`
`Using UUCP and Usenet
`
`Grace Todino and Dale Dougherty
`
`>’ O’ReiIly & Associates, Inc;
`- 103 Morris Street, SuitebA
`Sebastopol, CA 95472
`
`X
`
`.
`
`RACK-1012-Page 1 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 1 of 27
`
`

`

`Using UUCP and Usenet
`by Grace Todino ‘and Dale Dougherty
`
`45%
`*2 {B .
`V {:3 é» 3:’
`; W; g
`
`Copyright © 1991 O’Reilly & Associates, Inc. All rights reserved.
`Printed in the United States of America.
`
`Editor: Tim O’Reilly
`
`Printing History:
`
`February 1986:
`
`First edition; written by Grace Todino.
`
`November 1986: Usenet sections updated to Netnews 2.11 by Tim
`O’Rei1ly, Linda Lamb, and Dale Dougherty.
`
`May 1987:
`
`Updated for Basic Networking Utilities
`(HoneyDanBer) UUCP, Xenix, and Berkeley.
`Sections reorganized and expanded by Dale
`Dougherty. New diagrams added by Laurel
`Erickson. Index added. Revised page design by
`Linda Lamb and Dale Dougherty.
`
`July 1987:
`
`Minor corrections.
`
`April 1989:
`
`Minor corrections.
`
`November 1989: Minor corrections.
`
`December 1989: Minor corrections.
`
`July 1990:
`
`Minor corrections.
`
`February 1991:
`
`Minor corrections.
`
`October 1991:
`
`Minor corrections.
`
`Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their
`products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this
`book, and O’Reilly and Associates, Inc. was aware of a trademark claim, the
`designations have been printed in caps or initial caps.
`
`While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the
`publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages
`resulting from the use of the information contained herein.»
`
`323$
`This book is printed on acid—free paper with 50% recycled content, 10-15%
`post—consumer waste.’ O’Reil1y & Associates is committed to using paper with
`the highest recycled content available consistent with high quality.
`
`ISBN: 0-937175-10-2
`
`[7/92]
`
`RACK-1012-Page 2 of 27 A
`
`RACK-1012-Page 2 of 27
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`

`

`Table of Cbntenis «
`
`Table of Contents
`
`fircface
`
`,
`' Scopc ofThxs Handbook
`DcveloPm<>m.0f UUCP
`. which V’-gysion. Do E I-lave?
`~ The Nutshell Format
`Commands
`Examples
`N919, to Our Readers
`
`Chapter 1 An Introduction to UUCP
`
`A Communications Network
`Overview of UUC? User Programs
`A Sampie UUCF Network
`Idantifying Remote Systems
`And Mark It Wifl1.! (or \!)
`Sending Mai} to Remote Systems
`Sending a File Through the Mail
`Mail Forwarding
`The'Uscne: Network
`
`Chapter 2 File Transfer
`
`Accessing Remote File Systems
`-Us'ing'thePnb1ic Directory
`. Using unto and u1rpick(SyStem V)
`Usmg uucp
`
`Page
`
`.
`..
`xx
`xu
`.........xiii
`.
`7»
`xw
`xxv
`
`.........
`
`xv
`
`1
`3
`5
`7
`8
`9
`10
`11
`12
`
`15
`17
`18
`23
`
`......
`
`........
`...........
`............
`
`RACK-1012-Page 3 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 3 of 27
`
`

`

`
`mi Using UUCP and Usené! .*-.“£'¢"';£!!L*»-ii§“*(=.z'Ws§&?,¥.?3€%§*s3_%f;’a§t3?.'*§’2‘%§§.:*é:;
`
`There are it couple of simple tricks that you can use to combine multi-
`pto flies into a single file for transmission purposos.
`
`1. First create: a list of the tiles to be included. You can do this either
`m2mu_:iI.Iy or with a pmgmm like 15 or find.
`
`V
`
`2. Useo ‘either of the backup programs cpio or tar to create an archive.
`on standand output rather than on a backup dcvico.
`3. Redirect standard output to a file,
`then use UUCP to sand the
`archivc.
`
`4. Use the samo backup program on the target system to restore (ha
`archive.
`
`For example. using find anti cpio:
`
`newtonfi find . -print:
`
`I epic -on >- axrcmivmcpio
`
`or using a manually-gencmted fist of iiienamesr
`
`ne:w1:Gn% epic -cc (_£11o1S.ut > archivmcpio
`
`Then. after transferring‘ arch£vc.cpi0, the remote system, with uucp,
`restores the archive:
`‘
`
`walthamt epic --:!.<:d 4: zrchivmcpiov
`
`(The -4: option of epic wn’tcs header infommzion in ASCII for pormbi1-
`ity: «-6 (ms epic to create directories if needed when doing the restore;
`-i and -0 are used, respectively, to copy files in and out.)
`
`A similar example using tar might be:
`
`newtoni
`
`118.}: of arcbivmtar ‘cat filqlist‘
`
`walthami cat; nrahivedzxr ( 1:aI.r’x£ -
`
`If you are not famiiiar with the use of find, cpio or tar, you may want
`to consuit the appropriate command pages in the UN1XProgrammer’s
`Manual before trying; out uxcse commands.
`'
`
`98
`
`RACK-1012-Page 4 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 4 of 27
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`

`

`Using Netnowsi
`Gatling on the Net
`Net Articles and Newsgroups
`
`Getting Started
`
`Usenet is 3 worldwide neozvorlc of compumrs that run (henctncws soft-
`" wore. As described carlicr, Uscnol is a public forum for the exchange
`of ideas in the form of news azticlcs -that are broadcast to member sites.
`No: users can post articles, xeply by mail or send followup articles to
`previous ones. or simply re.::.cl»the news using the ncmcws programs.
`
`The news messages that one gets on the not are as diverse as the per-
`sons who send them. To bring some structure into this collection of
`uscxs and their ideas. news articles are classified into newsgroups.
`
`Wlxen your system administrator sets up ncmews, he or she may have
`decided to limit the number of newsgroups that your site will twelve
`and broadcast. You can also define a personal list of newsgroups that
`you want to road so that you don’: need to wade through newsgroups
`that you aren't intercstcd in
`
`99
`
`RACK-1012-Page 5 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 5 of 27
`
`

`

`.i s‘.>.’=.; Using UUCP and Usenet aazzzzs;-:m:~;;.:*:; E
`
`E1 Find out what newsgroups are available at your site.
`CI Draw up a fist of newsgroups to which you woukl like to subscribe.
`
`
`
`
`
`..i"
`
`.
`
`The companion handbook, Managing U00? and Usenet, describes
`irxstaliing the ncmows software to set up a link into the Usenax net
`work. Obviously, this must be done if your site is to receivo news.
`
`Probably the easiest and best way to get on the not is to sign up with
`UUNET. a nomprofit, commercial UUCP and Usenet hookup, origi-
`naily funded by Usenix, the UNIX tochnica} usgr’s group. UUNET
`allows you to
`the net via the Tymnct or CompuServe public data
`networks. which have Iocal accuss phone numbers in most major citias.
`The off-peak (evening and weeiccnd) connoct ctinrgcs for Tymnct am
`quite rcasao.nab1o——$5Ihour. Compuscrvo is $5/hour any time.
`Altsxnativeiy. you can arrange to dim up dim-.ctly_, which may be mom
`efiicicag if you are using high-—spocd Tbiebit Tiaiiblazcr modems. (Time
`'i‘x'aiIb1a2cr'i.'s ipiimizczi fofuse wigh UUCP, and is in gcnczal use ax
`mm.)
`-
`
`Uscnix estimates that the monthly cost of a fun news feed is about
`$250. in adéition to the UUNB‘I‘_mombcrship fee of $35/month. The
`acivamtage. is that you will be 11
`'cd in one hop from a backbone silo.
`UUNET also oifcrs an extensive colicction of freely redistxibutabie
`UNIX source archives.
`
`You don’t need to subscxibc to UUNET to be able to use their zmchivcs
`via UUCP‘. By calling 1-9()0»468~7727 and using U13 login “uucp“
`with no password, anyone may uucp any of UUNE'I"s on line. source
`coiicction.
`(Start by copying uunet!/usr/spooilftp/!s—IR.Z, which is a
`compressod index of every tile in the archives.) As of this wfiting, the
`cost is 40 ccnts per minute. The charges will appear on your next tele-
`phone bill.
`
`100
`
`RACK-1012-Page 6 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 6 of 27
`
`

`

`
`_s2;e.a;:s_;:%és.z¢:gzs¢mza§;s§=s::2:;mms;a
`
`Using Neinews
`
`For morc infonmnion, contact:
`
`%
`
`UUNBT Ccmmunicaticms Scrvices
`
`3110 Fairvitgw Park Drive, Suite 4570
`' P.O; Box $324
`Falls Cimrch, VA 22842
`+1 703 876~505€)
`
`info@imnet.uu.rzct A
`uutietiinfo
`
`The articics on the net m classified into n§:wsgroups..accor<Iing to
`subject matter. You can think of a newsgzmup as a bulletin board or
`forum devoted to am: topic. There are hundreds of newsgroups an the _
`net that cater to every need (If mood: ncwsgtcups on technical topics
`such as artificial intelligcncc, programming language standards. or par-
`zicuiar computer systems. as wet! as newsgroups for gardening. bugs
`(the. computer kind) or wipe. A listing (if the current; newsgroups as of
`fax: 1989 is provided in Appendix D.
`
`As of November 1986, newsgroups are divided into seven major
`Cat<:g0ricS,* as indicated by the firsi part of their names:
`
`3 camp —
`
`sci -
`
`' news -
`
`rec—
`
`Groups relating to some aspect of computer science (e.g.,
`compm‘).
`-
`
`Gmups relating to sciences other than computer. science
`(e.g., scztphysics or sci.ma:ix.symba!ic).
`
`Groups relating to the. nemcxvs software (c.g..news.admiI:)
`or of general inwtcst to all net users (e.g., newsmmozmce).
`
`recreational
`to
`relating
`Groups
`rec.arts.qf-lovers or rec.games.cIz¢ss).
`
`activities
`
`(c.g.,
`
`‘Before this data, then: warp only two catsgorios: net, coexisting of gmup: to which any
`one couid post. and mad, consisting of group: in which postings had firsr. to be approved
`by a moderator. ‘Rm mccm division of newsgroups into seven categories was done for
`the: cxpzuss purpose. of hglpixxg xitcs to cxcludc groups they don‘; want to entry.
`
`107
`
`RACK-1012-Page 7 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 7 of 27
`
`

`

`
`
`......_....._._.....'‘
`
`‘
`
`’
`
`;é.2:~n Using UUCP and Usenet ss.:3;s:s=«;s.i;».-inlamsaznznnsstz;§n:zniz‘:.§n:»:a::~3n:
`
`Groups for social interaction or discussion of soéial topics
`(e.g.. socsingles or soc.cuIl::re.;'cwz'.rl:).
`
`to extended lxenlccl discussion (e.g.,
`Groups prone
`taIk.reIigian or taIk.poIz'a'cs).
`
`soc -
`
`talk —
`
`misc -
`
`Groups that don’t {it into any of the other categories (ago,
`m:‘sc.jobs.offered for job poslings).
`
`.
`
`In addition, there may be one or mom local newsgroups that are avail~
`able only in your local area. There may also be: groups found only at
`your site. One of these, called general, is almost certain to exist.
`.
`
`In addition to the sinndard seven llierarchics. and local or regional
`gmups. lime are several alzernative hierarchies. These are created by
`_ groups of people who agree to carry nnd distribute these groups. index _
`penéengiy ofmc standard jhiemmhics. Some. of memajor hicnnclflcs
`3
`are:
`’
`
`:21: ~
`
`’
`
`Short forflnzcmativc." The original alternative hierarchy.
`A major feature is that anyone may create any group they
`plume. Major groups include alngotznnarzd, ::lt.aqnan‘a,
`and altsources.
`
`gm: -
`
`A set of groups devoted to the Free Software Foundations
`GNU project.
`
`pulmet —
`
`Groups devoted to the interests of public access UNIX
`sites.
`
`Monet —
`
`Groups devoted to the exchange of biological informmion.
`
`A brief description of each of the currently available not-wide news-
`groups is usually leap:
`in lzasrflib/iwwsinewsgroups.
`(Your system
`zldministralor might have installed the netnows software in another
`directory than /usr{Iib/news, so inqulreif you don't find this file.)
`
`There are currently over 500 active newsgroups. However, your. sys-
`tem ndminislnztor may not have subscribed to cvcxy newsgroup. since
`keeping all newsgroups can considembly increase telephone name and
`disk space usage. (In particular, sac and talk groups are not carried by _
`many sitcs.) However, all groups will be listed in tho newsgroups file,
`since it is a mirror imagc of another file, the active file, that the system
`uses to keep uacl: of which messages have already been received at
`this site, and which should be rejected.
`
`102‘
`
`
`
`RACK-1012-Page 8 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 8 of 27
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`

`

`3 £§‘§'§7E§§'§°=.‘Zi‘3?*t§
`
`3‘é.'i'IxT§”'é'%‘z‘J:"E<C EVE ‘-;‘s¥f: .-33::
`
`ii
`
`
` z
`',!Lf:cr‘Iooking over the rxcwsgrozcps fiie, you may want to check with
`-- yuur system adzninistmtor to find out what groups are actually avail-
`able. It is rclazively easy to pick up 21 newsgroup that is requested by
`users. so don’: be afraid to ask for 2: group your Systcm doesn’L ordinan
`ilycauy.
`
`Using Nemews
`
`5
`
`' As mentioned above, were are also some local gacwsgroups whose
`names begin with a distribution prefix that restricts use distribution of
`‘-she newsgroup to certain geogmphicak areas or organizations. For
`f example, the prefix “no.” in the newsgroup rze.w(mI£!d indicates that it
`mm oniy ‘ho distsibutcd to-sites in New England. Some prefixes that
`éxcsiommoniy um} are given bciow. St:-11¢-wide distribution prefixes
`ta.k'o tho tivo-{otter abbrevizuion for that state (for cxampic.
`(
`“gaf so; Cafiforuia only).
`
`§Ta5te 751: some Local Newsgroup Name Pmtixes
`
`Distribution
`
`A‘I‘&'I‘
`Canada
`North America
`Unilcd States
`
`
`
`New Engiand
`Similar prefixes exist for other regions
`
`j A newsgroup name. begins with one of the swan catogory names given
`'-above. or one of the meat distribution names, fonowcd by a do: 0 and
`Ema mime or the main group. Newsgroups can {U50 have subgroups.
`neWs.(mn0£:nce.newusers
`is
`{I
`subgroup
`of
`;_For
`exampic,
`§;mv;.at:zzotmce. While news.ezzmom:ce contains general articles that
`might be-interesting for everyone on the net, mZWS.aI2!z0tmc€.I!eWu.S‘£!I‘.s‘
`has a specific audience in mind.
`
`103
`
`RACK-1012-Page 9 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 9 of 27
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`

`

`. Using UUCP and Usene! I3:{S'ét?$'tii1?£-;§3éfI33§i§£i$’§§§3i‘f§??iiifliffffff$§:z’¥§i.r3l§§?-$5?
`
`f.<sje;i:i;ng?s,.ra:n%é‘si:‘
`
`IL is almost a certainty that you will
`The volume of news is enormous.
`not want 10 subscribe to every ncwsgroup——-or even a significant from
`tion of theorem}.
`You can specify which newsgroups you want to read by specifying
`command" line options to the program you nso for reading news. You _
`can also save. those options as a kind of potscmnl subscription list in the ._
`filo .!18W.S'((: in your home ilimciory. This filo is used by the news soft» ,
`waro to keep unck of what articles you have: read. as well as which 5
`newsgroups you want to read.
`This filo is created automatically the first time you me to read news,
`although the procedure differs depending on which of the news inter‘
`face garograxns you use. (There are three programs for reading news in '
`common use: rendnews and mews are part of tho notnows distribu-
`Lion; in is an optional program available at many sit:-4;.)
`
`Creating .newsrc With raadnows
`Dcmils of how to use the three programs for reading news are givfcn in
`the next chapter. For the mumont.1<:t‘s assume you plan to use re-ad~
`m:w§, which is in many ways the most basic of the three progmms.
`The first limo you invoke. readnews, you should automatically be
`shown the newsgroup general. If your ncmows administrator has fol»
`. lowod the installation instructions, you should see sornothing like this:
`2 xoadnows
`
`01:33.
`nrLic1c 1 of 4, Nov 16
`subject: Ruies for posting to Uscnet
`Path:
`..!orn!tim (Tim 0’ReL1ly 8 O'Rei1ly & Associates’!
`(14 Lines) Mote? Iynq)
`y
`This group contains aaveral articles that you should
`read in Fuli before using the net.
`
`104
`
`RACK-1012-Page 10 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 10 of 27
`
`

`

` ».,.:§€§¥2§i§3}?3§3;;.i§¥§§§%
`
`Using Netnews my-.
`
`Atticle 2 contains a paper by Hark Horton entitled "Row to
`Read the Network News." You'll need this to get started.
`
`Article 3 contains a piece by Hatc Bishop entitled
`"Hoe to Use useaat Efiactivuly.“ This article answer:
`frcquencly asked questions abauh the net. and even more
`»impoztanbly. pruvidas some guidelines about posting to the
`net.
`Do nag uau postnews before reading this article!
`
`Acfiicle 4 cantaina a useful piece on copyright law by
`Jordan Bcesluwn
`
`You can go on and mad me articles in general by typing 3/ at the
`~ “{ynq}" prompt each time in is shown to you. After you have finished
`reading (or right away if you want to get on with setting up the .n.ew:r<:
`file), type Q to quit readuews. (Reading news is discnsscd in the next
`chapter.)
`1.
`
`I
`
`_
`
`If you get the message “no news“. than general was empty. Your
`Mwsrc file will not be set up either. Try agaimthis time Using the «:1
`option to specify the ncwsgmups you want to read. The easiest ‘thing
`so do is to type:
`t xaadnnww -n all
`
`Then type 11 to quit without reading news. Jzewsrz: shank! now contain
`acomptctc newsgroup Iist. Let's sac what it might look iikc:
`% ed
`8 mote .nowsro
`comp.ai:
`comp-ai.d1gest:
`comp.aroh:
`qomp.bugs.2bnd:
`comp.buqs.{b3d:
`
`ov
`
`3 Your Jzewsrc file contains the entire list of active newsgroups.‘ Each
`'; ncwsgwup name is followed by a colon. If you have actually read one
`3 or more articles.
`the colon win be foilowcd by {he numbers of the
`: mick-s in the newsgroup that you klaxmactually read. (This is how the
`I softwam keeps from Showing you the same aniclc over again.)
`
`S _
`
`105
`
`....-—os
`
`RACK-1012-Page 11 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 11 of 27
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`

`

`Using UUCP and Usenet 3‘é':‘%?l:':‘i¥§§2%€£ia§?§¥§‘i€¥2’§‘:3‘
`
`I»-
`‘
`
`Modifying .newsrc
`
`Many of the. newsgroups listed in .new.m: may not be of interest to
`you.
`In addition to kcoping track of which articles you have already
`read, Jtewsrc can also be used as your personal subscription lisu
`
`As mentioned above, the progmms for reading news take a number of
`options for specifying which articles you want to
`You can spoo—
`ify newsgroups, titles, or tho dam of articles. However, in most cases,
`you want to look at a number of different newsgroups. and don’t want
`to have to type a lot of command lino options.
`.
`-
`
`You can add on “options" lino as the first line of .mzw:rc, and the
`options on that line will be executed just as if they had been typed on
`the command lino when you invoko a program to read news.
`‘
`
`To select which newsgroups you want to road, scan the firs: line of the
`file with the word “options" and specify the -n ncimportazmroup:
`option, just as you would when invoking the readan-ews or mews
`command.
`‘
`
`NOTE: As a new usor, it is highly rocommcndod max you
`subscribe to nows.an1:0zmc¢.nczwu:ers and new/s.¢2nnau_ncc.
`importaot.ncws.am2ouIzcc.ncwu.9er: contains articles relat-
`ing to proper conduct on the not.
`'l‘h<:so aniclcs are akin to "
`a boginncr‘s primer on Usenet. nc1vs.a:mozmcc.imparIant
`is usod for occasional. very imponant zmnouncomoms.
`
`When using options, you can specify tho newsgroups you want, or
`don't \V31n£-~\NhiC§}{:V'cf is easier. An exclamation point preceding the
`newsgroup nmno means you don’: wmlt to see it. To specify all sub
`groups within :1 group, you can :.1>ocify“‘oll" following the name of the
`newsgroup.
`(For example, compxxll means all comp groups. all by
`itself moans all groups.)
`‘
`If the list goes over more than one ‘line, begin subsequent lines with
`spaces or labs, and they will be lrczltcd as oonzinumion lines.
`
`For example, you might include an options lino likc this:
`
`options -531 news. all comp. sourcomunix comp.t;oxt;
`
`This line will subscribe to all groups in the mrws category plus the two
`specific groups camp.sources.unix (public domain UNIX software.) and
`comp.text (text processing).
`
`106
`
`.
`
`RACK-1012-Page 12 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 12 of 27
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`

`

`«'
`
`'13$f§§'2'i'é’¥€3%'i%$1€:72§3’?3?§‘<"5éW§‘;?.5‘35$?-3’?i$§i%$‘%§§§3‘§§3%:}
`
`L/8177.9 NGIHBWS “.K‘~"
`
`Or you could specify an options line like this:
`
`!zc<:<:.a1.1 \
`Ita1k.a}.l Esocaall
`optiuns -n all
`!sc1.antro !cump.bugs.2bsd Lcomp.bugs.4bsd
`
`. 4
`
`This line will subscribe to alt gmups cxcept mi: groups listed with
`’' eccciatnation points. Note that yen cannot simply specify a list of
`groups that you don't want without specifying some that you do want.
`' The exclamation point is_ gcncraily used in this case to specify sub-
`groups that you don‘: want; within 2: general group that you do want to
`see.
`
`If you are planning to specify 2: {mg list of groups that you do or don't
`want, there is another way‘ of doing this that may be easier in ‘the long
`mm
`.
`A
`
`1. Specify the options lino options «:1 an at the start of JXCWSFC.
`2. Start reading néws. Just read enough of each newsgroup to sci: if it
`interests you (otherwise you’Il be there forever).
`If you want to
`subscribe, typo N to jump to the next nenvsgroup. If you never want
`to sac the ncxsvsgrczup again. there is a command to unsubscribe.
`Unfortunaieiy, it differs‘ for each of the three ncwsrcading pro-
`grams. In readncws, type U, in vnews, type ug, and in rn, type 2:.
`3. Aitcmativcly, you can go down the list of newsgroup names in
`.new.m:, and insert an exclamation point instead of a colon imme-
`dintciy following each newsgroup name that you don't want to see.
`For cxampic:
`m£m:.Ranl:ad!
`
`means that you have unsubscribad to misc.wa:2led. Changing the
`“£” chamcmr back to a “:" renews your subscription to this group.
`
`Order of Newsgroups
`
`On many systems, ncsvsgroups are presented in the order in which they
`appear in .new.rrc. You may want to sort .n8WSI‘C so that the ncws«
`groups you are most interested in are at the front of the file.
`
`
`
`RACK-1012-Page 13 of 27
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`RACK-1012-Page 13 of 27
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`

`:
`
`:; Using UUCP and Usenet ;z§:§m§;:~:ss_z.:::~::=:a:sasma;:,ii;:2:,m;:'az;.:sfijmg;
`
`The newsgroups are initiafly listed in the order in which they appear in
`your sys£cm's active file. Your system adminisumor may have already
`ordered this file to put important groups first; however, by default, they
`are listed in alphabetical order.
`'
`
`Creating .newsrc with m
`
`If you plan to use m to read news (see the next chapter for details),
`you can 16: m prompt you for a list of newsgroups you want to sub-
`scribe to. It automatically runs the newsetup program and creates the
`.ne-wsrc file if it docsn’t. exist. the first timc you invoke m. If JLEWSIC
`aixcady exists, it makes a backup copy cailcd oldnewsrc.
`t rn
`‘
`Trying to set up a .uewsrc file-—runninq ncwsccup...
`
`Creatihg .n0wsrc in /usr/jchn to be used by news programs.
`Done-
`V
`
`If you have naver used the naws system before, you may
`find the articles in news.announ¢e.newuaers to be
`helpful. There is also a manual entry for ru.
`
`To get rid of newsgroups you aran‘t interested in, use
`the ‘u’ command.
`Type h for help at any time while
`running tn.
`'
`
`% T
`
`he 1: command in m will autommically append an cxclamzzuion point
`after the name of each newsgroup you select for “unsuhscription”.
`rn
`alsn includes a command to reorder the .I38W.S‘I'C for you.
`
`1
`
`08
`
`RACK-1012-Page 14 of 27
`
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`

`

`Reading News
`Programs for Reading News
`. Reading News with m
`Finding Out Where You Are
`
`
`
`Once you have set up your personal subscription list, you can start
`xmciing some of the news in your ncwsgmups‘. Let's assume that your
`mwsrc fits has been set up as described in the previous chapter.
`
`These are three commands used so read news: mews, readnews and
`:21. (tn may not be aizaiizxblc at your site. Currently, ma standard»dis~
`uibution has rezxdnews and vnevrs. but not m.)
`
`In this chapter, you will loam how to:
`Cl Read news using vneivs, readnews and m.
`
`{J Display a listing of articles in a nowsgmup.
`
`D Choose a newsgroup or article to read.
`[I Save an article in a tile.
`
`109
`
`RACK-1012-Page 15 of 27
`
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`

`

`.2.
`
`..». Using UUCP and Usenet 2.‘-,*:~.t9.>:2..*sétteium
`
`Note: that this chapter is designed to introduce you to the topic of read-
`ing nctncws, and docs not prcscnt all of the options available with each
`of these programs. After you have used tho uctxtcws software for a
`while. youshouldygct _a copyof the man pages for rcadnews and 1'11.
`which prc3cnt'addi'tiot:~a'1‘ dz-tails. ‘These pages may be available on-lino
`with tho mancomntaud, or you can ask your system aciministmtor for 11
`C013)’.
`
`
`
`'
`
`’I1:e vnews, readnews and rn programs differ in the number of options
`they allow. They also differ in stylc and speed.
`(readnews is not
`screen oriented. vnews is faster than rn for some things, slower for
`others.) This affects their case of use and flexibility in moving through ‘
`newsgroups and articles. But more are some basic similarities among
`them, and they are summarizod hero:
`- When you invoke any of those: programs, the first unread article of
`the tits: newsgoup in your Jwwsrc file will be displayed. So, it is
`good practice to reorder your ncwsgroups so that the more impor-
`tant oucsfare listed first.
`‘
`- A news article, is said to be read if you go thtouglrthc entire article.
`I-lotvcvor. um ooutmzthos ‘thatalloxv you to mark an article as
`rcadwvitltout _actua_lly‘ going through it, or to uuuké it as unread
`when you have actually finished reading it. Once an articlois read.
`you nommlly cannot go back and reread it the next time you
`invoke any of tbcscv programs.
`~ Thcsc programs use a paging program to break the article into
`pages. You can use some of the pagcfs commands to control your
`movement through the file.
`
`‘ A news article always consists of two parts: the header and the body of
`tho news‘ The header lists some or all of the following information:
`- Article number in the newsgroup. Each article received at your site
`is automzmcaliy assigned :1 nuntbcx.
`~ Network address of the Sender.
`
`110
`
`RACK-1012-Page 16 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 16 of 27
`
`

`

`3 .
`
`._E El
`
`L?.§;%?1§,“.f‘?§?L5L";§-fir”;{£35
`
`l R? iii if ifiifi
`
`§"3s*xi—.~’x¥‘.z ‘sf
`
`Reading News
`
`'
`
`I
`I
`
`-
`
`_:
`
`- Ncw3group(s) to which it belongs.
`
`- Subject.
`-. Usenet message If}.
`
`- Date sent byxtho author.
`
`- Date received at your site.
`- Name of the organfzotion from which it was sent.
`~ Number of lines in the body of the text.
`
`A Word About Options
`
`L The three news-handling programs take quite 2: few different éommand
`line options. As suggested above, you will eventually want to read the
`. man pages for each program, since there: may be options you want to
`experiment with.
`
`' However. more is one useful so: of opti‘ons_ that readnews and mews
`3 have in common. Those ogations give you more comm! over wlmt you
`= wont to read than is given bfinewsrc. They i:nc_lude:
`;
`-n newsgroup:
`
`only show .artic1os in.ncwsg’raups. If you specify
`mozie_£ftan-.ono nowsgtougggroups in tho liso should
`be sepora':od‘by spaces. not commas.
`
`-t lilies
`
`-:1 {date}
`
`-3:
`
`-
`
`«K
`
`'
`
`Only show agticles with "titles. You don’: need to
`remember the exact title. cities is any string that is
`contained in the title, so you can search for at key-
`word or two, if you like.
`
`Only show articles more recent khan date. date
`‘should be in zmnfddfyy format.
`
`Ignore the list of already-road articles in .!l6WSr£.'.
`That is, show all news; even if it has previously
`been read. This option is generally used together
`with one of the other options.
`
`Mark all articles as read. whether tl1oy’vc been seen
`or not. This option is sometimes useful when you're
`starting out, sincc it allows you to ignore the now»
`tmxlation of old news and read what comes in on a
`
`_ (lay-to-day basis.
`
`11?’
`
`RACK-1012-Page 17 of 27
`
`RACK-1012-Page 17 of 27
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`

`

`Using UUCP and Usenet gm;-2-;:';2%.2sé£m%i$ts§é%z»i:‘2
`
`
`
`tm::&::az::w;‘= ¥
`
`You can also use these options (except ~K) with checknews, aprogram
`that simpiy reports whether or not there is news. For example:
`i chocknown ~n comp.1ang.pasca1
`There in news.
`
`If there is no news, checknews wili retum without printing any mes~
`sage.
`‘
`
`VRBWS
`
`Once .new.m: has been set up, vnews can be invoked without any argu-
`QXCIIISZ
`
`% vnowa
`
`Newsgroup news: . announce
`
`I\.L"l21C1(? <502@<:bosgd.UUCP> Nov 16 06:36
`Subject: rcsultx of callfifior-papers poll
`Path:
`..!cbosgd!ma:k
`(49 lines)
`
`more?
`
`news.announce 69/112
`
`Nov 16 1:33
`
`In the firs: 22 lines of the first page, mews displays the name of the
`newsgroup, than the header of the fits: unread artieic.
`It then prompts
`you (“more?“) -for what to do next. Press
`to see the next
`page, or the next unread article when you have read the curmnt one.
`Press ":1" if you want to go to the next article without reading the cur-
`rent article. The Inst line aiso teiis you that the current artictc is num-
`ber 69 out of H2 articles in this newsgroup. It zflso prints today’s” date
`and. time. when you reach tlxc end of the artiste, mews wit! prompt
`you with “next?”.
`The other commoniy-used commands of mews are givcn below. Note
`that you do not have to prom RI~.“1‘URN after entering a command. Enter
`-\
`at any time to get 3 complete menu of vnews commands onlinc.
`
`111?
`
`RACK-1012-Page 18 of 27 ‘
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`

`

`
`
`Reading News ms:
`
`' Description
`Mark current news as unread.
`
`Go forward x article.
`
`I
`
`Go to previous article.
`
`Select article by number #
`
`Go back to parent article (the inst anicle this is a fab
`lowup to). Toggie: between parent and cuxrcnt article
`with -.
`'
`
`Go backward x pages.
`80 forward 2: fines.
`
`Go backward 2: lines.
`
`Save article infiie.
`Post a reply to the article you just
`(See: Chapter 8 first.)
`
`Rcgly by mail to an article.
`
`00 to named newsgroup.
`
`Unsubscriba to this newsgroup.
`
`rorR
`
`<csc>R
`
`N news
`
`ug
`
`T9 get out of mews. press “q". vncws automatically goes to the next
`newsgroup when y<3u'vc read an previousiy unrmd mtickcs in the can
`' rent newsgroup.
`
`readn-ews
`
`rcadncws is sirnilar to vncws. Aftcr the header is displayed. you get
`the prompt “[yuq]". The main difference is that readnews is line ori-
`ented, while mews is screen oriented.
`I raadnews
`
`.........-._
`
`113
`
`RACK-1012-Page 19 of 27
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`

`

`Using UUCP and Usenet
`
`‘ff.
`
`.. r
`
`’
`
`V
`
`.
`
`01:33.
`Article 69 of 112, Nov 16
`Subject: results of call—for—papers poll
`Path:
`..!cbosgd!mark (Mark Horton @ Bell Labs, Columbus)
`(49 lines) More? [ynq]
`y
`[First, I'd like to correct the previous article. Due to
`
`-—MORE—— (87%)
`
`After displaying the header, readnews gives a more prompt and three
`command options that have the same meaning as in vnews. In the
`above example, we entered “y” (for “yes”) so vnews displayed the first
`page of the article. At the bottom of the first age, you get another
`more prompt for your next action. Press
`to see the rest of the
`
`article.
`
`Some of the commands of readnews are listed below. The “?” key
`gives a menu of the readnews commands online.
`’
`‘
`'
`
`Table 8-2: some readnews Commands
`
`
`Command
`
`
`
` Description n
`
`No. Go to next article.
`
`#
`
`q
`
`U
`
`‘Go to article number # in the current newsgroup.
`
`Quit this newsgroup.
`
`Unsubscribe from this newsgroup.
`
`N [news]
`
`Go to named newsgroup. Default is next newsgroup.
`
`s [file]
`
`Append article to file. Default is "Articles".
`
`Reply by mail to the author of the article.
`(See Chapter 8 fiI'St.)
`
`Mark this article as unread.
`
`Go back to last article.
`
`Back up one article in current newsgroup.
`
`Mark remaining articles in this group as read.
`Print current news version number.
`
`r
`
`e
`
`—
`
`b
`
`K
`bv
`
`1 14
`
`RACK-1012-Page 20 of 27
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`

`

`Heading News 5*‘
`
`'
`
`rn
`
`rn is a more complex program that claims to reduce the “dead” time
`you spend in deciding whether to read an article or not. It is not a part
`of the standard netnews distribution, but may be available on some sys-
`tems.
`It gives you the flexibility to move in and out of articles and
`newsgroups and perform other tasks such as pattern-matching using
`regular expressions. The syntax is:
`‘
`
`rn [option] [newsgroups]
`
`You can enter rn alone or with a named newsgroup.
`
`the newsgroup selection
`rn lets you enter commands at three levels:
`level, the article selection level (within the newsgroup), and the pager
`level (within the article). All three levels have their own prompts,
`commands and -a menu of these commands. We will describe only
`some of these commands since you can press “h” at any time in order
`to get a menu of the commands at each level.
`
`When you invoke rn, it first looks for your .newsrc file, performs some
`. consistency checks on it, and then checks whether new newsgroups
`have been created that are not in your file. It thenprompts you if you
`want to add these newsgroups to your .newsrc file.
`
`% rn
`
`***RN NEWS***
`
`Checking out your .newsrc——hang on a second...
`
`Checking active list for new newsgroups...
`
`Newsgroup‘talk.rumors not
`
`in .newsrc —— add?
`
`[yn] n
`
`Put newsgroup where?
`
`h
`
`Newsgroup comp.mac.sources not
`
`in .newsrc —— add? [yn]
`
`) implies that you want to ignore this-
`Typing “n” (without a
`newsgroup.» m then romts ou for the next unlisted new newsgroup.
`Typing “y” or a
`indicates ‘that the newsgroup is tobe
`default is given first. Typing means to use the default.)
`
`added to Jzewsrc. (Whenever ou are iven the option in brackets, the
`
`115
`
`RACK-1012-Page 21 of 27
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`RACK-1012-Page 21 of 27
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`

`

`
`.:1:':;= Using UUCP and Usenet :3%;;»,;=.2:v:s>zommazgzzs;-:%s.z2:<z:s:a=s
`
`§:§i%{t§§3£x
`
`'
`
`The new newsgroup is simply appended to the end of tho existing
`Jzewsrc file.
`'I‘yp‘<: “h". as we have done above, to get :1 menu of com-
`mands if you want to change the order of the newsgroups. mwin go
`on pmmpting you umii it runs out of new newsgroups. 4
`
`-:< ax,
`
`04m?
`:
`H .x...”-'
`~'
`5%-3
`-"fie.-.~.
`aé
`‘t2r\{Acii
`
`If there are no newsgroups, rn goes directly to we newsgroup selection
`level. It displays the number of unread articles in your newsgroups,
`and then asks you if you want to start reading the ar£ic:Ics;in the first
`newsgroup.
`% In
`Unread news in neu3.announco
`Unread news in naws.m£sc
`
`5 articles
`9 articles
`
`nu
`
`"H 5 unread articles in news.announcc~—w-ad how? Iynq} ;
`
`The last line is the prompt at the newsgroup selection l<:vcL__ The thrcfi
`command options have the following meaning.
`'
`
`Tabie 8-3; Prompts at the Newsgroup Love!
`
` From 1
`
`3'
`n“
`(1
`
`Description
`
`
`Read this newsgroup now. Also.
`Go to the next newsgroup.
`‘
`Quit the m program.
`
`Note that you do not press
`prompt.
`
`'
`
`after entering xhc. options at this
`
`116
`
`RACK-1012-Page 22 of