152 lines
7.4 KiB
Plaintext
152 lines
7.4 KiB
Plaintext
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C H O O S I N G M O D E M S O F T W A R E
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A modem needs some kind of telecommunications program to
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make it work. Some commercial online services, such as
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America Online and Prodigy, require special software to
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obtain access. Most BBSs and other online services can be
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accessed by almost any telecommunications software
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program. There are dozens of good general purpose
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telecommunications software programs available. There are
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also some real lemons.
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There is a Terminal program that comes with Windows 3.1.
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It is what is called a "bare bones" telecommunications
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program. In fact, in my humble opinion, it should only be
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used to download another telecommunications program. The
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Windows Terminal program has Xmodem and Kermit as the
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only transfer protocols. That was fine ten years ago but
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will not do in today's world of high speed modems. Below
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are a few features you should look for in a
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telecommunications program.
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WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS SOFTWARE
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ZMODEM PROTOCOL
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The Zmodem protocol has become the industry standard. You
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will want this feature in your telecommunications
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software. Zmodem has excellent error checking and can
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even resume an interrupted file transfer if you select
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this option on your communications software. This ability
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is sometimes referred to as "crash recovery."
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SCREEN CAPTURE
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The telecommunications software that you select should
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have a screen capture feature. This is often called a
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capture log. With screen capture turned on, your
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telecommunications software saves whatever scrolls across
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your screen to a text file. Then, when you are off-line,
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you can use LIST (shareware), an editor, or a word
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processing program to review the screen capture file. A
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screen capture text file is often called a capture log
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file.
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SCROLL-BACK BUFFER
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A scroll-back buffer allows you to review past screens.
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This feature is real handy when important information has
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passed by, and you need it immediately while online.
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Often, a scroll-back buffer is activated by pressing a
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key combination such as <ALT> B. Then, you can use your
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arrow keys to scroll-back. A good scroll-back buffer will
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also have a search feature.
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TERMINAL EMULATION TYPES
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Terminal emulation is the ability of your
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telecommunications software to emulate different types of
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terminals. This peculiar term comes from "dumb terminal"
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which consists of a keyboard, a monitor, and no brains
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(or memory). These dumb terminals were used to connect to
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mainframes and minicomputers. These often required a
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particular manufacturer's dumb terminals. Hence, the term
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"terminal emulation." Your telecommunications program has
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different terminal emulations, so your computer can talk
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to a variety of host computers.
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Almost all telecommunications software will emulate TTY,
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ANSI, and DEC VT100/101/102. It is nice to have even
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more. If you want to connect to the Internet, it is
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important to have VT100 (or VT102) terminal emulation.
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MACRO CAPABILITIES
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A macro is a series of keystrokes that are executed when
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a certain key or key combination is pressed. If the
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telecommunications software has macro recording
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capabilities, it can make it much easier for you. You can
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store data such as your name, password, etc., as a macro.
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Suppose you assign your name to the function key labeled
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<F5>. Then, you can press <F5> to type your name.
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SCRIPT LANGUAGE
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A script file is a collection of commands, instructions,
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or text that can be executed by your telecommunications
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program. A script is particularly useful when you want to
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log on automatically to a BBS or online service. Often,
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the better telecommunications programs have an automatic
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script writing feature.
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WINDOWS OR DOS?
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If you are primarily a Windows user, you will probably
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want to use a Windows based telecommunications program.
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Some people, who like DOS, think that using a Windows
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telecommunications program is a little like turning on a
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light switch with a broom handle. It is really a matter
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of personal choice. If you are comfortable in DOS, you
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may find that you can get online work done faster with a
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DOS based program.
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COMMERCIAL, SHAREWARE, OR FREEWARE?
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Commercial software programs are sold by traditional
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software vendors. You will find commercial software at
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your favorite super computer store or software specialty
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store. However, some of the best telecommunications
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programs are available for trial use as shareware.
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Shareware is a method of marketing software for the
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program's author. Shareware programs are copyrighted. The
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manuals for these programs are usually found on the disk
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in the form of a text file. You can print the manuals,
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using your printer. You can obtain these programs for
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trial use from shareware distributors for a copying fee
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of just a few dollars per disk. You can also download
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shareware programs from BBSs and online services.
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Shareware programs require a separate payment to the
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author if found useful. The wonderful thing about
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shareware is you get to try it out before you buy it.
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According to Boardwatch magazine, the majority of modem
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maniacs use shareware terminal programs. A freeware
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software program has copyright restrictions; however, the
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author is not requesting a registration fee. Freeware
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programs can be found from the same sources that offer
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shareware programs. Here are some of the better full-
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featured DOS-based telecommunications programs available
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in shareware: Telix, Qmodem Test Drive, and Telemate.
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Ripterm is an easy to set up freeware program. If you are
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looking for Windows shareware telecommunications
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programs, you should take a look at MicroLink for
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Windows.
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Some commercial DOS-based telecommunications programs
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that are excellent include: Procomm Plus, Qmodem Pro for
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DOS, and Crosstalk Mark 4. Some of the best full-featured
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commercial Windows telecommunications programs include
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Procomm Plus for Windows, Qmodem Pro for Windows, and
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Crosstalk for Windows.
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