ts@chyde.uwasa.fi (Timo Salmi LASK) (08/14/89)
------------------- begin prerecorded message ----------------------
There are some frequently asked questions about the ts-programs
available by anonymous ftp from the /pc/ts directory at the
University of Vaasa, Finland, site 128.214.12.3. Here are some of
them prerecoded with answers.
...................................................................
Prof. Timo Salmi (Site 128.214.12.3)
School of Business Studies, University of Vaasa, SF-65101, Finland
Internet: ts@chyde.uwasa.fi Funet: vakk::salmi Bitnet: salmi@finfun
...................................................................
*****
Q: I do not understand this getting files with anonymous ftp. What
does it mean?
A: Ftp stands for file transfer program, which is a standard feature
in many mainframe Unix and VAX/VMS systems. It also means that you
must have a network connection to reach University of Vaasa. Please
contact your computer's system manager for more information on ftp.
*****
Q: I have no access to your system. Would you please send your
programs to me by email.
A: Sorry. The reply to this frequent query is a definite no. There
is so much demand for ts-progs (I am pleased to say) that providing
this kind of service would simply get out of hand. The programs
have, however, reached quite a number of mainframe sites and BBSes
and you just have go looking for them, or forget the whole thing. -
Also notice that if you do not have the ftp capability, but do have
an access to UseNet news, some of these programs have appeared in
comp.binaries.ibm.pc newsgroup as binary postings. - There is one
drastic alternative for getting the programs sent to you by ordinary
mail on disks. These programs may be used and distributed freely for
private, non-commercial, non-institutional purposes. For other
purposes they must be registered. This leaves you the option of
obtaining the programs by registering them. In that case each
package is delivered on a 3.5" 720K diskette, but then you would
have to pay around $25-$35 for each individual package in advance
for a personal registration.
*****
Q: I am interested in the sources of some of your programs (or
particular procedures in them). Would it be possible to get them?
A: Sorry. Also here the answer has to be negative. Besides the
reasons in the previous answer, I never reveal my sources :-)
*****
Q: Some of your programs refuse to work on my PC. They do nothing or
just confuse the screen.
A: Not surprising. The ts-programs are (mostly) Turbo Pascal 5.0
programs written for true compatibles. In particular, the programs
which use advanced screen writes (inverted colors, windowing, etc)
and the so called interrupts (direct access to PC's internal
services) require a truly compatible PC. Most frequently the problem
is in the user's non-standard video adapter hardware. A proper CGA,
EGA or VGA personal computer should have no problems, but a
monochrome might. (Monochrome PCs often are older and non-compatible
anyway.) The thing to do is to try out the offending program on a
truly compatible machine. If it does not work even then, I would be
very interested in a description of the problem.
*****
Q: I have the ftp (file transfer program) capability and a network
access that includes your 128.214.12.3 site. But how do I transfer
the files? What are the commands?
A: The information and examples in the appendix (see below) should
enable you to get the files.
*****
Q: I have received your programs but the package is corrupt. When I
try to unpak them with my unpacking program (pkxarc, pkunpak, arc,
etc.) the unpacking fails or produces files that lock my PC.
A: This is almost always due to the failing to transfer the files
correctly from your mainframe to your PC. Please see the latter part
of the appendix for more information.
***
Q: What are the rules for using your programs. Are they freeware,
shareware, or what?
A1: Some, albeit very few users have been considerate enough to ask
this question. The answer is contained in the .inf document files
of the programs and the it is the following. You are free to use
and distribute my programs as long they are used for private
purposes only. For ANY other purpose (including using at work in
business enterprises, university teaching, and government offices)
please contact me for a registration. A few of the packages (TSLIN
linear programming, TSxST statistics packages, and TSPELL spelling
checker) are scaled-down versions. To obtain a full-scale version
you will have to register.
A2: If and when you distribute my programs as acceptable under A1, I
would REALLY appreciate it if you distributed the original packages
unchanged (repacking with a different packing method is quite ok,
though). Plase do not distribute separately any of the programs or
files in the packages. Give out a whole package, or nothing, if you
please.
***
Q: The lines to Europe are not always available. Does any site in
the U.S. have your collection.
A: Yes, thanks to Keith Petersen. Simtel20 (site 26.2.0.74) has
practically all my programs, and Keith has kindly been getting the
most current versions as soon as they have come out. There might be
other sites, but this I know of.
*****
APPENDIX:
Obtaining the PD Programs by Timo Salmi via InterNet
====================================================
You can obtain the file(s) from chyde.uwasa.fi (128.214.12.using
the InterNet ftp (file transfer program) with username "anonymous".
For a login password use your electronic mail address. If you are
using ftp from a VAX/VMS system, set case lower before proceeding.
The files are in directory /pc/ts. At the ftp> prompt first type
binary (for binary files). To go to the relevant directory apply cd
/pc/ts. To see its contents apply ls or dir. To download a file,
use get filename or mget filenames. The files have been packed with
PKPAK so you will need PKUNPAK from PKWARE to unpack them in your
PC.
The following contains the same information by giving the
commands needed for transferring tsarc025.txt (contains a summary of
the programs) and tspfon29.arc as an example. In the example its is
assumed that you are calling from a Unix system. The usage for a
VAX/VMS system is quite similar.
It is recommended that you first get the files 0contents and
tsarc025.txt (or later version) for more information.
ftp #Invoke the file transfer program
open 128.214.12.3 #Connect to chyde.uwasa.fi at the University
#of Vaasa
anonymous #Use this name to get temporary privileges
Give your email address as your password
cd /pc/ts #Go to the relevant directory
dir #Directory of available files
ascii #tsarc025.txt is an ordinary text file
get tsarc025.txt #Copy the file to your default directory
binary #tspfon29.arc is a binary file
mget tspfon*.arc #mget allows wildcards
close #Terminate the connection
quit #Quit the file transfer program
Transferring the Programs to PC
===============================
After you have received the files to your host, there still
remains the task of transferring the programs to your PC. This is
familiar to most users, but occasionally there are problems. It
impossible to give advice that would cover resolving all the
difficulties, but the most common can be described. The most usual
file transfer method between the host and the user's PC is MsKermit.
(Z-modem and others may be used as well, but I would guess that most
often persons using these alternatives are advanced users, and can
resolve any problems by themselves.)
The most common problem is probably that after getting a packed
file to one's PC, the file appears damaged. Almost always this is
due to failing to set correctly the MsKermit parameters in BOTH ends
of the transfer. What you have to do is in your host MsKermit to
set file type binary, set parity even (or none or whatever), and in
your PC MsKermit you must have the SAME parity you set for your host
(select host MsKermit parity on the basis of your PC's). If you
fail to get these compatible, the transfer will not result in what
you want. Transferring text files does not lead to problems so
often. The trick is set file type text (or ascii depending on your
MsKermit version).
Finally, if nothing else, absolutely nothing else(!), seems to
resolve the problem, please let me know, and I will check that the
file at our site is good and proper.
-------------------- end prerecorded message -----------------------ts@chyde.uwasa.fi (Timo Salmi LASK) (08/16/89)
Hello, The reply below might have some general interest so I shall put it also in comp.binaries.ibm.pc in addition to emailing it. + From: "James Woolley, Lafayette College" + Subject: Your prerecorded message + To: TS@CHYDE.UWASA.FI + Date: Wed, 16 Aug 89 04:03 EET + + Many thanks for the recent posting in comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d + about access to your utilities. + + I hope you understand, though, how tantalizing it is to the + thousands of us who have no access to FTP, for you to post + announcements only. A few months ago you posted a batch of + utilities to comp.binaries.ibm.pc which I downloaded and have + enjoyed using. But recently you posted only announcements and not + the programs themselves. + + I wonder--if I might suggest it--if you would be willing to post + the rest of your utilites to comp.binaries.ibm.pc. If not, as a + second choice, it would help some of us if you would post an + announcment indicating which SIMTEL *directory* each file is + stored i I don't know about you, but from here getting a SIMTEL + file from rpiecs.bitnet does not always run smoothly, and not + knowing the directory makes it a far more difficult and + cumbersome procedure. I shall be resuming posting my utilities to comp.binaries.ibm.pc in the autumn. This is, however, not a fast process for several reasons. First, I keep upgrading many of the packages. Since I would like to see as up-to-date versions in c.b.i.p. as possible, I have to time it right. Second, the summer is a slack period for many users, and posting to c.b.i.p. during semesters might be more cost effective. Third, we have agreed with Rahul (c.b.i.p moderator) that I should space the postings, since I know that he has quite a lot on his hands. Rahul's moderating process necessarily will always take its time. As to Simtel20, I do not keep a record on the location of my files, since this would mean unnecessary duplicate effort. Simtel20 directory pd1:<msdos.filedocs+ (as far as I recall) has a file simibm.idx, which contains the location of the files. Since the names of all my packages start with TS it is not very difficult to scan this file for the directories. And, as I wrote in my message Keith Petersen has kindly been keeping my versions in Simtel20 very up-to-date (seldom a lag of more than 12 hours). + + I don't want to sound unappreciative of your programs. Quite the + contrary. The ones I've downloaded have been highly useful. + I just wanted to point out that much of the world, including + much of the Bitnet world, cannot FTP. No problem. I really appreciate the feedback, and wish there was more of the kind. + + Yours, + + James Woolley + English, Lafayette College, Easton, Pennsylvania 18042, USA + Bitnet: woolleyj@lafayett + UUCP: ..!rutgers!lafcol!woolleyj + ................................................................... Prof. Timo Salmi (Site 128.214.12.3) School of Business Studies, University of Vaasa, SF-65101, Finland Internet: ts@chyde.uwasa.fi Funet: vakk::salmi Bitnet: salmi@finfun