commands section in the Comm/Modem
setup in D'Bridge to translate these strings. Here is an example:
"CONNECT" commands: 2400 CONNECT 2400/MNP|CONNECT 2400/ARQ
9600 CONNECT 9600/MNP|CONNECT 9600/ARQ
That's all there is to it. Of course you may want to add other errorlevels in
both the RUNDB.BAT and the PHNX.BAT file to handle errors, mail, and various
doors.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
QUICKBBS
D'Bridge has specific support for QuickBBS that allows both NETmail and
ECHOmail operation smoothly and efficiently. Follow these simple steps
to configure QuickBBS and D'Bridge together:
1) If you wish to the QuickBBS format for your NETmail area, specify
the QuickBBS message area number to use on the DIRECTORY PATHS
screen.
2) Define a QuickBBS path in the DIRECTORY PATHS screen. This path
should be set to the directory QuickBBS uses for its message base
files.
3) Define all your local and ECHOmail areas using the LOCAL/ECHOMAIL
AREAS screen. Make sure you define ALL areas, or D'Bridge could
auto-assign a new ECHO using an already existing message area
number.
4) There are three methods for running QuickBBS under D'Bridge:
a) Using the PUSH method, D'Bridge "spawns" the QuickBBS program;
this is the fastest way, but requires the most memory. To
configure this, specify the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS
window:
/---------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: CD \QUICKBBS |
| QUICKBBS -B*B -T*T -E0 |
| |
\---------------------------------------------------------/
b) Using the DROP method is almost identical. This way, D'Bridge
swaps its memory to EMS or disk, then runs QuickBBS. Simply put
a plus sign "+" in front of the QuickBBS command like this:
/---------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: CD \QUICKBBS |
| +QUICKBBS -B*B -T*T -E0 |
| |
\---------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
230
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
c) Using the EXIT method, D'Bridge must be run from a batch file.
This requires some understanding of DOS, since your system will
be setup slightly different than our example. Put the following
in the DOS BBS commands field:
/------------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: ECHO CD \QUICKBBS >BBS.BAT |
| ECHO QUICKBBS -B*B -T*T -E0 >>BBS.BAT|
| ECHO CD \DB >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO RUN-DB.BAT >>BBS.BAT |
| *X20 |
\------------------------------------------------------------/
Create a batch file called RUN-DB.BAT containing at least
the following:
ECHO OFF
:START
C:
CD \DB
DB
IF ERRORLEVEL 20 GOTO LOADBBS
GOTO END
:LOADBBS
BBS.BAT
:END
EXIT
To start D'Bridge, simply type RUN-DB from the D'Bridge root
directory.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
REMOTEACCESS
D'Bridge is completely compatible with RA (all versions). In order
to configure RA with DB follow these simple steps.
First off, define all the errorlevels in the RemoteAccess Configuration
for the baudrates passed back to RA from D'Bridge via the *X command.
Only Local, 300, 1200, 2400, 4800 and 9600 need to be defined.
The others are shown for the sake of completeness.
File System Options Modem
| Messages |
Errorlevels | Files |
| | | Restrictions |
| Local 99 | | Errorlevels |
| 300 3 | | Display |
| 1200 12 | | Colours |
| 2400 24 | | Paging |
| 4800 48 | | New users |
| 7200 72 | | System |
| 9600 96 | RemoteA| Prompts |10
| 12000 120 | | Printer |
| 14400 144 |ght (C) 1991 Andr ntine
| 19200 192 |
| 38400 38 | All Rights Reserved
| |
In the BBS CONFIGURATION, set up the various files and the DOS commands
for the BBS. In this configuration, the *X will pass the baudrate/100
back to RA as an errorlevel. The first lines in the DOS Commands will
create a DOBBS.BAT file in the RA System Directory which RA will read
on the swap back from D'Bridge to RA. This one line file, created on
the fly will contain the Serial Port number, baud rate, time in minutes
to next mail event and the 'RAW' connect string from the modem.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
232
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
/BBS CONFIGURATION--------------------------------------------------------
| BBS software installed? Yes
| "EMAIL calls only" text: Please hang up... Accepting EMAIL calls only.
| "Press ESC for BBS" text: Press the ESC key twice to access the BBS.
| "Loading BBS" text: BBS now loading - Please wait...
| "Loading BBS" file: C:\TEXT\LOADING.ASC
| "Human" caller timeout: 20
| BBS online hours: 24 hours
| "After hours" file: C:\TEXT\HOURS.ASC
| Minimum baud rate: 1200
| "Too slow" file: C:\TEXT\TOO_SLOW.ASC
| Scan ECHOmail after call? No
| DOS commands for BBS: echo EXEBBS *P *B *T *C >c:\ra\dobbs.bat
| rem XU Capture:On Dv:On Fifo:15 Port:0:On
| Bnu_170 /I=0+ /Z0 /C
| *X
The Dos Commands above show how either of the X00 or BNU fossils would
be initialized prior to RemoteAccess using them on the swap back to RA
from D'Bridge. Full information on the use of X00 or BNU will be found
in the respective distribution archives of the Fossils.
These raw connect strings could be...
"CONNECT 2400", "CONNECT 9600/ARQ/HST/HST/V42BIS", "CONNECT 2400/REL"
...or any of the many forms the connect strings could be. RA will search
this raw connect string in the DOBBS.BAT file for the /ARQ or /REL or
whatever you define in the RA configuration to indicate a MNP or error
correcting session is in operation. This is shown on the following page
by a screen shot from the configuration program of RA:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
File System Options Modem Manager
| Options |
| Commands |
Modem responses
| |
| Init OK |
| Busy OK |
| Ring RING |
| Secure /ARQ |
| 300 CONNECT| |
| 1200 CONNECT 1200 |
| 2400 CONNECT 2400 |
Cop| 4800 CONNECT 4800 |re
| 7200 CONNECT 7200 |
| 9600 CONNECT 9600 |
| 12000 CONNECT 12000 |
| 14400 CONNECT 14400 |
| 19200 CONNECT FAST |
| 38400 CONNECT FASTER |
| |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Modem's response to indicate an error-free connection, eg. /ARQ
For a local logon to RA via D'Bridge, define a function key that will create
an errorlevel equal to the errorlevel defined in the RA configuration shown
above. In this case, errorlevel 99 is used and function key 10 ( F10 ).
It will be noticed that a new DOBBS.BAT file is created as this will override
the previous inbound human caller one that remain. It can be seen that the
180 ( mins to mail event ) is hard coded, but this can be replaced by the
*T parameter if you so wish... Do you really want your own BBS to throw you
off of it ?.....
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
/FUNCTION KEYS----------------------------------------------------------------
| On this screen, you may define what DOS commands the function keys will run.
|
| F2: List e:\fd\logs\dbridge.log
| F3: List c:\logs\inbound.log
| F4: List c:\logs\echomail.log
| F5: List c:\text\last50.asc
| F6: List c:\text\usa_rprt.asc
| F7: Cd\qbbs
| F8: +x
/F10:-------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Echo EXEbbs *P *B 180 *C > C:\ra\dobbs.bat
| *X99
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- 34327--
| ALT-F3: *x103
| ALT-F4: cd\qbbs
| ALT-F5: *X105
Finally, the Modem/Comms set up... this can be a very simple .MCF file and
set up as no translation is required of the raw connect string from the
modem to be passed to RemoteAccess. The * ONLY * items that need to be in
here for most modems - this includes simple 2400 Hayes<tm> types as well as
the more complicated US Robotics<tm> types - is shown below:
300 CONNECT
1200 CONNECT 1200
2400 CONNECT 2400
4800 CONNECT 4800
9600 CONNECT 9600
A typical MCF file for a USR Courier HST Dual Standard when employed in
this mode is:
MCF MCDS2384 Miracom DS HST/V32/V42Bis, 38400 baud
SWITCH 1 0UUDUDUUDUU
BAUD 38400
LOCKED
PREINIT ATZ
INIT ~ATZ
OFFHOOK ATM0H1
ANSWER ATA
DELAY 50
TIMEOUT 45
DIAL 300 ATD
DIAL 1200 ATD
DIAL 2400 ATD
DIAL 4800 ATD
DIAL 9600 ATD
DIAL 19200 ATD
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
/COMMUNICATION PARAMETERS--------------------------------------------------
|
| Port Base/IRQ Status Ident MCF name Description
| DATA/1 COM1 03F8 4 OK 1442 MCDS3384 Miracom DS HST/V32/V42B
| DATA/2
| DATA/3
|
| Answering method: Hardware (RI signal, pin 22)
| Line assignment: N/A
| CostGuard limits: 80 (minutes) 5.00 (cost)
| Collision detection: Hardware
| DimeSaver enabled? Yes
| Auto-Initialization: 5 (minutes)
| Busy when offline? Yes
| Touch-tone dialing? Yes
| Maximum rings: 5
| "Flag" dial: HST ATB1D
| Specific dial: 2:281/507 ATB0D
| Printer device: C:\Dbridge\Dbridge.Out
| PCF name: EPSONFX Epson FX series
|
There is no need for anything else.... D'Bridge does not need to know
you have MNP, SYNC or any other error correcting protocol. D'Bridge only
needs to know the baud rate.. the connect strings like in the examples
below are not required :
9600 CONNECT 9600/ARQ/HST/HST/V42BIS
9600 CONNECT 9600/ARQ/V32/LAPM/V42BIS
The raw connect string from the modem will be passed to RA as is with
no translation.
Finally, the batch file that runs the whole lot.... this need not be
complicated or a difficult task to perform.
This batch file is based on the following assumptions.
1. RemoteAccess's "Shell to Mailer" function is employed. This is
fully detailed in the RemoteAccess Documentation, but briefly
D'Bridge is loaded as an external task within RA whilst RA is
in itself swapped out to disk with a small kernel remaining
in memory. This method has the advantage that when an inbound
human call is detected, D'Bridge exits back to RA and only has
to swap itself back into memory without performing an initiali-
zation etc.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. All netmail is tossed to a Fido *.Msg type message area and not a
QBBS type area.
3. Users of the BBS have their own Netmail Area of which utilities
like MailToss/Mailscan or Mbutil will transfer any necessary
messages to/from the Fido type *.Msg Netmail area and the main
message base.
:START
Set PATH=c:\;c:\dos;c:\ra;c:\db;.........
Set DB=C:\Db
Set RA=C:\Ra
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Echo De-Init The Fossils Prior To Loading DB via RA.
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
BNU_170 /I=0-
Rem XU Port:0:Off
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Echo Use Ra's Shell To Mailer Option
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
CD\RA
Ra -m\Dbridge\Db.Exe*M
Rem
Rem Note the '*M' has NO space between the DB.EXE and the *M
Rem ie, 'DB.EXE *M' will not cause a RA swap out properly
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Echo Errorlevels For Events Issued By D'Bridge
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
If Errorlevel 126 Goto MIDNITE2
If Errorlevel 125 Goto MIDNITE1
If Errorlevel 124 Goto MAIL_IN
If Errorlevel 122 Goto MAINT
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Echo Function Key Issued Error Levels From D'Bridge
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
If Errorlevel 102 Goto FILESUPD
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Rem This is Errorlevel 0 issued by D'Bridge via the ALT-X
Rem with 10 added by RA
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
If Errorlevel 10 Goto EXIT
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Rem These Errorlevel are issued By RA and
Rem are fully explained in the RA documentation
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
If Errorlevel 5 Goto NET_Echo
If Errorlevel 4 Goto ECHO_ONLY
If Errorlevel 3 Goto NET_ONLY
If Errorlevel 2 Goto EXIT
Goto AFTER_2
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
:MAIL_IN
Rem < you may want to run MsgTrack or TrackM in here on inbound >
< received Netmail if you use a *.Msg type Netmail Area >
If Exist C:\Db\Dbridge.Nmw Mbutil Import -Users
Goto START
:MIDNITE2
Rem < various user stats programs run here >
Goto START
:MIDNITE1
Rem < Generate my All Files listing maybe >
Goto START
:MAINT
Rem < Daily maintenance routines >
Goto START
:FILESUPD
Rem < run my file forwarding facilities >
Goto START
:NET_ECHO
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Rem Force A D'Bridge NetMail Rescan For Forwarding/Packing
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Cd\Ra
ECHO > C:\DB\DBRIDGE.RSN
MBUTIL Export -All
:ECHO_ONLY
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Rem Force A D'Bridge EchoMail Rescan For Forwarding/Packing
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
ECHO > C:\DB\DBRIDGE.RSE
Goto AFTER_2
:NET_ONLY
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
Rem Force A D'Bridge NetMail Rescan For Forwarding/Packing
Rem -----------------------------------------------------------------
CD\Ra
ECHO > C:\DB\DBRIDGE.RSN
MBUTIL Export -All
:AFTER_2
Rem < After human call user stats programs etc >
Goto START
:EXIT
Rem
CD\
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Extensive use of some D'Bridge flag/semaphore files has been made in the
above batch file example. Briefly, they are:
If a DBRIDGE.NMW exists, there has been a New Netmail arrival that
has not been read by you with the D'Bridge Editor.
If you create a DBRIDGE.RSN, this will cause D'Bridge to repack the
Outgoing Netmail according to the event in operation at the time and
rebuild the queue.
If you create a DBRIDGE.RSE, this will cause D'Bridge to scan the
echomail areas and export/pack any outgoing Echomail messages. This
will also cause a queue rebuild to occur.
Although use of a program called MBUTIL (by Gerard van der Land) is shown
above, this in no way endorses the use of this program.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SUPERBBS
D'Bridge has specific support for QuickBBS allowing both NETmail and
ECHOmail operation smoothly and efficiently. Because SuperBBS is fully
compatible to the QuickBBS message base format you can follow these simple
steps to configure SuperBBS and D'Bridge together. Every time you read
QuickBBS area number or Quick directory path in D'Bridge just think it's
the same meaning in SuperBBS :
1) If you wish to the SuperBBS format for your NETmail area, specify
the SuperBBS message area number to use on the DIRECTORY PATHS
screen.
/----------------------------------------------------------\
| QuickBBS area number : 1 |
\----------------------------------------------------------/
2) Define a SuperBBS path in the DIRECTORY PATHS screen. This path
should be set to the directory SuperBBS uses for its message
base files.
/----------------------------------------------------------\
| ... |
| Quick directory path : C:\SUPERBBS\ |
| ... |
\----------------------------------------------------------/
3) Define all your local and ECHOmail areas using the LOCAL/ECHOMAIL
AREAS screen. Make sure you define ALL areas, or D'Bridge could
auto-assign a new ECHO using an already existing message area
number.
/----------------------------------------------------------\
| ... |
| Storage: QuickBBS (Fido/QuickBBS/None) |
| QuickBBS area #: 2 |
| ... |
\----------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4) There are three methods for running SuperBBS under D'Bridge:
a) Using the PUSH method, D'Bridge "spawns" the SuperBBS program;
this is the fastest way, but requires the most memory. To
configure this, specify the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS
window:
/----------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: CD \SUPERBBS |
| BBS -N1 -B*B -E0 -P1 -O80000 -T*T |
| |
\----------------------------------------------------------/
-Nx specify the line number of your multiline BBS*
-Px specify the com port you use for this line*
-Ox specify the overlay buffer*
* for more details have a look at the SuperBBS manual
b) Using the DROP method is almost identical. This way, D'Bridge
swaps its memory to EMS or disk, then runs SuperBBS. Simply put
a plus sign "+" in front of the SuperBBS command like this:
/----------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: CD \SUPERBBS |
| +BBS -N1 -B*B -E0 -P1 -O80000 -T*T |
| |
\----------------------------------------------------------/
c) Using the EXIT method, D'Bridge must be run from a batch file.
This requires some understanding of DOS, since your system will
be setup slightly different than our example. Put the following
in the DOS BBS commands field:
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: ECHO CD \SUPERBBS >BBS.BAT |
| ECHO BBS -N1 -B*B -E0 -P1 -O8000 -T*T >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO CD \DB >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO RUN-DB.BAT >>BBS.BAT |
| *X20 |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Create a batch file called RUN-DB.BAT containing at least
the following:
ECHO OFF
:START
C:
CD \DB
DB
IF ERRORLEVEL 20 GOTO LOADBBS
GOTO END
:LOADBBS
BBS.BAT
:END
EXIT
To start D'Bridge, simply type RUN-DB from the D'Bridge root
directory.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
242
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SEARCHLIGHT BBS
Searchlight Bulletin Board System is available from Searchlight
Software and written by Frank LaRosa. It is noted for it's
excellent ability to run under DESQView and requires little
memory to function properly. Searchlight is also an extremely
good BBS system with D'Bridge as it doesn't require the use of a
fossil driver except for certain doors. Follow the following
steps:
1) Configuring Searchlight.
First, call up Searchlight's CONFIG.EXE program and go to
General Setup Menu #2 and configure as follows.
Searchlight BBS General Setup Menu #2
1. Screen write Method ........... Direct
2. Idle Time Limit ............... 5
3. Quotes File ................... On
4. Return to DOS on Logoff ....... Yes
5. Hangup Phone on Logoff ........ No
.
.
Number 4 is the important one here. Be sure to have this set
to Yes so that the BBS will exit back to D'Bridge. Now, hit
escape and go down to the Communications Setup.
Searchlight BBS Communications Setup
1. Comm Port ..................... 1
2. Support 300 Baud .............. No
3. Support 1200 Baud ............. Yes
4. Support 2400 Baud ............. Yes
5. Support 4800 Baud ............. Yes
6. Support 9600 Baud ............. Yes
7. Support 19200 Baud ............ Yes
8. Remote Init String ............ ATH0M0H1!
9. Local Init String ............. ATH1!
10. Baud Detect Method ............ Modem Msg
11. Locked Baud Rate .............. 19200
12. Hardware Flow Control ......... On
13. Output Buffering Factor ....... 0
14. Buffer Door Programs? ......... No
15. Com Port Setup [...]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
243
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is a setup for a 9600 V.32 modem. Set the support for
your modem type as indicated. The Remote init is set to put
the modem on-hook and then take it off-hook again. This will
allow for any additional processing (such as EchoMail export)
after the caller is offline and still not allow another caller
to try and call during processing.
2) Configuring D'Bridge
There are three ways you can run Searchlight under D'Bridge.
OPTION A - The PUSH Method
With the PUSH method, D'Bridge stays in memory and uses any
additional memory for the BBS, spawning it from a batch
file or directly. This is a good method for a board
without large Door Programs, as it quickly loads the BBS.
a) Enter the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window on
the BBS CONFIGURATION Screen:
/-------------------------------------------------------\
I DOS commands for BBS: SL.BAT *B I
I I
I I
I I
\-------------------------------------------------------/
b) Create a batch file called SL.BAT in the D'Bridge root
directory or in the path. You can use the following
example:
@Echo off
cd\bbs
slbbs %1
exit
OPTION B - The DROP Method.
This option is similar to "A" except that D'Bridge swap
almost all of it's RAM to EMS or disk, depending on
configuration. This is a good method for BBS's with large
Doors and EMS or a fast hard drive. The only difference is
in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window:
/-------------------------------------------------------\
I DOS commands for BBS: +SL.BAT *B I
I I
I I
I I
\-------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
244
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OPTION C - The EXIT Method.
With this option, D'Bridge completely removes itself from
memory before the BBS loads. To run this method properly,
D'Bridge must be run from a continuous batch file. Follow
the configuration shown.
a) Enter the following commands in the DOS BBS COMMANDS
window on the BBS CONFIGURATION screen:
/-------------------------------------------------------\
I DOS commands for BBS: ECHO CD\BBS >BBS.BAT I
I ECHO SLBBS *B >>BBS.BAT I
I ECHO EXIT >>BBS.BAT I
I *X20 I
\-------------------------------------------------------/
b) Create a batch file to run D'Bridge using the following
example. Start D'Bridge from now on with this batch
file, usually by calling it from your AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
@ECHO OFF
:BEGIN
CD\DB
DB.EXE
IF ERRORLEVEL 20 GOTO BBS
GOTO END
:BBS
CALL BBS.BAT
CALL EXPORT.BAT
GOTO BEGIN
:END
EXIT
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
245
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TBBS
TBBS is a very popular commercial bulletin board system available from
eSoft.
Current versions of TBBS are designed to work with the SEAdog electronic
mail system by System Enhancement Associates. For TBBS users to enter
NETmail, a SEAdog-style nodelist is required; D'Bridge does not create
a compatible nodelist format. You must either use SEAdog's utilities or
a third-party nodelist processor to create this list. It is not our
intention of supporting multiple nodelist formats.
There are two versions of TBBS: Single- and multi-line. Both versions
use the same file formats, but only the Single-line version is capable
of using D'Bridge as a front-end mailer. If you wish to use the multi-
line version of TBBS, you will have to run D'Bridge for nightly mail
events and transfer mail only during designated times. The configuration
of D'Bridge is different for bother versions of TBBS.
If you are using the TBBS MULTI-LINE version perform the following
steps:
a) Using a standard text editor such as EDLIN, create a
batch file similar to the following:
:TOP
CD \TBBS
MLTBBS /U
IF ERRORLEVEL 25 GOTO MAILER
GOTO END
:MAILER
CD \DB
DB
GOTO TOP
:END
EXIT
b) Using the CEDIT program, set an external event at the time
you want to run D'Bridge, by exiting with errorlevel 25.
For more details about CEDIT, see Chapter 5 of your
TBBS manual.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
246
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
c) Using the D'Bridge SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE screen, create the
desired MAIL events plus an EXIT event directly following
with an errorlevel of 10. In the above batch file, error-
level 10 means to re-load TBBS.
d) To run the system, just start the batch file. TBBS will
execute and run D'Bridge at the designated time.
If you are using the TBBS SINGLE-LINE version perform the following
steps:
a) Rename DBMAILER.EXE to MAILER.EXE using the DOS "REN" command:
C> REN DBMAILER.EXE MAILER.EXE
If you are upgrading from a previous version, you might have
to delete MAILER.EXE before doing this. Make sure you always
rename this file when you upgrade to a new D'Bridge version.
The DB.EXE shell program will run MAILER.EXE if the
DBMAILER.EXE program is not found in the current path.
b) With a standard text editor, create a batch file similar to
the following:
:TOP
C:
CD \TBBS
TBBSDVR
TBBS /M
IF ERRORLEVEL 30 GOTO ECHOSCAN
GOTO END
:ECHOSCAN
DB UNPACK
(Put your ECHOmail processing commands here)
.
.
.
GOTO TOP
:END
EXIT
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
247
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
c) When D'Bridge is loaded in this manner, odds are there's not
enough memory free to process ECHOmail, so unpacking should
be done from on a batch basis.a batch basis; disable the
internal unpacker by answering "NO" to the UNPACK MAIL field
on the PACKET/MAIL CONTROL screen.
d) For D'Bridge to unpack mail, you must specify DOS COMMANDS
on the ADVANCED ROUTING screen of the SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE
system. In each mail event that you want mail unpacked plus
the UNEVENT, specify the following for DOS COMMANDS:
*X30
After mail is received, D'Bridge will exit with an errorlevel
of 30; with the above batch file, this will cause TBBS to be
unloaded and the DB UNPACK option to be run. If you only
want to unpack mail on a periodic basis, you may accomplish
this by using "EXIT" events with errorlevel 30 when you want
the unpacker to be run.
e) Finally, for D'Bridge to exit to TBBS when a bulletin board
call is received, specify the following in the DOS BBS
COMMANDS field on the BBS CONFIGURATION screen:
/--------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: *X |
| |
| |
\--------------------------------------------------------/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TELEGARD
Setting up D'Bridge and Telegard is a snap. First let's look at the
Telegard aspect of it. From the "P", System Configuration screen, go to
Modem Configuration:
Modem configuration
1. Maximum baud rate : 38400 (If you are using 9600 or above)
2. COM port number : 2
3. Modem init string : "ATZ"
4. Modem answer string : "ATA"
5. Modem hangup string : "~~~+++~ATH1"
6. Modem offhook string: "ATM0H1"
7. No-call init time : 30
8. COM port locked? : Yes (If you are using 9600 or above)
9. Locked COM port baud: 38400 (If you are using 9600 or above)
R. Modem result codes :
Those are the only real things you need to be worried about in the Modem
Section. Next goto the FidoNet Configuration:
FidoNet configuration
A. Network address : 1:376/72.0 (Simply your Net/Node/Point)
B. Origin line : "" (Default that you would like to use as
an Origin Line)
C. Strip IFNA kludge lines : Yes 1. Color of standard text : 1
D. Strip SEEN-BY lines : Yes 2. Color of quoted text : 3
E. Strip origin line : No 3. Color of tear line : 4
F. Strip centering codes : Yes 4. Color of origin line : 3
G. Strip box codes : Yes
H. Center box/center lines : Yes
I. Add tear/origin lines : No
J. Default EchoMail path : "D:\MSG\"
It is not necessary to strip the Seen-By or IFNA kludge lines, but it
does look better. In 99% of the cases, you will want the centering, and
box codes all set to YES.
Adding a tear and origin line is all up to you. I choose not too simply
because I prefer seeing "D'Bridge" at the bottom of the messages that I
enter in!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
249
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Setting up the Message bases themselves:
1. Name : D'Bridge Support
2. Filename : DBRIDGE
3. Base type : EchoMail
Message path: D:\MSG\DBRIDGE\
[...]
7. Anonymous : No
8. Password : ""
9. Address : Default
C. Colors : Text=1, Quote=3, Tear=4, Origin=3
M. Mail flags : KS-/CBM-
O. Origin line : "Windows of the World (WOTW)"
Flags : R-A
P-Index : 38
Q. Quit
Edit menu (?=help) : ?
Toggles:
(R)eal names (A)Filter ANSI/8-bit ASCII
Edit menu (?=help) :
1) Simply the description you would like your users to see.
2) The filename that you would like Telegard to use to store the
messages.
3) If it is an area that you want to interface with D'Bridge, make
sure it is set to ECHOmail and the path is the same as that you have
defined in D'Bridge for the echo.
4-6) Removed, it's irrelevant to D'Bridge and Telegard and is all up to
you.
7) Do NOT allow anon. posts. It's against Fido policy!
8) Password is up to you if you want on the message base
9) If you want an address that is different from your default added to
the Origin line, enter it in here. (Be sure you also have DB set up
to use a different address for the individual echo also or it will
be of little good.
C) Colors are only relevant to what is seen on the BBS itself
M) The correspond to the flags you set up in the FidoNet Config above.
You can set them all individually for each ECHOmail message area.
(K)ludge line strip (B)ox code strip
(S)EEN-BY line strip (M)ake lines centered
(O)rigin line strip (T)ear/origin line add
(C)entering code strip
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
250
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
O) Like most other areas, you can set the origin line to read whatever
you want.
FLAGS: (R)eal Names -- Always turn this on if it is a
FidoNet conference
(A)NSI filter -- ""
That's it from the Telegard half. The D'Bridge side is simple!
/BBS CONFIGURATION----------------------------------------------------------\
| BBS software installed? Yes |
| "EMAIL calls only" text: Accepting EMAIL calls only. Please hang up... |
| "Press ESC for BBS" text: Press the ESC key twice to access the BBS... |
| "Loading BBS" text: |
| "Loading BBS" file: D:\DB\LOADING.TXT |
| "Human" caller timeout: 20 |
| BBS online hours: 05:00 until 03:00 |
| "After hours" file: F:\DB\FILES\TOOLATE.TXT |
| Minimum baud rate: |
| "Too slow" file: |
| Scan ECHOmail after call? No |
| DOS commands for BBS: d: |
| cd\bbs |
| bnu /I=1+ |
| +bbs -b*b -q |
| bnu /I=1- |
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------/
The only important aspect here is the "DOS commands for BBS"
Make sure D'Bridge changes to the Telegard directory before it
tries to load it otherwise it won't load!
The BNU line(s) are only relevant if you are going to be using TG
with a fossil driver. If you are using a 9600 modem or above, I
STRONGLY recommend you do. The BNU /I=1+ command simply enables the
driver before the bbs loads and the BNU /I=1- disables it before
D'Bridge loads back up -- it does not remove it from memory, but
simply disables it and lets D'Bridge handle the comm port.
To use these commands, you must have first loaded BNU with all of
the options you want it to operate with. I do this just before I
load DB.
the +BBS -B*B -Q line is what loads up Telegard. The -B*B loads TG
with the connect rate listed after the | in DB's modem setup.
Since Telegard does nothing different for MNP or ARQ callers, make
them all 300, 1200, 2400 or 19200, anything else will simply cause
problems.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
251
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For the "Drop to DOS method", remove all of the commands in the "DOS
commands for BBS" section and place "*X" in there place. Below is a
sample of the batch file I use to run TG from D'bridge:
RUNDB.BAT
REM This is where I load BNU once and only once, the first time DB gets
REM loaded for the day.
C:\UTIL\bnu /P=1 /T=10 /R=10 /F+ /L1=38400 /Z0 /M-
:TOP
BNU /I=1-
DB ; Load D'Bridge!
IF ERRORLEVEL 192 goto 9600BAUD ; BBS caller connected at 19,200 bps
IF ERRORLEVEL 96 GOTO 9600BAUD ; 9600 Connect
IF ERRORLEVEL 48 GOTO 4800BAUD ; 4800 Connect
IF ERRORLEVEL 24 GOTO 2400BAUD ; 2400 Connect
IF ERRORLEVEL 12 GOTO 1200BAUD ; 1200 Connect
IF ERRORLEVEL 3 GOTO 300BAUD ; 300 Connect
IF ERRORLEVEL 0 GOTO END ; You Exited D'Bridge
:300BAUD
d:
BNU /I=1+
CD\BBS
BBS -b300 -q ; Parameters for Telegard to load at 300 baud and exit
; when user logs off
TELEMAIL SCAN : Telegard Utility to check for new FIDO-NET messages
; to be exported, not necessary here
GOTO TOP ; Return to beginning of batch file and load D'Bridge
; again
:1200BAUD
d:
BNU /I=1+
CD\BBS
BBS -b1200 -q ; Parameters for Telegard to load at 1200 baud and exit
; when user logs off
TELEMAIL SCAN ; Telegard Utility to check for new FIDO-NET messages to
; be exported, not necessary here
GOTO TOP ; Return to beginning of batch file and load D'Bridge
; again
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
252
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
:2400BAUD
d:
BNU /I=1+
CD\BBS
BBS -b2400 -q ; Parameters for Telegard to load at 2400 baud and exit
; when user logs off
TELEMAIL SCAN ; Telegard Utility to check for new FIDO-NET messages to
; be exported, not necessary here
GOTO TOP ; Return to beginning of batch file and load D'Bridge
; again
:4800BAUD
d:
BNU /I=1+
CD\BBS
BBS -b4800 -q ; Parameters for Telegard to load at 4800 baud and exit
; when user logs off
TELEMAIL SCAN ; Telegard Utility to check for new FIDO-NET messages to
; be exported, not necessary here
GOTO TOP ; Return to beginning of batch file and load D'Bridge
; again
:9600BAUD
d:
CD\BBS
BBS -b19200 -q ; Parameters for Telegard to load at 19200 baud and exit
; when user logs off
TELEMAIL SCAN ; Telegard Utility to check for new FIDO-NET messages to
; be exported, not necessary here
GOTO TOP ; Return to beginning of batch file and load D'Bridge
; again
The TELEMAIL utilities will need to be found on a Telegard support system,
or most major bbses. (1:376/72 has them!)
The only other thing you might need is to add a command to get any received
echomail into Telegard. You would want to do that either as an event or as
a "DOS command after mail received" in all of your events. In either case,
the commands would be:
D: 'Change to the drive where the BBS is located
CD \BBS 'Change to the BBS directory
TELEMAIL TOSS 'Toss any new echomail into Telegard
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
253
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WILDCAT
Wildcat bulletin board system is available from Mustang Software; it is
an excellent menu-driven BBS that runs well with D'Bridge. In order to
configure Wildcat and D'Bridge together, follow these steps:
1) Configure Wildcat's MODEM INFORMATION screen as follows. This uses
the US Robotics HST as an example. If you use a different modem,
the parameters may vary. Leave all the initialization fields blank
or Wildcat will send the strings to the modem. Wildcat receives the
caller already online after D'Bridge answers the call.
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------------\
| MODEM INFORMATION - Part 1 Frame 3 |
| |
| 1. Which Communications Port do you want to use [ 1 .. 4 ] ? 1 |
| 2. Maximum # of seconds to wait for carrier [ S7 Register ] ? 1 |
| 3. Enter the string to reset your modem: |
| 4. Enter Modem Startup String #1: |
| |
| 5. Enter Modem Startup String #2: |
| |
| 6. Enter Modem Startup String #3: |
| |
| 7. Enter the string to reinitialize your modem after every call: |
| |
| 8. Modem Delays in Milliseconds: |
| #1: 1 #2: 1 #3: 1 |
| 9. Initialize your modem port at which baud rate [ 300..19200 ] ? 19200 |
| 10. Lock the DTE setting at the initialized baud rate [Y/N] ? Y |
| |
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------/
2) Wildcat has certain protocols that may only be used if there is an
error-correcting connection. If you have a modem with MNP, it should
return a different response string such as MNP, ARQ or RELIABLE.
D'Bridge needs to translate this code into a string Wildcat will
understand. Again, this example uses the HST modem; if you do not
have an error-correcting modem, this setup is acceptable.
Configure the "CONNECT" COMMANDS field on the COMMUNICATION MODEM
SETUP screen:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
254
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
/-------------------------------------------------------------------\
| "CONNECT" commands: 9600 CONNECT 9600|9600 |
| 2400 CONNECT 2400|2400 |
| 1200 CONNECT 1200|1200 |
| 300 CONNECT|300 |
| 9600 CONNECT 9600/ARQ|9600MNP |
| 2400 CONNECT 2400/ARQ|2400MNP |
| 1200 CONNECT 1200/ARQ|1200MNP |
\-------------------------------------------------------------------/
3) There are two ways to setup Wildcat under D'Bridge:
OPTION "A" - Spawn a batch file using the DROP method
With the DROP method, D'Bridge swaps almost all its used RAM to
EMS or disk, then "spawns" a batch file that invokes Wildcat.
If you have available EMS or a fast disk, this is a good method
to use:
a) Enter the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window on the
BBS CONFIGURATION screen:
/--------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: +CAT.BAT *C |
| |
| |
\--------------------------------------------------------/
b) Create a batch file called CAT.BAT in the D'Bridge root
directory. Use the following as an example:
IF 1==%live% GOTO RETURNCAT
:WILDCAT
SET LIVE=
C:
CD \WC
REM If you want to pass the time to the next event to
REM Wildcat add a %2 after the %1
Wildcat /B %1
IF ERRORLEVEL 60 GOTO END
IF ERRORLEVEL 35 goto QBBSMAIL
GOTO END
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
D'Bridge 4
8.00 BBS SYSTEMS
255
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
:RETURNCAT
C:
CD \WC
SET live=
Wildcat
IF ERRORLEVEL 60 GOTO END
IF ERRORLEVEL 35 goto QBBSMAIL
GOTO END
:QBBSMAIL
C:
CD \QUICKBBS
WC2QBBS C:\WC\CALLINFO.BBS
QUICKBBS -R -e0
GOTO RETURNCAT
END:
EXIT
OPTION "B" - Run D'Bridge from a batch file and EXIT
With the EXIT method, D'Bridge is completely removed from memory
when Wildcat takes control. This method requires D'Bridge to be
run from a batch file. Following is a description of how to
configure the software for this method:
a) Enter the following in the DOS BBS COMMANDS window on the
BBS CONFIGURATION screen:
/--------------------------------------------------------\
| DOS commands for BBS: ECHO SET baud=*C >BBS.BAT |
| ECHO SET live=2 >>BBS.BAT |
| ECHO RUN-DB.BAT >>BBS.BAT |
| *X96 |
\--------------------------------------------------------/
b) Create a batch file called RUN-DB.BAT using the following
model as an example. Start D'Bridge by using this batch
file, most-likely by calling it directly from AUTOEXEC.BAT:
ECHO OFF
:START
CLS
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IF 1==%live% GOTO RETURNCAT
IF 2==%live% GOTO WILDCAT
SET LIVE=
SET BAUD=
C:
CD \DB
DB
IF ERRORLEVEL 96 GOTO LOADBBS
GOTO END
:WILDCAT
SET live=
C:
CD \WC
Wildcat /B %baud%
IF ERRORLEVEL 35 GOTO QBBSMAIL
GOTO START
:LOADBBS
BBS.BAT
:RETURNCAT
C:
CD \WC
SET live=
Wildcat
IF ERRORLEVEL 35 GOTO QBBSMAIL
GOTO START
:QBBSMAIL
C:
CD \QUICKBBS
WC2QBBS C:\WC\CALLINFO.BBS
QUICKBBS -R -e0
GOTO RETURNCAT
END:
EXIT
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9.00 GLOSSARY OF TERMS
ADDRESS
An ADDRESS normally specifies where you want to send EMAIL or files.
D'Bridge uses the Fidonet addressing structure; this consists of four
numbers: ZONE, NET, NODE and POINT. For example, my ADDRESS is 1:110/68.
This means ZONE 1, NET 110, NODE 68 and POINT 0. The format for a Fidonet
ADDRESS is: ZONE:NET/NODE.POINT.
ALIAS
An ALIAS is simply another ADDRESS or USER NAME you are using at any given
time. Your system will have a primary ADDRESS and OPERATOR, but you may also
specify a list of AKA (Also Known As) ADDRESSES and USER NAMES which may be
selected while using the internal message editor. ALIAS ADDRESSES are used
when your system belongs to more than one network.
AREAFIX
AREAFIX is a subsystem with D'Bridge allowing remote systems to add and
delete ECHOmail conferences from your forwarding list. This eliminates the
need for routine maintenance by the operator of an ECHOmail hub.
BAUD RATE
The BAUD RATE represents the speed of a serial communication line.
BAUD actually means BITS PER SECOND and dictates how fast data can be
transferred. Since normal data communications takes 10 bits per character,
a 1200 baud modem can transmit and receive data at a maximum of 120 bytes
(characters) per second.
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BBS
BBS - An abbreviation for Bulletin Board System.
BOSS
A BOSS node refers to the administrator of a "point" network. For example,
if your address is 1:110/50.6, then your "BOSS" address is 1:110/50 (or point
zero). Since points are not in the nodelist, the BOSS will normally receive
and forward all mail addressed to a point.
BULLETIN BOARD SYSTEM
Usually called a BBS, a BULLETIN BOARD SYSTEM is a program which allows
"human" callers to connect using a terminal program and directly access
messages, files and other online services. Many BULLETIN BOARDS are public-
access systems which allow people to use them for free providing they follow
the "rules". Many manufacturers and software companies have set up a BBS
to handle support and distribute product information. D'Bridge is capable of
acting as a "front-end" to most BULLETIN BOARD SYSTEMS, determining if a call
is an EMAIL session or if a "human" is on the line.
CARRIER
CARRIER, short for CARRIER WAVE, refers to the connection of two modems.
When you dial a modem (with your telephone) you will hear a high-pitched tone;
this is called the CARRIER DETECT SIGNAL. When a modem calls another system,
the calling modem detects this tone and they automatically "synchronize" and
determine the baud rate of the connection. Once this is accomplished, you are
said to have a CARRIER. If the connection is terminated, or the CARRIER signal
is lost, the modems are no longer communicating and will hang up.
The CARRIER WAVE in itself is the unmodulated single-frequency electromagnetic
wave that carries the desired information (data) - i.e., is modulated by the
information.
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CD
An abbreviation for Carrier Detect. CD refers to the circuits within the
modem monitoring the connection and detecting when a carrier is lost. Most
external modems have a CD light telling the operator the status of the
connection. Once a carrier is detected, D'Bridge can initiate an EMAIL ses-
sion.
CD also refers to the signal the modem sends to the computer telling it
that another modem is connected. This signal is required by D'Bridge.
COMM PORT
COMM PORT refers to the serial I/O card used by D'Bridge to communicate with
the modem. Internal modems have a built-in serial PORT but are used the same
way. Your modem PORT is most likely called either COM1 or COM2.
COMPILE
In D'Bridge, COMPILE means to translate the raw nodelist or FileBase data
into its internal database. This must be done every time a new nodelist is
installed or when the FileBase is updated. When D'Bridge is run, it checks
the data and time associated with each nodelist file you are using with the
last known values. If they differ, D'Bridge automatically RECOMPILES the
nodelist database (the FileBase must be manually COMPILED using the command-
line option).
CONNECT
CONNECT refers to D'Bridge receiving a carrier detect signal from the modem
along with a "CONNECT" message generated by HAYES-compatible modems. When
D'Bridge is CONNECTED to another system, it can send and receive EMAIL and
files. When placing a long-distance call, your phone company will bill you
for the actual CONNECT TIME, usually rounded up to the next minute.
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CM
An abbreviation for Continuous Mail. All D'Bridge systems are capable of this.
Continuous mail means that a Fidonet-based EMAIL system is capable of
receiving mail 24 hours a day and not just during a scheduled event. Some
EMAIL systems are still not capable of this, so the nodelist has a "CM" flag
which can be used to only send to CM systems (this is configurable on the
ADVANCED ROUTING screen of SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE).
CRC
CRC is an abbreviation for Cyclic Redundancy Check. This is how D'Bridge
(and all other EMAIL systems) ensure that data is received the same way it
is transmitted. It is much like a "checksum" attached to a block of data;
A mathematical formula (a polynomial) is used to compare each data block with
its CRC value. If there is a difference, the data is not valid and must be
retransmitted. You, as the user, do not need to concern yourself with this
as it happens automatically.
CRASH
In D'Bridge (and most other Fidonet-based systems), CRASH refers to a high-
priority message. It is an "attribute" that may be associated with a message
to tell D'Bridge to send the mail immediately, to override any routing and to
call the destination system directly. Using the internal message editor, you
can specify any message to have CRASH priority.
CTS
An abbreviation for Clear To Send. CTS is a signal generated by the receiving
system or modem telling D'Bridge that it may transmit data. This is normally
used only when a modem is using a higher baud rate than it is capable of
sending (or receiving). The CTS signal is used in conjunction with the RTS
(Request To Send) signal and is sent from the modem to the computer.
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DATA
DATA simply means any form of information that can be stored in a computer
in the form of a file. DATA could be a message, spreadsheet file, graphics
image or anything else in your computer. Any form of DATA may be sent by
D'Bridge.
DATA BITS
When D'Bridge is communicating with another EMAIL system, it uses 8 DATA BITS
in the transmission. IBM computers are only capable of using 7 or 8 DATA BITS
in their communications. The D'Bridge "terminal mode" allows you to select
either 7 or 8 DATA bits when communicating with online services such as BBS's.
DEFAULT
A DEFAULT refers to a predefined or normal value for something. When you
first install D'Bridge, you will notice that many of the configuration screens
already have answers to questions even though you didn't enter them. This is
because these values or answers will be used by most systems, so they are the
DEFAULTS.
DOMESTIC
DOMESTIC refers to any communications within a given country. In the case
of the U.S., D'Bridge considers any system that has a phone number beginning
with "1" to be a DOMESTIC call (this includes Canada, the Bahamas and possibly some other
neighboring countries sharing "1" as their country-code).
DOS
DOS, an acronym for Disk Operating System, is the program (written by
MicroSoft) controlling your computer's basic functions. D'Bridge requires
DOS to operate and odds are (99.99% of the time) you already have this
program. Other operating systems are available such as PC-MOS and XENIX,
but D'Bridge will not function while using these.
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DOS EVENT
A DOS EVENT is a scheduled event (defined by SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE) that will
execute any number of DOS commands or programs, providing that you have enough
memory to "spawn" these tasks. DOS EVENTS can be used for any function you
wish to have automatically performed on a scheduled basis. DOS EVENTS must
only run programs that require no human intervention (keyboard I/O).
DOWNLOAD
DOWNLOAD means to receive a file from a remote computer. The D'Bridge
"terminal mode" supports downloads with XMODEM, SEAlink and ZMODEM protocols.
When you DOWNLOAD a file, you are basically copying it over the telephone
from the remote computer to yours. Because these protocols all use CRC error-
checking, the files should arrive on your computer exactly like they are on
the remote system.
DROP
In D'Bridge, DROP means to execute another program (or access DOS) by swapping
all memory to EMS or disk, then executing another program. This method (com-
pared to PUSH) frees all available memory so that the executed program has
the maximum memory available for its use.
DUPLEX
DUPLEX is used only in the D'Bridge "terminal mode" and refers to an
operating characteristic of the remote computer you are calling. These
days, almost all computers and online services operate in FULL DUPLEX
mode; this means every time you type a character, the remote computer
"echos" it back to you and it is displayed on your screen. Some systems,
however, do not "echo" the characters you type; that is called HALF
DUPLEX operation. If you set D'Bridge to HALF DUPLEX, every character
you type will be displayed on your screen. If you experience a double
echo (two characters for every one you type), you should change to FULL
DUPLEX.
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DTR
An abbreviation for Data Terminal Ready. DTR is the signal your computer
sends to your modem stating it should accept commands from the computer or,
if enabled, answer the phone. D'Bridge requires this signal to function
properly in order to be able to hang up the phone. When your computer "lowers"
DTR, your modem should hang up the phone if connected to a remote system, or
not answer the phone (if so enabled). Most external modems have a DTR light
telling you the status of this signal.
ECHOMAIL
ECHOmail is a method of conferencing or sharing a message base between two
or more systems. D'Bridge features internal ECHOmail processing, eliminating
the need for external utilities.
EDITOR
An EDITOR is any program which allows you to read, enter, respond to EMAIL
messages. There is an internal message editor provided with D'Bridge. It
may be run by selecting the EDIT/READ EMAIL option from the EDITOR menu or
by typing "DB EDIT" from the DOS prompt.
EMAIL
As an abbreviation for "Electronic Mail", EMAIL generally describes any form
of electronic communication.
ERROR LEVEL
An ERROR LEVEL is an "exit code" sent by D'Bridge to DOS describing an "exit
condition". D'Bridge uses ERROR LEVELS in EXIT events so that a DOS batch file
can detect what to do. Unless you already understand ERROR LEVELS, you most
likely won't need to use them. For further information, consult your DOS
manual in the section describing BATCH FILES.
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EVENT
An EVENT is simply something which happens. In D'Bridge, EVENTS are
scheduled by using the SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE screen. Four types of EVENTS
are supported by D'Bridge: MAIL, DOS, EXIT and CLOCKSYNC.
The "Un-Event" is the event which runs when no events are currently
running... in other words, things are "uneventful".
EXIT EVENT
An EXIT EVENT is defined by using the SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE screen. When
an EXIT EVENT occurs, D'Bridge will actually terminate completely providing
DOS with a pre-specified ERROR LEVEL. This is almost always used within a
batch file or shell program.
EXPORT
In D'Bridge, EXPORT means to save your current configuration in a text file
for inspection or later use by the IMPORT command. All of the parameters in
the setup screens may be written to a standard text file. This is handy for
configuring a remote system and required when upgrading between revisions
of the D'Bridge software.
EXTERNAL GATEWAY
In D'Bridge, an EXTERNAL GATEWAY is a program which can be run automatically
to receive incoming mail from other, non-compatible EMAIL systems. For
example, there is a UUCP EMAIL receiver available for the IBM PC which will
allow you to receive mail from UNIX and XENIX systems. A unique feature of
D'Bridge allows it to recognize when non-compatible EMAIL systems are calling
and transfer control to an external EMAIL receiver.
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FIDONET
FIDONET means two things really: First, it defines the protocol D'Bridge
uses when communicating with other Fidonet-based systems. This protocol is
described in detail in certain documents maintained by the FTSC (Fidonet
Technical Standards Committee). Second, it is the name of the largest
Fidonet-based EMAIL network. Both the network and the protocol were created
by Tom Jennings of Fido Software. His initiative and early efforts are what
made the Fidonet network possible.
FILE
A FILE is an organized collection of information, usually similar in nature.
When you type "DIR" in DOS, you receive a listing of all the files in the
current directory. (Almost) any of these FILES may be transmitted via EMAIL
to another D'Bridge or Fidonet system.
FILE-ATTACH
FILE-ATTACH means to send a file or list of files with an EMAIL message.
This is normally done with the internal message editor. FILE-ATTACH is an
"attribute" associated with a given message. If a message has the FILE-ATTACH
attribute, all files listed in the SUBJECT line will be transmitted with the
message.
FILE-REQUEST
FILE-REQUEST is similar to FILE-ATTACH, except it works in reverse. Files
are "requested" from the specified system; when the call is placed, if those
files exist and you have specified the right password, if any, they will be
sent to you immediately. FILE-REQUEST is both a message "attribute" and a
menu option in D'Bridge.
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FLAGS
The FLAGS are the last part of a nodelist line - free-form text which may
contain additional information about the system. Include the characters "CM"
if you wish to designate a system as CONTINUOUS MAIL (being able to receive
EMAIL 24 hours/day).
ie.
CM,XX,HST,V32
CM Continuous mail
XX WaZOO-style file and update requests
HST US Robotics Courier HST modem
V32 V.32 compatible
FORWARD
FORWARDING means to send an EMAIL message which neither originated from nor is
destined for your system. FORWARDING is used in conjunction with ROUTING to
send mail through HOST systems, usually to save phone calls and costs. For
example, if you wish to send a message to a system outside your NET, the
message is normally routed to that city's HOST and will then be FORWARDED
automatically to the destination. This way, if you have several messages to
go to different destinations in one city, only a single phone call needs to
be made.
FOSSIL
An acronym for "Fido/Opus/SEAdog Standard Interface Layer," FOSSIL
refers to a communications interface common to many BBS systems.
FRONT-END
FRONT-END is a generic term for programs like D'Bridge, FrontDoor and Binkley-
Term when they are used to run a combination BBS/EMAIL system. This simply
means D'Bridge acts as a FRONT-END, answering the phone and transferring con-
trol to a BBS or external EMAIL receiver.
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FTSC
FTSC stands for Fidonet Technical Standards Committee, a group of
individuals, mostly computer programmers, who document the technical
specifications and procedures used to design and maintain network software
for Fidonet.
FUNCTION-REQUEST
ZMODEM-based EMAIL systems like D'Bridge, FrontDoor and BinkleyTerm have the
ability to process FUNCTION-REQUESTS, allowing the calling system to have
access to predefined DOS functions or programs. This is a rather advanced
feature and can only be used in conjunction with external programs not inclu-
ded with D'Bridge.
HOLD
HOLD means NOT to send mail, but rather to wait until the destination system
calls and picks it up. Normally, D'Bridge will put all mail without CRASH
priority on HOLD 24 hours a day. This way, a system calling to send you mail
can always get any mail waiting for it, saving you a phone call.
HOST
Every NET has a HOST; a HOST acts as a consolidation point for inbound mail
coming from outside your NET. A host is designated by having a NODE and POINT
number of zero. By default, all mail sent to systems outside your NET will be
routed to a HOST or a HUB. The exception to this is if you have specified
CRASH priority or have attached or requested a file. Usually, the NET host
acts as the administrator for his NET, maintaining the nodelist and distribu-
ting updates to all his NODES.
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HUB
A HUB is functionally identical to a HOST; it is usually only used when a NET
is very large or spans more than one local calling area. In D'Bridge, HUB and
HOST ROUTING are treated the same. Messages addressed to a NODE outside your
network are ROUTED through the HUB if one exists.
IMMEDIATE
In D'Bridge (and most other Fidonet-based systems), IMMEDIATE refers to a
high-priority message. It is an "attribute" which may be associated with a
message to tell D'Bridge to send the mail immediately, to override any
routing and call the destination system directly. Using the internal message
editor, you can specify any message to have IMMEDIATE priority.
The difference between CRASH and IMMEDIATE is that D'Bridge will process all
of the IMMEDIATE calls before attempting to dial a CRASH or NORMAL priority
call.
IMPORT
In D'Bridge, the term IMPORT is used when upgrading between releases of the
software or anytime you wish to transfer or restore an EXPORTED configuration.
INBOUND
INBOUND simply means mail arriving at your system from a remote site;
opposite of OUTBOUND.
INITIALIZE
In D'Bridge, INITIALIZE is used to describe sending commands to your modem
that INITIALIZE it, setting the correct parameters for operation. Normally,
your MODEM INITIALIZATION STRING tells your modem to answer the phone and
report the connection back to D'Bridge. For specific information on this,
read the section on HARDWARE/MODEM DEVICES.
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INTERNATIONAL
INTERNATIONAL refers to any communications to systems outside your country.
In D'Bridge, this is determined by the first part of a phone number as it
appears in the nodelist. For the U.S., Canada, the Bahamas and several other
neighboring countries sharing a country code of "1", communications is not
considered INTERNATIONAL unless calling Europe or Australia; anytime the
COUNTRY CODE in the nodelist differs from your own, that is an INTERNATIONAL
call and the predefined INTERNATIONAL DIALING PREFIX will be used.
KLUDGE
A kludge line is a hidden line of text in a NETmail or Echomail message.
Usually starting with ASCII 01 (a "smiley face" character), these kludge
lines usually contain information such as the originating address, routing
details, serial numbers, etc. An example is the MSGID/REPLY kludge, that
allows 3rd-party software to maintain "reply chains" in network messages.
Kludge lines are present in messages as a means to "kludge" some new desired
functionality without changing the format of the packet files (*.PKT);
which would most certainly cause compatibility problems or require every
Sysop in the network to upgrade software.
Kludge lines are documented by the Fidonet Technical Standards Committee
or FTSC for short, a group of individuals (mostly computer programmers)
who document the ways that Fidonet software operate. D'Bridge is comprised
of many designs and specifications set forth in FTSC standards.
LOCAL
LOCAL refers to any call where D'Bridge simply strips off the COUNTRY CODE
and AREA CODE. It is still possible there is a charge for the call, but in
most cases there isn't (at least not in the U.S.).
LOG
D'Bridge keeps a detailed LOG file of everything happening on the system.
It contains chronological information about system activity, errors, etc.
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MACRO
In the internal message editor, KEYBOARD MACROS are supported. What this
means is that you can program function keys (ALT F1-F10 and CTL F1-F10) to
substitute preprogrammed text of any length while editing messages. This is
handy for signatures and any other text you find yourself constantly typing.
Words, sentences or even paragraphs can be programmed into the MACRO keys.
MAIL
MAIL simply refers to messages or files sent or received.
MAIL EVENT
A MAIL EVENT is a predefined period of time during which D'Bridge is
allowed to send mail. During this time, all messages will be sent unless
otherwise specified in the ADVANCED ROUTING screen. It is important that
all systems in the network use the same time for MAIL EVENTS. Remember
that if a west-coast system starts a mail event at 1:00, systems on the
east-coast must start the same event at 4:00: the same physical time.
MESSAGE
In D'Bridge, a MESSAGE is prepared using the internal editor and contains
text to be sent to another location conveying a thought or idea. Messages are
the basis for more EMAIL systems.
MODEM
An acronym for "MOdulator/DEModulator". A modem is the device which allows
computers to communicate by converting electrical impulses to audio tones and
back.
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MSGID KLUDGE
The MSGID/REPLY kludge lines are tiny lines of hidden "text" that get added
to all messages that originate from your system. The MSGID kludge contains
the address of your system as well as a unique serial number. When you use
the internal editor to reply to a message that contains a MSGID kludge,
the REPLY kludge is added, containing the address and serial number
of the original message.
NET
Defines the second number in a Fidonet address. NET typically defines a
geographical region or local calling area. In the case of a private network
with few systems, all systems (regardless of location) could use the same
NET number.
NETWORK
The term "NETWORK" refers collectively to all the systems listed in your
nodelist. You should be able to send an EMAIL message to anyone in your
network. Sometimes, NETWORK is used in the same way as NET, the second number
in a Fidonet address, but they really mean two different things.
NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR
Every NETWORK has an ADMINISTRATOR; without one, anarchy would prevail.
There is a section devoted entirely to the duties and responsibilities resting
with a NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR. If you are such a person, I would strongly
suggest you to read it. Basically, the network administrator responsible for
the overall operation of the network and for keeping the nodelist up-to-date
and accurate.
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NODE
A NODE is the third number in a Fidonet address; NODE specifies an individual
system. Much like in a telephone book, each NODE has an entry in the NODELIST
listing information such as name, phone number and baud rate.
NODELIST
Every network has a NODELIST; maintained by the administrator, the NODELIST
is a text file listing all the systems, their phone numbers, baud rates,
cities and operator names. This list is identical on each system in the
network and is updated whenever a new system is added or an existing one
leaves or has information to change. In the case of the amateur networks,
the NODELIST is updated and distributed weekly, usually every Friday.
NORMAL
In D'Bridge (and most other Fidonet-based systems), NORMAL refers to a
low-priority message. It is an "attribute" which may be associated with a
message to tell D'Bridge to send the mail at the lowest possible cost,
usually at 11:00 at night. NORMAL is actually the lack of a HOLD, CRASH or
IMMEDIATE flag on the message(s).
NULL MESSAGE
A NULL MESSAGE is a message which contains no text. Often, these messages are
used to send or request a file and are meaningless otherwise. D'Bridge gives
you the option to automatically erase these NULL MESSAGES after they arrive.
OFFLINE
In D'Bridge, OFFLINE has two meanings: First, it means the phone is not
being answered, most-likely because you are using your computer for something
else. Second, it means what commands you want to give to the modem when the
system is "down" because you are using the editor or exit the program. Some
systems are configured so that the phone is off-hook when D'Bridge is OFFLINE.
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ONLINE
The opposite of OFFLINE. ONLINE means D'Bridge is up and ready to accept
commands and/or incoming EMAIL.
OS2
OS/2 Warp is an operating system by IBM.
OUTBOUND
The term "OUTBOUND" refers to EMAIL or files ready to be sent to a remote
system. Mail that is on "HOLD" is also called OUTBOUND. In fact, everything
in the QUEUE window is OUTBOUND mail.
OUTBOUND GATE
Some NETs have an OUTBOUND GATE or GATEWAY - A system which sends all mail
destined for systems outside your NET. This is often done to save money by
consolidating all the OUTBOUND traffic into one outgoing system (perhaps the
OGATE (OUTBOUND GATEWAY) has a WATS line and is able to make long-distance
calls much cheaper). In any case, OUTBOUND GATEWAYS forward mail for anyone
within their NET.
PACKET
When D'Bridge sends EMAIL, it is put into PACKETS consolidating all messages
into one file or PACKET. When D'Bridge connects with a system, it sends one
packet instead of one file for each message. A packet could contain one or
thousands of EMAIL messages.
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PARITY
PARITY is a term only used in the D'Bridge "terminal mode". It is either
NONE, EVEN or ODD and refers to a bit following the DATA BITS and
coming before the STOP BIT. D'Bridge allows you to configure the PARITY any
of these three ways to facilitate communication with different systems.
Most BULLETIN BOARD SYSTEMS use PARITY "NONE", but you might need to change
it.
PASSTHRU
A PASSTHRU ECHOmail area means that the mail is received and forwarded,
but not stored in a Fido or QuickBBS message base. PASSTHRU areas are most
often used by ECHO hubs who don't care to read an ECHO personally.
PASSWORD
A PASSWORD is the basis for the D'Bridge security system. If you wish to have
a secure link between two systems, you choose an 8-letter PASSWORD that is
mutually agreeable to both operators. Once these PASSWORDS are in place, it is
impossible to communicate with the other system (using your address) unless
that PASSWORD is specified. This is primarily designed to discourage "hackers"
from infiltrating your network and stealing EMAIL you may have on hold.
PATH
PATH normally refers to the name of a DOS directory in which you wish to store
files. A path consists of the drive name (C:) plus the name of a specific
subdirectory. See your DOS manual for further information on directory PATHS.
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PICKUP
PICKUP means to call another system and receive EMAIL it has on HOLD for you.
Every time D'Bridge connects with another system, it asks it if there is any
mail waiting. If so and you have the proper PASSWORD, if required, you will
receive all your mail immediately after D'Bridge sends the outbound mail.
By default, PICKUP is not a secure way to handle mail; make sure you use a
SESSION PASSWORD if you require security in your network.
POINT
A POINT is the fourth part of a Fidonet address. A POINT system is not
listed in the NODELIST. Normally, POINTS are not public access systems, but
personal EMAIL systems used to communicate with the network through their
BOSS NODE. For complete information on POINTS, see the section about
setting-up a point system.
POINT LIST
The POINT LIST is just like the nodelist but it specifies a list of POINTS
associated with a given BOSS NODE. Again, this is only applicable for a POINT
system and complete information is available in the section on setting-up a
point system.
POLL
POLLING means to call a system to see if there is mail waiting even though
you have nothing to send. For example, if you don't have a permanent phone
number for your system or run a private node or point, you will need to poll
your HOST or BOSS on a periodic basis in order to receive your mail. The
perfect example of someone who needs to poll is a salesman who uses a portable
PC to communicate with the main office.
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QUEUE
D'Bridge has a QUEUE window which lists all of the outbound packets at any
given time. A QUEUE is simply a list of things to do, or in this case packets
to send.
RAW NODELIST
The RAW NODELIST simply refers to the nodelist when it is in the form of a
text file, before it is compiled. D'Bridge only processes RAW NODELISTS and
requires no external pre-processor like many other Fidonet EMAIL systems do.
ROUTING
D'Bridge has a great deal of flexibility in the way that it can ROUTE
messages. In simple networks, messages can simply be sent directly from the
sender to the receiver. Actually, this can be done in any network, but in
many cases it is more desirable to use ROUTING because it can save money and
cut the number of phone calls. Used in conjunction with FORWARDING, ROUTING
simply means to send a message somewhere other than the final destination.
For example, if I wish to send a message to someone in Miami, it will be
sent during my nightly mail event to the HOST or HUB in Miami. The message
is then automatically FORWARDED to the final destination. Obviously, with
just one message there is no savings and actually the message will take
longer to get there because it has to be FORWARDED to its destination. But
let's say I want to send messages to three different systems in Miami; this
time, there is a savings because D'Bridge only makes one call instead of
three.
RTS
An abbreviation for Request To Send. RTS is the companion signal to Clear
To Send, CTS. This is sometimes referred to as "flow control" and allows the
computer to communicate with the modem at a higher baud rate than the modem
can actually send at.
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SCAN
When D'Bridge says it is SCANNING for outbound mail, it actually looks at
each message to see if it needs to be sent. As it SCANS, it creates packets
that are added the outbound queue.
SCHEDULE
In D'Bridge, the SCHEDULE is a list of pre-programmed events that should be
executed at the specified times. It uses a weekly schedule to determine when
to send mail, execute DOS commands, terminate with an errorlevel and when to
perform an atomic "ClockSync". The SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE screen is used to add,
change and remove events from the schedule. The lower-right window of D'Bridge
always displays the schedule for the current day; this is advanced each night
at midnight.
SCRIPT
D'Bridge normally uses your telephone to connect with other EMAIL systems to
transfer EMAIL. Sometimes it is desirable to use other carriers such as
packet-switched networks to communicate. The D'Bridge scripting language
allows you to communicate using other systems such as TELENET'S PC-PURSUIT.
Many system operators in the U.S. subscribe to this low-cost data transmis-
sion service and D'Bridge is able to take full advantage of it by using its
SCRIPTING language.
This is a rather advanced feature, so please read the section about script
files for more information.
SEALINK
SEAlink is one of the four file-transfer protocols D'Bridge uses to commu-
nicate with other Fidonet-based EMAIL systems. SEAlink was developed by Thom
Henderson of System Enhancements Associates. It was derived from the XMODEM
protocol but has the clear advantage of eliminating propagation delays (from
satellites) so common in long-distance communications. D'Bridge will use this
protocol when communicating with some EMAIL systems.
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SECURITY
D'Bridge has a password-based security system to protect EMAIL sessions. By
default, no security is used and anyone with a compatible EMAIL system could
send you mail and request files. The D'Bridge security system allows you many
different options to improve security. See the section called SECURITY/
MISCELLANEOUS SETUP for more information.
SESSION
A SESSION or MAIL SESSION simply refers to the period of time when two EMAIL
systems are communicating with each other.
SPAWN
SPAWN refers to the method of executing another program while keeping the
calling program in memory. An example of this is DOS EVENTS. All commands
issued in DOS EVENTS are SPAWNED; this means D'Bridge is still in memory and
resumes operation as soon as the SPAWNED task is complete. This method can
only be used if there is enough free memory to load the SPAWNED program after
D'Bridge.
STOP BITS
STOP BITS is a parameter only found in the D'Bridge "terminal mode". On an
IBM computer, it may have a value of either 1 or 2. Most systems use 1 stop
bit without exception, but it is left to your control for maximum flexibility.
TELINK
TELINK is one of the four file-transfer protocols used by D'Bridge. It is
a batch protocol consisting of XMODEM file-transfers preceded by MODEM7
filename headers. This is the standard protocol documented by the Fidonet
Technical Standards Committee as a "fallback" protocol for Fidonet. D'Bridge
will use this protocol when communicating with some EMAIL systems.
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TERMINAL
D'Bridge has a "TERMINAL MODE" which turns D'Bridge into a teletype or video
display terminal (VDT). When using TERMINAL MODE, you can connect with other
online services such as bulletin board systems and commercial systems like
CompuServe<TM>.
TIMEOUT
A TIMEOUT ERROR is a condition when the remote system fails to respond
within an allotted period of time. The cause of such an error can be hardware
trouble, poor line conditions or a software error. If a TIMEOUT ERROR happens
consistently when calling a certain system, you might want to follow up with
a voice call to the system operator.
TRIES
The number of TRIES refers to the number of times D'Bridge dials another
system without getting a connection. During mail events, D'Bridge defaults to
a maximum of 30 TRIES, but you may change this to any number you wish by using
the SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE screen.
UN-EVENT
The UN-EVENT refers to the "event" that is running when there is no scheduled
event active. The UN-EVENT configuration (found in SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE)
controls how crashmail is handled and how mail is routed outside other events.
UNPACK
When EMAIL arrives from another system, it is in the form of PACKETS. Unless
otherwise specified, D'Bridge will UNPACK these packets into messages when
they arrive.
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UPLOAD
When using the D'Bridge "terminal mode", there is an UPLOAD option enabling
you to transmit file(s) to a remote computer. You can use the XMODEM, SEAlink
or ZMODEM protocols for this function.
WAZOO
An acronym for "WArp Zillion Opus-to-Opus". WaZOO is one of the EMAIL
protocols supported by D'Bridge. WaZOO sessions begin with a YOOHOO packet
exchange, then usually send mail and files with either SEAlink or ZMODEM
protocols, depending on the capabilities of the communicating systems. WaZOO
was designed by Wynn Wagner, III and is the EMAIL protocol used by most of
the Fidonet-compatible mailers currently available: D'Bridge, FrontDoor,
Opus, BinkleyTerm and Intermail.
WINDOW
A WINDOW is simply an area on the screen D'Bridge uses to display information
in. When I refer to a window, I simply mean a section of the screen.
XMAIL
XMAIL is simply a term that means "compressed mail". An XMAIL packet
contains any number of mail packets and may be created using the ARC, ZIP,
PAK, LHA or ZOO formats.
XMODEM
XMODEM is one of the most universal communications protocols available.
Most people credit Ward Christianson with coding and documenting the first
XMODEM communications program, but I can't say for sure. XMODEM is the basis
of Fidonet communications for sending the initial mail packet. D'Bridge will
use this protocol when talking to some EMAIL systems.
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