AreaFix v1.10 User's Guide Jeffrey J. Nonken 5 January 1989 This document is Copyright 1989 by Jeffrey J. Nonken. I hereby give permission to Greg Dawson to modify this document as he sees fit and distribute it with any or all versions of his AreaFix program. I further give permission to everybody to distribute this document as desired. ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT =================== This is a user's guide to AreaFix. If your echo feed has installed AreaFix on his system and given you a password, this tells you how to take advantage of his AreaFix installation remotely. This does not describe how to install AreaFix. I created this document to allow echomail hubs with AreaFix to pass simple instructions around to their nodes. In order to keep things simple, I will refer the guy you're getting echomail from who just installed AreaFix, whomever he happens to be, as your Hub. WHAT IS AREAFIX? ================ AreaFix is a slick program that allows sysops to remotely alter their echomail hubs' distribution files without bothering the hubs' sysops. In other words, if I want to pick up a certain echo from my host, and he has AreaFix installed, I just send a special message and the linking is handled automatically. My host does nothing once he is set up. SETUP ===== This is mostly your Hub's responsibility. He has to install AreaFix on his system and install your password. You should pick a password to use in your AreaFix messages. Remember this password! It may be from 1 to 30 characters long and may contain any printable characters except spaces. TALKING TO AREAFIX ================== To invoke AreaFix you must send a netmail message to your Hub. The message will be private, addressed to AreaFix, and the subject will be your password. Case is not important. To: Areafix Subj: Gronk AreaFix will also allow psuedonyms. Your Hub may have a special name he wants you to send to instead of "AreaFix". If so, he will tell you. For my examples I will use "AreaFix". AreaFix v1.10 User's Guide page 1 AREAFIX TALKING TO YOU ====================== Any time it replies AreaFix will send you a message explaining what action it took (if any) and giving you a list of echos you are currently receiving. If you are first on your hub's list for a particular area, AreaFix will put an asterisk next to the echo name with a note that says you are your hub's feed for that echo. TURNING ON ECHOS ================ Turning on an echo is easy. Send a message to AreaFix with a list of echos you want. Case does not matter. The names may start in any column, and you may string them out on a line (separated by spaces) or put them on separate lines. TO: Areafix FROM: Tom Slick SUBJECT: Gronk Sysop FDECHO mtask --- Notice Tom put a tear line at the end of his message. That's the three dashes on the line after "mtask". This tells Areafix that there is no more information for it in this message. If he wants, Tom may now write comments to his Hub Sysop, or just notes for himself. It's a good idea to add this tear line even if you have nothing more to say, in case some garbage gets tacked on to the message during processing. AreaFix replies: TO: Tom Slick FROM: Areafix on 103/522 SUBJECT: Re: Node change requests Additions/Deletions AREA: STATUS: ------------------------------- ------------------------------- SYSOP ......................... Added area. FDECHO ........................ Added area. MTASK ......................... Added area. Active areas on 103/522 USERS C_ECHO ORANGE_CO ASIAN-AMERICAN FDECHO SYSOP MTASK Total found: 7 Note, a '*' indicates you're the feed on the echo. --- Areafix v1.10 AreaFix v1.10 User's Guide page 2 TURNING OFF ECHOS ================= Removing an area is just as easy; just preceed the area name with a minus sign (-) when you send the message. TO: Areafix FROM: Tom Slick SUBJECT: Gronk -sysop --- AreaFix replies: TO: Tom Slick FROM: Areafix on 103/522 SUBJECT: Re: Node change requests Additions/Deletions AREA: STATUS: ------------------------------- ------------------------------- -SYSOP ........................ Deleted. Active areas on 103/522 USERS C_ECHO ORANGE_CO ASIAN-AMERICAN FDECHO MTASK Total found: 6 Note, a '*' indicates you're the feed on the echo. --- Areafix v1.10 Now Tom is no longer receiving the Sysop echo. OPTIONS ======= There are several useful options available. Each of these is invoked by adding a command to your subject line after the password. Note that any of these options can be disabled at your Hub Sysop's discretion. -R is a rescan command. This causes AreaFix to force a rescan of the echo area by removing the high-water mark. The next time the area is scanned, any messages in that area that you did not receive will be packaged up and sent to you. -L sends you a list of echo areas. The Hub Sysop may make a list of available areas in a file; if he has done this, the -L command will cause AreaFix to send it to you. AreaFix v1.10 User's Guide page 3 -Q also sends you a list of echo areas. However, unlike the -L command, it will scan through the Area Control files to see what areas are available and send a list back in a message. AreaFix will put an asterisk (*) next to each area that you are receiving. There is one thing to remember when using these switches: they may not work unless there is some text in your message. For example, the -Q option will not send back a list if you send a blank message. However, just having the tear line will be enough. TO: Areafix FROM: Tom Slick SUBJECT: Gronk -r -q Sysop FDECHO mtask --- AreaFix replies: TO: Tom Slick FROM: Areafix on 103/522 SUBJECT: Re: Node change requests Additions/Deletions AREA: STATUS: ------------------------------- ------------------------------- SYSOP ......................... Added area and rescanned. FDECHO ........................ Added area and rescanned. MTASK ......................... Added area and rescanned. Active areas on 103/522 USERS C_ECHO ORANGE_CO ASIAN-AMERICAN FDECHO SYSOP MTASK Total found: 7 Note, a '*' indicates you're the feed on the echo. --- Areafix v1.10 AreaFix v1.10 User's Guide page 4 Areafix also replies: TO: Tom Slick FROM: Areafix on 103/522 SUBJECT: Query request on 103/522 Areas available to 103/328 on 103/522: * USERS * MTASK * C_ECHO NEWOPUS MEADOW * ORANGE_CO * SYSOP HST 80XXX * ASIAN-AMERICAN BIBLE CHATTER * FDECHO FLAME * FOR-SALE LAN LASERPUB STTNG Total found: 18 Note: a '*' indicates you're already active for the echo. --- Areafix v1.10 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ================ Thanks to Greg Dawson for all the work he put into making the AreaFix utility, and for listening to suggestions from the users. He is still developing AreaFix, and it has grown from a simple utility into a powerful tool that nobody should be without. Jeffrey J. Nonken Ophiophile Opus 1:103/522 (714)997-8958 AreaFix v1.10 User's Guide page 5