alt.usenet.offline-reader FAQ (01/02) intro
a.u.o FAQ
Alt-usenet-offline-reader-archive-name: intro
Posting-Frequency: biweekly
Original-Author: Rhys Weatherley
Last-modified: 2001-Apr-07
Posting-Via: news.demon.net (mail2news)
Not-Posting-Via: my connectivity provider who doesn't do news for uucp now
Not-Posting-Via-The-Cable-Modem-Because: I don't want to
auo == alt.usenet.offline-reader
FAQ == Frequently Asked Questions
The FAQ lists for alt.usenet.offline-reader can be found on the Internet:
<ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/alt.usenet.offline-reader/intro>
<ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/alt.usenet.offline-reader/software>
<http://www.faqs.org/faqs/off-line-readers/usenet/intro/>
<http://www.faqs.org/faqs/off-line-readers/usenet/software/>
============================================================================
part 01/02 intro
1 Credits and Disclaimer
2 Spam
3 Other sources
4 QWK and Crayons
5 Overview
6 Newsgroups of interest to offline readers
7 What is an offline reader?
8 What is the difference from getting a news feed?
9 What are QWK and BlueWave?
10 What is SOUP?
11 What is ZipNews?
12 Where are tutorials?
13 Where can I find the Good Netkeeping Seal of Approval?
14 Why does Forte Agent get its own group?
part 02/02 software
100 Where can I get the software?
200 Where are the QWK readers?
300 common sites, template
400 author contacts
500 ftp sites
600 miscellaneous
700 packers
800 readers
============================================================================
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: Credits and Disclaimer
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
This FAQ is based in part on one by Dave Cheung <Dave....@infocom.co.uk>,
last posted to alt.usenet.offline-reader in April 1993.
It was updated and posted by Rhys Weatherley for a while.
It was then digestified and hardly modified by Russell Schulz
<auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG>
Whilst every effort has been taken to ensure the information contained
herein is correct, neither the current author, the current poster, nor
any previous author or previous poster can accept ANY LIABILITY WHATSOEVER
for errors, ommissions or damage howsoever caused.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: Spam
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
you wouldn't believe how much spam I get to this address.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: Other sources
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
many people have publicly complained that the FAQ is useless or worse.
you are certainly encouraged to mail them and ask them for their
insight, and stop reading the FAQ now.
aside from this, I will mostly stop responding to these or similar
non-points in the newsgroup or mail.
here are some quotes -- I hope you find them as humorous as I do -- the
last few are hilarious.
--> From: ni...@secant.com (Nick Knight)
> It's a shame that the FAQ's available to the general public are effected so
> negatively by the whims of their author(s), and/or a small "circle" of
> off-center extremists.
> This FAQ contain WAY too much pointed personal opinion. Can it be cleaned
> up and made more useful, or is it destined to simply express the outdated
> viewpoint of one or two hard.heads?
--> From: ni...@secant.com
> This FAQ certainly takes the cake for being the most worthless one I've
> ever read. I don't really care what the tone of the rest of the net is
> ... it doesn't disprove my point in the least. Nice try, tho.
> There'd be hope, but Russell is in charge of this one. The ultimate
> net.bitch.
--> From: ni...@secant.com (Nick Knight)
> I'll take this oportunity to point out that some of these "answers"
> aren't as valuable as a new user might think. That's a shame, but
> because these "answers" are maintained my one or two close-minded
> old-timers, some of the "answers" are nothing more than pointy opinions,
> and in fact, are fact-less.
--> From: ni...@secant.com (Nick Knight)
> Good for you. Your FAQ still is inaccurate and based on pointed
> opinion, nomatter *what* your follow up header "suggests". It sucks,
> and if it's posted in all these newsgroups, I'll crosspost and say so in
> all of them.
--> From: ni...@secant.com (Nick Knight)
> Now, quit trying to change the subject and answer the basic claim. Your
> FAQ sucks and is made worthless by the interjection of massively
> inaccurate opinion.
--> From: jako...@sentex.net (Joe Kovacs)
> A constructive FAQ is badly needed.
--> From: sys...@concentric.net (Martin Pollard)
> I'm more than willing to create, and post, an alternative FAQ, one which
> is long on actual facts and short on opinions (especially those of the
> closed- minded variety). The current FAQ will be a good start, at least
> as far as raw information is concerned; the editorializing will, of
> course, be sent to /dev/null.
--> From: ni...@secant.com (Nick Knight)
> Hmmm. I've toyed with this idea myself ... at first I thought I'd
> create a "FAQ about the alt-usenet* FAQ ... the real story"-type thing.
> I think it might be more useful to actual create a real "alternate" FAQ
> with some real information. It couldn't possibly be any worse than what
> already exists!
--> From: ni...@secant.com (Nick Knight)
> As for "having to do with QWK" or not, who cares? I mean, WHO CARES?
> You keep wanting to get so infinitely technical, and nobody needs to
> look that hard. The files are created with a QWK extension.
--> From: ni...@secant.com (Nick Knight)
> At this point, while I'd love to actually see the FAQ corrected, I'm more
> interested in unstubbornizing Russell. We've had public and private
> exchanges, and my personal opinion is that Russell possesses less
> intelligence than a centepede.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: QWK and crayons
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
using QWK for Internet mail or Usenet is like using wax crayons for all
your business correspondence. it'll get your message across, but only
to those people who don't throw it away without opening it.
this is because QWK has small limits on certain essential headers,
and does not allow certain other essential ones. some QWK packers
try to compensate by recreating the headers and removing the truncated
data, but such efforts are prone to failure.
of course, some formerly-QWK packages also can ignore the truncated
headers and use full headers in the body of the text -- which they
correctly manipulate, just like any other correct newsreader. it's
nice that these authors have started to catch up to the rest of the
crowd. but since this can be done only by ignoring the QWK headers,
they can not be seriously referred to as QWK messages anymore.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: Overview
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
A common question on netnews these days is "how do I package up my
mail and news to be read offline?". This FAQ attempts to answer
this question for e-mail and netnews, to point the reader at
relevant software, and to describe some of the ongoing efforts in
this area. Other networks such as FidoNet, CompuServe, etc. are not
covered.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: Newsgroups of interest to offline readers
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
alt.usenet.offline-reader is for the discussion of offline systems
for netnews in general. This includes the installation and use of
offline systems, and the discussion of "packet formats" to
facilitate offline activities.
comp.os.msdos.mail-news is for the discussion of any aspect of
managing RFC-compliant mail and news on MS-DOS machines, and is
not limited to the discussion of offline activities.
comp.os.os2.mail-news is for the discussion of any aspect of
managing RFC-compliant mail and news on OS/2 machines, and is
not limited to the discussion of offline activities.
comp.os.ms-windows.apps.winsock.mail \ for the use of winsock-compatible
comp.os.ms-windows.apps.winsock.news > mail, news, and other applications
comp.os.ms-windows.apps.winsock.misc / (including SLIP/PPP access)
alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent is for the discussion of Forte, Inc.'s
Agent and Free Agent newsreader/mail agents.
alt.oui.support is for the discussion of Peak to Peak's OUI (Offline
Usenet Interface) at <news://news.privatei.com/alt.oui.support> only
[defunct]
alt.sys.amiga.thor is for the discussion of the Amiga package Thor
news.software.readers is for the discussion of news software in general,
and specific packages which aren't already covered in a more specific group.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: where does `offline' begin?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
==begin FAQ caption==
From: Rahul Dhesi <dh...@rahul.net>
Newsgroups: comp.mail.pine,news.software.readers,comp.mail.misc
Message-ID: <3k6bv8$t...@hustle.rahul.net>
Date: 15 Mar 1995 09:28:08 GMT
Suppose I have a high-powered Sun machine that gets, oh, 6 incoming
newsfeeds totalling a couple of hundred megs a day. If I read or
post news on it, am I reading or posting offline? (Probably not, you
might say.)
What if I cut it down to, say 2 incoming news feeds and 50 megs a day?
One incoming newsfeed and 3 megs a day? A sporadic incoming newsfeed
that's rather selective based on my tastes, a couple of hundred
kbytes a day?
Just what is meant by offline news reading?
==end FAQ caption==
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: What is an offline reader
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
The concept of offline reading comes from BBS world where a user
connects via a modem to the bbs, and downloads a file (usually
called a packet) containing all unread messages since the last
connection. Then a program is used, to extract the messages from the
packet, read them and reply to them, creating a reply packet to be
uploaded at the next connection. This saves time (the bbs lines are
less engaged) and money (on phone bills). It also means that the
user can make use of much friendlier reading tools than can be made
available in an interactive login environment.
For the purposes of this FAQ, "offline" is defined to mean the
following: "transferring mail and news in some form from an existing
interactive account to a user's machine, usually via a modem, so
that the messages may be read while the user is not connected to the
account, and so that replies may be composed to be uploaded to the
account at some later time to be injected into the network".
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: What is the difference from getting a news feed?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
Another definition of "offline" pertains to the system administrator of
a mail and news site (usually a UUCP site) who reads mail and news while
the machine is not physically connected to the network, usually with
some friendly third-party utility. This usage is common in the Waffle
community.
It is often the case that your server can provide you with an automatic
transfer method to send you mail and news. This is called a "feed" and
can be received by modem using the UUCP protocol (among other methods).
There is no big difference with the "offline reading" concept except
that it is a little more automated. If your home machine runs on a
multi-tasking system, or you can dedicate it to mail and news all
night long (when you're asleep -- probably easy to do) you can even
set it to call the server regularly. You can also start feeding other
machines if you wish.
The disadvantage is that traditionally, getting a feed has been a lot
more complicated, needlessly so, than using an offline reader. Another
disadvantage is that some providers charge more for a uucp connection
on top of a shell connection or slip connection.
One advantage of the uucp approach is that uucp is designed to _only_
transfer files. You don't have to worry about your ProComm script
accidentally leaving you logged in for nine hours on a long-distance
connection until you find it in the morning, waiting for you to press
`Enter'. If a uucp connection is idle, the other system will disconnect,
since it's not expecting anyone to be there to press `Enter'. You can
also more confidently set your machine to dial up at 3:00 am when system
response is quickest, the phone lines to your provider are never busy,
and any long-distance charges drop as low as they go.
Also, it is almost always easier to get a free uucp connection than a
free shell account with offline-friendly capabilities (for instance,
most FreeNet sites don't).
SNUUPM is a package designed to allow simple installation of the full
UUPC, SNews, and PMail (Pegasus Mail) packages.
uufree is another such installation and configuration suite, but none
of the included packages is shareware, and the installation time has
been kept to an absolute minimum -- and most of the configuration can
easily be done by the site giving you the uucp feed.
At the start, especially if you want few newsgroups, you may want
to begin with an offline news reader and then maybe move to a
feed when you feel more confident.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: What are QWK and BlueWave?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
QWK and BlueWave are the names of popular packet formats in the BBS
community. QWK was originally created to get messages for PC-Board
bulletin boards and FidoNet "mail areas" (the equivalent of netnews
newsgroups). It became a de-facto standard since more and more QWK
readers are available not only on MS-DOS machines but on all
architectures.
However, the QWK and BlueWave formats are not capable of carrying
RFC-compliant messages such as Internet mail and netnews. Some
efforts have been made to adapt QWK to netnews, but at best the
extra information present in netnews messages has been ignored by
existing readers, and at worst the extra information is truncated
or lost. Some of this information, for example the Message-ID:
and References: headers, is very important to netnews, and the
loss of this information causes problems for other netnews
readers.
Some packages try to put all the RFC-compliant header information
in the _bodies_ of the messages, which creates a lot of ugly
messages when these aren't intercepted, but also doesn't solve
the problem of creating _correct_ headers, since the QWK programs
will just let any old garbage out, and your messages can silently
disappear, without you getting any warning until it's too late.
As mentioned, there are already a _ton_ of QWK readers. if you're
looking for a programming project, see the next section. it'll be
about as much work, but a lot more fun because it's a lot less
likely to be ignored once you finish.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: What is SOUP?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
SOUP == "Simple Offline USENET Packet" format. It is intended as a
replacement for QWK in the netnews community. The messages stored in
SOUP packets are completely RFC-compliant so that no critical
information is lost. Software which supports SOUP on a variety of
platforms is available. See "Where can I get the software?" later in
this FAQ for more information.
SOUP was originally called the "Helldiver Packet Format" or HDPF, and
was devised by Rhys Weatherley (met...@sprintmail.com) near the end of 1992.
A variant of HDPF, called the "Simple Local News Packet" format or SLNP,
was devised by Philippe Goujard (p...@oasis.icl.co.uk) soon afterwards.
SOUP now combines the features of both HDPF and SLNP. Rhys Weatherley
currently maintains the "official copy" of the format document.
The SOUP format document may be found on any (old) SimTel FTP mirror as
msdos/offline/soup12.zip
The latest copy may also be obtained by mailing Rhys Weatherley at the
above e-mail address.
SOUP also has the ability to download "summaries" of message
areas. That is, downloading just the header information for the
user to peruse and then choose what messages they want to be
downloaded later. This can be useful in very large newsgroups
where a user typically only reads a few messages and wishes to
avoid downloading the rest of the "noise". This feature is not
currently widely implemented however.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: What is ZipNews?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
ZipNews is an offline reading system that was developed
independently by Jack Kilday (jki...@nlbbs.com). It is primarily
intended for Waffle, PC-Board and Wildcat! systems, although the
UQWK package can generate ZipNews packets (and process ZipNews reply
packets) on Unix systems. Two known ZipNews compliant readers exist.
SOUP and ZipNews formats are superficially very similar, and it is
not inconceivable that a reader for one format could be adapted to
read the other format. The original ZipNews reader can also function
as a local newsreader for Waffle system adminstrators.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: Where are tutorials?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
m...@cpcug.org (Michael Kirk)
I still have the file (offline.zip) available thru my Home
Page (http://cpcug.org/user/mtk/) but havn't had the time in
months to update it.
brass...@bigfoot.com (Kevin Martin)
I have expanded and edited the Hands-On How-To in an effort
to make it more "Web-friendly." It now includes hot links
to many of the add-on and maintenance utilities discussed
here and on the YARN mailing list.
This html version is at http://brasscannon.com/Yarn/
sa...@uta.fi (Sami)
I've written a small manual about reading the news offline with uqwk
and yarn.
This file is public domain. You can add it to FAQ's, give it to your
friends interestered in offline reading etc. Just keep the author
information in the text.
This text is also available via WWW and Gopher. With WWW, use URL:
http://www.uta.fi/manuals/offline.html
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: Where can I find the Good Netkeeping Seal of Approval?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
The Good Netkeeping Seal of Approval
http://www2.thecia.net/users/rnewman/Good-Netkeeping-Seal
http://www.xs4all.nl/%7Ejs/gnksa/
http://http.bsd.uchicago.edu/%7Etwpierce/news/
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o intro: Why does Forte Agent get its own group?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent was created because of the high
volume of traffic Agent/Free Agent users created which was useless to
a significant number of readers. that's why we get most any new group.
a key reason was many Forte users' unwillingness to simply put the
word `Forte' into their Subject: headers, which made it needlessly
difficult to filter messages. many messages simply mentioned the
version of the software, which was inconsiderate at best.
some FAQ sites I've seen posted:
William Guynes' site:
http://users.arn.net/~wguynes/forteagent/agentfaq.htm
ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent
Automating Free Agent/Agent:
http://crash.ihug.co.nz/~geoff/agentfaq.htm
a.u.o FAQ
Alt-usenet-offline-reader-archive-name: software
============================================================================
part 01/02 intro
part 02/02 software
============================================================================
Whilst every effort has been taken to ensure the information contained
herein is correct, neither the current author, the current poster, nor
any previous author or previous poster can accept ANY LIABILITY WHATSOEVER
for errors, ommissions or damage howsoever caused.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o software: 100 Where can I get the software?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
100 Where can I get the software?
There are two pieces of software that you will need for any offline
reading activities. A "generating program" (also known as a "packet
generator" or "door") to build the packets on the BBS or login account,
and a "reading program" (also known as a "packet reader") to read the
packets on your home machine. This section lists software that can be
used for each of these activities, together with the authors, FTP sites,
and packet formats supported.
In the case of interactive dial-in users, you may find that a suitable
generating program may already exist on the system you call: ask the
system administrator if you are unsure. For Waffle systems, you will
need to ask the system administrator to install the generating software.
For Unix, anyone who has access to a C compiler can compile and install
the currently available software, so no intervention from the system
administrator is required.
101 Where are the reviews?
not here.
if you are looking for reviews, post your requirements and see who
else knows what you need. please do not be vague -- no one can help
you when you just say you're looking to evaluate some `offline
software for your computer'. what kind of computer is it you're
using? what is the computer it's connecting to? what do you want to
do -- mail, news, both, more? how much are you willing to pay? what
sort of interface do you need? how sophisticated are you? etc.
I will not be putting any reviews in here, partly because they would be
difficult to maintain, and partly because I want to avoid any flak from
a negative review which I did not write.
if you want to periodically post a collection of reviews, go ahead.
you don't need my approval.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o software: 200 Where are the QWK readers?
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
200 Where are the QWK readers?
not here. I don't plan on listing any software that mangles headers
as much as QWK does.
some QWK software also can also be instructed to ignore the QWK headers
and use correct headers in the bodies of messages, and product fully
compliant messages. obviously, this has nothing to do with the QWK
format anymore (since all the QWK information is ignored), and requires
support from the unpacker to also use these body `headers' and ignore the
(useless) QWK headers.
the SlipStream Jet packer tries to compensate for QWK limitations, but
often fails unless you have a very long expiry time and/or you
frequently upload your replies, because it needs the original, unmangled
articles to rebuild the missing headers.
so, look elsewhere for QWK readers. if you must.
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o software: 300 common sites, template
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
300 Common sites, template
If you know of any other products that support offline activities for
RFC-compliant mail and news, please send the following information in
mail to auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG . Also, be sure to post your announcement,
to make sure everyone knows about it.
Name: [Product name]
Author: [email address]
Location: [ftp site] [filename] *
Type: Packet Generator/Packet Reader/Both
Environment: [msdos][mac][ms-windows][os2][atari-st][unix][etc.]
Formats: [soup][zipnews]
Description/Comments:
* the Coast to Coast Software Repository seems to have disappeared
in mid-1998.
for the Coast to Coast Software Repository collection, just use
`coast' for the ftp site, and give the first two directories
(e.g., `msdos/offline') plus filename. the main mirror is
ftp.coast.net:/Coast -- if you connect to
<http://simtel.coast.net/Coast/> you'll get a list of mirrors.
most files can be found at <http://simtel.coast.net/Coast/msdos/>,
and in particular <http://simtel.coast.net/Coast/msdos/offline.html>.
Coast to Coast seems to be in the process of discontinuing their
Software Repository.
Coast/SimTel had decided to stop allowing files which do not include
the address and phone number of the author, which annoys me
to no end. there are rumors that this policy has been dropped;
if not, consider alternate sites.
the special entry ``simtelnet:'' indicates the SimTel.net
collection, available in many places, including CD-ROMs, and its
main ftp mirror, ftp.simtel.net:/pub/simtelnet/ -- if you connect
to <http://www.simtel.net/simtel.net/> you'll get a list of
mirrors [?].
SimTel.net, which is clearly not a network provider, and is thus
badly misnamed, is a new Walnut Creek site.
for the Cica ms-windows collection, just use `cica' for the ftp site,
and give the first directory (e.g., `util') plus filename. on cica
itself, the ms-windows files are in ftp.cica.indiana.edu:/pub/pc/win3/
see also ftp.winsite.com , cica's new home.
for the sumex-aim info-mac collection, just use `info-mac' for the
ftp site. one of the main info-mac sites is sumex-aim.stanford.edu .
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o software: 400 author contacts
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
400 author contacts
soup met...@sprintmail.com
zip zip-...@wkuvx1.wku.edu
unzip zip-...@wkuvx1.wku.edu
getnews p...@oasis.icl.co.uk
solar kjh...@iowegia.des-moines.ia.us
uqwk se...@gte.com
uqwk-js j...@xs4all.nl
uqwkselector se...@gte.com
zipnews jki...@nlbbs.com
hpv met...@sprintmail.com
slnr p...@oasis.icl.co.uk
unor rrus...@nyx.cs.du.edu
zipnewsreader jki...@nlbbs.com
yarn cth...@io.org
yarn cth...@vex.net
yarn-os2 cth...@io.org
yarn-os2 cth...@vex.net
yarneditorsh p...@login.dknet.dk
yarnfoldutil brus...@stud.uni-frankfurt.de
paperboy va...@clark.net
rfdmail y...@world.std.com
toadnews jp...@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca
pronto pro...@commtouch.com, [800-63-TOUCH,+1 415 578 8580]
nnrnews he...@login.dkuug.dk
offlinepgp staa...@ifi.uio.no
versatermlink max...@sales.synergy.com
soupcmd com...@prism.gatech.edu
macslurp ...
offliner [was: hark...@metronet.com; now unknown]
offline-orbit j...@krk.fi
williamsnews rwil...@netcom.com
snuupm mla...@apies.frd.ac.za
uufree uuf...@locutus.ofB.ORG
macsoup s...@berlin.snafu.de
readmail Jeroen....@let.ruu.nl
newswerthy bi...@eskimo.com
newshopper n...@sw15.demon.co.uk
newsfetcher h915...@idefix.wu-wien.ac.at
rnmac rrw...@io.org
okami w...@bara.oche.de [old?]
okami Michael_...@ac2.maus.de
okami jo...@xs4all.nl
tetrix Joha...@tetrix.internet-eireann.ie
winyarn ?
souper cth...@io.org
souper cth...@vex.net
souper bo...@mcs.com
wssoup mag...@world.net
olmenu kgre...@america.net
sonr kgre...@america.net
wsomr wa...@durian.usc.edu.ph
nautnews [formerly stro...@xmission.com]
forte-agent agent...@forteinc.com
autonews E...@cityscape.co.uk
vweave in...@virtuoso.com
ddigest bo...@mcs.com
foldscan jhog...@mirage.skypoint.com
postroadmail inn...@ibm.net
thor th...@hstud6.cs.uit.no
imail aste...@ddj.com
phhnews fra...@thing.xs4all.nl
newspkg ccr...@xensei.com
newsxpress ke...@hk.super.net
turnpike in...@turnpike.com
netcetera netc...@airtime.co.uk
bobs-sumfile bo...@mcs.com
uqwk-sel-dos brus...@stud.uni-frankfurt.de
oui sa...@dvorak.com [?]
oui +1 303-661-0345 [?]
quickelm ba...@btp2x5.phy.uni-bayreuth.de
shownews rr...@ecst.csuchico.edu
bluewave blue...@cris.com
nfx ni...@westonia.com
tropical mi...@ksc.au.ac.th
virtualaccess 70007...@compuserve.com
virtualaccess sa...@atlantic-coast.com
gravity sup...@microplanet.com
palmtopreader Mic...@hk.net
nettamer nett...@cei.net
nettamer-ware tom...@net-connect.net
pgmail pet...@ix.netcom.com
golded od...@goldware.dk
snarfnews [withheld by request]
soup2pkt jff...@poboxes.com
mountainrdr awa...@pacifier.com
offlinelist jhan...@kannoncom.com
why ddo...@mcs.net
slipit-ukappp khw...@mvmpc9.ciw.uni-karlsruhe.de
slippper sup...@circularlogic.com
wippper sup...@circularlogic.com
@ccessnews sup...@vamail.com
niespnr ni...@inf.fu-berlin.de
hogwasher hogw...@asar.com
yirx [not given explicitly; see the web pages for a big hint]
plor ...
newsflex j...@panteltje.demon.nl
pronews ...
multimail wmcb...@clark.net
beinformed ...
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o software: 500 ftp sites
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
500 ftp sites
soup coast:msdos/offline/soup12.zip
soup http://www.gatech.edu/acm/soup12.html [error 1998/May/13]
soup http://www.yak.net/combee/soup12.html
zip ftp.uu.net:/pub/archiving/zip/*
unzip ftp.uu.net:/pub/archiving/zip/*
getnews ftp.adelaide.edu.au:/pub/news/readers/off-line/slnr/ ...?
solar coast:msdos/waffle/solar094.zip
solar ftp.netis.com: ?
solar http://www.netins.net/~kevin/solar.html
uqwk ftp.gte.com:/pub/uqwk/uqwk1.8.tar.Z
uqwk-js http://www.xs4all.nl/%7Ejs/warez/js-ware.html
uqwkselector ftp.gte.com:/pub/uqwk/us/us1.1.tar.Z
zipnews coast:msdos/offline/znews97g.zip
hpv coast:msdos/offline/hpv101b.zip
slnr ftp.adelaide.edu.au:/pub/news/readers/off-line/slnr/*
slnr ftp.freebsd.org:/pub/FreeBSD/ports-current/news/slnr/patches/*
unor ftp.gte.com:/pub/unor/unor0021.zip
zipnewsreader coast:msdos/offline/znr093b.zip
yarn coast:msdos/offline/yarn_088.zip [not latest]
yarn-os2 ftp-os2.cdrom.com:/os2/comm/yrn2_088.zip [not latest]
yarn http://www.vex.net/yarn/archive/yarn_091.zip
yarn-os2 http://www.vex.net/yarn/archive/yrn2_091.zip
yarneditorsh coast:msdos/offline/yes-020b.zip
yarnfoldutil coast:msdos/offline/yutil04.zip
paperboy ftp.clark.net:/pub/vart/pboy205.zip
rfdmail garbo.uwasa.fi:/windows/comm/rfdml122.zip
toadnews ftp.halcyon.com:/pub/tisk/tidbits/uucp/
pronto [retail package] eval: commtouch.com:/pub/commtouch/eval.exe
nnrnews coast:msdos/offline/nnrnews2.zip
offlinepgp coast:msdos/offline/apgp212.zip
versatermlink [retail package - nothing ftp-able]
soupcmd ftp.gte.com:/pub/soupcmd/soupcmd.tar.gz
macslurp ...
offliner [old: metronet.com:/pub/xfer/ol06a.zip]
offliner ftp.oslonett.no:/gopher/Software/Windows/Comm/Offline/ol06b.zip
offline-orbit [via mail from author]
williamsnews ftp.netcom.com:/pub/rwilliam/wnnws10b.zip
snuupm coast:msdos/uucp/snuupm26.zip
uufree ftp.worldgate.ca:/pub/rschulz/uufree07.zip
uufree ftp.worldgate.ca:/pub/rschulz/uufres07.zip
uufree http://www.worldgate.ca/~rschulz/uucp/
macsoup info-mac:comm/inet/mac-soup-*
macsoup http://www.snafu.de/~stk/macsoup/
macsoup ftp.nacamar.de:/pub/Macintosh/MacSOUP/MacSOUP-2.2.sit.hqx
readmail ftp://ftp.let.ruu.nl/~jeroen/readmail/
readmail ftp://ftp.visi.com/users/astanley/
newswerthy coast:msdos/offline/nwrth202.zip [not latest]
newswerthy simtelnet:msdos/mailnews/nwrth210.zip
newswerthy ftp.eskimo.com:/u/b/billw/nwrth210.zip
newswerthy http://www.eskimo.com/~billw/software.html
newshopper http://www.demon.co.uk/sw15/
newsfetcher ftp.halcyon.com:/pub/tisk/tidbits/tcp/news-fetcher-045-hc.hqx
rnmac ftp.halcyon.com:/pub/tisk/tidbits/uucp/rn-mac-13b6.hqx
okami ftp://ftp.stochastik.rwth-aachen.de/pub/atari/okami/
okami http://okami.home.pages.de/
okami http://www.xs4all.nl/~josdb/okami.html
tetrix ftp.internet-eireann.ie:/pub/ie_access/dos/winsock/trp*
tetrix cica:winsock/trp110.zip
winyarn coast:win3/offline/winyrn71.zip
souper http://www.vex.net/yarn/archive/souper16.zip
souper http://www.mcs.com/~bobr/ftp-dir.html
souper ftp-os2.cdrom.com:/os2/network/tcpip/souper13.zip
souper ftp://ftp.mcs.com/mcsnet.users/bobr/souprw05.zip
wssoup http://www.ozemail.com.au/~magnus
olmenu ftp://ftp.america.net/~kgresham/olmnu117.zip
olmenu http://www.america.net/~kgresham/olmenu.html
olmenu ftp.america.net/pub/offline_readers/OLMenu/olmnu117.zip
sonr ftp://ftp.america.net/~kgresham/sonr101.zip
sonr http://www.america.net/~kgresham/olmenu.html
sonr ftp.america.net/pub/offline_readers/OLMenu/sonr101.zip
wsomr http://www.primenet.com/~dbeko/wsomr120.zip
nautnews [formerly ftp.xmission.com:/pub/users/s/strombus/nn051b.zip]
forte-agent ftp.forteinc.com:/pub/forte/free_agent/fagent10.zip
forte-agent [commercial full-blown version available, not for ftp]
autonews ftp.cityscape.co.uk:/users/ay89/autonews.zip
vweave ftp.std.com:/vendors/virtuoso/vweave/vweave10.zip
vweave coast:win3/offline/vweave10.zip
ddigest coast:msdos/offline/ddig-007.zip
foldscan mirage.skypoint.com:/pub/members/jhoglund/foldscan.zip
postroadmail ftp-os2.cdrom.com:/os2/demos/pstrd102.zip
thor hstud6.cs.uit.no:/pub/amiga/thor222_main.lha
thor hstud6.cs.uit.no:/pub/amiga/thor222_inet.lha
imail ftp.mv.com:/pub/ddj/packages/imail.zip
phhnews coast:win3/offline/phn044b.zip
phhnews coast:win3/offline/phnextra.zip
phhnews <http://www.xs4all.nl/~hawk>
newspkg ftp.xensei.com:/pub/users/ccrlphr/newspkg3.tgz
newsxpress ftp.hk.super.net:/pub/windows/Winsock-Utilities/nx10b4-p.zip
newsxpress ftp.hk.super.net:/pub/windows95/wskutil/nx20b0.zip
turnpike ftp.demon.co.uk:/pub/mirrors/turnpike/evaluate.zip
turnpike ftp.demon.co.uk:/pub/litee111.zip
turnpike ftp.turnpike.com:/pub/evals109.zip
netcetera ftp.airtime.co.uk:/netcetera/NETC250.ZIP
bobs-sumfile coast:msdos/offline/bus-013.zip
uqwk-sel-dos coast:msdos/offline/uqwks04.zip
oui http://www.peaktopeak.com/
oui http://www.peaktopeak.com/ouibeta.htm
oui ftp.dvorak.com:/pub/oui/oui_te.exe
quickelm simtelnet:msdos/mailnews/qelm110.zip
quickelm coast:msdos/offline/qelm102.zip
shownews coast:msdos/offline/sn-311.zip
bluewave http://www.cris.com/~bluewave
nfx simtelnet:msdos/mailnews/nfx270.zip
tropical http://taygate.cl.au.ac.th/web/miron/
tropical coast:win3/offline/tr131e.zip
virtualaccess http://www.atlantic-coast.com/
virtualaccess http://www.atlantic-coast.com/cgi-bin/sellonline/va.htm
gravity http://www.microplanet.com/
palmtopreader http://eddie.mit.edu/ftp/distrib/hp95lx/NEW/pnrv10.zip
palmtopreader http://www.inet.net.au/~muzza/pnrv11b1.zip
nettamer http://www.nettamer.net/
nettamer http://people.delphi.com/davidcolston
nettamer simtelnet:msdos/nettamer/n110-386.zip
nettamer simtelnet:msdos/nettamer/n110-xt.zip
nettamer garbo.uwasa.fi:/pc/connect/n110-386.zip
nettamer garbo.uwasa.fi:/pc/connect/n110-xt.zip
nettamer-ware http://www.net-connect.net/~tomburl/ntwares.htm
pgmail http://www.ergomatrix.com/
golded http://www.goldware.dk/
snarfnews http://www.users.dircon.co.uk/~crypto/
soup2pkt http://www.arrakis.es/~jffraiz/soup2pkt.htm
mountainrdr http://www.pacifier.com/~awatson/
offlinelist http://www.kannoncom.com/~jhanoian/readers/
why http://www.mcs.net/~ddonati/why/why.html
slipit-ukappp mvmpc9.ciw.uni-karlsruhe.de:/gopher/public/x_slip/*
slipit-ukappp coast:msdos/offline/slip_itj.zip
slipit-ukappp http://mvmpc9.ciw.uni-karlsruhe.de/public/uka_ppp/
slippper http://www.circularlogic.com
wippper http://www.circularlogic.com
@ccessnews http://www.vamail.com/accsnews.exe
niespnr coast:msdos/offline/mynr11.zip
hogwasher http://www.asar.com/
yirx http://www.vex.net/~x/yirx/
plor ftp://ftp.linux.it/pub/mirrors/pluto/developers/
plor ftp://ftp.linux.it/pub/mirrors/pluto/developers/plor-0.3.2.tar.gz
newsflex http://www.panteltje.demon.nl/newsflex/
pronews http://www.panaceasoft.com/
multimail ftp://ftp.clark.net/pub/wmcbrine/bbs/offline/
beinformed http://www-classic.be.com/beware/network/beinformed/
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o software: 600 miscellaneous
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
600 miscellaneous
soup - Simple Offline Usenet Packet format
offlinepgp - soup-aware pgp addon
yarneditorsh - editor shell+utilities for yarn
yarnfoldutil - utilities for yarn folders
winyarn - ms-windows front-end to yarn
olmenu - menu-based front-end to uqwk
sonr - simpler version of olmenu
snuupm - easy-install of snews, uupc, and pmail
uufree - free uucp/mail/news, with installation/configuration program
ddigest - extract articles from digest into newsgroups
foldscan - scans news for keywords, puts hits into file or folder
bobs-sumfile - select threads based on subject lines, uqwk and soup
uqwk-sel-dos - works with uqwk's summary mode to select threads
soup2pkt - convert soup <-> Fidonet PKT
offlinelist (OLMR) - ASCII text info on SOUP (and other) offline mail products
why - windows front-end for yarn
yirx - Yarn Information & Resource eXchange
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o software: 700 packers
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
700 packers -- `name' - `function'; `platforms'; `standards'
701 getnews - generator; Unix; soup
702 solar - generator; msdos Waffle; soup
703 uqwk - generator; Unix NNTP, Unix spool; soup/zipnews
704 uqwk-js - generator; Unix NNTP, Unix spool; soup/zipnews
705 uqwkselector - generator; Unix NNTP, Unix spool; ...
706 zipnews - generator; msdos Waffle, PC-Board, Wildcat; zipnews
707 nnrnews - translator; msdos; nn save files, soup
708 soupcmd - uqwk add-on; Unix; soup commands that uqwk handles non-souply
709 macslurp - news importer via SLIP; mac; ...
710 newsfetcher - news importer via SLIP; mac; ...
711 souper - packer of SLIP mail/news; os2; soup
712 souper - packer of SLIP mail/news; ms-windows; soup
713 wssoup - packer of SLIP mail/news; ms-windows; soup
714 slipit-ukappp - packer of SLIP/PPP mail/news; msdos; soup
715 newspkg - news importer via SLIP; perl (unix or other); std directory tree
716 snarfnews - makes SOUP-subset rnews batches from NNTP (and other things)
717 slippper - ? [includes automated NNTP]; msdos; ?
718 wippper - ? [includes automated NNTP]; ms-windows; ?
------------------------------
Subject: a.u.o software: 800 readers
From: auo...@locutus.ofB.ORG (Alt.Usenet.Offline-reader FAQ)
800 readers -- `name' - `function'; `platforms'; `standards'
note that `TCP/IP-based proprietary' often means that the package
will grab messages via nntp or pop3 or imap, and keep them in a local
proprietary database. many of these packages can also work online.
most packages will hand mail and news
801 hpv (helldiver packet viewer) - reader; msdos; soup
802 slnr (simple local news reader) - reader; Unix, msdos, atari; soup
803 unor (USENET offline reader) - reader; ms-windows; soup
804 zipnewsreader - reader; msdos; zipnews
805 yarn - reader; msdos, os2; soup
806 paperboy - reader; ms-windows; soup
807 rfdmail - reader; ms-windows; proprietary
808 toadnews - reader pre-processor; mac; soup
809 pronto - reader; ms-windows; proprietary
810 versatermlink - reader; mac; proprietary
811 offliner - reader; ms-windows; soup; DISCONTINUED
812 offline-orbit - reader; amiga; soup
813 williamsnews - reader; ms-windows; soup
814 macsoup - reader; mac; soup
815 readmail - reader; msdos; soup
816 newswerthy - reader; msdos; soup
817 newshopper - reader; mac; proprietary
818 rnmac - reader; mac; soup?
819 okami - reader; atari st, Linux; soup, text
820 tetrix - reader; msdos; TCP/IP-based soup
821 wsomr - reader; msdos; soup
822 [nautnews - reader; ms-windows; TCP/IP-based proprietary]
823 forte-agent - reader; ms-windows; TCP/IP-based proprietary (use a.u.o.f)
824 autonews - reader; ms-windows; TCP/IP-based ?
825 vweave - selector; ms-windows; uqwk selection files (not soup-based)
826 postroadmail - reader; os2; custom pop3-based
827 thor - reader; amiga; soup, TCP/IP-based
828 imail - reader; msdos; custom
829 phhnews - reader; ms-windows; ?
830 newsxpress - reader; ms-windows; TCP/IP-based proprietary workaround
831 turnpike - reader; ms-windows; proprietary
832 netcetera - reader; ms-windows; proprietary
833 oui - reader; ms-windows; proprietary?
834 quickelm - reader; msdos; front-end for Unix shell
835 shownews - reader; msdos; proprietary news
836 bluewave - reader; msdos, os2; bluewave, QWK-ignore-headers, soup (promised)
837 nfx - reader; msdos; soup
838 tropical - reader; ms-windows; soup
839 virtualaccess - reader; ms-windows; TCP/IP-based proprietary
840 gravity - reader; ms-windows; announcement didn't mention method
841 palmtopreader - reader; HP palmtops, msdos; zipnews
842 nettamer - reader; msdos; TCP/IP-based proprietary
843 pgmail - reader; ms-windows; announcement didn't mention method
844 golded - reader; msdos; soup and others
845 mountainrdr - reader; ms-windows; soup and others
846 @ccessnews - packer+reader; ms-windows; proprietary
847 niespnr - reader; msdos; downloaded files with messages all run together
848 hogwasher - reader; mac; TCP/IP-based proprietary
849 plor - reader; unix; soup and others
850 newsflex - reader; unix; announcement didn't mention method
851 pronews - reader; os2; unknown
852 multimail - reader; msdos, ms-windows, os2, unix; soup and others
853 beinformed - reader; be; unknown
a.u.o FAQ
Alt-usenet-offline-reader-archive-name: pointer
Posting-Frequency: weekly
Last-modified: 2001-Apr-07
Intro-Last-modified: 2001-Apr-07
Software-Last-modified: 2001-Apr-07
Posting-Via: news.demon.net (mail2news)
Not-Posting-Via: my connectivity provider who doesn't do news for uucp now
Not-Posting-Via-The-Cable-Modem-Because: I don't want to
[
Please note that this message has a Followup-To: alt.usenet.offline-reader
which directs all followups to that one group only. If you see a response
directly to this post which spams all the groups on the list, that user is
either extremely rude or using very broken software. In either case, they
might benefit from you mailing them, and asking them to correct it.
Also note that there are no opinions in this pointer -- it merely contains
unrefutable facts about the *.answers newsgroups.
]
Alt.Usenet.Offline-Reader is about reading mail and news available to
your normal login account, but while you're not actually logged in.
The alt.usenet.offline-reader FAQ lists can be obtained via all
news.answers access methods:
quoting the news.answers FAQ:
``
Where are *.answers archived?
All of the *.answers newsgroups are archived in the periodic posting
archive on rtfm.mit.edu [18.181.0.24]. Postings are located in the
anonymous ftp directories /pub/usenet/alt.answers,
/pub/usenet/comp.answers, etc., and are archived by "Archive-name".
Other subdirectories of /pub/usenet contain periodic postings that may
not appear in *.answers (as well as most of the *.answers postings),
saved by Subject line rather than by Archive-name.
If you do not have anonymous ftp access, you can access the archives
by mail server as well. Send an E-mail message to
mail-...@rtfm.mit.edu with "help" and "index" in the body on
separate lines for more information.
''
The FAQ lists for alt.usenet.offline-reader can be found on the Internet:
<ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/alt.usenet.offline-reader/intro>
<ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/alt.usenet.offline-reader/software>
<http://www.faqs.org/faqs/off-line-readers/usenet/intro/>
<http://www.faqs.org/faqs/off-line-readers/usenet/software/>
Note that, despite the name including `usenet' and not `mail', discussion of
mail as well as news is welcomed (and common) in alt.usenet.offline-reader.
a.u.o FAQ
Alt-usenet-offline-reader-archive-name: pointer
Posting-Frequency: weekly
Last-modified: 2001-Apr-07
Intro-Last-modified: 2001-Apr-07
Posting-Via: news.demon.net (mail2news)
Not-Posting-Via: my connectivity provider who doesn't do news for uucp now
Not-Posting-Via-The-Cable-Modem-Because: I don't want to
[
Please note that this message has a Followup-To: alt.usenet.offline-reader
which directs all followups to that one group only. If you see a response
directly to this post which spams all the groups on the list, that user is
either extremely rude or using very broken software. In either case, they
might benefit from you mailing them, and asking them to correct it.
Also note that there are no opinions in this pointer -- it merely contains
unrefutable facts about the *.answers newsgroups.
]
Alt.Usenet.Offline-Reader is about reading mail and news available to
your normal login account, but while you're not actually logged in.
The alt.usenet.offline-reader FAQ lists can be obtained via all
news.answers access methods:
quoting the news.answers FAQ:
``
Where are *.answers archived?
All of the *.answers newsgroups are archived in the periodic posting
archive on rtfm.mit.edu [18.181.0.24]. Postings are located in the
anonymous ftp directories /pub/usenet/alt.answers,
/pub/usenet/comp.answers, etc., and are archived by "Archive-name".
Other subdirectories of /pub/usenet contain periodic postings that may
not appear in *.answers (as well as most of the *.answers postings),
saved by Subject line rather than by Archive-name.
If you do not have anonymous ftp access, you can access the archives
by mail server as well. Send an E-mail message to
mail-...@rtfm.mit.edu with "help" and "index" in the body on
separate lines for more information.
''
The FAQ lists for alt.usenet.offline-reader can be found on the Internet:
<ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/alt.usenet.offline-reader/intro>
<ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/alt.usenet.offline-reader/software>
<http://www.faqs.org/faqs/off-line-readers/usenet/intro/>
<http://www.faqs.org/faqs/off-line-readers/usenet/software/>
Note that, despite the name including `usenet' and not `mail', discussion of