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From: Bruce Grubb <[email protected]>
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.comm,comp.answers,news.answers
Subject: comp.sys.mac.comm FAQ (v 2.2.8) [2/3]
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=====================================================================-
[3] Macintosh File-transfers
============================

[3.1] What is the difference between a commmunication and an
     Internet connection?
--------------------------------------------------------------------

A commmunication connection was the original way home computers
remotely connected to other computers.  It basicly consisted of
a direct connection between the personal computer to the computer
on the other end of the phone line.

Originally each communication program had its own method and
interface but then Apple created the Communications Toolbox (CTB)
as a standard interface for programmers writing communications
programs.  In addition, specific "tools" that interfaced with
modems, provided terminal emulation, or handled file transferring
could be implemented as external add-on features to CTB-aware
programs.

The protocals most commonally associated with commmunications
software are (in order of preferance): Zmodem, YModem, Xmodem,
and finally Kermit.  However because it was a direct connection
you could only do one thing at a time and the interface tended to
be at best a Command Line Interface.

By contrast Internet connections grew out of the development of
personal computers.  Originally Internet computers were directly
connected to each other providing information to the user via dumb
termanals.  With the development of personal computers a need to
allow dial in connections developed with SLIP and PPP (see [5.3])
being the result.   These additional protocals allowed personal
computer users to use such Internet protocals as FTP, Gopher, and
SMTP.

Most importantly via PPP Internet connections allowed multiple
connections through one modem allowing the user to perform several
tasks at once.  Due to this multifunction ability continued development
of communication programs has fallen off in favor of the more robust
Internet programs though they are still the best way to connect to
a local BBS.

Since support for Internet connections was rolled into the MacOS
beginning with System 7.5 it has become the defacto way to link a
personal Mac to the outside world.


[3.2] What communication programs are available?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a short list of shareware/freeware and commercial communication
programs from the orginal list that are still available.  As a matter
of practicality only those programs that have been written or updated
since 1993, support at least three of the standard protocols (Kermit,
Xmodem, YModem, and Zmodem), and either are available or have web pages
are listed.

BN:   Black Knight 1.0.7, $30 shareware,
     Raine Storm softworks <http://www.kagi.com/raine/products.html>
CL:   Communicate Lite, $50 SRP, Mark/Space Softworks,
     <http://www.markspace.com/comm_lite.html>
MT:   MacToPic Plus, $195, site licenses available, Carnation Software,
     <http://www.webcom.com/~carn/carnation/HT.Carn.Home.html>
PT:   ProTERM 1.5, $69.95 commercial, 30 day free trial,
     InTrec Software <http://www.intrec.com/proterm-mac/>
VT:   VersaTerm and VersaTerm Pro 5.0.6, $145 and $195 respectively
     Synergy Software <http://www.synergy.com/vt.htm>
ZT:   ZTerm 1.0.1, $30 shareware, $40 with disk, Dave Alverson,
     [email protected]

Shareware/freeware communications programs can be found in the
/info-mac/comm/term directory of any Info-mac mirror.

Table 3.1.1 summarizes file transfer capabilities of various Macintosh
telecommunications programs.

         |       Programs
Protocols | BN CL MT PT VT ZT
------------------------------
XMODEM    |  X  X  X  X  X  X
YMODEM    |  X  X  X  X  X  X
ZMODEM    |  X  X  X  X  X  X
Kermit    |        X  X  X  X
QuickB    |                 X
B Plus    |                 X
CTB tools |  X  X        X  X
FTP       |        X        X

              Table 3.1.1


Table 3.1.2 summarizes the terminal-emulation capabilities of various
Macintosh communications programs and Table 3.1.3 summarizes the
scripting capabilities of various  Macintosh telecommunications programs:

         |       Programs                      |       Programs
Terminals | BN CL MT PT VT ZT        Scripting  | BN CL MT PT VT ZT
------------------------------       -------------------------------
TTY       |     X  X  X  X           Recording  |  X        X  X
VT52      |     X     X              If/Else    |     X  a  X
VT100     |  X  X  X  X  X  X        Loops      |     X  a  X
VT102     |  X  X     X  X           FileOps    |     X  a  X
VT220     |  X           X           Arithmetic |     X  a  X
PC/ANSI   |  X        X     X        Variables  |     X  a  X     X
Tek 4010  |              X           User Input |     X  a  X
Tek 4014  |              X           Key Remaps |  X     *  X
Tek 4105/7|              P           Arrays     |        a  X
DG210/211 |              X           Wait/Send  |  X  X     X  X
CTB tools |  X  X                    AppleScript|  X        b
Controls  |  X        X     X
Viewpoint |        X  X             a = capability is accessible
Wyse 50   |        X                    through AppleScript
Prism     |        X
Televideo |                         b = script commands can be fed to
     910 |           X                 the program via AppleScript
     925 |           P
     950 |           P             * Allows programmable
HeathktH19|           X               function keys
LSIADM3a/5|           X
PTSE/A2   |           X

          Table 3.1.2                        Table 3.1.3


[3.3] What Internet programs are available?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

The desire to get on the Internet has produced dozens of such programs
many of which are listed at The Mac Orchard web page
<http://www.macorchard.com/>. To help the fledgling Internet user I am
listing the most commonly used programs below:

E-mail
    Eudora <http://www.eudora.com/> is perhaps the best written and
    most popular e-mail program available for the Macintosh. Eudora
    is a complete and versatile e-mail package which can send e-mail
    via SMTP (see [5.4]) and receive e-mail via a POP server. It can
    even be used with UUPC 3.0 (as a mail reader and message generator,
    not a transport agent). Eudora can also be used to transfer
    arbitrary Macintosh files between computers through its BinHex 4.0
    attachment features. Many accolades go to the author, Steve Dorner.
    Hank Zimmerman maintains the comp.mail.eudora.mac FAQ which can be
    found at <http://www.ka.net/eudora/faqs/> and the [Unofficial] Eudora
    Web Site can be found at <http://www.emailman.com/eudora/>

    Versions are:

    Eudora Lite 3.1.4  -- 68K version
    Eudora 5.0 (free and commercial) --- PowerPC version

FTP clients
    The two most popular MacOS FTP clients are Interarchy (formally
    known as Anarchie) and Fetch.
    Interarchy is sharewhare and has a home site at
    <http://www.stairways.com/> and <http://www.interarchy.com/>
    Fetch 3.0.3 "is free to users affiliated with an educational
    institution or charitable non-profit organization; all other
    users may purchase a license."
    (<http://www.dartmouth.edu/pages/softdev/fetch.html>)
    Two releatively newer FTP clients are Vicomsoft FTP
    <http://www.vicomsoft.com/ftp_client/ftp.client.html>
    and NetFinder
    <http://www.ozemail.com.au/~pli/netfinder/sw_and_updts.html>


FTP Servers
    The oldest and most popular FTP server for the mac is NetPresenz
    (formally FTPd) <http://www.macorchard.com/server.html>,
    <http://www.pism.com/chapt06/>

News
    All Mac newsreaders make use of NNTP (see [5.4]).
    Newswatcher (2.2.1) by John Norstad and its close sister
    Multi-Threaded NewsWatcher (currently Version 3.0.0) by Simon
    Fraser are likely the most popular online Newsreaders.
    <http://www.macorchard.com/usenet.html>
    For offline browsing MacSOUP
    <http://home.snafu.de/stk/macsoup/index.html>
    by Stefan Haller is likely the most popular.

Browsers
    The two most popular browsers are Netscape and MicroSoft Internet
    Explorer both of which support frames and other Internet goodies.
    The most recent versions (6.0 and 5.0 respectively)
    can be found at <http://www.netscape.com/> and
    <http://www.microsoft.com/>

MacOS X
    MacOS X has at its heart UNIX which means in theory the old
    UNIX utilities like rn, tin, pine, and ssh would be available
    via the terminal program.  [email protected] stated that at least
    ssh is included in the public beta.


[3.4] What is Telnet, and what MacOS Telnet Programs are there?
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Telnet is a high speed terminal connection protocol designed with TCP/IP
in mind. A Telnet program allows you to connect to computers that accept
Telnet sessions (such as UNIX boxes) with interactive full-screen
console input and output capabilities.

There are several Telnet programs for the Macintosh.

NCSA Telnet and succesors (BetterTelnet and MacTelnet)
    The most widely known and used is the freeware NCSA Telnet
    for which developement stopped January 1, 1996.  The last
    'offical' version was 2.6 though there is a 2.7b4 available.
    There are serveral succesor programs which improve on the
    NCSA Telnet code.
    One such freeware successor is Sassy Software's BetterTelnet
    (Version 2.0fc1) <http://www.cstone.net/~rbraun/mac/telnet/>
    which uses the 2.7b5 code and provides many bug fixes, an
    improved interface, and additional features. Both of these
    programs support TEK 4105 graphics, provide both an FTP server
    *and* client, and can do session logging. About the only drawback
    is that these programs use Classic rather than Open Transport
    networking.
    MacTelnet <http://home.austin.rr.com/telnet/> is another such
    program and is one of the few that states plans to be MacOS X
    ready.

dataComet
    dataComet <http://www.databeast.com/> is both the oldest
    (1986 as Cornell TN) and longest supported MacOS Telnet
    application.  This shareware application supports PC-ANSI,
    VT220, & TN3270 terminal emulation, as well as serial
    connections and communications protocols (including ZModem)
    and suuports both 68K and PPC machines.

Nifty Telnet
    Nifty Telnet <http://andrew2.andrew.cmu.edu/dist/niftytelnet.html>
    is a freeware Telnet program that supports Kerberous encrypting
    (US version only), has a clean interface, and is Open Transport
    native.

ProTERM
     $69.95 commercial program by InTrec Software
     <http://www.intrec.com/proterm-mac/> with a 30 day free trial
     that also supports a communiction connection (see 3.2)

tn3270
    If you need to telnet to an IBM mainframe this program at
    version 2.5b5 this makes tn3270 more enjoyable.

[3.5] What's the best compression program to use when uploading files
     to an archive? Are there any other guidelines I should
     follow?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Best Compression: (Revised 01/2001)
---- -----------

The shareware program DropStuff with Extension Expander (and its
commercial sibling, StuffIt Deluxe) is generally regarded as providing
the best compression performance of the many Macintosh compression
utilities.  StuffIt Deluxe has a fancy user-interface while DSEE has
a very simple interface.

StuffIt Expander (free) with DSEE ($30 shareware) seems to be the most
comprehensive shareware package currently available for decompressing
files.  There is one special issue to be aware of though; StuffIt
Expander (and Deluxe) does not seem to look -within- formats for the
Macbinary format.  As a result non-mac archive formats that have had
Macbinary added -internally- to support the two fork Mac format
([2.4b]) do not always decompress properly resulting in the resource
fork information being corrupted or loss.  Fortunitly there are very
few Mac files archived in this manner but considering I ran into this
situation myself I though it best to alert people to the situation.

The closest rival to the Stuffit programs was Compact Pro but it has
two problems: 1) it has not been updated since April 1995 and 2) it
cannot decompress the Deluxe .sit formats.  As a result StuffIt has
become the defacto king of Mac compression.

Posting Macintosh Programs: (Revised 01/2001)
------- --------- --------

You should use either DropStuff or StuffIt Deluxe to compress
Macintosh files you send to anonymous FTP sites and Web sites.
While MacBinary internal versions of zip and LZH exist
it is better to stick with sit for Mac files.  Zip and LZH
should at best be used for data fork only files intended for
all computers.

Regardless of which archiver you use, PLEASE DO NOT MAKE AN ARCHIVE
YOU ARE POSTING SELF-EXTRACTING!  The convenience of self-extracting
archives is not worth the space they waste at anonymous-FTP sites and
Web sites (where literally thousands of compressed files are stored) and
the problems they create on other platforms. Self-extracting archives
are useful in other contexts, but should be discouraged as a medium
for posting to archives.

Before you create your archive, set the Finder label of all
files you plan to include in the archive to 'None'.

Avoid using strange punctuation marks in filenames that you will
distribute. Characters such as exclamation points, spaces, dollar
signs, etc, are legal characters in Macintosh filenames but can be
difficult to work with on non-Macintosh systems (where most Macintosh
archives are stored). Since BinHex and MacBinary store your original
Macintosh filename, removing strange characters from a BinHex'd or
MacBinary'd file before distributing will not affect the original
filename. As an example, MyFile-215.sit is a perfectly acceptable
filename.

After you have created the archive and named it appropriately, BinHex
encode it (see [2.3]). Preface the resulting text file a short
description of the archive you want to distribute, including any
system requirements and problems.  Do not bother with a signature.

Finally, upload the text file (if necessary) and e-mail it to
[email protected].  Your subject line should specify a suggested
name with a suggested location in the text file.
             To: [email protected]
             Subject: myfile-215.hqx

Mailing your archive to macgifts automatically submits it to the
InfoMac archive and its active mirrors.

[3.6] How can I transfer Macintosh files to/from my Macintosh and
     other non-Macintosh computers (eg: mainframes, UNIX boxes, PCs)?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Regardless of whether you are using a communications or Internet
program the procedure you should follow will be the same.  First the
file should be compressed with StuffIt and then binhex encoded.  Some
programs like Eudora will do the binhexing for you so you can skip
the encoding step.

The reason you will want to use Binhex rather than MacBinary as your
encoding format is that Binhex is useable in the 7-bit only areas of
the Internet like Usenet and E-mail that MacBinary cannot go.

For Internet programs downloading a file is very simple.  For systems
or programs that do not support Drag and Drop you simply click (or
double click) on the file and it is downloaded for you.  Drag and Drop
aware programs allow you to drag the file to the desktop which results
in it being downloaded.  Uploading varies from program to program and
some FTP sites only allow files to be E-mailed.  Consult your program
and destination site documentation for the proper procedures.

Communication downloading and uploading is a little more complicated.
This is because the remote computer is usially running a totally
different OS that the Mac user must interact with.  As a result the
remote computer must be first be told that a file is being sent
or received and then the Mac commmunications program told the
same thing.

Since Unix shell accounts were the most common remote OS they are
used as example but it should be noted that many BBSes use a different
interface and therefore different commands.

For a unix shell account the command consists of two parts:
    % method filename
'Filename' is the name of the file on the remote machine and 'method'
is the protocal and whether the file is being sent or received.

The methods are generally as follows:

           Kermit      XMODEM      YMODEM       ZMODEM
           -------     ------      ------       ------
sending     kermit        sx          sb           sz
receiving   kermit        rx          rb           rz

As one goes from left to right in the chart above the protocal's speed
increaces.  As a result as early as 1994 some communication programs
were not supporting Kermit.  With Internet connections becoming more
accessable communication software and its protocols are rapidly fading
into the mists of history.

[3.7] Is there a newsgroup for mac binaries?
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Yes there is; it is called comp.binaries.mac.  But due to the nature
of Usenet it has become impractical to post today's larger MacOS
programs.  In any case this is the *only* proper mac newsgroup to post
a MacOS program binary.

Any as explained in section [2.2] any MacOS program intended for
comp.binaries.mac must be in BinHex 4.0 format following the
step described in section [3.5].

As far downloading what few programs do appear on comp.binaries.mac
use a NewsWatcher baced newsreader and simply select extract binaries.
This will do the tedious task of joining up a multipart binary for you.

Otherwise there is not much reason to bother with comp.binaries.mac.

=====================================================================
[4] Networking basics

[4.1] What are AppleTalk, LocalTalk, Ethernet, EtherTalk, TCP/IP, etc?
----------------------------------------------------------------------

When attempting to describe networking terms, a distinction should be
drawn between networking _protocols_ (such as AppleTalk and TCP/IP)
and networking _hardware_ (such as LocalTalk, Ethernet, and TokenRing).
In most cases, a specific protocol can be used over more than one
hardware medium.

In order to help understand the interaction of these disparate parts
in a real-world network, we can adopt the useful analogy of multi-layer
cake with the physical wire at the very bottom and the software which
you are running at the very top.

Thus, we can think of LocalTalk, Ethernet and TokenRing as being the
layers at the bottom, AppleTalk and TCP/IP in the middle and programs
like NCSA Telnet, NFS/Share and Netscape at the top.

The following terms describe protocols (software descriptions) common
to the Macintosh networking world:

AppleTalk
    A proprietary suite of protocols developed by Apple Computer,
    Inc. that provides for near-transparent network connections
    between Macintosh computers. However, over the years AppleTalk has
    been ported to other OSes including UNIX, VMS and DOS.
    Questions about the AppleTalk protocol are probably best posed
    in the newsgroup comp.protocols.appletalk.

EtherTalk and TokenTalk
    The drivers which allows AppleTalk protocols to be transported
    by Ethernet and over IBM TokenRing networks respectively.

TCP/IP
    A suite of protocols developed by the Defense Advanced Research
    Projects Agency (DARPA) whose purpose is multi-platform
    connectivity.  TCP/IP stands for Transmission Control
    Protocol/Internet Protocol, because these are the two most
    widely used protocols in the suite. However, TCP/IP includes the
    User Datagram Protocol (UDP), Address Resolution Protocol (ARP),
    Reverse Address Resolution Protocol (RARP) and others. TCP/IP
    drivers are available for almost all of the computer platforms
    in use today, including micros, minis, main-frames and
    supercomputers.

The following terms describe hardware (the physical link such as the
wire(s) connecting computers) common to the Macintosh networking
world:

LocalTalk
    One type of hardware over which AppleTalk protocols can be
    transported. LocalTalk has a throughput of 230.4 Kbps
    second, or roughly a quarter of a Mbps.

PhoneNet
    Another type of hardware commonly used to transport AppleTalk
    packets. PhoneNet mates LocalTalk hardware with ordinary
    (unused) telephone wire. PhoneNet is probably the cheapest way
    to connect widely separated Macintosh computers within a single
    building.

Ethernet
    A network medium over which AppleTalk, TCP/IP and other
    protocols travel, often simultaneously. Ethernet's maximum
    throughput is 10 Mbps. FastEthernet offers 100 Mbps.

TokenRing
    A network medium developed (and patented) by IBM based on a
    topology of a ring of nodes connected serially by a single cable.
    Each node, or computer, speaks on the cable only when it has
    posession of a token. TokenRing technology can demonstrate
    throughputs of ranging from 4 to 16 Mbps.

[4.2] What is Open Transport?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Basicly Open Transport is Apple's complete revision to the Macintosh's
network system software.   Originally the Mac's only native protocol
was AppleTalk and anything else had to be added on.  In addition thanks
to the AppleTalk Manager (which resided in the ROM of most 68K Macs)
AppleTalk got privileged access.  As a result network software developers
not only had to write each and every non-AppleTalk protocol they wanted
to use but they had to contend with AppleTalk.  After Open Tranport came
out this method became known as Classic networking (not to be confused
with the Classic enviroment In MacOS X).

Open Transport which has been part of the OS since 7.5.3 changed this
situation by using industry standard Application Programing Interfaces
(APIs). Not only did the APIs eliminate the need for developers to
reinvent the wheel but they put all the protocols on an equal standing.
In addition Open Transport is Power Mac native resulting in speed ups
in both AppleTalk and TCP/IP.

Open Transport has been the the default networking system since
System 7.6 with support for Classic Networking formally disappearing
with System 8.0.

Classic and Open Transport networking are different enough that
programs written for just one generally will not work with the other.
Futhermore given the age of Classic Networking it is iffy that
programs only written for it will work under MacOS X.  So read
the documentation of any networking software you plan to use to make
sure it is compatable with your networking method and OS.  More details
on Open Transport can be found at Apple's web site
<http://developer.apple.com/dev/opentransport/>

[4.3] How can I change the Chooser "user" and name of my Macintosh?
     Also: Why can I no longer change the name of my hard-disk?
-------------------------------------------------------------------

To change the owner and name of your Macintosh under System 7, select
"Controls Panels" from the Apple Menu and double-click on the
"Sharing Setup" Control Panel.

The Chooser "user" is the "Owner name:". Change it like any standard
edit field. The name of your Macintosh is the "Macintosh name:".

Also on this Control Panel is a button to turn File Sharing on and
off. When File Sharing is on, you cannot change the name of shared
disks. If you are trying to change the name of your hard disk but
cannot get the name to turn into an edit field, File Sharing is
probably on. Use the Sharing Setup Control Panel to turn File Sharing
off, change your hard disk name, and then turn File Sharing back on
(unless you have no need for it).

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