Amiga Computing - Commodore Is Awesome

F you only use your modem for typing
out little messages to people, you are
only skimming the surface. To get full
use from your deck, you need to get into
uploads and downloads.
Imagine you have heard of a really
cool piece of PD software. You want it.
Perhaps a PD library will advertise it in
the magazine, so you post of your dash
,wait a week and back it comes.
Wouldn't you rather have the software
five minutes after deciding you wanted
it? If you have a modem, you have the
technology. All you have to do is ring up
a local BBS and download it in seconds_
This is the age of Information
Interchange and you're part of it.
MOST bulletin boards have a software
bank of sorts, where you can make a
withdrawal or — even better — a donation.
Some systems make rules about the
number of withdrawals you can make,
but if you can manage to stick to one
upload for every download you'll be Mr.
Popular.
To get the software, first find a local
BBS. Get on-line and leave a nice
message to the SysOp. He'll check you
Out, normally within a day, and grant you
downloading privileges. You're all set.
Log on, with a blank disk ready and
waiting to store your new software, Get
to the section in the BBS where all the
Protocols
ANYONE who has been looking at the
pull-down menus in their comms
software will have noticed options such
as X-Modem, Y-Modem and Z-Modern.
These wonderfully named options
specify the different protocols which can
be used to upload and download files,
You may ask yourself why you actually
need a protocol in the first place...
There are to types of data as far as
Comms is concerned: Text and binary.
Text files are what you're reading now —
words. The best way to store the words
for later perusal is to select a menu
option such as -
Ascii spool data to disk or ram, where you can
C
examine
a p t
it
u
later
r
off-line.
e Binary ' , data is what programs are
made from. You can't download
T h i
programs as text files without major
s
problems. There must be a better way.
wThere iis. and l it involves the use of )0'
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122 AMIGA • COMPUTING November 1990
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Before you uploac11..••
you are uploading a program on to
BBS there are several points to bear
mind:
Do you have permission to do so? If
u upload a copyrighted program,
are breaking the law.
• Have you included all the files
belonging to a program? This means
all data, binary and readme files?
• Have you done a thorough virus
check on the software you are uploading?
The consequences of not doing so
are too horrible to contemplate.
• Have you archived all the files? 4
1Doing so means they take less time to
upload, consume less storage space
on the host system and take less time
to download. Everyone is happy,
files are kept. Select the Download
option. From a pull-down menu in your
software, select the Download option
too. All going to plan, you'll get a box
with numbers, estimated times and
sizes appearing. Now wait.
When you've finished, log off nicely.
Now get to a SHELL and examine your
prize. Chances are Ifs been archived.
This means its been squashed to take
up less space, and therefore less
downloading time. Before you can use
or Z-Modem. All the systems work by
collecting the binary data into small
packets, and sending it in bursts. The
data is automatically checked, to prevent
even a single byte from being corrupted.
You might not mind if a letter in a page
of text if wrong. but if a machine code
instruction in a downloaded program has
got muddled, you can say hello to the
guru.
Z-Modem is the best system, as it
works fastest and can automatically
switch on uploading and downloading_
You should always use it if you can.
All the popular comms packages now
have a Z-Modem option, though
JrComm's is the best_ Failing that, either
of the other two protocols will work fine.
it. you'll need to un-arc it.
There are several popular arcing
formats: .ARC, ,ZOO, and .ZIP and .LZH
to name four. To un-arc them, you'll
need the matching software: PD
programs such ARC, ZOO, ZIP and
LHUNARC. These programs should all
be available — in un-arced format — from
the BBS. They should be the first
programs you download.
In the old days some systems made
the mistake of holding two un-arcing
programs in their library: each archived
by the other. Not much use.
Most of these utilities are CU driven
user-hostile beasties. Unfortunately, this
is the way the comms world is. You're
going to have to roll up your sleeves and
do some work.
To get a brief inkling of a clue what to
do, you use the programs from the CLI
without parameters or with question
marks_ Nine times out of ten they will
give you some helpful info.
They normally work along the lines of:
All you have to do is sit next and
watch as the program is re-constituted
before your eyes. Of course, you only
have to un-arc them once. From then on
they are just like any other piece of
software. Except you got it so fast.
ASCII file ends. Stop upload.
-I- 4 -I-
ATh
ARC -X ELLNAME.ARC
A
Comms Gossip I
OOPS — just as we were going to
press a few mistakes in last months
BBS list came to light. Please note
changes in the listings for the following
boards: Amiga Connection, Yukon
Ho!. Alliance (with the sexy Jessica).
Also Code-o-matic went off the e
following a nasty encounter with
scourge of deck-cowboys everywhere,
Mr. BT. Sysop Oil Smith has done a
Macarthur and is back on a new line_
Coninuing the 01 for Amiga saga we
must report that both FAST and CBM
are no longer persuing their fraud
inquiries. This is due to the lack of any
hard evidence.