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ICEX - In Command of PcPursuit... Copyright 1987,1988,1989 A communications package for use with GTE Telenet's PcPursuit service Wayne Wolf Wolfpack Programmers Wolfpack Programmers Wayne Wolf 3983 NW 87th Ave. Sunrise, Florida 33351 Voice: (305)-741-2732 UUCP: ...!uflorida!beach.cis.ufl.edu!ww ARPA: ww@beach.cis.ufl.edu BBS via The Right Place @ GAATL, 476-2607 E-Mail: Interlink Communication conference Introduction 0.0 Note. Note that this document is ported from release 2.04 since release 2.05 is a bug fix release. Some parts of the documentation have changed regarding setting up, mainly from 'ARC' to 'ZIP' files. Some portions have changed referring the user on how to convert his existing dialing directories. Check History.ICE to see what bugs were swatted. 1.0 What is PcPursuit? PcPursuit is a packet-switching service provided by GTE Telenet for PC users. It is basically a long distance service for modem users. It allows users to connect to major cities across the nation with their modem and call any BBS, database, mainframe, or even your best friend. PcPursuit is provided for a flat rate of $30 per month for 30 hours of usage. After the 30 hours cap, it becomes $4.50 per hour for the next 30 hours and increases after that cap. It is cheaper by far than regular telephone rates. 1.1 What is ICEX? ICEX is a communication package for the IBM PC and close compatible PcPursuit user. It is designed to be used in conjunction with your favorite communications package such as Procomm+ or Qmodem-SST, though ICEX can be used as a standalone if desired. ICEX is basically a very fancy PcPursuit dialer that acts as an extension to your communications package. When invoked, ICEX assumes command and will allow the user to connect to a desired city and desired BBS with only a few keystrokes. The user can instruct ICEX to dial whichever target cities he/she desires and ICEX will proceed to dial these cites in a queue fashion (one after the other, repeating the sequence) until a city responds with a connection. ICEX will then present the user with the appropriate BBS dialing directory for the city connected to and allow the user again to mark the BBSs he/she wishes to dial. Again, ICEX will dial in a queue fashion until a connection is established. Once a connection is established, ICEX will pass command back to the calling program (Procomm+, Qmodem, etc.) where file transfer, data capture, and other functions can take place. 1.2 Why ICEX? If you have experienced the woes brought about by repeatedly banging out your target city mnemonic, username and password only to receive that wonderful " BUSY 01 80 " response you will appreciate the utility of ICEX. There are many other utilities that also cure these woes such as scripts and macros. Macros usually lack in that even though the user's target city, username, and password are defined, one has to repeatedly tap the key for each time a BUSY response is received. This is slow and inefficient and besides wearing down the keyboard, is a waste of time that could be spent doing other things while waiting for a connection. Scripts are the answer to this dilemma since they run by themselves with little or no user intervention but they also have their own deficiencies. Scripts are severely limited in their language. Many languages do not support a handy-dandy means for implementing a queue dialer. Many lack in appealing screen displays. And all are SLOW! This is due to their interpreted nature. ICEX solves all these problems and pushes far ahead with its speed and best of all it is designed fairly generically so it can be used with your favorite comm package. Another appealing feature of ICEX is that the user need not have any knowledge of script programming. ICEX also appeals to the neophyte PcPursuit user because it does all the work and the user need not know PcPursuit's command syntax. 1.3 Features of ICEX version 2.05 ∙ Can be invoked from a "calling program" such as Telix, Procomm or Qmodem, or used as a Stand-Alone ∙ Features a simple ANSI terminal ∙ Allows user configuration ∙ Features circular dialing queues ∙ Allows users to add, delete, and maintain dialing directories for cities, direct connects(DAFs) and BBSs ∙ Allows mixing cities and direct-connects in ONE dial queue ∙ Allows up to 99 directories for each city, 150 entries each ∙ Keeps active statistics for each dialer (date/time of connect) ∙ Supports both Racal and Hayes modes (on target city modems) ∙ Supports both 1200 and 2400 baud access ∙ Supports 7E1, 8N1, and 8N2 protocols (data,parity,stop) ∙ Supports Com1-Com4 and baud rates of up to 38400 though at present only 1200/2400 baud are useful ∙ Script Chaining ability for automatic logins ∙ Automatic connected-city detection, Carrier detection, and com port settings. ∙ Provides a friendly user oriented menu/window environment ∙ And best of all, it lets YOU get the MOST out of your monthly $30 PcPursuit fee 1.4 Files of ICEX (in ICEX205.ZIP) o ICEX205.EXE -> the executable program o ICEXGEN.EXE -> the icex205 script interface generator o 3to5.EXE -> dialing directory convert utility o 4to5.EXE -> '' o ICEX205.DOC -> what you are reading right now o HISTORY.ICE -> revision history of ICEX o IC.BAT -> batch file for your comm program to invoke ICEX205 o CONV3-5.BAT -> batch file to convert ICEX203 dirs to ICEX205 o CONV4-5.BAT -> batch file to convert ICEX204 dirs to ICEX205 o CITY.LIS -> City dialing directory o DC.LIS -> Direct Connect dialing directory o GENERIC.SCR -> Generic script for script-chaining o REGISTER.FRM -> Registration form o README.1ST -> A MUST READ for registered users of ICEX o DIR.FMT -> Discusses the format of the ICEX 2.05 dialing directories. A companion archive can be downloaded as well which will contain pre-generated dialing directoris for each city. It is named DIRS-205.ZIP. Contents are: ∙ *.205 -> dialing directories for each city 1.5 Distribution ICEX is intended to be distributed ONLY in its archived form. Please help support the ShareWare concept and assist in distributing ICEX by uploading ICEX205.ZIP and DIRS-205.ZIP to your favorite BBSs. 1.6 Credit where credit is due I would like to thank the following persons for assisting with ICEX in the areas of testing, distribution, super ideas and moral support: Roger Sligar (BBS: 404-476-2607) GAATL Joe Hyland (BBS: 813-968-6220) FLTAM Dr. File Finder Tandy Way (BBS: 813-886-0284) FLTAM Mark Findlay (BBS: 202-488-4709) DCWAS Bob Brody And I would like to thank all of you who support ICEX and have registered your copy. Registration and Trial Usage 2.0 ICEX is ShareWare... ICEX is distributed under the ShareWare concept and is copyrighted to protect the author's many hours of work. It is a try-before-you-buy package and you are granted a limited license to use ICEX for a trial period. There is no limit to your trial period though it is assumed you will have decided if ICEX is suitable for your needs within a few weeks usage. Usage beyond a trial period requires registering your copy. Please help support ShareWare authors by registering your copy of ShareWare programs. 2.1 Registration ICEX is not free. It is however left up to you to decide whether or not it suits your needs and whether you should pay for it. ICEX was written to assist PcPursuit users and to free up time that could be spent doing other things while waiting for a connection. Please register your copy of ICEX. Registration is $30 which is only 1/12 of what you pay PcPursuit for a year's usage. Registration entitles you access to the ICEX support BBS (The Right Place, 404-476-2607) and places you into the registered users conference, which allows you access to all updates, additions, enhancements, and bug-fixes to ICEX. Registration also allows you to receive a registration ID which can be used to configure ICEX for registered features. Note: In this release (2.05) registration will automatically register you for version 2.10 (see ICEX ver 2.10 features below). Version 2.10 will possess this ID # scheme and registered users will be informed on how to install their number. The registration form is on the following page. Please use the form for registering as it makes keeping files on registered users much easier to process. Thank you. ICEX205 - In Command of PcPursuit , External version, revision 2.05 (pre-registration for revision 2.10) Registration Form Name ____________________________________________ Address ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ Home Ph _____________________ BBS Ph ____________________ Bus Ph _____________________ Where did you get ICEX205 from (BBS name, phone number, etc.)? _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ Amount of Registration ($30 per copy) _____________________ Fla. Resident State Sales Tax (6%)_________________________ Total______________________________________________________ Date Registered ___________________ ==================================================================== Comments/Suggestions ( ALL comments and suggestions are welcome! ) ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ *** Please make checks payable to Wayne Wolf Mail to Wayne Wolf, 3983 NW 87th Ave, Sunrise, Fl. 33351 *** ICEX version 2.10 *** Version 2.10 will come out soon! It is a complete rewrite of ICEX which will be more of a professional package. It will contain a completely new user interface and will look totally different. It will sport many new features as well. Most of these features will be available to registered users only. They are all 'niceties' and not essential to the functioning of ICEX. This means that if you are an unregistered user, ICEX will still do all of the things you need. Registered user features of ICEX 2.10 (incomplete) : o ICEX will be Desqview aware. This means that ICEX can run inside a Desqview window without infiltrating other windows. o ICEX will allow the user to completely configure the colors that it ues for it's output to the screen. o ICEX will keep a log of activity for the user. This is exceptionally useful now for the PcPursuit user since Telenet has placed a usage cap on PcPursuit. ICEX will record your usage and allo you to generate reports so you can compare with Telenet against their billing for your usage. ICEX will keep two sets of statistics. It will time all activity itself using the CPU clock, and will keep another time log based on Telenet's usage messages ICEX receives from PcPursuit. This allows you to make sure you don't go over your 30 hour cap and will tell you just how much you owe if you do indeed go over. This log will most likely be most accurate when using ICEX as a standalone, or with Telix. There is a problem in communicating the connects and disconnects to the log file since ICEX and the caller can both perform these connections/disconnections without the other knowing it. Telix provides a powerful enough script language that this communication can be assisted. o ICEX will possess a DSZ Zmodem file transfer hook. This allows you to execute DSZ from within ICEX to transfer your files. o Other expectations include a 'smarter' terminal that will have many file-xfer protocols, a data-capture buffer, any many features you see in conventional comm programs. Getting Started 3.0 ***READ THIS*** Save your current version 2.03 directories (.DIR) in a safe place, like a zip file (MY203s.zip). When ICEX 2.10 comes out there will be a utility that will utilize the information in those directories to create BBS login scripts, which will be used in Script Chaining. See below for an explanation of Script Chaining. 3.1 Installing ICEX on a Hard Disk System For ease of explanation, it will be assumed your hard drive has the name C:. It is also assumed that you have UnZip by Phil Katz available for use. a) go to your root directory -> cd C:\ b) make an ICEX directory -> mkdir ICEX c) put in the necessary files -> PKunzip DIRS-205 C:\ICEX (this puts all .LIS and .DIR files into your new dir) d) change to your comm directory i.e -> cd \Telix e) extract the remaining necessary files -> PKunzip ICEX205 3.2 Installing ICEX on a Two Floppy system For ease of explanation, it will be assumed you have a blank unformatted disk in drive B: and a disk containing the zip file ICEX205.ZIP and the file PKunzip.exe in drive A:. You are also assumed to be in drive A:. You also must have your favorite comm package diskette on hand (Procomm+ disk for example). a) put ICEX support files on blank disk -> pkunzip DIRS-205 B: b) remove ICEX disk from B: and replace with your comm disk (Procomm+ diskette) and extract remaining files -> pkunzip ICEX205 B: 3.3 First usage / initializations a) Go to your comm directory If you are a hard drive user i.e -> cd \Telix If you are a floppy user, put comm disk in drive A:, support disk in drive B: -> A: b) Invoke ICEX205 -> ICEX205 -d c) You will be put into the user configuration menu, because you don't have a configuration file yet d) Configure ICEX to be specific for your usage (see section 6.7, User Configuration) e) Select option #3 (Support dir Pathname) f) enter -> hard disk users --> C:\ICEX\ floppy users --> B:\ g) tap ESC to save the changes and go to the main menu. h) type 'E' to exit ICEX and return to DOS Now you are ready to begin using ICEX... Converting ICEX directories 4.1 What is 3to5? (4to5 also) There is a convert utility provided with ICEX205 that will do the trick for you called 3to5. This utility will convert your old BBS dialing directories from ICEX203 format to those readable by ICEX205. The ver. 2.05 format is NOT compatible with ver 2.03. 4.2 Using 3to5 To use 3to5 you simply type 3to5 followed by the .DIR file you wish to convert, followed by an optional new name for the directory. *** An important note is that you add a number suffix to the new directory name or ICEX205 will NOT recognize it. For example, the Atlanta directory must be GAATL-1.DIR and not simply GAATL.DIR. The reason is because this allows ICEX205 to handle more than one BBS dialing directory per city. This also allows you to take dialing directories that others have been distributing for ICEX and give them their own separate number suffix. Another important note is that each successive directory must have the next inorder successive number (the second Atlanta directory must be GAATL-2.DIR, the next GAATL-3.DIR, and so on). A more precise explanation and examples will follow. Note that if you leave off 'optional' new name for the converted .DIR file then the original name is kept. 3to5 usage -> 3to5 old_name <new_name> <> = optional examples: 3to5 GAATL-2.DIR GAATL-1.DIR (old #2 dir -> new #1 dir) 3to5 GAATL-2.DIR (new name is still GAATL-2.DIR) Starting ICEX 5.0 Command line options There are currently four command line options, namely they are -> d , i , m, a -d -> ICEX205 -d causes ICEX to NOT drop the DTR upon exit (doesn't hangup the phone). This is the desired command line if you are using another comm program with ICEX. -i -> ICEX205 -i causes ICEX to go into the user configuration section, for setup -m -> ICEX205 -m Force ICEX to output everything in Monochrome. This is useful for The Plasma screens for portables. -a -> ICEX205 -a This calls ICEX in 'automatic' mode. This is explained under AUTOMATIC MODE below. Note that options can be used together, i.e. ICEX205 -d -m -a 5.1 Invoking ICEX as a standalone To call up ICEX you simply type -> ICEX205 Now proceed to section 6.1, After Invocation Starting ICEX (cont'd) 5.2 Invoking ICEX from a calling communications program. There are few ways to invoke ICEX205 while using your favorite comm package. There are four in particular and they will be described briefly in this section and you will be referenced to another section for more detailed information specific to your communications package (Procomm+,Telix,GT Power,Qmodem, Boyan, etc.). 5.2.1 Calling ICEX directly This method assumes your comm package has a means for "executing" external programs (Procomm+ ALT-J). The specific details for each comm program can be found under section 7.1, Calling ICEX Directly. 5.2.2 Shell to Dos This method involves calling up DOS (shell) and then calling the batch file IC.BAT from DOS. See section 7.2 for details on how to call DOS from your comm program 5.2.3 Calling ICEX from a script This method involves using the scripts generated by the script writer program included in the package. See section 7.3, and section 8, ICEX and Scripts. 5.2.4 Exiting your comm program and calling ICEX You may not have enough memory for the other three methods to work so you simply exit your comm program (without dropping the carrier). Next you call ICEX with the command -> ICEX205 -d And when ICEX has done its job it will exit back to DOS at which call up your comm program again. Using ICEX 6.1 After Invocation... After starting ICEX you will be given an introductory screen at which you merely hit any key. ICEX will then attempt to determine if you are: a) connected to PcPursuit, or b) already connected to a city, or c) have no carrier, or d) if it cannot correctly open the comm port e) your modem forces the carrier when there really isnt one a) If you are connected to PcPursuit and are at the "@" prompt then ICEX will deposit you automatically into the City Dialer from which you can dial target cities, see section 6.3, City Dialer. b) If you are already connected to a city then ICEX will disconnect from the city to determine which one it was connected to, and then immediately reconnect. At present, Telenet does not provide a method to detect current city. Please voice to them your opinion! Ask them to incorporate into their software a method for determining the currently connected city. c) you will be placed into the main menu, you should either exit back to the calling program and dial your local number and log into Telenet or else go to the Dumb Terminal (choice D) and hit the function key F2, which will dial your local number and log in for you. See sections 6.2 and 6.6, Main Menu and Terminal respectively. d) If this is the case, then most likely you have told ICEX to use com2 when you only have com1 working or something of that order. If you get this error and cannot figure out the source of the problem do not hesitate to get in touch with me and we'll work on the solution. e) ICEX will tell you it is connected to something and cannot tell what. Simply hit the spacebar to go the the main menu. Then select 'T' for the terminal mode. Hit F2 tw dial your local Telenet numbe; and after it logs you in, hit F10 to return to the main menu. Next hit 'c' to enter City dialer and you're off. 6.2 Main Menu The main menu gives you six choices. You can maneuver through the main menu with arrow keys and pressing <RETURN> when your choice is highlighted. ICEX also supports "quick-key" entry where you can simply press the first letter corresponding to your choice. The main menu appears as follows: First Letter Choice |==== ICEX205 Main Menu ===| | City Dialer | C or c | BBS Dialer | B or b | Direct Connect Dialer | D or d | Terminal | T or t | User Configuration | U or u | Exit | E or e |==========================| and upon entry, "City Dialer" will be highlighted. You can use the arrow keys to move the highlight bar up and down, pressing <RETURN> on your choice or you can simply tap the first letter of your choice. The appropriate letters appear on the side of the menu above. The functions of each of the menu choices will be explained in detail under their appropriate sections (6.3 - 6.8). 6.3 City/Direct-Connect Dialers The city dialer is the circular queue dialer that will dial your choice of PcPursuit accessible cities at either 1200 or 2400 baud. The direct connect dialer allows the user to dial his/her choice of direct connects supported by PcPursuit, such as PORTAL, PURSUIT, EXECPC, etc. The dialers allow the user to perform many functions and provides an informative display. 6.3.1 Dialer Display The top part of the dialers' displays appear as follows and each column is described below: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] |=========================== City Dialer ==========================| | AZPHO Phoenix, Arizona None 04-01-88 18:45 | | .. .. .. .. .. | | .. .. .. .. .. | |+CODEN Denver, Colorado .. 04-01-88 19:22 | | CODEN (2400) # Denver, Colorado .. 04-02-88 23:59 | | .. .. .. .. .. | | .. .. .. .. .. | | PURSUIT * The Net Exchange .. 04-05-88 09:35 | | .. .. .. .. .. | | .. .. .. .. .. | | WASEA Seattle, Washington .. 04-05-88 22:52 | |==================================================================| [1] Dialing Queue Tag ( '+' = in queue , ' ' = not in queue) [2] City/Direct-connect mnemonic [3] Baud rate (blank if 1200, (2400) if 2400) [4] Description (name of city or direct-connect) (** see note) [5] Script to chain to upon connection (n/a for City dialer) [6] Date of last connection [7] Time of last connection ** Note: In column 3, description, there are two "exceptions" which are designated by having the FIRST character of the description be a special symbol. There are currently two such exceptions and are as follows: # = This city is 2400 baud * = This is a direct connect, not a city 6.3.1 (cont'd) Note that the display presented above is for the City Dialer, but the Direct Connect Dialer is exactly the same but does NOT support and special character exceptions (like # and *) and furthermore ALL entries must be direct connects. The bottom part of the display simply gives the available commands and will not be shown here. The commands however will be described in detail below. Note that all commands respond to either upper or lower case, and if a "*" appears to the left of any choice on the screen, that choice is unavailable to the user. 6.3.2 Dialer Command Summary [arrow keys] = The arrow keys move the highlight bar up and down the dialing directory [pg-up/pg-dn] = The page-up/page-down keys allow the user to display the dialing directory by pages [ESC] = The escape key exits the dialer and returns to the main menu [<ENTER>] = The enter key starts the dialer, see section 6.3.3 below, Dialer in action... [SPACEBAR] = The spacebar will toggle (tag or untag) the currently highlighted entry for entry into the dialing queue. A plus (+) will appear to the left of any entry that is tagged for dialing [A] = Add an entry to the dialing directory [D] = Delete an entry from the dialing directory [K] = Kill currently highlighted entry from the directory [E] = Edit the currently highlighted entry (see section 8, Autologins) [C] = Clear Queue (clears all tags) [T] = Tag all entries (sets all tags) [S] = Switch sorting, will switch from sorting the directory by field [2] to sorting by field [3], or vice versa [H] = Hang-up city, disconnects from current city, allowing the user to dial another city [1] = Set modem settings to 7E1 [2] = Set modem settings to 8N2 [N] = Set modem settings to 8N1 6.3.3 Dialer in Action... To start the dialer simply presses the <ENTER> key from the dialer menu. The dialer will change screen to a window that will display the input and output going to/from the modem. All tagged entries will be dialed in order. The dialer will set its parameters to 7E1 for dialing purposes so the responses are intelligible to the viewer. The dialer recognizes PcPursuit error codes (REJECTING, NOT OPERATING, etc.) and acts appropriately to those. The dialer will continue to dial as long as it receives BUSY signals and until it receives a CONNECT message. The user can abort dialing by pressing the ESC key. Once a connection is established with a target city you will be placed into the appropriate BBS dialer for that city. If it is a DFA, then you will either be returned to your calling comm program or placed into the Terminal mode of ICEX (if you are using it as a Stand-Alone). See section 6.4 for details on BBS dialers. 6.4 BBS Dialers The BBS dialer is the circular queue dialer that will dial your choice of BBSs accessible from the currently connected city. The construction very closely resembles the city dialer but performs different dialing specifics. One can have up to 99 different dialers per city by using the [M] command to make new directories. Each directory is limited to 150 entries. The dialers allow the user to perform many functions and provides an informative display. 6.4.1 Entry into BBS Dialers There are three methods for entry into the BBS dialer. The first is from the main menu. If you enter from the main menu you will be presented with a window displaying all the current cities that ICEX knows (this info is retrieved from CITY.LIS). It will display as many as will fit into the window and will highlight the first city in the window. You can maneuver through the list with the up/down arrow keys, and you can scroll the remaining cities into the window. To select the desired city's BBS dialer, you simply highlight the desired city and press <ENTER>. You will then be deposited into the appropriate dialer. The second method is that you will be placed into the appropriate BBS dialer once a city is connected to from the city dialer. The third method is similar, but you will be deposited into the appropriate BBS dialer from the start-up "smart" feature that "knows" which city you are connected to (if ICEX detects a carrier and cannot get the '@' from Telenet). 6.4.2 Dialer Display The top part of the dialers' displays appear as follows and each column is described below: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] |================BBS Dialer, City Code: GAATL #1==================| | 977-6686 PcExchange PCEXCHG.ASP 05-01-88 11:43 | | .. .. .. .. .. | | .. .. .. .. .. | |+476-2607 The Right Place RIGHT.ASP 04-01-88 19:22 | | .. .. .. .. .. | | .. .. .. .. .. | | .. .. .. .. .. | |==================================================================| [1] Dialing Queue Tag ( '+' = in queue , ' ' = not in queue) [2] BBS phone number (supports xxx-xxxx, xxx-xxx-xxxx, 1-xxx-xxx-xxxx) [3] Description (name of BBS) [4] Script name for chaining with calling program [5] Date of last connection [6] Time of last connection The bottom part of the display simply gives the available commands and will not be shown here. The commands however will be described in detail below. Note that all commands respond to either upper or lower case, and if a "*" appears to the left of any choice on the screen, that choice is unavailable to the user. 6.4.3 Dialer Command Summary Up/Down [arrow keys] = The arrow keys move the highlight bar up and down the dialing directory Left/Right [arrow keys] = Go to the next dialing directory (R-arrow goes to next number, i.e. GAATL #1 to GAATL #2; L-arrow is the same but opposite) [pg-up/pg-dn] = The page-up/page-down keys allow the user to display the dialing directory by pages [ESC] = The escape key exits the dialer and returns to the main menu [<ENTER>] = The enter key starts the dialer, see section 6.4.4 below, Dialer in action... [SPACEBAR] = The spacebar will toggle (tag or untag) the currently highlighted entry for entry into the dialing queue. A plus (+) will appear to the left of any entry that is tagged for dialing [A] = Add an entry to the dialing directory [D] = Delete an entry from the dialing directory [K] = Kill currently highlighted entry from the directory [M] = Make a new dialing directory (use this if you have 150 entries in current directory and need another directory. It will create a directory with the name one higher than the greatest existing, i.e. say you have GAATL #1, GAATL #2, and you make a new directory, it will be named GAATL #3) [E] = Edit the currently highlighted entry (see section 8, Autologins) [C] = Clear Queue (clears all tags) [T] = Tag all entries (sets all tags) [S] = Switch sorting, will switch from sorting the directory by field [2] to sorting by field [3], or vice versa [H] = Hang-up city, disconnects from current city, allowing the user to dial another city [1] = Set modem settings to 7E1 [2] = Set modem settings to 8N2 [N] = Set modem settings to 8N1 6.4.4 Dialer in Action... To start the dialer one simply presses the <ENTER> key from the dialer menu. The dialer will change screen to a window that will display the input and output going to/from the modem. All tagged entries will be dialed in order. The dialer will set up the PcPursuit modem for either Racal operation or Hayes operation (whichever you selected from the User Configuration). Racal mode is highly recommended! It will then begin to dial the targeted BBSs in order until a successful connection is achieved. ICEX recognizes all the special response codes provided by Racal mode for faster and more efficient operation. Once a connection is established, ICEX will return command to the calling program, or Terminal if used as standalone. Note that one can skip a BBS and start dialing the next BBS in the queue, this being handy if you see one dial giving the "Ringing..." response over and over, you can abort and start the next. Also remember that the ESC aborts dialing at any time. The Spacebar is the command for aborting the current and starting dialing the next BBS in the queue. 6.5 Direct Connect Dialer The direct connect dialer functions exactly as the City Dialer with a few minor exception (which are outlined in the City Dialer section). For brevity of documentation and to avoid repetition, consult the City Dialer section, section 6.3. 6.6 Automatic Mode of ICEX ICEX now supports an AUTOMATIC mode for dialing. This mode assumes you have previously tagged all the cities you wish to dial and also the appropriate BBSs within those cities. When you invoke ICEX in automatic mode (ICEX205 -d -a) ICEX will start up dialing your cities automatically, without you having to type anything except a key to bypass the intro. After connecting to a city, ICEX will continue to dial the BBSs previously tagged for that city until it connects to one. Upon connection, it will return you to your calling program after sounding an alarm for successful connection. This 'automatic' mode allwos you to preset the targets before-hand and then invoke ICEX and walk away without having to do anything until you get a BBS connection. This is the true meaning of automatic!!! This feature can be further enhanced by using it with the Auto Script Chaining feature described below. This allows EVERYTHING to be automatic from dialing PcPursuit, to dialing the city, to dialing the BBS, to logging in, checking mail, downloading a file, and logging off!!! 6.6 Terminal The terminal is a very simplistic terminal which buffers input and output and displays the input/output to the screen. It will supports ANSI if ANSI.SYS or substitute is installed. Basically the terminal is there for you to interact with the operations in case something goes awry with the dialers. It is also there so ICEX can be used as a standalone. The terminal does provide some special function however which are invoked through the F-keys on your keyboard. The description of these special functions are outlined below: [F1] - Presents a help screen basically giving the same information presented here. [F2] - Automatically dials your local Telenet number and logs you into PcPursuit at the phone number and parameters you specify in the user configuration. You will be prompted for the baudrate to use (1200/2400). [F3] - Disconnects you from the currently connected city, if you are connected. This is the same as the [H] command from the dialing directories. [F4] - Drops the DTR and hangs up your phone [F5] - Shell to DOS (if enough memory available) [F6] - Send a BREAK signal over the modem [F7] - Set modem to 8N1 [F8] - Set modem to 8N2 [F9] - Set modem to 7E1 [F10] - Exit Terminal back to main menu 6.7 User Configuration The user configuration is THE most important part of ICEX. You MUST make sure your user configuration is set to match your equipment and needs. When you enter the User Configuration option either because you selected it from the main menu or you are forced into it by ICEX, you will be given a windowed screen showing your current settings. You must modify these to suit you by selecting the appropriate option number and making any changes desired, and finally pressing ESC to exit and save the new configuration file. The easiest way to describe the user configuration options is to list them one-by-one and describe them in further detail... 1. User ID This is your PcPursuit ID 2. Password You PcPursuit Password 3. Support dir Pathname This is VERY important! The default directory is set to be the current default directory, but I highly suggest you create a separate directory to hold ICEX support files. The best choice is to make a directory in your root directory called ICEX, i.e. cd \ md ICEX It is suggested you include the complete pathname including the drive. A good choice would be "C:\ICEX\". 4. Your modem predial This is YOUR modem's predial string, most likely "ATDT". 5. Local Telenet Number (1200 baud) This is your local telenet number. It can be a complete phone number including area code. It must be for your local 1200 baud dial-in. 6. Local Telenet Number (2400 baud) This is your local telenet number. It can be a complete phone number including area code. It must be for your local 2400 baud dial-in if you have one. 7. Telenet Term Type This tells ICEX what term type you are using with Telenet. This is needed for logging into Telenet. The most commonly used Terminal type is 'D1' and if in doubt you should set it to D1. 8. SET sequence This tells ICEX which SET sequence to send after connection to a city. This allows you to set up that PcPursuit city's mode to be compatible with down/up loads using Zmodem. If you do not know about the SET, then leave it as its default, 'SET?' and ask around about what SET does, and how to use it. 9. Modem mode This is the mode you desire to use PcPursuit modems in. You can select either Hayes or Racal. I strongly suggest you use Racal mode as ICEX is geared towards Racal usage and responds much better to Racal. Racal is also more efficient. Everything is automated so you do not need to know the command set for using Racal mode. The bottom line is that Hayes is available, but don't use it. 10. Port This is the port number you wish to use (1-4). 11. Baudrate This is the baudrate you wish to run (300-38400). It is suggested you set it to either 1200 or 2400 since PcPursuit only supports these two baudrates. 12. Data, Parity, Stop These are the parameters you wish to run your modem at. ICEX accepts three different sequences, '7E1', '8N2', '8N1'. I recommend using 8N2 for everything you do on PcPursuit for one reason. Uploads go thru better for most people when they use 8N2. 6.7 (cont'd) 13. Sound on This tells ICEX whether or not to sound the alarms when it makes a connection. I recommend you set this parameter to TRUE so you can let ICEX go to its thing while you spend your important time doing something else and can responds when you hear the alarm sound. 15. Alarm number This is for those who like a variation on alarms. Currently only three alarms are available. They are: 1 - Whooping alarm This alarm makes a 'whoop' sound going from low to high pitch, sort of like the RED alert on Star Trek. 2 - Buzzer alarm This alarm sounds like the new space age telephones but a much higher pitch. 3 - Charge alarm This plays CHARGE!!! for an alarm 6.8 Exit This is plain and simple. This simply exits ICEX and returns control to the caller. Invoking ICEX (specifics) 7.1 Calling ICEX directly 7.1.1 Procomm Plus Setup: Go to the Set-Up menu (ALT-S). Next select the "FILE/PATH OPTIONS." Select option "F" and enter the following on the command line: ICEX205 -D Hit ESC to return to the SET-UP menu and select "SAVE SETUP OPTIONS" to save this configuration. Note that you can use ICEX205 -D -A for automatic mode. Application: To use this feature you simply hit ALT-J when you wish to invoke ICEX. 7.1.2 GT Power (14.00) GT Power does not have the ability to EXEC a program directly. 7.1.3 Qmodem SST Qmodem does not have the ability to EXEC a program directly. 7.1.4 Boyan-D4 Setup: You must go to the Configuration section with ALT-C. Once there, you must select [S], and under the next screen you select [L]. You are then prompted for the amount of K to allot the DOS shell. I suggest entering a value no less than 300, with 350K being suggested. If this preparation is not done then you may not have enough memory to invoke ICEX205. Note that this need only be done ONCE. Application: To call ICEX205 directly you simply hit the INS key on your extended keypad on your keyboard. You will be prompted for a command line at the bottom of your screen ( something like "C>" ). From this prompt you merely type -> ICEX205 -D and tap the <ENTER> key. 7.1.5 Pibterm 4.1 Pibterm does not have the ability to EXEC a program directly. 7.1.6 Telix 3.11 To directly execute ICEX from within Telix you must hit the ALT-V key combination and when prompted for the DOS command you type: ICEX205 -D and tap the <ENTER> key. 7.1.7 Zcomm To directly execute ICEX from within Zcomm you simply type, from the '+++c:' prompt, the following: !icex205 -d and tap the <ENTER> key. 7.2 Calling ICEX through a DOS shell 7.2.1 Procomm Plus (1.1) To go to DOS (Shell) from inside Procomm you simply type the ALT-F4 key. Once in DOS, you type -> IC and hit the return key. This will start a batch file to invoke ICEX and return to the caller program (Procomm). 7.2.2 GT Power (14.00) To go to DOS (Shell) from inside GT Power you simply type ALT-1 sequence. Once in DOS, you type -> IC and hit the return key. This will start a batch file to invoke ICEX and return to the caller program (GT Power). 7.2.3 Qmodem SST To go to DOS (Shell) from inside Qmodem you simply type ALT-R sequence. Once in DOS, you type -> IC and hit the return key. This will start a batch file to invoke ICEX and return to the caller program (Qmodem). 7.2.4 Boyan-D4 A jump to dos in Boyan requires a one-time preparation. *** One time preparation: You must go to the Configuration section with ALT-C. Once there, you must select [A], and under the next screen you select [J]. You arte then prompted for the amount of K to allot the DOS shell. I suggest entering a value no less than 300, with 350K being suggested. If this preparation is not done then you will not have enough memory to invoke ICEX205. Note 350K is overkill and 275K seems to work for most people okay. To jump to DOS from within Boyan you simply hit the ALT-J key combination. Once in DOS, you type -> IC and hit the return key. This will start a batch file to invoke ICEX and return to the caller program (Boyan). 7.2.5 Pibterm 4.1 To jump to a DOS shell from within Pibterm you simply hit the ALT-J key combination. Once in DOS, you type -> IC and hit the return key. This will start a batch file to invoke ICEX and return to the caller program (Pibterm). 7.2.6 Telix 3.11 To jump to a DOS shell from within Telix you simply hit the ALT-J key combination. Once in DOS, you type -> IC and hit the return key. This will start a batch file to invoke ICEX and return to the caller program (Telix). 7.2.7 Zcomm I'm not quite sure how to invoke a DOS shell from Zcomm. 7.3 Calling ICEX through a script 7.3.1 Procomm Plus To invoke the script made by ICEXGEN you simply type ALT-F5, and when it asks you for the parameters you type the following: ICEX-12 or ICEX-24 and then tap the <ENTER> key. 7.3.2 GT Power (14.00) To invoke the script made by ICEXGEN you simply type ALT-3, and when prompted for a name you type: ICEX-12 or ICEX-24 and then tap the <ENTER> key. 7.3.3 Qmodem SST To invoke the script made by ICEXGEN you simply type ALT-F, and when prompted for a name you type: ICEX-12.QMS or ICEX-24.QMS ..... and then tap the <ENTER> key. It will then ask you for script parameters, at which you again tap <ENTER>. 7.3.4 Boyan-D4 To invoke the script made by ICEXGEN you simply type ALT-R, and when prompted for a name you type: ICEX-12; or ICEX-24; and then tap the <ENTER> key. Do not leave out the semi-colon! 7.3.5 Telix 3.11 To invoke the script made by ICEXGEN you simply type ALT-G, and when prompted for a name you type: ICEX-12 or ICEX-24 and then tap the <ENTER> key. **Note** You must have compiled the SALT files with CS.EXE making them ICEX-12.SLC & ICEX-24.SLC. ICEX and Scripts 8.1 Using the Script Generator ICEXGEN ICEXGEN is a program that will ask you a few questions and then generate a script appropriate to be run from your favorite comm program to provide a friendly, completely automated interface between your comm program and ICEX. ICEXGEN is straightforward. All you do is answer the questions posed and then select which comm package you wish to generate a script for. The scripts are written for you by the program so you do not need to know anything about script programming. The only thing you need know is how to use the scripts, and this is detailed under section 7.3. I strongly suggest you use the script method for calling up ICEX, as it provides a much smoother interface between your favorite comm program and ICEX. Make sure you have your configuration file set to reflect your desired modem settings, such as 8N2 or 7E1. You will be asked for the baud rate you want the script for. I strongly suggest you generate BOTH scripts, and call whichever one is appropriate for the baud you wish to call in at, from inside your comm program. One last note. When it asks you if you want the script to be a link or a do the dialing itself, you probably should select the [I] option to do the dialing itself. The [L]ink option means that your dialing directory (usually Alt-D, like in Procomm+) will dial PcPursuit for you and then pass control to the script. I don't recommend doing this as it really doesn't buy you much over the [I] option. Auto Script Chaining 9.1 What is Auto script chaining? Automatic script chaining is a feature that allows a calling program, such as Procomm+, to use a script, made by ICEXGEN in conjunction with your own 'login' script to the BBSs you call. A sequence will look like: 1) call Telenet 2) go to ICEX to do your dialing 3) ICEX connects and then writes out the name of the chain script for the BBS you are connected to. 4) ICEX exits back to Procomm+ 5) Procomm+ chains to a script called CHAIN.ASP which now has the name fo the BBS login script (written in by ICEX). 6) This script assumes control and logs you into your BBS, checks your mail, transfer files, or whatever you wish it to do. The catch is that you must create your own login scripts. There are some good script generators out there that should assist you. For this release, ICEX will only support Procomm+ script chaining. Release 2.10 will support most major packages including Qmodem, Telix, Procomm+, Boyan, GT-Power. For those who are used to auto-logins supported by release 2.03 this is designed to take its place, and the result, in my opinion, is much more powerful. At present there is no 'utility' program to salvage the information from Release 2.03 .DIR files and create auto-chain scripts from auto-login information. Save those directories in a zip named MY203s.zip or whatever you wish. With Release 2.10, there will be such a utility. To take advantage of this utility, you MUST generate a script with ICEXGEN, and you must use that script to call Telenet and call up ICEX. When you [A]dd, or [E]dit a BBS entry in the BBS DIALER, select the 'script' field. Give it the name of your 'home-made' script that will log in to that BBS. That's all there is to it. From then on, when ICEX connects to that BBS, it will copy that script (it must be made by you remember) into a file called CHAIN.SCR and control will pass back to your calling program which will then start up CHAIN.SCR and log you into your BBS. A sample script has been included for logging into The Right Place BBS. Simply change the first;last;password to your first, last names, and your password for the BBS (you must have called at least once previous to set up your account there). Next, go into ICEX's BBS Dialer for Atlanta, Georgia and place the highlight bar on The Right Place entry and hit [E] to edit it. Change the script name from 'None' to 'Right.asp.' Now you're set up to auto-login to The Right Place! Simple, right? Remember this only works for the Procomm+ script made by ICEXGEN (ICEX-12.ASP). But all you have to do to make it work for any other comm program is to change the ICEXGEN made script for your program (Telix,Qmodem,etc.) to chain to the script called CHAIN.SCR immediately after the place in the script that calls up ICEX. Any problems, just drop a note to me on the Comm conference on the Interlink. 10.1 Current City Mnemonics PC Pursuit Service Availability (As of Jan 30, 1989) ---------------------------------------------------- City Code Mnemonic -------------------------- ---- ------------- Atlanta, GA 404 GAATL Boston, MA 617 MABOS Chicago, IL 312,815 ILCHI Cleveland, OH 216 OHCLE Colton, CA 714 CACOL Dallas, TX 214,817 TXDAL Denver, CO 303 CODEN Detroit, MI 313 MIDET Glendale, CA 818 CAGLE Hartford, CT 203 CTHAR Houston, TX 713 TXHOU Kansas City, MO 816,913 MOKCI Los Angeles, CA 213 CALAN Miami, FL 305 FLMIA Milwaukee, WI 414 WIMIL Minneapolis, MN 612 MNMIN Newark, NJ 201 NJNEW New York, NY 212,718 NYNYO Oakland, CA 415 CAOAK Palo Alto, CA 415 CAPAL Philadelphia, PA 215 PAPHI Phoenix, AZ 602 AZPHO Portland, OR 503 ORPOR Research Triangle Park, NC 919 NCRTP Sacramento, CA 916 CASAC Salt Lake City, UT 801 UTSLC San Diego, CA 619 CASDI San Francisco, CA 415 CASFA San Jose, CA 408 CASJO Santa Ana, CA 714 CASAN Seattle, WA 206 WASEA St. Louis, MO 314,618 MOSLO Tampa, FL 813 FLTAM Washington, DC 202,301,703 DCWAS 11.1 ICEX History ICEX started about two years ago when I subscribed to PcPursuit. I was very amazed at the tedium is took to simply connect to a city and then was dismayed at having to to it all again to get through to my desired BBS. I was using Procomm at the time and had done a little script programming for Procomm. I decided to write scripts that would take care of this dilemma and automate everything I needed to do to use PcPursuit effectively. These scripts worked fine for me, and I could change them to suit my needs because I KNEW how to program Procomm script language. I felt that I should not be the only one to benefit from these scripts as I know there are others suffering out there who do NOT know script programming. But therein was the drawback in distributing these scripts to the public -- the majority of the public did not know what it required to keep the scripts up to date and to have them specific for themselves. So, I decided to sit down and write a program that actually wrote the scripts by itself based on the user's specifications. The program not only generated the scripts but also maintained these scripts as well. The benefit of this was that there was absolutely no need for the user to have any knowledge of script programming to run the program. This program was named ICPR, with the appropriate version number tacked onto the end. This program was great in that it provided the user with a complete interface with Procomm and PcPursuit without any required knowledge on the user's part. There was one major drawback however, this program was specific for Procomm. What about all the other people out there that preferred Qmodem or Boyan or Telix? Well, the script languages for these programs were not well suited to carry out the operations ICPR performed in the scripts it generated. In short, Procomm's script language was far superior and the functions used could not be readily reproduced with other script languages. A second drawback was that scripts are entirely TOO SLOW because they are interpreted. Enter ICEX!!! I decided to start from scratch and make a complete comm program that could be used INDEPENDENT of the comm program using it. ICEX is also its own program and does not deal with scripts. It is entirely self contained. ICEX incorporates speed and a better user interface than its predecessor and also has the advantage of being generic, for use with ALL comm packages. ICEX will continue to grow as more and more suggestions come in. Please keep those suggestions coming and help ICEX to grow into the comm package YOU want. Eventually ICEX may become a full fledged comm program specifically for PcPursuit user which will be able to be used as a true standalone. 11.2 ICEX Revision History See the included file, HISTORY.ICE... 12.0 Support for ICEX The Right Place in Atlanta, Georgia is the support BBS for registered users of ICEX. All revisions will be released there first, and the latest revision can always be found there. I support a Q&A there for all questions concerning ICEX. I also support a conference for registered users only, which if you are a registered user, allows you the benifits aforementioned. If you have a problem getting ICEX to work for you, leave me a question on The Right Place and it will be answered within the next day. The Right Place can be reached through the GAATL node. The phone number is (404) 476-2607. The first call you make with ICEX should be to The Right Place to get yourself validated as a user there so you can take advantage of the ICEX forum. I will also entertain questions on Computer Archives at FLTAM - 968-6220, which is a paying-user only board. I will be supporting ICEX through the 'communication' conference on Interlink mail. If we can get enough message exchange thru this conference then we can open up our own conference, like Colin Samplineau, author of Telix, has. Also do not forget The Net Exchange, as I will check in there occasionally. 13.0 About the Author... My name is Wayne Wolf. I am a graduate in CIS Engineering from the Univiersity of Florida in Gainesville. I am 22 years old and have over 10 years programming experience including Pascal, BASIC, C, Lisp, Assembly, Fortran, Modula-2, dBase III+, COBOL, Unix, ... I also have a little hardware design experience. I plan on going back for a masters degree in EE, leaning towards digital electronics. I graduated in December 1988 and am currently working as a design engineer for Motorola, Inc. I intend to continue to write public domain and ShareWare programs and also to open a private consulting business. One long term goal is to set up a system similar in performance to EXEC-PC BBS. I write ShareWare programs, namely ICEX, to assist those who are Telecommunications freaks like myself manuever through the nightmare interface of PcPursuit. I enjoy the world of ShareWare and also the hobby of BBSing and Telecommunications. I hope you get as much fun and utility out of ICEX as I do. And don't forget to register your copy soon so you can take advantage of the special features there only for registered users. Remember, registration is only $30, which is the price you pay Telenet for 1 of years service. And just think how much more efficient use of PcPursuit you get because you are using ICEX.