jhm+@andrew.cmu.edu (Jim Morris) (01/14/89)
The National Science Foundation is accepting proposals in electronic form
as part of an experimental program called EXPRES. This is being done to
speed and simplify the proposal review process. Specifically, you are
encouraged to send proposals as PostScript files. PostScript (a trademark of
Adobe Systems, Inc.) is a standard language for driving laser printers. There
are several advantages to preparing your proposal in PostScript:
1. It will be less expensive in duplication and mailing costs because
you need send only one paper copy to the NSF.
2. Electronic transmission from you to the NSF and from the NSF to
reviewers takes only minutes.
3. Proposals look better because they are printed freshly on laser
printers rather than being duplicated on copiers multiple times.
4. The NSF can extract data from the electronically-prepared forms,
making it easier to track your proposal.
In order to create a PostScript proposal you must perform all the paper
fiddling operations -- cutting, pasting, collating -- electronically. Assuming
that you are already capable of doing that for the technical part of your
proposal using your favorite document processor, we have created some software
to help you with the rest of the job: creating the forms and combining the
pieces. It can be run on UNIX, VMS, Macintosh, and PC systems. Proposal
templates for some common document processors are available, too.
There are different ways to obtain the software depending upon your computing
circumstances. In any case, you will receive a file guide.ps which you
should print on a PostScript printer, and read for further instructions.
1. Macintosh and PC users can request a disk by sending email to
ps-expres@andrew.cmu.edu or regular mail to.
PS-EXPRES
Information Technology Center
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Be sure to specify Mac or PC and the disk size.
2. People with NSFNet/DARPANet connections can get the code in source
and executable form via ftp. First, connect with a particular machine at CMU
by typing the following commands.
ftp 128.2.12.15
ftp>Name: anonymous
ftp>Password: anythingyoulike
ftp>prompt
ftp>ascii
ftp>cd common
ftp>mget *
ftp>cd ..
(You will get a lot of back-talk from ftp besides the "ftp>" prompts shown.)
This will retrieve some files everyone needs.
If you simply want to run the software, copy everything from the appropriate
machine-specific binary directory below. For example, to retrieve the pc
executable
programs type
ftp>binary
ftp>cd pc
ftp>mget *
ftp>cd ..
ftp>ascii
The machine-specific directories are:
mac (apply BinHex 4.0 to Hqx files after retrieving)
pc
rt
sun3
vax-unix
We haven't figured out how to distribute VMS binaries yet, so VMS users
will have to rebuild the software themselves.
The following directories contain document processor templates for proposals:
scribe
tex
latex
troff
For example, to retrieve the tex template, type
ftp>cd tex
ftp> mget *
ftp> cd ..
The src directory is of interest if you want to modify or rebuild the
software. It contains
SREADME: instructions for building executables
C-Programs and Header files: *.c and *.h
UNIX-specific files: Makefile
VMS-specific files: compile.com, descrip.mms
Macintosh-specific files:
*.r, NSFForms.make, nsfmenus.c, window.c, nsfwndw.h
PC-specific files: *.MAK
To exit ftp type
ftp>quit
3. If you are a UNIX user and cannot use the ftp connection, request the
software by email. If you send a request to ps-expres@andrew.cmu.edu
we will send you the non-binary software in the form of shar files.
4. If you don't need any of the software and are prepared to send a proposal
electronically, instructions on how to transmit proposals my be obtained from
Gerald B. Stuck
National Science Foundation
1800 G Street NW
Room 401
Washington, DC 20550
(202)357-9767
gstuck@photo.expres.nsf.gov