Last updated 1-August-97 HELLO! Welcome to the University of Michigan's Macintosh Public Domain and Shareware Archive! This file has been created to give you an introduction to the archive and to answer some frequently asked questions that might be brewing in your head at this point... WHO: There are seven (7) archivists for the archive. Michael Dautermann (myke@umich.edu) Suzi Nassen Stefl (stf@umich.edu) Scott Damask (sdamask@umich.edu) Howard Levine (hlevine@us.itd.umich.edu) Peter Swanson (pjswan@engin.umich.edu) Jay Hennessey (henn@mac.archive.umich.edu) Chris Thomas (macdude@mac.archive.umich.edu) as well as three dudes, who were original archivists and still serve as guidance-givers: Robert Churchill (rjc@umich.edu) Mike Kuniavsky (mikek@umich.edu) Dave Koziol (koziol@umich.edu) If you have questions about any files or regarding the archive, you can send them to us at "questions@mac.archive.umich.edu". Collectively, you can send a message to "comments@mac.archive.umich.edu" and that message will reach all of us (the first person to retrieve the message will most likely answer any question or suggestion first..) WHAT: The archive is running under a BSD Unix environment using the AFS network which holds the actual archive files. All folks at the University of Michigan, as well as out on the Internet, are encouraged to participate in discussions in our newsgroup "umich.archives". It's relatively quiet there, but one post usually can start an avalanche of conversation. ALL users with access to anonymous FTP facilities are encouraged to use mac.archive day or night, but we'd prefer if you called during off-peak hours if at all possible. At this time, there are no restrictions on the number of simultaneous FTP sessions, so you shouldn't have any problems getting on. If you have AFS access, you can bypass ftp and help our ftp machine out by creating a symbolic link to our archives in your AFS home directory (we're in /afs/umich.edu/group/itd/archive/mac). For more information about AFS, please consult the file /doYOUhaveAFS 1) What is the mac.bin directory all about? This directory applies ONLY to users at the University of Michigan. This is the "natural" version of the archive (all files are unstuffed and unhexed) that can be "mounted" as an AppleShare volume onto the Macintosh desktop. Unfortunately, ftp users can't use this directory at all. If you'd like to access our mac.bin directory, the solution is to install AFS client software >AND< "netatalk" software into a Unix machine. Netatalk is a program that you can install on a Sun 3 or 4, Dec Station or VAX, and IBM RT or RS6K's. It allows Macintosh computers access to the Unix directories and file systems. To the end user, it looks and acts like an AppleShare file server. The source is freely available from "terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu" in the "/unix/netatalk" directory. For information, check out the info at "http://www.umich.edu/~rsug/netatalk". AFS (which is also referred to as Andrew File System) connects universities and research sites around the world together. The mac.archive files are kept on an AFS server, and Unix machines running the client software can "cd" (change directory) into the directory holding the archive files directly (i.e. bypassing ftp). To the typical user, it's as if mac.archive was on your local machine. If you'd like more information on the AFS network and technology and its advantages, you can send e-mail to "afs-sales@transarc.com" or phone them up at 1-412-338-4400. 2) What are the .AppleDouble files? Referring back to the last question, these are the Unix equivalent of desktop information of a mac.bin file and are appropriate only for use when using the archive at the U-Michigan. FTP folks should ignore these. 3) What do .cpt, .sea, .sit, and .hqx mean? These filename extensions are tacked on to help you figure out the utilities that you will need to get the finished software. All of our files have been converted from binary to ascii/text format using BinHex 4.0 format. A MacBinary copy is available in our 00help directory for you to transfer as binhex4.0.bin. Be SURE to transfer this file with BINARY or IMAGE mode (or MacBinary mode if using a terminal program or FTP client that supports it). If you already have a working copy of StuffIt, Stuffit Expander, or Compact Pro, DO NOT BOTHER downloading BinHex 4.0. Stuffit and Compact Pro both can encode and decode BinHexed files. Each of these programs (Stuffit, Compact Pro, Stuffit Expander) does a better job of it than the original BinHex 4.0. Files and directories are compressed into smaller, easy to manipulate "archives" using one of the popular compression utilities. Files that have the .sit extension have been compressed with Stuffit. .cpt extensions denote Compact Pro files. Archiving programs and utilities are available in the "util/compression" directory. To make things difficult, the extension .sit can refer to any of three completely different compression schemes: StuffIt 1.5, StuffIt 2.0, and StuffIt 3.0. StuffIt 1.5.1 (the "Classic" StuffIt) will decode *only* the first of these formats. If you are having problems, please consult the index and make sure you are using a program that will decode the compression format you have. Another extension you will see is .sea (Self-Extracting Archive). This type of file is a double-clickable application that will automatically uncompress itself when launched. The advantage is that you don't need a utility or decompressor to use it, but it can aid in virus transmission, so we convert submitted .sea files to their regular archive format (.sit, for example). We use .sea files only in special circumstances, such as an actual archiving program or installer. After all, compactpro1.33.cpt.hqx would not do you much good since you couldn't unmangle the unmangler. On very rare occasion, you may run across a .pit (PackIt) file. These archives were pioneers in Macintosh file compression and archiving, but today they're completely obsolete. StuffIt 1.5.1 and PackIt 3.0 will both uncompress .pit files, but PackIt is no longer supported, so it's unlikely that you'll see one. You WON'T find one lurking around on mac.archive. (StuffIt and Compact Pro are, as are most of the files on mac.archive, SHAREWARE! Remember to pay your shareware fees to support the development of these fantastic programs and utilities.) It goes like this: If you have a file called foo.sit.hqx Then what you do is start from the right side of the name and work your way left. In other words, you want to get the file "foo". On the right you see the suffix ".hqx", so you know that you have an ASCII-encoded BinHex format file. The first thing you need to do is get it into a binary file for further processing, so you can fire up your favorite archiving program (StuffIt or Compact Pro) and unbinhex it. The "textbook" method of handling files tells you to use the BinHex 4.0 application to unbinhex files, but since the archiving apps in use today include the ability to encode/decode binhex files, BinHex 4.0 is unnecessary, but you will need it to unbinhex the actual archiving programs! There is a MacBinary copy as 00help/binhex4.0.bin. When FTP'd to your local host in binary mode and transferred to your Macintosh in MacBinary mode, this file will be ready to use. For Self-Extracting Archives, all you need to do is double click on the file, and it will extract itself. So if you have a file named bar.sea.hqx You would first unbinhex it, and then double click on the file to extract it. 4) What about .Z? As .hqx is the standard suffix for BinHexed files, .Z is the standard suffix for files encoded with the UNIX program "compress". The only files that we store in this format are files that require UNIX systems to run. However, we are aware of some mirrors of our archive that store copies of *all* of our files in this format. We think this is a really silly thing to do for many reasons, not the least of which being that it defeats the purpose of the BinHex encoding. Still, we have little control over our mirror sites: we are offering our files for free distribution, after all. To decode a file inding in .Z, you must get it in BINARY mode during your ftp session. If you transfer it to a UNIX host, the command "uncompress filename.Z" will usually produce a straight BinHex. If for some reason this is not possible or doesn't work, the program MacCompress (/mac/util/compression/maccompress3.2.hqx) will decode this format on your Macintosh. 5) What about .gz? This is very similar to .Z, except the files were encoded with the UNIX program gzip. All of our above comments regarding .Z files hold here, too. A Macintosh-based gzip extractor is available at mac.archive.umich.edu as /mac/util/compression/macgzip0.0b.cpt.hqx 6) What does mac.archive.umich.edu do to protect us from viruses? Unlike other Internet "Mac" archives, we test each and every one of the files that appears in our "incoming" directory and in our mailboxes addressed to mac.archive. We use the most-up-to-date virus detection inits and control panels (Disinfectant, Gatekeeper, etc.) to insure that the files that are added to the archive are not carrying anything that can harm your Macintosh and your/our work. We also make these public domain/shareware virus detection packages available to you as fast as we receive them in our "util/virus" directory. HOWEVER (LEGALESE DISCLAIMER) -- WE ASSUME NO LIABILITY OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR DAMAGE CAUSED BY FILES RETRIEVED FROM THE ARCHIVES AT MAC.ARCHIVE.UMICH.EDU. WHERE: 1) Where to find the index and abstract (description) files Work continues on the index files -- here are the latest versions. The index files are modified every time new files are added to the archive. Index info can be found in these files in the 00help directory: allfiles.txt (446K) a list of all files in the Mac archives index.txt (1322K) complete list of all files with sizes, compression schemes, and detailed descriptions for each index.tab (1171K) a tab-delimited version of index.txt suitable for importing onto the database of your choice newfiles.txt (10K) list of files added in the last two weeks 2) Where are closer "mirrors" that I can ftp to? Mirrors are anonymous ftp sites in other locations around the Internet that run special scripts to keep up-to-date copies of everything that can be found in mac.archive.umich.edu. It is sometimes more efficient (and faster) to ftp to these sites instead of directly to mac.archive. We are aware of thirty-six (36) official mirrors currently. == Asia Hong Kong: ftp.hk.super.net:/mirror/mac Japan: ftp.ims.ac.jp:/pub/mac/umich Japan: ftp.crl.go.jp:/pub/mac/umich Japan: ftp.inter.spin.ad.jp:pub/Mac/Merit.mirror Japan: ftp.riken.go.jp:/pub/mac/umich Japan: ftp.eos.hokudai.ac.jp:/pub/mac/umich Taiwan: nctuccca.edu.tw:/Macintosh/umich-mac Taiwan: ftp.ccu.edu.tw:/pub/mac == Australia Canberra: sunsite.anu.edu.au:/pub/mac/umich Melbourne: ftp.bf.rmit.edu.au:/pub/mac/umich Mulgrave: ftp.bhp.com.au:/mac/mirrors/umich Sydney: gatekeeper.digital.com.au:/pub/mac/umich == Europe England: src.doc.ic.ac.uk:computing/systems/mac France: ftp.loria.fr:/pub/mac/umich France: ftp.planete.net:/pub/mac/umich Germany: ftp.uni-paderborn.de:/Mirrors/mac.archive.umich.edu Germany: info2.rus.uni-stuttgart.de:/afs/umich.edu/group/itd/archive/mac Germany: ftp.uni-regensburg.de:/pub/comp/os/macos Greece: ftp.forthnet.gr:/pub/mac Italy: ftp.unina.it:/pub/mac/umich Italy: cis.utovrm.it:/umich Poland: sunsite.icm.edu.pl:/pub/mac/umich Sweden: ftp.luth.se:/pub/mac/mirror.umich Sweden: ftp.sunet.se:/pub/mac/umich (*1) Switzerland: nic.switch.ch:mirror/umich-mac Turkey: ftp.bups.bilkent.edu.tr:/pub/umich-mirror == Middle East Israel: ftp.technion.ac.il:pub/unsupported/mac/umich == North America Arizona: ftp.amug.org:/pub/mirrors/umich California: mirror.apple.com:/mirrors/mac.archive.umich.edu California: ftp.cdrom.com:/pub/mac_Umich Illinois: uiarchive.cso.uiuc.edu:/pub/systems/mac/umich Missouri: wuarchive.wustl.edu:systems/mac/umich.edu Oregon: ftp.orst.edu:/pub/mirrors/archive.umich.edu Quebec: ftp.synapse.net:/mirrors/mac.archive.umich.edu Utah: ftp.pht.com:/pub/mac/umich Virginia: mirrors.aol.com:/pub/mac (*1) - this site in Sweeden also has FSP, Gopher and WWW access through http://ftp.sunet.se. If you have lots of extra disk space and some cpu to spare, think about setting up your machine as a mac.archive.umich.edu mirror. Send a message to "mike@mac.archive.umich.edu" for exclusive details. 3) Where are WWW Interfaces for mac.archive? We have a World Wide Web Interface installed at "http://www-personal.umich.edu/~sdamask/umich-mirrors" and the archive is also directly available through "http://www.umich.edu/~archive/mac". We will also have a server at "http://www.archive.umich.edu" but it's not yet available so stay tuned for more on that. Other folks have also put together WWW gateways to the archive. One of the more cool interfaces we've seen is available at "http://ubu.hahnemann.edu/UBUdex/UBUdex.html". Andrew Brennan (brennan@hal.hahnemann.edu) created routines and scripts to parse our massive index into a easily readable format separated by directory and connected to our archives via Gopher links. A UK interface was done by Martijn Koster (koster@nexor.co.uk) at "http://web.nexor.co.uk/mac-archive/mac-archive.html", and a third is run by Baron Chandler (baron@cristofori.msc.wku.edu) at "http://www.msc.wku.edu/Dept/Support/Tech/MSC/Macintosh/search_umich.html". There is also a searchable http interface for the archives at "http://www.fagg.uni-lj.si/cgi-bin/shase/About/mac-umi". WHY: 1) Can't users retrieve files from the incoming directory? Generally, we try to have the files refiled and tested (to see if they work and screened for viruses) within 2 or so days. FTP users can see the files in the incoming directory; they can also put new files into this directory (and they're encouraged to.. see below), but they can't retrieve anything. Be patient, if you see it there, it'll probably reappear in it's proper place in 48 hours. 2) Does BinHex 4.0 give me error messages after I have downloaded it according to the instructions above? If you are getting the error messages "System Error -39", "System Error -199" or BinHex 4.0 "cannot be opened because app that created it cannot be found", then you have NOT downloaded it according to the instructions above, whether or not you think that you have. Remember: MacBinary transfer in the final step to get the program to your Macintosh, Binary transfer every other step along the way. 3) Don't the files unbinhex correctly? This problem creeps up on us every now and then. The cause can be blamed on several things (garbled mail, incomplete transfers, bad nullines, etc.), but since programs like StuffIt and Compact Pro are used by droves of Mac faithfuls daily, it is safe to assume that these applications are doing their job properly, so if a file won't unbinhex, it's a good bet that it's been corrupted. If you run into such a file in our archives, PLEASE drop us a line at comments@mac.archive.umich.edu and we'll take care of it, and drop you a line when the problem is solved. However, don't mail us without trying to de-binhex a file with either StuffIt or Compact Pro. There are several programs, including at least one auto-de-binhexer, that choke on legitimately binhexed files. Ironically, there are many files that even BinHex 4.0 can't de-binhex. Neither Compact Pro nor StuffIt have this problem. When you download BinHex 4.0, you should immediately download either StuffIt or Compact Pro, decode it, and trash BinHex 4.0 (Really...). If you cannot download files directly to a Macintosh but you instead must transfer them through another computer (such as an IBM compatible, for example), you're stuck. You need to bootstrap yourself, and there is *no* simple way to do this. Once you get a working copy of BinHex 4.0 (or Compact Pro, or StuffIt) installed on your Mac, you're all set, but there are *only* two ways to do this: download it directly to your Mac or get a copy on disk from a friend. It is impossible to get a working copy of BinHex 4.0 (or Compact Pro, or StuffIt, or any related program) from an IBM compatible without having one of those programs present on your Mac FIRST. Also, remember that BinHex files are pure TEXT, so they must be transferred in ASCII or TEXT mode at all times. Transfers in BINARY or IMAGE mode will more often than not just corrupt the file. 4) Can't I get into the umichlicensed directory? In this special directory we keep University of Michigan site licensed software, such as MacX or Maple. This is software available only to U-M affiliated people and as such, we can't allow anonymous access to these files. If you are a U-M student or staff member and have a "umich.edu" uniqname (e.g. my uniqname is "myke"), you shouldn't use the mac.archive.umich.edu anonymous ftp sites for your file transfers, but instead use machines that allow authentication, such as the ITD Unix Login service (e.g. "login.itd.umich.edu"). You can ftp there with your uniqname and kerberos password, cd into "/afs/umich.edu/group/itd/archive/mac" and retrieve files from all the mac.archive directories, including the umichlicensed directory. This same philosophy applies to the mac.bin directory, you need to have "/afs/umich.edu/group/itd/archive/mac.bin" added to your AppleVolumes file. You can then authenticate to the IFS/AFS servers and access the materials in the UmichLicensed folder. 5) Can't I Gopher files from UM's GopherBLUE? Users who attempt to transfer files through UM's GopherBLUE service will get a "can't transfer in secure mode" error. The reason for this is that the server doesn't know what kind of machine and method to use to get the files to you. Obtain an UNIX account and use that machine's Gopher client to hook up to "gopher.archive.umich.edu" and transfers should go smoothly. HOW: 1) Can users upload files? Of course! Please do! The best (fastest) way to get files to our archive is to ftp-put them into the incoming directory, then e-mail "questions@mac.archive.umich.edu" and let us know that you've submitted a file. This way we'll know there's things to be done, and also know who to contact if the files don't work "as advertised." You can also e-mail files to mac.archive (and many other international mac archive sites) by sending your binhexed/compressed files to "macgifts@mac.archive.umich.edu". There is no need to send a confirming message to "questions", nor will you receive a confirmation back (it's just a mail-exploding alias). It's a good idea to put some type of explanatory blurb, or introduction, before the BinHex file in the message you send to "macgifts". A more detailed description of our submissions policies can be found as /mac/00help/submissions.txt 2) Can users retrieve files by mail? We have our own mail-server named BART. Send BART a message at mac@mac.archive.umich.edu with any subject and the single word 'help' (no quotes) in the body of the message for complete instructions. 3) Can users access the archives without using ftp? Certainly! In addition to BART and afs access, we have a gopher server at gopher.archive.umich.edu. You will need MacTCP and /mac/util/comm/turbogopher. The above mentioned mirrors are usually current within a day, too. 4) Can users get on the groovy recent-files & news mailing list? This is the very same list of new files and information that is mailed out, somewhat irregularly (around every two weeks or so), to the "comp.sys.mac.digest" Usenet group. To get on the mailing list, send a message to the address "mac-recent-request@mac.archive.umich.edu". It'll be a human answering this address, so don't send blank messages or single word "help" notes. We like knowing exactly what you want us to do. Once again, thanks for taking the time to read this introduction note. We're working hard to make this one of the most popular archives available on the Internet. Let us know if you have any questions, comments or ideas. We value your support, and appreciate your feedback. Have a groovy time on mac.archive!