VaughanW%hi-multics@sri-unix.UUCP (01/28/84)
From: Bill Vaughan <VaughanW@hi-multics> Can anyone tell me something about the format of the CPMUG and SIGM files on Simtel20? When I FTP them I get a binary format that I haven't been able to decipher, even those that should be in ASCII such as catalogs and .DOC files. Are they compressed or something? Perhaps someone on a Multics somewhere has already figured out how to FTP these things comprehensibly. Bill Vaughan
towson%amsaa@sri-unix.UUCP (01/28/84)
From: David Towson (CSD) <towson@amsaa> Bill - ALL sigm and cpmug archive files on Simtel20 are stored in ITS binary format, which uses four bytes per 36-bit word (that includes four junk-zeros per word). If you use plain binary mode in FTP, you will get the 36-bit words as-is, which will comeout looking pretty strange on an 8-bit system. To get the files moved correctly in bytes, use TENEX mode if your FTP has it (just type "tenex" at the FTP prompt, and if the program doesn't complain, you're in). Otherwise, try typing "type L8" to notify the sender that the local user (you) wants bytes not 36-bit words. (Can someone tell me whether this is necessary for a TOPS-to-TOPS transfer?) After setting tenex or type L8 mode, then do your gets. Due to the ITS format, you will have four ITS "header bytes" hanging on the front of the file you receive. These can be stripped using a utility on the receiving machine (e.g., DD on UNIX), or you can go ahead and move the files to your CP/M machine and use Keith Petersen's ITSCVT, which can be found in "micro:<cpm.hex>itscvt.hex" on Simtel20. That is an ASCII file. If you are using a UNIX system (which expects lines in ASCII files to be ended with only a line feed) you will find that after you move an ASCII file to the CP/M machine, you may have the CRLF's that were already in the file (and were not changed to LF-only by the receiving FTP because this was a binary transfer) have been changed to CRCRLF. (You may be able to turn this off.) If you do have this problem, the CP/M ED command mf^L^Z-3cd2c will remove the extra CR's. Dave towson@amsaa