Agent filter expiry problem - Fix

[Ralph Fox]

AGENT FILTER EXPIRY PROBLEM

This year, all current versions of Agent will stop supporting
filters which expire after a number of days.
(Non-expiring filters will still be supported.)

Any Agent filters which are due to expire on or after 6 June 2017
will instead expire today, like there were zero days remaining.
(Only filters which are due to expire on or before 5 June 2017
will expire on the correct day.)

* Today is Tuesday 7 March 2017. Filters can be set to expire
up to 90 days from now, no more. Any filters which would
expire in 91 days or more will instead expire today.
* On Wed 8 March 2017, the maximum is 89 days.
* On Thu 9 March 2017, the maximum is 88 days.
... and so on.
* On Sun 4 June 2017, the maximum is 1 day.
* On Mon 5 June 2017, all expiring filters will expire the same day.
This goes whether or not "of inactivity" is check-marked.


FIX FOR AGENT 8.00

Here is a modification to Agent 8.00 which will keep filter expiry
working for another 22 years.

Please post all questions and discussion about this modification
in this group alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
and not in the parent group alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.

I will be posting any further discussion and replies about this
fix in this newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified.


PREPARATION

You will need a hex editor to modify agent.exe. For this, I used
HxD from https://mh-nexus.de/en/hxd/


After modifying agent.exe, you will edit your filters before they
are run and set the expiry days again.
1) To ensure that filters are not run before you edit them, you
may need to:
* Temporarily disable automatic email retrieval;
* Temporarily disable any 3rd-party automation tool that
you use for automatic Usenet retrieval.
2) If you don't remember the expiry days for all of your filters,
now might be the time to make a note.


In case you ever want to go back, back up these files:
-- in the Agent program folder:
agent.exe
-- in the Agent data folder:
FILTERS.IDX
FILTERS.DAT
WORDS.IDX
WORDS.DAT
MFILTERS.IDX
MFILTERS.DAT
MWORDS.IDX
MWORDS.DAT


THE MODIFICATION

1 MODIFY AGENT.EXE

Open Agent 8.00's agent.exe file in your hex editor. Search for
the hex values "C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D 34".

Screen-shot: ---> http://i.imgur.com/31eIP2E.gif

You will find these bytes at offset 003D5AB0:

003D5AB0: C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D 34

When you find it, change the byte at offset 003D5AB9 from
'CB' to 'E1', like this:

Screen-shot: ---> http://i.imgur.com/vXikPUJ.gif

Do not change any other bytes from 'CB' to 'E1'. Change only the
one byte at offset 003D5AB9.

Save the modified agent.exe and replace the original with the mod.
You will use the modified agent.exe for all things from now on.


2 NEXT, EDIT AND ADJUST YOUR FILTERS

Start up the modified Agent. The first thing you will do is edit
all of your filters (both Usenet and email) which have a check-mark
in "Expire this filter after". All your filters that expire will
initially have strange expiry dates. You will be adjusting these
filters to correct the expiry date.

1) If a filter is set to expire but has no check-mark in "of inactivity",
the number of days will be wrong (initially). Manually adjust the
number of days and then click "OK" to save the change.

Screen-shot: ---> http://i.imgur.com/atlztc5.gif

2) If a filter is set to expire and has a check-mark in "of inactivity",
the "days remaining" will be wrong (initially). Just click "OK" to
re-save the filter, and Agent will re-set the "days remaining" for you.

Screen-shot: ---> http://i.imgur.com/HqTmqqZ.gif

You will need to use the modified agent.exe from now on with your
filters.


IF YOU EVER WANT TO GO BACK

A. If you have not added or changed any filters

A.1 Restore the backups of these files: agent.exe, FILTERS.IDX,
FILTERS.DAT, WORDS.IDX, WORDS.DAT, MFILTERS.IDX, MFILTERS.DAT,
MWORDS.IDX, and MWORDS.DAT.

A.2 If it has been more than a day or two, then open and re-save
any filters which have check-marks in both "Expire this filter"
and "of inactivity".

When you restore the old filter files after (say) 20 days, it
will look to Agent as if the filters have been inactive for
(say) 20 days. Filters with "of inactivity" checked might
have zero or near in "days remaining" and be about to expire.
Re-saving these filters will reset the 'days remaining'.


B. If you have made changes to filters which you want to keep, then:

B.1 Restore the original unmodified agent.exe from backup.
(Don't restore the other files.)

B.2 It is extremely important that you edit/adjust your filters
using the unmodified agent.exe BEFORE the filters are run,
that is, BEFORE Agent gets headers, gets email, or applies
filters. Edit/adjust all filters which have a check-mark in
"Expire", both filters with and filters without a check-mark
in "of inactivity".

If you don't edit/adjust your filters, all filters that
expire will expire as soon as they are run (the expiry
dates will have been set backwards by 22 years).
When filters expire, they are deleted.


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[Christopher A. Lee]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
wrote:

>
>AGENT FILTER EXPIRY PROBLEM
>
> This year, all current versions of Agent will stop supporting
> filters which expire after a number of days.
> (Non-expiring filters will still be supported.)

Why?

> Any Agent filters which are due to expire on or after 6 June 2017
> will instead expire today, like there were zero days remaining.
> (Only filters which are due to expire on or before 5 June 2017
> will expire on the correct day.)
>
> * Today is Tuesday 7 March 2017. Filters can be set to expire
> up to 90 days from now, no more. Any filters which would
> expire in 91 days or more will instead expire today.
> * On Wed 8 March 2017, the maximum is 89 days.
> * On Thu 9 March 2017, the maximum is 88 days.
> ... and so on.
> * On Sun 4 June 2017, the maximum is 1 day.
> * On Mon 5 June 2017, all expiring filters will expire the same day.
> This goes whether or not "of inactivity" is check-marked.
>
>
>FIX FOR AGENT 8.00

Is there a fix for Agent 7?

[Ralph Fox]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 09:38:55 -0600, Christopher A. Lee wrote:

> On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
> wrote:
>
>> AGENT FILTER EXPIRY PROBLEM
>>
>> This year, all current versions of Agent will stop supporting
>> filters which expire after a number of days.
>> (Non-expiring filters will still be supported.)
>
> Why?

See <http://narkive.com/ZujGkELV>
and <http://narkive.com/Z51xe64f>

>> Any Agent filters which are due to expire on or after 6 June 2017
>> will instead expire today, like there were zero days remaining.
>> (Only filters which are due to expire on or before 5 June 2017
>> will expire on the correct day.)
>>
>> * Today is Tuesday 7 March 2017. Filters can be set to expire
>> up to 90 days from now, no more. Any filters which would
>> expire in 91 days or more will instead expire today.
>> * On Wed 8 March 2017, the maximum is 89 days.
>> * On Thu 9 March 2017, the maximum is 88 days.
>> ... and so on.
>> * On Sun 4 June 2017, the maximum is 1 day.
>> * On Mon 5 June 2017, all expiring filters will expire the same day.
>> This goes whether or not "of inactivity" is check-marked.
>>
>>
>> FIX FOR AGENT 8.00
>
> Is there a fix for Agent 7?

You could upgrade to Agent 8, and then make 8 work like 7 simply by
turning off everything at
"Folder >> Default Properties >> Receiving Messages >> Usenet Archives".


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[Christopher A. Lee]

On Wed, 08 Mar 2017 06:57:39 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>

Thanks for your answer.

I don't need all the bells and whistles in Agent 8.

I only use expiring filters for the hit and run trolls, because if I
make them permanent the killfile gets too large, so I suppose I
canlive with it.

[Borke...@13of9.com]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid> wrote:

>

>AGENT FILTER EXPIRY PROBLEM
>
> This year, all current versions of Agent will stop supporting
> filters which expire after a number of days.
> (Non-expiring filters will still be supported.)
>

(snip)

Ralph, as always I am grateful for your information and efforts, but I'm
puzzled as to why the announcement of this issue and its cure did not
come directly from Forte. Do they not know? Do they no longer care?

Doesn't bode well for the future of Agent.

[Roger]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox
<-rf-nz-@-.invalid> wrote:

>

>AGENT FILTER EXPIRY PROBLEM
>
> This year, all current versions of Agent will stop supporting
> filters which expire after a number of days.
> (Non-expiring filters will still be supported.)

>FIX FOR AGENT 8.00
>
> Here is a modification to Agent 8.00 which will keep filter expiry
> working for another 22 years.

>THE MODIFICATION
>
> 1 MODIFY AGENT.EXE
>
> Open Agent 8.00's agent.exe file in your hex editor. Search for
> the hex values "C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D 34".
>
> Screen-shot: ---> http://i.imgur.com/31eIP2E.gif
>
> You will find these bytes at offset 003D5AB0:
>
> 003D5AB0: C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D 34
>
> When you find it, change the byte at offset 003D5AB9 from
> 'CB' to 'E1', like this:
>
> Screen-shot: ---> http://i.imgur.com/vXikPUJ.gif
>
> Do not change any other bytes from 'CB' to 'E1'. Change only the
> one byte at offset 003D5AB9.

As a text user, rather than a binary user, I've haven't upgraded
since version 6.0.

Doing a hex dump of Agent 6.0 the same sequence of bytes occurs:

002AB290 C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D 64

As the difference between E1 and CB is 22 (decimal) and you
mention 22 years do you think it is safe to change the CB at
002AB299 ?
--
Roger

[DrTeeth]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 11:10:55 -0800, just as I was about to take a
herb, Borke...@13of9.com disturbed my reverie and wrote:

>Ralph, as always I am grateful for your information and efforts, but I'm
>puzzled as to why the announcement of this issue and its cure did not
>come directly from Forte. Do they not know? Do they no longer care?
>
>Doesn't bode well for the future of Agent.

My thoughts exactly.

OTOH, I always use permanent kill files and have an occasional clear
out.
--
Cheers,

DrT

"If you want to find out what is wrong
with democracy, spend five minutes with
the average voter." - Winston Churchill

[Christopher A. Lee]

On Wed, 08 Mar 2017 14:50:17 +0000, DrTeeth <no-e...@tardis.com>
wrote:

>On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 11:10:55 -0800, just as I was about to take a
>herb, Borke...@13of9.com disturbed my reverie and wrote:
>
>>Ralph, as always I am grateful for your information and efforts, but I'm
>>puzzled as to why the announcement of this issue and its cure did not
>>come directly from Forte. Do they not know? Do they no longer care?
>>
>>Doesn't bode well for the future of Agent.
>
>My thoughts exactly.
>
>OTOH, I always use permanent kill files and have an occasional clear
>out.

I currently use a mixture, with permanent filters for the regular
trolls and expiring for the hit and run trolls as well as threads I
don't want to see - precisely so I don't have to clear it out.

[Ralph Fox]

Close - fifteen out of sixteen.

> As the difference between E1 and CB is 22 (decimal) and you
> mention 22 years do you think it is safe to change the CB at
> 002AB299 ?

I knew this would come up. :-)

I have not checked with Agent 6.0 at all. And if I spent the same
time as I spent on Agent 8.0 to see if it is safe, I would not have
an answer for you until after 6 June. And besides I now have other
priorities.

My unproven guess would be that the chances this is OK are good,
much better than 50:50. But I cannot take responsibility if it were
to do something bad. If you try it, also keep a backup of any
important messages & data.


--
Kind regards
Ralph
🦊

[Ralph Fox]

On Wed, 08 Mar 2017 16:18:10 -0500, wkhi17...@time4email.com wrote:

> Thank you very much for posting this! I run Agent 5.0, and recently
> noticed a problem with kill filtering.
>
> I couldn't figure out what was wrong, but your explanation clears things
> up.
>
> I could make due with non-expiring filters, but frankly I find there to
> sometimes be real value in the "expire after "x" number of days" type.
>
> That Agent offered the expire type has been one reason why I've never
> migrated over to Thunderbird. Maybe not a huge reason, but it entered into
> the decision in at least some minor way. (If any of you know how to set up
> "expire after x number of days" type email filters in Thunderbird, I'd
> appreciate hearing from you.)


In Thunderbird, you can do this: <http://i.imgur.com/O5czYLWl.png>
Also see
<https://support.mozilla.org/t5/Thunderbird/Can-an-email-filter-be-set-to-expire/td-p/1294306>


I don't know a way to have filters "expire after x days of inactivity"
in Thunderbird.


> It'd be nice if the company would offer some sort of official patch for
> Agent 5.00. Or maybe a free upgrade to version 8, for registered users
> whose old versions of Agent can't be readily patched. Not that I have any
> great interest in the features post-5.00 versions have; I just want this
> filter problem fixed.
>
> Otherwise... I suppose I could buy version 8, and just ignore any new
> features for which I've no use. I mean, it's... $19, I think? So it's not
> like the cost is going to break me.


If you don't want the new features to get in your way, then many or most
of the new features can be turned off.

[ REF for new features: <http://www.forteinc.com/release/index.php> ]


MegaJoin [v8.0]
Can be turned off.
Go to "Folder >> Default Properties >> Receiving Messages >> Usenet Archives"
and turn everything off on that panel.

30 connections per news server by default [v7.2]
Can be adjusted at "Tools >> Servers and Accounts"

Larger folder sizes [v7.1]
There is an AGENT.INI setting to turn off the larger .dat
file format and keep using the older format.
The larger folder sizes are great for binary users, but
the change to the .dat file format can mean small text
messages take up more space in the .dat file.

Retrieval by Message-ID [v7.0]
Can be turned off at
"Tools >> Servers and Accounts >> (*select news server*) >> Advanced"

Improved Saving of Attachments [v7.0]
Can be turned off at
"Folder >> Property Schemes >> Binary Newsgroups >> Receiving Messages >> Saving Attachments"

Improved Connectivity with SMTP (Outbound Email) Servers [v7.0]
Can be adjusted at "Tools >> Servers and Accounts"

Compressed Headers [v6.0]
Can be turned off at
"Tools >> Servers and Accounts >> (*select news server*) >> Advanced"

Server Failover for Get Body Tasks [v6.0]
Can be turned off in the News Access Plan

Remember Folder Position [v6.0]
Can be turned off on the Message List Pane panel of the
Options menu.


> Or maybe I'll spend an evening migrating everything over to Thunderbird.
> Finally.


I use Thunderbird for email and Agent for newsgroups.


> I've gotten enough years of use from my registered copy of Agent 5.00,
> that I can't seriously say I feel Forte is cheating me. But still...


--
Kind regards
Ralph
🦊

[Barry Schwarz]

On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 19:37:22 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>

For what it's worth, in version 4 the sequence starts at 0026F073 and
the byte to change is at 0026F07C. A few days in use and no problems
yet.

After making the change, you may need to reset the date for some
filters. Check the days remaining for the filters to determine if
this is necessary.

--
Remove del for email

[Roger]

On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 19:37:22 +1300, Ralph Fox

I'm so pleased I haven't disappointed you.

>I have not checked with Agent 6.0 at all. And if I spent the same
>time as I spent on Agent 8.0 to see if it is safe, I would not have
>an answer for you until after 6 June. And besides I now have other
>priorities.
>
>My unproven guess would be that the chances this is OK are good,
>much better than 50:50. But I cannot take responsibility if it were
>to do something bad. If you try it, also keep a backup of any
>important messages & data.

Thank you. A good honest answer. When I get a round tuit I'll
report back.

I realise there's another reason for not updating to 7.1
or later; the change to using .msi for installing. That's
a Microsoftism too far.
--
Roger

[Roger]

On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 10:01:46 +0000, Roger
<inv...@invalid.invalid> wrote:

>On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 19:37:22 +1300, Ralph Fox
><-rf-nz-@-.invalid> wrote:
>
>>On Wed, 08 Mar 2017 10:35:16 +0000, Roger wrote:
>>
>>> Doing a hex dump of Agent 6.0 the same sequence of bytes occurs:
>>>
>>> 002AB290 C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D 64
>>
>>Close - fifteen out of sixteen.

My eyesight is obviously failing; I didn't spot the one at the
end.

>>> As the difference between E1 and CB is 22 (decimal) and you
>>> mention 22 years do you think it is safe to change the CB at
>>> 002AB299 ?
>

>>I have not checked with Agent 6.0 at all. And if I spent the same
>>time as I spent on Agent 8.0 to see if it is safe, I would not have
>>an answer for you until after 6 June. And besides I now have other
>>priorities.
>>
>>My unproven guess would be that the chances this is OK are good,
>>much better than 50:50. But I cannot take responsibility if it were
>>to do something bad. If you try it, also keep a backup of any
>>important messages & data.
>
>Thank you. A good honest answer. When I get a round tuit I'll
>report back.

My tuit is well-rounded. I've done the deed.

My filters were coming up with 8036 remaining. With one pest I
thought "what happens if I change it to 8080 days?" (Actually,
my first computer had a Z80.) Agent changed it 1936 days, 5 and
a bit years.
--
Roger

[Ralph Fox]

On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 14:29:51 -0500, wkhi17...@time4email.com wrote:

> On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 21:13:27 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>, wrote
> the following in alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified:

>
>> I don't know a way to have filters "expire after x days of inactivity"
>> in Thunderbird.
>

> Yeah. I should have indicated that ideally I wanted Thunderbird to do the
> "expire after x days of inactivity" thing, and not just the "expire after
> x days" thing. Both are useful, but in subtly different ways.


From this thread, people are already using a mod in
* Agent 4.2 -- see <news:1c42cc97e1p0e7sdm...@4ax.com>
* Agent 6.0 -- see <news:r9c2ccho3jdvl7pf7...@4ax.com>

So there's a good chance that 5.0 can be modded.


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[Ralph Fox]

On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 10:47:54 +0000, Roger wrote:

> My tuit is well-rounded. I've done the deed.

Let us all know if it works OK.

> My filters were coming up with 8036 remaining. With one pest I
> thought "what happens if I change it to 8080 days?" (Actually,
> my first computer had a Z80.) Agent changed it 1936 days, 5 and
> a bit years.

For filters with a check-mark in "of inactivity", there are
two separate numbers of days:

1) The number of days of inactivity
2) The number of days remaining

The number of days of inactivity is stored in an 11-bit field.
If you enter a number like 8080 which cannot fit in 11 bits,
only the low-order 11 bits are retained (the remainder when
dividing by 2048).


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[Roger]

On Fri, 10 Mar 2017 20:29:09 +1300, Ralph Fox
<-rf-nz-@-.invalid> wrote:

>On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 10:47:54 +0000, Roger wrote:
>
>> My tuit is well-rounded. I've done the deed.
>
>Let us all know if it works OK.

I haven't noticed any adverse effects, so far, but it's only
been one day. Some filters haven't been hit and the days
remaining have reduced by one, others have not reduced. Just
what I would expect.

>> My filters were coming up with 8036 remaining. With one pest I
>> thought "what happens if I change it to 8080 days?" (Actually,
>> my first computer had a Z80.) Agent changed it 1936 days, 5 and
>> a bit years.
>
>
>For filters with a check-mark in "of inactivity", there are
>two separate numbers of days:
>
> 1) The number of days of inactivity
> 2) The number of days remaining
>
>The number of days of inactivity is stored in an 11-bit field.
>If you enter a number like 8080 which cannot fit in 11 bits,
>only the low-order 11 bits are retained (the remainder when
>dividing by 2048).

Now how on earth do you know it's an 11-bit field? (No need to
answer that.) Anyway, I decided to play with that filter.

Entering 2048 changed both figures to zero.

Entering 2047 changed remaining to 2047 but activity to 2000.

Entering 2000 changed both to 2000.

Entering 1999 changed both to 1999.

So, entering any number from 2001 to 2047 inclusive and the days
remaining changes to the entered number but activity displays as
2000.

Does one really need a filter of 5+ years? Probably not,
although I have used 180 days to allow for nuisance
posters to have a long holiday.

Thank you for all your posts. All very informative.
--
Roger

[Mr.E]

I have edited the 5.0 .exe exactly as the 6.0 is edited and it seems to
work properly. Be sure to follow the steps for Ralph's 8.0 edit to reset
the day counts/totals.
--
Mr.E

[DrTeeth]

On Thu, 09 Mar 2017 14:29:51 -0500, just as I was about to take a
herb, wkhi17...@time4email.com disturbed my reverie and wrote:

>Like the paddle shifters on the car I rented recently.

Sri for being OT.

My car has them. I've had my car for 8 years and the reason I don't
use them is that even when I put the auto gearbox in manual, it still
retains some gear-changing ability. The only advantage to being in
manual and in 1st gear is that it is noticeably faster off the mark
when I floor it. Nice V6 3L diesel with no DPFs...keeping it for ages.

[DrTeeth]

On Fri, 10 Mar 2017 06:46:09 -0500, just as I was about to take a
herb, Mr.E <Mr...@totally.invalid> disturbed my reverie and wrote:

>I have edited the 5.0 .exe exactly as the 6.0 is edited and it seems to
>work properly. Be sure to follow the steps for Ralph's 8.0 edit to reset
>the day counts/totals.

And not a peep out of Forte. I hope that they are paying Ralph for
doing their job for them.

[Opinicus]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
wrote:

> 003D5AB0: C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D 34
> When you find it, change the byte at offset 003D5AB9 from
> 'CB' to 'E1'

Your instructions worked a treat, Thanks Ralph.

--
Bob
St Francis would have done better to preach to the cats

[Dennis]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid> wrote:

> After modifying agent.exe, you will edit your filters before they
> are run and set the expiry days again.

Just curious ... what happens if you don't do this?

--

Dennis

[Ralph Fox]

Dennis <nob...@nowhere.invalid> Wrote in message:

From my original message:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ QUOTE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~

2  NEXT, EDIT AND ADJUST YOUR FILTERS

    Start up the modified Agent.  The first thing you will do is edit
    all of your filters (both Usenet and email) which have a check-mark
    in "Expire this filter after".  All your filters that expire will
    initially have strange expiry dates.  You will be adjusting these
    filters to correct the expiry date.

[...]
Screen-shot: ---> http://i.imgur.com/atlztc5.gif
[...]
Screen-shot: ---> http://i.imgur.com/HqTmqqZ.gif
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ QUOTE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~

After modifying agent.exe, your filters will have strange (incorrect)
expiry dates. If you don't correct the expiry dates, what would *you*
think will happen? :-]

--
Kind regards
Ralph


----Android NewsGroup Reader----
http://usenet.sinaapp.com/

[Dennis]

On Mon, 13 Mar 2017 11:15:49 +1300 (NZDT), Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
wrote:

>After modifying agent.exe, your filters will have strange (incorrect)
>expiry dates. If you don't correct the expiry dates, what would *you*
>think will happen? :-]

Two things come to mind ... they just won't expire ... or Agent will
crash. I was just wondering if missing an expiry date would have drastic
consequences, or just be an inconvenience.

I made your change in 7.20 and am keeping my fingers crossed.

--

Dennis

[Ralph Fox]

Dennis <nob...@nowhere.invalid> Wrote in message:

> On Mon, 13 Mar 2017 11:15:49 +1300 (NZDT), Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
> wrote:
>

>>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ QUOTE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>>       Screen-shot: --->  http://i.imgur.com/atlztc5.gif
>>[...]
>>       Screen-shot: --->  http://i.imgur.com/HqTmqqZ.gif
>>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ QUOTE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>>

>>After modifying agent.exe, your filters will have strange (incorrect)
>>expiry dates. If you don't correct the expiry dates, what would *you*
>>think will happen? :-]
>
> Two things come to mind ... they just won't expire ... or Agent will
> crash. I was just wondering if missing an expiry date would have drastic
> consequences, or just be an inconvenience.

They won't be *missing* expiry dates. They will have *incorrect*
expiry
dates. They will be due to expire at the (very) wrong date.

Look at the nice screen-shots to see what I mean.

> I made your change in 7.20 and am keeping my fingers crossed.



--

[Dennis]

On Mon, 13 Mar 2017 12:46:57 +1300 (NZDT), Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
wrote:

>They won't be *missing* expiry dates. They will have *incorrect*
> expiry
>dates. They will be due to expire at the (very) wrong date.

Sorry I wasn't more clear. Thanks for the clarification and the patch.

--

Dennis

[pyotr filipivich]

Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid> on Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300 typed
in alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified the following:

>
>AGENT FILTER EXPIRY PROBLEM
>
> This year, all current versions of Agent will stop supporting
> filters which expire after a number of days.
> (Non-expiring filters will still be supported.)
>
> Any Agent filters which are due to expire on or after 6 June 2017
> will instead expire today, like there were zero days remaining.
> (Only filters which are due to expire on or before 5 June 2017
> will expire on the correct day.)
>
> * Today is Tuesday 7 March 2017. Filters can be set to expire
> up to 90 days from now, no more. Any filters which would
> expire in 91 days or more will instead expire today.
> * On Wed 8 March 2017, the maximum is 89 days.
> * On Thu 9 March 2017, the maximum is 88 days.
> ... and so on.
> * On Sun 4 June 2017, the maximum is 1 day.
> * On Mon 5 June 2017, all expiring filters will expire the same day.
> This goes whether or not "of inactivity" is check-marked.
>
>
>FIX FOR AGENT 8.00
>

> There is a modification to Agent 8.00 which will keep filter expiry

> working for another 22 years.
>

> I have posted the modification in the newsgroup
> alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified, the newsgroup for
> discussing unsupported modifications to Agent.
>
> Followups have been set to alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
>
> Please use that newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
> for all questions and discussion about this modification.
>
> I will be posting all further discussion and replies about this fix
> in that newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified.
>
>
> You can also find the modification here:
> news:76ssbcdthqdhustaq...@4ax.com
> https://groups.google.com/d/topic/alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified/IkwfYsUL5Sg
> http://al.howardknight.net/msgid.cgi?ID=148887615300
>
>
>I will be posting all further discussion and replies about this fix
>in the newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified.
>
>Please use newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
>for all questions and discussion about this modification.
>
>Followups have been set to alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
--
pyotr filipivich
Next month's Panel: Graft - Boon or blessing?

[pyotr filipivich]

pyotr filipivich <ph...@mindspring.com> on Tue, 14 Mar 2017 17:33:15
-0700 typed in alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified the
following: [snip]

>>I will be posting all further discussion and replies about this fix
>>in the newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified.
>>
>>Please use newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
>>for all questions and discussion about this modification.
>>
>>Followups have been set to alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
>--
>pyotr filipivich
>Next month's Panel: Graft - Boon or blessing?

Ooops - I needed the information, forgot to cancel the post.
--
pyotr filipivich
"And Art is art, and east is east and west is west, and if
you take rhubarb and stew it like prunes, it will taste more
like raspberries than cauliflower.
Now you tell me what you know." Groucho Marx

[Geoff]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
wrote:

>

>AGENT FILTER EXPIRY PROBLEM
>
> This year, all current versions of Agent will stop supporting
> filters which expire after a number of days.
> (Non-expiring filters will still be supported.)
>
> Any Agent filters which are due to expire on or after 6 June 2017
> will instead expire today, like there were zero days remaining.
> (Only filters which are due to expire on or before 5 June 2017
> will expire on the correct day.)
>
> * Today is Tuesday 7 March 2017. Filters can be set to expire
> up to 90 days from now, no more. Any filters which would
> expire in 91 days or more will instead expire today.
> * On Wed 8 March 2017, the maximum is 89 days.
> * On Thu 9 March 2017, the maximum is 88 days.
> ... and so on.
> * On Sun 4 June 2017, the maximum is 1 day.
> * On Mon 5 June 2017, all expiring filters will expire the same day.
> This goes whether or not "of inactivity" is check-marked.
>
>
>FIX FOR AGENT 8.00
>
> There is a modification to Agent 8.00 which will keep filter expiry
> working for another 22 years.
>
> I have posted the modification in the newsgroup
> alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified, the newsgroup for
> discussing unsupported modifications to Agent.
>

> Followups have been set to alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
>

> Please use that newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified

> for all questions and discussion about this modification.
>

> I will be posting all further discussion and replies about this fix

> in that newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified.
>
>
> You can also find the modification here:
> news:76ssbcdthqdhustaq...@4ax.com
> https://groups.google.com/d/topic/alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified/IkwfYsUL5Sg
> http://al.howardknight.net/msgid.cgi?ID=148887615300
>
>

>I will be posting all further discussion and replies about this fix
>in the newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified.
>
>Please use newsgroup alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
>for all questions and discussion about this modification.
>
>Followups have been set to alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified

I tried this in my version of Agent 7.20/32.1218 and found the hex
bytes at file offset 00386FC0, altering the CB to E1 at offset
00386FC9 works for me.

Hopefully Forté will remove the limitation in future releases. Shades
of Y2K bugs.

[s|b]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox wrote:

> FIX FOR AGENT 8.00
>

> Here is a modification to Agent 8.00 which will keep filter expiry

> working for another 22 years.

Finally edited agent.exe. Everything seems to be working ok (had to fix
a lot of Usenet filters).

Thank you very much for the tutorial!

--
s|b

[Ralph Fox]

On Mon, 20 Mar 2017 21:58:11 +0100, s|b wrote:

> Finally edited agent.exe. Everything seems to be working ok (had to fix
> a lot of Usenet filters).
>
> Thank you very much for the tutorial!

Thank you.

I tried looking for a way to patch agent.exe which would not have
required updating filters, but it would have taken too long to find
and been far too complex. This mod here seems to have the best
balance.


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[Gordon Shumway]

First off I want to admit that this modification may be above my pay grade.
I have version Agent 6.0 in Windows 7
I backed up Agent and all related files
I Downloaded HxD put it on a memory stick and created the .ini file
I found offset 002AB290
I can see the line C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D 64 next to it
Then I can't seem to figure out how to actually edit the value!!

What am I missing or doing wrong?

[Ralph Fox]

On Tue, 21 Mar 2017 21:30:45 -0500, Gordon Shumway wrote:

> Then I can't seem to figure out how to actually edit the value!!
>
> What am I missing or doing wrong?

1. Click the mouse just to the left of the 'CB', to place the
blinking text insert point just to the left of the 'CB'.

2. Type 'E' then '1', which will overtype the 'CB'.

HxD will show the 'E1' in red to indicate that it is
an unsaved change.

3. Use the HxD menu "File >> Save".

HxD will...
(i) Update agent.exe with the mod.
(ii) Save a backup copy of the original agent.exe as "agent.exe.bak"
(iii) Change the 'E1' from red to black, now that the change is saved.


4. If agent.exe is inside "Program Files" or "Program Files (x86)"
then you will not be able to modify agent.exe while it is in there.

Simply copy agent.exe to someplace else, modify the copy, and
then copy your modified version back.


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[Gordon Shumway]

Thank you for your response. All of your instructions (including #4) were all I needed.

Thanks again.

[Gra...@grelberville.org]

On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 12:23:58 -0600, Christopher A. Lee
<c....@fairpoint.net> wrote:

>On Wed, 08 Mar 2017 06:57:39 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
>wrote:
>
>>On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 09:38:55 -0600, Christopher A. Lee wrote:

>>
>>> On Tue, 07 Mar 2017 21:38:50 +1300, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> AGENT FILTER EXPIRY PROBLEM
>>>>
>>>> This year, all current versions of Agent will stop supporting
>>>> filters which expire after a number of days.
>>>> (Non-expiring filters will still be supported.)
>>>

>>> Why?
>>
>>
>>See <http://narkive.com/ZujGkELV>
>>and <http://narkive.com/Z51xe64f>

>>
>>
>>>> Any Agent filters which are due to expire on or after 6 June 2017
>>>> will instead expire today, like there were zero days remaining.
>>>> (Only filters which are due to expire on or before 5 June 2017
>>>> will expire on the correct day.)
>>>>
>>>> * Today is Tuesday 7 March 2017. Filters can be set to expire
>>>> up to 90 days from now, no more. Any filters which would
>>>> expire in 91 days or more will instead expire today.
>>>> * On Wed 8 March 2017, the maximum is 89 days.
>>>> * On Thu 9 March 2017, the maximum is 88 days.
>>>> ... and so on.
>>>> * On Sun 4 June 2017, the maximum is 1 day.
>>>> * On Mon 5 June 2017, all expiring filters will expire the same day.
>>>> This goes whether or not "of inactivity" is check-marked.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> FIX FOR AGENT 8.00
>>>

>>> Is there a fix for Agent 7?
>>
>>
>>You could upgrade to Agent 8, and then make 8 work like 7 simply by
>>turning off everything at
>>"Folder >> Default Properties >> Receiving Messages >> Usenet Archives".
>
>Thanks for your answer.
>
>I don't need all the bells and whistles in Agent 8.
>
>I only use expiring filters for the hit and run trolls, because if I
>make them permanent the killfile gets too large, so I suppose I
>canlive with it.


I had to create my own way of expiring filters. (version 6 here)
I set the PRIORITY to a strange number eg: instead of 600, mine is 603
Every week or so I scan the filter listings and clean out those I know
to be too old or of no further service..
A kludge to be sure.. but it works for me.

Beamer Smith
Out on a limb, sawing Madly

[pyotr filipivich]

Gra...@grelberville.org on Wed, 07 Jun 2017 11:04:27 -0400 typed in
alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified the following:
>

>>Thanks for your answer.
>>
>>I don't need all the bells and whistles in Agent 8.
>>
>>I only use expiring filters for the hit and run trolls, because if I
>>make them permanent the killfile gets too large, so I suppose I
>>canlive with it.
>
>
>I had to create my own way of expiring filters. (version 6 here)
>I set the PRIORITY to a strange number eg: instead of 600, mine is 603

Good idea.

>Every week or so I scan the filter listings and clean out those I know
>to be too old or of no further service..
>A kludge to be sure.. but it works for me.
>
>Beamer Smith
>Out on a limb, sawing Madly

[CRNG]

On Sat, 10 Jun 2017 17:47:48 +1200, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
wrote in <7i1njcps24npauqj1...@4ax.com>

>On Mon, 05 Jun 2017 10:26:44 -0400, nothermark wrote:
>
>> What bugs me is that they did not email us paid users and tell us
>> where to get a patch.
>
>
>IME Forté do not release official patches. If Forté were to release
>something, it would be a new build.

So is this expiration date problem fixed in Agent v8.x ?
--
Web based forums are like subscribing to 10 different newspapers
and having to visit 10 different news stands to pickup each one.
Email list-server groups and USENET are like having all of those
newspapers delivered to your door every morning.

[Ralph Fox]

On Sat, 10 Jun 2017 12:17:35 -0500, CRNG wrote:

> On Sat, 10 Jun 2017 17:47:48 +1200, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
> wrote in <7i1njcps24npauqj1...@4ax.com>
>
> >On Mon, 05 Jun 2017 10:26:44 -0400, nothermark wrote:
> >
> >> What bugs me is that they did not email us paid users and tell us
> >> where to get a patch.
> >
> >
> >IME Forté do not release official patches. If Forté were to release
> >something, it would be a new build.
>
> So is this expiration date problem fixed in Agent v8.x ?

There is no Agent v8.x yet. (Apart from Agent v8.0
where it is _not_ fixed.)


I have seen no announcement from Forté whether a fix
would [subjunctive] be in v8.1 or v9.0 (if at all).


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[Bill Dugan]

On Sun, 11 Jun 2017 09:38:51 +1200, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid>
wrote:

The Agent news bulletins on the Forte site don't show anything after
01-Aug-2015. Is there anyplace else to look for announcements?

[pyotr filipivich]

Bill Dugan <wkd...@ix.netcom.com> on Sun, 11 Jun 2017 06:43:53 -0700

typed in alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified the
following:

Not a good sign.

[DrTeeth]

On Sun, 11 Jun 2017 09:16:42 -0700, just as I was about to take a
herb, pyotr filipivich <ph...@mindspring.com> disturbed my reverie and
wrote:

>Not a good sign.
The site goes like that from time to time and messages start being
posted about Forte going out of business and then another version
appears.

I think it is strange that they do not see fit to release minor fixes
between major releases as no software is perfect. At least it would
stop the speculation about what is happening at Forte.

[Christopher A. Lee]

On Sat, 17 Jun 2017 17:58:08 +0100, DrTeeth <no-e...@tardis.com>
wrote:

>On Sun, 11 Jun 2017 09:16:42 -0700, just as I was about to take a
>herb, pyotr filipivich <ph...@mindspring.com> disturbed my reverie and
>wrote:
>
>>Not a good sign.
>The site goes like that from time to time and messages start being
>posted about Forte going out of business and then another version
>appears.
>
>I think it is strange that they do not see fit to release minor fixes
>between major releases as no software is perfect. At least it would
>stop the speculation about what is happening at Forte.

I used to buy the new versions, even if I didn't need the latest
features, because I wanted them to stay in business and fix problems.

But I didn't go to Agent 8 because I didn't need megajoin.

I'd upgrade to a future version 9 if that fixed the problem, even
though I applied the fix to 7 (thanks, Ralph).

[pyotr filipivich]

DrTeeth <no-e...@tardis.com> on Sat, 17 Jun 2017 17:58:08 +0100 typed
in alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified the following:

>On Sun, 11 Jun 2017 09:16:42 -0700, just as I was about to take a
>herb, pyotr filipivich <ph...@mindspring.com> disturbed my reverie and
>wrote:
>
>>Not a good sign.
>The site goes like that from time to time and messages start being
>posted about Forte going out of business and then another version
>appears.
>
>I think it is strange that they do not see fit to release minor fixes
>between major releases as no software is perfect. At least it would
>stop the speculation about what is happening at Forte.

Long time between updates, or even minor fixes is one thing.

But when the latest news is from last year - or longer - one
wonders about the company. Company I was at, nothing new in the news,
despite getting new machines. I know they were running at full
capacity - and a bit beyond - but no news means nobody pays attention.
And when the current contracts run out? Then what? Who knew you were
still in business?

[DrTeeth]

On Sun, 18 Jun 2017 10:56:08 +0200, just as I was about to take a
herb, Martin <m...@address.invalid> disturbed my reverie and wrote:

>Who was the person in Forte, who replied to your e-mail? IME a real person from
>Forte has always e-mailed me, not an auto-responder.

But how do you *know* that a person in Forte replied? Fact is that you
cannot be sure of that just like you cannot be sure that a celeb
writes their own Twitter postings.

[pyotr filipivich]

Martin <m...@address.invalid> on Sun, 18 Jun 2017 10:56:08 +0200 typed
in alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified the following:
>On Sat, 17 Jun 2017 10:42:42 -0700, pyotr filipivich <ph...@mindspring.com>
>wrote:

>Who was the person in Forte, who replied to your e-mail? IME a real person from
>Forte has always e-mailed me, not an auto-responder.

Dang - I can't find it. - one more thing I can't find tonight.

As for a shell script not having a name attached - Betty Crocker
was fictional. So was Ann Landers. So having an email which doesn't
say "from the autorresponder bot" doesn't prove it was a human being.

[Ralph Fox]

On Mon, 26 Jun 2017 17:49:54 -0500, g...@rr.com wrote:

> Will this work on Agent 6? I am OK with my version of Agent 6 but
> would like the filters to work.


For the Agent 6 fix, see these two posts from Roger in this thread.

From: Roger <inv...@invalid.invalid>
Subject: Re: Agent filter expiry problem - Fix
Date: Wed, 08 Mar 2017 10:35:16 +0000
Message-ID: <knmvbctkgl15ake6v...@4ax.com>
X-Newsreader: Forte Agent 6.00/32.1186


From: Roger <inv...@invalid.invalid>
Subject: Re: Agent filter expiry problem - Fix
Date: Thu, 09 Mar 2017 10:47:54 +0000
Message-ID: <r9c2ccho3jdvl7pf7...@4ax.com>
X-Newsreader: Forte Agent 6.00/32.1186



--
Kind regards
Ralph
🦊

[Ralph Fox]

Patch for Agent 3.3


TO MODIFY VERSION 3.3 OF AGENT.EXE

Open Agent 3.3's agent.exe file in your hex editor. Search for
the hex-values "C6 45 FC 02 6A 01 6A 01 68 CB 07 00 00 8D 8D".

You will find these bytes at offsets 001DD853 thru 001DD861:

When you find it, change the byte at offset 001DD85C from

'CB' to 'E1', like this:

Screen-shot: ---> <https://postimg.cc/9RMLJWsh>

Do not change any other bytes from 'CB' to 'E1'. Change only the

one byte at offset 001DD85C.


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[s|b]

On Sun, 27 Oct 2019 14:55:34 +0000, Anthony R. Gold wrote:

> Will you share any hints on the purpose for or benefit from doing that?

| Subject: Agent filter expiry problem - Fix
| Message-ID: <76ssbcdthqdhustaq...@4ax.com>

--
s|b

[pyotr filipivich]

"Anthony R. Gold" <not-fo...@ahjg.co.uk> on Sun, 27 Oct 2019
14:55:34 +0000 typed in alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified
the following:

>Will you share any hints on the purpose for or benefit from doing that?

Short form: Agent uses a counter from Day1 for setting having
temporary filters expire. Rather than have the filter expire on
"$today +30", it expired them "$Number of Days since Day1 + 30"
Not a serious problem until "$Number of Days since Day1" =
Maximum, and adding anything rolled it over to Zero.
This is a patch to change "Day1" to a more recent date. It will
still fail in another umpteen days, when the counter "$Number of Days
since Day1" again reaches MaxInt. By which time, either there will be
an upgrade from Forte, or we'll all be dead.

[Ralph Fox]

On Sun, 27 Oct 2019 16:31:48 -0700, pyotr filipivich wrote:

> This is a patch to change "Day1" to a more recent date. It will
> still fail in another umpteen days, when the counter "$Number of Days
> since Day1" again reaches MaxInt. By which time, either there will be
> an upgrade from Forte, or we'll all be dead.

It would still fail in 2039, if Agent were still working in 2039.
But Agent will have stopped working a year earlier, in 2038, for
other reasons [^1].

That is assuming Windows in 2038 will still run Agent and other
ANSI, 32-bit programs. MacOS 10.15 Catalina has already dropped
support for 32-bit programs [^2], and Windows is slowly running
down support for ANSI programs [^3].

____
REFERENCES

[^1] <https://groups.google.com/d/msg/alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent/7iTCkAe-45E/GU09FkXrwBUJ>
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_2038_problem>
<https://groups.google.com/d/msg/alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent/_9vlToMsPNA/TVb7vJ6-3uYJ>

[^2] <https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208436>

[^3] <http://archives.miloush.net/michkap/archive/2006/10/24/867880.html>
<https://devblogs.microsoft.com/oldnewthing/20081106-00/?p=20303>


--
Kind regards
Ralph

[pyotr filipivich]

Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid> on Mon, 28 Oct 2019 16:14:23 +1300 typed
in alt.usenet.offline-reader.forte-agent.modified the following:

>On Sun, 27 Oct 2019 16:31:48 -0700, pyotr filipivich wrote:
>
>> This is a patch to change "Day1" to a more recent date. It will
>> still fail in another umpteen days, when the counter "$Number of Days
>> since Day1" again reaches MaxInt. By which time, either there will be
>> an upgrade from Forte, or we'll all be dead.
>
>
>It would still fail in 2039, if Agent were still working in 2039.
>But Agent will have stopped working a year earlier, in 2038, for
>other reasons [^1].

Fnord. Wait, 18 more years? I think I'll keep the old box. Maybe
time to buy a backup Win 7 box (or two) to store away against the
future.

Nerts.