# ARACHNE HELP PAGE: Internet and E-mail

by Bastiaan Edelman

### You can do both with a single dial-up telephone call !
Exit Arachne with Alt+X
Did you use the wizards to properly set up ARACHNE?
If not, please do so by pressing the O key for Options

# Internet:

Before you can surf the World Wide Web, you first have to dial up your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
Type Alt+D [Dial] to establish the connection.
You will then be connected to the "HomePage" (default = http://arachne.cz)
Do you want to visit a different URL? Use the F3 key and type the new URL in the URL box and press ENTER.

Do you want to disconnect from the Web? Use the Alt+H[Hang up] key to disconnect the phone.

* Not all internet sites can be viewed with Arachne. Sites using "java script", "flash" or secure connections (https), e.g., to your bank, will function only in part or not at all.
* You can alter the starting "HomePage" in the arachne.cfg configuration file.

# E-mail:

### Press the M key for Mail

Now you are on the Mail Page. The icons you see are activated by a mouse click for the 'service' you want to use.
Click the icon and not the caption. Several icons have a caption with a character underlined, called the Hot Key. E.g., the hot key for the Inbox is I.

### Get new mail

Click this icon to collect your mail from your ISP. If you are not already connected to your ISP, Arachne gives you an Error page with an option to key Alt+D to dial, connect, and thus access your provider's e-mail service.
If there is any mail, Arachne will download it and place it in the INBOX where you can view it, either immediately or after disconnecting.

If you have mail in the OUTBOX that is ready to send, do it now while the telephone line is still open. Click on the "Send Unsent Mail" icon.

To keep telephone costs low, hang up the phone NOW => Alt+H.
Surfing the Web, sending outgoing mail, and downloading incoming mail .... all are possible with just one phone call.

### INBOX

The INBOX contains the incoming mail.
Do you want to read a message? Click on the green text of the subject line to open the message, including attachments.
Although it is safe to open attachments in Arachne, it is a good custom to delete any e-mail, including all attachments, if you are uncertain where the e-mail came from or in any other way do not trust the mail. (About deleting: read on.)
A virus is a (small) program that is meant to DO some (nasty) things. Arachne does not allow programs coming from outside Arachne (internet, e-mail) to execute, i.e., DO anything. Pretty good protection, isn't it?
Most viruses are aimed at the Windows operating system and can notrun under DOS, another good protection.

Arachne can handle these types of files:
- .TXT = text file
- .HTM = HTML text

- .JPG = image
- .GIF = image
- .BMP = image

- .DOC = an MS-Word text file.
  * However, since MS-Word runs under Windows, we have to use a support program like VIEW.EXE. The "Word" file will then be converted to plain text and the images included in a "Word" file will not be shown.

  Files that cannot be handled by Arachne can, like allfiles, be saved to any directory on the hard drive of the computer, a diskette, or even to a CD and then handled by appropriate programs.
  Example: you received an e-mail with a .pdf file attached.
  Save the .pdf file to disk or (if you are running in an MS-DOS window) to a Windows directory where it can subsequently be viewed, e.g., with Acrobat Reader in Windows.
  * It is possible to view .pdf files with DOS and Arachne, but this is a complicated matter for advanced users only.

  ### Save with F2 key

  The default subdirectory for saving your files is .\download. You may change the destination directory and the filename to what you like, but do not change the extension.
  DOS does not allow long file names; up to 8 characters may be used before the extension. A valid file name in DOS is: 12345678.ext or abcdefgh.txt.
  Example: You have an e-mail in your inbox with the subject "Holland Promotion". Opening this e-mail by clicking on the green text in the subject line will show the message, the name of the message, and all attachments sent with this message.
  The message is stored in the Arachne .\mail subdirectory and has been named by Arachne to something like: 01414700.cnm. All incoming mail receives a .cnm extension.
  This raw version of the message, as received from your ISP, can be renamed and saved into any directory in your system. Let's save it...
  Open the message and press the F2 key. If you want the e-mail message renamed to new-name.cnm and then saved to .\download\new-name.cnm, change the default "Save to: .\download\01414700.cnm" to your preference.
  The e-mail has an attachment called nl.pdf. If you click on the attachment the next screen states: "Arachne does not know how to handle this file" and offers to save it as .\download\nl.pdf. However, you would like to save nl.pdf to a diskette with the new name holland.pdf.

  #1 Insert a diskette into the A: drive
  #2 Change the proposed filename from .\download\nl.pdf to A:\holland.pdf
  #3 Press the ENTERkey

  Attachment #2, holland.jpg
  Arachne displays .jpg, .gif and .bmp images. These images are shown on your monitor. Since the image attachments are already opened by Arachne they cannot be saved with a simple click on the attachment name.
  Place the cursor on the image and mark the image with the Shift+Enter keys. Next use the F2key to choose the destination and name to save this image.

  More generally, you can save any image shown on the monitor by placing the cursor over that image on the screen, pressing Shift+Enter (you will see the image again, but now isolated from text or other images), and saving it using the F2 key.

  ### Use hot key P [printer]

  With the Printer command in Arachne you can print your files, but TEXT files only!
  You have a choice of actually printing to paper or to "export" it to a file ; choose export and give the file name and destination.
  * You have to use a DOS-printer. "Win" printers will NOT function. A "Post Script" printer is best, it will also print images.

  ### Upper left-hand corner:
  Move... | Trash » | Forward... | Reply |

  These buttons are useful for determining the final disposition of your e-mail.

  ### | Move... |

  Moves the e-mail to one of the dedicated "mail folders". Mail folders can be made, filled and deleted... play with this toy and enjoy.

  ### | Trash » |

  This button moves your unwanted mail to the waste bin. Files can be recovered out of the trash bin. Use hotkey M [Mail] and click on the "Trash" icon to access the message, or click on the "Empty Trash" icon to delete it permanently.

  Delete
  You can also delete your mail from the Inbox directly. Click on the green subject line NOT with the left mouse button (to read the mail) but with the right button - the mail is now colored yellow. Press the DELETE key and the message is gone; no recovery possible.
  You may mark several messages yellow and delete them all at once with the DELETE key.

  ### | Forward... |

  Forward a message to someone. Pay attention to the address!
  You can add comments and attachments to the message to forward. Save the message to the OUTBOX with the 'Save to OUTBOX [F2]' button.

  ### | Reply... |

  A reply to a message is not difficult. A click on the REPLY button will do.
  But first you have to decide if you want your reply to go to the "From" or "Reply to" address, and if you want to include the original message or to start with a blank screen. The choice is yours.
  After you have made your choices, click on Reply and the color of the message text will turn to green on a black background, i.e., if you are in the internal editing mode and not using an external editor.
  Type your new text or your comments to the message you are replying to.
  Attachments must be attached now in the attachment boxes.

  Text from a .txt file may also be included.
  Place the cursor where you want the extra text inserted.
  Type CTRL+R [Read] and give the file name and the full path to where it is located.

  EXAMPLE:
  You want to insert the text file example.txt from a diskette.
  CTRL+R [read text file]
  Type: A:\example.txt
  ENTER

  After the completion of your reply mail: press the 'Save to OUTBOX [F2]' button.

  ### Mail folders

  Clicking the "mail folders" icon will show you the existing mail folders. Click on one of them, and you are able to view, edit, forward or delete the e-mails saved in the mail folder the same as in the INBOX.

  ### Sent Mail

  Mail already Sent is stored in the .\MAIL subdirectory.

  Extensions:
  ...cnm = see new mail in inbox
  ...tbs = to be send mail in outbox
  ...snt = sent mail

  With the Sent Mail icon you can open, edit, delete and resend already sent mail.

  ### Compose mail

  The hot key C [COMPOSE] invokes the internal editor. You may have met this editor already by using the F4 key or in replying to an e-mail.

  Sometimes the 'word wrap' feature does not seem to wrap. Check if there is a space at the end of the line. If so, press the END key and remove that space. 'Word wrap' should now work properly.

  Inserting a (text) file into your message.
  You are a scout and you have written a piece of text residing on your HD under C:\scouts\hobby.txt. Do you want to type it all over again?
  Of course not! Place the cursor on the spot where you want 'hobby.txt' to appear.
  Press CTRL+R
  Type: C:\scouts\hobby.txt and press ENTER.

  Attachments
  Only .txt files can be inserted into your message by CTRL+R. All other files, images, zip, word, pdf, etc. must be attached to your e-mail. However up to 4 attachments are allowed.
  Place the cursor in the first attachment box and give the file name and the full path (if files from outside the Arachne directory are to be attached).

  ### Send Files

  If you have more than 4 attachments to send, use the Send files icon on the Mail page.

  ### OUTBOX

  All files ready for uploading to your ISP are located here. You can view them and if you are not happy, you may Modify them.
  When modifying your mail, all attachments are lost and must be attached again.

  ### Send unsent mail

  Click on the icon to send your unsent mail. If you are not already connected to your ISP, you will get an Error screen with an option to dial Alt+D.
  Are all messages sent? Check by clicking on the "Sent Messages" icon.
  Press the M hotkey and Get New Mail to check if there is any new mail. After downloading this, use Alt+H to hang up the phone!

  ### Address book ...... Make mailing list

  Many viruses use an 'address book' to copy themselves to all your friends. Although Arachne can't be used by a virus to copy the address book the best protection is not to use it at all...

  ### Use e-dress list

  All e-mail addresses are stored in the file 'e-dress.txt' with each entry on a separate line like this:

      "Bastiaan" <bastiaan.pa3ffz@hetnet.nl>
      "Redactie CQ-PA" <cqpa@vrza.org>
      "Zwarte Piet" <pieterman@sinterklaas.sp>

  The e-dress list can be found in the main Arachne directory: as "e-dress.txt" or at the bottom of the Inbox/Reply page or at the Compose new mail pages. Help for e-dress is present there too.
  You might also use F3 and make the URL: file:e-dress.txt . Changes to the list can be made with hot key F4 [edit file].

  ### !TIP!

  Suppose you want to send all the members of your family an e-mail.
  Make a mailing list, or copy the addresses to a new list, just like the e-dress list format.
  Call this list 'family' (no extension) and save the family list to the Arachne main directory.
  Type in the "To:" field of your e-mail "@family" and Arachne will send your message to all addresses on your "family" list.
  The addressees cannot detect the names of the other addressees on the list; just "@family" is shown.
  Type your own address as the last entry on that list, to check out if this really functions.

  ### Trash and Empty trash

  Use "Trash" to recover and "Empty Trash" for final deletion of e-mails.

  ### More help...

  More help will be translated... but this is all for now.
  Use your Arachne and play with it...

  homepage: http://home.hetnet.nl/~ba8tian/index.html